Alex Wong/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Access to abortions, which the Supreme Court legalized 45 years ago, is still being fought over, with advocates from either side of the issue arguing for their cause. The landmark Roe v. Wade case was decided on Jan. 22, 1973, with the highest court in the land affirming the right that women have to privacy, as granted by the 14th Amendment, which extends to medical decisions including abortions. Since then, however, numerous laws have been enacted at the state level restricting some access to abortions. "Roe is still the law of the land but because anti-choice politicians have enacted hundreds of laws that restrict access to abortion, the right to get an abortion isnt a reality for many women," said Jen Dalven, the director of the American Civil Liberty Union's Reproductive Freedom Project. The Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive rights research group that previously operated under Planned Parenthood, notes that 43 states prohibit abortions after a certain point in the pregnancy, typically after a certain number of weeks into the pregnancy ranging from 20 to 24 weeks. There are 35 states that require that a woman receive counseling before an abortion is performed, according to the Guttmacher Institute, while 14 states require a woman to receive an ultrasound before being given an abortion, a move that the Guttmacher Institute calls "a veiled attempt to personify the fetus and dissuade a woman from obtaining an abortion." And there are more battles to come, including a ballot initiative that will be included in the November 2018 ballot in Alabama where voters are asked to decide whether or not to amend the state's constitution to support "the sanctity of unborn life and the rights of unborn children" and to not protect the right to abortion or require funding of abortions. The Guttmacher Institute states there were 401 state-level abortion restrictions enacted from 2011 through 2017. Jeanne Mancini, the president of the education and defense fund at the anti-abortion rights group March for Life, pointed to that data as well and cited various parental notification and consent laws, among others, as a victory. Danielle Wells, a Planned Parenthood for America spokesperson, said that their group was optimistic because of the grassroots activity they have seen in the past year, citing the turnout at both the 2017 and this years Womens March. She said that recent years have brought an onslaught of attacks on peoples rights and freedoms, and at the same time we've seen a historic groundswell of support for people's health and rights and Planned Parenthood and at every turn we've seen the resistance growing stronger. Of Planned Parenthood's current roster of about 11 million supporters, Wells said that 1.5 million of those joined within the last year. "That energy has translated into tangible gains and policies at the state level," Wells told ABC News. While Wells is excited about the support from the people at large, Mancini is optimistic about the support of one person in particular. She hopes to see more abortion-restricting legislation moving through during the Trump administration, citing how she feels President Donald Trump has kept "all" of his promises on the issue thus far. "In terms of public policy in defense of the unborn, he's been quite good and we have every expectation that he will continue to be so," Mancini said. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. Global Piperine Market Trends, Drivers, Strategies, Segmentation Application, Technology & Market Analysis Research Report to 2020 http://www.qyreports.com/request-sample/?report-id=12073 http://www.qyreports.com/ask-for-discount/?report-id=12073 http://www.qyreports.com/report/global-and-china-piperine-market-size-industry-research-report-to-2020-12073/ www.qyreports.com The report evaluates the figures of the global Piperine market and presents reliable forecasts as to the markets growth prospects over the coming years. The historical development trajectory of the global Piperine market is examined in the report, offering solid factual support to the analysis and estimations presented in the report. The geographical and competitive dynamics of this global market are also presented in the report, helping deliver a comprehensive picture of the market.The research report estimates the Global Piperine Market in an all-encompassing manner by explaining the prime characteristics of the market that is expected to have a measurable influence on its progressive scenarios over the projected period. The major growth drivers, limitations, and inclinations influencing the global market are scrutinized. The report also presents a comprehensive qualitative and quantitative data relating to the predictable impact of these factors on markets future growth projections.Get Sample Copy of this Report:Key players:Sabinsa Corporation, Ciyuan Biotechnology, Tianben Biological, KinGreen Bio-Engineering Technology, SUPTEK, Acetar, Shanxi Huike Botanical Development, Nanjing Spring Autumn, Bio-Technology, Honghao Bio-TechThis report studies Piperine market, especially in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa and Latin America and focuses on top manufacturers in the global market. They considered the production, revenue, capacity, price and market share for each manufacturer in detail.Microeconomic and macroeconomic factors which affect the Piperine market and its growth, both positive and negative, are also studied. The report features the impact of these factors on the ongoing market throughout the mentioned forecast period. The upcoming changing trends, factors driving as well as restricting the growth of the market are mentioned.Avail 30% Discount on this Report@:The report on the global Piperine market is a meticulous piece of work and is assembled by leading both primary as well as secondary research. The data included in the report has been taken by consulting high-quality references, case studies, press releases, and by taking inputs from top industry leaders. The top segments in the market have been highlighted clearly in this report for the readers to understand in a precised manner. These segments have been presented by giving information on their current and predicted state by the end of the forecast period. The information presented would help the upcoming players to gauge the investment scope within the segments and sub-segments of the global Piperine market.Various factors are responsible for the markets growth trajectory, which are studied at length in the report. In addition, the report lists down the restraints that are posing threat to the global Piperine market. It also estimates the bargaining power of suppliers and buyers, threat from new entrants and product substitute, and the degree of competition prevailing in the market. The influence of the latest government guidelines is also analyzed in detail in the report. It studies the Piperine markets trajectory between forecast periods.Get Complete Report@:About QYReports:We at, QYReports , a leading market research report publisher accommodate more than 4,000 celebrated clients worldwide putting them at advantage in todays competitive world with our understanding of research. Our list of customers include prestigious Chinese companies, multinational companies, SME's and private equity firms whom we have helped grow and sustain with our fact-based research. Our business study covers a market size of over 30 industries offering unfailing insights into analysis to reimagine your business. We specialize in forecasts needed for investing in a new project, to revolutionize your business, to become more customer centric and improve the quality of output.Contact:QYReportsJones John(Sales Manager)+91-9764607607sales@qyreports.com Alginates Market Analysis, Market Size, Application, Regional Outlook, Competitive Strategies and Forecasts, 2017 to 2021 http://www.qyreports.com/request-sample/?report-id=12512 http://www.qyreports.com/ask-for-discount/?report-id=12512 http://www.qyreports.com/report/united-states-alginates-market-report-2021-12512/ www.qyreports.com Alginates are type of hydrocolloids which are extracted from brown seaweed. It has different functional properties such as thickening agent, ability to form gel and its usage to form films of sodium and calcium. Alginate has varieties of application in food, textile, printing, dyeing, pharmaceutical and in cosmetic industry. Apart from this, it also has application as binding agent for welding rods and in preparing animal feed. Europe and Asia Pacific dominates the alginate market over the forecast period in terms of volume.Key market drivers which influence the demand of alginate in market is from the food and beverage manufacturers due to its functional properties such as thickening agent, gelling agent, stabilizer, emulsifier and film-forming property. Reason behind its increasing demand in food industry is due to its extraction from natural seaweeds, one of safest food additive in food industry and also certified by FAO/WHO. Food and beverage manufacturers primarily used alginate as thickening agent and texture-improver. On the other side, it is also gaining its demand from textile industry as it is primarily used for printing, designing and dyeing on cotton and jute fabrics.Get Sample Copy of this Report:Key players:FMC, KIMICA, Cargill, Dupont (Danisco), Bright Moon Group, Gather Great Ocean, Jiejing Group, Tiantian Seaweed, Huanyu Seaweed, Topp Corporation, Yantai Xinwang, Fengrun Seaweed, Zhouji Chemicals , Huanghai Biological, Allforlong Bio-techThis report studies Alginates market, especially in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa and Latin America and focuses on top manufacturers in the global market. They considered the production, revenue, capacity, price and market share for each manufacturer in detail.Microeconomic and macroeconomic factors which affect the Alginates market and its growth, both positive and negative, are also studied. The report features the impact of these factors on the ongoing market throughout the mentioned forecast period. The upcoming changing trends, factors driving as well as restricting the growth of the market are mentioned.Avail 30% Discount on this Report@:The report on the global Alginates market is a meticulous piece of work and is assembled by leading both primary as well as secondary research. The data included in the report has been taken by consulting high-quality references, case studies, press releases, and by taking inputs from top industry leaders. The top segments in the market have been highlighted clearly in this report for the readers to understand in a precised manner. These segments have been presented by giving information on their current and predicted state by the end of the forecast period. The information presented would help the upcoming players to gauge the investment scope within the segments and sub-segments of the global Alginates market.Various factors are responsible for the markets growth trajectory, which are studied at length in the report. In addition, the report lists down the restraints that are posing threat to the global Alginates market. It also estimates the bargaining power of suppliers and buyers, threat from new entrants and product substitute, and the degree of competition prevailing in the market. The influence of the latest government guidelines is also analyzed in detail in the report. It studies the Alginates markets trajectory between forecast periods.Get Complete Report@:About QYReports:We at, QYReports , a leading market research report publisher accommodate more than 4,000 celebrated clients worldwide putting them at advantage in todays competitive world with our understanding of research. Our list of customers include prestigious Chinese companies, multinational companies, SME's and private equity firms whom we have helped grow and sustain with our fact-based research. Our business study covers a market size of over 30 industries offering unfailing insights into analysis to reimagine your business. We specialize in forecasts needed for investing in a new project, to revolutionize your business, to become more customer centric and improve the quality of output.Contact:QYReportsJones John(Sales Manager)+91-9764607607sales@qyreports.com Injuries and turnovers plague the chances for JLHS football to get their first win Lezyne Bells and Lights Anyone for a bell? New Lezyne Power Drive 1100 light with optional battery pack, that also houses a USB port for charging other electronic devices. Cane Creek Do you need to go lower? Maxxis Here is the comparison, can you spot the difference? Reynolds Bernard Kerr Wheels Extra beefiness to survive a hammering Fizik Fizik has launched the new Luna saddle for female mountain bikers and is available in two widths, 141 and 153mm. CrankBrothers CrankBrothers has overhauled its Candy mid-size pedal CrankBrothers is sponsoring the Syndicate team and has produced this signature edition f15 multi-tool There are longer pin options for Stamp flat pedals Fabric The Speedsleev tucks an inner tube into a nook Tyre levers and CO2 at the ready The Fabric Cageless bottle works well in tight spaces The surface has lots of volcano-like dimples that compress when you squeeze your hand around the grip Token How light can you go? POC Carbon DH Helmet Coming Soon Exposure Sync Bluetooth Light App Need to adjust your lights? There's an app for that now Endura One-piece jacket and trousers, the start of a new trend? Endura will be offering waterproof socks later this year, with various lengths to choose from Hard To Ignore e-Bikes At Bike Shows This Mondraker e-Crafty XR+ almost blends in... This new Fantic, not so much Yeti Gloves Someone has been playing silly buggers with the glove display on the Yeti stand Reverb Dropper On A Road Bike? The cool camo paint job was just for the show, you can't buy it Press this paddle and... ...you can lower your seat. Kona If the first batch of Tech Randoms from Core Bike Show wasn't enough to satisfy you, here's another trawl around the garishly carpeted hotel and some more interesting new products coming soon to a bike shop near you.Lezyne has added a range of brass bicycle bells to its range, in case you want to be heard when riding on shared trails. Three sizes available and they all make a slightly different sound so you can play a tune. ProbablyBrand new from Cane Creek is the Slamset, a low profile headset that reduces the stack height by 5mm, useful for any bike with tall headtube if you need to get the front end and handlebar height a bit lower.Maxxis has just dropped the price of all its tires measuring 2.6 and above and all wire bead tires by 35% in the UK, which is interesting enough. But how does a Minion DHF 2.5 WT on a 35mm rim measure up compared to a Minion 2.8in tire on a 50mm rim?Reynolds had their Bernard Kerr signature wheelset on display, wheels that were developed especially to meet the demands of riders like Kerr. They have the same profile, and indeed come out of the same mold, as the companys existing enduro rims, but they have beefed up the carbon fiber layup to increase the strength and durability. Along with an increase in spoke count from 28 to 32, the weight has gone up about 200g. Theyve apparently passed Kerrs testing with flying colors; hes still riding the first set of seven they sent him, saying he hasnt broken them yet. They cost 2,150.Popular with XC and trail riders, the Candy pedal range has been updated and has a new slightly larger pedal to work better with the latest shoe designs, and a new central traction pad to increase grip when clipped in. The top-end pedals have the same clip-in inserts like weve seen previously on the Mallet pedals.Cannondale and Fabric have got you covered if you want to strap tools, inner tubes and CO2 canisters to your frame, as demonstrated on this Jekyll.There was no shortage of new grips at the show. These are the new AM Grip with Micro-Hex Technology from Fabric.Ill just leave this one here Token carbon fiber thru-axles. Yes, I did just write carbon thru-axles.We've heard a rumor that POC could be launching a carbon fiber version of the Coron helmet that Paul tested last year. It may be available in March and that's about all we know for now.Exposure Lights has been busy developing an app to use Bluetooth to wirelessly control its new Diablo light. The app lets you choose from six default brightness and max/low settings, as well as two user programmable settings, so you could tweak the brightness settings to perfectly suit your night ride requirements. The new Diablo also gets a lumen upgrade from 1500 to 1850. Theres also a new remote control button you can attach to the handlebars so you dont always have to dig your phone out of your pocket.Stop the press! Endura has developed a onesie. Theyve taken an MT500 jacket and MT500 trousers and blended them together, with a reinforced seat area, full front zipper so the jacket works like a normal jacket, and zipped vents all over the place. The bottom of the trouser legs can be zipped off. Itll cost 400 when its available, probably in September. Paul Aston will have the enviable task of testing it, since he tested the DirtLej last year. Never seen a RockShox Reverb on a road bike? Well, you have now. This is new British brand Vielos all-road bike, designed to be able to tackle dirt tracks as well as smooth roads, but whats really interesting is that theyve hooked up the Reverb dropper post to the SRAM trigger shifter that is redundant because of the bike's 1x11 gearing.27.5 wheels arent just the preserve of mountain bikes, seems road bikes are getting in on the action, such as this Kona Rove kitted out for an adventure with loads of storage bags strapped to it. A flock of sheep is posing a security threat to the U.S. military base in Romania so read a headline which trended in Russian media and social networks on January 17. For entire day, the Romanian sheep were a focus of attention of government-owned press outlets like RIA Novosti and Rossiyskaya Gazeta the sensationalist Life.ru and many others. The facts of the story seem to be true, and are centered around a stubborn man named Dumitru Bleja and his 250 sheep. Blejas farm in Deveselu, southern Romania, is located about 10 meters from the fence of the U.S. military base that is hosting an anti-missile defense system. For more than three years, he has been fighting in court against the Romanian defense ministry, which is demanding that he move his farm away from the U.S. bases security zone. The mystery, however, is why the Romanian sheep were, for a day, elevated to a place next to Vladimir Putin in the headlines of Russias mainstream media. The answer lies in Russias National Security Strategy, signed into law by Putin in 2015, which, among other things, determines information policy and topic priorities for government-owned media. Thus, ironically, thanks to Russias furious opposition to the United States and NATO increasing security measures in Europe the Romanian sheep became a matter of Russias national security interest and thereby earned a top spot in the headlines of the countrys mainstream media. On Wednesday, Romanias highest court ruled against Dumitru Bleja for building a shelter for his sheep without a permit, but has not made a decision on whether the farmer must take it down. Get the SC business stories that matter. Our newsletter catches you up with all the business stories that are shaping Charleston and South Carolina every Monday and Thursday at noon. Get ahead with us - it's free. Editorials represent the institutional view of the newspaper. They are written and edited by the editorial staff, which operates separately from the news department. Editorial writers are not involved in newsroom operations. Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley (at left) congratulates current Gov. Henry McMaster after he was sworn in by S.C. Chief Justice Don Beatty during a ceremonial swearing in at the Statehouse on Tuesday Jan. 24, 2017, in Columbia. At right is McMaster's wife Peggy. Haley resigned as governor after she became ambassador to the United Nations. File/Mic Smith/AP PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 08:03:03 Absolutely: Acquisition of 3D Couriers For further information, please contact: Buchanan Alex Brown/ Catriona Flint/ Henry Wilson Tel: +44 (0)207 466 5000 Absolutely@buchanan.uk.com Absolutely (the Company), one of the UKs longest established courier companies, is pleased to announce the acquisition of 3D Couriers (3D) for an undisclosed sum. 3D is a specialist courier company operating from Fitzrovia, London, offering same-day, next-day & international delivery services. This transaction is in line with the Companys growth strategy and follows the acquisition of MayDH in May 2017. 3D was established in 2003 and currently has an annual turnover of c.2m. A London-based same-day delivery focused courier brand with international delivery capabilities, their range of delivery vehicles include push bikes, motor bikes, cargo bikes and vans. 3D is dedicated to the highest standards of customer service, professionalism and the latest in courier technology - key values that echo the Absolutely brand. Further, the range of services and expertise of 3D will also complement the services and expertise offered by Absolutely and enhance the market position of the enlarged group. Absolutely will acquire 3Ds corporate accounts and fleet of vehicles. The business will continue to operate under its existing 3D brand in the short-term with the same team of experienced professionals to ensure a seamless transition. The management team of 3D will remain with the business following acquisition. Jeremy Thompson, Managing Director of Absolutely says: We are delighted to have acquired 3D Couriers and look forward to welcoming their experienced team into the business. The clear dedication to exceptional customer service shown by 3D Couriers directly correlates with our own daily working ethos at Absolutely. The well-known same-day delivery expertise of the 3D team will be an important additional asset for Absolutely to further enhance our proposition for our clients. The transaction precisely aligns with our stated ambition to expand by carefully chosen complementary acquisitions over the coming years. This acquisition represents a fantastic addition to the business. Doug Hutchinson, Managing Director of 3D Couriers says: Absolutely is a long-established and well-managed business and was an obvious choice for 3D due to the clear synergies between our organisations. I look forward to ensuring a smooth transition for our staff and clients over the coming weeks and Im very excited to be joining the Absolutely team. - END - About Absolutely Absolutely is a family run business with a heritage stretching back to 1865. Across its courier operations, the Company employs c.100 people from 3 London locations. Absolutely now comprises over 250 couriers and more than 5000 corporate accounts ranging from well-known fashion brands to law firms. The Company provides the following services: Same day delivery Next day delivery International delivery Further details on Absolutely can be found on: www.askabsolutely.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/201801220064 PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 15:08:02 Exponentially growing Calldorado makes first major brand acquisition in second year of operation Ad-tech Company Calldorado Acquires App Publishing House CIAmedia Calldorado ApS Christopher Humphrey, VP of Marketing +45 31 15 98 88 chu@calldorado.com Danish-based ad tech firm Calldorado has expanded its reach in the app economy by acquiring the Austrian app publisher CIAmedia for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition comes after a successful period of cooperation between the two companies and is a natural next step on Calldorados path of accelerated growth. By acquiring CIAmedia and its portfolio of high quality apps, we are extending the Calldorado value chain. Calldorado and CIAmedia have been in cooperation before, and CIAmedias focus on Android apps within the Communication and Tools categories is a perfect fit with our mobile advertising technology, says Claudia Dreier-Poepperl, CEO and Founder of Calldorado. Calldorados vision is to be the worlds number one provider of call-based advertising technology, and by owning and operating a portfolio of relevant apps we are better positioned to realize this vision. CIAmedia was established 2013 in Vienna, Austria. CIAmedia owns and operates the highly successful app acquisition brand Appsbuyout.vc and has built up a strong portfolio of 80 high quality apps with high user engagement and very good LTV (life time value). Appsbuyout has a proven track record of efficient app M&A, and app portfolio management. Calldorados acquisition of CIAmedia, and subsequently Appsbuyout.vc, has a deeper strategic significance than simply acquiring a formidable app portfolio. Calldorado now covers the full app value chain, from conception and development, through monetization and growth, to trading. Calldorados business model has been so successful that it was in a position to acquire CIAmedia within its second year of operation despite being a self-funded company with no backing from Venture Capital. About Calldorado Calldorado is the global leader in call-based advertising technology. The company offers its mobile advertising SDK to app owners free of charge. With their patented technology, Calldorado enables publishers to put their app features into the spotlight with every phone call a user makes or receives as well as to generate substantial revenue. Calldorado was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Copenhagen, Denmark. ### View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/201801230059 PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 11:01:02 Paris - 23rd January 2017 - Atos, a leader in digital transformation, today announces that its Evidian IAM Suite has been positioned by European analyst KuppingerCole as a leader in its latest Leadership Compass on Identity Provisioning report in all four Leadership ratings: Overall, Product, Innovation and Market. This KuppingerCole Identity Provisioning Leadership Compass report assesses 27 global providers that deliver and operate Identity Provisioning services. It focuses on solutions with strong support for Identity Provisioning with some baseline Access Governance capabilities. It analyses the complete Evidian Identity Governance and Administration (IGA) offerings and its degree of Identity Provisioning support. The report highlights the following strengths of Evidian IAM Suite: Established product with good feature set in core functionality Suite provides strong SSO and Access Management capabilities Integrated offering with a consistent concept for managing identities and access The Evidian IAM range provides identity and access management from start to finish. It is scalable, allowing application for a large number of users, resources, organizations and devices. It enables business to provide its users with password-free easy, secure and autonomous access to critical resources while meeting compliance demands. Atos will be showing its cybersecurity solutions on booth A14 at the International Cybersecurity Forum (FIC) on 23-24 January 2018 at the Grand Palais in Lille. ### About Atos Atos is a global leader in digital transformation with approximately 100,000 employees in 72 countries and annual revenue of around 12 billion. The European number one in Big Data, Cybersecurity, High Performance Computing and Digital Workplace, The Group provides Cloud services, Infrastructure & Data Management, Business & Platform solutions, as well as transactional services through Worldline, the European leader in the payment industry. With its cutting-edge technologies, digital expertise and industry knowledge, Atos supports the digital transformation of its clients across various business sectors: Defense, Financial Services, Health, Manufacturing, Media, Energy & Utilities, Public sector, Retail, Telecommunications and Transportation. The Group is the Worldwide Information Technology Partner for the Olympic & Paralympic Games and operates under the brands Atos, Atos Consulting, Atos Worldgrid, Bull, Canopy, Unify and Worldline. Atos SE (Societas Europaea) is listed on the CAC40 Paris stock index. About KuppingerCole Founded in 2004, KuppingerCole is a European analyst company specialising in information security focusing on identity management, in classic environments and the cloud. KuppingerCole provides expertise, thought leadership, and an independent vision of information security in these market segments. It covers all pertinent aspects such as identity and access management (IAM), governance, risk management and compliance (GRC), IT risk management, authentication and authorisation, unique authentication, federation, user-based identity management, eID cards, Cloud management and security, and virtualisation. For more information on KuppingerCole: www.kuppingercole.com Press contact: Laura Fau - laura.fau@atos.net - +33 6 73 64 04 18 @laurajanefau This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: ATOS via Globenewswire Minimally invasive and small incision replacement surgery is an evolving area with improved rehabilitation and pain management to accelerate post-surgery recovery. Bone Replacement Products Market PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 11:20:38 Press Information Coherent Market Insights 1001 4th Ave, #3200 Seattle, WA 98154 Mr.Shah CEO 2067016702 email https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com # 772 Words 1001 4th Ave,#3200Seattle, WA 98154CEO2067016702 The Global Bone Replacement Products Market, by Product Type (Hip Replacement, Knee Replacement, Trauma and Extremities, and Spine Replacement), by Material (Metals, Ceramics, Plastics, and Combination of Materials), by End User (Hospitals, Orthopedic Clinics, and Ambulatory Surgical Centers), and by Region (North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa) was valued at US$ 31.7 billion in 2016 and is projected to exhibit a CAGR of 4.4% over the forecast period (2017 2025), as highlighted in a new report published by Coherent Market Insights. The development of patient-specific hip implants considering the anatomic individuality or extremely difficult reconstructive cases of patients is a major factor propelling the demand for hip replacement products. For instance, Zimmer Biomets patient-matched implant (PMI) department works directly with surgeons to address the most severe cases of bone loss or deformity.Request to download and view Sample Report: https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/request-sample/1049 Growing preference for minimally invasive procedures to propel growth of marketMinimally invasive and small incision replacement surgery is an evolving area with improved rehabilitation and pain management to accelerate post-surgery recovery. Increasing adoption of minimally invasive techniques by professionals, owing to long-term benefits is expected to propel growth of the bone replacement products market. Moreover, benefits of minimally invasive replacement procedure have been reported to include less damage to soft tissues, leading to a quick and less painful recovery.Rising number of bone tumors and trauma cases is expected to accelerate the demand for bone replacement productsTreatment of bone cancers with surgical procedures involves replacement of cancerous bone by bone replacement products or implants. Thus, increasing incidence of bone cancers such as osteosarcoma, chondrosarcoma, and Ewings sarcoma, which require bone replacement, is in turn expected to propel growth of the bone replacement products market. According to the American Society of Clinical Oncology, 2014, bone sarcomas account for 0.2% of all malignancies globally with the incidence rate for bone and joint malignancies to be 0.9 per 100,000 people annually, in the U.S. Furthermore, increasing cases of bone fracture trauma due to fall, motor vehicle accident or sports, require medical intervention (orthopedics) thus, augmenting the demand for bone replacement products. According to the National Trauma Institute, in 2014, traumatic injury is the major cause of death globally with the major share of road injury (29.1%) and falls (11.6%).Request a Customization: https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/insight/request-customization/1049 The market players are engaged in strategic acquisitions and collaborations to increase the portfolio diversification and to introduce exciting new platform technologies. For instance, in 2015, United Orthopedic Corporation collaborated with Shinva Medical Instrument Co., Ltd and New China Life Health Co., Ltd. to expand the sales of bone replacement products in China. Furthermore, in 2016, Zimmer acquired LDR Holding Corporation to enhance innovation and growth of their spine segment. The production of innovative products with research and development activities is expected to enhance the competitive environment among the manufacturers. For instance, in 2015, B. Braun Melsungen AG launched a new 7-layer advanced surface technology with zirconium nitride coated on knee implant to improve its mechanical properties and biocompatibility, thus reducing wear rate by 65%.Key Takeaways of the Bone Replacement Products Market:The global bone replacement products market is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 4.4% over the forecast period, owing to the presence of high potential market especially in Asia Pacific, Latin America, the Middle East, and AfricaAmong materials, the combination of materials segment holds a dominant position in the market, as these material implants have enhanced wear resistant and biocompatible properties as compared to the other materialsAmong end user, the ambulatory surgical centers segment is expected to hold a dominant position in the bone replacement products market, owing to the minimal requirement of prolonged postoperative monitoring and hospital stayBrowse 45 Market Data Tables and 40 Figures spread through 230 Pages and in-depth TOC on Bone Replacement Products Market- Global Forecast to 2025Some of the major players operating in the global bone replacement products market are Zimmer Biomet Holdings, Inc., B. Braun Melsungen AG, Stryker Corporation, Smith & Nephew Plc, United Orthopedic Corporation, Depuy Synthes, Medtronic Plc., Japan Medical Dynamic Marketing, Inc., JRI Orthopedics, Exactech, Inc., and Mathys.To know more about the Bone Replacement Products Market, click the link below: https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/market-insight/bone-replacement-products-market-1049 About Coherent Market Insights:Coherent Market Insights is a prominent market research and consulting firm offering action-ready syndicated research reports, custom market analysis, consulting services, and competitive analysis through various recommendations related to emerging market trends, technologies, and potential absolute dollar opportunity.Contact Us:Mr. ShahCoherent Market Insights1001 4th Ave,#3200Seattle, WA 98154Tel: +1-206-701-6702Email: sales@ coherentmarketinsights.com Visit our news Website: http://www.coherentnews.com Crop Protection Pesticides Market: Global Market Estimation, Dynamics, Regional Share, Trends, Competitor Analysis 2012 to 2016 and Forecast 2017 to 2023 Crop Protection Pesticides Market PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 09:58:31 Press Information Precision Business Insights Precision Business Insights, Kemp House, 152 160 City Road, London EC1V 2NX Satya Lead-Digital Marketing +1-866-598-1553 email https://www.precisionbusinessinsights.com # 775 Words Precision Business Insights,Kemp House,152 160 City Road,London EC1V 2NXLead-Digital Marketing+1-866-598-1553 The Crop Protection Pesticides Market: By Product Type (Insecticides, Herbicides, Fungicides, Others) By Origin (Bio Pesticides, Synthetic) By Mode of Application (Soil Treatment, Foliar Spray, Seed Treatment) By crop type (Grains and Cereals, Fruits and Vegetable, Pulses and Oilseeds) By Geography (Latin America, North America, Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa and Europe) Crop Protection Pesticides Market Estimation, Dynamics, Regional Share, Trends, Competitor Analysis 2012 to 2016 and Forecast 2017 to 2023Market Dynamics: Crop Protection Pesticides MarketGrowing awareness among the farmers regarding crop protection pesticides, increase in adoption of innovative agricultural practices is witnessed to accelerate the demand for Crop Protection Pesticides. Rise in prevalence of crop diseases because of pests, innovations in the farming equipment, increase in population globally propels Crop Protection Pesticides market growth. However, lack of awareness among the farmers, stringent regulatory environment, posing bans on usage of pests and unfavourable government subsidies are expected to hinder the growth of the Crop Protection Pesticides market.A sample of this report is available upon request @Market Scope: Crop Protection Pesticides MarketThe Crop Protection Pesticides Market is classified on the basis of origin, type, crop type, mode of application, regionsBased on Origin, market is segmented as Biopesticides SyntheticBased on Type, market is segmented as Insecticides Herbicides Fungicides OthersBased on Crop Type, market is segmented as Cereals and Grains Fruits and Vegetables Pulses and OilseedsBased on Mode of Application, market is segmented as Soil Treatment Foliar Spray Seed TreatmentBased on Region, market is segmented as North America Latin America Europe Asia Pacific The Middle East and AfricaTo view TOC of this report is available upon request @Regional Analysis: Crop Protection Pesticides MarketCrop Protection Pesticides Market is segmented as Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, North America, and The Middle East Africa. North America crop protection pesticides market has a moderate growth rate over the forecast period due to ban on Crop Protection Pesticides by FDA such as carbendazim. However, increase in the farming of cereals, fruits, and vegetables. Rise in R&D for innovation of newer Crop Protection Pesticides, frequent product approvals from EPA, and rise in demand for quality food products are anticipated to fuel the Crop Protection Pesticides market in North America. Moreover, Europe market has a significant share due to development in the farming techniques, increasing the focus on quality products with better yield, and high adoption of newer products are expected to propel the crop protection pesticides market. Asia Pacific has a significant growth due to increase in production and supplying of crop protection pesticides in China. Increase in demand for food products and decrease in arable land due to increased population, and high dependence on agriculture farming are expected to bolster the Crop Protection Pesticides market.Need more information about this report @Competition Assessment: Crop Protection Pesticides MarketSome of the players in Crop Protection Pesticides Market are DuPont (U.S.) Monsanto Company (U.S.) Novozymes (Denmark) Syngenta AG (Switzerland) Akzonoble N.V. (Netherlands) Bayer CropScience AG (Germany) Brandt Consolidated (U.S.) Solvay SA (Belgium) The Dow Chemical Company (U.S.) Croda Chemicals (India) Arysta Life sciences (US)Notable Market Developments In June 2017, Bases crystal crop protection has launched crop protection pesticides in Bangalore namely Apex 50, Abacin, Azotrix, Toggle Plus and Crystorhiza.Key Features of the Report: The report provides granular level information about the market size, regional market share, historic market (2012-2016) and forecast (2017-2023) The report covers in-detail insights about the competitors overview, company share analysis, key market developments, and their key strategies The report outlines drivers, restraints, unmet needs, and trends that are currently affecting the market The report tracks recent innovations, key developments and startups details that are actively working in the market The report provides plethora of information about market entry strategies, regulatory framework and reimbursement scenario The report analyses the impact of socio-political environment through PESTLE Analysis and competition through Porters Five Force Analysis in addition to recent technology advancements and innovations in the marketGet access to full summary @About Precision Business InsightsPrecision Business Insights is one of the leading market research and business consulting firm, which follow a holistic approach to solve needs of the clients. We adopt and implement proven research methodologies to achieve better results. We help our clients by providing actionable insights and strategies to make better decisions. We provide consulting, syndicated and customised market research services based on our client needs.Email: sales@ precisionbusinessinsights.com PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 14:03:02 VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cuba Ventures Corp. (TSX-V:CUV) (Frankfurt:IJA2) (OTCBB:MPSFF) (the "Company") - is pleased to announce that further to the September 19th, 2017 signed letter of intent ("LOI"), it has signed a formal consulting agreement with Bhavnani Corporation and welcomes CEO Dileep Bhavnani as an advisor to the company. Bhavnani Corporation has accumulated a worldwide reputation, through its honorary president and legendary European stock market investor, Mr. Ram Bhavnani. Mr. Dileep Bhavnani, son of the famed investor, is an important addition to the company's advisory board. About BHAVNANI CORPORATION BHAVNANI CORPORATION holds equity in numerous technology companies bringing value to its technology and IT focused subsidiaries from its position as a significant shareholder and its active participation in the Boards of Directors and, in other governing bodies of these companies. BHAVNANI CORPORATION invests in companies with high potential, strong management teams, with great financial strength and flexibility and with a proven competitive advantage in their relevant sectors. In addition, the stock market knowledge and impeccable reputation of its honorary president, Mr. Ram Bhavnani, underlines its continued investment activity. As a result of a series of the high level meetings in Europe in January 2018, Cuba Ventures Corp. has signed a comprehensive consulting and advisory agreement with BHAVNANI CORPORATION. The parties are currently evaluating the opportunities offered by the Cuban market and other key markets related to the Revolupay blockchain remittance and payment app and CCU Coin Cryptotoken. Shareholders are reminded that BHAVNANI executives visited Cuba from 24-29 Sept 2017 and management have met on several occasions since that date to discuss multiple opportunities, both related to current activities of the company and, future opportunities which will be disclosed in due time. About Cuba Ventures Corp.: Cuba Ventures Corp. is a publicly traded Canadian company capitalizing on the growth and unique opportunities in the USD 3.5 billion per year Cuban travel and tourism industry. Travelucion, a wholly owned subsidiary, is a digital media and marketing company which owns a vast portfolio of Cuba related websites and online portals providing Cuba travel information in up to six languages, featuring individual web assets for Cuba's popular cities and towns, online booking solutions and online reservations through proprietary software, catering to international visitors to Cuba. Travelucion's online travel division is a duly licensed retail travel supplier handling millions of dollars in sales annually which was recently awarded a Amadeus GDS distribution license. Cuba Ventures Corp. has acquired an equity interest in a Florida, the USA domiciled, licensed and bonded travel agency which specializes in travel to Cuba. This equity ownership permits the company and, its subsidiary Travelucion, to promote U.S compliant travel packages to American citizens through its equity partner International Business & Travel Opportunities, LLC, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, USA. Travelucion's 432 Cuba focused multilingual websites generate over 35 million page-views per year, directing traffic to the company's online booking and e-commerce sites. These online websites cover all facets of Cuba including over 80 travel destinations, hotels & resorts, bed & breakfast, tours, car rentals, restaurants, as well as Cuban culture, history, music, celebrities, sports, medical treatments and more. Cuba Ventures FinTech division is embracing world renowned entities to bring together a global force to stimulate Cuba's archaic economic systems. Financing of both internal and external debt, CU Coin Cryptotoken and Revolupay blockchain deployment - across the all important private enterprises and remittance industry are primary objectives of this division. Finally, bridge loans for foreign enterprises who receive Cuban bank payment instruments will enable faster transactions and rapid advances in the economy. Cuba Ventures consulting division harnesses over 80 years of combined advisor experience in submitting and, obtaining approval, for joint ventures, joint production agreements, and import/export permits for foreign enterprises. More recently the company has taken a royalty approach for future agreements between third parties anxious to begin commercial operations with Cuba and, the company's Cuba Consulting Unit. Current contractual partnerships include Tyrval, a worldwide hotel industry supplier. Cuba Ventures intends to augment the amount of financially beneficial consulting related businesses. For further information on Cuba Ventures Corp. (TSX-V:CUV) or Travelucion visit the Company's website at www.cubaventures.com or www.travelucion.com. The Company has approximately 109,000,000 shares issued and outstanding. CUBA VENTURES CORP. STEVE MARSHALL ______________________________ Steve Marshall CEO For further information contact myself or: Nick Findler Cuba Ventures Corp. Telephone: 604-639-3850 Toll Free: 800-567-8181 Facsimile: 604-687-3119 Email: info@cubaventures.com NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THE CONTENT OF THIS NEWS RELEASE. This release includes certain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that management of the Company expects, are forward-looking statements. Although management believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements, include market prices, exploration and development successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Please see the public filings of the Company at www.sedar.com for further information. This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Cuba Ventures Corp. via Globenewswire PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 14:55:02 SAN DIEGO, Jan. 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Crown Bioscience, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Crown Bioscience International (TWSE:6554) and a global drug discovery and development services company providing translational platforms to advance oncology, inflammation, cardiovascular and metabolic disease research, will unveil data supporting use of its cost-effective, humanized drug target models at the Tumor Models Conference in San Francisco tomorrow, Wednesday, January 24th, 2018. Humanized research tools are crucial to the development of target-specific immunotherapies like pembrolizumab and ipilimumab. To help improve research in this burgeoning field, CrownBio has developed a humanized platform that informs the preclinical pharmacology of targeted immunotherapies, including solutions for PD-1, PD-L1, OX40, and CD3E. Constituent models feature fully functional murine immunity with humanized drug targets that can be used in conjunction with syngeneic tumor cell lines engineered to express complementary humanized targets. Compelling data will showcase the utility of CrownBio's humanized platform to comprehensively and reliably evaluate targeted immunotherapies, reduce cost of development and shorten experimental timelines. "We are excited to share data on our innovative humanized models with industry at the Tumor Models Conference tomorrow in San Francisco," said Laurie Heilmann, CrownBio's Chief Business Officer. "Our expert scientists have built a revolutionary humanized platform that will help researchers discover and develop targeted immunotherapeutics for cancer faster and more cost-effectively." Dr. Toni Jun, Director of Scientific Engagement at CrownBio, will present data on the characterization, validation, and application of PD-1, PD-L1, OX40, and CD3E models. About Crown Bioscience Inc. CrownBio is a global drug discovery and development solutions company providing translational platforms to advance oncology, inflammation, cardiovascular and metabolic disease research. With an extensive portfolio of relevant models and predictive tools, CrownBio enables clients to deliver superior clinical candidates. Media Enquiries: Jody Barbeau Crown Bioscience Inc. marketing@crownbio.com This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Crown Bioscience Inc. via Globenewswire PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 12:30:01 New customer takes advantage of generous cashback offer to land $80,000 mega win Fair Go Player Wins Big FairGo Casino Media Enquiries Sarah Blackburn T: 0034628499459 Luck is very much in the air at Australias most popular online casino destination, Fair Go Casino, after one player won a massive $80,000 while playing his favourite pokies game, Ghost Ship. The player, who only recently opened an account at Fair Go, took advantage of the operators generous 25% cashback offer and used the money to win $80,000 on Realtime Gamings Ghost Ship pokie. The player, Clive F from South Australia, said: I am a new player at Fair Go Casino, and was impressed by the large range of pokies offered. Ghost Ship is one of my favourites, and I am thrilled to have won such a large amount of money. I was drawn to Fair Go partly because of its generous cashback offer; 25% is much higher than other casinos and I wouldnt have landed my big win without it. Fair Go likes to reward its players with different cashback offers; general cashback is 25%, weekend cashback is 30% and VIP cashback is 40%. Cashback is credited on all customer deposits that dont use a bonus. Rebecca Ryder, General Manager at Fair Go Casino, said: We are thrilled that Clive was able to turn our generous cashback offer into such a massive win. We love it when our new players land mega wins, and with luck very much in the air at Fair Go, it could be you next! Fair Go Casino is available on desktop and mobile, and offers a wide range of payment methods including Visa, MasterCard, Bitcoin and MoneyGram. To learn more about the bonuses and offers currently available on FairGo.com, click here. *** ENDS *** For more information about FairGo Casino: www.fairgocasino.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/201801230057 Fair Go Casino player won a massive $80,000 while playing his favourite pokies game, Ghost Ship PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 15:01:42 FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Far Resources Ltd.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Vancouver, British Columbia (FSCWire) - Far Resources Ltd. (CSE:FAT). has issued a press release with the following headline:Far Resources Acquires Option to Earn Up to 90% Interest in Hidden Lake Project from 92 ResourcesTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Far Resources Ltd., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Far Resources Ltd.Source: Far Resources Ltd. (CSE: FAT, FWB: F0R, WKN: A2AH8W, ISIN: CA30734R1001, OTC Pink: FRRSF)Date: January 23, 2018Time: 9:00 AM EST--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Far Resources Ltd. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2018 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.) PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 08:04:01 Tikkurila Oyj Press Release January 23, 2018 at 9:00 a.m. (CET+1) Invitation: Tikkurila's Financial Statement Release for January-December 2017 Tikkurila Oyj will publish the Financial Statement Release for January-December 2017 on Tuesday, February 13, 2018, at 9:00 a.m. Finnish time. Tikkurila will hold a press conference regarding the Financial Statement Release for January-December 2017 for the media and analysts on Tuesday, February 13, 2018, starting at 12:00 noon Finnish time at hotel Kamp's Akseli Gallen-Kallela cabinet (address: Pohjoisesplanadi 29, 00100 Helsinki). The conference will be held in Finnish. Attendees will be served lunch at the conference premises starting at 11:30 a.m. The Financial Statement Release will be presented by Jukka Havia, Interim President and CEO, CFO. A live webcast, conducted in English, will be organized on February 13, 2018, at 3:00 p.m. The live webcast will be available at www.tikkurilagroup.com. The participants can also join a telephone conference that will be arranged in conjunction with the live webcast. The telephone conference details are set out below: +358 9 7479 0361 (Finnish callers) +44 330 336 9105 (UK callers) +1 646 828 8156 (USA callers) Participant code: 7399588 An on-demand version of the webcast will be available at www.tikkurilagroup.com/investors later during the same day. Financial Statement Release and related presentation material will be available before the press conference at www.tikkurilagroup.com/investors. For further information, please contact: Tikkurila Oyj Minna Avellan, Director, Communications and IR, tel. +358 40 533 7932, minna.avellan@tikkurila.com Tikkurila is the leading paints and coatings professional in the Nordic region and Russia. With our roots in Finland, we now operate in 14 countries. Our high-quality products and extensive services ensure the best possible user experience in the market. Sustainable beauty since 1862. www.tikkurilagroup.com This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Tikkurila Oyj via Globenewswire PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 08:01:02 KKR Strengthens European Footprint with New Office in Frankfurt Finsbury for KKR Alastair Elwen Phone: +44(0)20 7251 3801 Email: alastair.elwen@finsbury.com KKR, a leading global investment firm, today announces the opening of a new office in Frankfurt, Germany, further strengthening its presence in continental Europe and building on the Firms successful investment track record in Germany. Since 1999, KKR has invested more than USD 5 billion in equity in more than twenty companies in Germany, including Kion (2006-2015), ProSiebenSat1 (2007-2014), Wild Flavors (2009-2014), WMF (2012-2016), Arago (since 2014), GfK (since 2017) and Hensoldt (since 2017). Johannes Huth, Member and Head of KKR Europe, Middle East and Africa said, The opening of the Frankfurt office further confirms our long standing commitment to Germany and underlines KKRs unique strength, combining local presence with KKRs global network and resources. The Frankfurt office will cover all KKR investment activities but will have a specific focus on private equity and growth equity investments. Christian Ollig, Managing Director at KKR, will become Head of Germany and the KKR office in Frankfurt. Christian joined KKR in 2008, has 16 years of investment experience and led KKRs investments in Wild Flavors, Cognita, WMF, Hertha BSC, Hensoldt and most recently the pending acquisition of Unilevers plant-based baking, cooking, spreading business. Mr. Ollig said, Germany is a core focus of our European investment activities. We will continue to support German entrepreneurs, companies and management teams with a strong, global network, deep industry know-how and targeted growth acquisitions. Frankfurt marks KKRs eighth office in Europe and Middle East in addition to London, Dublin, Paris, Madrid, Luxembourg, Dubai and Riyadh. -ends- About KKR KKR is a leading global investment firm that manages multiple alternative asset classes, including private equity, energy, infrastructure, real estate, credit and, through its strategic manager partnerships, hedge funds. KKR aims to generate attractive investment returns by following a patient and disciplined investment approach, employing world-class people, and driving growth and value creation with KKR portfolio companies. KKR invests its own capital alongside its partners' capital and provides financing solutions and investment opportunities through its capital markets business. References to KKRs investments may include the activities of its sponsored funds. For additional information about KKR & Co. L.P. (NYSE: KKR), please visit KKR's website at www.kkr.com and on Twitter @KKR_Co. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/201801220062 Middle East and Africa Clinical Nutrition Market: Market Estimation, Dynamics, Regional Share, Trends, Competitor Analysis 2012-2016 and Forecast 2017-2023 Middle East and Africa Clinical Nutrition Market PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 11:18:39 Press Information Precision Business Insights Kemp House, 152 160 City Road, London EC1V 2NX satya Lead Marketing +1-866-598-1553 email https://www.precisionbusinessinsights.com # 591 Words Kemp House,152 160 City Road,London EC1V 2NXLead Marketing+1-866-598-1553 Middle East and Africa Clinical Nutrition Market: By Product Type (Premixed, Vitamins & Minerals, Carbohydrates, and Amino Acids), By Therapeutic Area (Critical Care, Cancer, GI Tract Impairment, Malnutrition & Metabolic Disorders, Allergy & Inflammation, and Others), By Route of Administration (Oral Nutrition, Enteral Nutrition, and Parenteral Nutrition), By End User (Hospitals/Clinics and Homecare), and By Country (Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, South Africa, Egypt, and Morocco) Market Estimation, Dynamics, Country Share, Trends, Competitor Analysis 2012-2016 and Forecast 2017-2023Middle East and Africa Clinical Nutrition Market Report Description:Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market report gives a comprehensive outlook on clinical nutrition products adoption pattern across the region with special emphasis on key countries such as Saudi Arabia, UAE, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain, South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, and Rest of Middle East & Africa. The report on Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market gives historical, current, and future market sizes (US$ Mn) on the basis of product type, therapeutic area, route of administration, end user and country. This report presents Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market dynamics elaborately to identify the current market trends & drivers, future opportunities and possible challenges to the key stakeholders operating in the Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market. In addition, Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market report includes the competition analysis with vividly illustrated the competition dashboard to assess the market competition. Moreover, PBI analyzed Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market to better equip clients with possible investment opportunities across the regions (Country Investment Hot-Spots) and market unmet needs. Key stakeholders of the Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market report include raw material suppliers, manufacturers, marketers, policy makers, and healthcare service providers, who are engaged in usage and advocacy of clinical nutrition products.A sample of this report is available upon request @Middle East and Africa Clinical Nutrition Market:Middle East & Africa clinical nutrition market was valued around US$ 360 Mn in 2016 and poised to grow around 3.5% CAGR over 2017-2023.To view TOC of this report is available upon request @Competition AssessmentKey players profiles in the Middle East & Africa Clinical Nutrition market include: Ajinomoto Co. Inc. Perrigo Company Plc. Abbott Nutrition Inc. Baxter International Inc. Danon Baby and Medical Nutrition BV Braun Medical Inc. Fresenius Kabi AG Hospira (Pfizer) Inc. Gentiva Health Services Inc. Hero Nutritional Inc. Nestle SA.Need more information about this report @Players in the Middle East & Africa Clinical Nutrition market are entering into partnerships and collaborations, launching products in the market to garner larger market shareKey Features of the Report: The report provides granular level information about the market size, regional market share, historic market (2012-2016) and forecast (2017-2023) The report covers in-detail insights about the competitors overview, company share analysis, key market developments, and their key strategies The report outlines drivers, restraints, unmet needs, and trends that are currently affecting the market The report tracks recent innovations, key developments and startups details that are actively working in the market The report provides plethora of information about market entry strategies, regulatory framework and reimbursement scenario The report analyses the impact of socio-political environment through PESTLE Analysis and competition through Porters Five Force Analysis in addition to recent technology advancements and innovations in the marketGet access to full summary @Contact to Precision Business Insights,Email: sales@ precisionbusinessinsights.com Website @ https://www.precisionbusinessinsights.com Double organ transplantation is also possible such as kidney and pancreas transplant, and heart and lungs transplant. Organ Transplant Market PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 08:32:32 Press Information Coherent Market Insights 1001 4th Ave, #3200 Mr Shah CEO 2067016702 email http://www.coherentmarketinsights.com # 709 Words 1001 4th Ave,#3200CEO2067016702 Organ transplantation is the surgical operation in which a healthy organ is removed from one person and transplanted to another person whose organ is failed or damaged. In the organ transplantation, the donated organ may be from living donor, deceased donor, or from an animal. Whereas in some cases an artificial organ is used in the transplantation procedure. Organ transplantation gives new life to the individual with damaged or failed organ. The most common organ transplant includes kidney, heart, liver, pancreas, lung, and intestine. Double organ transplantation is also possible such as kidney and pancreas transplant, and heart and lungs tran splant. A Kidney transplant is the most common type of organ transplant whereas intestine transplant is the least common type of the organ transplant. Vascularized Composite Allografts (VCA) which includes hand and face transplantation is also possible due to the advancements in the organ transplantation area.Ask For Table Of Content@Growing population with organ failure is the important factor driving the growth of organ transplant marketAccording to WHO Global Observatory on Donation and Transplantation in 2014, approximately 119,873 organs were transplanted annually and that was 1.81% observed increase over 2013. Moreover, increase in chronic diseases which are leading to the organ failure, rise in injurious habits such as smoking and drinking further leading to organ disability or failure are the other factors contributing to the growth of organ transplant market. The data given by National Kidney Foundation, U.S in 2016, there are around 121,678 people waiting for an organ transplant, among which 100,791 people are waiting for kidney transplant. The rising population awaiting for organ transplant and increase in mortality rate due to the inadequate organ for transplantation might create opportunities in the organ transplant market. Some other factors owing to the growth of organ transplant market includes refinement and improvement in surgical techniques and treatment strategies that are helping to increase survival rates, and the launch of new anti-infective and immunosuppression techniques contributing to the lower risk of organ rejection after transplantation, and the development of organ preservation and organ procurements. However, the high cost of transplantation, stringent ethical policies, and lack of reimbursement, organ trafficking and low supply of organs are some restraints that are hindering the growth of organ transplant market.Kidney transplant holds the maximum share of organ transplant market due to rising renal diseases patientsOn the basis of organ type, the organ transplant market is segmented intoKidney,Heart,Lungs,Liver,Intestine,OthersTechnological advantages and established healthcare sector fueling to the domination of major region in organ transplant marketRegional segmentation of organ transplant market by Coherent Market Insights comprises of North America, Latin America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa, and Middle East. North America and Europe region holds the maximum share in the organ transplant market due to the growing success of organ transplant surgeries, technological advancements, and the drug discovery that is important for transplantation. Well established healthcare infrastructure is also contributing to the domination of these regions in the organ transplant market.Growing awareness about organ donation is expected to help the business players to progress in the organ transplant marketKey industry players operating the organ transplant market includes Organogenesis Incorporated, Terumo Co., OrganOX, Transplant Biomedical, Preservation solution, TransMedic, WorldHeart Co., Waters Medical systems, and Jarvik Heart Incorporated. The industry players of organ transplant market relies on organ donation which further collected, stored, and distributed by them. The increase in awareness about the organ donation is expected to create opportunities for the industry players. Whereas factors such as, proximity to key suppliers, understand the government policies and get access to volunteer labor are important for the business players to sustain in the organ transplant market.Ask For the Discount@About Coherent Market Insights:Coherent Market Insights is a prominent market research and consulting firm offering action-ready syndicated research reports, custom market analysis, consulting services, and competitive analysis through various recommendations related to emerging market trends, technologies, and potential absolute dollar opportunity.Contact Us:Mr. ShahCoherent Market Insights1001 4th Ave,#3200Seattle, WA 98154Tel: +1-206-701-6702Email: sales@ coherentmarketinsights.com Visit Coherent Market Insights Blog @ https://blog.coherentmarketinsights.com Connect with us on LinkedIn @ https://www.linkedin.com/company/coherent-market-insights PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 15:00:38 FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for Renforth Resources Inc.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Toronto, Ontario (FSCWire) - Renforth Resources Inc. (CSE:RFR). has issued a press release with the following headline:Renforth Extends Parbec Gold Deposit Strike 60m with Gold in All 7 DrillholesTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on Renforth Resources Inc., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/Renforth Resources Inc.Source: Renforth Resources Inc. (CSE: RFR)Date: January 23, 2018Time: 9:00 AM EST--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of Renforth Resources Inc. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2018 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.) PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 15:01:48 FSCwire / Press ReleaseThe following press release was disseminated by FSCwire for 92 Resources Corp.--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---Vancouver, British Columbia (FSCWire) - 92 Resources Corp. (TSX Venture:NTY). has issued a press release with the following headline:92 Resources Signs Earn-In with Far Resources Ltd. for Interest in Hidden Lake Property, NWTTo view this press release on the FSCwire website, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:If you would prefer, you can also view this press release as a PDF file, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser:For more information on 92 Resources Corp., or to see additional press releases issued by this company, please either click on the link below, or copy and paste the link into your browser: http://www.fscwire.com/public-company/92 Resources Corp.Source: 92 Resources Corp. (TSX Venture: NTY, OTCQB: RGDCF, FWB: R9G2)Date: January 23, 2018Time: 9:00 AM EST--- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- --- ---The story mentioned above was issued on behalf of 92 Resources Corp. and disseminated through FSCwire.About FSCwireFSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.), is a global newswire dissemination, SEDAR, SEDI, and EDGAR / XBRL service provider.FSCwire is a full service global newswire dissemination company and is fully approved by all exchanges in Canada and the U.S. Press releases can be distributed for all sizes of public, private or not for profit companies and any other organization requiring news distribution. In addition to individual companies; public relations, communications and investor relations firms trust FSCwire to distribute press releases for their respective clients.In addition to newswire dissemination FSCwire also offers EDGAR, XBRL, SEDAR, SEDI, and additional services for publicly traded companies. For more information, please go to our website: http://www.fscwire.com Maximum News Dissemination by FSCwire. http://www.fscwire.com Copyright 2018 - FSCwire (a division of Filing Services Canada Inc.) PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 14:02:03 VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Skyharbour Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:SYH) (OTCQB:SYHBF) (Frankfurt:SC1P) (the "Company") is pleased to announce its option partner Azincourt Enerygy ("Azincourt") will be commencing a planned exploration program at the Company's East Preston Uranium Project. The project is located in the western Athabasca Basin near NexGen Energy Ltd.'s high-grade Arrow deposit hosted on its Rook-1 property and Fission Uranium Corp.'s Triple R deposit located within their PLS Project area. Preston Uranium Project Claims Map: http://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/maps/SYH_Patterson_Lake_Area_Promo_20161212_blue_hi_res.pdf Skyharbour and Clean Commodities entered into an Option Agreement (the "Agreement") with Azincourt whereby Azincourt has an earn-in option to acquire a 70% working interest in a portion of the Preston Uranium Project known as the East Preston Property. Under the Agreement, Azincourt has issued 4,500,000 listed common shares and will contribute cash and exploration expenditure consideration totaling up to CAD $3,500,000 in exchange for up to 70% of the applicable property area over three years. Of the $3,500,000 in project consideration, $1,000,000 will be in cash payments to Skyharbour and Clean Commodities, as well as $2,500,000 in exploration expenditures over the three year period. Azincourt has issued Skyharbour and Clean Commodities each 2,250,000 common shares upfront for a total issuance of 4,500,000 common shares. Highlights of Azincourt's Exploration Program at East Preston Uranium Project: Extensive reinterpretation of historical helicopter-borne VTEM and ground geophysical data by expert geophysical consultants highlights untested conductor systems and corridor trends Ground geophysical program planned to refine drill targets over prospective conductor trends Grid establishment, horizontal loop electromagnetic (HLEM) and gravity surveys to be used Temporary camp and exploration work permits received from Saskatchewan Ministry of Environment and contractors are mobilizing to start the work program Azincourt may earn a 70% interest in East Preston totaling 25,329 hectares, which represents the eastern region of the larger 74,965 hectare Preston Project through the upfront issuance of 4,500,000 shares as well as $3,500,000 of total project consideration over three years, including up to $2,500,000 of exploration work programs and $1,000,000 of cash payments to Skyharbour and Clean Commodities to be split equally In addition to the Azincourt Agreement on the Preston East Property, Skyharbour also has an option agreement with AREVA Resources Canada whereby AREVA may earn up to a 70% interest in a separate 49,635 hectare portion of the Preston Project Recent Preston Uranium Project Geophysical Programs: Azincourt engaged a highly experienced geophysical consultant, Mr. Lawrence Bzdel, P.Geo., to interpret the extensive historical airborne and ground geophysical data set and build on the previous work. The reinterpretation work has identified and prioritized numerous conductor trends with the highest priorities being the A, B and D trends, respectively. East Preston Survey Grid Location: http://www.skyharbourltd.com/_resources/maps/Figure_2_East_Preston_Survey_Grid_Location.jpg Trend A is a very long, wide N to NE trending conductive corridor with an observed flexure bound and crosscut by interpreted E-W cross-faults. Trend B is a long linear conductor system coincident with an interpreted NE trending fault. Trend D is a NNW trending conductor system parallel to an interpreted fault. Grid establishment will precede the planned surveys. The grid lines will be perpendicular to the interpreted VTEM conductive trends. The HLEM and Gravity surveys will consist of 50-line km of each method. The HLEM data will be collected with a 200m Transmitter-Receiver separation and 50m station intervals. The survey is designed to accurately identify multiple conductor systems in this shallow depth to basement environment. Unconformity-related uranium deposits are often associated in proximity to basement conductive trends and represent a first order criteria for discovery. The Gravity survey will record measurements at 50m station intervals. Subtle gravity low anomalies can highlight areas of alteration and structural disruption. Gravity highs may represent basement topography, which are also associated with unconformity-related uranium deposits. This initial ground geophysical program is expected to yield drill targets within previously untested corridors. The Company expects to generate enough targets for several drill programs. Overview of East Preston: The significant potential of the Western Athabasca Basin has been highlighted by recent discoveries in the area by NexGen Energy Ltd. (Arrow), Fission Uranium Corp. (Triple R) and a joint-venture consisting of Cameco Corporation, AREVA Resources Canada Inc. and Purepoint Uranium Group Inc. (Spitfire). More than $4.7-million in expenditures on the entire Preston Uranium Project have been incurred to date, including over $2 million at East Preston. This exploration has consisted of ground gravity, airborne and ground electromagnetics, radon, soil, silt, biogeochem, lake sediment, and geological mapping surveys, as well as two exploratory drill programs. Several high-priority drill target areas associated with multiple prospective exploration corridors have been successfully delineated through this methodical, multiphased exploration initiative, which has culminated in an extensive, proprietary geological database for the project area. Preston Uranium Property Map and Regional Exploration Corridors: http://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/SYH_Regional_Corridors.jpg Furthermore, on March 9th, 2017, Skyharbour announced an option agreement with AREVA Resources Canada which provides AREVA an earn-in option to acquire up to a 70% working interest in a 49,635 hectare portion of the total 74,965 hectare Preston Uranium Project (see News Release dated March 9th, 2017). Under the agreement, AREVA can contribute cash and exploration program consideration totaling up to CAD $8,000,000 in exchange for up to 70% of the applicable project area over six years. Qualified Person: The technical information in this news release has been prepared in accordance with the Canadian regulatory requirements set out in National Instrument 43-101 and reviewed and approved by Richard Kusmirski, P.Geo., M.Sc., Skyharbour's Head Technical Advisor and a Director, as well as a Qualified Person. About Skyharbour Resources Ltd.: Skyharbour holds an extensive portfolio of uranium and thorium exploration projects in Canada's Athabasca Basin and is well positioned to benefit from improving uranium market fundamentals with five drill-ready projects. In July 2016, Skyharbour acquired an option from Denison Mines, a large strategic shareholder of the Company, to acquire 100% of the Moore Uranium Project which is located approx. 15 kilometres east of Denison's Wheeler River project and 39 kilometres south of Cameco's McArthur River uranium mine. Moore is an advanced stage uranium exploration property with high-grade uranium mineralization at the Maverick Zone with drill results returning 6.0% U3O8 over 5.9 metres including 20.8% U3O8 over 1.5 metres at a vertical depth of 265 metres. Skyharbour recently signed option agreements with AREVA Resources Canada and Azincourt Energy whereby AREVA and Azincourt can earn in 70% on the Preston Project through a combined $9,800,000 in total exploration expenditures, as well as $1,700,000 in total cash payments and 4,500,000 Azincourt shares. Preston is a large, geologically prospective property proximal to Fission Uranium's Triple R deposit as well as NexGen Energy's Arrow deposit. The Company also owns a 100% interest in the Falcon Point Uranium Project on the eastern perimeter of the Basin which contains an NI 43-101 inferred resource totaling 7.0 million pounds of U3O8 at 0.03% and 5.3 million pounds of ThO2 at 0.023% contained within 10,354,926 tonnes using a cutoff grade of 0.01% U3O8. The project also hosts a high-grade surface showing with up to 68% U3O8 in grab samples from a massive pitchblende vein, the source of which has yet to be discovered. The Company's 100% owned Mann Lake Uranium project on the east side of the Basin is strategically located adjacent to the Mann Lake Joint Venture operated by Cameco, where high-grade uranium mineralization was recently discovered. Skyharbour's goal is to maximize shareholder value through new mineral discoveries, committed long-term partnerships, and the advancement of exploration projects in geopolitically favourable jurisdictions. Skyharbour's Uranium Project Map in the Athabasca Basin: http://skyharbourltd.com/_resources/SYH_Landpackage_2014.jpg To find out more about Skyharbour Resources Ltd. (TSX-V:SYH) visit the Company's website at www.skyharbourltd.com. SKYHARBOUR RESOURCES LTD. "Jordan Trimble" Jordan Trimble President and CEO For further information contact myself or: Nick Findler Corporate Development and Communications Skyharbour Resources Ltd. Telephone: 604-639-3850 Toll Free: 800-567-8181 Facsimile: 604-687-3119 Email: info@skyharbourltd.com NEITHER THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THE CONTENT OF THIS NEWS RELEASE. This release includes certain statements that may be deemed to be "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address events or developments that management of the Company expects, are forward-looking statements. Although management believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance, and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements if management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements, include market prices, exploration and development successes, continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Please see the public filings of the Company at www.sedar.com for further information. This announcement is distributed by Nasdaq Corporate Solutions on behalf of Nasdaq Corporate Solutions clients. The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein. Source: Skyharbour Resources Ltd via Globenewswire The avocado oil market was valued at US$ 62.8 million in 2016 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 12.27%, in terms of revenue, over the forecast period (20172025) Avocado Oil Market PR-Inside.com: 2018-01-23 11:03:25 Press Information Coherent market Insights Coherent Market Insights 1001 4th Ave, #3200 Seattle, WA 98154 Tel: +1-206-701-6702 Email:sales@coherentmarketinsights.com Website: https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/ Mr.Shah CEO +1-206-701-6702 email http://www.coherentmarketinsights.com # 762 Words Coherent Market Insights1001 4th Ave,#3200Seattle, WA 98154Tel: +1-206-701-6702Email:sales@coherentmarketinsights.comWebsite: https://www.coherentmarketinsights.com/CEO+1-206-701-6702 Avocado oil is extracted from the Persea Americana fruit and is used as a cooking oil, in cosmetics, and for lubrication, due to its moisturizing and regenerative properties. Avocado fruit is also known as butter pea or vegetable butter originated in Central America. Avocado oil consists high concentration of potassium, vitamins such as A, D, and E, and monounsaturated fats. Some of the properties of avocado oil are high smoke point to stop overheating of the oil and high monounsaturated fatty acids, fuels growth of the avocado oil market. Furthermore, increasing demand for healthy and natural foods is anticipated to fuel the market growth. The reduction of cholesterol level, control of psoriasis, and osteoarthritis are some of the benefits associated with avocado oil make it useful for the treatment of coronary heart disease, peripheral artery disease, and carotid artery disease, among others. Avocado is also used for the treatment of diabetes as it has low glycemic index by controlling its blood sugar level.Request a sample copy of this report: https://goo.gl/uut49v Among product types, extra virgin avocado oil segment accounted for the largest share in 2016. This is mainly owing to absence of chemical additives during the extraction process. This is the highest quality product extracted from high quality of fruit at low temperature. The extra virgin avocado oil is best used for dressings as no high heating takes place whereas non-extra virgin oil can be used for sauteing, grilling, frying, roasting, and baking dishes. The avocado oil market is classified on the basis of applications such as personal care products, cooking, medicinal products, and others. The personal care products is expected to hold for the largest market revenue over the forecast period (2017 to 2025), owing to its rapid absorption and high skin penetration. The positive impact of this oil for hair growth and cosmetic products such as nourishing creams, massage creams, and body lotions expected to fuel the avocado oil market growth.Request customization of the report: https://goo.gl/xqZg56 North America held a dominant position in the global avocado oil market in 2016, with the region valued at US$ 11.2 million. This is owing to increasing health problems such as heart and chronic diseases, which are caused due to high intake of high fat oils, which in turn increases demand for avocado oil. In U.S., Coronary Artery Disease (CAD) is the most common type of heart disease which may lead to heart attack. According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), around 630,000 people die due to heart diseases every year, which are caused due to high LDL cholesterol, and high blood pressure. Moreover, CDC is involved in public health efforts related to heart disease. The Well-Integrated Screening and Evaluation for Women across the Nation (WISEWOMAN) was the program initiated by CDC in 2017 to help women in reducing their risk for heart diseases by providing services to promote lasting heart healthy lifestyle.Increasing demand for avocado oil in personal care products owing to its beneficial monounsaturated fatty acids like oleic acid and its hydrating property, is expected to drive the market. According to the India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), the personal care products market is expected to reach US$ 10 billion by 2021 at a CAGR of 6%. The consumption of cosmetic products is increasing significantly, owing to increasing awareness and desire to look good. This in turn increases the demand for avocado oil in the region.The avocado oil market was valued at US$ 62.8 million in 2016 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 12.27%, in terms of revenue, over the forecast period (20172025).SOURCE: COHERENT MARKET INSIGHTS (2017)North America accounted to hold a revenue share of 58.12% in the global avocado oil market in 2016. However, presence of other healthier oils such as olive oil and safflower oil, is expected to act as a restraint for the growth of avocado oil market.Major Players in Global Avocado Oil Market:Some of the key players operating in the global avocado oil market are Sesajal S.A. de C.V., Olivado, Grupo Industrial Batellero S.A. de C.V, YASIN, Tron Hermanos SA de CV, The Village Press, Bella Vado, Chosen Foods LLC, and Storino's Quality Products.To know the latest trends and insights prevalent in the Global Big Data in Healthcare Market, click the link below: https://goo.gl/qdnmNK About Coherent Market Insights:Coherent Market Insights is a prominent market research and consulting firm offering action-ready syndicated research reports, custom market analysis, consulting services, and competitive analysis through various recommendations related to emerging market trends, technologies, and potential absolute dollar opportunity. Liberias President, George Weah, on Tuesday made his first appointments less than 24 hours after his swearing in on Monday. Seven names made the first batch of appointees, including former Senate Pro-Tempore Gbezohngar Findley, who has been named Minister of Foreign Affairs. Findley, according to local media, is close ally of immediate past President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, and staunchly supported Vice- President Joseph Boakai at the initial stage of the campaign period. He reportedly dumped Mr. Boakai, who ran for the presidency on the platform of then Unity Party (UP), and aligned with Mr. Weah, heavily campaigning for him in parts of the country. This fueled speculations that Mr. Weah was receiving support from Mrs. Johnson-Sirleaf, who was recently expelled by the UP for anti-party activities. Daniel Ziankahn, a major general, was immediately retired as the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) and appointed the Minister of National Defence, subject to Senate confirmation. Mr. Ziankahn replaces Brownie Samukai at the defence ministry, which is in the middle of an alleged wasteful spending of welfare and supplementary pension benefits of members of the Armed Forces. Prince Johnson, a brigadier general, takes over from Mr. Ziankahn as the new Chief of Staff of the AFL. Mr. Weah named Chairman of the now ruling Coalition for Democratic Change (CDC), Nathaniel McGill as the Minister of State for Presidential Affairs. Samuel Tweh, a long-time member of the CDC, is to serve as Minister of Finance and Development Planning. Until his appointment, Mr. Tweh worked as an economic consultant at the Millennium Challenge Corporation under the Ministry of Finance. The president appointed Charles Gibson as Minister of Justice, and Sam Mannah as Press Secretary with immediate effect. Mr. Weah has directed that the heads of other government ministries and agencies remain in place until further notice. Meanwhile, some Liberians have urged the new president to honour his promise of holding government officials accountable to the people. Speaking to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Monrovia, one of the respondents, Saah Clinton, a retired soldier, advised Mr. Weah to show courage and do the right thing in the interest of Liberians. Although, I am confident in the presidents ability to crack down on corruption as promised in his inaugural speech, it takes a lot of political will and courage to do that. The president should carry the masses along in whatever decision he takes against powerful government officials, and the people will stand by him, he said. Mr. Weah, in his inaugural address, renewed his promise to tackle endemic corruption especially in the public service, vowing to prosecute corrupt government officials to the full extent of the law. ADVERTISEMENT As officials of government, it is time to put the interest of our people above our own selfish interests. It is time to be honest with our people For those who do not refrain from enriching themselves at the expense of the people, the law will take its course, the president said. (NAN) ADVERTISEMENT German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Tuesday faced calls to halt arms exports to Turkey after reports suggested that German-made tanks were being employed during a Turkish offensive against Kurdish forces in Syria. The federal government cannot duck this issue again and must find clear words against President (Recep Tayyip) Erdogan, Green party (Gruene) defense spokesperson Agnieszka Brugger told journalists. Mr. Brugger added that the immediate stop of all arms exports to Turkey was long overdue. Green Party parliamentary vice-president Claudia Roth demanded an arms embargo, as well as the cancellation of the controversial refugee pact signed between the European Union and Turkey. Roth accused Erdogan of pouring oil onto a regional fire with his offensive against the Kurdish YPG militia. Jan Gildemeister, director of the Action Group Service for Peace NGO, said stopping Germanys Turkish military exports was an urgent necessity in light of recent geo-political developments. Gildemeister noted that Berlin had vowed not to approve the sale of arms to countries involved in the war in Yemen (including Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt). He argued that an unwillingness to treat Ankara in the same fashion would reveal an unacceptable double standard. Chancellor Merkel and German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel have so far refrained from condemning Turkeys military engagement in the Syrian Afrin region. Instead, Gabriel expressed his concern during a phone call with his Turkish counterpart Mevluet Cavusoglu and advocated for a political solution of the crisis. Only recently, Gabriel had publicly come out in favour of approving the modernisation of German Leopard tanks used by the Turkish army in spite of a significant cooling in bilateral relations between the two NATO partners. Turkish ground troops first crossed the border to Syria in an attempt to drive the Kurdish YPG militia out of the Afrin region on Saturday. Some opposition politicians in Germany offered scathing criticism of the offensive. However, unimpressed by such international protests, President Erdogan has announced that his forces would not retreat until the offensive was completed. (Xinhua/NAN) Health experts have urged Nigerian lawmakers to give autonomy to the Nigerian Centre for Disease Control, NCDC so as to be able it fully operate without political hindrances. This plea was given by health partners and key players in the health sector at the public hearing conducted by the Senate Committee on Primary Healthcare and Communicable Disease at the National Assembly on Monday. The hearing, which had a large turnout had in attendance, the minister of health, Isaac Adewole, heads of the health agencies, health experts, International Partners and donors, health associations and civil society organisations. The public hearing was meant to give legislative backing to the activities of NCDC. The bill which has gone through first and second readings at the house received overwhelming support of the health experts who all said that the legalisation of the agency is long overdue. Most of the participants however emphasised the need for the bill to give NCDC maximum autonomy to be able to run and make decisions on it own without bureaucratic bottlenecks and government interventions. They also spoke in support of multiple finance sources for NCDC and the need to strengthen the coordination of the outfit and the constitution of a governing board for agency which will not be politically based and solely rely on the president. The senate president, Bukola Saraki in his opening remark said it is important that NCDC gets a legislative backing to give it a firm footing and adhere to international best practices. Mr. Saraki, who was represented by the deputy senate leader Bala NaAllah, said most people are unaware that NCDC has been operating administratively for several years with required personnel in place and receives a fair share of the annual budget as appropriated by the National Assembly . Mr. NaAllah said that with the appropriate legislation in place, it will make for stability of interventions and for legislative protection of governments medium and long term planning. The minister of health in his presentation, urged the Senate to urgently pass the Bill establishing the agency as the agency has been operating in the country since 2011. He said it is unfortunate that the agency which had been at the forefront of disease surveillance, coordination response and control in the country especially during the Ebola outbreak in 2014 does not have a legal backing to support its activities. He said the centre in the last few months has activated the national laboratory which had enabled the ministry to provide appropriate diagnosis for Nigerians but it still needs legislative backing to be able to perform in full statutory capacity. M. Adewole also said Nigeria is a pioneer in the setting up of the disease control agency in Africa and has gone on to partner with ECOWAS in setting up a West Africa Regional Centre here in Nigeria. He proposed a five year single tenure for the director of the centre so as to enable the management focus on the assignment given to it and not get carried away with politicking. As regards the composition of the board, there is a need to go beyond health, there is a need to include the finance, agriculture and environmental ministries because the public health challenges are becoming encompassing, he said. Another participant, Oyewale Tomori, a professor of virology and the new Biovaccine chairman while applauding the legal backing of the centre said public health and disease control should be treated with utmost importance. In his explanation, Mr. Tomori asked for adequate funding for the centre and suggested that the centre should receive funding allocated to it just as the security vote allocated to security in the country. ADVERTISEMENT He also asked for the inclusion of all health and allied professionals in the running of the centre. The President, Society of Public Health Professionals of Nigeria, FCT chapter said every nation must have an outfit as NCDC so as to be able to effectively monitor and respond to disease outbreak in the country. He also urged that the bill make the agency free of bureaucratic tie ups and be less politicised. He advised that the bill should be structured in a manner at which the board cannot be frequently dissolved and that in situation where it is done, there should be an approval from the senate and another board must be reconstituted within 48 hours. This, he said would save the agency from being board-less like some agencies which have had no board for over two years. The chairman, Senate committee on Primary Healthcare and Communicable Diseases, Mao Ohuabunwa in his closing remarks promised that the senate would take into consideration all the suggestions and criticism made on the bill. He said the senate is keen on passing the bill to giving the health agency a legislative backing because they have realised that that is one of the ways at which the country can achieve the Universal Health Coverage. Mr. Ohubunwa said the goal of the bill is to provide control, prevention, coordination and also facilitate the detection of outbreaks and the effective management of communicable diseases in Nigeria. He said the senate intends to leverage on implementing the National Health Act into the appropriation budget for 2018. This, he said would be done by the implementation of the basic health provision fund under the National Health Act 2014. We will ensure that reference laboratories for disease confirmations are set in the six geopolitical zones in the country. At least, two of the geopolitical zonal reference labs will kick off this year so that we have no reasons to go to Senegal for the testing of our samples, he said. ADVERTISEMENT Popular Yoruba movie actor, Owolabi Ajasa, has commenced his mandatory National Youth Service in Kogi State. The actor shared a photograph of himself donning the NYSC regalia on Instagram on Monday. The star actor who has featured in various Yoruba movies, shared a picture from the orientation camp with the caption, Tank God I achieved My aim.. Glory be to God.. Kogi NYSC orientation camp The producer of the hit movie, Owu Funfun, Mr. Ajasa bagged a Higher National Diploma in Marketing from the Moshood Abiola Polytechnic in Abeokuta in 2016. The actor who is also the Odeda local government chairman of Theatre Arts & Movie Practitioners Association of Nigeria was admitted to the institution in 2014. Renowned for his police officer roles in Yoruba movies, his decision to return to school and observe his NYSC has earned accolades from his social media fans. They are of the opinion that the actors move will encourage other actors to get education. But Mr. Ajasa is not the only Yoruba actor who has gone back to school in recent times. Yoruba comic actor Bolaji Amusan popularly known as Mr Latin recently enrolled for a degree programme at the National Open University of Nigeria. The movie star is said to be studying Business and Conflict Resolution in at the insituition. Another actor, Yinka Quadri, also recently completed a 6-month production design at the Olabisi Onabanjo University Ago Iwoye, Ogun State. Rave of the moment, Odunlade Adekola, also celebrated his successful completion of his Business Admin degree at the University of Lagos on Instagram in November 2017. A former military chief of staff, Sami Anan, the last challenger seen as a potential threat to the re-election of Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi abruptly ended his campaign on Tuesday, a source said. NAN reports that presidential elections will be held in Egypt between March 26 and March 28. Earlier, the army accused him of violating military law by running for office without permission. A security source and members of the campaign staff of Mr. Anan, a lieutenant general, said he had been detained for questioning following the armys announcement rejecting his decision to run. The army statement, which appeared in text on state TV and was read aloud by a spokesman, said Mr. Anans presidential bid amounted to blatant legal violations (and) a serious breach of the laws of military service. He had announced his candidacy without getting permission from the armed forces or taking the steps necessary to terminate his service. Organisers of the campaign announced that he had called off his bid. They gave no details of his whereabouts following what they described as his detention. The military declined to comment on the report he had been detained. The interior ministry could not immediately be reached for comment. A witness who knows Mr. Anan told Reuters that the candidate was driving to his office when his car was stopped by what appeared to be armed military police on a main road in Cairo. Mr. Anan was the final high profile challenger to Mr. Sisi left in the race after a number of others dropped out, some citing intimidation by the authorities. Egypts presidents office and government press centre have not commented on the election race. The electoral commission has said it will ensure the vote is carried out fairly and transparently. Mr. Sisi, a former military chief who led the overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi in 2013 and was elected president the following year, announced on Thursday that he will seek a second term. Ahmed Shafik, a former prime minister and air force chief, abandoned a bid this month, saying that after several years living abroad he was out of touch with Egyptian politics. The announcement came amid media criticism and speculation that he was being held by authorities in a Cairo hotel. Mohamed Al-Sadat, the nephew of assassinated President Anwar Al-Sadat, said last week he would not run, citing an environment of fear surrounding the vote. ADVERTISEMENT Rights lawyer Khaled Ali has said he will still run, but he might be disqualified over an ongoing legal case against him. Mr. Anan announced his presidential bid in a video declaration posted on his official Facebook page, saying he was running to save Egypt from incorrect policies and calling on state institutions to maintain neutrality toward all candidates. Egyptian law requires former army officials to end their service and receive permission from the military before they can run for political office. The armys statement said Mr. Anan had falsified documents that stated his military service had ended. Mr. Sisis critics say his popularity has eroded over tough economic reforms tied to a 12 billion dollars International Monetary Fund loan, which have squeezed many Egyptians, and over a crackdown on dissidents. His supporters say firm measures are necessary to bring security and stability to a country that has seen unrest since a 2011 uprising toppled long-serving autocrat Hosni Mubarak. Egypt is fighting a stubborn Islamic State insurgency in its North Sinai region. Militants have expanded their attacks to target civilians, especially over the past year. (Reuters/NAN) ADVERTISEMENT A former minister and convener of the BringBackOurGirls group, Oby Ezekwesili, has been arrested and is being detained by the police in Abuja. Her arrest is believed to be connected to the activities of the group. In a series of posts on her Twitter handle, @obyezeks, the former Minister of Education, said she was arrested alongside some members of the BBOG group. She said Aisha Yesufu, Maureen Kabrik, Jeff Okoroafor and four others were also arrested. Reacting to the reported arrest, The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, in a statement via its Twitter page, demanded the immediate release of those arrested. SERAP tweeted, The reported false imprisonment & detention of @obyezeks & members of @BBOG_Nigeria makes a mockery of @MBuharis claim that this govt is one of change that is governed by d rule of law. The authorities should immediately release them & allow them to freely exercise their rights. The FG of President .@MBuhari instructed the IG of @PoliceNG to DETAIN ME AND OTHER MEMBERS of @BBOG_Nigeria here at the Unity Fountain. Police men and women have BUILT AN IMPREGNABLE WALL and LOCKED ME IN. I have asked them more than 30 times to LET ME OUT and they REFUSED. Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) January 23, 2018 President @MBuhari The police officers deployed by IG of .@PoliceNG is VIOLATING my FREEDOM of MOVEMENT by LOCKING ME IN in broad day light at the Unity Fountain. THIS IS A DEMOCRACY. Officer Tina Ishaya just again REFUSED TO LET ME OUT OF THEIR WALL. Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) January 23, 2018 President @MBuhari at your instruction, the IG of @PoliceNG CONTINUES TO DETAIN ME and HAVE ARRESTED SOME OF OUR MEMBERS. Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) January 23, 2018 P @MBuhari : I have been ARRESTED along with rest of our BBOG members and NOW DETAINED without a charge by the .@PoliceNG . WE are detained at the FCT command . The Police here has REFUSED to tell us why we are DETAINED. What Are WE Demanding? BringBackOurGirlsNOW!!!!!!! Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) January 23, 2018 The reported false imprisonment & detention of @obyezeks & members of @BBOG_Nigeria makes a mockery of @MBuhari's claim that this govt is one of change that is governed by d rule of law. The authorities should immediately release them & allow them to freely exercise their rights https://t.co/I5mLRp7YrT SERAP (@SERAPNigeria) January 23, 2018 Also, rights activist and senior lawyer, Femi Falana, condemned the arrest. This morning the Police arrested Dr. Oby Ezekwesili and 7 other members of the Bring Back Our Girls organisation at the Unity Fountain, Abuja, Mr. Falana said in a statement. Although the Police did not accuse them of committing any criminal offence they have been taken away to an undisclosed detention centre. The ruling All Progressives Congress says at this time it has no response to the blistering remarks by former President Olusegun Obasanjo asking President Muhammadu Buhari not to seek reelection. Mr. Obasanjo, in the statement Tuesday entitled, The Way Out: A Clarion Call for Coalition for Nigeria Movement, said Mr. Buhari as well as his party, APC, had become a disappointment, faltering even in the major boast of his administration anti-corruption campaign. Citing the scandalous recall of fugitive pension task force head, Abduralsheed Maina, to public service, Mr. Obasanjo accused Mr. Buhari of nepotism and inability to instill discipline in his nepotistic court. He said the manner of the recall stank of collusion, condonation, ineptitude, incompetence, dereliction of responsibility or kinship and friendship on the part of those who should have taken visible and deterrent disciplinary action. Mr. Obasanjo also slammed Mr. Buhari for his poor understanding of Nigerias social-political dynamics, saying his leadership has widened division and inequality in the country. This has effect on general national security, the former president said. The third failure of Mr. Buhari, according to Mr. Obasanjo, is not accepting responsibility passing the buck. If things were good, President Buhari would not need to come in. He was voted to fix things that were bad and not engage in the blame game, the former president said. Mr. Obasanjo asked Mr. Buhari not to run in 2019, but rather join the league of former leaders whose experience, influence, wisdom and outreach can be deployed on the side line for the good of the country. The former president also dismissed the ruling All Progressives Party, saying it is as worthless as the opposition Peoples Democratic Party. He called instead for a Coalition of Nigerians which he offered to be a part of, to wrest power from the present ruling class and lead the country onto the path of rebirth. However, while Mr. Obasanjos attack on both the APC and Mr. Buhari continue to dominate the media space, the ruling party told PREMIUM TIMES, Tuesday evening, it needed time to study Mr. Obasanjos statement to decide whether to react or not. The situation is that APC does not have a response at this time, said Bolaji Abdullahi, the spokesperson for the party. Maybe if we are given the opportunity to study the letter more closely, we will have a response. Mr. Abdullahi said the party had only relied on what is being circulated in the media. When told the former president accused the APC government of nepotism, corruption and incapacity to promote national integration security, Mr. Abdullahi replied: I will not be able to react to any content of the statement until we have the opportunity to study it. Mr. Obasanjos attacks coincided with growing criticism of the Buhari administration amid deadly farmer-herdsmen conflicts and petrol scarcity. Meanwhile, as at the time of filing this report, telephone number of both Femi Adesina and Garba Shehu, both presidential spokesperson, appeared turned off. Repeated attempts to get through to them failed. Mr. Obasanjo, a two-term president on the platform of People PDP had backed Mr Buhari to power in 2015, opposing then incumbent and candidate of his former party, Goodluck Jonathan. ADVERTISEMENT Mr. Obasanjo had written a condemnatory open letter in December 2013 titled Before it is Too Late where he highlighted the numerous failings of the Jonathan administration. Mr. Obasanjo is known to have become estranged with all his successors, despite his support for them. ADVERTISEMENT The Borno state chairman of the All Progressive Congress (APC) , Ali Bukar Dalori, has described the national publicity secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Kola Ologbondiyan, as a man functioning below his professional training as a journalist and one who can be easily fooled. Mr. Dalori who made this statement was apparently vexed by the statement credited to the PDP spokesman who had on Monday threatened to sue Borno state Governor, Kashim Shettima, for allegedly ordering the demolishing the Borno state PDP secretariat. PREMIUM TIMES reported on Monday about a controversy that was stirred in Maiduguri, Borno state capital, following the demolition of the PDP secretariat in the state. The state spokesman of APC in Borno state, Makinta Zarami, denied the allegation levelled against the ruling government, saying that the demolished property was properly acquired by the state government who demolished it in order to erect an edifice that would better serve the public interest. A chieftain of the PDP and former youth leader of the party in the state, Umar Sanda had also supported the claims of the APC spokesman, saying that the party, to the best of his knowledge had never changed its secretariat address to the site of the demolished property. But the PDP spokesman at a press conference accused the Borno state Governor of demolishing the partys newly acquired secretariat and threatened to sue him. However, Mr Dalori, in a statement issued to the media called on Mr. Ologbondiyan to wear the thinking cap of a journalist and stop being fooled around by a Borno faction of PDP whose members have been spreading mischievous allegations that the State PDP secretariat in Maiduguri was demolished. It is a shame that someone with the background of being a senior journalist didnt find it worthy to establish facts before rushing to address the press, Mr. Dalori said. He ought to know that some officials of the PDP in Borno State themselves have since confirmed that their partys secretariat wasnt demolished as claimed. Perhaps, because the publicity secretary is new and in a hurry to show he can talk, he didnt even have the patience to find out the actual location of the PDPs state secretariat in Maiduguri. If he did, he should have known that for over 15 years the Secretariat has been located at Wulari near the UTC and nothing has happened to it. Also because he is new, he doesnt know that the PDP in Borno State has two factions with one trying to use him in a manner he will be embarrassed. The publicity secretary will be humiliated if he goes to court because he will come to see glaring evidence that first, the PDP secretariat wasnt demolished and secondly, the building demolished was the old Premier Cinema which had actually served as headquarters of Buhari Youths Organisation since 2011 before it was abandoned, then acquired by the APC led Government from its owners for the purpose of conversion to public use. That building isnt the first nor will it be the last to be acquired for public use with all compensation being regularly paid. The APC Government has acquired many private and public property including a magnificent CBN staff quarters which is being remodeled to a boarding primary and junior secondary school to admit about 5,000 child-victims of Boko Haram. The Government is building public facilities, particularly schools to cater for over 50,000 children who have been turned orphans by Boko Haram. The fact is that these so called PDP factional members are frustrated by the overwhelming performance of the APC led administration in Borno State and this is why they came up with this confusion in order to derail the administration. They have failed. The APC administration will be more than happy to meet the PDP in court. Meanwhile, Mr Kola is advised to take a break and study politics, particularly the type in his party before he gets really messed up Dalori said. ADVERTISEMENT The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has asked the United Nations, UN, for its support to conduct a peaceful, and credible election in 2019. The chairman of the commission, Mahmood Yakubu said this on Monday during a meeting with the United Nations Team led by the representative of the Secretary General, Needs Assessment Mission on the 2019 General Election, Sergi Kubwimana. He said INEC needed support in aspects like technology, capacity building for staff, voter education and sensitisation and the electoral process as the 2019 election is fast approaching. The commission also said UN support would be needed to also help political parties in electoral conflict mitigation, inclusiveness, especially of women, youth and persons with disabilities. Mr. Yakubu noted how over the years, the UN had provided great support to INEC while trying to introduce and sustain reforms of the electoral system in Nigeria. He assured the UN of the commissions commitment to conducting free and fair election. While enlightening his guest on the development so far in the electoral process, he said INEC has registered over 74 million voters, and promised that the number will rise. He also said the number of registered political parties now is 68 and the commission is processing over 90 fresh applications seeking registration as political parties. He also informed the visiting UN officials that there are 119,973 polling units, 8,809 electoral wards and 1,553 constituencies for which elections will be conducted in 2019. The INEC chairman told the UN delegation that in past elections, the commission had deliberately and purposefully embarked upon far-reaching reforms of the electoral system in terms of operational procedures. He listed the reforms as changes in voting procedures, enhancing the physical security; on the ballot papers, ballot boxes and result sheets, the reorganisation of the commissions administrative structures, capacity building and professionalisation for the staff; instituting the long term planning processes; introduction of technology such as biometric registration and authentication process (permanent voters cards and smart card readers), collation and results management as well as the trafficking and monitoring of electoral activities. Meanwhile, Mr. Kubwimana said the UN would look at the overall context, political context, social economic context and human rights context. He also said in conducting the needs assessments, the UN would work with relevant persons and bodies including the security, political parties, civil society organisation, including women organisations and the People Living with Disabilities (PLWDs). Women organisations are also an important aspect of our collaboration to see how we can increase representation of women in politics and also increase number of voters. Security is also important in any given contest, he said. ADVERTISEMENT The Abuja Division of the Federal High Court will on Wednesday rule on an application seeking the revocation of the bail it granted former Peoples Democratic Partys spokesperson, Olisa Metuh. Mr. Metuh is facing trial for alleged diversion of N400 million from the office of the former National Security Adviser, Sambo Dasuki. He was accused of committing the offence alongside his company, Destra Investment Limited, in 2015. At the continuation of the trial on Tuesday, the defence counsel informed the court that Mr. Metuh was absent due to illness and presented a medical report from Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital in Nnewi, Anambra State. In his reaction to the medical report, the judge, Okon Abang, said there was no evidence before the court to prove that the person who signed the report was a genuine doctor of that hospital. The remark of the judge led to a long argument between the defence and the court. Counsel to the second defendant, Tochukwu Onwubufor, argued that section 266 of the Administration of the Criminal Justice Act does not allow for the continuation of trial in the absence of a defendant, except under certain circumstances. He added that those circumstances were not included in the reasons given for Mr. Metuhs absence in court. The court cannot continue a trial when the defendant is absent from court unless in circumstances described in section 266 (a) and (b) thereof, which is not applicable in this case, he said. Counsel to Mr. Metuh, Onyeachi Ikpeazu, aligned with the argument of Mr. Onwubufor. Mr. Ikpeazu noted that the Nnamdi Azikiwe Teaching Hospital is a known hospital in Nigeria, adding that the doctor who signed the report is an official of the hospital. In a swift reaction, however, Mr. Abang said; This is not a post office. Anybody can sit in his house and write this. Prosecution counsel, Sylvanus Tahir, asked the court to treat the first defendant as having attempted to jump bail. He asked the court to revoke Mr. Metuhs bail and have him remanded in prison, so that he (Metuh) would continue coming for his trial from prison. Subsequently Mr. Abang said he will consider the applications by both parties in Wednesdays hearing. ADVERTISEMENT The All Progressives Congress says it will take major decisions on its plans for the 2019 general elections at the meeting of its National Working Committee now holding in Abuja. The party said the meeting, which is the first by its NWC in 2018, will not discuss the call by some state governors for the adoption of President Muhammadu Buhari for reelection. A report by Daily Trust newspaper on Tuesday had said the meeting would consider a proposal for the extension of the NWCs tenure which is due to end in June as well as nomination of President Buhari for a second term. The report said party chiefs believed that the extension of the NWCs tenure is necessary to avoid the partys convention and primaries holding weeks apart. The three-day meeting started on Monday at the partys secretariat in Abuja and will end on Wednesday. The partys NWC and state governors were initially scheduled to meet on Wednesday last week to discuss critical issues concerning the party, but the meeting was postponed. APCs spokesperson, Bolaji Abdullahi, said the ongoing meeting will produce key decisions regarding the partys activities for 2018. Mr. Abdullahi dismissed the report that the meeting would discuss Mr. Buharis nomination. He said: That story in Daily Trust today is a fabrication. Neither the issue of tenure elongation for NWC or Buharis second term was on the agenda or discussed. Also speaking to PREMIUM TIMES over the telephone on Tuesday, the assistant director of publicity, Edegbe Odemwingie, also dismissed the claims in the story. He said extension of NWCs tenure was not among the items being discussed at the meeting. ADVERTISEMENT The All Progressives Congress has expressed its condolences over the death of a former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Dahiru Musdapher. The party in a statement on Tuesday by its National Publicity Secretary, Bolaji Abdullahi, described the death of the jurist as a sad and painful loss to the family, his state; Jigawa, the countrys judicial community and the nation at large. Mr. Musdapher died in the early hours of Tuesday at the age of 75. The cause of his death has not been made known. His family members took to social media to break the news. While the death of the late Justice Musdapher is a sad and painful loss to the family; his home state, Jigawa; the countrys judicial community and indeed the entire nation, we should take solace on the fact that he lived impactful life, the APC said. Many who were close to the erudite jurist fondly described him as an avid reader who loved Nigeria and had a passion for the job. Aside his distinguished service to the country as the 13th CJN, the Party recall his exemplary service as Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Kaduna State; Chief Judge of Kano State Judiciary and Justice, Court of Appeal, among other important appointments. A staunch proponent for judicial reforms in the country, the late Musdapher was a frontline bastion for the entrenchment of constitutional democracy in the country. Indeed, his transition marks the exit of a great legal icon and an astute adjudicator. The party prayed for Allah to grant his soul eternal rest and his family the strength to bear the loss. ADVERTISEMENT Bridges currently being built by the Imo State government are without plan and input from professional engineers, the president of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, COREN, Kashim Ali, has said. Mr. Ali, while addressing some senators on Tuesday, said several efforts by the association to call the state government to order had failed. If there is any calamity anywhere today, the expectation is that even if a mud house collapses, the journalist will say where are the engineers? Mr. Ali said. For instance in Imo state, there is a tragedy about to happen. Their bridges are being built without design. We went there, we said, lets see the design so that we can ascertain the condition of these bridges. We made a plea, they refused to give us. We asked for the engineers or anybody involved in this project so that we can at least interview and know the integrity of the bridges. So, we had to make a pronouncement to the effect that there was a problem that such could cause but because we dont have enforcement power, we cannot stop that project. He sought the senates help for amendment of the Act establishing COREN so as to empower the association to enforce its resolutions. He told the senators that the bill, which is already at the House of Representatives, will strengthen the engineering profession in Nigeria. So, we are asking that the parliament should empower us so that we can have the power to do such thing. We also need the resources to also do that. So, those are the basic thrusts of the proposal that is in the House of Reps for an amendment to the COREN Act and we want to seek that eventually, if it comes to you, we want you to be aware of it, seek your colleagues support so that we can strengthen COREN and the practice of engineering in Nigeria. In his response, the leader of the senate delegation, Ibrahim Gobir, Sokoto-APC assured the engineers of a speedy consideration of the bill. There is still more deliberations to be made on the bill. We will collect the bill from the House of Reps, go through it at our own level and look at the areas you are talking about. In the end we will do justice to it, he said. Reacting, David Mark, Benue-PDP, expressed shock at the revelation that the Imo state government declined the services of engineers in the construction of bridges. Im a bit shocked at the revelation that somebody is building a bridge and he doesnt want to get engineers involved. Thats the recklessness in this country. People just do things anyhow and because there are no consequences when things go wrong. They just do it with impunity. This is very unfortunate. I wish that we have some level of authority to stop people going that direction. Unfortunately, I dont think we have that authority to stamp our feet on the ground and stop them from this level of impunity. The consequences when things go wrong is that they go to the background and the engineers are often called and before you know it, they are busy defending themselves on pages of papers and social media when indeed they have absolutely nothing to do with at all. The delay in the implementation of the nine provisions in the Nigeria Tobacco Control Act is due to the slow pace of policy enforcement by the Nigerian government, the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) has said. At a press conference in Lagos on Monday, the group frowned at the inability of the Health Minister, Isaac Adewole, to enforce the provisions more than seven months after he made the announcement. Everything in Nigeria now is in a snail-speed. Its so unfortunate that that seems to be the speed at which this country is operating as at today, said Akinbode Oluwafemi, deputy executive director at ERA/FoEN. The Minister of Health has written to all the relevant agencies and I think he has also written to the state governments too and you would have expected them to have acted immediately. We had anticipated that by now the federal government would have commenced serious public education and begun a clampdown on violations. Mr. Adewole, a professor of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, announced in May last year governments decision to begin implementation of nine key provisions contained in the Tobacco Control Act. The provisions include: 1. Prohibition of the sale of tobacco products to and by anyone below age 18. 2. Ban of sale of cigarettes in single sticks; cigarettes must be sold in packs of 20 sticks only. 3. Smokeless tobacco shall be sold in a minimum of a pack of 30 grammes. 4. Ban of sale or offer for sale or distribution of tobacco or tobacco products through mail, internet, or other online devices. 5. Prohibition of interference of tobacco industry in public health and related issues. 6. Prohibition of smoking in anywhere on the premises of a child care facility, educational facility, and healthcare facility. Other prohibited for smoking include playgrounds, amusement parks, plazas, public parks, stadia, public transport, restaurants bar, and other public gathering spaces. 7. Prosecution of owner or manager of any of the places listed above who permits, encourages or fails to stop smoking in the above listed places. 8. Prohibition of tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship of any kind. 9. Compliance with specified standards for content as set out by the Standards Organization of Nigeria In June 2017, Mr. Adewole told PREMIUM TIMES that the National Assemblys delay in approval of regulations was delaying the full implementation of the tobacco control law. A few weeks later, the minister wrote to the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Nigeria Police Force, the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation requesting support in the implementation of the tobacco-control law. Mr. Oluwafemi said the provisions do not require regulations, adding that it would amount to self-deception to assume that the tobacco industry would fold its arms and watch a smooth roll-out of its implementation. ADVERTISEMENT The ingenuity of the tobacco industry never ceases to amaze us, he added. Oluwaseun Esan, programme manager at the National Tobacco Control Alliance, called on the relevant government agencies to work with his organization in the implementation of the provisions. NTCA is spreading its arms by providing technical support such as trainings to ensure we enforce these provisions. We must act fast for the sake of our public health. The groups called on government at all levels to begin enforcement of the nine key provisions of the tobacco-control Act that do not require regulations. They also called on relevant government agencies such as the Consumer Protection Council and security services to begin a clampdown on infractions. What we will continue to do as civil society is to continue to bring these issues to the limelight. After all these were done, why is it that no one is taking this law seriously? Like the man selling on the street doesnt even know that it is illegal for him to open a pack of cigarettes because hes not even aware, Mr. Oluwafemi said. So we will continue to call on the relevant government agencies to do what they need to do. If they are not doing that, then we may probably need to change tactics, we might begin to employ some level of civil action which is what Nigerian governments seem to understand. When we pull in numbers and go to the National Assembly or to some of those agencies to go and shout for them to do what they need to do. ADVERTISEMENT South East leaders of the ruling All Progressives Congress have endorsed Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State to lead the Southeast Zonal Campaign Council of President Muhammadu Buharis 2019 re-election bid. Also, the leaders agreed to join forces for the re-election of President Buhari and for the partys victory in the five states of the region in the 2019 general elections. This was the outcome of the partys meeting on Sunday night at the Abuja Lodge of the Imo State Governor. Mr. Okorochas Press Secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, on Monday, in a statement said the APC regional leaders resolved to set up Buhari campaign organisation in the zone, with Mr. Okorocha as the leader, while similar structures would be set up in the other four south-east states. The South-East leaders resolved that they would not allow the fate that had befallen APC in the zone in 2015 to repeat itself in 2019, and agreed that they would let Igbo people know and appreciate the efficacy of launching the zone to national politics using the 2019 election as a take-off point, the statement read. So far, about eight APC governors have endorsed Mr. Buhari for 2019. The APC governors, Nasir El Rufai (Kaduna), Abdullahi Ganduje (Kano), Yahaya Bello (Kogi), Abubakar Bello (Niger), Simon Lalong (Plateau), Ibrahim Geidam (Yobe) and Jibrilla Bindow (Adamawa) had visited the president at the Presidential Villa in Abuja barely 24 hours after 73 persons killed by suspected herdsmen in Benue were buried, asking him to seek re-election. This move by the governors was met with criticisms even from Buhari loyalists. A senator, Shehu Sani (APC, Kaduna Central), said it was morally wrong for the governors to endorse Mr. Buhari at this material time when all hands should be on deck to advise or support him to end the mindless bloodletting & carnage in the country. On Friday, Governor Okorocha who is also the Chairman, APC Governors Forum, said the governors endorsed Mr. Buhari again because four years is not enough for him to deliver his campaign promises. The governor said Mr. Buhari needs a second term to fulfill all his promises. ADVERTISEMENT The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Yakubu Mahmood, has appealed to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court to address conflicting judgements on election matters. According to a statement by Rotimi Oyekanmi, his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Mahmood made the appeal on Tuesday at a meeting with the chief judge of the court, Justice Abdul Kafarati. Mr. Oyekanmi said the meeting was one of the steps being taken by the commission to ensure peaceful, free and credible elections in 2019. Before this, the commission had released the Timetable and Schedule of Activities for the 2019 General Elections and also met with representatives of the United Nation on Monday to seek support for the election. Mr. Mahmood said his visit to the judge was to address major issues. Regarding electoral disputes, the INEC chairman said he wanted to hear from the High Court areas where the Commission may need to do more to help the administration of justice. All cases pass through the High Courts but not all cases may go on appeal to the higher courts, making the High Courts the foundation for the dispensation of justice. Understandably, this also puts enormous pressure on the High Courts by the sheer number of cases handled by a limited number of judges, especially when handling cases involving post-election litigations which are time-bound and pre-election cases that are so open-ended and could last from the conduct of party primaries to the end of tenure of elected officials. First, to place before you some of our concerns in the adjudication of electoral disputes as we approach the 2019 General Elections. Secondly, to hear from the High Court areas where, as a Commission, we need to do more to facilitate the speedy and qualitative administration of justice, from which, from our study and analysis of previous judgments, range from the prompt issuance of certified true copies of documents, quality and consistency of our legal representation, neutrality of the Commission to the availability to the Judiciary of our manuals, guidelines and regulations made pursuant to the provisions of the Constitution and the Electoral Act. In spite of the 1,134 cases involving the Commission since the 2015 General Elections, there has not been a single case in which the Commission disobeyed court order. However, conflicting judgements, all of which emanate from the High Courts, are putting the Commission in a very difficult situation and creating uncertainty in the process. The court in one judicial division may order the Commission on a particular course of action only to be contradicted by another court of coordinate jurisdiction from another division or even within the same division on the same subject matter. With 68 political parties in Nigeria today and over 90 applications from associations seeking registration as political parties, 397 days to the 2019 General Elections and 1,558 Constituencies for which elections will be conducted, there is urgent need to address the issue of conflicting judgements in order to engender certainty in the nomination of candidates in particular and the electoral process in general. The INEC chairman also addressed the act of involving INEC in litigation arising from elections conducted by different and distinct legal entities, saying INEC has no legal responsibility for the conduct or outcome of Local Government Elections conducted by the State Independent Electoral Commissions,SIECs. I want to reassure you that the Commission will continue to obey the orders of courts. We believe that by doing so, the credibility of our elections will be enhanced and our democracy will continue to grow. ADVERTISEMENT Former Lagos Governor, Bola Tinubu, has released the statement below to clarify the meeting he and former Governor Bisi Akande held with President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday. The three men had met behind closed-doors hours after former President Olusegun Obasanjo released a statement critical of Mr. Buhari. There were speculations that Mr. Buhari urgently called the meeting to discuss the political implication of Mr. Obasanjos letter. But Mr. Tinubu said through his Media Adviser, Tunde Rahman, that the meeting was long scheduled, and had nothing to do with the controversial statement by the former President. The full statement by Mr. Tinubu reads, Tinubus, Akandes Visit Unconnected with Obasanjos Statement Todays visit by Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and Chief Bisi Akande to the Presidential Villa was scheduled last week. President Buhari periodically schedules talks with Asiwaju Tinubu and Baba Akande, as he does with other Nigerians and APC figures, to discuss substantive issues pertaining to the governance of the country and matters concerning the party. This visit was one such meeting. As such, the meeting had nothing to do with the statement of former President Obasanjo. It is totally unconnected. At the time of the meeting, Asiwaju Tinubu and Baba Akande were even unaware that President Obasanjo had released his statement. Tinubu Media Office Tunde Rahman January 23, 2018 ADVERTISEMENT Kogi West All Progressives Congress senator, Dino Melaye, has accused the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation of operating a dubious account in the name of the Nigerian government. The senator accused the corporation of owning major shares in a company which has no bank verification number as required by law. Coming under order 42, Mr. Melaye raised the petition on Tuesday as he alleges that NNPC is making dubious transactions with the account. While some individuals and government appointees would continue to steal, we have decided to continue to expose corruption in public life, he said. This morning I draw to the attention of the Nigerian senate to a suspected colossal, monumental corruption in NNPC. Mr. President, a company was registered with the name Brass NLG Limited with the federal government having controlling shares and we have some Italians, Belgians, French people who are shareholders with the federal government in controlling shares of about 50%. It is known fact that once you have a joint venture, the account of such joint venture should be domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria. But in this case, that was not what happened. An account was opened with Keystone Bank, this account has no BVN and there have been periodic withdrawals. The last withdrawal from that account was to the tune of $4 million. As I speak to you, the balance of that account as at today is $137 million. Mr. Melaye sought the leave of the senate to present the issue as a motion on another legislative day. The leave was granted after a voice vote by the lawmakers. PREMIUM TIMES effort to get comments from NNPC proved abortive as repeated calls and text message sent to the telephone line of its spokesperson, Ndu Ughamadu, were not replied. ADVERTISEMENT Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has condemned seven governors of the ruling All Progressives Congress for endorsing President Muhammadu Buhari to seek re-election in 2019. Mr. Obasanjo made his displeasure of the governors action known in a statement he released on Tuesday, saying Mr. Buhari has failed and should not consider seeking re-election. While slamming Mr Buhari for what he described as his lack-lustre response to the killing of 73 people in Benue State by herdsmen, Mr Obasanjo said the decision by the governors to endorse Mr Buhari barely a day after those killed in the attack were given mass burial was insensitive and callous. It is a sad symptom of insensitivity and callousness that some governors, a day after 73 victims were being buried in a mass grave in Benue State without condolence, were jubilantly endorsing President Buhari for a second term! The timing was most unfortunate, he said. The governors of Niger State, Abubakar Bello; Yobe, Ibrahim Gaidam; Kogi, Yahaya Bello; Kano, Abdullahi Ganduje; Kaduna, Nasir El-Rufai; Adamawa, Jibrilla Bindow, and Plateau, Simon Lalong, on January 12, 2017 after a meeting with Mr Buhari announced that they had endorsed him to run for re-election. The governors, who made the announcement after Friday prayers with the president at the State House Mosque, said they owed no one apology for the endorsement. We are politicians and those of us you see here want the President to contest the 2019 election. We have no apologies for that, Mr El-Rufai who spoke on behalf of his colleagues, said. We believe in Mr. President, we want him to continue running the country in the right direction. People can speculate about 2019, we have no apologies. Whether they are right or wrong is beside the point. Everybody is entitled to his own opinion, but as governors, and most of us here with the exception of Yobe Governor, are first time governors. We are interested in continuity and stability and we want the President to continue with that, he added. A week after they made the announcement, the chairman of the partys governors forum, Rochas Okorocha, also backed the endorsement. Mr Okorocha said four years was inadequate for the president to deliver on his campaign promises. He said the governors had therefore adopted Mr Buhari as their sole candidate for the 2019 presidential election. We have been in Abuja for three days holding meetings of the Progressive Governors with the APC leadership, he said. We deliberated on so many issues. First among the very important issues that we discussed, was the issue of Mr. Presidents second term bid and it has the endorsement of all the governors of APC. There is need for him to complete his second term as President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and he should go ahead to declare. We also deliberated and a unanimous decision was reached that we liaise with the campaign team to be headed by the Minister of Transport, Chief Amaechi as the Director-General. The governors also endorsed his re-appointment as the Director General of the Campaign team due to his track record during the last election. Four years is not enough to show what the President can offer. We believe that another four years will bring out the best in him. The first four years is a very difficult period, and we believe that as things are stabilising, he will take Nigeria to the next level. ADVERTISEMENT The Abuja Police command has released the former Minister of Education and convener of the BringBackOurGirls group, Oby Ezekwesili. Mrs. Ezekwesili said the police refused to tell her and seven members of her group the reason they were arrested Tuesday in Abuja. Mrs. Ezekwesili was arrested and detained by the police in Abuja earlier on Tuesday. Her arrest, however, was believed to be connected to the activities of the group. The group has been carrying out sit-outs in Abuja since more than 200 girls were abducted from Government Secondary School, Chibok, in April 2014 by Boko Haram insurgents. Mr. Ezekwesilis BBOG group has sustained its advocacy for the safe return of the girls to their families for more than three years. She said Aisha Yesufu, a known critic of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration and six others, were also arrested. In a series of tweets after her release, the former minister said the Abuja commissoner of police, Sadiq Abubakar Bello, who ordered their release did not state why they were detained. Without stating the reason for our arrest and detention, Commissioner of Police at the FCT Command, CP Bello has asked us to be let out of their station, she tweeted. We insisted on a formal charge and release but his response? I am the commissioner and now release you to go. Efforts by PREMIUM TIMES to reach the police authorities in Abuja for comment were not successful at the time of filing this report. A Southern Cameroon group pushing for an independent state has asked the Nigerian government to release its leaders being detained by Nigerias Defence Intelligence Agency. Julius Ayuk Tabe and 11 other leaders of the group were picked up by the DIA after they arrived Abuja for a meeting over two weeks ago. The group has been outlawed by the government of Cameroon for seeking the break up of the Central African country. In a statement on Tuesday signed by Chris Anu, as Secretary of Communications and IT, Federal Republic of Ambazonia, the group demanded the release of the detainees. The statement said that the Federal Government of Nigeria abducted the President of the Southern Cameroons Interim Govt, Sisikou Julius Ayuk Tabe, with 11 leaders of the Interim Government. The Anglophone Cameroonians led by Mr. Tabe declared the secession of south-west Cameroon as Federal Republic of Ambazonia in October 2017. The group accused the Nigerian government of violating the fundamental human rights of their leaders,having allegedly kept them incommunicado and denied them access to lawyers and family members. It condemned, The clandestine abduction of the President of the Southern Cameroons Interim Govt, Sisikou Julius Ayuk Tabe, plus 11 other leaders of the Interim Government who were abducted along with them The reckless and utter violation of their fundamental human rights by virtue of their being kept incommunicado and denied access to Lawyers and family members by the Govt of Nigeria. Worse still, for the over two weeks of abduction, the Nigerian Government hasnt as much as made a single statement on their whereabouts and the reason(s) for the abduction, the group said. The statement insisted that reports and narratives in the media referring to them as separatists fighting to secede from Cameroon were erroneous. The erroneous narrative in the media to the effect that Southern Cameroonians are fighting to secede or that we are separatists. Nothing could be father from the truth. Mr. Anu said the people are not southern Cameroonian but Amazonians, saying these issues needed to be addressed as they were giving the Government of Nigeria negative international media. First, let me make one point very clear, I am not a Cameroonian, I am Ambazonian. And if you like, call it the former British Southern Cameroons. According to him, they (the detainees) were abducted at gunpoint by heavily armed men of the Nigerian National Intelligence Agency (NIA) on January 5th and taken to unknown destinations which up-til today still remain a secret. They were picked up precisely from Nera Hotel here in Abuja where they were holding a planning meeting on accommodation and feeding for the increasing number of Southern Cameroons refugees who are here in Nigeria. Statistics show that there are close to 40,000 Southern Cameroons Refugees in Nigeria, spread across Cross River State, Akwa Ibom State and Tariba state, out of which we know that the UNHCR has only been able to officially register about 10000. This was the reason for the meeting they were holding when they were picked up. Mr. Anu also said of the 12 persons being illegally held by the Nigerian govt, about 90% of them are refugees. ADVERTISEMENT They are officially registered with the Nigerian Refugee Commission and the UNHCR. The few among them who are not refugees all have duly accredited papers to live and work in Nigeria. He gave their names of the detainees as: Sisikou AyukTabe Julius, Nfor Ngala Nfor, Fidelis Nde Che, Henry Kimeng, Augustine Awasum, Cornelius Kwanga, Barrister Nalowa Bih, Barrister Eyambe Elias, Tassang Wilfred, Ojong Okongho, Ogork Ntui and Shufai Blaise Berinyuy. Can the Nigerian Govt explain to Southern Cameroonians why their President and their leaders are under lock and key? Can the Nigerian Govt step out and tell the world, once and for all what crime or crimes they committed? Will the Nigerian Govt let our leaders see their families and have access to their lawyers? Above all, if the Nigerian Govt will neither press any charges against them, nor say anything about their incarceration, then they ought to be freed and allowed home to be with their families. Today, on the behalf of the Interim Govt of Ambazonia, (in my capacity as Communication Secretary), Im making a very strong appeal to the Govt of President Buhari to Let our people go, please set them free, they did not commit any crime and have not been accused of any. Its a disservice to their wives and children to keep them under lock and key as if they are some terrible criminals. And let me make it very clear. In the last few days we have heard some allegations to the effect that the Nigerian Govt joined by some international bodies are holding them to some kind of talks before they are released. We of the Southern Cameroons Interim Govt hope that this allegation is not true because any form of agreement forced upon them while they remain incommunicado will never ever be binding on the people and nation of Ambazonia. GTBank total indebtedness to Innoson as at today arising from judgment debts is over N20Billion. Ever since 2012, GTB has been using the reins of EFCC machinery to destroy Innosons businesses and reputation in an issue EFCC should stand as an unbiased umpire. EFCC choose to take sides with GTB PLC for reasons best known to it. EFCC is a Federal Government Agency, created by law to fight against financial crimes and provide law and order in the business environment based on objective principles. This time, EFCC has taken the side of subjectivity. How EFCC has been unfair to Innoson since 2012 In a counter affidavit deposed to on 2nd August 2012 in Suit No: FHC/AWK/CS/138/2012 which Innoson commenced against EFCC for freezing its account in all the Banks in Nigeria pursuant to GTBanks petition. EFCC acknowledged in Paragraph 4: 4. In opposing the Applicants Suit, I hereby state as follows: (a) That on 9th September, 2011, the Chambers of Anoka & Associates, 195 Ikorodu Road, Palmgrove, Lagos on behalf of Guaranty Trust Bank sent a petition to our office against Ist (Innoson Nig Ltd) and 4th (DrInnocent Chukwuma) Applicants herein, alleging criminal conversion, fraudulent diversion of about N1.5billion and fraud etc. EFCC went further in the said Affidavit particularly in paragraph 15 that after investigation it could not confirm the allegations against Innoson/Innocent Chukwuma. From the above affidavit, EFCC confirmed that their actions against Innoson were based on a petition to them by GTB. Interestingly EFCC admitted in their affidavit to the court that at the conclusion of their investigation; it could not confirm the allegations (alleging criminal conversion, fraudulent diversion of about N1.5billion and fraud etc) against Innoson. This affidavit was deposed on 2nd August 2012. Consequently, through its letter of 20th September 2012, EFCC informed Innoson that further to our investigation and resolve that your account be reconciled from inception, the final outcome of the Commissions reconciliation of the account is that you are indebted to GTB in this matter, and therein, EFCC requested Innoson to pay N1Billion and N95Million to GTB. Note specifically, EFCC never stated in their letter of 20th September 2012 that Innoson forged any shipping document or GTBs staffs signatures thereon to clear the goods evidenced by the bill of ladings. This is evidenced by an earlier Affidavit deposed by EFCC on 2nd August 2012 in Suit No: FHC/AWK/CS/138/2012 in paragraph 15, where EFCC confessed that after investigation it could not confirm the allegations against Innoson/Innocent Chukwuma. The followings are the outcome of EFCC investigation in GTB petition against Innoson. EFCC confirmed that: a. GTB stole N560Million from Innosons current account with it though Innoson maintained that GTB stole N780Million from its account; b. Innoson collected all the Bills of Lading consigned to GTB with the consent of GTB; c. before collection, Innoson wrote letters to GTB asking it to endorse the bill of ladings to it and to pay the duties necessary for clearing the goods from the seaport; d. GTB paid Customs duties for all the bill of ladings Innoson used to clear the goods, including the ones GTB claimed were forged or that the signatures of its staff thereof were forged; e. GTB released all the Bill of Ladings including the one in issue to Innoson and that Innoson signed for each of the bill of Ladings in a register kept by GTB GTB released the Bill of Lading after Innoson signed the register; f. GTB failed to produce the register claiming that it was destroyed by the fire that razed its office; g. after clearing each good including the ones evidenced by the bill of lading in issue, Innoson returned the foreign exchange control copies to GTB and GTB transmitted them to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); ADVERTISEMENT h. GTB released the original copies of Risk Assessment Report (RAR) in respect of all the containers and the original receipts of the duties it paid in respect of them to Innoson. Note that without the original copies of the RAR and receipts for payment of duties that Customs will never release any container to anybody no matter the number of bills of lading the person presents to Customs. i. a GTB staff Mr. Okechukwu Okeke who transacted with Innosons staff gave evidence that GTB released the bill of ladings in issue to Innosons staff genuinely; j. the shipping company Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. whose ship carried the goods confirmed that the bill of ladings including the ones in issue were not forged and that none of GTBs staffs signatures endorsed thereon was forged. However, Innoson rejected and declined EFCCs demand contained in its letter of 20th September, 2012 on the ground that GTB shall pay it interest on the N560Million it acknowledged it stole at 22% being the rate at which GTB lent it money. This resulted in a stalemate and Innoson headed to the court in Suit No. FHC/AWK/CS/139/2012 against GTBank at the Federal High Court, Awka Division. At the court, the trial Judge rendered judgment on 16th May 2013, in the sum of N4.7Billion in favour of Innoson against GTBank. When this happened, that is after this judgment; GTBank rushed back to EFCC and got EFCC to institute Charge No. ID/197C/2013 in December 2013 against Innoson in a matter EFCC has investigated, concluded and cleared Innoson. This charge was later struck out in 2014 by the order of the court. Innoson appealed against the order to the Court of Appeal, Lagos Division. In this appeal, Innoson filed motion on notice praying among others that EFCC be restrained from filing a further charge in respect of the same subject matter until determination of the appeal Appeal Nos: CA/L/1328CM/17, CA/L/1329CM/17 & CA/L/1330CM/17. Despite this, EFCC still filed Charge No. 1D/6696C/2017. Furthermore, EFCC knew that Charge No. FHC/L/565c/2015 is pending at the Federal High Court, Lagos Division between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Innoson on the same subject matter, and charges. This charge is being prosecuted by the Office of the Attorney General of Federation and it was instigated by GTB. While all these charges are still pending, EFCC in flagrance abuse of office and disobedience to rule of law arrested Innoson unlawfully on December 19th 2017 and subsequently filed a charge against him at the Lagos State High Court on the same matter. By this, Innoson is facing charges in various courts in respect of the same subject matter and charges just to do the bidding of GTB. With EFCC actions towards Innoson, one wonders whether EFCC is GTBs private company or still a Federal Government Agency. This is because, EFCC confirmed during their investigation that GTB stole N560Million from Innosons account, till date EFCC never prosecuted GTB for that action. EFCC confirmed during their investigation that GTB paid Customs duties for all the bill of ladings Innoson used to clear the goods, including the ones GTB claimed were forged or that the signatures of its staff thereof were forged. EFCC confirmed during their investigation that GTB released all the Bill of Ladings including the one in issue to Innoson and that Innoson signed for each of the bill of Ladings in a register kept by GTB GTB released the Bill of Lading after Innosons staff signed the register. EFCC confirmed during their investigation that GTB failed to produce the register claiming that it was destroyed by the fire that razed its office. EFCC confirmed during their investigation that after clearing each good including the ones evidenced by the bill of lading in issue, Innoson returned the foreign exchange control copies to GTB and GTB transmitted them to Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). EFCC confirmed that GTB released the original copies of Risk Assessment Report (RAR) in respect of all the containers and the original receipts of the duties it paid in respect of them to Innoson. Note that without the original copies of the RAR and receipts for payment of duties that Customs will never release any container to anybody no matter the number of bills of lading the person presents to Customs. In spite of all these confirmations, EFCC in trying to do the bidding of GTB have allowed itself to be used to destroy Nigeria foremost industrialist. Is this fair? ADVERTISEMENT There was pandemonium in Zing town in Taraba State on Monday as irate youth attacked policemen attached to the area command over the killing of a commercial tricycle rider. The youth, most of whom are from Bitako village, attacked the officers over the alleged abduction and killing of the rider. The tricycle rider was allegedly killed on Sunday evening after he was taken by yet to be identified men to a nearby village Dogwe in Monkin B ward. The commercial tricycle rider was hired by yet to be identified men to Dogwe village but he was later found dead in mysterious circumstances. His body was found and police swung into action and in the process three suspects were arrested. In a twinkle of an eye, rampaging youth from Bitako, the village of the killed rider, took to streets and attacked the Police Area Command protesting and demanding that the suspects be handed over to them to avenge the killing of their brother, said Musa Adamu a local resident in Zing. Also corroborating, another resident Rejoice Markus said, they destroyed all the vehicles in the station, set free detainees before setting ablaze the station. The incident occurred late evening, Monday to be precise. As I am talking to you now, the station has been destroyed and the youth have since left for their village, though I cant ascertain whether someone was hurt or not, and only the police can confirm whether their armory was torched or not. When contacted, the police spokesperson in the state, David Misal, confirmed the incident which he described as unfortunate and disturbing. He added, They protesters mostly youth attacked the station protesting the killing of the tricycle rider in a nearby village. The police arrested three suspects but they demanded that the suspects be handed over to them for jungle justice, and seeing the danger the suspects were hurriedly transferred to Jalingo. They went on rampage attacking people and burning down the station, though no life was lost. Already police have swung into action to bring to book all those involved in this condemnable act. Whoever was involved must face the wrath of the law. The European Union (EU) on Tuesday announced a grant of 143 million Euros (about N60.1 billion) to the Borno State to enable the government implement nine key post-insurgency projects across the state. Tagged the Borno Package, EU officials said the grant is to support the state government in three main areas of Response, Recovery and Resilience in the next three years. The fund is also to help the state build its resilience programme for enhanced food/nutrition security of internally displaced persons (IDP) and to provide basic services in the area of health, water, sanitation, sustainable energy and to enhance livelihoods and employment opportunities for communities affected by the Boko Haram insurgency. The 143 million Euro grant is the third of such grants that has been offered to by the EU in the past one year. Speaking at the official launching of the nine programmes, the EU head of cooperation, Kurt Cornelis, said the programmes would be implemented by nine humanitarian agencies that are already stationed in the state. He said the implementation partners comprise Action Against Hunger, Alima, department for international development (DFID), Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), International Rescue Committee (IRC), Mercy Corps, Norwegian Refugee Council and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Of the 143 million grant, the EU head of cooperation said 20 million Euros would go to the World Bank as fund to service the technical needs of the projects. Mr. Cornelis said the EU was satisfied with the level of implementation recorded in the previous grants. He however said a monitoring office would be established to supervise the implementation of the latest grant. He said the grant would be implemented under the coordination of Borno State Ministry for Reconstruction, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RRR). In his speech, the state commissioner for RRR, Babagana Umara Zulum, said the projects would be implemented mainly within Maiduguri and Bama towns. He said apart from helping to strengthen the capacity of state government officials in post-conflict reconstruction and building of resilience amongst the people, the project would be implemented in such a manner that each of the nine humanitarian actors would handle specific area of needs. Th UNDP/ WHO is to intervene in 20 communities of Borno state by rehabilitating 20 primary schools, three secondary schools and provision of water in 20 communities and sanitation needs in some public health facilities; The NRC is to drill 28 stiff aquifer boreholes, 278 tube wells with pumping units in addition to supporting farmers with input supports. The FAO is to support about 70, 000 households with agricultural inputs, lives stocks and support for arid farming; the ACN, Alima and IRC are to provide basic health facilities, water and sanitation in some communities, as well as livelihood supports for the vulnerable ones. The Mercy Corps will provide grants for agricultural purpose, rehabilitate vocational training centres, and facilitate cash transfer for about 10,000 beneficiaries and rehabilitation of community assets. The DWR will recruit about 10,000 youth for the sanitation of Maiduguri, Bama and Biu towns in collaboration with BOSEPA. The DFID is to provide solar electrification to some schools, health centres and water facilities and community centres; He said the total package for the project is a grant and not loan to the Borno State government. Of the total amount, 123 million ((N50.4 billion) is for the rehabilitation and restoration of basic services, health, education, water, sanitation and livelihood, while the sum of 20 million (N8.4 billion) is voted for technical service managed by the World Bank, said Mr Zulum. The budget steering committee for the 143 million Euro grant was co-chaired by the Borno state governor and the state minister of budget and national planning, while the technical implementation committee is co-chaired by the Borno state commissioner for RRR and the ministry of Budget and National planning. The Borno state governor, who was represented by his deputy, Mr. Usman Durkwa, commended the EU for coming to the aid of the state for the third time. ADVERTISEMENT He said the nine projects earmarked for implementation would go a long way in tackling the problems of the people especially those that would soon be returning to their reclaimed communities. He said the Boko Haram crisis didnt only displace our people but created over 50,000 orphans who are mostly girl-child. Government has built over 20 mega Schools for the education of this orphans within the capital city, while more schools are being built across the state capital to cater for the rising education needs of our people. ADVERTISEMENT Operatives of the police Special Anti Robbery Squad, SARS, opened fire on a relaxation spot in Dorowa, near the School of Health Technology, Zawan, Jos south local government area of Plateau state, killing one and injuring others. A witness, Dapip Stanley, told PREMIUM TIMES in a telephone interview Tuesday, that the incident occurred Monday night, at about 9: 30 p.m. According to Mr. Stanley, the police were not provoked. SARS police personnel entered the drinking joint and opened fire on the people, many were shot and taken away by the police. This Morning (Tuesday) we learnt that one of them died. Mr. Stanley said SARS have been threatening the residents. This is not the first time they have injured many in the past, SARS personnel have been terrorising our people here in Dorowa. Each night, they always threaten to shoot people, and yesterday night (Monday) they carried out their intention, shot and killed our people, he said. One of the victims, Dung Chung, was injured on the head during the confusion, while another, Chollom Dung, had a bullet wound in the hand. In an interview with the reporter, they insisted that one of them died at the hospital, because the police refused them access to him. Mr. Chung said that he regained consciousness in the early hours of Tuesday, adding that another victim, Junior was still alive at the hospital. PREMIUM TIMES could not independently verify their claims at the time of filing report. The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Plateau state police Command Terna Tyopev, confirmed the incident to PREMIUM TIMES, but said no one died. Mr. Tyopev explained what happened via mobile telephone text message. Three people were injured, they were taken to the Plateau State Specialist Hospital Jos, two were treated and discharged, but another is still receiving treatment at the hospital, he said. Mr. Tyopev also said that 13 others were arrested by the police at the scene of the incident. He, however did not disclose their offense or why police operatives launched the unprovoked attack. ADVERTISEMENT Over 30,000 pregnant women and nursing mothers in Zamfara State have benefited from the cash transfer programme of the British Department for International Development (DFID), an official said on Tuesday. The DFID which runs the Child Development Grant Programme in Zamfara and Jigawa States, offers N4000 to pregnant women and nursing mothers to support child growth, development and survival. Nasiru Biabiki, Chairman, Social Protection Platform, an NGO, gave the figure during an advocacy visit to the Management of Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Gusau. Based on the record we have from Save the Children International, the NGO implementing the programme in the state from 2014 to date, he said. Over 30,000 beneficiaries have so far benefited from the programme in two local government areas of Anka and Tsafe. We consider this as great achievements and in line with what we are advocating for. We are advocating for the adoption of the Federal Government Social Protection Policy by the state government. We are here today for an advocacy visit to the management of NTA Gusau, to solicit your support in enlightening the public especially the stakeholders on the importance of this policy. He said that the group would also visit policy makers, NGOs and individuals for their support to ensure that the policy was approved. Responding, Aliyu Abubakar, General Manager of the station appreciated the efforts of the group, stressing that the issue of social protection was a general responsibility that require the support and cooperation of all. He pledged to provide valuable time in the stations programmes to sensitise key stakeholders on the issue. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalled that Save the Children had recently disclosed that about N2 billion had been spent by the DFID to fund the project in three years. (NAN) A lawmaker, Danjuma Laah (PDP, Kaduna South) has rejected the Federal Governments intention of creating cattle colonies in his senatorial district. In a statement he signed, the senator urged the federal government to demand land to build universities and other institutions instead of creating cattle colonies, adding that Kaduna state has already given out much land. The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbeh, had announced that the establishment of cattle colonies in the states that had volunteered land would commence this week. He said that the 16 states (including Kaduna) that had volunteered to provide land for the establishment of the cattle colonies are from northern Nigeria. They include Adamawa, Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Zamfara, Kebbi, Nasarawa and Plateau, Bauchi, Gombe, Borno, Jigawa, Yobe, Niger, Kogi and Kwara states. The population of Southern Kaduna is fast increasing with equal demands new farmlands, animal rearing and other land uses for now and in the future. Ask us for lands to site universities, government institutions etc. We are willing to give out our lands in partnership with industrialists, mechanised farming, estate developments and all positive social and economic endeavours that are of mutual benefits to everyone. No land in Southern Kaduna is free again for the exclusive economic benefit of a group of people who have paid us with mass murder and destruction in scores of our settlements since 2011 for humanely accommodating them and their forebears. Herdsmen are rich and can afford to negotiate and buy lands from willing farmers to ranch their animals as is the practice in modern times, since pastoralism is regarded as backward and prone to conflicts, he said. Mr. Laah, in his statement, stressed that a peaceful coexistence between residents of the state and Fulani herdsmen is possible because the local herdsmen are law abiding. We have co-habited for very long with Fulani herdsmen without the kind of strange and evil relation that their presence has suddenly turned into in many communities of Southern Kaduna. Herdsmen, their cattle and our people have fared even better in the past when we peacefully lived together in affected communities. It is still possible to normalise that relationships if government is sincere and serious about it, because we believe that majority of our local herdsmen are law abiding and crave for peace and development, he said. The senator further explained that there is an existing Cattle Grazing Reserve in Laduga from land taken away from indigenes of Zangon Kataf and Kachia Local Government Areas dating back decades ago. It therefore, means that Southern Kaduna has already given much, much more over the needed 5000 hectares by 15 or at least 6 times the needed space for a Grazing Colony should the size of Laduga Grazing Reserve be put at 72,000 or at 32,000 hectares, he explained. The lawmaker who expressed sadness at the recent killings in Kaduna as well as governments decision to create cattle colonies, said that establishing cattle colonies in the state would now look as if the terror unleashed on Southern Kaduna and the Middle Belt is to cower them into submitting their prime lands for new colonies of herdsmen that are marauding them. The solution to the strange violence developed by armed herdsmen against farming communities is not confiscation of farmers lands and settling those who are plundering them. The solution is to bring to justice those carrying out these heinous crimes and provide security for the defenceless after all some of them have been identified and paid compensation by Kaduna State government. When this is done, sincere dialogue to ending the terror may start between all stakeholders in the crisis. In conclusion therefore Southern Kaduna does not welcome any Cattle Colony in whatever guise, he said. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The Kebbi State Governor, Atiku Bagudu, on Tuesday presented a budget proposal of N151billion for the 2018 fiscal year to the state House of Assembly. Presenting the budget, Mr. Bagudu said out of the total amount, N108 billion was for capital projects while N43 billion was for recurrent expenditure. He said the 2018 budget proposal represented 4.5 per cent increase when compared to the 2017 budget stressing that the 2017 budget achieved 60 per cent implementation. NAN reports that in 2017 the state government budgeted N139.3 billion for the year. The governor, who did not give a sectoral breakdown of the budget, said priority would be accorded to internal revenue generation, education, industrial development, agriculture, health and provision of infrastructure. He said the 2018 budget would consolidate the gains achieved by the last years budget, especially improvement of infrastructure, power supply and exploitation of mineral resources. The governor said a task force would be set up on alternative sources of revenue as part of effort to improve the revenue base of the state. He said his administration would collaborate with the federal government and some foreign countries on the commercial while power supply would be improved to attract investors. In his remarks, the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Abdulmumini Kamba, assured that the lawmakers would ensure due diligence and speedy passage of the budget. Mr. Kamba, also assured that the assembly would ensure sustained cordial working relationship with the other arms of government in the state. (NAN) A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Olu Falae, has said he will work hard with other leaders of the South-west region to ensure no cattle colonies are created in the region. Mr. Falae said the recent attack on his farm by suspected herdsmen was an attempt to kill him. He spoke on Monday after the government delegation inspected his farm which was destroyed by fire allegedly set by Fulani herdsmen. He also berated President Muhammadu Buhari for failing to take effective measures at curbing the menace of the herdsmen. He said there was need to embrace modern methods of cattle rearing instead of the idea of grazing colonies, adding: there is no colony in Yoruba land. Mr. Falae also recalled his ordeal at the hands of the herdsmen, saying that after he was kidnapped in 2015, the herdsmen returned and killed one of his guards, and the murder case is yet be solved. He noted that if the arsonists had met him in the farm he would have been killed. To burn Palm trees, amounts to act of malice and hatred and I believe they have malice against me and they hate me, that is why they will burn my palm trees, uproot the palm trees I planted and throw the seedlings away. That does not help the cattle in anyway, he said. I have expected him (Buhari) for over two years to take an initiative and make a national broadcast to his people in Nigeria assuring us that he will handle the matter by announcing effective measures that could control the capacity of the herdsmen and assure that both the herdsmen and us can live together in peace without one side damaging the other. I am disappointed Ive not heard this from him. If I were President I would have taken the initiative because this is not a problem that cannot be solved. Many nations have gone through this, this mode of cattle rearing is universal but in the last 100 years most nations have solved the problem by adopting ranching. Government at all levels, especially the Federal government should be a government for all of us regardless of how many votes we cast at the election time, we are all entitled to the protection of the federal government. Ranching is cattle farming and a legitimate and very profitable business run by private business men but they are trying to make my crops to feed their cattle to subsidise their own business because they are forcing me by invading my farm in the night to supply free food to their cattle and when they sell the cattle they dont give me part of the money. This is a system that cannot survive and I expected the government to have stopped it, we are not saying cattle rearing should be stopped but the cattle rearers should be assisted to set up or do their business without hurting anybody. Hurting farmers is not acceptable. He also gave an insight into his ordeal in the hands of the armed herdsmen. At first they will come in the night to fetch water and we were tolerant because they did not touch or destroy anything but we did not allow them to stay here but later it took a different turn all over Nigeria. They will come in the night, eat out maize and Ive reported to the police over 10 times. Elements of the same people kidnapped me, when people said they were not Fulani herdsmen, you could say they are Fulanis. Everybody knows a Fulani man in Nigeria. Every year they set fire to my farm and do you know why, there are two elements to their actions, first is economic, they burn this farm because the grass is already dry and cows dont like that. ADVERTISEMENT So they burn the grass and in two weeks time fresh grass will grow and their cattle will have fresh grass to eat. In order word they are already treating my farm as if it was their colony. If the government fails to take steps to prevent it, it means that government supports what they are doing, they are not offended by what they are doing. The Lagos State Government on Tuesday donated 30 power bikes to some security agencies operating in the state. Governor Akinwunmi Ambode said at the handing-over of the bikes at the Lagos House, Ikeja, that the gesture was in line with the governments commitment to boost security and enhance safety of lives and property. He said the donation of the bikes was in fulfilment of his promise to prioritise the security of residents and ensure that no stone was left unturned to protect the people of the state. Mr. Ambode, who was represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Mr Tunji Bello, said security, being one of the tripods upon which his administration was built, would continue to be accorded its pride of place. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the power bikes were funded by the Lagos State Lotteries Board and donated to the Police Command in the State. The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) were also beneficiaries. Mr. Ambode said that the power bikes would enhance the job of the security agencies of securing lives and property of residents. Earlier, the Chairman, Lagos State Security Trust Fund, Oye Hassan-Odukale, commended Governor Ambode for the donation, saying it came barely two months after he promised to procure more bikes for security agencies. Mr. Hassan-Odukale said that the bikes would go a long way in preventing crimes, enhancing security and ensuring residents safety. He expressed optimism that the equipment would be put into good use. Mr. Hassan-Odukale called on corporate bodies and public-spirited individuals to team up with the government to procure more equipment for security agencies in the overall interest of the people. Receiving the power bikes on behalf of security agencies, Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Imohimi Edgal, commended the State Government for the gesture. Mr. Edgal said that the bikes would greatly help security personnel to pursue criminals, especially those operating in traffic. Power bikes are essential for hot pursuits of criminals. Power bikes in line with the visibility clause in community policing also establishes police and other agencies visibilities on our streets and highways. That is how important these power bikes are in fighting crime in Lagos and I want to assure the governor and the good people of Lagos that we will put the bikes to good use, the police chief said. In their separate remarks, the General Manager, LASTMA, Olawale Musa; General Manager, LASEMA, Adeshina Tiamiyu and the Commander, Rapid Response Squad (RRS) of the State Police Command, ACP Olatunji Disu commended the state governments initiative. They also expressed optimism that the bikes would help to prevent and to fight crime in emergency situations. (NAN) ADVERTISEMENT Nairobians who access the Nairobi CBD on boda-bodas will now be required to find other means following an immediate ban on boda-boda operations in the City Centre. The Nairobi County Government on Monday announced the ban amid a public outcry over criminal activities in the Central Business District. It is believed organized criminal gangs operating in the CBD escape on bodabodas after mugging their victims. The Director of Operations at the City Inspectorate Department, Peter Mbaya, said beginning today( Tuesday, January 23) boda-bodas will not be allowed in the Central Business District. The director said only motorcycles having carrier boxes or those offering courier services and have branded boxes will be allowed in the city centre. He added that boda boda operators will be dropping their passengers in areas outside the CBD such as City Stadium and Ngara. Mbaya further issued a warning to grazers who drive their animals into the city, noting that stern action would be taken against them. The County is also looking to flush out street children and hawkers who have taken over the city streets as police seek to secure the Central Business District. I want to assure everybody that we will do all things possible to nab petty criminals. There will be an anti-mugging squad to work with the county too to curb these vices, said Nairobi Regional Commissioner Bernard Leparmarai. SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Hyperledger, an open source collaborative effort created to advance cross-industry blockchain technologies, announced today the inaugural 2018 Hyperledger Global Forum, which will take place December 12-15 in Basel, Switzerland at the Congress Center Basel. The 2018 Hyperledger Global Forum will convene the global enterprise blockchain community to advance these critical technologies. The agenda will comprise of both enterprise and technical tracks covering a mix of topics including blockchain in the enterprise, distributed ledger and smart contracts 101, roadmaps for Hyperledger projects, industry keynotes and use cases in development. There will also be social networking for the community to bond, and hacking activities with mentors to help facilitate software development collaboration and knowledge sharing to bring developers up the learning curve. "This year's Global Forum will be the premier event to collaborate and better understand Hyperledger blockchain technologies, real use cases and production deployment challenges facing enterprises today," said Brian Behlendorf, Executive Director, Hyperledger. "For anyone still wrestling with how blockchain will transform businesses processes, and where their industry fits in, this is the perfect opportunity to learn more." Open to members and non-members alike, attendees will have the chance to talk directly with Hyperledger project maintainers and the Technical Steering Committee, collaborate with other organizations on ideas that will directly impact the future of Hyperledger, and promote their work among the communities. A call for papers, keynote speakers and the conference schedule will be announced this summer. For more information about the 2018 Hyperledger Global Forum, please visit: https://events.linuxfoundation.org/events/hyperledger-global-forum-2018/ Help us spread the word! Click the following links to Tweet and share on your social networks using #HyperledgerGlobalForum. Inaugural 2018 #HyperledgerGlobalForum announced! Learn more about the event here: http://bit.ly/2Dkpwby Click to tweet: https://ctt.ec/LamTf Developers, enterprise end-users & enthusiasts of Hyperledger blockchain technologies are headed to Europe in December for the Inaugural #HyperledgerGlobalForum. Learn more: http://bit.ly/2Dkpwby Click to tweet: https://ctt.ec/cZl68 Don't miss the Inaugural 2018 #HyperledgerGlobalForum happening Dec 12-15 in Basel, Switzerland. More details: http://bit.ly/2Dkpwby Click to tweet: https://ctt.ec/HKkRc About Hyperledger Hyperledger is an open source collaborative effort created to advance cross-industry blockchain technologies. It is a global collaboration including leaders in finance, banking, Internet of Things, supply chains, manufacturing and Technology. The Linux Foundation hosts Hyperledger under the Foundation. To learn more, visit: https://www.hyperledger.org/. Contact: Jessica Rampen The Linux Foundation/Hyperledger [email protected] 650.787.3548 SOURCE Hyperledger Related Links http://hyperledger.org BANGALORE, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Han Digital identifies top 3 digital skills that will likely lead the growth in hiring 7 out of 10 large IT services companies and global in-house center/captive hire for positions requiring digital skills every quarter 6 out of 10 IT services organizations invest on reskilling / cross-skilling on digital skills to manage talent supply gap Han Digital Solution (P) Ltd., (Han Digital), is a company focusing on talent consulting including talent market trends, attrition studies, compensation & benefits trends, skill-based market median salary and talent mobility. It recently concluded an research on hiring trends - '2018 India ITBPM Hiring Outlook', a study that will help leaders understand the talent availability for technology skills and use the insights in hiring decisions. Talent acquisition teams are witnessing increased incidences of hiring for digital skills with increased digital technology adoption. Han Digital's research shows that, the share of demand for disruptive technology skills are growing rapidly in the past three years across Tier I and emerging cities in India. In 2014, the job demand and growth of digital technology skills were less than 15% of overall hiring and has almost doubled to 28% in 2017. For 2018, it is estimated to be in the region of 35%. Top digital niche skills are Robotic Process Automation (RPA), Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), Augmented and Virtual Reality (AR/VR), DevOps, UI/UX, Blockchain, Machine Learning (ML), Information Security (InfoSec), Ecommerce, Data Science/Big Data, Python, Cloud, Industrial Robotics, 5G, 3D printing, etc. These are hot demanding technologies being evolving faster among Indian Information Technology (IT) and Business Process Management (BPM) companies. Over the next two years, Re-inventing/Reskilling the existing talent pool at a larger scale by the industry is the way to tackle the talent demand-supply situation in India. The 3 hot digital skills Among the above list of hot skills, Han Digital identified Robotic Process Automation (RPA), DevOps and UI/UX as the top 3 skills in 2017 by demand and growth. Demand for these skills will continue to increase in 2018 as well. Among the overall talent pool of 25,000+ professionals, talent demand concentrated heavily with Tier I & II IT services and Global In-house (GIC)/Captive companies which contribute more than 65% of the demand every quarter. "Based on last 3 hiring quarters, DevOps, RPA and UI/UX are the top 3 digital skills in hot demand. Most businesses/project teams face skill maturity gap among available talent - a major challenge while trying to bridge customer expectations," said Saravanan Balasundaram, Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Han Digital Solution. Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is playing a critical role by improving the effectiveness of service at any back office transactional activities. More than 150 organizations in India established RPA practices on Automation AnyWhere, BluePrism and UiPath skill sets. The RPA talent market grew at 34% in last 12 months through aggressive reskilling and training by large system integrators. As on 31 December 2017, Bengaluru, Chennai and Pune/Mumbai Region were the largest talent pools, driving hiring for RPA with average salary increases of 27%. DevOps demand spiked with tools such as Chef, Puppet, Jenkins etc., with companies set for cultural adoption to play lean and agile software delivery. Over 5,000 strong DevOps professionals are available in India and 70% of them have been cross-trained from basic build and release engineering in the last two years. As on 31 December 2017, Bengaluru, Pune/Mumbai and NCR were the largest talent pools, driving hiring for DevOps with average salary increases of 35%. "Market Perception and role of DevOps differs among services organizations, product captives, Global In-house Centers (GIC) and tech start-ups. However, the need for DevOps skill mix and expectations will continue to grow even in 2018," said Pranab Sen, Co-founder of ResearchFox, a leading business research and advisory firm. UI/UX is one of the fastest growing skills when it comes to hiring demand. IT Services and Captive companies are attracting this talent pool on a large scale. This includes talent skilled in HTML, CSS with JavaScript (AngularJS, ReactJS, etc.). 7,000+ UI/UX professionals available are at mid-experience levels. As on 31 December 2017, Bengaluru, NCR and Pune/Mumbai were the largest talent pools, driving hiring for UI/UX with average salary increases of 32%. Rising demand and higher than market-median salary leads to an average employee stint of two years in the market. About Han Digital: Han Digital is a specialized HR consulting and recruitment firm which brings together talent availability expertise, diversity inclusion best practices, HR strategies, RPO & Contract staffing solutions, talent analysis, and highly efficient talent insights to provide hiring decisions with high speed and scalability. Its Talent Insights are fully flexible and delivers information tailored to leaders' demands. Han Digital was founded in 2003 by Saravanan (Saran) Balasundaram with the passion for providing fact-based decisions, scientific methods and in the art of hiring. Recently, Han Digital was voted as the 'Most Preferred Partner of the Year' by one of the largest technology companies in the world. For more information, visit http://www.handigital.com. Reach Us: Get to know more about talent related market trends and insights across 800+ skills from Application Development & modernization, System Integration / Package Implementation, Digital Technologies, Product Engineering Services, IT Infrastructure, Business Process Management (BPM), etc. across any location local or global. Contacts: Leela Rajendran [email protected] +91-80-6134-1500 Talent Insights Saran Balasundaram [email protected] +91-80-6134-1200 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/han-digital-solution-p-ltd/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/handigitals?lang=en Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/handigitalsolution SOURCE Han Digital Solution Pvt Ltd SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- 280 CapMarkets, a fixed income technology platform for advisors, today announced the launch of its groundbreaking technology platform, Bond Navigator, available immediately for financial advisors. This cloud-based application provides greater transparency into bond pricing, availability and characteristics, backed by the resources and expertise of the firm's advisor liaison, institutional sales, and institutional trading desks.1 For many independent investment advisors, gaining access to a broad universe of bonds is challenging. Large institutions control or manage a majority of the individual securities, strongly influence bond prices, and hold trading insights within proprietary systems. These factors can inhibit an advisor's ability to compare available bonds in the market, and can also limit pricing transparency. Bond Navigator addresses these challenges by aggregating data from multiple market sources to give greater insight into buying, selling and managing bonds. It provides access to thousands of wholesale bond offerings and liquidity solutions, with comprehensive pre-trade price transparency to assist investment advisors in managing their clients' fixed income portfolios with confidence. 280 CapMarkets' pre-trade data, combined with post-trade 280 Best X documentation, also supports best execution requirements. "Bond Navigator levels the playing field for independent advisors," said Gurinder S. Ahluwalia, chief executive officer. "It empowers advisors with enhanced market visibility, carefully curated offerings, and access to a breadth of products and insights on the markets. Trade requests initiated through Bond Navigator are executed by our experienced team of fixed income professionals, who work to achieve the most competitive price for every order using the full resources of our three desks. This service model, uniquely binding deep fixed income expertise with a sophisticated technology platform, can help independent advisors save valuable time, grow their business, and feel confident in their ability to support best execution requirements." "Bond Navigator brings together data from multiple sources onto a single, easy-to-use screen, providing real-time trading information and pricing transparency," said Prescott Nasser, chief technology officer. "Advisors now have visibility to a full range of bond offerings, by issuer or series, along with historical trading data, so that they can confidently select the right bonds for their client at the right price." The Bond Navigator platform features an intuitive user interface and powerful tools for the independent investment advisor. These include: A map feature that illustrates the geographic location of issuers; Offering and bid/wanted supply by issuer and geographic location; Real-time new offering and bid/wanted alerts; A marketing tool for advisors' communication with new and existing clients; A watch list to assist advisors in monitoring bond pricing changes. Client Endorsements2 "With 280 CapMarkets and Bond Navigator, we can build unique portfolios geared to achieve our clients' objectives using individual bonds." Michael O'Brien , President, O'Brien Investment Management, LLC , President, "We are extremely pleased with the service and execution that we receive from 280 Securities. 280 has quickly become a valuable extension of our financial advisory services in providing expert and pro-active guidance and management of our client's fixed income portfolios. Having a trusted partner in the fixed-income space is a major advantage to us and our clients." Adam Waitkevich , President and Founder, Coppertree, LLC , President and Founder, "When we trade with 280 CapMarkets we appreciate their pricing transparency and their institutional trading team. The team diligently shops around for the best offerings, consistently beating the offerings we see at custodial bond desks." Morgan Mabry , Operations Manager, Client 1st Advisory Group Availability Advisors interested in using Bond Navigator today can visit 280capmarkets.com to request a log in, or call (628) 231-2341. About 280 CapMarkets Headquartered in San Francisco, 280 CapMarkets combines the experience and execution services of a traditional broker-dealer (280 Securities LLC, a member of FINRA/SIPC) with a cloud-based technology platform (280 Technologies LLC) to provide intuitive bond trading ideas, access to a broad offering of bonds, and greater pricing transparency. To learn more, visit 280capmarkets.com. Follow us on Twitter at @280capmarkets. Media Contact: Binh Nguyen Flackable (866) 225-0920 ext. 106 [email protected] 1 Securities offered through 280 Securities LLC, member FINRA/SIPC 2 These testimonials may not be representative of the experience of other customers and is not a guarantee of the future performance of success. SOURCE 280 CapMarkets Related Links http://www.280capmarkets.com The inauguration brought together notable dignitaries from several universities as well as the President and CEO of Florida Hospital, Daryl Tol, and the Mayor of Orlando, Buddy Dyer, to speak and welcome the new President. Dr. Hernandez has been a leading scholar and strong advocate for Christian education, and has led several philanthropic urban initiatives and research studies, particularly regarding Latino/a communities in need. Some of his most notable achievements have included serving as Vice President of Academic Affairs at Antillean Adventist University in Puerto Rico, Program Officer for The Pew Charitable Trusts, and founding Director of the Center for the Study of Latino Religion at the University of Notre Dame. After Hurricane Maria's destruction in Puerto Rico, ADU, under Dr. Hernandez' direction, has lowered barriers to entry for displaced citizens who have relocated to Central Florida as well as participated in the "Blessings for Puerto Rico" fundraising drive and other donation efforts. At the Gala dinner following the inauguration, Dr. Hernandez also unveiled the Presidential Scholars Award, which will be awarded to freshman undergraduates at ADU who exhibit extraordinary potential to be the transformational leaders of their generations with the option of yearly renewal, up to a max of four years. About Adventist University of Health Sciences (ADU) Adventist University of Health Sciences (ADU) is a Seventh-day Adventist institution specializing in service-oriented and guided by the values of nurture, excellence, spirituality, and stewardship, the University seeks to develop leaders who will practice healthcare as a ministry. ADU fulfills this mission by developing skilled professionals who live the healing values of Christ. ADU offers undergraduate and graduate programs including: Biomedical Sciences, Nursing (BSN), Nurse Anesthesia, Occupational Therapy, Healthcare Administration, Physician Assistant, and Physical Therapy. The University is associated with Florida Hospital and the Adventist Health System. SOURCE Adventist University of Health Sciences Related Links https://www.adu.edu A crackdown on the notorious Nairobi CBD muggers has nabbed over 35 suspects, Nairobi Police Commander Japhet Koome said yesterday. In a press conference, Nairobi Regional Commissioner Bernard Leparmarai, who was flanked by Koome and AP Commandant Francis Mburu, said the arrested suspects are all below the age of 25 and would face robbery with violence charges. The arrests come in the wake of a public outcry from Nairobians over the marauding gangs that rob people in broad daylight. Nairobi County Governor Mike Sonko has since set up an anti-mugging squad comprising officers drawn from the County, Regular and Administration Police units. The county has marked Temple and Hakati roads as well as Moi and Haile Selassie Avenues as the hot spots for the muggings. Other areas include the lower CBD, OTC Racecourse road, Uyoma road near St Peters Clever Church and the junction of Ronald Ngala and Racecourse roads towards River road. The muggers reportedly hide in a garage at the junction of Ring road and New Pumwani roads, and in Globe roundabout culverts from 4 am to 6 am and from 7 pm to 11 pm. Tito Kilonzo, who is the citys chief security officer for compliance and disaster management, said the criminals are strategic and that they also target people leaving ATMs, forex bureaus and M-Pesa shops. Once they identify targets, he said, the gangs follow in smaller groups and surround the victims to prevent escapes. They then snatch valuables such as phones, watches, laptops, handbags, earrings, chains, in the shortest time possible. It is alleged the gangs include the notorious 40 Brothers and Gaza boys, and that members number about 10. Commissioner Bernard Leparmarai assured Nairobians of their safety, noting security agencies have pledged to get rid of the criminals. I want to assure everybody that we will do all things possible to nab petty criminals. There will be anti-mugging squad to work with the county too to curb these vices. The Commissioner further announced that hawkers who have taken over the city streets will be flushed out as police seek to secure the Central Business District. Another menace is that of hawkers and we are working with the county government to ensure we reign on them, also to ensure they are selling genuine products. They might have allowed hawkers in the CBD because they wanted votes. Now the elections are over we are going to clear them off our streets, said Leparmarai. This is a multi-agency task and we will ensure the city is safe for everybody. We have started late but better late than never and we will keep at it, said Nairobi Police Commander Japhet Koome. PHOENIX, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Advisor Group today announced a record-breaking year of recruitment, with 614 financial advisors in total joining the company's four wealth management firms. Comprised of FSC Securities Corporation, Royal Alliance Associates, SagePoint Financial and Woodbury Financial Services, Advisor Group is one of the nation's largest networks of independent financial advisory firms. The 614 advisors represent approximately $13 billion in client assets under administration (AUA). "2017 was our best recruiting year yet. I am proud that our culture and story is resonating in the industry. Our team has demonstrated what it means to be 'in your corner' for advisors, and our recruiting results reflect that," said Jamie Price, President and CEO of Advisor Group. "As evidenced by last year's 32-city roadshow, we believe actions speak louder than words. For us, that means equipping our affiliated advisors to succeed by delivering solutions that help them best serve their clients. This, in turn, fuels their growth in this rapidly changing landscape." Advisor Group's 614 new recruits in 2017 represent a 53% increase from the 400 advisors who were onboarded in 2016. The firm also experienced rapid growth in other areas of the business. Net new assets for the firm were up nearly 300% and, on average, Advisor Group's existing advisors boasted double-digit year-over-year revenue and AUA growth that exceeded that of the market. This growth was fueled by the simplification and reduction of ticket charges, combined with the introduction of new products and services designed to help advisors thrive in a fiduciary era. Each of Advisor Group's firms demonstrated strong recruitment results over the last year: Woodbury Financial Services, headquartered in Oakdale, MN , brought on 213 new advisors in 2017, totaling $5 billion in AUA. , brought on 213 new advisors in 2017, totaling in AUA. SagePoint Financial, based in Phoenix, AZ , saw 171 advisors join in 2017, bringing $4 billion in AUA to the firm. , saw 171 advisors join in 2017, bringing in AUA to the firm. Royal Alliance Associates, located in Jersey City, NJ , gained 172 advisors with a collective $3 billion in AUA. , gained 172 advisors with a collective in AUA. FSC Securities Corporation, headquartered in Atlanta, GA , welcomed 58 new advisors to their group last year, with $1 billion in AUA. For media inquiries regarding this announcement, contact: [email protected]. About Advisor Group Advisor Group, Inc. is one of the nation's largest networks of independent financial advisors serving over 5,000 advisors and overseeing approximately $190 billion in client assets. Headquartered in Phoenix, AZ, the firm is mission-driven to support the heroic role that advisors can play in the lives of their clients, offering securities and investment advisory services through its subsidiaries FSC Securities Corp., Royal Alliance Associates Inc., SagePoint Financial Inc. and Woodbury Financial Services Inc., as broker/dealers, registered investment advisors and members of FINRA and SIPC. Cultivating a spirit of entrepreneurship and independence, Advisor Group champions the enduring value of financial advisors and is committed to being in their corner every step of the way. SOURCE Advisor Group Related Links http://www.advisorgroup.com MONTREAL, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - CN (TSX: CNR) (NYSE: CNI) will issue its fourth-quarter and year-end 2017 financial and operating results today, Jan. 23, 2018, at 4.01 p.m. Eastern Time (ET). CN's senior officers will review the results and the railway's outlook in a webcast/conference call starting at 4.30 p.m. ET today. Luc Jobin, CN president and chief executive officer, will lead the call. Parties wishing to participate in or listen to the fourth-quarter and year-end 2017 presentation and question-and-answer period by telephone should call 1-800-355-4959 or 416-641-6122 by 4.20 p.m. ET today. CN will webcast the presentation live and furnish slides supporting the officers' remarks via the Investors section of its website, www.cn.ca/en/investors. The slides will be posted on the website after the close of markets today. A webcast replay will be available after the call ends. CN is a true backbone of the economy whose team of approximately 23,000 railroaders transports more than C$250 billion worth of goods annually for a wide range of business sectors, ranging from resource products to manufactured products to consumer goods, across a rail network of approximately 20,000 route-miles spanning Canada and mid-America. CN Canadian National Railway Company, along with its operating railway subsidiaries serves the cities and ports of Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Montreal, Halifax, New Orleans, and Mobile, Ala., and the metropolitan areas of Toronto, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Calgary, Chicago, Memphis, Detroit, Duluth, Minn./Superior, Wis., and Jackson, Miss., with connections to all points in North America. For more information about CN, visit the Company's website at www.cn.ca. SOURCE CN Related Links http://www.cn.ca NEW YORK, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AJC hailed Vice President Mike Pence's address to the Knesset, the first-ever delivered by a U.S. vice president to Israel's parliament in Jerusalem. "The alliance between our two countries has never been stronger, and the friendship between our peoples has never been deeper," Pence declared. AJC CEO David Harris, welcomed the message, calling it "a remarkable indication of U.S. solidarity with the Jewish state." A central theme of the vice president's remarks was President Trump's recent recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and the planned relocation of the U.S. Embassy there from Tel Aviv. Pence said that the administration's Jerusalem policy, which he described as a clear choice of "fact over fiction," set right "a 70-year wrong," and promised that the embassy move would take place before the end of 2019. His words were greeted by enthusiastic applause from most of the Knesset, especially when he recited, in Hebrew, the traditional Shehechiyanu blessing of thanksgiving. Even as some Arab Knesset members were ejected from the room for trying to disrupt the proceedings, Vice President Pence assured his audience that the U.S. remained "fully committed to achieving a lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians," and envisioned a two-state solution should both parties agree to one. AJC's David Harris said: "How ironic that just as Vice President Pence, from the Knesset rostrum, announced, 'We strongly urge the Palestinian leadership to return to the table' since 'peace can only come through dialogue,'" Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas was in Brussels, trying to drum up European Union support for unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state that would enable him to avoid direct talks with Israel and continue the futile struggle against it. That should make it abundantly clear who seeks a serious peace deal and who doesn't." SOURCE American Jewish Committee Related Links http://www.ajc.org SAN CARLOS, Calif., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Alkahest, Inc. ("Alkahest"), a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases and other age-related conditions, announced today the appointments of Karl G. Trass as Vice President, Regulatory Affairs and Jonas Hannestad, M.D., Ph.D. as Senior Medical Director. "We are delighted to further expand our development team as we work to bring innovative medicines to patients with Alzheimer's Disease, Parkinson's Disease and other serious diseases of aging," said Helen Jenkins, Alkahest's Chief Operating Officer. Karl brings to Alkahest more than 20 years of experience providing global regulatory strategic leadership in both pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. His experience encompasses building and leading organizational units including regulatory, quality assurance, safety, and manufacturing; managing development and commercial partnerships, contract manufacturing organizations and contract research organizations. Karl joins Alkahest from Tobira Therapeutics where he was Vice President, Regulatory Affairs prior to Tobira's acquisition by Allergan, and he held previous positions of increasing responsibility with Versartis, AbbVie, Neurobiological Technologies, Tularik, and Genentech. Karl received his B.A. in Chemistry from Indiana University. Jonas has more than 20 years of experience in the field of neuroscience at both academic and biopharmaceutical organizations and is a noted authority in PET imaging in neuroinflammatory and other neurological disorders including the effect of systemic factors on the brain. Dr. Hannestad will maintain his appointment as Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine, and will be responsible for Alkahest's clinical programs in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease. Jonas joins Alkahest from Denali Therapeutics and held previous positions at UCB Pharma and Yale University. He received his M.D. from Universidad de Oviedo and a Ph.D. from the University of Messina, and then completed a fellowship at UCLA and residency training in internal medicine and psychiatry at Duke University and Yale University. About Alkahest Alkahest is a privately-held clinical-stage company based in San Carlos, California developing treatments for age-related diseases, with an emphasis on cognitive dysfunction and neurodegeneration key medical challenges of our generation. The company's breakthrough research has demonstrated that factors in blood plasma are able to reverse the detrimental effects on cognitive functions during in both normal aging and disease models in animals. Alkahest is developing novel plasma-based products in collaboration with Barcelona, Spain-based Grifols, a global healthcare company and leading producer of plasma therapies. Alkahest has a pipeline of first-in-class plasma derived, small molecule and recombinant protein products for the treatment of age-related diseases. For further information, see www.alkahest.com. Contact Information: Joe McCracken Vice President Business Development Alkahest, Inc. [email protected] SOURCE Alkahest, Inc. Related Links http://www.alkahest.com KANSAS CITY, Kan., Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Kansas City immigrant from Goa, India Amit Raizada has announced that he is venturing into the wedding planning business with his wife, Kyra. The couple boast considerable experience in the field of wedding planning having worked with a number of clients in their native India and are starting to help local immigrants from India that live in Kansas and Missouri. Amit Raizada has assisted as a wedding planner in Kansas City and is eager to offer professional wedding planning services due to the high demand for experienced Indian wedding planners. Couples can take advantage of high-level skills to ensure the success of their event. Organizing a successful wedding Kyra and Amit urge couples to follow basic guidelines to make their dream wedding a reality. Couples need to start by building a wish list and setting expectations. It is vital to obtain multiple estimates on purchases. When you understand the importance of balancing the expenses of your wedding ceremony, Indian wedding ceremonies are supposed to be grand and last a week but often times this tradition is forgotten in America. Amit Raizada's tips for an unforgettable outdoor wedding Wind and rain can cause major problems when hosting an outdoor wedding, so look for a place that also offers a covered plan B. It comes as no surprise that many couples opt for an outdoor ceremony and an indoor reception. If you choose a location that also offers indoor facilities, you can move the ceremony indoors if the weather is less than ideal. If you plan to use tents for the reception, remember that they may let in wind and rain from the sides. Choose a wedding dress and bridesmaids' dresses that will not be raised by the wind. Avoid light fabrics, such as muslin and remember to choose hairstyles that can stay in place. Opt for reinforced hairstyles and avoid fringes or loose hair. Otherwise, you will appear to have been surprised by the storm. Kyra and Amit can help you plan for the unexpected in Kansas City. Visit their website here or call (913) 270-7995 Amit Raizada President Amit Raizada (913) 270-7995 [email protected] This release was issued through WebWire(R). For more information, visit http://www.webwire.com. SOURCE Amit Raizada WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Ankura announced today the completion of a strategic combination with Aegis Compliance & Ethics Center LLP, a pre-eminent US healthcare compliance services firm widely recognized for providing leading industrywide compliance and privacy-related services and for its strength in the clinical research arena. Since 2002, Aegis has assisted over 300 organizations with compliance-related services. Aegis has worked with 20 percent of all US hospitals and provided services to more than half of existing US medical schools. Joining Ankura as senior managing directors are Brian D. Annulis, Julie Colasacco, Ryan D. Meade, Steven W. Ortquist, Michael C. Roach, and Debbie Troklus. Dwight Claustre, Lea Fourkiller, K. Jane Hohn, and Gregory Kerr also join Ankura as managing directors along with 47 other highly qualified professionals. In addition to the team's healthcare and clinical research compliance expertise, Aegis brings a range of cross-industry compliance-related capabilities covering the spectrum of enterprise risk management, compliance and ethics, and monitoring and independent oversight services. The team, combined with Ankura's existing healthcare compliance services led by F. Lisa Murtha, gives Ankura the market-leading team to assist healthcare clients. Ankura Chief Executive Officer Roger Carlile said, "This combination is another important step in Ankura's journey to build a unique business advisory firm, based on a collaborative culture and known for how we solve challenges. The Aegis team holds these same ideals and we are very pleased to have them join the growing Ankura community. Bringing this group of recognized experts together with our own healthcare compliance leaders expands Ankura's ability to serve clients as well as continue to build market-leading teams by attracting, developing, and retaining the very best talent." Ms. Murtha stated, "Since first meeting Ryan Meade, I have watched Aegis develop into the strongest healthcare research compliance team in the industry. These subject-matter experts are also thought leaders who work closely with the Health Care Compliance Association and the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics, and many of them also actively participate as faculty at Loyola, Drexel and other major academic centers and law schools." Mr. Meade added, "The future of healthcare is research and science. Helping our clients succeed in that future reality requires the addition of the broad range of skills found at Ankura. Integrating Aegis' expertise in healthcare with Ankura's, including its rich data analytics expertise, makes for a new capability never seen before in the market." SOURCE Ankura Related Links http://www.ankura.com INDIANAPOLIS, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Ardagh Group, Glass North America, a division of Ardagh Group (NYSE: ARD) and a leading producer of glass containers for the food and beverage industries in the United States, announced today the nationwide rollout of its Ardagh Direct program. In 2017, Ardagh Direct successfully launched its program for wineries West of the Rockies. This expansion of Ardagh Direct provides food and beverage companies of all sizes, located throughout North America, the option to purchase glass bottles and jars directly from Ardagh Group, Glass North America. "With dedicated sales teams and support offices in St. Louis, Philadelphia and Napa, California, customers can expect a high level of attention and responsiveness, as well as flexibility in ordering," said Alex Robertson, Chief Commercial Officer for Ardagh Group's North American Glass division. "With a wide range of glass bottle and jar options that come with buying direct from a U.S. manufacturer, the Ardagh Direct team has the resources to accommodate customers' unique requests." Food and beverage companies across the country can purchase from a large range of high-quality, American-made glass bottles and jars in a variety of sizes, colors and styles, and have the flexibility to order less than truckload (LTL) quantities. Food and beverage companies can contact Ardagh Direct at 707-200-9350 (West), 800-428-8642 (Central/East) or via email at [email protected]. For more than 125 years, Ardagh Group has been producing innovative glass bottles in the U.S. To view Ardagh Group's complete glass bottle collection, visit the online catalog. Further Information Gina Behrman, Director, Marketing & Communications at Ardagh Group, Glass North America, [email protected], 317.558.5717 Paula Polei, Manager, Marketing & Communications at Ardagh Group, Glass North America, [email protected], 317.558.5732 Notes to the Editor Ardagh Group is a global leader in glass and metal packaging solutions, producing packaging for most of the world's leading food, beverage and consumer care brands. We operate 109 facilities in 22 countries, employ 23,500 people and have global sales exceeding approximately $8.4 billion (Eur7.7 billion). www.ardaghgroup.com Image Download image. SOURCE Ardagh Group, Glass - North America Related Links http://www.ardaghgroup.com The 1st ASIAWATER 2018 Technical Site Visit to the Lembaga Air Perak (LAP) was held on the 10 th of August 2017, where participants were given a private tour and briefing of the Ulu Kinta Water Treatment Plant and Sultan Azlan Shah Water Dam by Dato' Ir. Mohd Yusof B. Mohd Isa, General Manager of LAP. For the 2nd technical visit, participants of ASIAWATER 2018 visited Pantai 2 RSTP, which is designed for 'Standard A' effluent discharge quality as prescribed in the Environmental Quality Regulations (Sewage) 2009. The facility has been designed to maximise green energy recovery through installation of solar panels and biogas utilization. Pantai 2 RSTP is designed to serve 1.4 million population equivalents and is able to treat 320 MLD of effluent. It serves the Pantai catchment area -- the largest of eight catchment areas within Kuala Lumpur -- covering an area over 6,700 ha that includes the central and south-western parts of Kuala Lumpur. The construction of the plant started in July 2011 and was completed in July 2015. Ms. Eliane Van Doorn, Business Development Director, UBM ASEAN said: "The overall objectives of the technical visit is to get a better understanding of the importance of good sewerage services and to highlight the need for community engagement and support to further improve our sewerage system in this country. Pantai 2 RSTP is a good example, where the Government has successfully incorporated community friendly facilities within its critical infrastructure of sewage treatment plant." Dato' Dr. Tan Yew Chong, Deputy Secretary General, Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water (KeTTHA) said: "Ensuring a universal and equitable access to clean water and sanitation services for all as emphasised in the Sustainable Development Goals, has been one of the most challenging agenda for the Government. The Government will continue to invest heavily in both sectors to match the increasing demand for an efficient water and sewerage services resulted from rapid urbanization and economic development." For the remaining period of the Eleventh Malaysia Plan, the Government focuses on improving coverage, quality and efficiency of water and sewerage services to the public. With all strategies implemented, the Government aims to ensure 99% access to clean and treated water, 85% coverage of sewerage connected services in the urban areas and reduction of NRW to 31% by 2020. ASIAWATER 2018 The 10th edition of ASIAWATER will be held from 10-12 April 2018 at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre (KLCC), Malaysia. With more than 1,000 exhibiting companies and 11 regional and international pavilions, the event is expected to welcome over 19,000 trade visitors and delegates from 48 countries. The three-day event is accompanied with free-to-attend conference and seminars with the central theme of 'Partnership for Growth and a Sustainable Future'. The other conference topics include 'Efficient & Sustainable Water Resources', 'Water Future Partnerships', Water Policy & Governance' and Water Resources'. ASIAWATER 2018 conference and seminars are supported by Malaysian Water Association (MWA), Ministry of Energy, Green Technology and Water (KeTTHA), Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE). For more information, go to: www.asiawater.org SOURCE UBM Asia (Malaysia) CINCINNATI, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- AssureCare and Kroger today announced that they achieved Level III capability from Community Care of North Carolina (CCNC) for the Pharmacist eCare Plan initiative. Using AssureCare's solution, MedCompass, Kroger pharmacies in North Carolina can share care plans electronically, support care coordination, and actively participate with CCNC and its patient-centered medical home and care-management activities. By virtue of being able to submit the ecare plan, they are able to engage the patient and his/her care team, improving health outcomes, and reduce costs. For more information on the Pharmacist eCare Plan initiative, click here. Kroger "This level 3 capability allows Kroger pharmacies to transmit patient active medication lists, drug therapy problems, gaps in care, interventions and patient-centered goals," said Colleen Lindholz, President of Kroger Pharmacy and The Little Clinic. "By using AssureCare, our pharmacists have a much broader, real-time view of the patient's care plan, and consequently, they have the tools to go 'beyond the fill,' improving patient health outcomes, enhancing patient engagement, and reducing costs," she added. "The Pharmacist eCare Plan is a dynamic plan that contains information on the patient, pharmacist and care team's concerns and goals related to medication optimization. The care plan may also contain information related to individual health and social risks that may impact care, planned interventions, expected outcomes, and referrals to other providers or for additional services e.g., nutrition consultation or diagnostic laboratory studies," said Jim Kirby, Senior Director of Pharmacy Services. Kroger's community pharmacists can also use AssureCare's technology platform to identify what interventions or services a patient needs and drive patient services like medication reconciliation, adherence monitoring and medication synchronization, immunizations, Medicare plan reviews, patient engagement, communication to the electronic health record to other healthcare providers, and billing for enhanced services. "Reaching Level 3 is an important milestone. AssureCare is an innovator and their technology allows Kroger pharmacies to now communicate with commercial health plans, government sponsored health programs, hospitals, physician practices, Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs) quality assurance organizations, Risk Bearing Entities (RBEs) and other care team members in a way that gives depth and context to their pharmacy's activities," said Troy Trygstad, vice president, Pharmacy Programs at Community Care of North Carolina. "This is an important step towards pharmacies' meaningful integration with the rest of the health care team. Without the Pharmacist eCare Plan, it is difficult for pharmacies to participate in widespread healthcare system payment reform efforts and they risk getting left behind." "I commend CCNC and Kroger's innovative pharmacy leadership for taking a pioneering role in creating this eCare Plan standard which not only exchanges real-time pharmacy related clinical information, but also leverages the depth and breadth of AssureCare's member-centric technology that helps coordinate the entire ecosystem of a human life," said Yousuf J. Ahmad, DrPH, MBA, MHSA, FACHE, a healthcare industry veteran and President & CEO of AssureCare. "It allows pharmacists to exchange real-time information with the entire care team of the patient with a keen focus on the triple aim improving health outcomes, engaging patients, and reducing costs," Dr. Ahmad added. About AssureCare AssureCare is a privately held healthcare technology company that transforms the health management process for providers and payers by enabling the delivery of higher quality, cost effective, collaborative care across the complete continuum of care. AssureCare's flagship software platform, MedCompass, is used by many of the nation's leading commercial and government organizations (Medicare and Medicaid) to deliver end-to-end care management for millions of members daily. MedCompass transforms healthcare management by automating processes and streamlining workflows, thus allowing care professionals to make better decisions that dramatically improve the quality of care. AssureCare is considered an industry leader in developing modular, seamless solutions designed to improve patient outcomes and reduce avoidable costs associated with population health management. AssureCare is a Vora Ventures portfolio company with headquarters in Cincinnati, OH. For more information, please visit https://www.assurecare.com or call 513-618-2150. About Kroger The Kroger Co. is 453,000 associates who serve nearly nine million customers every day in 2,793 retail food stores under a variety of local banner names in 35 states and the District of Columbia. CONTACT: Theresa Ware 513-618-2150 SOURCE AssureCare Related Links https://www.assurecare.com A satellite developed by engineers from the University of Nairobi in collaboration with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa) is ready for launch into space. The nanosatellite is the first CubeSat developed under the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA)-Japan KiboCUBE Programme. KiboCUBE is an initiative that offers educational and research institutions from developing countries the opportunity to deploy cube satellites (CubeSats) from the Japanese Experiment Module (Kibo)of the International Space Station. On January 16, the team from the University of Nairobi, which was selected in 2016 for the first round of KiboCUBE, handed over to JAXA the satellite it has developed, known as 1KUNS-PF, or First Kenyan University Nano Satellite-Precursor Flight. The handover took place at the JAXA Tsukuba Space Center in preparation for deployment to the ISS in a larger vehicle in March. 1KUNS-PF will then be deployed from the (Kibo) of the ISS with a robotic arm in April or May. The ISS is a large spacecraft built by several countries to continually orbit around Earth. It is also where astronauts live and work when conducting experiments. I am pleased that the small satellite 1 KUNS-PF developed by the University of Nairobi of the Republic of Kenya, which was jointly selected by UNOOSA and JAXA as the first KiboCUBE, was successfully handed over to JAXA. At JAXA, we are committed to making every effort to prepare for the successful deployment of the Republic of Kenyas first satellite utilizing the unique capability of the Japanese Experiment Module Kibo on the International Space Station, said JAXA ISS Program Manager Koichi Wakata. UoNs engineer Dr Jackson Mwangi, who was involved in the nano-satellite development, said: The 1KUNS-PF is the first satellite to be developed by Kenyans and first Satellite to be operated by a Kenyan University. The nanosatellite(extremely small satellite in the shape of a 10 by 10-centimeter cube) has the volume of just one litre. It was developed at a cost of Sh120 million and was largely financed by Japan. The UoN team said it would use its satellite to test technologies it has developed for the future launch of a larger earth observation satellite. The team also hopes to apply data acquired from the satellite to monitor agriculture and coastal areas. GLENDALE, Ariz., Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- AVANA Capital closed a $60 million construction loan to Mogul Capital, LLC, providing funding to develop with modular construction a dual-branded Marriott Courtyard and TownePlace Suites hotel located in downtown Hawthorne, California. The property will have five stories, 354 guest rooms, a restaurant, swimming pool and other business amenities such as meeting space for corporate and community functions. It will be the first hotel in downtown Hawthorne and close to several aerospace-related businesses including SpaceX, and Northrup Gruman, as well as Tesla's design HQ, Boeing, Aerospace Corp, Raytheon, LA Airforce Base, Mattel, and many corporate airline offices; which all have significant operations within 2 miles of the site. The location is also within five miles from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), the fourth busiest airport in the world serving more than 80 million passengers a year. "There is a great demand for a quality limited-service hotel in this location," said Brad Wagstaff, President of Mogul Capital. "The combination of a Marriott Courtyard, a TownPlace Suites and the unique mix of rooms is ideal in this location and we were very pleased that we found in AVANA Capital a partner that believes in our vision and has the understanding of conventional and modular construction for a large project like this one." The dual branded hotels are expected to create over 80 permanent jobs, as well as help support other Hawthorne-area businesses, and generate an economic multiplier effect for the surrounding businesses during construction and after opening. The project brings together the construction expertise of Lusardi Construction Company, based in California, and the modular construction expertise of Guerdon Modular Buildings, based in Boise, Idaho, where fully furnished guestrooms will be constructed off-site in a controlled environment. Using Guerdon's modular construction is expected to reduce the construction timeline by approximately six months. Modular construction has significantly higher STC ratings and reduced noise transmission levels from room to room, which will contribute to positive guest experiences. "When Mogul was looking for a lender experienced with modular, we immediately connected them with Sanat Patel, CSO of AVANA Capital," said Jerry Goodwin, CEO of Guerdon Modular Buildings "We've had great experiences with AVANA Capital, and we knew that they were a great fit for this deal." Mogul Capital partnered with AVANA Capital due to their understanding of conventional and modular construction for a large project resulting in a $50 million conventional loan and a $10 million mezzanine loan with above market leverage. "Mogul Capital has proven expertise in developing high quality assets, and we are excited to assist in their ongoing growth," explained Matt Hunt, Chief Credit Officer at AVANA Capital. "Additionally, we had previously worked with Guerdon on modular construction projects and we had experienced first hand the added value in terms of time, money and quality that they bring to the table." About AVANA Capital: With roots dating back to 2002, and more than $1 billion in loans nationwide, AVANA Capital is a commercial real estate debt fund that offers private commercial real estate loans nationwide by sourcing funds from an array of accredited global investors. We leverage our expertise by lending in niche industries such as hospitality, solar and assisted living facilities and are committed to protecting our investor's capital by subjecting our investments to a meticulous review process. For our borrowers, once we commit our funds to a project we guarantee certainty of execution in closing and funding. Above all, we believe in strong values embedded in the way we conduct our business as a team, through our employees and management. For more information, visit www.avanacapital.com. About Guerdon Modular Buildings Guerdon is the leading manufacturer of large-scale, complex modular construction projects and modular multi-family housing developments in the Western United States. Guerdon's innovative modular construction technology reduces build time and construction impacts while delivering significant improvements in quality, energy efficiency, noise reduction and cost-effectiveness when compared to on-site building methods. Guerdon's construction experience, engineering, design expertise and manufacturing capacity is unrivaled in the industry. For more information, please visit www.guerdon.com. About Mogul Capital Mogul Capital was formed in 2005 as a specialty real estate development fund focused on opportunistic development and investment transactions. Since inception, Mogul Capital has acquired, developed and invested in more than $125 million in real estate projects and approximately $245 million in equity, debt and sale-leaseback financings. Mogul Capital is a Marriott and Hilton approved franchisee. For more information, please visit www.mogulcapital.com. SOURCE AVANA Capital Related Links http://www.avanacapital.com LAKE CHARLES, La., Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Barbara Jeanne Belew is recognized by Continental Who's Who as a Pinnacle Lifetime Member in the field of Music Education. Belew serves as an Associate Professor of Music at McNeese State University. Her areas of expertise include playing the piano and the harp, as well as educating aspiring young musicians. She has been a part of the field for over 60 years, and truly loves what she does. In addition to teaching piano and harp, Belew also has taught courses in keyboard and harp literature and pedagogy of both instruments, and directs the university harp ensemble. She is a freelance harp soloist and chamber musician outside of her time spent teaching, as well as the founder and current Vice President of the Louisiana Chapter of the American Harp Society, and a former National Board of Directors member. She founded the MSU Harp Camp, open to interested pupils of all ages from the second grade up, and all levels of harp experience, in 2000. Belew earned her Bachelor's degree in Music from Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, Texas, graduating with Summa Cum Laude honors in 1951. She then went on to earn her Master's degree in Music from Indiana University Bloomington in 1953. Belew is also a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music through the Music Teachers National Association. In recognition of her outstanding achievements in the fields of music and education, Belew has been named a member of the Delta Kappa Society International, and has been featured in the Who's Who of American Women through the Marquis Who's Who company. To further her professional development, she serves as the Recording Secretary of the Lake Charles Piano Teachers Association (an affiliate of Louisiana Music Teachers Association and MTNA), Harp Camp and is a member of the National Board of Directors for the American Harp Society. She also is a charter member and chapter advisor of the Delta Chi Chapter of Mu Phi Epsilon, International Professional Music Society. Additionally, Belew was inducted into Who's Who Worldwide Lifetime Achievement in 2016. She was a Featured Member of Who's Who in America and Who's Who in the World, from 2009 2016. For some 30 years Belew served as the publicity writer for all the arts fields within the Department of Performing Arts at McNeese. She has also appeared in several recitals alongside other members of the McNeese music faculty, and has performed with the Lake Charles Symphony since 1958. Belew credits her excellent teachers for much of her success. They included: Mattilene Belew (her mother), Dr. E. Edwin Young and concert pianist Sidney Foster, plus Dr. T. W. Dean (in music theory), and harpist Margaret White. When not working, Belew continues to serve as a Sunday School officer in her church, Trinity Baptist of Lake Charles, LA. For more information, visit www.mcneese.edu and www.barbarajbelew.com. Contact: Katherine Green, 516-825-5634, [email protected] SOURCE Continental Who's Who Related Links http://www.continentalwhoswho.com MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The 17th annual Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival (SOBEWFF) returns to EAT. DRINK. EDUCATE. February 21 25, 2018. This year, those with an appetite for enjoying good eats paired with high-energy beats have a variety of events to choose from. Proceeds from the Festival benefit the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management at Florida International University. Thursday, February 22, 2018 Guests enjoy the David Grutman Experience at the Goya Foods' Grand Tasting Village featuring Mastercard Grand Tasting Tents & KitchenAid Culinary Demonstrations on Sunday, February 26, 2017 at the Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival. Barilla's Italian Bites on the Beach sponsored by HCP Media and the Miami Herald Media Company hosted by Giada De Laurentiis America's beloved queen of Italian cuisine is back at the Festival to celebrate the release of her latest cookbook Giada's Italy (Clarkson Potter, April 2018). Giada will play host to more than 30 chefs serving up authentic Italian fare with traditional roots and new twists while guests sip on Mezza di Mezzacorona's Italian Glacial Bubbly and estate-grown wines from Mezzacorona's Trentino vineyards. To top it all off, multi-platinum and Grammy nominated group Smash Mouth will treat attendees to a live musical performance presented by Magic City Casino. Saturday, February 24, 2018 BACARDI presents Walshy Fire's Rum & Bass Beach Party - A taste of the Caribbean comes to the beach with Jamaican-American DJ Walshy Fire & Friends at the second annual rum-centric soiree in the sand. Sip on refreshing libations while swaying to reggae-inspired beats, plus sounds by special guest DJ Irie. Guests will also enjoy bites from 25 South Florida chefs who will dish up late-night snacks. Sweet-Moves: Late-Night Desserts & Dancing hosted by Bobby & Sophie Flay The dynamic dad and daughter duo Bobby and Sophie Flay will play host to more than a dozen chefs and tastemakers serving up sweet treats. Guests will enjoy the late-night sugar rush while drinking wines and libations and hit the dance floor for sweet beats provided by HBFIT founder and popular DJ Hannah Bronfman. Midnight Munchies: An Espanola Way Block Party presented by Thrillist hosted by Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Action Bronson Nestled in South Beach's Art Deco district, the two-block pedestrian-friendly corridor known as Espanola Way will host its first Festival event. World-renowned Chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten will serve as the evening's host while Action Bronson dishes up his signature beats. More than 15 South Florida hotspots will dish up sweet, salty and savory bites to satisfy guests' midnight cravings while imbibing in carefully crafted wine, beer and spirits. Sunday, February 25, 2018 David Grutman Experience at Goya Foods' Grand Tasting Village The Festival has partnered once again with nightlife and hospitality guru David Grutman to transform the courtyard between our signature Mastercard Grand Tasting Tents into one of his famous over-the-top curated experiences. Guests will sample pours from more than 80 of Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits suppliers and bites from more than 50 restaurants from across South Florida. Additionally, attendees can sink their toes into the sands of South Beach while enjoying special sips from Belvedere Vodka, listening to beats from popular local DJs and featured sounds by ALESSO powered by N1CE Cocktails. EAT. DRINK. EDUCATE. Tickets to these events and more are available online at sobewff.org or by calling 877.762.3933 (phone sales open Monday Friday, 9:00 AM 5:00 PM EST). Between SOBEWFF and its sister NYCWFF, which takes place each October in New York City, more than $37 million has been raised to benefit the respective charities for each Festival. Beyond the funds raised, both Festivals draw attention to the vibrant dining culture in their respective cities, provide economic stimulus in their communities, and serve as an invaluable platform to drive awareness, engaging and inspiring people to get involved in philanthropic activities. About the Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival EAT. DRINK. EDUCATE. All proceeds from the Festival benefit the students of the Florida International University Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management who also assist Festival organizers with sponsorship fulfillment, restaurant and exhibitor recruitment, logistics, and inventory as well as working alongside some of the world's greatest celebrity chefs and winemakers. To date, the Festival has raised more than $26 million for the School. In September 2017, BizBash named the Festival the #1 Food & Restaurant Industry event in the United States for the fifth year in a row. The Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival is produced by Florida International University and Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits, with the support of the Miami Beach Visitors & Convention Authority and the Miami-Dade County Department of Cultural Affairs. For more information about the Festival, visit sobewff.org or call 877-762-3933. For more information about Florida International University visit fiu.edu, for the Chaplin School of Hospitality & Tourism Management visit hospitality.fiu.edu and for more information about Southern Glazer's Wine & Spirits visit southernglazers.com. PRESS CONTACTS: National Media: Florida/Hispanic Media: The Door Brustman Carrino Public Relations (646) 340-1760 (305) 573-0658 Adeline Benge ([email protected]) Larry Carrino ([email protected]) Andrea Moreno ([email protected]) SOURCE Food Network & Cooking Channel South Beach Wine & Food Festival Related Links http://sobewff.org/ DURHAM, N.C., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Biomarck Pharmaceuticals, Ltd today announced that a Phase 2 clinical study in advanced NSCLC has commenced. This study at 10 sites in India compares standard of care therapy (SOC; pemetrexed and carboplatin) alone to SOC plus BIO-11006. This trial will evaluate the safety and efficacy of Biomarck's novel, patented, MARCKS protein inhibitor in a controlled trial. "Although advances have been made recently in the treatment of advanced NSCLC especially with immunotherapy, the five-year survival rate remains disappointingly low. These immunotherapeutic agents have significant side effects and quality of life remains a critical issue to both patients and their treating oncologists. Animal studies have shown the ability of BIO-11006 to reduce primary tumor size, prevent the development of secondary tumors and act synergistically with other chemotherapeutic agents. The side effect profile in over 200 patients in previous clinical studies has demonstrated an encouraging safety database where only cough and headache were more common than placebo. Furthermore, animals with NSCLC treated with BIO-11006 did not lose weight whereas those untreated lost 30% bodyweight within 3 weeks. The initiation of this clinical study represents a significant milestone for Biomarck as we progress to clinically develop our patented portfolio in diseases, such as non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) that cause significant morbidity and mortality. This represents a first in class therapy," said Dr. Brian Dickson, Biomarck's Chief Executive Officer. About the Phase 2 study This is a controlled randomized clinical study evaluating BIO-11006 with SOC compared to SOC alone in the treatment of advanced NSCLC. The primary endpoint is progression free survival (PFS) at 3 months. Overall survival (OS), and body weight are secondary endpoints. This study will be listed on https://clinicaltrials.gov About BIO-11006 BIO-11006 is a novel patented peptide that inhibits the MARCKS protein. Phosphorylation of the MARCKS protein has been shown to stimulate cell division and movement. In the case of NSCLC this refers to inhibition of cancer cell division and movement. It is important to know that this is a targeted effect as normal cells are not affected. BIO-11006 is part of a portfolio of over 100 patented compounds owned by Biomarck. About Biomarck Biomarck Pharmaceuticals is a Durham, N.C. based biopharmaceutical company focused on the clinical development of its lead and back up compounds for the treatment of significant disease states such as ARDS and NSCLC. For additional information on Biomarck, please visit the Company's website at www.biomarck.com Forward Looking Statements Except for the historical information set forth herein, the matters set forth in this press release, including statements regarding the Company's plans and expectations for BIO-11006, contain predictions, estimates and other forward looking statements. These forward looking statements are based on the Company's current expectations and subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially, including unanticipated developments and the risk related to the efficacy or safety of the Company's development pipeline, the results of further research and development, the high degree of risk and uncertainty associated with drug development, clinical trials and regulatory approval processes, other market or economic factors and competitive and technological advances; and other risks. Media/Investors Mike Enright, Chief Financial Officer 844.424.6627 [email protected] The information in the press release should be considered accurate only as of the date of the document or presentation. We disclaim any obligation to supplement or update the information in these documents or presentations. SOURCE Biomarck Pharmaceuticals Related Links http://www.biomarck.com ARLINGTON, Va., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Bloomberg Environment today issued its 2018 Environment and Energy Outlook, which explores developments surrounding climate change, air pollution, water, chemicals, waste, and energy. How the changing political landscape could shape action by the Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy in the coming year as well as international environmental and energy policy are among the issues explored in this yearly publication. A complimentary copy of the Outlook is available for download at http://on.bna.com/YFZd30hVTee. "The Trump administration moved quickly in its first year to reverse course on Obama-era climate, air, and water rules," said Rachael Daigle, Bloomberg Environment news director. "In 2018, we'll watch to see whether the agency can defend its rollbacks in court and how the agency will propose to replace some of those policies. Domestically, we will closely follow developments on the Clean Power Plan, the Waters of the U.S. rule, and the continued implementation of the amended chemicals law. Internationally, we expect energy and climate to be issues to watch in 2018, as well as the coming EU deadlines for chemical manufacturers." Highlights of the Outlook include: Energy: The Department of Energy is shifting its international focus to promote fossil fuels and nuclear power, which could cause the U.S. to cede its leadership in global clean energy. Mexico will launch its clean energy certificate program for fossil fuel producers, South Korea is focusing on renewable energy, and Saudi Arabia is doubling down on renewables and aims to become "the world's leading and most reliable diversified supplier of energy." Chemicals: Chemical manufacturers face a number of deadlines in 2018. In the U.S. the EPA must meet a number of deadlines to continue implementing changes to the nation's chemicals law, while in the Europe, chemical manufacturers face an important deadline to comply with the EU chemicals law. Regulatory Policy: EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt will be forced to replace the Obama-era policies he's committed to eliminating. A federal court battle is looming for efforts to roll back the Clean Power Plan). Industry insiders and stakeholders are unsure any new initiatives or pending rulemakings will fit into the agency's 2018 agenda. Environmental Litigation: According to environmental attorneys, the hottest issues this year are jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act, endangered pollinators, lead pipes, groundwater contamination, and the implementation of the amended chemicals law. Water: The EPA is far from completing a years-long effort to lower the legal amount of lead that can be in drinking water, which has been delayed repeatedly since 2015. Exacerbating the issue, the EPA's Office of Water has been without a permanent head since 2014. GOP leaders on Capitol Hill responsible for overseeing water infrastructure are reluctant to pass legislation until they see the president's long-awaited infrastructure plan. A Webinar exploring the issues covered in the Outlook takes place on Thursday, February 1, from noon to 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time. Bloomberg Environment assistant managing editor Patrick Ambrosio along with reporters Pat Rizzuto, Sylvia Carignan, and Rebecca Kern will participate. Complimentary registration is available at http://on.bna.com/4SUy30hXla5. About Bloomberg Environment Bloomberg Environment provides environment, health and safety news, research, analysis, and assessment solutions that enable organizations to comply with federal, state, and international laws and regulations. Bloomberg Environment's extensive network of environment, energy, and occupational safety reporters and industry experts delivers news and analysis from across the globe on legislative and regulatory developments, court and administrative decisions, government policies, and international standards. For more information, visit https://www.bna.com/ehs/. SOURCE Bloomberg Environment Related Links https://www.bna.com/ehs/ CHICAGO, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - BMO Wealth Management (U.S) today announced the appointment of Mike Stritch as Chief Investment Officer. Stritch will continue to serve as Senior Vice President and National Head of Investments, supported by Yung Yu Ma, Ph.D., Chief Investment Strategist. Since 2015, Stritch has led the U.S. Wealth Management investment strategy and a research team of over 30 individuals, including senior professionals across asset classes and industries. Stritch also chairs the Personal Asset Management Committee, and is responsible for setting investment policy and strategy for clients throughout the United States. With nearly two decades of experience in money management, Stritch brings a deep background in market analysis, portfolio construction and risk management to the role. "Mike's extensive experience in investments will enable us to continue delivering industry-leading insights and driving our investment strategy forward," said Darrel Hackett, President, BMO Wealth Management U.S. "Our strong investment team under Mike's leadership is poised to continue guiding our clients and serving as an essential partner to all their investment matters." As Chief Investment Officer, Stritch replaces Jack Ablin who plans to pursue other interests in the private equity space. Ablin has served in the role of Chief Investment Officer for the past 16 years playing an integral part in the business and leadership team. His tenure will come to an end at the end of January. "Jack has been a tremendous asset to our leadership team and a pleasure to collaborate with throughout his time at BMO," added Hackett. "We thank him for his extraordinary work, and wish him all the best as he embarks on the next chapter of his career." Stritch will continue to be supported by Dr. Ma, who joined BMO in 2016 and brings a dynamic combination of academic achievements and industry experience to the investment team. As Chief Investment Strategist, Dr. Ma is responsible for performing macroeconomic analysis, valuation modeling, and market analysis across asset classes to guide strategic and tactical asset allocations for client portfolios. Stritch joined BMO in 2013 and previously held the role of Managing Director of Investments for CTC | myCFO, the Ultra High Net Worth group within BMO Wealth Management. He is a Chartered Financial Analyst, and a member of the Beta Gamma Sigma International Honor Society, CFA Institute, CFA Society of Chicago, and the Chicago Quantitative Alliance. Stritch earned a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Northwestern University and a Master of Business Administration with distinction in Finance and Decision Sciences from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University. Prior to BMO, Dr. Ma was a finance professor at Lehigh University, where he taught courses in fixed income, equities and derivatives. Dr. Ma also worked for a global consulting firm performing financial and market analysis for companies with operations in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Mainland China. He earned his Ph.D. in Finance at the University of Utah and his Bachelor of Arts in Economics and Political Science, magna cum laude, at Williams College. For more information about BMO Wealth Management or to learn more about wealth planning, please visit: https://wealth.bmoharris.com/ About BMO Wealth Management U.S. BMO Wealth Management serves mass affluent, high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals and families with a full suite of wealth management solutions including wealth planning, banking and borrowing, investment management, retirement planning, trust and estate services, philanthropy, insurance and risk management, tax planning and ultra-high net worth services. With more than 140 offices across 16 states and international offices in Canada, Hong Kong, and Singapore, BMO Wealth Management provides guidance and planning advice combined with individualized service and local experience. As of October 31, 2017, BMO Wealth Management had assets under management of US$49 billion and assets under administration of US$61 billion. BMO Wealth Management is supported by the resources and stability of one of North America's premier financial services organizationsBMO Financial Group. Visit bmowealthmanagement.com. SOURCE BMO Harris Bank FOSHAN, China, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Bright Scholar Education Holdings Limited ("Bright Scholar," the "Company," "we" or "our") (NYSE: BEDU), the largest operator of international and bilingual K-12 schools in China*, today announced its unaudited financial results for the 2018 first fiscal quarter ended November 30, 2017. ____________ 2018 First Fiscal Quarter Financial Highlights (in comparison to the same period of last fiscal year) Revenue was RMB465.2 million , up 23.0% , up 23.0% Gross profit was RMB216.8 million , up 39.0%; gross margin was 46.6%, up from 41.2% , up 39.0%; gross margin was 46.6%, up from 41.2% Operating income was RMB137.1 million , up 27.6%; operating margin was 29.5%, up from 28.4% , up 27.6%; operating margin was 29.5%, up from 28.4% Net income and adjusted net income (1) were RMB119.1 million , up 42.0%; net margin and adjusted net margin (1) were 25.6%, up from 22.2% were , up 42.0%; net margin and adjusted net margin were 25.6%, up from 22.2% EPS was RMB1.02 up 67.2% from RMB0.61 , adjusted EPS (2) was RMB1.02 , up 67.2% from RMB0.61 up 67.2% from , adjusted EPS was , up 67.2% from Adjusted EBITDA(3) was RMB161.4 million , up 28.6%; adjusted EBITDA margin(3) was 34.7%, up from 33.2% ____________ * In terms of student enrollment as of September 1, 2017, according to an industry report commissioned by Bright Scholar and prepared by Frost & Sullivan in 2017. (1) Adjusted net income/(loss) is defined as net income/(loss) excluding share-based compensation expenses. Adjusted net margin is defined as adjusted net income/(loss) divided by revenue. (2) Adjusted EPS is defined as adjusted net income/(loss) divided by the weighted average number of ordinary shares or American depositary shares (each an "ADS"), each representing one Class A ordinary share of the Company, on an as-converted basis. (3) Adjusted EBITDA is defined as EBITDA (which refers to income from operations, which excludes interest income, income tax benefit and expense and depreciation and amortization expenses) excluding share-based compensation expenses. Adjusted EBITDA margin is defined as adjusted EBITDA divided by revenue. For more information on these adjusted financial measures, please see the section captioned under "Non-GAAP Financial Measures" and the tables captioned "Reconciliation of GAAP and Non-GAAP Results" set forth at the end of this release. "We are pleased to report our first fiscal quarter for 2018 fiscal year with robust academic, financial and operating results," said Jerry He, Bright Scholar's Chief Executive Officer. "Our performance is a reflection of our commitment to quality education and to delivering the best academic results for our students. We are delighted that student enrollment has gone up 17% yearon-year with approximately 34,163 students enrolled at our schools as of November 30, 2017. We provide our students with premier education services that have consistently delivered outstanding academic outcomes. As of the date of this release, approximately 51.0% of students in the 2018 graduating class of our international schools have received over 350 offers from global top 50 institutions. We anticipate a growing proportion of our student body receiving offers from these elite institutions and continuous improvement in student grades across all age groups this academic year." "We have delivered a very strong set of business and operational results and executed our business strategies well by remaining steadfast in our strategic priorities, maintaining rigorous discipline on maximizing profitability and focusing investments on long term profitable growth. Our revenue grew by 23.0% with further margin expansion as supported by continuous enhancement within existing schools in utilization, student/teacher ratio and effective cost management." "Our results in first fiscal quarter demonstrate the continued progress we are making on our strategy. The rapid expansion of our network has never been more critical to our business success. We currently expect to open 12 new schools during fiscal 2018 of which eight commenced operation during the first fiscal quarter. In December 2017, we have entered into an agreement to acquire 75% equity interests in five kindergartens to further strengthen our foothold in Hubei province of China. We currently expect to complete the acquisition by the end of the second fiscal quarter." "We could not have furthered our success without the support of our senior business and academic leaders and ongoing recruitment and retention of top talents, which are critical building blocks to our long term and sustainable business growth. On December 15, 2017, our board of directors granted share options to purchase approximately 900,000 Class A ordinary shares of the Company or 17% of the total shares reserved under our current share incentive plan, to school principals and management team members with vesting period varying from 3 to 5 years. We expect the dilution impact to be less than 1% on a fully converted basis." "We are very pleased with the positive industry trends, the encouraging regulatory environments and full year outlook for the business. In fiscal 2018, we will continue to pursue domestic and international strategic investment opportunities in network expansion, test preparation, college counselling and extra curriculum that would further strengthen Bright Scholar's position as the leader in the premium school market and will provide significant momentum to our continued growth." 2018 FIRST FISCAL QUARTER ENDED NOVEMBER 30, 2017 UNAUDITED FINANCIAL RESULTS Revenues Revenues for the first fiscal quarter were RMB465.2 million, representing 23.0% increase from RMB378.2 million in the same period of last fiscal year. The table below sets forth a breakdown of revenues: First Fiscal Quarter Ended November 30, 2017 First Fiscal Quarter Ended November 30, 2016 YoY % Change (RMB in million) (RMB in million) International Schools 174.6 149.9 16.5% Bilingual Schools 155.5 120.4 29.2% Kindergartens 106.2 88.5 20.0% Complementary 28.9 19.4 49.0% Total 465.2 378.2 23.0% International Schools: Revenue for the quarter was RMB174.6 million, representing a 16.5% increase from RMB149.9 million, accounting for 37.5% of total revenues as compared to 39.6% in the same period of last fiscal year, primarily due to a 15.3% increase in the average number of students from 6,266 to 7,227, and a 1.3% increase in the average tuition and fees from RMB23,900 to RMB24, 200 during the comparison periods. Bilingual Schools: Revenue for the quarter was RMB155.5 million, representing a 29.2% increase from RMB120.4 million, accounting for 33.4% of total revenues as compared to 31.8% in the same period of last fiscal year. This was primarily due to a 17.1% increase in the average number of students from 13,126 to 15,371, and a 9.8% increase in the average tuition and fees from RMB9,200 to RMB10,100 during the comparison periods. Kindergartens: Revenue for the quarter was RMB106.2 million, representing a 20.0% increase from RMB88.5 million, accounting for 22.8% of total revenues as compared to 23.4% in the same period of last fiscal year. This was primarily due to a 15.7% increase in the average number of students from 9,780 to 11,318, and a 4.4% increase in the average tuition and fees from RMB9,000 to RMB9,400during the comparison periods. Complementary: Revenue for the quarter was RMB28.9 million, representing a 49.0% increase from RMB19.4 million, accounting for 6.2% of total revenues as compared to 5.1% in the same period of last fiscal year. This was primarily due to an increase in the revenue of elan English learning centers from RMB18.1 million to RMB24.7 million, and an increase of RMB2.9 million in other categories of revenue (e.g., camps) during the comparison periods. Cost of Revenues Cost of revenues for the quarter was RMB248.4 million, representing an 11.8% increase from RMB222.2 million in the same period of last fiscal year. This was primarily due to an increase of RMB21.7 million in staff costs as a consequence of an increase in the headcount of teaching staff as our school network expanded. The average number of our teachers and instructors increased by 14.0% from 3,098 to 3,533 during the comparison periods. International Schools: Cost of revenues for the quarter was RMB89.0 million, representing a 2.9% decrease from RMB91.7 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Bilingual Schools: Cost of revenues for the quarter was RMB88.1 million, representing a 23.2% increase from RMB71.5 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Kindergartens: Cost of revenues for the quarter was RMB53.5 million, representing a 16.8% increase from RMB45.8 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Complementary: Cost of revenues for the quarter was RMB17.8 million, representing a 34.8% increase from RMB13.2 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Gross Profit and Gross Margin Gross profit for the quarter was RMB216.8 million, representing a 39.0% increase from RMB156.0 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Gross margin for the quarter was 46.6%, as compared to 41.2% in the same period of the last fiscal year. The margin expansion was primarily attributed to the scale growth of existing schools, an increase in average tuitions and fees, and improvements in operational efficiency. International Schools: Gross profit for the quarter was RMB85.6 million, representing a 47.1% increase from RMB58.2 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Gross margin for the quarter was 49.0%, as compared to 38.8% in the same period of last fiscal year. Bilingual Schools: Gross profit for the quarter was RMB67.4 million, representing a 37.8% increase from RMB48.9 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Gross margin for the quarter was 43.3%, as compared to 40.6% in the same period of last fiscal year. Kindergartens: Gross profit for the quarter was RMB52.7 million, representing a 23.4% increase from RMB42.7 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Gross margin for the quarter was 49.6%, as compared to 48.2% in the same period of last fiscal year. Complementary: Gross profit for the quarter was RMB11.1 million, representing a 79.0% increase from RMB6.2 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Gross margin for the quarter was 38.4%, as compared to 32.0% in the same period of last fiscal year. Selling, General and Administrative Expenses and Adjusted SG&A Expenses (4) Total selling, general and administrative expenses and adjusted SG&A expenses(4) for the quarter were RMB80.6 million, representing a 63.8% increase from RMB49.2 million in the same period of last fiscal year, accounting for 17.3% of total revenues as compared to 13.0% in the same period of last fiscal year. The increase in selling, general and administrative expenses was primarily due to the increase in the compensation and benefits paid to additional general and administrative staff members to support business expansion, and the increase in marketing fees for brand promotion and professional services to support the growing business as a listed company. ____________ (4) Adjusted SG&A Expenses are defined as selling, general and administrative expenses excluding share-based compensation expenses. Operating Income and Operating Margin Operating income for the quarter was at RMB137.1 million, representing a 27.6% increase from RMB107.4 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Operating margin for the quarter was 29.5%, as compared to 28.4% in the same period of last fiscal year. Net Income and Adjusted Net Income Net income and adjusted net income for the quarter were at RMB119.1 million, representing a 42.0% increase from RMB83.9 million in the same period of the last fiscal year. Earnings per ordinary share/ADS and Adjusted Earnings per ordinary share/ADS Basic and diluted and adjusted basic and diluted net profit per ordinary share/ADS attributable to ordinary shareholders/ADS holders, on an as-converted basis, for the quarter were RMB1.02 and RMB1.02, respectively, up 67.2% as compared to profit of RMB0.61 and RMB0.61, respectively, in the same period of last fiscal year. Adjusted EBITDA Adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was RMB161.4 million, representing a 28.6% increase from RMB125.5 million in the same period of last fiscal year. Cash and Working Capital As of November 30, 2017, the Company's cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash totaled RMB1, 618.5 million, as compared to RMB1,896.7 million as of August 31, 2017. GUIDANCE FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDING AUGUST 31, 2018 The Company reaffirms its guidance of organic growth published on November 8, 2017, which is based on the current market and operating conditions and reflects the Company's current and preliminary estimates of such market and operating conditions and customer demand, all subject to change. Conference Call The Company's management will host a conference call at 8:00 a.m. U.S. Eastern Time (9:00 pm Beijing/Hong Kong Time) on January 24, 2018, to discuss its quarterly results and recent business activities. To participate in the conference call, please dial the following number five to ten minutes prior to the scheduled conference call time: China: 4001-201-203 Hong Kong: 800-905-945 United States: 1-888-346-8982 Canada Toll Free 1-855-669-9657 International: 1-412-902-4272 * Please ask to be joined into Bright Scholar Education Holdings Limited's call. The Company will also broadcast a live audio webcast of the conference call. The webcast will be available at http://ir.brightscholar.com. Following the earnings conference call, an archive of the call will be available by dialing: United States: 1-877-344-7529 International: 1-412-317-0088 Canada Toll Free: 855-669-9658 Replay Passcode: 10115383 Replay End Date: January 31, 2018 STATEMENT REGARDING UNAUDITED FINANCIAL INFORMATION The unaudited financial information set forth above is subject to adjustments that may be identified when audit work is performed on the Company's year-end financial statements, which could result in significant differences from this unaudited financial information. CONVENIENCE TRANSLATION The Company's business is primarily conducted in China and almost all of the revenues are denominated in RMB. However, periodic reports made to shareholders will include current period amounts translated into U.S. dollars using the then current exchange rates, for the convenience of the readers. Translations of balances in the combined and consolidated balance sheets, and the related combined and consolidated statements of operations, shareholders' equity and cash flows from RMB into US dollars as of and for the year ended November 30, 2017 are solely for the convenience of the readers and were calculated at the rate of US$1.00=RMB 6.6090, representing the noon buying rate set forth in the H.10 statistical release of the U.S. Federal Reserve Board on November 30, 2017. No representation is made that the RMB amounts could have been, or could be, converted, realized or settled into US$ at that rate on November, 2017, or at any other rate. NON-GAAP FINANCIAL MEASURES In evaluating our business, we consider and use certain non-GAAP measures, including primarily adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net income/(loss), as supplemental measures to review and assess our operating performance. The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. We define adjusted EBITDA as income from operations (which excludes interest income, income tax benefit and expense and depreciation and amortization expenses) excluding share-based compensation expenses and adjusted net income/(loss) as net income/(loss) excluding share-based compensation expenses. We define adjusted SG&A as expense excluding share-based compensation expenses. We incurred share-based compensation in the 2016 fiscal year only, which was associated with the acquisition of Mr. Jerry He's equity interests in Impetus in January 2016. We present the non-GAAP financial measures because they are used by our management to evaluate our operating performance and formulate business plans. Such non-GAAP measures, including adjusted EBITDA and adjusted net income/(loss), enable our management to assess our operating results without considering the impact of non-cash charges, including depreciation expenses and share-based compensation expenses, and without considering the impact of non-operating items such as interest income and income tax benefit and expenses. We also believe that the use of the non-GAAP measure facilitate investors' assessment of our operating performance. The non-GAAP financial measures are not defined under U.S. GAAP and are not presented in accordance with U.S. GAAP. The non-GAAP financial measures have limitations as analytical tools. One of the key limitations of using these non-GAAP financial measures is that they do not reflect all items of income and expense that affect our operations. Interest income, income tax benefit and expenses, depreciation expenses and share-based compensation expenses have been and may continue to be incurred in our business and are not reflected in the presentation of these non-GAAP measures, including adjusted EBITDA or adjusted net income/(loss). Further, these non-GAAP measures may differ from the non-GAAP information used by other companies, including peer companies, and therefore their comparability may be limited. About Bright Scholar Education Holdings Limited Bright Scholar is the largest operator of international and bilingual K-12 schools in China*. The Company is dedicated to providing quality international education to Chinese students and equipping them with the critical academic foundation and skillsets necessary to succeed in the pursuit of higher education overseas. It also complements its international offerings with Chinese government-mandated curriculum for students who wish to maintain the option of pursuing higher education in China. As of November 30, 2017, Bright Scholar operated 60 schools covering the breadth of K-12 academic needs of its students across seven provinces in China. In the first three months of the 2018 school year ended November 30, 2017, Bright Scholar had an average of 33,916 students enrolled at its schools. ____________ * In terms of student enrollment as of September 1, 2017, according to an industry report commissioned by Bright Scholar and prepared by Frost & Sullivan in 2017. Safe Harbor Statement This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and as defined in the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements include, without limitation, the Company's business plans and development, can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "expect," "anticipate," "aim," "estimate," "intend," "plan," "believe," "potential," "continue," "is/are likely to" or other similar expressions. Such statements are based upon management's current expectations and current market and operating conditions, and relate to events that involve known or unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, all of which are difficult to predict and many of which are beyond the Company's control, which may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these and other risks, uncertainties or factors is included in the Company's filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under law. IR Contact: FleishmanHillard Email: [email protected] Phone: +852 2586 7825 BRIGHT SCHOLAR EDUCATION HOLDINGS LIMITED UNAUDITED CONDENSED COMBINED AND CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Amounts in thousands) As of August 31, November 30, 2017 2017 RMB RMB USD ASSETS Current assets Cash and cash equivalents 1,883,000 1,609,793 243,576 Restricted cash 13,662 8,661 1,310 Held-to-maturity investments 6,390 5,000 757 Accounts receivable 20 373 56 Amounts due from related parties 7,940 6,853 1,037 Other receivables, deposits and other assets 30,535 50,161 7,590 Inventories 8,598 8,803 1,332 Total current assets 1,950,145 1,689,644 255,658 Property and equipment, net 423,344 425,938 64,448 Land use right, net 34,694 34,451 5,213 Intangible assets 21,177 20,547 3,109 Goodwill 104,035 104,035 15,741 Prepayment for construction contract 5,490 3,584 542 Deferred tax assets, net 25,337 19,571 2,961 Deposits for acquisition 78,750 78,750 11,916 Other non-current assets 43,660 32,355 4,896 Total non-current assets 736,487 719,231 108,826 TOTAL ASSETS 2,686,632 2,408,875 364,484 BRIGHT SCHOLAR EDUCATION HOLDINGS LIMITED UNAUDITED CONDENSED COMBINED AND CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS-CONTINUED (Amounts in thousands) As of August 31, November 30, 2017 2017 RMB RMB USD LIABILITIES AND EQUITY Current liabilities Accounts payable (including accounts payable of the consolidated VIEs without recourse to Bright Scholar Education of RMB50,899 and RMB66,322 as of August 31, 2017 and November 30,2017) 50,899 67,716 10,246 Amounts due to related parties (including amounts due to related parties of the consolidated VIEs without recourse to Bright Scholar Education of RMB62,138 and RMB54,566 as of August 31, 2017 and November 30,2017) 76,433 68,116 10,307 Accrued expenses and other current liabilities (including accrued expenses and other current liabilities of the consolidated VIEs without recourse to Bright Scholar Education of RMB255,859 and RMB215,161 as of August 31, 2017 and November 30,2017) 272,479 233,260 35,294 Income tax payable (including income tax payable of the consolidated VIEs without recourse to Bright Scholar Education of RMB13,958 and RMB14,359 as of August 31, 2017 and November 30,2017) 40,387 51,934 7,858 Current portion of deferred revenue (including deferred revenue of the consolidated VIEs without recourse to Bright Scholar Education of RMB761,876 and RMB386,481 as of August 31, 2017 and November 30,2017) 761,876 387,330 58,606 Total current liabilities 1,202,074 808,356 122,311 Deferred tax liabilities, net (including deferred tax liabilities of the consolidated VIEs without recourse to Bright Scholar Education of RMB5,294 and RMB5,137 as of August 31, 2017 and November 30,2017) 5,294 5,137 777 Other non-current liabilities (including non-current liabilities of the consolidated VIEs without recourse to Bright Scholar Education of RMB59,806 and RMB48,051 as of August 31, 2017 and November 30,2017) 59,806 53,655 8,119 Total non-current liabilities 65,100 58,792 8,896 TOTAL LIABILITIES 1,267,174 867,148 131,207 EQUITY Share capital 7 7 1 Additional paid-in capital 1,403,608 1,403,608 212,378 Statutory reserves 64,945 64,945 9,827 Accumulated other comprehensive income (36,494) (33,373) (5,050) Accumulated deficit (15,933) 103,574 15,672 Shareholders' equity 1,416,133 1,538,761 232,828 Non-controlling interests 3,325 2,966 449 Total equity 1,419,458 1,541,727 233,277 TOTAL LIABILITIES AND EQUITY 2,686,632 2,408,875 364,484 BRIGHT SCHOLAR EDUCATION HOLDINGS LIMITED UNAUDITED CONDENSED COMBINED AND CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (Amounts in thousands, except for shares and per share data) Three Months Ended November 30 2016 2017 RMB RMB USD Revenue 378,151 465,223 70,392 Cost of revenue (222,192) (248,426) (37,589) Gross profit 155,959 216,797 32,803 Selling, general and administrative expenses (49,229) (80,563) (12,190) Other operating income 686 876 133 Operating income 107,416 137,110 20,746 Interest income, net 459 4,536 686 Investment income 683 5,096 771 Other expenses (430) (97) (14) Income before income taxes 108,128 146,645 22,189 Income tax expenses (24,211) (27,497) (4,161) Net income 83,917 119,148 18,028 Net income/(loss) attributable to non-controlling interests 23,247 (359) (54) Net incomeattributable to ordinary shareholders 60,670 119,507 18,082 Net earnings per share attributable to ordinary shareholders (expressed in RMB per share) Basic and diluted 0.61 1.02 0.15 Weighted average shares used in calculating net loss per ordinary share: Basic and diluted 100,000,000 117,250,000 117,250,000 BRIGHT SCHOLAR EDUCATION HOLDINGS LIMITED UNAUDITED CONDENSED COMBINED AND CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (Amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended November 30 2016 2017 RMB RMB USD Net cash used in operating activities (206,765) (272,340) (41,208) Net cash used in investing activities (34,925) (10,138) (1,534) Net cash generated from financing activities 17,322 1,149 174 Effect of exchange rate changes on cash - 3,121 472 Net change in cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash (224,368) (278,208) (42,096) Cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash at beginning of the period 362,451 1,896,662 286,982 Cash and cash equivalents, and restricted cash at end of the period 138,083 1,618,454 244,886 Reconciliations of GAAP Results and Non-GAAP Results (Amounts in thousands) Three Months Ended November 30 2016 2017 RMB RMB USD Net income 83,917 119,148 18,028 Adjusted net income 83,917 119,148 18,028 Net income 83,917 119,148 18,028 Less: interest income, net 459 4,536 686 Add: income tax expenses 24,211 27,497 4,161 Add: depreciation and amortization expenses 17,850 19,332 2,925 EBITDA 125,519 161,441 24,428 Adjusted EBITDA 125,519 161,441 24,428 Selling, general and administrative expenses 49,229 80,563 12,190 Adjusted selling, general and administrative expenses 49,229 80,563 12,190 Weighted average shares used in calculating earnings per share Basic and diluted 100,000,000 117,250,000 117,250,000 Adjusted net income attributable to Bright Scholar's shareholders Basic and diluted 0.61 1.02 0.15 SOURCE Bright Scholar Education Holdings Ltd. A plan to help OLE Health expand at a St. Helena Hospital location in Calistoga has been cancelled, the hospital announced. According to a news release, Adventist Health St. Helena and OLE Health originally planned to provide team-based care to more residents of Calistoga at St. Helena Medical Specialties clinic, known as Vermeil House. More than $2.3 million was raised at the hospital's 2017 "Together" gala to support the project. However, Adventist Health St. Helena announced it encountered regulatory restrictions "that prevent this agreement from moving forward." Donors to the original project may request to have their donations returned, said a hospital spokeswoman. Although we're disappointed in this turn of events, we've come up with an alternative that we believe meets the original spirit and intent of expanding access to vital healthcare services in Calistoga and the upper Napa Valley, says Steven Herber, president and CEO of Adventist Health St. Helena. The new plan will provide access to more primary care providers and specialists, and includes remodeling the clinic in order to accommodate an outpatient breast health imaging center that will be home to 3D mammography, said a news release. Atul Sharma, MD, a cardiologist with more than two decades of experience, has been appointed director of interventional cardiology at NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn. Sharma is board certified and fellowship trained in interventional cardiology and cardiovascular disease. He received his medical degree from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Under Sharma's leadership, the interventional cardiology team at NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn will deliver the latest in cardiac catheterization techniques to detect heart disease, perform coronary interventions, including implantation of stents, and provide a variety of other treatments used to monitor and improve cardiovascular health. Joining Sharma's team are board-certified interventional cardiologists Alexander Slotwiner, MD, and Christopher Gade, MD. Slotwiner received his medical degree from the University of Chicago's Pritzker School of Medicine and Gade received his medical degree from Albert Einstein College of Medicine. All three physicians were fellowship trained in both interventional cardiology and cardiovascular disease at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and are highly skilled in treating coronary artery disease, valvular disease, and peripheral arterial disease. Geoffrey Webber, MD, who is board certified in cardiovascular disease and internal medicine, joins NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn as a specialist in consultative cardiology. Webber received his medical degree from Tel Aviv University's Sackler School of Medicine and completed a cardiology fellowship at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Webber uses the latest advances in noninvasive cardiac testing to ensure his patients maintain healthy hearts. "We are committed to enhancing the care patients with cardiovascular disease receive in Brooklyn and are excited to integrate new technology and advances in research with the care delivered in the community," says Glenn I. Fishman, MD, the William Goldring Professor of Medicine and director of the Leon H. Charney Division of Cardiology at NYU Langone. The cardiovascular services team at NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn delivers the highest quality of care to treat the entire patient. The team provides nutritional counseling and other support services, including social workers who can assist with home care, financial aid, and continuing care plans. "Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in the United States," says Bret J. Rudy, MD, executive hospital director of NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn. "Providing this type of advanced patient care in Sunset Park is an important step toward improving cardiovascular health in our community for years to come." To learn more, visit NYU Langone Heart. To schedule an appointment with an NYU Langone Hospital Brooklyn physician, call 718-630-7979. About NYU Langone Health: NYU Langone Health is a world-class, patient-centered, integrated academic medical center, known for its excellence in clinical care, research, and education. It comprises more than 200 locations throughout the New York area, including five inpatient locations, a children's hospital, three emergency rooms, and a level 1 trauma center. Also part of NYU Langone Health is the Laura and Isaac Perlmutter Cancer Center, a National Cancer Institutedesignated cancer center, and NYU School of Medicine, which since 1841 has trained thousands of physicians and scientists who have helped to shape the course of medical history. For more information, go to nyulangone.org, and interact with us on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. Media Inquiries: Neal Gorman 718-630-8316 [email protected] Colin DeVries 718-630-7414 [email protected] SOURCE NYU Langone Hospital - Brooklyn Related Links https://nyulangone.org SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Discover the World and Cathay Pacific Airways today announced the launch of their new sales and marketing representation in Ecuador. This marks the 14th country in Latin America where Discover the World represents Cathay Pacific and its regional subsidiary, Cathay Dragon. "Discover the World recently opened an office in Quito and a second location in Guayaquil and was looking to develop this marketplace," said Discover the World's Executive Vice President, Ian Murray. "Discover partnered with long-standing client Cathay Pacific to expand the airline's presence in Latin America." "Cathay Pacific and Discover the World have been strategic partners for more than 20 years," said Eric Odone, Cathay Pacific's Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Americas. "With the support of Discover the World, Cathay Pacific has been able to grow its footprint in Latin America, which is a strategic and growing market for the airline. We are confident this expansion into Ecuador will fuel our continued success in the region." For more information about Discover the World, visit discovertheworld.com or call (480) 707-5566 or +44 203 598 8030. About Discover the World Discover the World has earned a reputation as a leader in global travel distribution and its success in developing a worldwide network of 85 offices in more than 60 countries capable of exceptional representation performance is unmatched. With a portfolio of nearly 100 clients utilizing its sales, marketing and business process outsourcing services, Discover the World remains a dominant innovator for the travel industry. About Cathay Pacific Airways Cathay Pacific Airways, the flag carrier for Hong Kong, offers more than 100 flights per week to Hong Kong and beyond, from six cities in the USA and two in Canada: Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York (JFK), Newark Liberty, San Francisco, Vancouver and Toronto. In total, Cathay Pacific Airways operates to over 200 destinations in 49 countries and territories. Cathay Dragon is a wholly owned subsidiary of Cathy Pacific, with services to destinations across Asia, including more than 20 cities in mainland China. Cathay Pacific is a founder member of the oneworld global alliance and Cathay Dragon is an affiliate member. Visit cathaypacific.com/us for more information. SOURCE Discover the World Related Links http://www.discovertheworld.com TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AACSB InternationalThe Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) announces today that 40 business schools have extended their accreditation in business, nine have extended their accreditation in business and accounting, and one has extended its accreditation in accounting. Founded in 1916, AACSB is the longest-serving global accrediting body for business schools, and the largest business education network connecting students, educators, and businesses worldwide. For over a century, AACSB Accreditation has been synonymous with the highest standards in business education, and has been earned by less than 5 percent of the world's business schools. Today, 799 institutions across 53 countries and territories have earned AACSB Accreditation. Further, 186 institutions hold additional specialized AACSB Accreditation for their accounting programs. "AACSB congratulates each institution on their achievement," said Stephanie M. Bryant, executive vice president and chief accreditation officer of AACSB. "Every AACSB-accredited school has demonstrated a focus on excellence in all areas, including teaching, research, curricula development, and student learning. The intense peer-review process exemplifies their commitment to quality business education." Achieving accreditation is a process of rigorous internal focus, engagement with an AACSB-assigned mentor, and peer-reviewed evaluation. During this multi-year path, schools focus on developing and implementing a plan to align with AACSB's accreditation standards. These standards require excellence in areas relating to strategic management and innovation; student, faculty, and staff as active participants; learning and teaching; and academic and professional engagement. To achieve accounting accreditation, an institution must first earn AACSB Business Accreditation. Then, in addition to developing and implementing a mission-driven plan to satisfy the business accreditation quality standards, accounting accreditation requires the satisfaction of an additional set of standards specific to the discipline and profession of accounting. Once accreditation is achieved, each institution participates in a five-year continuous improvement peer-review to maintain high quality and extend its accreditation. As ratified by the AACSB International Board of Directors, the following schools have extended their accreditation in business, business and accounting, or accounting: Schools Extending Their Business Accreditation California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo (United States) California State University, Chico (United States) California State University, East Bay (United States) Cardiff University (United Kingdom) Clark University (United States) Coastal Carolina University (United States) Emporia State University (United States) ESC Rennes School of Business (France) Henderson State University (United States) IESEG School of Management (France) Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne (United States) Kuwait University (Kuwait) Longwood University (United States) Missouri University of Science and Technology (United States) Morehouse College (United States) North Carolina Central University (United States) Northern Michigan University (United States) Ohio Northern University (United States) Peking University (China) Radford University (United States) Saginaw Valley State University (United States) Seaver College (United States) Southeastern Louisiana University (United States) Southern University and A&M College (United States) Southern University at New Orleans (United States) State University of New York at New Paltz (United States) State University of New York at Oswego (United States) Stonehill College (United States) The College of New Jersey (United States) The University of Liverpool (United Kingdom) The University of North Carolina at Pembroke (United States) The University of Queensland (Australia) University of Bradford (United Kingdom) University of Missouri (United States) University of Portland (United States) University of Stellenbosch (South Africa) University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire (United States) Vanderbilt University (United States) Westfalische Wilhelms-Universitat Munster (Germany) Worcester Polytechnic Institute (United States) Schools Extending Their Business and Accounting Accreditation Case Western Reserve University (United States) Grand Valley State University (United States) Kent State University (United States) New Mexico State University (United States) The University of Akron (United States) Towson University (United States) University of Louisiana at Monroe (United States) University of Northern Colorado (United States) Utah State University (United States) Schools Extending Their Accounting Accreditation University of Kansas (United States) For more detailed information about AACSB Accreditation, please visit aacsb.edu/accreditation. About AACSB International As the world's largest business education alliance, AACSB InternationalThe Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) connects educators, students, and business to achieve a common goal: to create the next generation of great leaders. Synonymous with the highest standards of excellence since 1916, AACSB provides quality assurance, business education intelligence, and professional development services to nearly 1,600 member organizations and more than 795 accredited business schools worldwide. With its global headquarters in Tampa, Florida, USA; Europe, Middle East, and Africa headquarters in Amsterdam, the Netherlands; and Asia Pacific headquarters in Singapore, AACSB's mission is to foster engagement, accelerate innovation, and amplify impact in business education. For more information, visit aacsb.edu. SOURCE AACSB International Related Links http://www.aacsb.edu SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Both Ends Believing is pleased to announce that Frank Garrott has joined the operating team as chief operating officer. Having served as president and chief executive officer for the Gladney Center for Adoption for the past ten years, Garrott brings a wealth of experience in the field of international adoption and orphan care. Prior to joining Gladney, Garrott enjoyed a 29-year career in financial services in Dallas and New York, where he worked extensively in cross-cultural environments. Garrott has served on the boards of five non-profit organizations focused on child welfare, including the board of Both Ends Believing since 2011. "The first time I set foot in an orphanage I was overwhelmed with sadness and even anger at the injustice of witnessing so many children fighting just to survive another day while dreaming of the possibility of becoming a member of a loving family," said Garrott. "Both Ends Believing is at the forefront of raising global awareness of the orphan crisis and delivering pragmatic solutions. It is a privilege for me to be a part of the effort." Garrott is joining the Both Ends Believing team at a pivotal moment in the organization's journey. The organization has successfully convened three global symposiums composed of delegates from over thirty countries and partnered with Tyler Technologies to develop and implement the Children First software program, which provides a technology solution for managing case records. Both Ends Believing is bringing new solutions and fresh perspective to one of the largest human rights crises of our time tens of millions of orphaned children who need the love of families. Mark Schwartz, president of Both Ends Believing, remarked, "Garrott will be a great addition to our team. He brings years of experience and leadership in the field of international child welfare and a passion to be a voice for vulnerable children worldwide." Garrott and his wife Lynne live in Fort Worth, Texas, where they have five children and one grandchild. Garrott is a graduate of Duke University and received his MBA from the University of Texas at Austin. About Both Ends Believing Both Ends Believing was founded in January 2010 as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization to promote family-based outcomes for vulnerable children. Our primary goal is to minimize institutional care for at risk children and redirect these children into reunification with their family, foster or kinship care, or placement into domestic and international adoption programs. Contact: Cheryl Bochner Both Ends Believing 480-699-5161 [email protected] SOURCE Both Ends Believing SHANGHAI, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Clobotics, a world-leading computer vision technology startup, announced a new $5 million A+ round of financing. This round of financing was led by KTB Network, the largest venture capital firm in South Korea, and followed by GGV Capital and Capital Development Investment Fund (CDIF) in China. This is Clobotics' second round of financing in its first twelve months of inception. Clobotics has continued to gain interest from investors and customers, thanks to its ability to deliver computer-vision based technologies and services, providing deep industry insights in retail, wind power, and telecom industries. Clobotics is a computer vision company headquartered in Shanghai, China, with an R&D center in Seattle. The company has brought together experts in machine learning and computer vision, as well as top engineers from Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook, Intel, Huawei, and others. Its technology focus is on image recognition, 3D reconstruction, and autonomous drone flights. Clobotics' mission is to empower traditional industries to achieve more - "to paint an intelligent world through vision" - through computer vision technologies. George Yan, founder and CEO of Clobotics, said, "The ability to productionize and scale cutting-edge technology is the key to the success in an AI startup. Traditional industries need commercialized solutions that can solve real-world problems, which Clobotics is able to deliver, thanks to our veteran engineering teams with its deep commercial solutions know-how. This round of funding will be used to further advance our R&D capabilities and continue to deepen our industry solution stacks." Having successfully invested in Alibaba, Focus Media and other eight tech Unicorns, Amy Yeh, the managing partner of KTB Network, showed great confidence and excitement in Clobotics' growth potential. Ms. Yeh stated, "We believe AI is an important technological advancement milestone in humanity. We have strong confidence in Clobotics team vision and execution in its products. AI technology will only be widely accepted in industries when it proves itself useful in real-world business scenarios." World's first computer-vision based wind turbine blade inspection service Clobotics has developed the world's first compute-vision based wind turbine blade inspection service using UAV drones. By integrating customized UAV drone hardware with computer vision software, it automatically takes pictures of wind turbine blade surfaces, and then uses computer vision to inspect the images on the cloud. The system notifies maintenance personnel of damages, deterioration, and other early warning signs, which are critical for reducing the cost of maintenance. According to Bloomberg New Energy, China's wind power operations & maintenance market will reach $3 billion US dollars by 2020. With the rapid growth of wind power and soaring maintenance costs, there is a huge potential for improvement over existing methods of maintenance and operations. Clobotics' service provides customers like Concord New Energy and Dunan Energy with a unified end-to-end solution for solving this problem. Retail Execution "Mate" drives digital transformation for offline retailers Clobotics created China's first Retail Execution "Mate" service for consumer product companies. In-store agents can now take pictures using their mobile phones, the computer vision AI-enabled service can instantly recognize products and the quantity of each product displayed with precision. Traditional distributor operations require hours of manual data collection per store and visit for the distribution representative. With Clobotics' computer vision AI-enabled service, they spend less time collecting data and more time building relationships with store managers. "Cloud-Network-Terminal" calibration for drone services Clobotics partnering with China Telecom, provides a remote flight control solution for drones in China. The service is an end-to-end solution for a vertical industry that has high dependencies on drone services. The cloud-based services increase the intelligence and safety of the drones in the sky. Should you have any questions regarding Clobotics and its product and services, please visit the official website: www.clobotics.com. SOURCE Clobotics Related Links http://www.clobotics.com DENVER, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Donor Alliance, the federally designated non-profit organization that facilitates organ and tissue donation in Colorado and most of Wyoming, recorded another remarkable year for organ and tissue donation and transplantation, helping save the lives of 407 people through organ transplantation in 2017. The organization also worked with a record 1,752 tissue donors and their families to recover the lifesaving and healing tissue that will provide bone and skin grafts to thousands of recipients in need. The organization, which educates the public on organ and tissue donation and manages the state donor registries in Colorado and Wyoming, also announced that 984,557 names in Colorado and 80,405 names in Wyoming were added to the organ and tissue donor registries in 2017. The donor designation rate, or percentage of individuals joining the state donor registry, reached 67.98 percent in Colorado and 58.58 percent in Wyoming. The two states maintained some of the highest donor designation rates in the country. "We are inspired by the generosity of the 144 donors and their families in Colorado and Wyoming who helped save the lives of 407 people last year," said Sue Dunn, Donor Alliance president and CEO. "We are also grateful to all of the residents throughout our region that have made the decision to register as organ, eye and tissue donors. The strong donor designation rates in our region translate to more lives saved and healed through transplantation." The region saw another record-setting year for tissue donation and transplantation, including bone, joint restoration, skin and heart valves. Working with the families of 1,752 generous tissue donors in 2017, enough tissue was recovered to save and heal the lives of tens of thousands in need, through procedures such as coronary bypass, knee reconstruction and spinal fusion. As medical technology advances and eligibility criteria expand, it has become possible to utilize more types of tissue, which has allowed more people to give the gift of life through tissue donation. Additionally, Colorado and Wyoming's increasing number of registered donors has translated into more tissue available for transplant. In addition to the increase in tissue donors, Donor Alliance, which manages the complex medical process of recovering organs and tissue for transplant, facilitated organ recoveries from 144 donors in 2017, the highest number ever, helping make 407 lifesaving transplants possible. According to the Rocky Mountain Lions Eye Bank, the nonprofit organization that facilitates the donation and transplantation of donated eye tissues in Colorado and Wyoming, there were 2,687 eye donors in the two-state area. The donations resulted in 2,692 sight-restoring corneal transplants. The numbers represent a 32 percent increase in eye tissue donations and a 31 percent increase in corneal transplants from just five years ago in 2012 and are an all-time high in the eye bank's 35 year history. Despite the generosity of donor family members and the efforts of Donor Alliance staff and partner organizations, just over 2,500 people in the area continue to wait for a lifesaving transplant. For more information about donation, or to register as an organ, eye and tissue donor, please visit DonateLifeColorado.org or DonateLifeWyoming.org. ORGAN Donation 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Local Organ Donors 148 109 134 139 144 Kidney Transplants 241 176 226 233 246 Liver Transplants 109 72 79 84 88 Heart Transplants 43 37 54 54 43 Lung Transplants 45 42 59 44 24 Pancreas Transplants 24 9 10 8 6 Small Intestine Transplant 1 1 0 1 0 Total Local Organs Transplanted 463 337 428 424 407 TISSUE Donation 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 Local Tissue Donors 1,177 1,590 1,674 1,710 1,752 Bone Donors 660 830 911 822 832 Skin Donors 1,076 1,386 1,401 1,320 1,503 Heart Valve Donors 111 114 117 168 140 Joint Restoration Donors 106 112 119 89 97 About Donor Alliance Donor Alliance is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to saving lives through organ and tissue donation and transplantation. As the organ procurement organization and accredited tissue bank for Colorado and most of Wyoming, Donor Alliance serves more than 5.8 million residents and more than 100 hospitals. The organization adheres to medical, regulatory and ethical standards: respectfully working with the families of organ and tissue donors, maintaining partnerships with hospitals, educating residents on the life-saving benefits of donation and inspiring them to sign up on the state's donor registry. Colorado and Wyoming boast some of the highest rates of donor registration in the country, which directly translates to more lives saved and healed through organ and tissue transplantation. Donor Alliance is one of 58 federally designated organizations of its kind in the United States, and is also an American Association of Tissue Banks (AATB) accredited tissue bank. For more information visit DonorAlliance.org or the Donate Life Colorado or Donate Life Wyoming Facebook pages. Media Contacts: Courtney Brunkow Andrea Smith The Fletcher Group Donor Alliance 303.717.9575 303.370.5683 [email protected] [email protected] SOURCE Donor Alliance Related Links http://www.donoralliance.org The North Bay Alternative Intake Project involves building a 25-mile-long pipeline from the Sacramento River through rural Solano County to Fairfield and the existing North Bay Aqueduct pipes. The emerging goal is to find some environmental uses for that water along its journey. Perhaps a new North Bay Aqueduct pipe could deliver water to help habitat in the Yolo Bypass or the Cache Slough area of eastern Solano County, a SCWA memo said. Or it could deliver water to Delta farms that would no longer have to take water out of Cache Slough for irrigation, thus helping the aquatic habitat there. Finding out the best option will take more research and more time. Sanford said that, if a multi-purpose project can be identified, work on a revised environmental impact report could begin in mid-to-late 2019. The North Bay Aqueduct was part of the State Water Project planning in the 1950s and 1960. It was completed in 1988 and provides Delta water from Barker Slough near Highway 113 to Fairfield, Vacaville, Vallejo, Benicia, American Canyon, Napa and Calistoga. FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Coretek Services, an industry-leading IT consulting firm and systems integrator, is pleased to announce being chosen as the 2018 Winner of the Citrix Global Innovation Award for Partners. Coretek Services, Citrix Innovation Award 2018 The Story Ron Lisch, CEO Coretek Dee Slater, CIO Wolverine Worldwide Coretek is being recognized for their work at west Michigan customer, Wolverine Worldwide. Wolverine Worldwide is one of the world's leading footwear and apparel distributors, providing marketing and licensing for iconic brands including Merrell, Keds, Sperry, and more. Working with Citrix and Microsoft, Coretek developed a global solution for virtualized 3-D applications hosted in Azure that helps Wolverine accelerate time to market for new consumer products. Wolverine Worldwide was looking for a way to use more technology to create a holistic transformation of the company. Today, one in every four pairs of shoes is bought online. Wolverine's digital transformation was intended to make sure that the company could serve its customer expectations for speed and selection in this new world order. Enabling global product development designers to work together more efficiently was a key component of the implementation. Wolverine had a 3D on-premises application that was used for 3D modeling for 15 people in the U.S. headquarters. As other locations adopted this application, an on-premises solution would no longer work for its global locations in London and Asia because of network limitations. Coretek introduced a Citrix secure digital workspace solution in Microsoft Azure that used XenApp with HDX technology along with NetScaler. Coretek took Wolverine from architectural design to implementation and rollout in eight weeks, giving them a fluid and efficient end-user experience that allowed designers to collaborate more efficiently worldwide. The traditional process took 425 days from idea to having a shoe in a consumer's hands. By using the Citrix technology, Wolverine can now do that same process in 140 days. In recognition of the successful work that they've done with Wolverine Worldwide, Coretek has been selected as the winner of the fifth annual Citrix Innovation Award for Partners. This award recognizes visionary Citrix partners who are powering a better way to work by delivering the experience, security and choice people need to unlock innovation and be productive anytime, anywhere. Quotes Dee Slater, Chief Information Officer, Wolverine Worldwide "With the cloud, I sleep better at night. When we have cloud-based technology, whether it's our team in Asia, Europe, or our teams here in the US, we know we are going to service the business needs because Coretek and Citrix have an army of people behind it. We're confident with Citrix as our partner that they'll continue investing in this technology to make it faster and more scalable than it is today." Ron Lisch, Chief Executive Officer, Coretek Services "Wolverine Worldwide partnered with us to move traditional processes into the cloud. We were able to create this new infrastructure within only eight weeks start to finish. We re-architected to optimize the power of Citrix with HDX technology along with Citrix NetScaler and Microsoft Azure. As a result, Wolverine is experiencing increased time-to-market efficiencies." About Coretek Services Coretek Services is a Global Systems Integration and IT Consulting Company that delivers high value and innovative solutions. Coretek works with clients to custom-design an IT architecture based on each clients' unique requirements. The solution encompasses server and desktop virtualization, optimization of a virtual desktop environment, cloud desktop, mobile device management, and infrastructure consulting and project management. Our goal is to help our clients achieve Project Success. No Exceptions! For more information, visit www.coretekservices.com. Contact: Charlotte Alex 2487017544 [email protected] SOURCE Coretek Services FRENCHTOWN, N.J., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Datavision, a network integration and consultancy company focused on network transformation, announces a partnership with 128 Technology, the Session Smart routing company, to offer the software-based 128T Networking Platform (128T) for the deployment of SD-WAN and other next-generation solutions. 128T is an intelligent software router that transforms networks into innovation engines by making them simpler, smarter, and more secure. Addressing use cases including SD-WAN, Secure Cloud Interconnect, and Network-as-a-Service, 128 Technology has developed an innovative approach to networking called Secure Vector Routing, which is session-aware, service-centric and entirely software-based. This fundamentally new approach to networking enables building application-friendly networks that are based on business requirements, not architectural constraints. 128T runs on general-purpose compute platforms, allowing a wide range of deployment models from remote branch offices to hyper-scale data centers and across multi-cloud environments. For those enterprises and telco providers looking to deploy a next-generation SD-WAN solution, 128T provides a simple, secure, and efficient way forward. This approach disrupts the traditional networking paradigm but doesn't disrupt existing network infrastructures. "We welcome 128 Technology into Datavision's portfolio of SDN-centric solutions and are excited to bring the benefits of their approach to our clients and through them, their end customers," states Mark Abolafia, Chief Operating Officer at Datavision. "We look forward to working with and supporting 128 Technology in taking on the challenge of natively providing network-based security, control, and optimization of overly complex networks." For more information, please visit www.datavision-inc.com. Datavision will be attending Metro Connect, taking place January 29 31 in Miami; to request an onsite meeting, click here. About Datavision, Inc. Datavision, Inc. is a full-service information technology firm specializing in cost-effective networking solutions ranging from consulting and engineering to SDN and NFV implementation, along with edge computing and SD-WAN. Working in both the Telecom and Enterprise markets, Datavision provides specialized networking solutions that drive key processes; design and planning, network integration, migration and operational support, helping their clientele to focus on overall business objectives. Datavision also helps clients reduce operational expenditures by making the most of your valuable capital resources. Whether you need to build a new system or optimize existing resources, Datavision brings our extensive experience to help guide clients through the multitude of decisions on the way to achieving your goals. For more information, please go to www.datavision-inc.com. For Datavision Media Inquiries Contact: Jaymie Scotto & Associates (JSA) 866 695 3629 ext. 21 [email protected] About 128 Technology For businesses held back by the complexity of their networks, 128 Technology routing software simplifies everything with its revolutionary Session Smart Technology. To learn more about 128 Technology's unique approach to networking, visit www.128technology.com, and follow the company on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook. For 128 Technology Media Inquiries Contact: Chet Murray [email protected] SOURCE Datavision, Inc. Related Links http://www.datavision-inc.com NEW YORK, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Deloitte announced today a significant investment in cloud management services by acquiring assets of ATADATA, an Atlanta-based provider of a holistic cloud platform that maps, migrates and manages workloads in any combination of on-premise and cloud environments to drive and optimize enterprise operations. ATADATA's market-leading cloud management and automation platform, ATAsphere, expands Deloitte's robust end-to-end cloud offerings from the strategy phase to the build and operate phases. These services, coupled with Deloitte's in-depth business and industry knowledge, will advantageously enable clients to achieve the transformative value of cloud. "Combining the power of the ATAsphere platform with Deloitte services allows clients to more rapidly and efficiently plan, build and operate innovative cloud solutions," said Larry Calabro, principal and cloud practice leader, Deloitte Consulting LLP. The ATAsphere platform provides automated, integrated cloud migration along with discovery, application mapping, mirroring, and migration for enterprise workloads at scale. Compatible with 20 different cloud infrastructures globally, the ATAsphere platform is certified by Amazon Web Services (AWS), works on Microsoft Azure, and recommended by Google Cloud Platform (GCP). The ATAsphere software platform provides unprecedented speed and flexibility which can help to ease the digital transformation of any complex organization. "Deloitte has demonstrated exceptional success in driving innovation using cloud, digital, and cognitive technologies for a wide range of enterprise clients. We are excited to amplify that success by enabling simple, scalable data and application stacks for on-premise, private and public clouds," said Charles Wright, CEO and CTO, ATADATA. "Clients look to partner with companies that demonstrate deep technical migration expertise as a part of a comprehensive, strategic solution. With ATADATA's assets, Deloitte offers just that." As part of the deep cloud engineering and migration experience of ATADATA transitioning to Deloitte, Wright joins the Deloitte team alongside Ian Easton, chief commercial officer, ATADATA, to enable client success within and across sectors. Wright will also oversee continued enhancements of the ATADATA platform, which will grow and evolve to meet client needs. This acquisition follows significant cloud investments made by Deloitte. In 2017, Deloitte acquired the businesses of numerous cloud companies, including Day1 Solutions' analytics and cognitive cloud assets, as well as added 3,000 new U.S.-based high-tech engineering jobs to rapidly deliver cloud capabilities to clients. For more information about Deloitte cloud offerings please visit the following site: https://www2.deloitte.com/us/en/pages/technology/topics/cloud.html. Deloitte Digital has created a new model for a new age a creative digital consultancy. That means bringing together all the creative and technology capabilities, business acumen and industry insight needed to help transform clients' businesses with digital. With Deloitte Digital's end-to-end capabilities, clients bring their greatest ambitions, knowing Deloitte Digital has what it takes to bring new business visions to life. Visit www.deloittedigital.com or follow on Twitter @DeloitteDigi_US or @DeloitteDigital. About Deloitte Deloitte provides industry-leading audit, consulting, tax and advisory services to many of the world's most admired brands, including more than 85 percent of the Fortune 500 and more than 6,000 private and middle market companies. Our people work across more than 20 industry sectors to make an impact that matters delivering measurable and lasting results that help reinforce public trust in our capital markets, inspire clients to see challenges as opportunities to transform and thrive, and help lead the way toward a stronger economy and a healthy society. Deloitte is proud to be part of the largest global professional services network serving our clients in the markets that are most important to them. Deloitte refers to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu Limited, a UK private company limited by guarantee ("DTTL"), its network of member firms, and their related entities. DTTL and each of its member firms are legally separate and independent entities. DTTL (also referred to as "Deloitte Global") does not provide services to clients. In the United States, Deloitte refers to one or more of the US member firms of DTTL, their related entities that operate using the "Deloitte" name in the United States and their respective affiliates. Certain services may not be available to attest clients under the rules and regulations of public accounting. Please see www.deloitte.com/about to learn more about our global network of member firms. SOURCE Deloitte Related Links http://www.deloitte.com/us "We are truly honored to receive this award from such a reputable magazine like Hong Kong Business magazine. As a Hong Kong's brand hotel, we are very proud to be recognized by travelers from all over the globe for the excellence of our hospitality and our dynamic family offerings that truly reflect the vibrancy of the city." "While we are very family-focused in terms of hotel amenities and service, location wise, we also enjoy a good geographical advantage that offers easy access to some of the must-see family-friendly destinations such as Ocean Park, The Peak, Times Square, and more," said Ms Anita Chan, General Manager of Dorsett Wanchai, Hong Kong. Dorsett Wanchai's Family Packages and 26 Hours 'A' Day Service Sets the Bar for Family Hotels in Hong Kong Dorsett Wanchai is a vibrant kid-friendly hotel focusing on delivering a comfortable, stylish, and affordable accommodation through Hong Kong-inspired hospitality. The hotel offers a wide range of innovative family rooms and suites such as family quad rooms, triple rooms, Ocean Suite, Jockey Suite, Sony 4K 3D Experience Suite, and more. Guests who stay with their little ones in any of the hotel's luxurious family rooms can enjoy a full range of amenities for their kids: a snack box, teddy bear, kid's dental kit, slippers, mobile storybook library, in-room sweet treats, traditional childhood games for different nationalities, as well as a colourful candy bar, available every day from 6 pm to 7 pm in the hotel lobby. The hotel recently launched the revolutionary 26 Hours 'A' Day which allows a longer stay at no extra cost. It is every parent's dream to have 'extended hours' when holidaying in a foreign city with kids in tow. Dorsett Wanchai is making 'your dream come true'. This special feature allows guests to check-in any time of the day and check out 26 hours later. For example, if a guest checks in at 4 pm, he/she gets to enjoy a full 26-hour stay and check out at 6 pm the next day. This feature is exclusively for direct bookings through the official hotel website, with three days' notice required prior to arrival. Here's the exclusive family route suggesting one how to maximize the extra 2 hours: http://www.wanchai.dorsetthotels.com/26-hour-a-day/family-route.html. Strategic Location Offers Easy Access to Popular Family Destinations Located between Causeway Bay and Wanchai, Dorsett Wanchai offers easy access to a number of popular family-friendly destinations such as Ocean Park, The Peak, and Stanley Market (15-minute drive), Toy Street (10-minute walk), as well as Times Square shopping mall (8-min walk), and more. A daily free shuttle bus service is also available to 14 destinations including Causeway Bay 2, Times Square, IFC (Central), Hong Kong Station (Airport Express Line), Admiralty, and more. All hotel rooms and suites are also equipped with free high-speed Wi-Fi that allows 10 devices to connect to internet at the same time, and free use of a smart phone that comes with free 4G Internet, Wi-Fi hotspot, and local and international calls to 8 countries US, UK, Australia, Canada, China, Singapore, Korea, and Thailand. To learn more about Dorsett Wanchai's family package, please click HERE. About Dorsett Wanchai, Hong Kong The award-winning 4.5-star Dorsett Wanchai, Hong Kong is conveniently located between Wanchai and Causeway Bay on Hong Kong Island giving its guests easy access to all business, shopping, and sightseeing destinations in the city. The hotel is a mere 8-minute walk to MTR stations, Times Square, and a 10-minute drive from the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre. The Dorsett Wanchai, Hong Kong offers 8 types of newly renovated rooms and suites ranging up to 48 sq. m. The signature Grand Deluxe Course View Room offers a breathtaking view of the racecourse in front of the hotel. A complimentary shuttle bus service is available to 16 destinations via five routes and all rooms are equipped with 200Mbps high-speed Wi-Fi internet. Other facilities include the Dining House Restaurant that serves the finest Guangdong and Huaiyang dishes, the 3T Bar, a gym room, and various meeting spaces. Visit: www.wanchai.dorsetthotels.com. Dorsett Hospitality International Headquartered in Hong Kong, Dorsett Hospitality International has three brands under its umbrella .the upscale and midscale Dorsett Hotels & Resorts and d.Collection comprising a range of charismatic boutique hotels, and the value-led Silka Hotels. The group currently owns and manages 33 hotels in mainland China, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, and the United Kingdom; including eight more openings within the next couple of years in Malaysia, Australia, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom. For more information on Dorsett Hospitality International, visit: www.dorsett.com Media enquiries: Ms. Jowie Wong Asst. Director of Communications +852 3552 1810 [email protected] Ms. Wendy Mak Marketing & Communications Manager +852 3552 1808 [email protected] SOURCE Dorsett Wanchai, Hong Kong Related Links http://www.wanchai.dorsetthotels.com DENVER, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The month of December proved to be a record-setting month for Diego Pellicer Colorado since opening in February 2017. Sales were up more than 25% over the previous month and more than 130% over June. Even though Diego Pellicer Worldwide, Inc., doesn't directly profit from the sale of marijuana, the success of its branded tenant reinforces the business model and demonstrates a proven formula for marijuana retail and branding success. "By elevating the customer experience, ensuring the product on the shelf is deserving of our premium branding and maintaining competitive pricing, Diego Pellicer has honed in on the 'premium' market in the rapidly expanding cannabis space for licensed tenants and their customers with discerning tastes," said Ron Throgmartin, chief executive officer, Diego Pellicer Worldwide, Inc. "We applaud Diego Pellicer Colorado for their outstanding efforts to ensure a first-class customer experience with results that demonstrate success." Double- and triple-digit sales growth for Diego Pellicer Colorado comes on the heels of many recent accolades for the store including: "Retail Dispensary of the Year" at the 2017 Cannabis Business Awards; the Leafly List Top 20 Dispensary for the third quarter in a row; and, "Best Designed" marijuana dispensary by Leafbuyer. In addition, employee development, promotions, targeted advertising, public relations and tailored product assortment have contributed to the location's success. "Our focus on the customer experience, the highest-quality products available in the market along with our award-winning Diego Pellicer retail design make us the 'premium' marijuana buying experience among cannabis retailers," said Neil Demers, chief executive officer, Diego Pellicer Colorado. "To round out the customer experience, our employees love what they do and that is reflected in our premium customer service. We're thrilled to see such a favorable response to our hard work." About Diego Pellicer - Colorado Diego Pellicer - Colorado is an upscale dispensary and independent brand licensee based out of Denver, focused on delivering premium cannabis products to local residents through high-quality service. Learn more at https://co.diego-pellicer.com. About Diego Pellicer Worldwide, Inc. (OTCQB: DPWW) Diego Pellicer Worldwide, Inc. is the premium marijuana brand and retail development company. DPWW develops and leases legally compliant real estate, including turnkey cultivation and processing facilities as well as high-end, branded retail stores to licensed marijuana operators. When federally legal, DPWW is positioned to become a national, vertically integrated marijuana company. To learn more about how to become a branded Diego Pellicer retailer, cultivator or investor visit www.Diego-Pellicer.com. Safe Harbor Statement Certain statements contained in this press release may be construed as "forward-looking statements" as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the "Act"). The words "estimate," "project," "intends," "expects," "anticipates," "believes" and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, management pursuant to the "safe-harbor" provisions of the Act. These statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those projected on the basis of these statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. The Company also undertakes no obligation to disclose any revision to these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. SOURCE Diego Pellicer Worldwide, Inc. Related Links http://www.diego-pellicer.com WESTBURY, N.Y., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- This year marks the 20th anniversary of Stoff Institute for Medical Research (SIMR) - a non-profit organization founded by Dr. Jesse Stoff dedicated to cancer research and the advancement of integrative medicine. As of early 2016, SIMR kick-started AWARENESS FOR A CURE, a local media-based resource program supporting all Island-based cancer charities. "With the help of my colleagues in the healthcare and care-giving communities, we produced AFAC to facilitate grant-searches for patients and survivors - and also to assist in the promotion of cancer charities, fundraising events and educational efforts," states Dr. Stoff. Awareness for a Cure supports all cancer-related fundraising organizations including LI2DAY's annual breast cancer walks and 5K races. Dr. Jesse Stoff has appeared in countless TV and radio shows speaking about cancer prevention, Long Island environmental issues, wellness treatments and charity efforts. One of AFAC's partners is BEST ANSWER FOR CANCER (bestanswerforcancer.org) - an international organization of doctors working to shift the cancer paradigm to a more patient-centered treatment approach. Dr. Stoff carried the same free-resource access and education-based principles into the AFAC blueprint to help orgs' fundraising attendance through social media and mass publishing via web. AFAC's charity directory details the specific help that they offer the public. As listed, groups such as the Bone Marrow Foundation, Frankie's Mission, and Andrew McDonough B+Foundation are dedicated to raising money to help fund specific cancer research or provide financial help to patients & families. Meanwhile, the Susan Satriano Memorial Scholarship Foundation gives out money to children whose parents may have been stricken with cancer. One of the top headliners of "Awareness News" is LI2DAY (www.li2daywalk.org), producers of breast cancer walks on Long Island. Since 2003, founder Ginny Salerno has been organizing multi-day walks all over Long Island where 100% of the funds raised by walkers would stay on Long Island to be distributed by grassroots breast cancer service & support organizations. With support from local politicians and businesses, Breast Cancer Walks have raised over $6 million dollars in 14 years. AWARENESS IN THE NEWS In a 2017 on-air interview at WBAB/WBLI, Dr. Stoff was featured as one of Long Island's cancer crusaders and discussed the ways that charities are helping the recently diagnosed. To represent this, guest speaker Jaime LaMarca (Patient Access Manager of the Leukemia-Lymphoma Society) joined the show. "I visit hospitals and oncology offices to raise awareness about LLS and what we can do to help," says Ms. LaMarca. "When a patient is first diagnosed, they are thrown into a world they certainly don't want to be in. An easily accessible support system is really important for (any) patient - and as a social worker, it's a passion of mine to bring support, education and offer financial assistance!" AFAC also produces "Survivor Stories," a mini-biography video series presenting inspirational role models who escaped the deadly disease. One of the many stories include Rachel Klein, a Long Island mom with a then-to-now perspective of what it was like to first get diagnosed. With the help of foundations like LLS, she received help to "stay in the fight" and regain her quality of life for years to come. Publishers of AFAC News promote the achievements of local cancer orgs. "By listing & cataloguing grants, publishing fundraiser videos and posting the charity events all over social media, we have become advocates of the charities and a true ally to patients and survivors!" states Laurel Muckey, AFAC co-editor. To date, Dr. Jesse Stoff continues to pursue his many philanthropic projects. He is also involved in writing and publishing countless articles and books about cancer & wellness while working full-time as the medical director and head onco-immunologist at the Integrative Medicine of NY in Westbury, Long Island (integrativemedicineofny.com). Media contact: Grace Dellavalle 631-920-5757 SOURCE Stoff Institute for Medical Research HOUSTON, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The inaugural DUG Executive conference will feature executives from leading oil and gas producers across North America's unconventional shale plays. Hundreds of executives will gather in Houston February 26 to hear emerging operational and investment strategies. "DUG Executive's agenda will cover the latest opportunities and emerging challenges for today's producers," said Steve Toon, conference host and Editor-In-Chief for Oil and Gas Investor. "Executives will discuss their game plans for the upcoming year, how they plan to deploy their capex, and how data and artificial intelligence are giving them an advantage in a new environment where efficiencies can make or break the bottom line." Unlike other DUG events, the DUG Executive agenda examines all of North America's unconventional resource plays. The program provides a "state the of the shale revolution" seen through the eyes of active producers. Plenary sessions, breakouts and Q&A discussions will create a peer-to-peer decision-makers' forum. Continental's Senior VP of Government & Regulatory Affairs, Blu Hulsey, will kick off the morning in an executive panel addressing ways to achieve competitive edge. Apache's CEO and President, John Christmann, will join Hulsey in addressing new subsurface technologies for Alpine High. Later that morning, Devon Energy's Vice President of Drilling, Garrett Jackson, will discuss advancements in shale-field artificial intelligence. The afternoon program offers executive presentations from producers sharing which technologies are working, how they are adjusting to maximize earnings and where they intend to spend money in 2018. From morning plenary sessions to afternoon break-outs, DUG Executive will bring to stage executives from public and private producers, midstream operators and the financial community, including: Tony Sanchez III , CEO, Sanchez Energy Corp. , CEO, Taylor Reid , President & COO, Oasis Petroleum Inc. , President & COO, Hal Chappelle , President & CEO , Alta Mesa Holdings LP President & CEO Rob Turnham , President & COO , Goodrich Petroleum Corp. President & COO Randy Foutch , Founder, Chairman & CEO , Laredo Petroleum Inc. Founder, Chairman & CEO Maynard Holt , CEO , Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. CEO Jay Smith , Chief Operating Officer, Great Western Oil & Gas Co. , Chief Operating Officer, James Courtier , VP, Exploration & Geosciences Technology, Laredo Petroleum Inc. , VP, Exploration & Geosciences Technology, Dave Pursell , Managing Director, Investment Banking , Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. Managing Director, Investment Banking Jacob Shumway , VP, Engineering, FourPoint Energy LLC , VP, Engineering, Chad Perkins , Senior VP - Operations, Greylock Energy , Senior VP - Operations, Robert Anderson , Executive Vice President, Corporate Development & Engineering , Earthstone Energy Inc. Executive Vice President, Corporate Development & Engineering Rich Downey , VP, Drilling & Completion, WPX Energy Inc. For more on DUG Executive, visit DUGExecutive.com. About Hart Energy For more than 40 years, Hart Energy editors and experts have delivered market-leading insights to investors and energy industry professionals. The Houston-based company produces award-winning magazines (such as Oil and Gas Investor, E&P and Midstream Business); online news and data services; in-depth industry conferences (like the DUG series); GIS data sets and mapping solutions; and a range of research and consulting services. For information, visit hartenergy.com. Contact: Kate Clark 713.260.4657 SOURCE Hart Energy Related Links http://www.hartenergy.com TORONTO, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - It's a New Year and with it comes new opportunities. Echoworx is delighted to announce its new strategic partnership in Mexico with Moneta Technologies. It was only last year that email encryption provider Echoworx opened a local data center near Mexico City, catering to Mexico's demand for in-country data security, offering its advanced encryption platform OneWorld. Moneta Technologies is a technology solutions company with expertise in electronic payments and focused in technology infrastructure development for banking and financial services, retail, and telecommunications. Commenting on the partnership with Echoworx, Juan Pablo Gonzalez, Managing Director at Moneta Technologies said, "These are very interesting times in Mexico's vibrant economy and this alliance will help us serve as a trusted partner to our clients by providing best in class information and communication technologies that enable their growth and economic progress. Echoworx's encryption solutions will help our clients to safeguard their customers' sensitive information against theft and other data privacy attacks that favor targeting email." "Mexico ranks as the second country in Latin America with the most cyberattacks, behind Brazil, with many large organizations suffering from outdated and incompatible encryption capabilities. Stricter data security regulations continue to be put in place, such as the EU's General Data Protection Regulation and Mexico's General Law for the Protection of Personal Data, that will further impact organizations' data protection and information practices. Our timing in engaging with Mexico could not be better," echoed Randy Lenaghan, VP Sales at Echoworx. "Our email encryption platform is designed to address the diverse information and communication requirements within the banking and financial services industry and to effectively adapt to the changes." Mexico is touted to be among the global leaders in digital transactions, and with security being of paramount concern it is pertinent that a sustainable infrastructure is in place to safeguard every customer's interest. This partnership reaffirms Echoworx's commitment to Mexico and its focus in strengthening cybersecurity by collaborating to safeguard sensitive information. About Echoworx Echoworx brings simplicity and scalability to encryption. OneWorld, our flagship solution, is the first smart messaging encryption platform that makes secure messaging easy and cost effective designed to adapt to any environment and all forms of encryption. Our passionate encryption experts transform chaos into order for world leading enterprises and OEM providers who understand the requirement for secure communication is of the utmost importance. Visit us at https://www.echoworx.com/ About Moneta Technologies Moneta Technologies, is the expert company in electronic methods of payments, dedicated to the development of projects of technological infrastructure for financial institutions, retail, and telecommunications operators, among others, to accept and process electronic payments safely and without setbacks. SOURCE Echoworx Corporation Related Links http://www.echoworx.com MANASSAS, Va., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Edupoint Educational Systems is pleased to announce the selection of its industry-leading Synergy Education Platform by Prince William County Schools (PWCS). Synergy Education Platform will provide PWCS with a secure, flexible, and collaborative solution for comprehensive student information and learning management in a private, cloud-hosted environment. The district is the second largest school division in Virginia and the 35th largest in the country, serving nearly 90,000 students across approximately 100 schools. "This new SMS will move Prince William County Public Schools into the 21st century with its easily accessible student information, grades, and other key instructional data to help teachers and parents understand how students are progressing toward learning goals," said Phil Kavits, Associate Superintendent for Communications and Technology Services at PWCS. "This information is critical to helping teachers plan more effective instruction, and to better engage families in monitoring and contributing to student success." With Synergy Education Platform, teachers will save time and effort by creating gradebook assignments and grading rubrics online, and linking students to a rich library of learning resources that can be expanded over time. Parents and students will be able to see assignments, grades, test scores, and more in real time using a smartphone or tablet or by viewing online. The district will be able to set the parent and student portals to translate information into multiple languages to facilitate communication. PWCS selected Synergy after an extensive RFP process involving a multi-day evaluation and vetting against other major student management system providers. "Prince William County Schools was looking for a student management system that could meet the needs of administrators, teachers, parents, and students districtwide," said Bob Weathers, Founder & CEO of Edupoint. "We at Edupoint are pleased that Synergy Education Platform was selected as the solution best satisfying the district's extensive list of requirements for improving processes and supporting students. We look forward to partnering with Prince William County Schools for many years to come." About Edupoint Educational Systems: For over thirty years, the leadership of Edupoint Educational Systems has provided well-designed, technologically-advanced student data management systems that empower all K-12 stakeholders with the tools they need to improve student achievement. The fully-integrated Synergy Education Platform includes Synergy SIS, the most powerful K-12 student information system available today, Synergy LMS, an all-in-one learning and assessment platform, Synergy SE, a collaborative end-to-end special education data management system, and Synergy Analytics, a comprehensive data analysis solution for improving student performance and district administration. Thousands of schools nationwide choose the Synergy Education Platform to support more than 3.75 million students, including 16 of the 100 largest school districts. Learn more: http://www.edupoint.com/. *IMAGE for Media: Send2Press.com/300dpi/18-0123s2p-synergy-300dpi.jpg This release was issued through Send2Press, a unit of Neotrope. For more information, visit Send2Press Newswire at https://www.Send2Press.com SOURCE Edupoint Educational Systems Related Links http://www.edupoint.com HOUSTON, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Tradition Senior Living, LP (Tradition) has entered into a long-term agreement with Houston-based Texas Microgrid LLC (TMG) to provide Enchanted Rock's (ERock) On Demand Electric Reliability service for Tradition's newest campus, The Tradition-Buffalo Speedway in Houston, Texas. The project will be funded by Basalt Infrastructure Partners via TMG, a Texas-based project company. ERock specializes in resiliency microgrids, and will provide electrical backup service for Tradition's entire campus, including life safety. This level of reliability sets a new standard in the senior living industry, as the majority of current retirement facilities do not have complete backup power, only the backup of life safety systems. Given Houston's proximity to the Gulf Coast and the recent hurricanes that served as a reminder of the limitations of our electrical grid system, electrical reliability has become a critical component in senior living. Through ERock's On Demand Electric Reliability service, Tradition will be able to operate normally during power outages. ERock's service offers the ability to shelter-in-place, preventing evacuations that can cause significant mental and financial stress to the community. This provides peace of mind for residents and their loved ones and is just one more example of how Tradition provides the highest level of service to its residents. "We are thrilled and feel that our residents will receive a tremendous benefit from our partnership with Texas Microgrid, which provides Enchanted Rock's comprehensive electrical backup system," said Tradition Founder and CEO Jonathan Perlman. "Through this backup, we have a system that will continuously run all electrical for our entire community, whether there is a hurricane or any other situation resulting in a total loss of electrical power. This backup service will run everything from our elevators all the way to our residents' closet lights." ERock's On Demand Electric Reliability service will provide full backup for The Tradition-Buffalo Speedway. TMG owns and ERock operates and maintains the system for the life of the agreement, allowing Tradition to focus on its core business the well-being of its residents. James Vasquez, an ERock Senior Sales Executive said, "We are very excited about the partnership with Tradition Senior Living. They have a proven business model and we look forward to providing a critical service that will differentiate The Tradition-Buffalo Speedway from its competition. We are proud that Tradition chose ERock/TMG to provide the microgrid technology that will set a new standard for the industry." About Tradition Senior Living A Texas-based limited partnership, Tradition Senior Living (Tradition) specializes in developing, constructing and managing resort-style luxury senior living campuses that offer the full spectrum of Independent, Assisted Living and Memory Care. Its current portfolio includes two campuses in Dallas: The Tradition-Prestonwood (2010) and The Tradition-Lovers Lane (2015). The Tradition-Buffalo Speedway in Houston, Tradition's first venture outside of Dallas, is due to open late 2018 and will also be a continuum of care. About Enchanted Rock Founded in 2006, Enchanted Rock, Ltd. builds and operates cost effective resiliency microgrids that help companies efficiently manage the risk associated with electricity interruptions. In 2010, ERock became the first in Texas to provide utility grade backup power as a service. The company is responsible for the design, project management, installation, and commissioning of 275 MW of distributed generation, including 160 MW of Distributed Power Generation projects and 115 MW of customer reliability systems. The company currently has 90 MWs of customer resiliency microgrids under construction. ERock is the only distributed energy company combining expertise in energy market integration, control technologies, and construction, translating into more reliable and less expensive backup power for customers. ERock serves a wide range of industries including grocery stores, senior living facilities, travel centers, cold storage facilities, car dealerships, higher learning institutions and critical manufacturing facilities. For more information on ERock's unique reliability service offering, please contact [email protected]. About TMG Formed in 2016, TMG provides backup generation to commercial and industrial customers throughout Texas. The company operates highly reliable and ultra-clean distributed natural gas engines, providing customers with a cost-effective solution for keeping the lights on during grid outages. TMG is a partnership between Basalt Infrastructure Partners LP (Basalt) and ERock. Basalt is an infrastructure equity investment fund focusing on investments in utilities, energy and transport infrastructure in the United States, Canada and Europe. SOURCE Enchanted Rock, Ltd. Related Links http://www.erockhold.com Anybody who watched the clumsy histrionics of Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., at last week's Senate grilling of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen had to feel a little sorry for him. His overacting was on full display before the Senate Judiciary Committee and TV cameras. Booker posed, pretended, preened and generally made a fool of himself shouting at Nielsen about President Donald Trump's latest inexplicable comments regarding immigrants from certain parts of the world. In releasing his almost-comical wrath, Booker's performance was so awful and cringe-worthy that I actually felt embarrassed for him. He even copped to weeping "tears of rage." The pain and drama of it all was just too much. And it's only January. The first presidential primary is more than two years away. Booker's rant is only an early taste of many more to come from an increasingly clamorous field of Democratic presidential hopefuls. The Democratic Party is lurching irreparably to the left and has nothing to offer voters in 2020 other than outrage over Trump's latest tweet and the resuscitation of tired policies that would return a booming U.S. economy to the stagnant Obama years. COLCHESTER, Vt., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Saint Michael's College in Vermont last February launched "SMC First Class" to help families address the cost of college by offering high school seniors a no-risk, free introduction to college courses. More than 70 high school seniors successfully completed last year's offerings and earned credit, and this year as February approaches, registrations are far outpacing last year with 120 high school seniors already registered and administrators opening up additional sections to meet demand. "There is no question that families are very interested in this new initiative as a way to 'test drive' the College, but also interested in ways to save money and reduce the time-to-degree," said Sarah Kelly, Saint Michael's VP of enrollment and marketing, originator of the First Class program, adding that of the 90 who enrolled in SMC First Class last year, 66 enrolled at Saint Michael's. "The success of SMC First Class is a clear example of how colleges must be creative and innovative in demonstrating their value in this hyper competitive and cost-conscious environment. Higher education is the last bastion of markets 'buying on faith' you wouldn't buy a car without taking it for a test drive." Through this program, Early Action admits are offered a free, four-credit course during the spring semester of their senior year of high school. How it works: This year students will select from courses in literary studies, environmental studies, personal financial planning, or world politics. All courses are taught by Saint Michael's faculty, both online and on-campus. Enrollment VP Kelly spelled out the particulars in Q&A form: What are the deadlines ? Can credits transfer? Prospective Saint Michael's students who were accepted under our Early Action deadlines ( Nov. 1 and Dec. 1 ) were invited to enroll in a real, rigorous, four-credit "hybrid" model course that is free to them if they end up enrolling at Saint Michael's (and if they go elsewhere, the credits transfer for a $1,500 fee -- still a bargain for four credits. The fee is waived if the student is Pell-Grant-eligible). ? Prospective students who were accepted under our Early Action deadlines ( and ) were invited to enroll in a real, rigorous, four-credit "hybrid" model course that is free to them if they end up enrolling at (and if they go elsewhere, the credits transfer for a fee -- still a bargain for four credits. The fee is waived if the student is Pell-Grant-eligible). What do these "First Classes" look like for students? Students who registered by the Feb. 1 deadline last year were credentialed and received access to our learning management system and student portal. Students prepared for the first course, which took place on campus a Sunday in mid-February prior to an accepted student event the following Monday. The rest of the course was delivered online, with students completing independent assignments and coming together for threaded discussions and video chats. The courses run until late April. This year's timeline and model are nearly identical. Students who registered by the deadline last year were credentialed and received access to our learning management system and student portal. Students prepared for the first course, which took place on campus a Sunday in mid-February prior to an accepted student event the following Monday. The rest of the course was delivered online, with students completing independent assignments and coming together for threaded discussions and video chats. The courses run until late April. This year's timeline and model are nearly identical. Why now? Families are increasingly questioning the logic and value of investing the time and money in a four-year degree without some ability to try it out first. Colleges that can provide these opportunities and other innovative ways for families to save will benefit. Families are increasingly questioning the logic and value of investing the time and money in a four-year degree without some ability to try it out first. Colleges that can provide these opportunities and other innovative ways for families to save will benefit. Benefits to the College : Early Action applicants are typically the strongest academically, so the more the College can keep these highly coveted students engaged, the better. : Early Action applicants are typically the strongest academically, so the more the College can keep these highly coveted students engaged, the better. What do students get out of it? The value of a normal four-credit course for free (if they enroll or decide not to take the credits with them), the opportunity to experience and establish ties with campus, faculty and other students. Having more credits under their belts early-on helps assure ambitious students' ability to graduate on time, or even early. The value of a normal four-credit course for free (if they enroll or decide not to take the credits with them), the opportunity to experience and establish ties with campus, faculty and other students. Having more credits under their belts early-on helps assure ambitious students' ability to graduate on time, or even early. Start on a path to graduate early. The College has also launched the Degree in Three initiative, which provides students in eight popular majors pathways to achieve their degree in just three years. www.smcvt.edu/degreeinthree SMC First Class webpages: www.smcvt.edu/firstclass About Saint Michael's College Saint Michael's College, founded in the great Catholic intellectual tradition, which also recognizes the principles of social justice and compassion, is a selective, fully residential Catholic college in Vermont's beautiful Green Mountains. Our closely connected community delivers internationally-respected liberal arts and graduate education near Burlington, one of the country's best college towns. To prepare for fulfilling careers and meaningful lives, young adults here grow intellectually, socially, and morally, learning to be responsible for themselves, each other and their world. For more information, contact: Mark Tarnacki 802.654.2795 [email protected] SOURCE Saint Michaels College Related Links http://www.smcvt.edu LONDON, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Over the next three months, exclusive business events will take place across Europe, where each country's best businesses will be celebrated, in this year's European Business Awards, sponsored by RSM. At the events, business leaders will come together to celebrate and network with peers after being successfully named as a 'Ones to Watch' company in their country. During each event, the 12 'National Winners' will be announced for each country, one winner for each of the 12 categories in the competition. Adrian Tripp, CEO of the European Business Awards, the continent's largest cross-sector business competition, said: "These events not only celebrate the success of our dynamic 'Ones to Watch' in the competition but also the key role they play in Europe's strong business community. We congratulate them all on their success." Lead sponsor RSM, is the sixth largest global network of independent audit, tax and consulting firms, and has supported the European Business Awards since its inception. Jean Stephens, CEO of RSM said: "The 'Ones to Watch' are stand-out leaders, demonstrating businesses acumen, tenacity and commercial excellence. These companies will lead the way forward bringing growth and prosperity across the continent and beyond. Congratulations to each of these successful companies and best wishes for the next phase as they head to the finals." The 'Ones to Watch' from 34 countries can be found at http://www.businessawardseurope.com. To be chosen, the companies must have demonstrated exceptional achievement in one of the Awards' categories and reflect the programme's core values of innovation, success and ethics. Each of the National Winners will take part in the Gala Final in Warsaw in May 2018, where the final 12 overall European Winners will be announced. The Awards Categories for 2017-2018: The RSM Entrepreneur of the Year Award The ELITE Award for Growth Strategy of the Year The Award for Innovation Germany Trade & Invest Award for International Expansion The Social Responsibility and Environmental Awareness Award The New Business of The Year Award The Workplace and People Development Award The Customer and Market Engagement Award The Digital Technology Award The Business of the Year Award with Turnover 0 - 25M The Business of the Year Award with Turnover 26M - 150M The Business of the Year Award with Turnover 150M + The European Business Awards is now in its 11th year and its primary purpose is to support the development of a stronger and more successful business community throughout Europe. Last year it engaged with over 33,000 businesses from 34 countries. Sponsors and partners include RSM, ELITE and PR Newswire. About the European Business Awards: The European Business Awards' primary purpose is to support the development of a stronger and more successful business community throughout Europe. The European Business Awards programme serves the European business community in three ways: It celebrates and endorses individuals' and organisations' success It provides and promotes examples of excellence for the business community to aspire to It engages with the European business community to create debate on key issues The European Business Awards is now in its 11th year. Last year it engaged with over 33,000 businesses from 34 countries. Sponsors and partners include RSM, ELITE, PR Newswire, Bureau Van Dijk and SDL Managed Translation. http://www.businessawardseurope.com. Twitter: @rsmEBA Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/businessawardseurope LinkedIn: the company page "The European Business Awards" About RSM RSM is the sixth largest network of independent audit, tax and consulting firms, encompassing over 120 countries, 813 offices and more than 43,060 people internationally. The network's total fee income is US$5.1 billion. As an integrated team, we share skills, insight and resources, as well as a client-centric approach that's based on a deep understanding of our clients' businesses. This is how we empower them to move forward with confidence and realise their full potential. RSM is a member of the Forum of Firms, with the shared objective to promote consistent and high-quality standards of financial and auditing practices worldwide. RSM is the brand used by a network of independent accounting and advisory firms each of which practices in its own right. RSM International Limited does not itself provide any accounting and advisory services. Member firms are driven by a common vision of providing high quality professional services, both in their domestic markets and in serving the international professional service needs of their client base. For more information, visit rsm.global, like RSM on Facebook, follow RSM on Twitter and/or connect with RSM on LinkedIn. About ELITE: ELITE is a full-service programme designed to share best practice and increase growth opportunities for fast growing companies, with a focus on understanding the capital markets. ELITE is an innovative programme based on exclusive training and a tutorship model, supported by access to the business and financial community. Its aim is to prepare companies for their next stage of growth and investment. For further information on the programme, companies and the full list of partners, please go to: http://www.elite-growth.com About PR Newswire: PR Newswire is the leading global provider of PR and corporate communications tools that enable clients to distribute news and rich content. We distribute our client's content across traditional, digital and social media channels in real time with fully actionable reporting and monitoring. Combining the world's largest multi-channel, multi-cultural content distribution and optimisation network with comprehensive workflow tools and platforms, PR Newswire enables the world's enterprises to engage opportunity everywhere it exists. PR Newswire serves tens of thousands of clients from offices in Europe, Middle East, Africa, the Americas and the Asia-Pacific region. For more information on PR Newswire please visit http://www.prnewswire.co.uk About Germany Trade & Invest: Germany Trade & Invest is the economic development agency of the Federal Republic of Germany. The company helps create and secure extra employment opportunities, strengthening Germany as a business location. With more than 50 offices in Germany and abroad and its network of partners throughout the world, Germany Trade & Invest supports German companies setting up in foreign markets, promotes Germany as a business location and assists foreign companies setting up in Germany. Other partners and sponsors: Bureau Van Dijk: Bureau Van Dijk is a Moody's Analytics company which captures and treats private company information for better decision-making and increased efficiency. With information on over 275 million companies in all countries worldwide it is the resource for private company data. Certainty is a highly-prized commodity in business and BVD provides its customers with the best quality data available. Register for a free trial at http://www.bvdinfo.com SDL Managed Translation: SDL is the global innovator in language translation technology, services and content management. For the past 25 years, SDL has created transformative business results through nuanced digital experiences with customers around the world. For more information about language services and technology, or with help going global quickly and efficiently, please email [email protected] or visit http://www.sdl.com/managed-translation About Investec: Investec is a specialist bank and asset manager. Investec provides financial products and services, imbued with a personal approach, to a niche client base in three principal markets: the UK, South Africa and Australia. It operates from more than 40 cities on five continents and is publicly traded in London and Johannesburg. Its divisions include Corporate & Institutional Banking, Private Banking, Wealth & Investment and Asset Management. Investec was founded in South Africa in 1974 by three partners, and entered the UK in 1992. Founder Patrons: The four Founder Patrons are AirX, Megazyme, Alpha Trains Group and Remedica; all members of the European Business Awards community. These successful businesses are gleaming examples of the Awards' core values: Success, Innovation and Ethics. Through patronage, they help to foster and create more successful companies and business communities in Europe. For more information about the founder patrons please visit https://www.businessawardseurope.com/patrons SOURCE European Business Awards "We are excited to welcome Rick to the firm, particularly at a time of significant change in environmental law at the federal and state levels," said Philip T. Inglima , chair of Crowell & Moring. "Just as the Trump administration is rolling back environmental regulations and enforcement, California is taking a more aggressive approach on environmental protection. Rick's presence will help clients navigate the litigation and regulatory risks amid this unsettled period." A respected environmental lawyer for his work in California and nationally, McNeil advises on numerous environmental issues, including Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act enforcement cases, hazardous waste, Superfund, brownfield redevelopment, the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and endangered species matters. He is an experienced trial lawyer who has handled numerous jury, bench, and administrative trials in commercial, land use, tort, and contract litigation. He recently won a hotly contested case on summary judgment involving a major commingled groundwater plume in Los Angeles County, Calif., that is now on appeal. He has practiced before the South Coast Air Quality Management District, which covers Los Angeles and Orange counties, as well as both the Los Angeles and Santa Ana Regional Water Quality Control Boards. In addition, he advises clients with large land holdings and accompanying environmental law needs. He joins the firm from Snell & Wilmer LLP. "Rick's experience litigating environmental matters and advising on the federal and state regulatory issues in California is a great complement to our group's existing broad-based experience," said Elliott P. Laws, chair of Crowell & Moring's ENR Group. "His addition strengthens our capabilities to serve national clients on both coasts." McNeil's arrival continues the firm's Environment & Natural Resources Group's recent growth, following D.C. environmental partner Michael Boucher's move in December to Crowell & Moring from Dentons US LLP. "Crowell & Moring has a preeminent national environmental practice, and it's a great fit for my practice and my clients," McNeil said. "I am excited to join this esteemed group of colleagues and for the opportunity to help the firm build out its environmental presence in California." McNeil earned his B.A. from Yale University and his J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley (Boalt Hall) School of Law. He serves on the Orange County Bar Association's board of directors and as chair of the organization's Diversity Committee. He also is a member of the American Law Institute. McNeil is also actively involved in the community, serving on the board of directors for Legal Aid, and is chair emeritus of the Pacific Chorale. He is admitted to practice in California. About Crowell & Moring's Environment & Natural Resources Group Crowell & Moring's nationally recognized Environment & Natural Resources Group has more than three decades of experience successfully representing clients across the United States in all forums, including federal and state courts, agencies, and legislatures. Our lawyers and policy advisors are nationally acclaimed in air and water quality, civil and criminal environmental litigation, environmental tort litigation and trial, land use, toxic substances, chemical regulation, and site clean-up and reclamation matters. About Crowell & Moring LLP Crowell & Moring LLP is an international law firm with approximately 500 lawyers representing clients in litigation and arbitration, regulatory, and transactional matters. The firm is internationally recognized for its representation of Fortune 500 companies in high-stakes litigation, as well as its ongoing commitment to pro bono service and diversity. The firm has offices in Washington, D.C., New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Orange County, London, and Brussels. Media Contact: Christine W. Elfmann Manager, Marketing Communications [email protected] 202.508.8848 SOURCE Crowell & Moring LLP Related Links http://www.crowell.com TEL AVIV, Israel, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- EZbra, developer of a patented disposable post-surgical breast dressing that provides tailor-made sterile, absorbent protection and compression, presented the benefits of EZbra at the SESPRS 34th Annual 2018 Atlanta Breast Surgery Symposium, January 19-21 at the Intercontinental Hotel in Atlanta, GA. EZbra will be launched during 2018. The EZbra breast dressing is an all-in-one medical device created to address the various needs and challenges that arise from all breast procedures: aesthetic, biopsy, lumpectomy, mastectomy, and reconstruction. EZbra's innovative design enhances the quality of care in accordance with surgeon post-op requirements, while allowing an independent patient dressing change and empowering patients to recover with dignity. EZbra allows the physician to adjust compression levels to any patient's specific breast shape and requirements, it can be adjusted for each breast side separately, providing a solution in cases of asymmetry, and can be used with implants as well as with DIEP flaps and autologous procedures. EZbra defines and fixates breast folds, stabilizes implants and holds drains, and can reduce OR and recovery room time, as well as recurring clinic visits. EZbra is part of the emerging FemTech industry which focuses on women's healthcare and wellness. Company Founder and CEO Efrat Roman is a breast cancer survivor and she is also the founder of CureDiva.com , the 1st social commerce website for women dealing with breast cancer. About EZbra: Ezbra aspires to create a uniformly accepted high-quality breast dressing for over 13 million women who undergo various types of breast procedures and surgeries annually. The company's flagship product, of the same, is an innovative and patented disposable post-surgical breast dressing that provides soft absorbent protection and compression. EZbra has commenced regulatory approval processes in North America. To date the company has raised $2.5 million and is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel. Contact: Amalia Herszkowicz [email protected] +972-502550555 SOURCE EZbra BIRMINGHAM, Ala., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Father Nature Landscapes, (www.fathernaturelandscapes.com), the Birmingham-based landscape design, construction and consulting firm, announced recently the launch of its nationwide franchise program. The program, initially being launched across the South and East Coast, will help qualified professionals create a dynamic customer experience in the landscape design and construction industry. Father Nature Landscapes launches an exclusive franchise program to qualified owner-operators across the Southeastern United States Founded in 2006 by brothers Daniel and Andrew McCurry, Father Nature Landscapes is the answer to the industry's challenges of scalability and optimization. By leveraging expertise in construction and operational management, the Father Nature Landscapes franchise opportunity provides a framework to aspiring landscape professionals and savvy investors. "For the past 10 years we've worked to develop a brand and business model that is unlike anything else the industry. By prioritizing the customer experience and creating an innovative design program, we've done exactly that," said Daniel McCurry, vice president of Father Nature Landscapes. "Now, we're looking to spread that expertise across the region and change the culture of the landscape industry." Qualified franchise owners will gain access to Father Nature Landscapes' vast market knowledge and time-tested business model, in addition to comprehensive operational training and ongoing support. To learn more about the Father Nature Landscapes franchise opportunity, visit www.franchisefnl.com, call (205) 774-1342 or email [email protected]. About Father Nature Landscapes Father Nature Landscapes is an Alabama-based landscape design, construction and consulting firm, specializing in construction management and one-of-a-kind customer experience. Founded in 2006 by brothers Daniel and Andrew McCurry, Father Nature Landscapes is the answer to the industry's challenges of scalability and optimization. Leveraging more than two decades of industry experience and expertise, Father Nature Landscapes' exclusive franchise program provides a business model that addresses the issue of scalability for qualified investors and owner operators. For more information about the Father Nature Landscapes franchise opportunity, visit www.franchisefnl.com, call (205) 774-1342 or email [email protected]. Media Contact: Amy Kent [email protected] (708) 249-1042 SOURCE Father Nature Landscapes Related Links http://www.franchisefnl.com Brown was convicted and sentenced to death for the murders of three female members of the Boyd family in the small town of Eudora, Mississippi. When police arrived at the Boyd house, bloody shoe prints were found at the crime scene from a left Fila shoe. A similar shoe print was found later that day in the driveway of Brown, who lived nearby. Brown was arrested and a search of his home turned up a pair of Fila shoes that appeared to match the footprints. The FBI later determined that there were traces of blood on the sole of Brown's left shoe. The shoe prints were central to the state's case at Brown's 1995 trial. In addition, prosecutors argued that a cut on Brown's wrist was a bite mark from one of the victims. At this time, DNA testing was in its infancy and was not conducted, and Brown was convicted and sentenced to death. In 2012, after several years of investigating Brown's case, Fish and co-counsel from the Mississippi Innocence Project filed a motion in the Mississippi Supreme Court to gain access to the evidence to allow for DNA testing. The Court granted the motion en banc, over the state's objections. Thus commenced a multi-year process of testing the evidence, which was done by two independent laboratories. In 2016, the final DNA testing results showed that the blood on Brown's left shoe did not match the blood in the shoe prints at the crime scene, and that Brown's DNA was not present in the saliva of the victim the state had alleged bit Brown. In 2017, Fish and co-counsel filed a motion in the Mississippi Supreme Court to vacate Brown's convictions and sentences based on the DNA testing results, and the Mississippi Supreme Court then heard the case en banc. It soon after granted the motion, ordered Brown's convictions and death sentence vacated, and remanded the case back to the trial court for further proceedings. In November 2017, the state moved for reconsideration, but its motion was denied in early 2018. Fish principal John Lane, who is based in the firm's Houston office, led Sherwood Brown's legal team. He was assisted by co-counsel from the Mississippi Innocence Project and Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP. "I am incredibly grateful to see Sherwood's death sentence vacated. This outcome is the result of many years of pro bono work by a dedicated legal team who never lost faith in the rightness of Sherwood's cause. Without the full support of Fish's pro bono program, this result would not have been possible," said Lane. Peter Devlin, President of Fish & Richardson, commended the efforts of the team. "Fish is committed to making pro bono work an integral part of our professional culture, and we strongly encourage all of our legal professionals to take on pro bono matters as a part of their professional lives. I am proud of the team that donated their time to save Sherwood's life," said Devlin. Fish & Richardson is a global patent prosecution, intellectual property litigation and commercial litigation law firm with more than 400 attorneys and technology specialists in the U.S. and Europe. Our success is rooted in our creative and inclusive culture, which values the diversity of people, experiences and perspectives. Fish is the No. 1 U.S. patent litigation firm, handling nearly three times as many cases as its nearest competitor; a powerhouse patent prosecution firm; a top-tier trademark and copyright firm; and the No. 1 firm at the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, with more cases than any other firm. Since 1878, Fish attorneys have been winning cases worth billions in controversy often by making new law for the world's most innovative and influential technology leaders. In addition to its expertise in intellectual property law, Fish boasts a robust pro bono program, and encourages all of its legal professionals to take on pro bono matters as part of their professional lives. Fish lawyers average 56 pro bono hours per year representing clients on a range of public interest and social justice issues, leveraging its greatest resource Fish attorneys to address the widening justice gap. For more information, visit https://www.fr.com or follow us at @FishRichardson. Contact: Amy Blumenthal or Kelly Largey Blumenthal & Associates Fish & Richardson 617-879-1511 800-818-5070 [email protected] [email protected] SOURCE Fish & Richardson Related Links http://www.fr.com Flotek's performance evaluation team analyzed more than 425 wells in the Wolfcamp B reservoir, comparing wells treated with and without StimOil MB, with completion dates ranging from January 2016 to December 2017. The StimOil MB-treated wells outperformed the non-treated wells over an initial12-month production period, ranging in uplift from 22% to 32% at peak month production. Additionally, the decline curve analysis demonstrates sustained economic benefits over the same time period. To ensure accurate comparisons, all wells were normalized for proppant loading and perforated lateral length. For more information, visit here. "Understanding and analyzing the geology of the reservoir is core to our innovation and prescriptive chemistry approach as we partner with our clients to select the most effective stimulation technology. The Midland Basin reservoirs have framework composition, clay content, water and hydrocarbon chemistry that change across the basin, and these unique characteristics require prescriptive chemistry that can maximize performance like StimOil MB. This technology is tested and has proven over time to provide meaningful results to our clients' assets and bottom lines," said James Silas, Ph.D., Flotek's Senior Vice President of Research and Innovation. Flotek's Complex nano-Fluid line of technologies complement the chemistry of the reservoir to reduce capillary pressures and optimize its flow area through patented, customized formulations. These stimulation chemistries are based on naturally sustainable and non-toxic citrus oil from orange peels to improve well performance and productivity. Introducing New Pressure Reducing Fluid System for High Brine, High Iron As the industry increases its usage of produced waters for well stimulation, the need for full fluid systems that can tolerate high brine waters has grown significantly. To address this need in the marketplace, Flotek has introduced RheoFlo CAT300, a new, patented cationic Pressure reducing Fluid (PrF) technology customized to perform in high brine and high iron environments. RheoFlo CAT300 is a cationic, high molecular weight polymer that reduces turbulence and maximizes the use of the polymer at a lower loading rate. RheoFlo CAT300 is the second product in the PrF product line, complementing anionic RheoFlo A300 for a wide range of brines. For more information, visit here. Introducing New Friction Reducer Based on Proprietary Polymer Technology Flotek has also introduced StimLube MAX, a proprietary polymer technology that is a highly effective friction reducer in high brine conditions. The technology is a viscosity-building system aiding proppant transport, maximizing and easing operations and helping to alleviate the increased market demand for friction reducers. From slickwater to cross-linked jobs, Flotek offers a wide range of products that enhance performance, maximize efficiencies in well treatment strategies and improve well economics. For more information on Flotek's fluid systems, visit here. About Flotek Industries, Inc. Flotek develops and delivers prescriptive chemistry-based technology, including specialty chemicals, to clients in the energy, consumer industrials and food & beverage industries. Flotek's inspired chemists draw from the power of bio-derived solvents to deliver solutions that enhance energy production, cleaning products, foods & beverages and fragrances. In the oil and gas sector, Flotek serves major and independent energy producers and oilfield service companies, both domestic and international. Flotek Industries, Inc. is a publicly traded company headquartered in Houston, Texas, and its common shares are traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol "FTK." For additional information, please visit Flotek's web site at www.flotekind.com. Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements set forth in this Press Release constitute forward-looking statements (within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934) regarding Flotek Industries, Inc.'s business, financial condition, results of operations and prospects. Words such as expects, anticipates, intends, plans, believes, seeks, estimates and similar expressions or variations of such words are intended to identify forward-looking statements, but are not the exclusive means of identifying forward-looking statements in this Press Release. Although forward-looking statements in this Press Release reflect the good faith judgment of management, such statements can only be based on facts and factors currently known to management. Consequently, forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, and actual results and outcomes may differ materially from the results and outcomes discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences in results and outcomes include, but are not limited to, demand for oil and natural gas drilling services in the areas and markets in which the Company operates, competition, obsolescence of products and services, the Company's ability to obtain financing to support its operations, environmental and other casualty risks, and the impact of government regulation. Further information about the risks and uncertainties that may impact the Company are set forth in the Company's most recent filings on Form 10-K (including without limitation in the "Risk Factors" Section), and in the Company's other SEC filings and publicly available documents. Readers are urged not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this Press Release. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking statements in order to reflect any event or circumstance that may arise after the date of this Press Release. SOURCE Flotek Industries, Inc. Related Links http://www.flotekind.com How St. Helena was founded and named Henry Still, an Englishman, purchased a tract of 126 acres of the Bale Mexican land grant, lying on the west side of what is now Main Street, St. Helena. The deed was filed May 16, 1854. In that year, he built a small split redwood building, which was only a shanty, and put in a stock of goods. He had foresight enough to see that this was in the heart of a rich agricultural section, and he surmised that the time would come when there would be a flourishing town grown up around the nucleus that his store had formed. To be sure to give the embryonic place a good footing, he made the liberal offer of donating to actual settlers a lot on which to build and start a business. This was in 1855, and among those who accepted the offer was Mr. John Kister, who erected two buildings on the lot near the northwest corner of Spring and Main Street. The Van Tassel Hotel occupied one of the buildings in 1881. In 1855, Augustus Tainter erected a building just south of Still's store. This was a small one and a half story redwood building that was fenced with wooden stakes. In 1856, Christian Turkelson erected a store building, which was the first building to be erected on the east side of the street. It was a good substantial building. In the fall of 1857, W.A. Elgin erected a small building for a store just opposite the termination of Spring Street. There are several stories about how St. Helena got its name. One story says that "The infant town was christened St. Helena from the St. Helena Sons of Temperance group" established there about this time in 1856. Another story says that the town took its name from Mt. St. Helena, the large mountain that can be seen to the north of Napa Valley. Yet another story says that to Messrs. Henry Still and James Booker belongs the honor of naming the town. During an evening game of horseshoes out in front of the blacksmith shop, the subject of a name for the town came up. The name St. Helena was suggested by those gentlemen, and finally adopted by the entire party. Since then, the name has been St. Helena. St. Helena was incorporated by a special act of the legislature on March 24, 1876. -- From the St. Helena Historical Society The experts at the America's Farmers Grow Rural Education program, sponsored by the Monsanto Fund, are aiming to raise awareness of the benefits for today's students, and partnering with farmers to award STEM grants that enhance programming at rural public school districts. While nearly everyone has heard about STEM education in one way or another, some people don't understand its true value in school and in the workplace. It's cutting edge. When it comes to innovation, there's no disputing that STEM is progressing changes throughout society. STEM fields are at the forefront of nearly all of the exciting modern developments, from the latest digital gadgets enabled by technology to ground-breaking scientific research. Another benefit of this progressive environment is the financial and social impact on the community. Skilled STEM workers are driving trends and innovations, which can create jobs and boost the economy. All of these attributes appeal to eager, young graduates looking to make their mark. It's where the jobs are. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published a report on the 10 fastest-growing occupations through 2026. In the report, 100 percent of the jobs fall into STEM categories, from the No. 1 growth career solar photovoltaic installers to a handful of medical field jobs to statisticians, software developers and mathematicians. It's a chance to make a real difference. STEM fields can drive true social change. Researching and uncovering new treatments, or even the cure, for a debilitating disease is only possible with skills gained through STEM learning. However, science isn't the only STEM field that brings opportunities to make a difference in others' lives. A career in technology could mean helping a child hear or see for the first time using a specially constructed device, for example. It's a stepping stone to dozens of industries. While STEM learning lends itself well to a fairly large scope of career choices, that list is ever-expanding. In fact, most of today's graduates find themselves hard-pressed to secure a position without some STEM training. Consider a seemingly distant field such as fashion, for example, where digital technologies enable design sketching, mathematic skills factor into creating patterns and some engineering knowledge is necessary for designing a runway show. Beyond the less obvious career choices, STEM learning provides practical experience with methods of problem solving that can be applied to virtually any aspect of personal or professional life. It's helpful in developing additional skills. The specific training involved in STEM education can help lead to certain career paths that will be available in the future. However, it can also help with more general skills your child can use immediately. Students typically follow processes in STEM programming and training, such as the scientific method, that give them a chance to work with other students, test hypotheses and find solutions. These challenges can often help in developing teamwork, leadership and other collaborative life skills. Learn more about the America's Farmers Grow Rural Education program at GrowRuralEducation.com. Support STEM Learning As a parent, there are many ways you can support STEM learning in your local school district. It's little secret that school district budgets are continually shrinking, so an important way you can encourage STEM learning is by exploring funding opportunities that can bolster STEM programming. Initiatives like America's Farmers Grow Rural Education focus on bringing STEM education to rural school districts. Eligible farmers can nominate their local public school districts for the grants, which help enhance STEM education. Schools then participate in an application process to compete for $10,000 and $25,000 grants. One school district in Royal, Washington, is utilizing the program to raise academic achievement for students in the classroom and on state-mandated math tests. The America's Farmers Grow Rural Education grant allows teachers to extend learning for students, especially those who are learning English as a second language, who need intervention but lack the technology at home. An important learning barrier is being removed through the use of Chromebooks and Kajeet, a system that allows internet connectivity but also has a filter to ensure the technology is limited to academic use. Learn more about the program and nomination process at AmericasFarmers.com. Michael French [email protected] 1-888-824-3337 editors.familyfeatures.com About Family Features Editorial Syndicate Established in 1974, Family Features is a leading provider of free food and lifestyle content for print and online publications. Our articles, photos, videos and web content solutions save you time, money and help create advertising opportunities. Registration is fast and free with absolutely no obligation. Visit editors.familyfeatures.com for more information. SOURCE Family Features Editorial Syndicate Related Links http://www.familyfeatures.com HARTFORD, Conn., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Fuseideas, a nationally recognized full-service advertising agency, today announced the official opening of its new office in Hartford, Conn. The expansion will enable Fuseideas to better serve its growing roster of Connecticut-based clients, including Foxwoods Resort Casino, which it has been partnering with since September 2017. The new office is located in downtown Hartford at 20 Church Street. "Our team has been providing exceptional creative and value-added service to our clients in Connecticut for several years now," states Dennis Franczak, CEO, Fuseideas. "With our recent Foxwoods engagement, along with other important local partnerships including the CT Lottery, now is the right time to invest in the market and get a strong team in place there to be more accessible to our current clients and connect with potential business partners." To lead the growth in the market, Fuseideas expanded its team with the addition of Account Director Allyson Forster. With more than a decade of strategic marketing roles within ESPN Media Networks, Forster has expertise in both brand strategy and integrated marketing solutions. "Our full-service integrated offering takes us wherever our clients require stakeholder engagement, including on the local level," added Franczak. "We applied the exact same model in Maine. We engaged a core set of leading clients, set-up an office and expanded the team to 10 plus professionals. We already purchase a great deal of production resources and Connecticut-based media, so the time is right to apply the successful model to the Constitution State." About Fuseideas Fuseideas is an award-winning, integrated, full-service advertising agency that helps clients navigate the chaos that exists in the media landscape today. Fuseideas clients can achieve their brand and marketing objectives across all relevant channels. These include brand strategy, creative, digital strategy and web engineering, all forms of media planning and buying, public relations and social media, experiential marketing and analytics. Headquartered in Boston with additional offices in Portland, Maine, San Francisco and Prague, Fuseideas was named one of the fastest private growing companies in 2015 for the third year in a row by Boston Business Journal. For more information, visit Fuseideas online at www.fuseideas.com. SOURCE Fuseideas TUCSON, Ariz., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA), the trade association for America's most recognized and innovative retailers, today announced the winners of the (R)Tech Retail CEO Innovation Awards. The three winners, IamBot, Multifold, and Persado, selected by RILA's Board of Directors, the CEOs and heads of innovation for America's largest retail brands, were featured in a showcase at RILA's Retail CEO Forum this week in Tucson. "It's an incredible opportunity to have CEOs and chief innovation officers from America's most well-known brands interacting directly with emerging companies that, through their own commitment to innovation, are enabling the future of our industry," said RILA Senior Vice President of Research, Innovation, and Sustainability Adam Siegel. "We're excited to recognize these three companies, who have embraced the charge from our consumers to deliver ubiquitous and ultra-personal shopping experiences and in turn, have developed game-changing technologies." RILA's (R)Tech Center believes that one trend is driving change in the industry more than any other: the trend toward ubiquitous and ultra-personal shopping. The winners were hand-picked by America's leading chief executives for their groundbreaking work in promoting the industry's move towards shopping wherever, whenever through artificial intelligence and augmented reality. Details on the winners: IamBot helps brands and retailers sell directly to customers through messaging platforms. It is the comprehensive conversational commerce solution based on the state-of-the-art artificial intelligence. It seamlessly integrates with stores' messaging channels to provide customers with the ubiquitous and super convenient shopping experience. "We're honored that IamBot was selected by this prestigious group of executives. We believe that conversational commerce is a key element of the industry's future, and we are glad that these CEOs see that as well." Multifold Retail believes that Augmented Reality will change the way that consumers shop. They offer all the tools retailers need: content creation (3D model creator, editor & library), viewers (Augmented Reality & 360 degrees), marketing and advertising tools (social media, catalog, in-store/OOH campaigns) and tracking/analytics. "We are so honored to have been selected for this award by such a distinguished group of CEOs. Multifold aims to make it easier for companies to create, manage and launch Augmented Reality experiences for their customers. Our patent-pending web-based AR solution results in a more streamlined user experience and works across the majority of smart devices. We look forward to sharing our story with RILA members." Persado is the Marketing Language Cloud; AI generated language that resonates the most with any audience, segment or individual. Imagine having a data scientist and a copywriter for each person in your audience; you get the language that performs and the analytics explaining why, resulting in more business and unseen insights. Comprised of the world's largest database, with over a million words and phrases tagged and scored for consumer marketing, Persado's Marketing Language Cloud enables brands to increase acquisition and retention while building long term consumer relationships. "Persado is proud to be selected as a winner of the inaugural (R)Tech Retail CEO Innovation Awards. We're excited for the opportunity to showcase our technology and challenge retail leaders to introduce data driven decision-making in new areas of their organizations, specifically within marketing content creation. Today's consumers seek to build lasting relationships with their favorite brands at Persado, we're helping brands navigate these relationships and shape the future of marketing through the effective use of AI-generated language that resonates with any audience or individual." RILA is the trade association of the world's largest and most innovative retail companies. RILA members include more than 200 retailers, product manufacturers, and service suppliers, which together account for more than $1.5 trillion in annual sales, millions of American jobs and more than 100,000 stores, manufacturing facilities and distribution centers domestically and abroad. RILA, in partnership with Accenture, launched the (R)Tech Center for Innovation in 2017 to help retailers navigate the industry's transformation. SOURCE Retail Industry Leaders Association Related Links http://www.rila.org SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- GoDaddy Inc. (NYSE: GDDY), the world's largest cloud platform dedicated to small, independent ventures, today announced it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Main Street Hub for approximately $125 million in cash plus up to $50 million in potential future earnouts. The transaction has been approved by the GoDaddy board of directors and is expected to close late in the second quarter of 2018, subject to customary regulatory and other closing requirements. GoDaddy is not changing its previously issued 2018 guidance in connection with the announced acquisition of Main Street Hub. Main Street Hub provides small businesses with a complete "do-it-for-me" service for managing engagement on the most popular social networks. Main Street Hub combines dedicated teams of branding experts photographers, writers, designers, marketers with proprietary technology to manage activity on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and Yelp, among others, to help small businesses acquire new customers and build stronger relationships with existing customers. Today, more than 10,000 small businesses rely on Main Street Hub to optimize their social media engagement. The acquisition furthers GoDaddy's professional services strategy for small business owners who prefer to have dedicated experts build their online presence and manage it for them to accelerate growth and achieve their goals. GoDaddy will offer customers a complete suite of "do-it-for-me" capabilities for building a powerful online presence that can be delivered by either GoDaddy small business experts or, for more advanced features and functionality, GoDaddy's community of web professionals. "GoDaddy's 17 million small business customers come to us because they know their online presence can help them reach their customers and grow their businesses, but even with the right tools, customers struggle to find the time or know-how to effectively manage their social media presence," said Lauren Antonoff, Senior Vice President of Presence and Commerce, GoDaddy. "Joining forces with Main Street Hub better enables us to help our customers reach their goals, while saving them time and offering peace of mind." "Main Street Hub and GoDaddy both share the same unrelenting passion for helping small businesses succeed," said Matt Stuart, co-CEO and co-founder, Main Street Hub. "We complement each other strategically, culturally and across our products and services. We now have the scale and resources to help millions more business owners realize the value of having an optimized social media presence our team can't wait to get started." Main Street Hub co-CEOs and co-founders Matt Stuart and Andrew Allison will join GoDaddy in leadership positions within GoDaddy's Presence and Commerce business unit. GoDaddy will maintain Main Street Hub's offices in Austin, Texas. Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains forward-looking statements which are subject to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements are based on information and estimates available to us at the time of this press release and are not guarantees of future performance. Statements which may be considered forward-looking within the meaning of the U.S. federal securities laws include statements regarding the acquisition of Main Street Hub, the time frame in which this will occur, the expected benefits to GoDaddy from completing the acquisition, including benefits to customers and the introduction of new features and solutions and any statements regarding future financial results. These statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from results expressed or implied in this press release. Such risk factors include those related to: required regulatory approvals and the satisfaction of other closing conditions; the potential impact on the businesses of GoDaddy and Main Street Hub due to uncertainties regarding the acquisition; the retention of customers and employees of Main Street Hub and the ability of GoDaddy to successfully integrate Main Street Hub and to achieve expected benefits; general economic conditions; and the timing and market acceptance of new features and solutions and the degree to which these features and solutions gain market acceptance. Actual results may differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements in this press release. Additional risks and uncertainties that could affect GoDaddy's financial results are included in the other filings we make with the SEC from time to time, including the risks described under the captions "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016 and the risk factors described the Company's Current Report on Form 8-K filed May 3, 2017, which are available on the Company's website at https://investors.godaddy.net and on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Additional information will also be set forth in other filings that the Company makes with the SEC from time to time. All forward-looking statements in this press release are based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof. GoDaddy does not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements provided to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made. About GoDaddy GoDaddy powers the world's largest cloud platform dedicated to small, independent ventures. With more than 17 million customers worldwide and nearly 73 million domain names under management, GoDaddy is the place people come to name their idea, build a professional website, attract customers and manage their work. Our mission is to give our customers the tools, insights and the people to transform their ideas and personal initiative into success. Source: GoDaddy Inc. SOURCE GoDaddy Inc. CHICAGO, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- GTCR, a leading private equity firm, announced today that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire EaglePicher Technologies, LLC ("EaglePicher" or the "Company") from certain funds affiliated with affiliates of Apollo Global Management, LLC. EaglePicher is a premier provider of mission-critical power solutions for customers in the defense, aerospace and medical end markets. GTCR will partner with CEO Gordon Walker and the current management team to separate EaglePicher from the other subsidiaries of its parent company, Vectra Corporation, and create a standalone business that will allow management to focus on driving continued growth and operational improvement initiatives. Founded in 1843 and headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, EaglePicher develops specialized batteries and advanced power management systems for a diverse range of defense, aerospace and medical applications. The Company has entrenched sole-supplier relationships with many of its customers in support of high priority programs. EaglePicher has approximately 800 full-time employees and a robust portfolio of over 100 United States patents. "EaglePicher has a storied legacy and is a recognized leader in providing high performance energy solutions to its demanding end markets," said GTCR Managing Director Craig Bondy. "Gordon and his team have done an extraordinary job driving strong operational performance while continuing to extend the Company's reach into new applications. We are excited to be partnering with the Company to support its next phase of growth." "The management team at EaglePicher is tremendously excited to partner with GTCR," said Gordon Walker. "We have an exceptional opportunity to accelerate growth and make investments in technology and products to provide leading energy solutions for our customers. GTCR's reputation and track record for investing in and growing businesses built on technology is impressive. This makes them an ideal partner for EaglePicher and I am very excited to collaborate with them on this opportunity." "The combination of EaglePicher's best-in-class product portfolio and reputation for reliability makes this an exciting platform investment," added Neil Willis, Vice President at GTCR. "We look forward to leveraging our experience in government services and healthcare to help expand the Company's capabilities and accelerate growth." The transaction is expected to close during the first quarter of 2018. PricewaterhouseCoopers served as accounting advisor and Kirkland & Ellis LLP provided legal counsel to GTCR. About GTCR Founded in 1980, GTCR is a leading private equity firm focused on investing in growth companies in the Growth Business Services, Technology, Media & Telecommunications, Healthcare and Financial Services & Technology industries. The Chicago-based firm pioneered The Leaders Strategy finding and partnering with management leaders in core domains to identify, acquire and build marketleading companies through transformational acquisitions and organic growth. Since its inception, GTCR has invested more than $15 billion in over 200 companies. For more information, please visit www.gtcr.com. About EaglePicher EaglePicher Technologies, LLC is a leading provider of missioncritical power solutions. The Company has been serving the highly demanding defense, aerospace, and medical battery markets for over 75 years. EaglePicher's battery systems are a key enabler of the U.S. space program, including providing the emergency power that successfully brought the Apollo 13 crew home. EaglePicher powers a multitude of key U.S. Department of Defense platforms for missile defense, portable power and directed energy, among many others, in addition to a large number of aerospace programs and a variety of implantable medical devices. For more information, please visit www.eaglepicher.com. Media Inquiries Eileen Rochford +1 (312) 953-3305 [email protected] SOURCE GTCR Related Links http://www.gtcr.com NACKA STRAND, Sweden, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Following the Oslo District Court's acquittal decision (announced 10 January 2018) in the case against Ola Rollen, Hexagon's President and CEO, the Norwegian economic crime authority (kokrim) announced today its decision to appeal. "I speak on behalf of the Board and everyone else who has supported Ola since the beginning of this ordeal that we stand united with him," said Gun Nilsson, Hexagon's Chairman of the Board. "This decision doesn't change anything; thus, Ola will continue as President and CEO with the Board's full support." As stated in a separate press release by Ola Rollen's defense attorney Mr. Christian Hjort, a motion to the Court of Appeal to dismiss the appeal by kokrim will be filed soon, as it is evident that the appeal will not succeed. In conclusion, the public statements made by Rollen's defence team, that the charges were based on a misinterpretation of the factual and legal issues in the matter, are supported in the unanimous verdict which can be read in full here. CONTACT: For further information, please contact: Maria Luthstrom, Investor Relations Manager, Hexagon AB, +46-8-601-26-27, [email protected] Kristin Christensen, Chief Marketing Officer, Hexagon AB, +1-404-554-0972, [email protected] This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.comhttp://news.cision.com/hexagon/r/norwegian-economic-crime-authority--okokrim--announces-decision-to-appeal,c2436921 The following files are available for download: http://mb.cision.com/Main/387/2436921/781233.pdf Press release SOURCE Hexagon BATESVILLE, Ind., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hillenbrand, Inc. (NYSE: HI) will hold a conference call and simultaneous webcast Thursday, February 1, 2018, at 8:00 a.m. ET. They will discuss the results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2018, which ended December 31, 2017. The live webcast, including a slide presentation, will be available at http://ir.hillenbrand.com under the "Events & Presentations" tab and will be archived on the company's investor relations website through Friday, March 2, 2018. To access the conference call, listeners in the United States and Canada may dial +1 (833) 241-7251, and international callers may dial +1 (647) 689-4215. Please use conference call ID number 5275987. A replay of the call will be available until midnight ET, Thursday, February 15, 2018, by dialing +1 (800) 585-8367 toll free in the United States and Canada or +1 (416) 621-4642 internationally and using the conference ID number 5275987. Hillenbrand will issue a press release reporting its results after the market closes on Wednesday, January 31, 2018. The full text of the release and financials will be available at http://ir.hillenbrand.com. About Hillenbrand Hillenbrand (www.hillenbrand.com) is a global diversified industrial company with multiple market-leading brands that serve a wide variety of industries across the globe. We pursue profitable growth and robust cash generation in order to drive increased value for our shareholders. Hillenbrand's portfolio is composed of two business segments: the Process Equipment Group and Batesville. The Process Equipment Group businesses design, develop, manufacture and service highly engineered industrial equipment around the world. Batesville is a recognized leader in the North American death care industry. Hillenbrand is publicly traded on the NYSE under "HI". SOURCE Hillenbrand, Inc. Related Links http://www.hillenbrand.com Churchill's Trial is an examination of the great challenges the British statesman faced during his long career in public office. In addition to its place as a Kindle bestseller, Arnn's book is currently ranked Amazon's No. 1 bestseller in U.K Prime Minister biographies and No. 12 in books on the history of Great Britain. Published in October 2015 by Thomas Nelson, it has maintained its position as a highly regarded work on British history and gained more recent recognition amid the surge of interest in Churchill with the release of major films and series like The Crown, Darkest Hour and Dunkirk. As the official biographer of Winston Churchill, Arnn approved of Gary Oldman's portrayal of the war-time prime minister in Darkest Hour. An early screening of the film was held on Hillsdale's campus in December, along with a panel discussion with Oldman and Douglas Urbanski, a producer on the film. The author of Liberty and Learning: The Evolution of American Education and The Founders' Key: The Divine and Natural Connection Between the Declaration and the Constitution and What We Risk by Losing It, Arnn was also ranked as Amazon's top author in biographies and memoirs, No. 1 in Kindle history downloads, and the 2nd most popular author in the category of history, on January 22. For more information on Arnn's Amazon rankings and his publications, visit his author page here. Hillsdale College is an independent liberal arts college located in southern Michigan. Founded in 1844, the College has built a national reputation through its classical liberal arts core curriculum and its principled refusal to accept federal or state taxpayer subsidies, even indirectly in the form of student grants or loans. It also conducts an outreach effort promoting civil and religious liberty, including a free monthly speech digest, Imprimis, with a circulation of more than 3.7 million. For more information visit hillsdale.edu. SOURCE Hillsdale College Related Links http://www.hillsdale.edu A plan to help OLE Health expand at a St. Helena Hospital location in Calistoga has been cancelled, the hospital announced. According to a news release, Adventist Health St. Helena and OLE Health originally planned to provide team-based care to more residents of Calistoga at St. Helena Medical Specialties clinic, known as Vermeil House. More than $2.3 million was raised at the hospitals 2017 Together gala to support the project. However, Adventist Health St. Helena announced it encountered regulatory restrictions that prevent this agreement from moving forward. Donors to the original project may request to have their donations returned, said a hospital spokeswoman. Although were disappointed in this turn of events, weve come up with an alternative that we believe meets the original spirit and intent of expanding access to vital healthcare services in Calistoga and the upper Napa Valley, says Steven Herber, president and CEO of Adventist Health St. Helena. The new plan will provide access to more primary care providers and specialists, and includes remodeling the clinic in order to accommodate an outpatient breast health imaging center that will be home to 3D mammography, said a news release. IRVINE, Calif., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- HomeUnion, a leading online real estate investment and management firm, has released a list of the most and least affordable rental housing markets in the U.S.. Chicago tops the list as the most affordable metro, while Oakland, Calif., is the most expensive rental market, based on rent-to-income ratios. "With its low cost of living, relatively large housing inventory levels and high affordability, Chicago is an excellent market for residents entering the renting pool," explains Steve Hovland, director of research for HomeUnion. It's is the only metro in the country where typical renters spend less than 20 percent of their annual income on housing. Emerging neighborhoods like Logan Square and other West Side locations have become increasingly popular areas for young professionals, making Chicago an excellent choice for millennials. The second location on HomeUnion's list Charlotte, N.C. also has a low cost of living and high affordability, with average annual rents of under $16,000. "About one-quarter of the average income of a typical Charlotte resident goes to rental housing, making it appealing to millennials as well," notes Hovland. Here's a list of the 10 most affordable rental markets in the nation: Metro Annual SFR Rent Annual Income Rent to Income Chicago $19,956 $102,180 19.5% Charlotte, N.C. $15,792 $62,064 25.4% Minneapolis $20,580 $77,568 26.5% Detroit $14,412 $51,900 27.8% Atlanta $16,980 $59,712 28.4% St. Louis $13,584 $47,268 28.7% Raleigh, N.C. $18,480 $63,180 29.2% Houston $19,404 $60,912 31.9% Oklahoma City $14,088 $44,100 31.9% Tampa $18,024 $55,632 32.4% Here's a list of the 10 most expensive rental markets in the nation: Metro Annual SFR Rent Annual Income Rent to Income Oakland, Calif. $37,524 $73,284 51.2% Cincinnati $15,768 $32,100 49.1% Salt Lake City $19,500 $43,644 44.7% Orange County, Calif. $38,616 $87,276 44.2% Portland, Ore. $24,132 $54,816 44.0% San Francisco $53,328 $121,440 43.9% Washington, D.C. $27,276 $68,136 40.0% Denver $26,460 $66,756 39.6% Cleveland $14,988 $38,028 39.4% San Diego $33,444 $85,872 38.9% Sources: HomeUnion Research Services, MPF Research, a division of RealPage "Low affordability negatively impacts all renters in the Bay Area, Denver, Southern California and Washington, D.C., because of strong local job market conditions, intense demand for rental properties, and high mortgage costs for owner-occupied housing," Hovland says. Established and mature markets, such as Cincinnati and Cleveland, where home prices remain affordable, negatively impact renters' wallets. "A significant number of potential young renters are migrating out of Ohio to Chicago or booming western metros such as Denver, the Bay Area and Los Angeles, leaving mostly low-wage earners to occupy rentals," Hovland concludes. For more information on metro-level rents, visit Where a Landlord Can Find High Annual Returns on HomeUnion.com. www.homeunion.com About HomeUnion HomeUnion is a leading online residential real estate investment firm that provides individuals with all the services needed to invest remotely in both wholly-owned and crowdfunded real estate using a combination of big data, proprietary analytics and local market expertise. Based in Irvine, Calif., the firm currently operates in six markets nationwide. SOURCE HomeUnion Related Links http://www.homeunion.com TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez thanked the Organization of American States for its statement in support of Honduras's democratic institutions. "Honduras's democracy is thriving," President Hernandez said. "Over the next four years, my administration will continue working with the Organization of American States, the United Nations, and our neighbors to further strengthen democratic institutions in Honduras and across the region." Honduran President thanks OAS for supporting Honduran democracy Republic of Honduras In a statement yesterday, the Organization of American States said that it "expresses its firm intention to work in the future with the elected authorities of Honduras, at their three levels, executive, legislative and municipal, within the framework of existing cooperation agreements, institutional strengthening and electoral reform that will allow for democratic, just and supportive coexistence." President Hernandez also said that his administration is continuing its national dialogue with the "political, social, and economic sectors of the country to establish a climate of security, peace and democratic spirit that allows each Honduran to pursue liberty." The Hernandez administration has taken several steps to advance democracy in Honduras and spur economic growth. Last week, President Hernandez appointed Karla Cuevas as the first Secretary of the newly created Ministry of Human Rights. Cuevas will lead the newly created Ministry for Human Rights, which will work to protect human rights defenders, journalists, and justice officials in Honduras. Earlier this month, the President also announced that he's asking the Honduran National Congress to pass a bill that would provide more than 8 million lempiras -- more than $339 million -- in low-interest business loans for Hondurans. Media Contact: Andrew Grafton [email protected] (202)-471-4228 ext. 119 www.keybridgecommunications.com SOURCE Republic of Honduras SULPHUR SPRINGS, Texas, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Hopkins County is on the fast track to replace an aging voting system with the most up-to-date technology available in the U.S. in time for their March 6 election. Commissioners voted Jan. 12 to upgrade to the Verity Voting system from Hart InterCivic, a trusted election partner with the County for more than a decade. Acceptance testing and delivery begin this week, and County Clerk Debbie Shirley is confident that with Hart's help, the timeline will work. The Verity Touch electronic voting system from Hart InterCivic makes voting straightforward with an easy to read touchscreen. The compact, lightweight devices save cost and effort for storage, transport and setup. "Not only is Verity an awesome system, but the people at Hart are great. When you trust the company you deal with, you know they will be there for you. Hart is the best at what they do," Shirley said. "Choosing Verity is a win/win decision for Hopkins County. Voters are going to love the convenience of the touchscreen. In my office, we love a time-saving, efficient and easy to learn setup," she said. In addition to the voter-friendly, intuitive interface, the system's lightweight, removable tablet and accessibility features accommodate all voters, including those with disabilities. Shirley, who plans to retire at the end of 2018, sees the move to Verity as part of her legacy after 44 years working for the County. "I love my job, and I want to leave the best system possible in place for the public. By making this transition now, I can help the Election Office do their best throughout the years with this new, convenient system." "The County is investing in good equipment and good voting," she added. "At some time, this 13-year-old equipment was going to start costing time and money with no return. Plus, Verity is designed to handle Vote Centers." Convenient Vote Centers are increasingly popular in Texas, replacing individual precinct polling places. Older voting systems were designed before Vote Centers were allowed in 2006, while all-new Verity is designed and manufactured in Texas with Vote Center functionality to make convenience voting easier, more efficient and more secure. Verity is certified at the federal and state levels; it is designed from the ground up to be flexible, easy to use and secure with all new hardware and software. Shirley is looking forward to easier programming with Verity, along with easier transport of the lightweight, compact units to the County's 12 Vote Centers. Early voting begins Feb. 20, and Shirley is confident that her workers will be trained and ready thanks to hands-on help. "Hart always comes through. I've been with them for years, and they will make it happen," she said. "Hopkins County is moving quickly to modernize local elections. We appreciate their confidence in Hart and in Verity. Our team members are laying the groundwork for a successful election in March and many more in the years ahead," said Phillip Braithwaite, President and CEO of Hart InterCivic, an Austin-based company with more than 100 years of experience providing election solutions. Hopkins County, with about 22,000 registered voters, joins a growing number of Texas jurisdictions moving to Verity. Since the Texas Secretary of State certified the latest release of the system in late 2016, Hart has shipped more than 7,000 Verity devices across the State. Federally certified in 2015, the secure and efficient system is also in use in numerous counties throughout the U.S. Braithwaite expects more Texas and national announcements throughout 2018. Learn more about Verity in Texas: http://www.hartintercivic.com/texas4verity. About Hart InterCivic, Inc. Austin-based Hart InterCivic is a full-service election solutions innovator, partnering with state and local governments to deliver secure, accurate and reliable elections. Working side-by-side with election professionals for more than 100 years, Hart is committed to helping advance democracy one election at a time. Hart's mission fuels its passionate customer focus and a continuous drive for technological innovation. The company's new Verity Voting system makes voting more straightforward, equitable and accessibleand makes managing elections more transparent, more efficient and easier. Only Hart offers a completely new, certified voting system with both electronic and paper options. SOURCE Hart InterCivic, Inc. Related Links http://www.hartintercivic.com New "VR/AR for Impact" Content Designed to Help Drive Positive Change Across the Globe Showcased at World Economic Forum 2018 DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- HTC VIVE, the leader in premium Virtual Reality (VR), today announced a partnership with the World Economic Forum (WEF) to drive the VR/AR for Impact initiative forward, and to showcase its latest content at the United Nation's (UN) Sustainable Impact Hub at the WEF 2018 in Davos. Originally launched by HTC at WEF in 2017, VR/AR For Impact is a more than $10 Million program to drive VR and AR content and technologies that will create positive impact and change in support of the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals. In collaboration with a core group of VR/AR leaders and the UN, WEF will drive the "VR/AR for Impact" initiative going forward, and as a core member of the group, HTC Vive will continue to design and create experiences as part of their collaborative, ongoing commitment to foster and champion the use of Virtual and Augmented Reality to educate and empower humanity. "The challenges our world faces today have never been greater, and humanity needs a clearer understanding and guidance to help solve global issues," said Cher Wang, Chairwoman and CEO, HTC. "Unlike any other medium, Virtual Reality is able to immerse the global audience in literally any experience, and can help us learn, empathize and transform the world. VR/AR for Impact is a unique way of driving critical awareness toward problems and solutions facing mankind." "We see so much untapped potential with VR/AR to drive positive outcomes for society in areas such as health and education, and we are looking forward to working with leaders in this space to build up this initiative in the coming years," says Lauren Joseph, leader of the Electronics Industry Program at World Economic Forum. VR/AR for Impact experiences shown this week at WEF 2018 include: OrthoVR aims to increase the availability of well-fitting prosthetics in low-income countries by using Virtual Reality and 3D rapid prototyping tools to increase the capacity of clinical staff without reducing quality. VR allows current prosthetists and orthosists to leverage their hands-on and embodied skills within a digital environment. aims to increase the availability of well-fitting prosthetics in low-income countries by using Virtual Reality and 3D rapid prototyping tools to increase the capacity of clinical staff without reducing quality. VR allows current prosthetists and orthosists to leverage their hands-on and embodied skills within a digital environment. The Extraordinary Honey Bee is designed to help deepen our understanding of the honey bee's struggle and learn what is at stake for humanity due to the dying global population of the honey bee. Told from a bee's perspective, The Extraordinary Honey Bee harnesses VR to inspire change in the next generation of honey bee conservationists. is designed to help deepen our understanding of the honey bee's struggle and learn what is at stake for humanity due to the dying global population of the honey bee. Told from a bee's perspective, The Extraordinary Honey Bee harnesses VR to inspire change in the next generation of honey bee conservationists. The Blank Canvas: Hacking Nature is an episodic exploration of the frontiers of bioengineering as taught by the leading researchers within the field. Using advanced scientific visualization techniques, the Blank Canvas will demystify the cellular and molecular mechanisms that are being exploited to drive substantial leaps such as gene therapy. is an episodic exploration of the frontiers of bioengineering as taught by the leading researchers within the field. Using advanced scientific visualization techniques, the Blank Canvas will demystify the cellular and molecular mechanisms that are being exploited to drive substantial leaps such as gene therapy. LIFE (Life-saving Instruction For Emergencies) is a new mobile and VR platform developed by the University of Oxford that enables all types of health worker to manage medical emergencies. Through the use of personalised simulation training and advanced learning analytics, the LIFE platform offers the potential to dramatically extend access to life-saving knowledge in low-income countries. (Life-saving Instruction For Emergencies) is a new mobile and VR platform developed by the that enables all types of health worker to manage medical emergencies. Through the use of personalised simulation training and advanced learning analytics, the LIFE platform offers the potential to dramatically extend access to life-saving knowledge in low-income countries. Tree is a critically acclaimed virtual reality experience to immerse viewers in the tragic fate that befalls a rainforest tree. The experience brings to light the harrowing realities of deforestation, one of the largest contributors to global warming. is a critically acclaimed virtual reality experience to immerse viewers in the tragic fate that befalls a rainforest tree. The experience brings to light the harrowing realities of deforestation, one of the largest contributors to global warming. For the Amazonian Yawanawa, 'medicine' has the power to travel you in a vision to a place you have never been. Hushuhu, the first woman shaman of the Yawanawa, uses VR like medicine to open a portal to another way of knowing. AWAVENA is a collaboration between a community and an artist, melding technology and transcendent experience so that a vision can be shared, and a story told of a people ascending from the edge of extinction. These experiences will be made available for all attendees at the World Economic Forum at the UN's Sustainable Impact Hub on January 23rd, 2018 on Promenade 72, Davos Platz in Switzerland. Awavena can be experienced in the main congress hall, Portals exhibition. For more information on VR for Impact visit: https://vrforimpact.com/. About HTC VIVE HTC Vive is the creator of the unprecedented PC-based premium virtual reality system, the Vive, which was built and optimized for room-scale VR and true-to-life interactions. The Vive ecosystem has evolved around its premium VR product portfolio, supported by Vive X, the most active global VR/AR accelerator that has invested in over 80 start-ups, Viveport, a global content platform with the world's first VR subscription model that operates in more than 60 countries, and Vive Studios, Vive's VR content development and publishing initiative. Vive is delivering on the promise of VR with game-changing technology and best-in-class content, bringing VR to consumers, developers and enterprises alike. For more information on Vive, please visit www.vive.com. HTC and the HTC logo are the trademarks of HTC Corporation. All other names of companies and products mentioned herein may be the trademarks of their respective owners. SOURCE HTC VIVE Related Links http://www.vive.com NEW YORK, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Real estate investment management company iintoo investments Ltd. ("iintoo") has entered a strategic partnership with Seed Equity Ventures, a registered broker dealer that provides investment-banking services to startups and growth companies from around the world. Seed Equity will now give its members access to iintoo's portfolio of commercial grade real estate investments. Founded in 2014 by financial services veteran Todd Crosland, Seed Equity's investor community exceeds 13,000 members across 145 countries and has raised millions of dollars in equity investments in early stage companies. iintoo will be the exclusive source of real estate investment opportunities for the Seed Equity community. With assets totaling $560 million, New York-based iintoo opens up access to real estate investments that were once exclusive to professional funders and high net worth individuals. Starting at $25,000, accredited investors can invest in ownership shares in high-yield commercial and residential real estate projects that undergo a rigorous due-diligence and approval process by iintoo. Projects made available by iintoo seek to provide investors with double-digit annual returns over a two to three year investment period, with no ongoing management fee. "Through our partnership with Seed Equity, we are excited to bring an ever-growing community of investors from the U.S. and around the world access to iintoo's portfolio of triple vetted commercial and residential real estate investments," said Eran Roth, Founder and CEO of iintoo. "Acting as a hands-on partner with our investors from start to finish of every project we select, iintoo is building the world's most robust online investment program by bringing transparency and higher levels of risk mitigation to both consumers and developers." Unlike a crowdfunding platform, iintoo works directly with project developers to vet and create business plans to maximize the chances for success. As a global Real Estate Investment Management Company (REIMCO), iintoo selects all investment opportunities after analyzing and verifying a project's developer, as well as, among other things, the project's construction/renovation plans and revenue forecasts. iintoo also conducts complete project oversight throughout the life of an investment, which includes site visits, progress reports and the handling of quarterly returns. "We want to bring only the best investment opportunities to our community," said Crosland, Founder, and CEO of Seed Equity. "Real estate belongs in every investor's portfolio and iintoo allows our members access to deals that are pre-vetted, professionally negotiated and thoroughly overseen during the lifetime of the investment." iintoo offers investment opportunities in a variety of market segments including ground-up development, student housing, senior living, hospitality, office buildings and mixed-use assets. Projects span the U.S. in cities that include New York, Denver, Atlanta, St. Louis, San Diego, Tulsa, OK, Wichita Falls, TX, Savannah, GA, Veron, CT, Warrensburg, MO and Terre Haute, IN. Investors can also access opportunities through iintoo's social investment network at iintoo.com, which allows them to choose projects a la carte and interact with each other, trade tips and share industry knowledge. CONTACT: [email protected] SOURCE iintoo investments Ltd. Related Links https://www.iintoo.com Infosys (NYSE: INFY), a global leader in consulting, technology, and next-generation services, today released global research on the impact artificial intelligence (AI) technology implementations in the enterprise are having on return-on-investment (ROI), the workforce and organizational leadership. The research report, Leadership in the Age of AI, surveyed more than 1,000 business and IT leaders with decision-making power over AI solutions or purchases at large organizations across seven countries. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130122/589162 ) The research findings point to a fundamental shift in how enterprises operate as AI takes hold. Enterprises are moving beyond the experimentation phase with AI, deploying AI technologies more broadly and realizing benefits across their business. According to the survey, 73 percent of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that their AI deployments have already transformed the way they do business, and 90 percent of C-level executives reported measurable benefits from AI within their organization. Additionally, the data showed organizations are taking steps to prepare employees and business leaders for the future of work, with 53 percent of respondents indicating that their organization has increased training in the job functions most affected by AI deployments. Mohit Joshi, President, Infosys: "While it's fair to say that, like most promising new technologies, there has been a tremendous amount of hype around AI, it turns out that the vast majority of enterprises with AI deployments are realizing clear and measureable results. AI, as the research shows, is becoming core to business strategy, and is compelling business leaders to alter the way they hire, train and inspire teams, and the way they compete and foster innovation. Industry disruption from AI is no longer imminent, it is here. The organizations that embrace AI with a clearly defined strategy and use AI to amplify their workforce rather than replace it, will take the lead, and those that don't will fall behind or find themselves irrelevant." Key findings: Enterprise AI moves beyond experimentation : AI deployments are no longer imminent but are becoming pervasive as 86 percent of organizations surveyed have middle- or late-stage AI deployments and view AI as a major facilitator of future business operations . Eighty percent of respondents who said they've seen at least some measurable benefits from AI agreed or strongly agreed that their organization had a defined strategy for deployment. Fifty-three percent of all respondents said that their industry has already experienced disruption due to artificial intelligence technologies. : AI deployments are no longer imminent but are becoming pervasive as 86 percent of organizations surveyed have middle- or late-stage AI deployments and view AI as a major facilitator of future business operations Eighty percent of respondents who said they've seen at least some measurable benefits from AI agreed or strongly agreed that their organization had a defined strategy for deployment. Fifty-three percent of all respondents said that their industry has already experienced disruption due to artificial intelligence technologies. Beyond automation, the benefits of AI span the business value chain: While a majority of organizations (66 percent) start off using AI to automate routine or inefficient processes, businesses in later stages of AI deployment are leveraging the technology to innovate and differentiate. For example, 80 percent of IT decision makers at organizations in later stages of AI deployment reported that they are using AI to augment existing solutions, or build new business-critical solutions and services to optimize insights and the consumer experience. Forty-two percent of these organizations also expect significant impact in research and development in the next five years. While a majority of organizations (66 percent) start off using AI to automate routine or inefficient processes, businesses in later stages of AI deployment are leveraging the technology to innovate and differentiate. For example, 80 percent of IT decision makers at organizations in later stages of AI deployment reported that they are using AI to augment existing solutions, or build new business-critical solutions and services to optimize insights and the consumer experience. Forty-two percent of these organizations also expect significant impact in research and development in the next five years. ROI market and industry breakdown : India , the United States and China led geographies with the most respondents stating that their organization has realized direct, tangible results from deploying AI technologies with 75 percent, 71 percent and 61 percent respectively. Australia trailed behind the leading geographies with 57 percent followed by the United Kingdom (42 percent), Germany (40 percent) and France (33 percent). The leading industries currently using AI to automate business processes include retail and consumer packaged goods (CPG) at 85 percent, followed by telecom and communication service providers (83 percent) and banking and insurance (80 percent). : , and led geographies with the most respondents stating that their organization has realized direct, tangible results from deploying AI technologies with 75 percent, 71 percent and 61 percent respectively. trailed behind the leading geographies with 57 percent followed by the (42 percent), (40 percent) and (33 percent). The leading industries currently using AI to automate business processes include retail and consumer packaged goods (CPG) at 85 percent, followed by telecom and communication service providers (83 percent) and banking and insurance (80 percent). Investing in people is key to AI success: Seventy-seven percent of respondents surveyed were confident that employees in their organization can be trained for the new job roles AI technologies will create. Respondents showed commitment to this belief by ranking training and recruitment as the top areas of investment (46 percent and 44 percent respectively) in order for AI technologies to make an impact. C-level executives likewise called out training the leadership team on AI as a top priority-47 percent of business leaders put leadership training in their top three priorities compared to 40 percent who put employee training in their top three priorities. Seventy-seven percent of respondents surveyed were confident that employees in their organization can be trained for the new job roles AI technologies will create. Respondents showed commitment to this belief by ranking training and recruitment as the top areas of investment (46 percent and 44 percent respectively) in order for AI technologies to make an impact. C-level executives likewise called out training the leadership team on AI as a top priority-47 percent of business leaders put leadership training in their top three priorities compared to 40 percent who put employee training in their top three priorities. AI leadership essentials include strategy and training: Four out of five C-level executives said that their future business strategy will be informed through opportunities made available with AI technology. Business leaders were confident that their executive teams have the ability to adapt their leadership skills as AI technologies are adopted, with 80 percent of C-level executives in agreement. However, training on the executive level is still critical as three-fourths of IT decision makers felt that their executives would benefit from formal training on the implications of AI technologies. Other important findings include: Data management is a persistent obstacle: Nearly half of IT decision makers (49 percent) reported that their organization is unable to deploy the AI technologies they want because their data is not ready to support the requirements of AI technologies. As such, approximately 77 percent of IT decision makers said that their organization is investing in data management. Furthermore, C-level executives reported that their leadership team is concerned with the implications of industry regulations on their ability to use AI technologies within their business (70 percent) and the potential advantages AI technologies could lend to competition (66 percent). Nearly half of IT decision makers (49 percent) reported that their organization is unable to deploy the AI technologies they want because their data is not ready to support the requirements of AI technologies. As such, approximately 77 percent of IT decision makers said that their organization is investing in data management. Furthermore, C-level executives reported that their leadership team is concerned with the implications of industry regulations on their ability to use AI technologies within their business (70 percent) and the potential advantages AI technologies could lend to competition (66 percent). Weighing ethical concerns and benefits among the workforce: Sixty-nine percent of C-level executives reported that employees within their organization are concerned AI technologies will replace them. However, ranked among the top two ways their current AI deployments have impacted their business, 48 percent of respondents cited that AI has augmented human skills to make their people better at their work, and 45 percent said AI is making for better employees because it frees up their time for higher value work. Sixty-nine percent of C-level executives reported that employees within their organization are concerned AI technologies will replace them. However, ranked among the top two ways their current AI deployments have impacted their business, 48 percent of respondents cited that AI has augmented human skills to make their people better at their work, and 45 percent said AI is making for better employees because it frees up their time for higher value work. The rise of AI professionals throughout the ranks of businesses: According to the data, IT (61 percent) will continue to be the most affected job function over the next five years. However, AI is beginning to have a growing impact on marketing and communications (32 percent), human resources (29 percent) and legal departments (15 percent). AI leaders will become fixtures in the C-suite and throughout the organization as an overwhelming majority (95 percent) of IT decision makers from organizations in the late stages of digital transformation said that their organization plans to have a dedicated team of AI professionals. Business leaders are optimistic that AI technologies will ultimately create more opportunity for employees than they will eliminate, with C-level executives widely agreeing that AI technologies will have a positive effect on their workforce (70%) and equally benefit customers (45 percent) and employees (43 percent). For a full copy of the report, please visit: https://www.infosys.com/age-of-ai/ METHODOLOGY This survey was commissioned by Infosys and conducted by independent market research company Branded Research Inc. across seven countries: The United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, India, China and Australia. The total sample size included 1,053 global C-level executives as well as IT decision makers (ITDMs) and influencers of AI technology purchases within their organizations. These companies ranged in size from 500 to more than 5,000 employees, and from $500,000 to more than $1 billion in revenues. The Branded Research Inc. panel is comprised of more than 2 million survey participants across 40 different countries. The panel is routinely checked against data verification measures that include social vetting, digital fingerprinting and anti-fraud solutions. For the purposes of this report, artificial intelligence is defined as "software technologies that make a computer or robot perform equal to or better than normal human computational ability in accuracy, capacity and speed. Examples can include Natural Language Processing, Knowledge Representation, Automated Reasoning, Machine Learning, Robotics, Rational Agent and Chatbots." About Infosys Infosys is a global leader in technology services and consulting. We enable clients in 45 countries to create and execute strategies for their digital transformation. From engineering to application development, knowledge management and business process management, we help our clients find the right problems to solve, and to solve those effectively. Our team of 200,000+ innovators, across the globe is differentiated by the imagination, knowledge and experience across industries and technologies that we bring to every project we undertake. Visit http://www.infosys.com to see how Infosys (NYSE: INFY) can help your enterprise thrive in the digital age. Safe Harbor Certain statements in this press release concerning our future growth prospects are forward-looking statements regarding our future business expectations intended to qualify for the 'safe harbor' under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, which involve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in such forward-looking statements. The risks and uncertainties relating to these statements include, but are not limited to, risks and uncertainties regarding fluctuations in earnings, fluctuations in foreign exchange rates, our ability to manage growth, intense competition in IT services including those factors which may affect our cost advantage, wage increases in India, our ability to attract and retain highly skilled professionals, time and cost overruns on fixed-price, fixed-time frame contracts, client concentration, restrictions on immigration, industry segment concentration, our ability to manage our international operations, reduced demand for technology in our key focus areas, disruptions in telecommunication networks or system failures, our ability to successfully complete and integrate potential acquisitions, liability for damages on our service contracts, the success of the companies in which Infosys has made strategic investments, withdrawal or expiration of governmental fiscal incentives, political instability and regional conflicts, legal restrictions on raising capital or acquiring companies outside India, and unauthorized use of our intellectual property and general economic conditions affecting our industry. Additional risks that could affect our future operating results are more fully described in our United States Securities and Exchange Commission filings including our Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017. These filings are available at http://www.sec.gov Infosys may, from time to time, make additional written and oral forward-looking statements, including statements contained in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission and our reports to shareholders. In addition, please note that any forward-looking statements contained herein are based on assumptions that we believe to be reasonable as of the date of this press release. The company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements that may be made from time to time by or on behalf of the company unless it is required by law. SOURCE Infosys The report "Infrastructure Monitoring Market by Technology (Wired and Wireless), Offering (Hardware: Sensors, Data Acquisition Systems; Software & Services), Vertical (Civil infrastructure, Energy), Application, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2023" , published by MarketsandMarkets, the market is estimated to grow from USD 1.48 Billion in 2018 to USD 3.38 Billion by 2023, at a CAGR of 17.93% between 2018 and 2023. The major factors driving the growth of the infrastructure monitoring market include catastrophic failure of the infrastructure that results in loss of lives and incurs higher costs, stringent government regulations pertaining to the sustainability of structures, and aging infrastructures and the superior benefits of infrastructure monitoring. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160303/792302 ) Browse 71 market data Tables and 45 Figures spread through 178 Pages and in-depth TOC on "Infrastructure Monitoring Market - Global Forecast to 2023" https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/infrastructure-monitoring-market-251897013.html Early buyers will receive 10% customization on this report The civil infrastructure segment expected to hold the largest share of the infrastructure monitoring market by 2023 The civil infrastructure facilities include numerous critical structures such as bridges, dams, tunnels, highways, and buildings. All these structures are directly related to the overall demographic and economic growth of any country. Therefore, many governments are taking initiatives to monitor the overall health of the structure. Also, at present, major countries in different regions such as the US, the UK, Germany, Japan, China, India, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia are heavily investing in building new infrastructural facilities, thereby ultimately growing the economy of the country. For such increasing infrastructure facilities, there would be growing opportunities for the infrastructure monitoring market players. The market for software and services expected to grow at a higher rate between 2018 and 2023 With the increasing importance of large civil projects and frequent occurrences of structural failure, infrastructure monitoring systems are becoming more and more crucial. The basic approach of any infrastructure monitoring system is to continuously collect the data (over the longer period of time) about the overall condition of the structure from various installed sensors. This sensory data includes loading, stress, strain, acceleration, temperature, and video signal, among others. Furthermore, it is challenging for structural engineers to obtain, process, store, and analyze such a huge volume of data. To resolve this challenge, the software platform, customized software application, and software algorithm are being adopted. For example, software such as MATLAB and SCADA play a crucial role in early damage detection; they determine the damages at an early stage and facilitate necessary repair to maintain a high level of safety. Download PDF Brochure : https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownload.asp?id=251897013 Americas expected to hold the largest share of the infrastructure monitoring market by 2023 The increased use of monitoring systems in the US is a key factor behind the market growth in the Americas. The governments of the South and North American countries are taking initiatives for the adoption of monitoring systems for different applications. Aging infrastructure in the US and fast-growing infrastructure facilities in Brazil and Canada are driving the market in this region. Inquiry Before Buy @ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_Buying.asp?id=251897013 Some of the major players in the infrastructure monitoring market are COWI (Denmark), Pure Technologies (Canada), Structural Monitoring Systems (Australia), Acellent (US), Geocomp (US), Campbell Scientific (US), Nova Metrix (US), Geokon (US), SIXENSE (France), Digitexx (US), Bridge Diagnostics (US), Sisgeo (Italy), RST Instruments (Canada), AVT Reliability (UK), and Geomotion Singapore (Singapore). Browse Related Reports Structural Health Monitoring Market by Solutions (Hardware: Sensors, Data Acquisition System; Software & Services), Technology (Wired and Wireless), End Users and Geography - Global Forecast to 2022 https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/structural-health-monitoring-market-101431220.html Vibration Monitoring Market by Component (Hardware, Software, and Services), System Type (Embedded Systems, Vibration Analyzers, and Vibration Meters), Monitoring Process (Online and Portable), Industry, and Geography - Global Forecast to 2023 https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/vibration-monitoring-market-29273491.html Subscribe Reports from Semiconductor Domain @ http://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Knowledgestore.asp About MarketsandMarkets MarketsandMarkets provides quantified B2B research on 30,000 high growth niche opportunities/threats which will impact 70% to 80% of worldwide companies' revenues. Currently servicing 5000 customers worldwide including 80% of global Fortune 1000 companies as clients. Almost 75,000 top officers across eight industries worldwide approach MarketsandMarkets for their painpoints around revenues decisions. Our 850 fulltime analyst and SMEs at MarketsandMarkets are tracking global high growth markets following the "Growth Engagement Model - GEM". The GEM aims at proactive collaboration with the clients to identify new opportunities, identify most important customers, write "Attack, avoid and defend" strategies, identify sources of incremental revenues for both the company and its competitors. MarketsandMarkets now coming up with 1,500 MicroQuadrants (Positioning top players across leaders, emerging companies, innovators, strategic players) annually in high growth emerging segments. MarketsandMarkets is determined to benefit more than 10,000 companies this year for their revenue planning and help them take their innovations/disruptions early to the market by providing them research ahead of the curve. MarketsandMarkets's flagship competitive intelligence and market research platform, "RT" connects over 200,000 markets and entire value chains for deeper understanding of the unmet insights along with market sizing and forecasts of niche markets. Contact: Mr. Rohan MarketsandMarkets INC. 630 Dundee Road Suite 430 Northbrook, IL 60062 USA: +1-888-600-6441 Email: [email protected] Visit Our [email protected] http://mnmblog.org/market-research/aerospace-defence Connect with us on LinkedIn @ http://www.linkedin.com/company/marketsandmarkets SOURCE MarketsandMarkets LAS VEGAS, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- International Truck today announced three compelling plans to deliver on its Uptime pledge to vocational truck customers. These include the extension of the International A26 Customer Uptime Assurance Program for vocational models, a new, best-in-class Vocational Confidence Warranty Package and the International A26 Barrel Protection Plan for the International HX Series and International HV Series trucks powered by the International A26 12.4L big bore engine. Today's announcement at the World of Concrete 2018 demonstrates International's commitment to provide the vocational market with reliable and durable products powered by the all new International A26 engine. "The International A26 engine, developed from a new way of thinking and with 'uptime' in its DNA, is at the core of our vocational truck strategy," said Mark Stasell, vice president, Vocational Truck Business. "We are so confident in the International A26 engine that we are offering customers additional peace of mind through the A26 Customer Uptime Assurance Program, the Vocational Confidence Warranty Package and the International A26 Barrel Protection Plan. These three offerings are designed to protect our customer's investment and bottom line when they buy a vocational truck from International." International A26 Customer Uptime Assurance Program for Vocational Models The International A26 Customer Uptime Assurance Program for Vocational Models is straightforward. If a customer experiences a warrantable failure on an International A26 engine within its two-year standard warranty period, and experiences downtime greater than 48 hours from the time of diagnosis, International Truck will provide the customer with a $250 International Advantage Card, good for future parts and service purchases at an International dealership, subject to standard conditions. Customers may be eligible for a maximum of 8 cards per vehicle over the two-year period, a value of as much as $2,000 per vehicle. The program was introduced last year on the International LT Series and the International RH Series and is now extended to include International HX Series and International HV Series units that are powered by an International A26 engine and enrolled in the company's OnCommand Link program. Customers should contact their local International Truck dealer for program details. Vocational Confidence Warranty Package The Vocational Confidence Warranty Package offers comprehensive powertrain coverage for HX Series and International HV Series trucks with an International A26 engine. The four-year, 100,000 miles warranty offers complete powertrain and drivetrain coverage, including engine, transmission and axle coverage for vocational applications. Coverage includes select components from suppliers like Dana, Eaton, and Meritor to provide customers with even more peace of mind. The program is available now and applies to new customer orders for International HX Series and HV Series trucks equipped with the International A26 engine placed before June 30, 2018. "We couldn't be more enthusiastic about our vocational truck and engine products than we are today," added Stasell. "We're building one of the most reliable and durable trucks for any vocational application. And, we're standing by our products by not only offering a best-in-class warranty package, we're stepping up our commitment to the A26 big bore engine for our vocational customers by introducing the International A26 Barrel Protection Plan." International A26 Barrel Protection Plan The International 4-year Barrel Protection Plan is simpleif a customer experiences an International A26 warrantable failure resulting in barrel damage, International will cover the barrel damage for the truck's first four years in service. This coverage is provided at no additional cost to provide customer assurance for concrete mixer trucks powered by the International A26 engine and includes: Access to the International dealer network, which is the largest in North America for any truck make. With more than 700 International Dealer locations throughout North America , customers can quickly and efficiently service and repair their vehicles. for any truck make. With more than 700 International Dealer locations throughout , customers can quickly and efficiently service and repair their vehicles. The International HX Series and HV Series concrete mixer trucks powered by International A26 engine will have the International 4-year Barrel Protection Plan included at no cost. This coverage will cover the expense of removing hardened concrete or replacing the concrete barrel if an engine related warrantable failure disables the truck so the barrel cannot turn with wet concrete in the drum. The chassis must be equipped with OnCommand Link which provides fundamental remote diagnostics to ensure product uptime. "The International A26 big bore engine is designed to deliver industry-leading uptime, durability and reliability in our vocational trucks which are engineered to handle the most grueling and intense job sites," said Stasell. "Bottom line, we are positive that the International A26 will perform reliably in our HX Series and HV Series concrete mixer trucks that we will cover the cost of repair or replacement of your barrel if it is damaged by an International A26 warrantable failure." For more information about the International A26 Customer Uptime Assurance Program for Vocational Models, Vocational Confidence Warranty Package and the International A26 Barrel Protection Plan, visit an International Dealer or go online at: https://www.internationaltrucks.com. About Navistar Navistar International Corporation (NYSE: NAV) is a holding company whose subsidiaries and affiliates produce International brand commercial and military trucks, proprietary diesel engines, and IC Bus brand school and commercial buses. An affiliate also provides truck and diesel engine service parts. Another affiliate offers financing services. Additional information is available at www.Navistar.com. * All marks are trademarks of their respective owners. SOURCE International Truck Related Links https://www.internationaltrucks.com Organised by UBM Asia, the JNA Awards serves as the industry benchmark of excellence. It champions best business practices in the jewellery and gemstone trade by honouring companies and individuals that demonstrate outstanding leadership, innovative thinking, and sustainable and socially responsible strategies, with a focus on their contributions in Asia. The recipients of the JNA Awards are industry stakeholders whose ideas and actions are making a tangible and positive impact on their communities and sector. Reflecting the evolving nature of the jewellery industry and the pressing demand for creativity and agility to stay ahead in a rapidly changing marketplace, the JNA Awards will have two Retailer of the Year awards and will reintroduce the Manufacturer of the Year Cutting & Polishing category this year. The awards categories for 2018 are as follows: Lifetime Achievement Award (nominated by the organiser) Brand of the Year Retail eSupplier of the Year Industry Innovation of the Year (business model, management process, marketing or branding initiatives, manufacturing process, product development, technology, gemmological research, etc.) Manufacturer of the Year Jewellery Manufacturer of the Year Cutting & Polishing Outstanding Enterprise of the Year ASEAN, Japan & Korea Outstanding Enterprise of the Year Greater China Outstanding Enterprise of the Year India Retailer of the Year (500 outlets and below) Retailer of the Year (501 outlets and above) Sustainability Initiative of the Year Young Entrepreneur of the Year (age 40 and below) Commenting on the JNA Awards' seventh edition, Wolfram Diener, Senior Vice President of UBM Asia, said, "Celebrating the successes of innovative enterprises and individuals has been central to the JNA Awards since its inception, and this has never been more important than in today's constantly evolving and highly competitive industry landscape. We are honoured to recognise those who have the audacity to break rules, challenge the status quo and do things differently to stay on top of trends, drive business growth and embrace sustainability practices. We look forward to hearing more inspiring stories in this year's JNA Awards." Letitia Chow, Chairperson of the JNA Awards, Founder of JNA and Director of Business Development Jewellery Group at UBM Asia, added, "We always strive to involve enterprises of different scales and nature that have positively impacted the industry with the awards programme. Retailers are at the forefront of the industry; they act as a conduit between the end-customer and the manufacturer, and can help propel the whole industry even further. By splitting the Retailer of the Year Award into two categories, we are able to celebrate outstanding retailers of all scales. "And by reintroducing the Manufacturer of the Year Cutting & Polishing category, we are honouring diamond and gemstone manufacturers who are open to game-changing ideas and technologies that can enhance customer service, improve productivity and boost overall efficiency. This has significant implications for the jewellery industry, particularly in light of changing customer demands and needs in terms of product design, quality and craftsmanship." Visit the newly revamped awards website here to register and review the full list of categories, awards criteria and rules of entry. The online entry submission process will commence in early March and conclude in late April. The JNA Awards 2018 is supported by Headline Partners Chow Tai Fook (CTF) and Shanghai Diamond Exchange (SDE) together with the KGK Group, Guangdong Gems & Jade Exchange, and Guangdong Land Holdings Limited (GDLAND) serving as Honoured Partners. For more information, visit http://www.JNAawards.com/ or contact: JNA Awards Marketing UBM Asia (Hong Kong) +852 2516-2184 [email protected] Notes for Editors: 1. About the Headline Partner 1.1 Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Limited (www.chowtaifook.com) Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Limited (the "Group") was listed on the Main Board of The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong in December 2011. Founded in 1929, the iconic brand "Chow Tai Fook" of the Group has been widely recognised for its trustworthiness and authenticity, and renowned for product design, quality and value. The legacies of the Group and its iconic brand are rooted in innovation, craftsmanship and heritage. The Group also encompasses other jewellery brands including Hearts On Fire, MONOLOGUE and SOINLOVE. The Group's commitment to sustainability is anchored in its "Smart+" initiatives which have been in place to promote innovation surrounding its business, people and culture. Another asset underpinning its sustainability is a sophisticated vertically integrated business model which supports the Group in fostering excellence and extending opportunities along the entire value chain. With an extensive retail network in Greater China, Korea, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and the United States, and a fast-growing e-commerce business, the Group is capable of implementing effective online-to-offline ("O2O") strategies and achieving omni-channel retailing. 1.2 Shanghai Diamond Exchange (www.cnsde.com) Authorised by the State Council, the Shanghai Diamond Exchange (SDE) is the only diamond exchange in China and provides diamond dealers a fair and safe transaction venue under close supervision. It also enjoys a favourable taxation policy and is operated in accordance with international best practices of the diamond industry. Established in 2000, the SDE is a non-profit, self-regulating membership organisation and a member of the World Federation of Diamond Bourses. 2. About the Honoured Partners 2.1 KGK Group (www.kgkgroup.com) The KGK Group was founded in 1905 by Kesrimal Kothari and Ghisilal Kothari of Jaipur (India), with the humble task of trading gemstones between India and Burma. With a global presence across 19 countries today, the privately held group has evolved into one of the most preferred brands in the gemstone and jewellery industry, with a vertically integrated operation that spans the entire supply chain from mines to brands. KGK is one of the few conglomerates covering the entire spectrum of mining, sourcing, manufacturing and distribution of coloured gemstones, diamonds and jewellery for over a century. KGK Group has a resilient team of 12,000 employees with operations and offices in Asia, Australia, North and South America, Europe and Africa. Having achieved an impeccable reputation in the gemstone, diamond and jewellery trade, the group has recently diversified into real estate. 2.2 The Guangdong Gems & Jade Exchange (http://en.gdgje.com/) Founded in February 2016, the Guangdong Gems & Jade Exchange is one of two provincial jewellery trading platforms authorised by the People's Government of Guangdong Province. Aggregating resources from key industrial hubs across Guangdong including Guangzhou, Pingzhou of Foshan, Yangmei of Jieyang and Sihui of Zhaoqing, the Guangdong Gems & Jade Exchange joins hands with world-renowned jewellery brands in setting up an international supply chain integrated service platform that offers a secure and convenient trading experience for domestic and overseas jewellers. The Guangdong Gems & Jade Exchange is set to benefit China's jewellery industry in a variety of areas, such as the promotion of a healthier and more balanced international division of labour, foreign trade development, cross-border resource management and consumer market growth. As part of this effort, it will take full advantage of the base and influence of Guangdong's jewellery industry and the benefits stemming from the Belt and Road Initiative to establish linkages with national and global gemstone and jewellery markets. 2.3 The Guangdong Land Holdings Limited (www.gdland.com.hk) The Guangdong Land Holdings Limited (GDLAND), with its headquarters in Hong Kong, is listed on The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited, and is a subsidiary of GDH Limited, which is Guangdong Province's largest conglomerate operating outside Mainland China. The principal business of GDLAND is property development and investment, including but not limited to the development and operational management of the innovative commercial real estate, urban complex and industrial business complex. As the strategic arm of GDH Limited, GDLAND engages in the business development of commercial real estate, as well as urban and industrial complex projects. GDLAND's flagship project, namely the "Buxin Project," is planned to become the biggest and most advanced jewellery mart in the world, including a large-scale jewellery trading and exhibition centre along with other facilities, with a lot size of over 87,000 square metres and a construction scale (floor area) that is projected to exceed 700,000 square metres. The Buxin Project, which is located in the Buxin area of Luohu district in Central Shenzhen, close to the Shuibei Gold and Jewellery Base, is expected to develop the area into one of the most influential gold and jewellery trading and exchange platforms in China and around the world. 3. About UBM Asia (www.ubmasia.com) Owned by UBM plc listed on the London Stock Exchange, UBM Asia is the largest events organiser in Asia, India and Southeast Asia. It is also the leading commercial organiser in China. Established with its headquarters in Hong Kong and subsidiary companies across Asia and in the US, UBM Asia has a strong global presence in 25 major cities with 36 offices and over 1,600 employees. With a track record spanning over 30 years, UBM Asia operates in 11 market sectors with over 290 events, 28 targeted trade publications, 18 round-the-clock online products for over 2 million quality exhibitors, visitors, conference delegates, advertisers and subscribers from all over the world. It provides a one-stop diversified global service for high-value business matching, quality market news and online trading networks. UBM Asia has extensive office networks in China, Southeast Asia and India, three of the world's fastest growing B2B events markets. UBM China has 12 offices in the major cities in mainland China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hangzhou, Guzhen and Shenzhen, where we organise 90 events. In ASEAN, UBM Asia operates from its offices in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam and the Philippines with 70 events in this region. UBM India teams in Mumbai, New Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai organise over 20 events every year across the country. UBM Asia was presented with 'Asia's Most Reliable Trade Show Organizer Award' in Hong Kong's Most Valuable Companies Awards (HKMVCA) 2017. 4. About JNA (www.jewellerynewsasia.com) JNA is the flagship market intelligence platform of UBM Asia's Jewellery Group. First published in 1983, the title is the leader in providing up-to-date international jewellery trade news with an Asian insight. It features original, in-depth reports by experienced journalists covering the latest developments in the diamond, pearl, coloured gemstone, jewellery manufacturing, and equipment and supplies sectors. SOURCE JNA Awards The St. Helena office of Coldwell Banker Brokers of the Valley is seeking a use permit to move to 1200 Main St. in the Galleron Building, into the space previously occupied by St. Helena Hospitals Well Now Showcase. According to a project statement submitted to the Planning Department and posted on the citys website, Coldwell Bankers current lease at 1289 Main St. is expiring soon, and the company has entered into a new lease for the Galleron Building suite of approximately 3,000 square feet, which was previously occupied by the hospital in the front of the building and a now-empty portion of the St. Helena Star office in the back. According to the project statement, the office would be open seven days a week during regular business hours, with a maximum of four or five staff members on site at a time. The project will require a use permit because real estate services with first-floor access and Main Street frontage are considered a conditional use in St. Helenas zoning ordinance for the Central Business District. A Planning Commission hearing has not been scheduled. TAMPA BAY, Fla., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- KnowBe4, provider of the world's largest new-school security awareness and simulated phishing platform, released a breakthrough study of phishing statistics for top industries, showing small insurance companies have the highest percentage of "Phish-prone" employees in the small to midsize organization category. Not-for-profit organizations take the lead in large organizations (1,000 or more employees). The study shows these types of organizations rank higher (in the low thirty percentiles) than the overall average of twenty seven percent across all industries and size organizations. Large business services organizations had the lowest Phish-prone benchmark at nineteen percent. The Phish-prone percentage is determined by the number of employees that click a simulated phishing email link or open an infected attachment during a testing campaign using the KnowBe4 platform. The study, drawn from a data set of more than six million users across nearly 11,000 organizations, benchmarks real-world phishing results. Results show a radical drop of careless clicking to just 13 percent 90 days after initial training and simulated phishing and a steeper drop to two percent after 12 months of combined phishing and computer based training (CBT). The study anonymously tracks users by company size and industry at three points: 1) a baseline phishing security test, 2) results after 90 days of combined CBT and simulated phishing, and 3) the result after one year of combined CBT and phishing. "In the past seven years, we've helped thousands of customers enable their employees to make smarter security decisions. Since we've reached the milestone of 15,000 customers, we've built a massive database to analyze and decided it was time to conduct a new analysis of average Phish-prone percentages," said Stu Sjouwerman, CEO of KnowBe4. "The new research uncovered some surprising and troubling results. However, it also demonstrates the power of deploying new-school security awareness training by lowering a 27 percent Phish-prone result to just over two percent." Rankings by industry for initial Phish-prone percentage include: Insurance 32.66% Manufacturing 30.99% Technology 30.09% Not for Profit 29.85% Retail & Wholesale 28.14% Energy & Utilities 27.89% Healthcare & Pharma 27.75% Other: 27.39% Education 27.16% Business Services 26.74% Financial Services 26.29% Government 25.09% According to Sjouwerman (pronounced "shower-man"), "Ninety-eight percent of cyber-attacks rely on social engineering and email phishing is the bad guys' preferred method. Attackers go for the low-hanging fruit: humans. Humans are the de-facto No. 1 choice for cybercriminals seeking to gain access into an organization. New-school security awareness training which includes frequent simulated social engineering testing is a proven method to dramatically slash an organization's Phish-prone percentage. Effectively managing this problem requires commitment and C-level buy-in, but it can be done and isn't difficult." For further information about KnowBe4 visit https://www.knowbe4.com About KnowBe4 KnowBe4, provider of the world's largest integrated new-school security awareness training and simulated phishing platform, is used by more than 15,000 organizations worldwide. Founded by data- and IT-security expert Stu Sjouwerman, with backing from Elephant Partners and Goldman Sachs Growth Equity, KnowBe4 helps organizations address the human element of security by raising awareness of ransomware, CEO fraud and other social engineering tactics through a new-school approach to security awareness training. Kevin Mitnick, internationally recognized computer-security expert and KnowBe4's Chief Hacking Officer, helped design KnowBe4's training based on his well-documented social engineering tactics. Thousands of organizations leverage KnowBe4 to enable their workforce to make smarter security decisions and create a human firewall as an effective last line of defense. KnowBe4 is ranked #231 on the 2017 Inc. 500 list, #70 on Deloitte's 2017 Technology Fast 500 and #6 in Cybersecurity Ventures Cybersecurity 500. KnowBe4 is headquartered in Tampa Bay, Florida with European offices in London and Amsterdam. For more info, visit http://www.knowbe4.com and follow Stu on Twitter at @StuAllard. Media Contact: Kathy Wattman, [email protected], 727-474-9950; Jennifer Jewett, 617-913-2404, [email protected] SOURCE KnowBe4 Inc. Related Links www.knowbe4.com SAN DIEGO, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Kopari beauty is happy to announce that the company has hired veteran beauty professional Kim Magee as the Vice President of Sales. Magee brings a wealth of industry experience and knowledge of the retail beauty space with particular expertise in North American and International retail strategy, wholesale relationships, planning and forecasting, and P& L Management. An accomplished executive with multi-level experience in sales, education and marketing, Magee spent the past 15 years in leadership roles with Estee Lauder's Too Faced Beauty, Coty and LVMH, to name a few. During this time, Magee successfully developed, led and executed various sales strategies resulting in an increase of business in North America for each beauty company. Most recently, she served as the Vice President of Sales for Too Faced Cosmetics from 2014 to 2016 where she oversaw a marked increase in sales. "Kim joins us at time of significant growth and innovation," says Chief Executive Officer Bryce Goldman. "Kim's vast experience in sales and retail strategy, along with a proven track record of success with some of the biggest beauty brands today will play an important part in our retail strategy and structure. We are ecstatic to have her join Kopari beauty to bring her exceptional work to our company for new and continued success in 2018 and beyond." In her role with Kopari beauty, Kim Magee will lead the charge for sales in North America and International markets to provide thoughtful advisement on results-driven tactics in the areas of sales management, strategic marketing and more. "It's a thrilling time for Kopari beauty," says Kim Magee. "I look forward to working alongside the incredible team and co-founders for continuous success across every channel in beauty." About Kopari: Say Aloha to Kopari Beauty a coconut-powered lifestyle-beauty brand based in San Diego. Kopari's coconut oil beauty is powerful beauty. They combine their superfood oil with high performance ingredients to create natural born luxury for gorgeous skin and healthy hair. Sustainably manufactured in Southern California, Kopari sources the purest, most nutrient-rich coconut oil from small family farms in the Philippines. Their small batch coconuts are hand-picked at peak quality, never exposed to extreme temperatures and ever-so-carefully cold pressed. Launched in 2015, Kopari was founded by Hawaiian-born naturalist and certified organic chef, Kiana Cabell, third generation beauty experts and industry veterans Bryce and Gigi Goldman, and health entrepreneur and co-founder of Suja Juice, James Brennan. Loved by beauty enthusiasts, wellness gurus and digital influencers around the world, Kopari has quickly become the most talked about coconut in the beauty biz. So now that you know, get your coconut on. SOURCE Kopari Life is Good has devoted 24 years to celebrating life's simple pleasures through positive art and messaging. With the launch of Life is Good Vacations, people can now experience those simple joys while in the beauty of an incredible destination of their choice. "These trips provide an unforgettable combo of pure outdoor fun, deep unplugged connections and true adventure," says John Jacobs, Life is Good co-founder. "They're a spectacular way to recharge and get a fresh perspective on the good that's around us." Life is Good Vacations by Austin Adventures will kick off with a trip to Montana and the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem, complete with biking, hiking, rafting, and horseback riding. Travelers will savor the destination's local cuisine, explore its hidden gems under the direction of expert guides, and enjoy its natural wonders without the stress of planning. "The concept of 'adventure' is deeply engrained in the ethos of our company. We believe that every destination we visit is equipped with its own unique experience. With this partnership, we now have an incredible opportunity to translate Life is Good's love for nature into the actual landscapes where active individuals and families want to travel," says Dan Austin, Austin Adventures founder. This season, vacations include both family and adult-only trips in groups of 12 or less to: Montana Big Sky , Yellowstone & Paradise Valley , Yellowstone & Paradise Valley Utah Bryce Canyon & Zion Bryce Canyon & Zion Canadian Rockies Alberta Banff to Jasper Costa Rica Manuel Antonio to Punta Islita To learn more and to book, visit lifeisgood.com/vacations. ABOUT THE LIFE IS GOOD COMPANY The Life is Good Company is a $100 million apparel brand dedicated to spreading the power of optimism through positive art and messaging. The company donates 10 percent of its net profits to help kids in need through the Life is Good Kids Foundation. To date, the foundation has positively impacted 8,000 childcare providers who care for over 1 million kids every year, many of whom are facing early childhood trauma. Life is Good is a registered trademark of The Life is Good Company. Visit LifeisGood.com for more details, and follow Life is Good on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. ABOUT AUSTIN ADVENTURES Based in Billings, Montana, Austin Adventures has spent more than 40 years building an international reputation as a top provider of luxury, small group, multisport tours for adults and families to the world's most captivating destinations. Acknowledged twice by Travel and Leisure Magazine with the prestigious World's Best Awards and many more national media accolades and awards. Austin Adventures has perfected the art of creating itineraries featuring exceptional regional dining, distinctive accommodations, incredible guides and exhilarating activities, all while keeping all-inclusive rates and services the norm. In addition to scheduled group departures on all 7 continents, Austin Adventures has developed a reputation as the leader in customized trip planning and execution. All backed by the industries only money-back satisfaction guarantee. SOURCE Life is Good Related Links https://www.lifeisgood.com VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. (CSE: LDS), (OTCQB: LDSYF) and (Frankfurt: LD6, WKN: A14XHT) ("LDS" or the "Company") announces that on January 16, 2018, the Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District ("MDAQMD") issued a permit to LDS Scientific, Inc., to operate under the Temporary Category M Type 7 Manufacturing with Volatile Solvents License. The Permit is valid through June 2018, at which time the facility and its operations will be reviewed by MDAQMD. Upon a favorable review the permit can be renewed for one year. Brad Eckenweiler, CEO of LDS, stated, "There are benefits to being a first mover, however there are also challenges." Just prior to the year-end, the Company was notified that the MDAQMD, an environmental agency of the State of California, would require a permit for operating under the CSPA Group Inc.'s Type 7 Manufacturer 2 for Medical Cannabis Volatile Extraction License #00000001. LDS Scientific completed the application with requested calculation and usage projections and upon submission to the MDAQMD and were informed that the review time is normally six to eight weeks. The Company explained our concerns with regards to the facilities employees having been out of work all December during the holidays hoping to be back at work in January and that any help on expediting the permit review process would be sincerely appreciated. The Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District staff went above and beyond our expectations and five business days after our submission issued the required permit. Unfortunately, that day the Company also received notification from the San Bernardino County Fire Department that they have decided to amend their previous facility approval to require additional fire sprinklers in the three extraction rooms. The additional sprinkler modifications and their integration into the alarm systems and atmosphere warning systems were completed Saturday afternoon and the confirmation of the completion was emailed to the San Bernardino County Fire Department inspector. During the time we were working on the MDAQMD permit the Company modified the extraction equipment to improve efficiencies and reduce maintenance time. Those improvements were certified for safe operation. Mr. Eckenweiler continued his comments, "We are in a new industry where the governing bodies, enforcement agencies and legislators alike are feeling their way through numerous health, safety, commercial, financial and accountability issues. These uncertainties will likely continue to produce challenges for everyone in this industry and LDS will continue to meet those challenges as it develops a corporate foundation not for the short term but for the future." The Company is in production and will have details for its shareholders at the Company's Annual General Shareholders Meeting. The Company will provide audio highlights of the AGM on the website. About Mojave Desert Air Management District The Mojave Desert Air Quality Management District is geographically the second largest of the state's 35 air districts. As the air pollution control agency for San Bernardino County's High Desert and Riverside County's Palo Verde Valley, the District has primary responsibility for regulating stationary sources of air pollution located within its jurisdictional boundaries. Air Monitoring staff operates and maintains six monitoring stations (Barstow, Hesperia, Phelan, Trona, Twentynine Palms, & Victorville) within the District's 20,000 + mile jurisdiction. http://mdaqmd.ca.gov/ About Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. The Company's technology produces infused strips (similar to breath strips) that are not only a safer, healthier option to smoking, but also a new way to accurately meter the dosage and assure the purity of the product. In addition, with the entering into its management services agreements with NHMC, Inc. and CSPA Group, Inc., the Company has begun its direct involvement in the growing of medicinal ingredients for, and the manufacturing of, its products. From seed to sale, the Company's products and ingredients will be tested for quality and composition throughout the formulation and production processes, resulting in a delivery system that is safe, consistent and effective. On behalf of the board of directors of Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. Brad Eckenweiler, CEO & Director FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT: [email protected] 1-866-347-5058 Cautionary Disclaimer Statement: The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release. Information set forth in this news release contains forward-looking statements that are based on assumptions as of the date of this news release. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. The Company cautions that all forward looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the Company's limited operating history and the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations. In addition, marijuana remains a Schedule I drug under the United States Controlled Substances Act of 1970. Although Congress has prohibited the US Justice Department from spending federal funds to interfere with the implementation of state medical marijuana laws, this prohibition must be renewed each year to remain in effect. Accordingly, actual and future events, conditions and results may differ materially from the estimates, beliefs, intentions and expectations expressed or implied in the forward looking information. Except as required under applicable securities legislation, The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information. SOURCE Lifestyle Delivery Systems Inc. Related Links http://www.lifestyledeliverysystem.com MIAMI, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The early results of mesenchymal stem cells studies look encouraging for lessening or reversing the effects of Aging Frailty, Joshua M. Hare, M.D., Director of the Interdisciplinary Stem Cell Institute at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, told experts gathered for the Regenerative Medicine Innovation Workshop held earlier this month in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Hare is also the Founder of Longeveron LLC, a Miami-based life sciences company that licensed the stem cell technology developed at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. Funding from the National Institutes of Health supports Longeveron's mission to explore the potential medical applications for mesenchymal stem cell therapy. A single injection of the allogeneic mesenchymal stem cells, in fact, was associated with significant gains in functional capacity in both Phase I and Phase II studies Longeveron published in The Journals of Gerontology in 2017. "Frailty is not an inevitable effect of aging, but can be thought of -- in general terms -- as unsuccessful aging and an increased vulnerability to stressors," Dr. Hare said during the interactive panel at the workshop, which featured six experts and was jointly sponsored by the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Addressing a large unmet need is one impetus for developing the stem cell therapy. There are no available medical treatments for Aging Frailty, a condition which affects over 3.6 million individuals over the age 65 in the U.S.. Importantly, the number of people affected with Aging Frailty is expected to grow along with the aging of the population. People with Aging Frailty tend to lose weight, walk more slowly, and experience weakness and fatigue. In each case, the mechanism of action of the stem cells is linked to these prominent phenotypes of Aging Frailty. The mechanism of action is complex and involves multiple aspects, including growth factors, exosomes and cell organelles. Depletion of endogenous stem cells is believed to be one contributing factor to Aging Frailty. Dr. Hare and colleagues propose that mesenchymal stem cells will be effective to reverse or prevent effects of Aging Frailty because they are anti-inflammatory, anti-fibrotic (prevent scarring), promote growth of new blood vessels and are pro-regenerative. "These cells could have a benefit in offsetting or reversing Aging Frailty," he said at the workshop. In addition to dose-dependent gains in a six-minute walk test after the injection of stem cells, the researchers also reported improvements in lung function tests and decreases in TNF-alpha, a biomarker believed to contribute to the Aging Frailty syndrome. Encouraged by the results to date, Dr. Hare and colleagues are now enrolling patients in a Phase 2b multi-center national clinical trial sponsored by Longeveron. The study will evaluate Aging Frailty using Longeveron's proprietary mesenchymal stem cells. The aim is to better define the dose-response observations, validate biomarkers, and overall to further advance the use of mesenchymal stem cells in this population. "If this bears out in a larger trial, we'll have a situation where we can apply regenerative medicine to a syndrome with a worldwide unmet need," Dr. Hare said. About Longeveron Longeveron is a regenerative medicine therapy company founded in 2014. Longeveron's goal is to provide the first of its kind biological solution for aging-related diseases, and is dedicated to developing safe cell-based therapeutics to revolutionize the aging process and improve quality of life. The company's research focus areas include Alzheimer's disease, Aging Frailty, and the Metabolic Syndrome, and gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the National Institutes of Health and the Alzheimer's Association. Longeveron is also conducting a Phase 1 trial with the University of Maryland and Johns Hopkins University to study Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome, a rare indication that affects infants, and gratefully acknowledges the support and collaboration from the Maryland Stem Cell Foundation. To learn more, visit Longeveron.com. SOURCE Longeveron LLC Related Links http://longeveron.com NEW YORK and MILAN, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- LUX magazine has awarded Franklin Eugene International LLC Leading Pioneer in Fashion Design 2017 Italy in the 2017 LUX Global Excellence Awards. FRANKLIN EUGENE TIGER STRONG Milan Fashion Week, Mens Fall/Winter 2018/2019, a clothing range inspired by the tiger like strength of the indomitable human spirit made its world debut Monday, January 15, 2018. FRANKLIN EUGENE TIGER STRONG Milan Fashion Week, Mens Fall/Winter 2018/2019, a clothing range inspired by the tiger like strength of the indomitable human spirit made its world debut Monday, January 15, 2018. LUX magazine is all about giving our readers a glamorous glimpse into the world of all things luxurious, covering all aspects of high end lifestyle: the finest food and drink, hotels and resorts, health and beauty, automotive, jewellery, art and technology. As luxury consumption and the Luxury Goods market continues to grow, it is more important than ever to stand out from the competition. As such, LUX has introduced the 2017 LUX Global Excellence Awards. Franklin Eugene International is a global design company and worldwide aspirational lifestyle platform that produces transformative experiences through men's alta moda (bespoke/haute couture), men's and women's Italian leather accessories, men's luxury and ready-to-wear, a select offering of high street clothing, and global humanitarian endeavour. Commenting on the success of these truly deserving winners, Sophie Milner, Awards Coordinator said: "These awards are a stamp of excellence, and all our award winners are part of an exclusive and illustrious group comprising of some of the most influential names in the luxury markets. It is therefore my honour to be able to wish Franklin Eugene International LLC congratulations on this success- here's to a great future." To find out more about these prestigious awards, and the dedicated establishments that have been selected for them, please visit http://www.lux-review.com/ where you can view our winners supplement and full winners list. Franklin Eugene revealed TIGER STRONG, a men's Fall Winter 2018/2019 clothing range inspired by the tiger like strength of the indomitable human spirit last week during Milan Fashion Week. Tigers are among the most well noted and adored of the world's most alluring "superfauna" (large animal species with global, popular allure). The best and invincible parts of the human spirit have been part of the collective conscious of the human experience since time immemorial. Mr. Eugene has fused these two concepts and channeled their collective strength and massive appeal as the design inspiration for TIGER STRONG. To see more TIGER STRONG visit any of the following links: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jlEcgpnb9J8 https://issuu.com/franklineugene/docs/franklin_eugene_tiger_strong_issuu_ https://image.net/franklineugenetigerstrong About LUX Published quarterly, LUX informs readers on all aspects of high end lifestyle, including the finest, food and drink, hotels and resorts, health and beauty, automotive, jewellery, art and technology from around the world. About Franklin Eugene International LLC Franklin Eugene International LLC is renowned international designer Franklin Eugene's innovative firm, offering a range of his designs to transform clients' lives. To find out more please visit their website: www.franklineugene.com SOURCE LUX RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Marken today announced it will open a third branch in Germany in the first quarter of 2018 to meet new demands in the region. The new branch will be located in Stuttgart, joining Marken's existing German locations in Frankfurt and Hamburg. The Stuttgart location will be more than 600m and feature office and warehouse space to cover the increased client demand and volume in the area. Together, the three branches will employ more than 100 people in Germany, and offer Marken's full range of services. The new Stuttgart branch will partner with clients and investigator sites to collect and ship drug products, clinical trial materials and biological samples. It will provide temperature controlled solutions as well as contain a package conditioning area. Marken's unique GMP depot services will continue from the Frankfurt location. Bengt-Simon Feth, General Manager, Germany, said, "With the close proximity to the Stuttgart airport, Marken will be able to reduce the lead time to deliver conditioned packaging to clients within south Germany. This will further strengthen our relationships with our pharmaceutical clients and provide more operational flexibility within the Marken network." Many of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies are located in Germany and its central location helps make it one of the most active clinical trial markets in Western Europe. The clinical trial supply and logistics market in Germany is expected to grow 7 percent from 2016 to 2021, which much of the growth driven by demand for biopharmaceutical trial logistics.i Wes Wheeler, Marken's Chief Executive Officer, commented, "Marken continues to grow ahead of the market to meet the demands of clinical trials clients and their supply chain needs around the world. Our new location in Stuttgart demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that we continue to build our network to provide our clients with more options and flexibility to help their clinical trials succeed." About Marken Marken is a wholly owned subsidiary of UPS. Marken is the only patient-centric supply chain organization 100% dedicated to the pharmaceutical and life sciences industries. Marken maintains the leading position for Direct to Patient services and biological sample shipments and offers a state-of-the-art GMP-compliant depot network and logistic hubs in 46 locations worldwide for clinical trial material storage and distribution. Marken's more than 800 staff members manage 50,000 drug and biological shipments every month at all temperature ranges in more than 220 countries. Additional services such as biological kit production, ancillary material sourcing, storage and distribution, shipment lane verification and qualifications, as well as GDP, regulatory and compliance consultancy add to Marken's unique position in the pharma and logistics industry. i Visiongain 2017 SOURCE Marken Related Links http://www.marken.com WILMINGTON, Del., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- National law firm Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson & Tardy LLC is pleased to announce an expansion that increases its presence in the New York metropolitan area and continues the momentum of growth that has seen the firm more than double in size since 2015. Delaware-based Maron Marvel has welcomed four new attorneys to the firm: Dwight A. Kern, who will join the firm as a director, and associates Audrey O. Anyaele and William Perrelli. Stephanie DeVos will also be joining Maron Marvel in the coming weeks. "We are excited to welcome this group of talented attorneys to our firm," said James J. Maron, founding member and director of Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson & Tardy. "Adding these skilled lawyers to our team enables us to continue offering the superior legal counsel that our clients expect from us, while we continue to build our firm into the premier mass toxic tort firm in the country." The addition expands Maron Marvel's presence in Jersey City, New Jersey, with a new office space located at 101 Hudson Street. "We are proud to join the exemplary team of Maron Marvel attorneys across the country," said Kern. "With our deep experience and skill-set backed by the resources of a national firm such as Maron Marvel, we will be able to offer our clients effective solutions and excellent legal services for many years to come." Kern focuses his practice on toxic torts, environmental litigation, products liability, construction defect, general liability and related practice areas. He has experience representing clients during all stages of litigation in state and federal courts throughout New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. Kern's recent defense verdict in a New York lead poisoning trial demonstrates the skill, knowledge and tenacity necessary to successfully represent clients in matters involving complex issues. Anyaele, DeVos, and Perrelli have extensive experience in toxic tort litigation regularly representing corporate clients in complex commercial litigation, products liability, general liability, and related matters. The lateral move of the New Jersey attorneys comes several months after 13 attorneys joined Maron Marvel in Chicago and St. Louis, establishing a presence for the firm in the Midwest. Before that, in 2015, Maron Marvel nearly doubled in size when it welcomed more than 30 attorneys in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. With the new additions, Maron Marvel now boasts 92 attorneys in 12 offices from the East Coast to the Gulf of Mexico. About Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson & Tardy LLC Founded in 1996, Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson & Tardy LLC is a national law firm based in Wilmington, Delaware, with offices in Illinois, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, South Carolina and Texas. The firm serves as national, regional and local counsel in the areas of mass toxic tort, products liability, personal injury, environmental regulation and litigation. The firm represents public and private entities of all sizes and provides litigation services to companies in the areas of business and commercial litigation, including products liability, bankruptcy and creditors' rights, environmental regulation and personal injury. To learn more, visit the firm's website. Contact: Lauren Wallace, Marketing Coordinator, [email protected] Sarah Larson, Media Correspondent, [email protected] / 215-340-0480 SOURCE Maron Marvel Bradley Anderson & Tardy LLC Related Links http://maronmarvel.com Angwin resident Briana Forgie was at the march with her son Trevor and husband Brian, and was enthusiastic and somewhat surprised at the turnout in front of Napa City Hall on School Street. Trevor was beating on a bongo drum held by husband Brian. Im here because I have two sons, she said. And I want them to understand the importance of respecting the rights of women. Sandy Dickson, who had driven down from St. Helena with her two grandchildren, said that the march for her was about the Trump administration and the need to support equal rights. Calistogan Kiri Gardner, age 6, sat bundled in her stroller with a sign that read Disability Rights are Human Rights. Her sister, Ada, age 3, sitting on her father Bryans shoulders, held a sign that read Though she be little, she be fierce! Their mother, Arwen Rose-Stockwell marched with a sign that read Science is not a liberal conspiracy. Kirk Grace from St. Helena said that he was at the march to support his wife Lynn and to also support the rights of immigrants. I work with people who are immigrants, and I am very concerned about whats happening to them, he said. The application advises patients on what to do next when they feel unwell. After asking a series of diagnostic questions, Infermedica's AI suggests possible conditions and suitable actions to take. Infermedica estimates that typically up to 26% of patient cases are self-treatable, and a symptom checker can be used to prevent unnecessary visits by instead providing self-care or teleconsultations. Over three million people have used its platform and the underlying engine improves with time as more requests are processed. "We focus solely on B2B partnerships and our mission is to provide the best AI technology to serve health systems and insurers," says Piotr Orzechowski, CEO of Infermedica. "Infermedica works in the AI-as-a-Service model and has two main products: a highly customizable and easy to deploy symptom checker framework and the Infermedica API which now has over 1,700 developers subscribed, including our great partners such as Healthloop and Allianz." Started in 2012, the company combines doctor's expertise with machine learning and has developed a statistical knowledge base of symptoms, signs, risk factors, and diseases. The company recently re-designed its showcase application called Symptomate. Infermedica also became the first symptom checker application in the Microsoft Cortana ecosystem. The app is also available for Amazon Alexa across all its devices (Echo, Dot, Tap, Spot, Show) and third party party Alexa-compatible ones (e.g. Lenovo Smart Assistant, Eufy Genie, Garmin Speak, Muse). Infermedica supports several languages: English, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, German, French, Russian, Portuguese, Slovak and Polish. The company plans to establish new partnerships in the USA, Europe and Middle East and is currently working on extending the application of its AI engine to clinical decision support and call center triage. SOURCE Infermedica Related Links http://www.infermedica.com LOUISVILLE, Ky., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- "What a year," said Vatsal Ghiya, Mediscribes co-founder and CEO. "The healthcare industry saw the biggest malware, third-party hacking and even IoT-related cybersecurity threats in 2017. With our operational scalability, we were always prepared for this type of challenge. Then, we met the challenge head-on when our team implemented transcription workflow for an Alabama-based medical center in under four hours. We also helped several healthcare facilities while the malware impact vendor was down." Mediscribes added RMC Stringfellow Memorial Hospital, Copiah County Medical Center, Horizon Ridge Nursing & Rehabilitation Center and Hillsboro Area Hospital in Q4 2017. "In many ways, last year was very successful for Mediscribes," said Terry Ciesla, executive vice president. "We're really excited about our new customers and the technology that we have developed and are now deploying. With our new transcription platform, we have continued to focus on creating easy-to-use applications that employ the highest levels of data security. By partnering with Amazon Web Services and deploying our transcription system in the AWS HIPAA-compliant cloud, our customers are assured of the most comprehensive security capabilities that satisfy healthcare's demanding information security requirements. Our customers continue to be our biggest cheerleaders and they enthusiastically support and are tickled by our sustained superior growth." "We added four customers in our portfolio in Q4 2017 thanks to the continued unparalleled performance of our Customer Care and IT teams," stated Vatsal Ghiya. About RMC Stringfellow Memorial Hospital: RMC Stringfellow Memorial Hospital in Anniston, Alabama, is a 125-bed acute care hospital that was established in 1938. The hospital is accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, a distinction that is awarded only to those healthcare facilities that maintain the highest standards of quality. Stringfellow Memorial provides comprehensive acute care in-patient services, offers 24-hour emergency care, general and specialized surgical services including laparoscopic and laser surgery, same-day outpatient surgery and procedures, a full-service rehabilitation department and diagnostic testing procedures including MRI and CT scanning. Also, Stringfellow Memorial Hospital is the only RMC Health System facility to receive Chest Pain Accreditation by the Society of Chest Pain Centers. About Copiah County Medical Center: Hardy Wilson Memorial Hospital was established in 1950 under the Hill-Burton Act. It is now a 25-bed Critical Access Hospital and is a member of the American Hospital Association, Mississippi Hospital Association and licensed by the Mississippi State Department of Health. The leadership and staff of Hardy Wilson Memorial Hospital are proud to be in their brand new building, now operating as Copiah County Medical Center. CCMC is committed to being the resource for the community and surrounding areas they serve by providing quality services and compassionate care. About Horizon Ridge Nursing & Rehabilitation Center (Henderson): Located in Las Vegas, Nevada, Horizon Ridge Nursing & Rehabilitation Center (Henderson) is a part of Generations Healthcare. Responding to the great need for quality, skilled nursing in the rapidly growing area of southern Nevada, Generations Healthcare, which has been the standard of excellence in the markets it currently serves, is excited to bring this same level of excellence to Henderson and Las Vegas. This facility provides an extraordinary environment for the recovery and rehabilitation following an acute care episode. Horizon Ridge has the Generations Healthcare approach, meaning it will be "the best of the best." Horizon Ridge is a 121-bed facility with amenities that feature two cutting-edge rehab gyms, multiple dining areas, outdoor patios and Class-A living and patient rooms. About Hillsboro Area Hospital: Located in Hillsboro, Illinois, Hillsboro Area Hospital, a 25-bed hospital, is affiliated with the American Hospital Association, Illinois Hospital Association and the Illinois Critical Access Hospital Network. The Hillsboro Area Health Foundation helps fund state-of-the-art facilities, technologies and program enhancements so that they can continue to meet the healthcare needs of Hillsboro and the surrounding communities. HAH has been selected as one of "The St. Louis Post Dispatch 2017 Top Workplaces." This list is comprised of the best places to work in the Greater St. Louis area. About Mediscribes: Based in Louisville, Kentucky, Mediscribes Inc. is one of the fastest-growing transcription and document management solution providers in the United States. Mediscribes Inc. is an ISO 9000-2001 certified company, offering cost-effective consolidated transcription solutions to major hospitals, clinics and other healthcare facilities. The firm specializes in providing highly accurate transcription services that strictly adhere to guidelines set by the Association for Healthcare Document Integrity (AHDI). A Six-Sigma company, Mediscribes is process-driven, detail-oriented and is continuously evaluating and analyzing all critical processes for opportunities to improve. Additionally, we engage our customers as a matter of routine, soliciting feedback about our processes and service levels to ensure total satisfaction with our solutions. Media Contacts: Mediscribes Inc. Terry Ciesla, EVP 866.473.5655 [email protected] http://www.mediscribes.com 12806 Townepark Way, Louisville, KY 40243 Related Links Mediscribes Company Corporate Presentation ezMediscribes - end-to-end Medical Transcription Platform SOURCE Mediscribes Inc. Related Links http://www.mediscribes.com YANGON, Myanmar, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The annual ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF), which will begin on 22nd January in Chiang Mai, Thailand, will provide an excellent platform for Myanmar among international delegates and media to showcase its diverse range of new and exciting tourism products, services and events of the country. MTM In 2017, Myanmar recorded a total of 1.1 million arrivals at Yangon International Airport. It was an increase of 7% compared to arrivals in the same period of 2016. Visa exemption between Myanmar and some ASEAN countries have increased arrival recorded growth Vietnam (+75%), the Philippines (+62%) and Singapore (+20%) and Thailand (12%). Recent International Air carrier increase to Myanmar will also make the destination appealing to a wider audience. As Myanmar is getting more tourists, new hotels are opening their doors in this country. Well-known international chains: Pullman, Kempinski, MGallery, Excelsior will start their business before the end of 2018 and it is expected to create more jobs opportunity for locals. In line with ATF 2018 theme "Sustainable Connectivity, Boundless Prosperity", Myanmar has been focused on economic and social opportunities for people working in the tourism sector and helped to develop all communities in the country including the more remote areas. Overland programs between Myanmar and Thailand have been offered through one of the 4 official border posts. We do hope that it will be easy to enter and depart also through border post with Indian and China in the future to expend our connectivity between neighbouring countries. Myanmar recently worked on an update of the DOs & DON'Ts for tourists http://www.dosanddontsfortourists.com in order to prevent the negative impacts relating to culture, society and the environment. There is a high hope and possibility that remain across the country that tourism will bring positive image of this culturally diverse country. Nowhere in Asia will you find a more mystical and undiscovered destination to explore: colonial heritage of Yangon, the scattered temples in Bagan, the ancient capital of Mandalay, and the unique "leg rowing" fishermen of Inle Lake. Without fail, visitors to Myanmar will be amazed by the breathtaking beauty and unfailing show of hospitality by the Burmese. On 25 January, there will be Myanmar Media Briefing at ATF and will give a presentation to the media on update information of tourism sector in the country. Myanmar Tourism Marketing has invited travel journalists and instagrammers to visit the country and organize media trips for publications that are interested to show and share their experiences. About Myanmar Tourism Marketing Myanmar Tourism Marketing (MTM) aims to promote Myanmar as a sustainable tourism destination that can be visited the whole year round. It is part of the Myanmar Tourism Federation and is mainly privately funded by key members of the tourism industry in Myanmar. The MTM team is happy to assist press and media to publish more about tourism in Myanmar. Visit www.myanmar.travel and follow us on www.facebook.com/myanmartm Htet Htet Lin PR Officer Myanmar Tourism Marketing No. 204, Bo Myat Tun Road (Middle Block) Pazundaung Township Yangon, Myanmar Tel: +95 - 9 977204456 Mobile: +95 9 966 961079 E-mail: [email protected] Instagram: www.instagram.com/visit.myanmar/ Twitter: www.twitter.com/MyanmarTM SOURCE Myanmar Tourism Marketing MyComputerCareer is one of the experts that the show called upon. They are a nationally accredited school that offers Information Technology Programs for all experience levels. MyComputerCareer was approached to participate as Military Makeover's educational partner and was thrilled for the opportunity to give back to those that have given so much. "Veterans have served our country with honor and we are proud to provide them with support and opportunities," says Tony Galati, CEO of MyComputerCareer. "We feel extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to give back when and where we can." The three-part series will air in March of this year on The Lifetime Network, where the family and their home transformation will be revealed. Anyone interested in learning more about MyComputerCareer should visit www.mycomputercareer.edu or speak to a Career Advisor by calling 866-606-6922. About MyComputerCareer.edu MyComputerCareer provides technical training, certification preparation and job placement support for learners looking to enter the Information Technology industry, as well as professionals seeking career advancement. MyComputerCareer is a technical school with courses taught online and at its seven campuses in Indiana, Ohio, North Carolina and Texas. Students who complete MyComputerCareer's Information Technology programs earn valuable certifications in areas ranging from Operating Systems to Computer Networks and Cyber Security. About Military Makeover Military Makeover puts on a special mini-series dedicated to giving back to members of our Military and their loved ones. Enlisting the help of decorators, designers, landscapers and other home renovation experts, providers help to transform the homes and the lives of military families across the country. For more information or media assistance, please contact: Jenny Nichols MyComputerCareer.edu 765-714-7272 [email protected] SOURCE MyComputerCareer Related Links http://www.mycomputercareer.edu BEAVERCREEK, Ohio, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- myCUmortgage is pleased to announce that it has partnered with three credit unions from across the country to provide them and their members with mortgage lending services. myCUmortgage is a leading Credit Union Service Organization (CUSO) and is wholly-owned by Wright-Patt Credit Union. With a combined membership of over 41,000 and assets of nearly $395 million, the new partner credit unions include: Tim Mislansky, President, myCUmortgage Castparts Employees Federal Credit Union Oregon Cove Federal Credit Union Kentucky Partners 1st Federal Credit Union Indiana "At myCUmortgage, we strive to help our partner credit unions help more of their members with home ownershipthis is why we're excited about all of the new opportunities these three new partnerships provide," said Tim Mislansky, President of myCUmortgage. "Together, we can provide mortgage loans that best suit their members' needs." In addition to conventional home loans, all three new partners will also be able to take advantage of government lending through this partnership, including FHA, VA and USDA loans. These government programs offer more flexibility with little- to no-down payment. "By offering government loans, these credit unions will be able to assist even more of their members in realizing the American dream of home ownership. We welcome them to the myCUmortgage family," added Mislansky. With nearly 17 years of mortgage industry experience, myCUmortgage delivers to its partners true collaboration, transparency and a member-centric focus. Services of which partners can take advantage include origination services, processing, underwriting, closing services and member loan servicing. myCUmortgage is dedicated solely to credit union mortgage lending. About myCUmortgage myCUmortgage is a wholly-owned Credit Union Service Organization of Wright-Patt Credit Union, based in Beavercreek, Ohio. myCUmortgage helps hundreds of credit unions nationwide to assist their members with homeownership through quality, cost-efficient, service-driven mortgage solutions. Visit www.myCUmortgage.com for more information. For more information, contact: Bob Sadowski, APR 937.912.7276 [email protected] SOURCE myCUmortgage Related Links http://www.mycumortgage.com JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The National ATM Council, Inc. (NAC) is heading back to Las Vegas this fall for its 2018 annual tradeshow and convention. Slated for October 16th - 18th 2018, the U.S. Independent/Retail ATM industry trade association will return to Bally's Resort & Casino in the heart of the Las Vegas Strip, as the hosting venue for its 6th annual Conference & Expo. This year's schedule coincides with the completion of Bally's Indigo Tower total upgrade, providing brand new renovated room accommodations and direct Conference Center access for NAC2018 attendees. Event participants will also once again enjoy value priced group discount rooming options at Bally's, Paris, and Caesars Palace, an especially attractive feature of last year's event - back by popular demand. The event's showcase Grand Welcome Reception will be returning to the spectacular Paris Pool setting - offering one of many unique networking opportunities during NAC2018 and providing a special kick-off for this year's conference. As show organizers have noted, the overwhelmingly positive industry response to the NAC2017 event venue made the NAC2018 property selection an easy decision. "Looking to build on the strong success of last year's show, we're returning to Bally's Las Vegas for NAC2018, but we are making this year's event even bigger and better," said NAC's Executive Director Bruce Renard. "We'll be announcing a host of enhancements for NAC2018 in the coming days, so please stay tuned." For additional information, visit the NAC website at: https://www.natmc.org. Photo(s): https://www.prlog.org/12688099 Press release distributed by PRLog SOURCE The National ATM Council, Inc. Related Links https://www.natmc.org LONDON, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Nail Care Market: Overview The importance of nail care is rising, with increasing interest of consumers in nail treatment. Various brands are also developing new products for nail care. Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5286750 New treatment concepts are also being developed by nail brands. For instance, overnight nail care products like night creams. Nail color users are also becoming aware of chemicals, hence, manufacturers are using natural ingredients such as turmeric, milk, carrots, almonds, etc., in their products. The trend of anti-pollution cosmetic and personal care products is also rising. Anti-ageing products are also gaining popularity in the nail care products. Manufacturers are focusing on offering hydrating, smoothing, and strengthening products for nails. Along with the new type of nail polish, manufacturers are also focusing on developing new nail polish removals that don't damage nails. There has been an increasing focus on the use of oil, soy-based formula and water-based formula as an ingredient in nail polish removers. The use of gel and long-wear nail polish is also rising, hence, the use of organic ingredients is also increasing to ensure the protection of nails. Global Nail Care Market: Scope of Study The report includes quantitative and qualitative analysis of the global nail care market. The report consists of various factors defining the market dynamics such as trends, drivers, opportunities, and restraints. The report also includes Porter's five force analysis SWOT analysis and market attractiveness analysis of the global nail care market. The report also offers in-depth analysis and market opportunity analysis of the key developments in the industry, products, sales channels, etc. Key industry developments provide details on the factors that are likely to have an impact on market dynamics. These factors consist of the events that took place in the past and various events that are likely to take place in the future. The report also offers detail on various regulations affecting the global nail care market. An estimated market size on the basis of CAGR and US$ Mn has also been provided in the report. Global Nail Care Market: Market Segmentation The global nail care market is segmented on the basis of product, sales channel, and price. On the basis of product type, the market is segmented into nail polish, nail wraps/other extensions, nail art, nail polish remover, manicure products, pedicure products, and other product types. On the basis of sales channel, the market is segmented into pharmacies, hypermarket, supermarket, e-commerce, health & beauty retailer, and other sales channels. In terms of the price, the market is segmented into economic and premium. Region-wise the market is segmented into North America, Europe, Latin America, Japan, Asia Pacific Excluding Japan (APEJ), and the Middle East and Africa (MEA). The report provides forecast and market size including both volume and value for each region and other segments. The CAGR for the forecast period 2017-2022 has also been provided for each segment. Global Nail Care Market: Competitive Landscape The report provides detailed profile of some of the leading market players in the global nail care market such as L'Oreal SA, The Estee Lauder Companies Inc., Procter & Gamble Co., Shiseido Company, Limited, Avon Products, Inc., Revlon, Inc., Chanel, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton S.E., Hindustan Unilever Ltd., and Colorbar Cosmetics Private Limited. Leading market players are following various strategies such as mergers and acquisitions, developing and offering new products, using various pricing strategies. The market players are also using different mediums to promote their products and attract customers. Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5286750 About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +1 (718) 213 4904 Website: www.reportbuyer.com SOURCE ReportBuyer Related Links http://www.reportbuyer.com WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- NASA will pay will tribute to the crews of Apollo 1 and space shuttles Challenger and Columbia, as well as other NASA colleagues who lost their lives while furthering the cause of exploration and discovery, during the agency's annual Day of Remembrance on Thursday, Jan. 25. NASA acting Administrator Robert Lightfoot, and other agency senior officials, will lead an observance at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia starting at 10:25 a.m. EST. A wreath-laying ceremony will be held at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, followed by observances for the Apollo 1, Challenger and Columbia crews. Media interested in attending the remembrance event must contact Arlington National Cemetery media relations officer Kerry Meeker at [email protected] or 703-614-0024 no later than Wednesday, Jan. 24. Various NASA centers also will hold observances on and leading up to the Day of Remembrance for the public, employees and the families of those lost in service to America's space program, including Johnson Space Center in Houston and Marshall Space Flight Center, in Huntsville, Alabama. Kennedy Space Center, Florida The Astronauts Memorial Foundation will honor the astronauts who gave their lives for space exploration during a ceremony Jan. 25 at the Astronauts Memorial Foundation, located at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex. Speakers at the ceremony will include: Media interested in attending this event should contact Rebecca Shireman at 321-449-4273 or [email protected]. Video and still images of various agency observances will be available at: https://www.nasa.gov/mediaresources The agency also is paying tribute to its fallen astronauts with special online content available Wednesday, Jan. 24, at: https://www.nasa.gov/dor2018 Images and multimedia from this year's events will be added following the events. SOURCE NASA Related Links http://www.nasa.gov WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In submitting comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) regarding the Medicare Parts C and D Proposed Rule and related request for information (RFI), the Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition (SCPC) thanks the agency for addressing pharmacy price concessions and PBMs' "abusive misuse" of pharmacy fees but says these fees should be wholly eliminated not redirected or reformed as CMS proposes. The following are key excerpts of the SCPC comments in regard to PBM "Pharmacy Fees:" "PBMs increasingly have extracted "pharmacy payment adjustments" and other concessions from pharmacies, and particularly independent LTC pharmacies, through anti-competitive market manipulation without justification or benefit to Part D beneficiaries or the Medicare program. The agency is correct and the evidence is overwhelming -- that so-called "pharmacy incentive payments" have "grown faster than any other category of DIR received by sponsors and PBMs," and that because the amounts exceed "bid" calculations they do not help beneficiaries or the program, but instead are being misused by PBMs to contribute to plan profits. We note, however, that while CMS identifies these fees as "price concessions," they are not price concessions at all. Unlike drug manufacturers, pharmacies have no product "prices" to concede. Instead, these fees represent an unjustified abuse of market power through which PBMs, and the PDPs they represent, extract sums from pharmacies with no leverage for no purpose other than to enrich PBMs at the expense of pharmacies. Given the absence of any free market-based justification, these fees should not be redirected, but should be prohibited outright. The agency's conceptual "point of sale" (POS) policy solution unfortunately would not be effective for LTC pharmacy and the beneficiaries they serve. As the agency knows, a very large percentage of LTC residents are "dual eligible" for both Medicare and Medicaid (the "duals"). Duals do not pay for their medications at all. They do not pay Part D premiums, co-pays or deductibles and are exempt from the "donut hole" and other coverage levels of the Part D program. For these beneficiaries, "passing through" pharmacy fee DIR at the POS makes no sense since it is not possible for their out-of-pocket costs to be lower than $0.00. Thus, while we appreciate the agency's creative proposed POS options, none make sense or will achieve the agency's policy goals for LTC residents or LTC pharmacies. Instead, CMS should prohibit the pharmacy fees outright. SCPC respectfully submits that, while this approach may be appropriate for rebates PBMs negotiate with manufacturers, the same is not true of pharmacy fees. Therefore, SCPC's comments focus on the justification for CMS eliminating pharmacy fees altogether, which is a solution to the underlying problem more consistent with the intent of the Part D program and the free market principles on which the program is based. In this context, we urge the agency to consider all unjustified fees PDPs/PBMs impose on LTC pharmacies, not only post-point-of-sale fees. For full text of SCPC comments to CMS, CLICK HERE . The SCPC is the national association for independent LTC pharmacies. Our member pharmacies provide care and services to patients in LTC facilities across the country occupying approximately 675,000 beds. Visit seniorcarepharmacies.org to learn more. SOURCE Senior Care Pharmacy Coalition Related Links http://seniorcarepharmacies.org WORCESTER, Mass., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- NeighborhoodScout announced that its reports now contain gross rental yield data for every U.S. neighborhood, at the block group level (10x more granular than the average ZIP Code). NeighborhoodScout is a web-based platform with custom analytics and reports for investing, appraising, and financing real estate. The combination of gross rental yield data with NeighborhoodScout's precision crime and vacancy rates/trends data provides a one-stop solution for evaluating properties in the neighborhoods that best fit investors' financial profiles. Three directly adjacent neighborhoods in Worcester, the second largest city in Massachusetts (Figure 1). "Gross rental yield varies a lot by neighborhood, and the highest yield isn't always the goal. Neighborhoods with very high gross rental yields may have conditions that decrease your net rental yield," explains Dr. Andrew Schiller, CEO and Founder of Location, Inc. and NeighborhoodScout. "Other factors, including high crime, higher vacancy rates and transience means you will have a harder time getting and keeping good tenants, and sometimes difficulty collecting rent when you do have tenants." For example, consider three directly adjacent neighborhoods in Worcester, the second largest city in Massachusetts (see Figure 1). Despite their proximity to each other, these neighborhoods vary in terms of gross rental yield and crime (see Figure 2). Figure 2 Neighborhoods in Worcester, MA (population: 184,815) Pleasant St./Park Ave. Chandler St./Park Ave. University Park Gross Rental Yield 5.65% 12.38% 9.25% Average Market Rent/mo. $1,057 $991 $1,141 Total Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents) 42.71 71.26 45.04 Violent Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents) 11.60 26.54 11.46 Property Crime Rate (per 1,000 residents) 31.12 44.73 33.59 The Pleasant St./Park Ave. neighborhood's gross rental yield is among the lowest in the metropolitan area (5.65%). In contrast, nearby Chandler St./Park Ave.'s 12.38% gross rental yield is among the highest in the metropolitan area. However, NeighborhoodScout's crime data, shows that this neighborhood also has one of the highest total crime rates per 1,000 residents in America. To the south is the University Park neighborhood. While its gross rental yield isn't quite as high as Chandler St./Park Ave., University Park's total crime rate per 1,000 residents is lower. As a result, of the three neighborhoods profiled, NeighborhoodScout data suggest that University Park would likely offer the best net rental yields despite a lower gross rental yield. Visit NeighborhoodScout to view a sample report and subscription options. For more information, contact [email protected]. About Location, Inc. Location, Inc. is a leader in geographic data sciences, providing street-and address-level location intelligence and predictive analytics for businesses across the U.S. and Canada via web-based reports and streaming data. Since 2000, the company has amassed highly accurate and comprehensive catalogue of spatial data products, with complete, national coverage and sub-ZIP Code granularity. A pioneer in building micro-spatial data products, Location, Inc. specializes in real estate market insights and projections, and crime and hazard risk products for the real estate, insurance and finance sectors. More than 70 million people and businesses have leveraged the company's data products to make informed location decisions, fuel major investments, mitigate risk, protect assets, and uncover opportunity. For more information, visit www.locationinc.com. Media Contact: Kate DeVagno Marketing Department Location, Inc. Tel: (508) 753-8029 Email: [email protected] SOURCE Location, Inc. Related Links http://www.locationinc.com Winship is changing the way cancer is prevented, diagnosed, and treated. Thats good news for Georgia, and the world. Learn what it means to be an NCI-Designated Comprehensive Cancer Center. Winship Cancer Institute at Emory University has been granted Comprehensive Cancer Center status by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the highest designation given by the NCI. What does that mean? Some 50,000 Georgians are diagnosed with cancer and more than 17,000 die of the disease each year. Winship investigators are working to change that by discovering better ways to prevent cancer, detect it earlier, and treat it. The new comprehensive cancer center designation from the NCI is both a vote of confidence and material support for those efforts. The advances represented by Winship's comprehensive status are already at work. For patients, it means more precise ways of detecting and diagnosing cancer. It means getting a new drug or therapy not available outside of the clinical trial system. It means being treated by a team of people with the expertise and knowledge to use the most advanced therapies and tools effectively. For all Georgians, an NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center means that a critical mass of top cancer researchers from around the world is right here, in their home state, studying the environments, habits, genetics, and health problems of Georgia with the goal of making their lives cancer-free. Winship joins an elite club of NCI-designated comprehensive cancer centers throughout the country. That's good news if you're a patient in Georgia: survival rates are up to 25% higher at these cancer centers. "Winship conducts research that changes the way cancer is prevented, diagnosed, and treated. As recently as 10 years ago, we had limited treatment options for people with advanced cases of lung cancer and melanoma. Today, new therapies help people live longer with those diseases with a good quality of life. Those new treatments came out of Winship and other research cancer centers like Winship," says Walter J. Curran, Jr., executive director of Winship. "We continue to seek better ways to help the citizens of Georgia in their journeys against cancer." The incidence and mortality rates for cancer in the South are high. Georgians in particular have higher rates than the national average of lung, breast, and prostate cancers, and melanoma. Tobacco use and obesity contribute to the statistics, but lifestyle risk factors are not the only reasons for the state's health disparities; there are also biological factors and access to care issues. Why does multiple myeloma occur two to three times more often among African Americans than among Caucasians? How do we bring better prevention and earlier detection to underserved Georgians? Winship researchers tackle cancer from all anglesin its research labs, clinics, classrooms, and in the communitythen take the next steps to turn their discoveries into tools that benefit Georgia. LONDON, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Nematicide Market: Overview Nematicide is a kind of pesticide used to control the growth of nematodes on various crops. Nematodes are parasites which affects the growth of crops by feeding on the plants roots and tissues. As with the damage caused by nematodes, nematicide companies are working towards technological development and launching new products in the market. Due to their volatile properties the companies have shifted their focus from manufacturing synthetic nematicide to natural nematicide. Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5286757 The report estimates and forecasts the nematicide market on the global, regional, and country levels. The study provides forecast between 2017 and 2025 based on volume (Kilo Tons) and revenue (US$ Mn) with 2016 as the base year. The report comprises an exhaustive value chain analysis for each of the product segments. It provides a comprehensive view of the market. Value chain analysis also offers detailed information about value addition at each stage. The study includes drivers and restraints for the nematicide market along with their impact on demand during the forecast period. The study also provides key market indicators affecting the growth of the market. The report analyzes opportunities in the nematicide market on the global and regional level. Drivers, restraints, and opportunities mentioned in the report are justified through quantitative and qualitative data. These have been verified through primary and secondary resources. Global Nematicide Market: Scope of the Study The report includes Porter's Five Forces Model to determine the degree of competition in the nematicide market. The report comprises a qualitative write-up on market attractiveness analysis, wherein applications and countries have been analyzed based on attractiveness for each region. Growth rate, market size, raw material availability, profit margin, impact strength, technology, competition, and other factors (such as environmental and legal) have been evaluated in order to derive the general attractiveness of the market. The report comprises price trend analysis for nematicide between 2017 and 2025. The study provides a comprehensive view of the nematicide market by dividing it on the basis of product, crops and geography segments. The nematicide market has been segmented into product - fumigant, carbamate, organophosphate and others and based on crops the market is segmented into oilseeds & pulses, cereals & grains, fruits & vegetables and others. The segments have been analyzed based on historic, present, and future trends. Secondary research sources that were typically referred to include, but were not limited to company websites, financial reports, annual reports, investor presentations, broker reports, and SEC filings. Other sources such as statistical databases and market reports, news articles, national government documents, and webcasts specific to companies operating in the market have also been referred for the report. In-depth interviews and discussions with a wide range of key opinion leaders and industry participants were conducted to compile this research report. Primary research represents the bulk of research efforts, supplemented by extensive secondary research. Key players' product literature, annual reports, press releases, and relevant documents were reviewed for competitive analysis and market understanding. This helped in validating and strengthening secondary research findings. Primary research further helped in developing the analysis team's expertise and market understanding. Global Nematicide Market: Regional Outlook Regional segmentation includes the current and forecast demand for nematicide in North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Middle East & Africa (MEA). Additionally, the report comprises country-level analysis in terms of volume and revenue for application segments. Key countries such as the U.S., Canada, Germany, France, the U.K., Spain, Italy, India, China, Japan, Mexico, and Brazil have been included in the study. Market segmentation includes demand for individual applications in all the regions and countries. Companies Mentioned in Report The report covers detailed competitive outlook that includes market share and profiles of key players operating in the global market. Key players profiled in the report includes Syngenta International AG, DowDuPont Inc., Bayer AG, Monsanto Company, FMC Corporation, Nufarm Ltd. Company profiles include attributes such as company overview, number of employees, brand overview, key competitors, business overview, business strategies, recent/key developments, acquisitions, and financial overview (wherever applicable). The global nematicide market has been segmented as follows: Nematicide Market Product Analysis Fumigant Carbamate Organophosphate Others Nematicide Market Crop Analysis Oilseeds & Pulses Cereals & Grains Fruits & Vegetables Others Nematicide Market Regional Analysis North America U.S. Canada Europe Germany France U.K. Italy Spain Rest of Europe Asia Pacific China India Japan ASEAN Rest of Asia Pacific Middle East & Africa GCC South Africa Rest of Middle East & Africa Latin America Brazil Mexico Rest of Latin America Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5286757 About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +1 (718) 213 4904 Website: www.reportbuyer.com SOURCE ReportBuyer Related Links http://www.reportbuyer.com HICKORY, N.C., Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A new line of professionally installed water filters and softeners from Brita PRO were launched today for residential and light commercial use. The products will be available through a network of authorized dealers that will install and service the systems. The line is a first for the Brita brand and will include high-capacity, whole house filters and softeners that will address water quality issues such as hard water, iron, sediment, acidity, taste and odor. PALO ALTO, California, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Next Insurance, the leading digital insurance company for small businesses, released today a national snapshot of the state of small business insurance. From a survey of over 30,000 small businesses from 16 different classes of business, Next discovered that 44% of applicants who have been in business for a year or more have never had insurance raising concern for both the small business owners operating without insurance, and the consumers interacting with these businesses. The survey also revealed that: Infographic Next Insurance Report: 44% of US Small Businesses Have Never Had Insurance Many SMBs Operate Without Insurance: Of those applicants who have been in business for at least a year, 44% have never had insurance 21% recently had insurance but have now been uninsured for more than two months Another 13% have recently had insurance but have now been uninsured for less than two months Only 22% are currently insured SMBs Want Coverage Now: 74% of applicants wanted to start coverage within one week Half of those wanted to start coverage on the same day "Consumers today have high expectations of the businesses that service them, and that includes assuming that they have proper insurance coverage in case of a problem. Relationships between consumers and small business owners require a certain modicum of trust and confidence, yet our data indicates that almost half of small businesses have never had insurance putting valuable relationships at risk of collapse," said Guy Goldstein, CEO of Next Insurance. "Individual consumers as well as commercial organizations hiring small businesses should verify that their service providers are adequately insured in order to provide both the business and the customer with the confidence to succeed." The legacy small business insurance market is failing new businesses, largely operating through offline agents who sometimes lack expertise in their client's specific business vertical and its insurance requirements. With no full-service solution to buy and maintain insurance online, businesses are left waiting weeks for even the simplest policy updates or requests to be processed, often accompanied by exorbitant service fees. "These findings offer a glimpse into the market of SMB insurance and the relationship that businesses have with traditional insurance providers", said Alon Huri, CTO of Next Insurance "Small businesses are suffering when it comes to insurance because the policies on the market today are not relevant or overpriced. Until now. Next focuses on quickly delivering easy, affordable and transparent insurance policies to the widest swath of small businesses - all of which have specific requirements to give them the confidence to take advantage of every opportunity." For more information, view our accompanying blog post here and infographic. About the Data: This data was drawn from 30,000+ small businesses requesting an insurance quote through Next Insurance's online insurance platform. The classes of business involved in the survey include professional service providers such as personal trainers, contractors, electricians, plumbers, carpenters, painters, landscapers, photographers and more. About Next Insurance: Next Insurance is transforming small to medium business insurance with its tailored, personalized approach. Revolutionizing traditional insurance processes, Next Insurance has partnered with trusted insurance providers to offer small businesses policies that are tailored to the specific elements of each small business sector. Utilizing big data technology, Next Insurance utilizes valuable insights into consumer behavior to offer customized, affordable policies, a process which leads to satisfied customers. Founded in 2016 by a team of serial entrepreneurs, the company is headquartered in Palo Alto and has received a total of $48 million in venture capital funding from Ribbit Capital, TLV Partners, Zeev Ventures, Munich RE Ventures, Markel, Nationwide, American Express, and others. For more information, visit Next-Insurance.com. CONTACT: Brandon Weinstock, [email protected] ,+1-914-336-3878 SOURCE Next Insurance Related Links http://Next-Insurance.com WASHINGTON, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- No Labels today hailed Senators Susan Collins and Joe Manchinwho became honorary co-chairs last Novemberfor playing a lead role in striking the bipartisan agreement to keep the federal government funded through February 8. Manchin and Collins were working with several Senate colleagues through the weekend to reopen the government after it shut down on Friday. "As both Susan and Joe said this afternoon, the federal government should never have been shut down in the first place and they were both working furiously to prevent it from happening," said No Labels co-chair Joe Lieberman. "But once the shutdown happened, they worked with the urgency the moment demands to end it. Today, Susan and Joe reminded the entire No Labels community why we are so proud to have them as honorary co-chairs." Last week, Manchin and Collins were engaged in significant negotiations to avert a shutdown. On Thursday, they attended a No Labels-organized bipartisan, bicameral meeting featuring a dozen senators and 30-plus members of the House Problem Solvers Caucus. The members also discussed the outlines of a deal on the Dreamers and border security, with negotiations expected to intensify in the weeks ahead. Collins and Manchin played a key role in ending the last government shutdown in 2013 as part of an informal "Common Sense Caucus." They reprised a similar role today. Added Lieberman: "Every American should welcome the bipartisan agreement to end the shutdown. But this only buys us some time. Debates must be resolved soon on the Dreamers, border security and funding levels for our military and other critical domestic priorities. I know Susan and Joealong with their colleagues in the House Problem Solvers Caucuswill be doing everything in their power to get to 'yes.' The American people should expect nothing less from everyone in Congress." No Labels is a political reform organization featuring Democrats, Republicans and independents working to bring America's leaders together to solve our nation's toughest problems. No Labels has inspired the creation of the Problem Solvers Caucusfeaturing 48 House Democrats and Republicanscommitted to working constructively across the aisle to get things done. SOURCE No Labels Related Links https://www.nolabels.org "Bill has made many contributions to the success of our company. His leadership and insight have been invaluable to us throughout his career," said James A. Squires, chairman, president and CEO. "John brings years of experience in law and government, both inside and outside NS, and is an ideal fit for his new role. I look forward to working with him for many years to come." Galanko, who joined Norfolk Southern in 1990 as a tax attorney, was elected an officer of the company in 1999, when he was named vice president taxation. He subsequently held a series of senior executive positions with wide-ranging responsibilities, including senior vice president law and corporate communications, before being named executive vice president law and administration in 2017. Scheib joined Norfolk Southern in 2005 as an attorney and has held positions of increasing responsibility in NS' law department. He was named vice president law in 2016 and senior vice president law and corporate relations in 2017. In his new position, Scheib will oversee law, government relations, corporate communications, human resources, and labor relations. Prior to joining NS, Scheib served as chief of staff and counsel to the chairman of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board and as counsel to the railroad subcommittee in the U.S. House of Representatives. He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Virginia and a law degree from Villanova University. Scheib completed the General Management Program at Harvard Business School in 2015. About Norfolk Southern Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) is one of the nation's premier transportation companies. Its Norfolk Southern Railway Company subsidiary operates approximately 19,500 route miles in 22 states and the District of Columbia, serves every major container port in the eastern United States, and provides efficient connections to other rail carriers. Norfolk Southern operates the most extensive intermodal network in the East and is a major transporter of coal, automotive, and industrial products. SOURCE Norfolk Southern Corporation Related Links http://www.nscorp.com NEW YORK, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- New York is a popular choice for family vacations, as it's among the most iconic cities in the world and is full of attractions for all ages. Families with young children need to prepare for a trip properly, though, to make sure that everyone has a fun time. Go NY Tours, a New York tour company, has put together the most important tips for visiting New York with young children. See Battery Park on a Go NY Tour sightseeing tour. Blair Nicole, PR Director for Go New York Tours says, "Family-friendly activities aren't hard to find here in the city, but we recommend museums and art galleries, in particular. To make sure that your kids love their time in New York, you also need a comfortable place to stay and convenient transportation wherever you want to go." With its own research and knowledge of the city combined with what it has learned from its customers, Go NY Tours found a few key tips that can help families with young children. Check Out Museums and Art Galleries New York's lineup of museums and art galleries is second to none. Quite a few of them also have kids' programs, which means these are perfect places for parents and their young children to hit together without anyone feeling bored. That isn't the only benefit of these attractions, though. Many museums and art galleries are easy on the budget, with tickets available for a low cost or even free. Other family activities can cost an arm and a leg, but these won't. Find Spacious, Comfortable Accommodations Spacious and comfortable usually aren't the first words that come to mind when people think of housing in New York, but there are options out there for those willing to look. Many neighborhoods in New York have houses available as holiday rentals, and it's possible to find plenty of great places searching on Airbnb and other vacation rental sites. The typical New York hotel room is designed with two people in mind, which means it can get cramped when traveling with kids. Renting two rooms would mean paying double, and tourists are usually far better off just renting a bigger place. Be Prepared Regarding Transportation Walking long distances with young children, especially in such a busy city, isn't a good idea. There's the matter of keeping an eye on them the entire time, and kids often get bored or frustrated with walking. The best way to go in terms of transportation is staying in a place that has a subway station nearby. Many do, and since attractions also tend to be near subway stations, visitors will never need to walk far. If accommodations aren't near a subway station, see what other public transportation options are in the area to avoid long walks or expensive cab rides. For more information on how to enjoy New York with your kids, please visit Go New York Tours. Interview requests and press inquiries should be directed to Media Moguls PR at [email protected]. About Go NY Tours: Go NY Tours is a tour company based in New York. It has routes throughout the city and takes over 1 million people on tours every year. SOURCE Go NY Tours Related Links https://www.gonytours.com BUFFALO, N.Y., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Building America, a wholly-owned affiliate of the AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT), today announced $9 million of New Market Tax Credits (NMTC) for Northland Central, which includes a cutting-edge facility that will annually train 300 local workers to fill quality jobs in the modernized manufacturing sector. Another $5 million in NMTCs will come from the National Trust Community Investment Corporation (NTCIC). At a press conference today, Building America was joined by the project sponsor, Buffalo Urban Development Corporation, Western NY AFL-CIO President Richard Lipsitz, Jr., Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul, Rep. Brian Higgins (NY-26), HIT Vice Chairman Jack Quinn, and other financing partners in making the announcement at Northland Central. "The Northland Center symbolizes Governor Cuomo's historic investment in the economic rebirth that has brought jobs, opportunity, and optimism back to Buffalo," said Lt. Governor Kathy Hochul. "The investment in workforce development in Buffalo's East Side will ensure equal opportunity for all residents. It also affirms our commitment to building a world-class workforce, ready for the jobs we are creating today and in the future, and we are grateful to Building America for sharing our vision." Rep. Higgins praised the NMTC program, a federal initiative that encourages the investment of private equity in community development and economic growth in distressed communities. "Recently at risk of complete elimination, federal New Markets Tax Credits will help make the Northland Central project possible and give Buffalo the tools to do what it does best reimagine our future by building on our unique strengths and history," said Congressman Higgins. "Ours is a community that wears proudly a strong work ethic and Northland Central will provide residents the skills and training necessary to fill the high-demand jobs of today and tomorrow. This commitment by Building America and its funders through the federal New Markets Tax Credit program represents an investment in our neighborhoods, investment in our people, and investment in our future." In addition to the NMTCs, other investors in the training center include New York Power Authority, Citi Community Capital and New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's Buffalo Billion program, which plans to invest $1.5 billion in the area economy. "Citi is thrilled to be part of this transformative public-private partnership that utilizes state and local resources, federal programs including New Markets Tax Credits and Historic Tax Credits, and private capital to reinvigorate this community," said Jacob Zlotoff, Director, Citi Community Capital. "The jobs that it will create and sustain, and the opportunities they provide, will benefit not only those who participate directly, but the entire city as well." Mr. Quinn, who held the NY-26 congressional seat from 1993-2005, was instrumental in bringing Building America to the project. Erie Community College, where Mr. Quinn served as President from 2008-2017, is providing educational staff and curriculum to the workforce training center. "The Northland Workforce Training Center promises quality education, quality jobs and quality service to the city's workforce," said Mr. Quinn. "Building America is a natural partner on this project given its commitment to bringing jobs and services to severely distressed communities." The Northland Workforce Training Center, located at 683 Northland Avenue in Buffalo, will reuse part of a historic vacant industrial complex and serve as an anchor for the broader Northland Central project. Approximately 93,000 square feet of the 240,000-square-foot building will be used for the training center. The center is expected to create an estimated 329 union construction jobs, as well as another 69 new positions, while retaining 124 permanent jobs in management, counseling, administration, faculty, building operations, maintenance and security. There is a 30 percent local hiring requirement and up to 20 low-income residents will be accepted into the Building Trades Pre-Apprenticeship Program. Once completed, workers will be trained at the center for entry-level operator jobs in machinery, welding, transformers and other positions. "We are investing in the future of America, and that future begins here in Buffalo. The first solar roof tile manufacturing started here just last month, and Northland Central is the key to a skilled and trained workforce for cutting-edge efforts like that," said Ted Chandler, HIT's Chief Operating Officer, who noted that in 2013 Building America committed over $9.2 million in NMTCs toward Roswell Parks' Clinical Sciences Center. "We are proud to help make the Northland Central project a reality," said Buford Sears, KeyBank's WNY Market President. "KeyBank believes in this project, Buffalo's workforce, and Buffalo's future. This investment will help Buffalo thrive for generations to come.'' Michael Phillips, Public Policy Manager at NTCIC says that Northland Central will be more than a rehabilitated historic building. "It is estimated that 300 low-income persons annually will be positively impacted by the programs offered at the Northland Workforce Training Center," says Phillips. "Of the anticipated construction jobs, 30% will be dedicated to local residents, 25% to minorities and 5% specifically to women. We are honored to be a part of this impactful project." About Building America Since it was formed in 2010, Building America has allocated $117.5 million of New Markets Tax Credits to 15 projects across the US. As an affiliate of parent company AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT), Building America works to create economic empowerment and opportunity, bringing jobs and services to severely distressed communities. More information is available on the Building America website, www.buildingamericacde.com Contact: Michael K. Frisby 202-625-4328, [email protected] SOURCE AFL-CIO HIT AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Medici is a next-generation communication application designed by doctors for doctors that allows patients to text, video and call securely with their own healthcare providers. The Medici program is changing the way doctors practice by allowing them to connect with their patients one-on-one at any time. The Medici app allows doctors to improve access to timely and consistent care for their patients, and to develop and maintain closer relationships with them. Before Medici, patients had to rely on phone, email, portal messages or WhatsApp to receive care from their doctors outside of office visits. These methods fall short as they are unsecured and non-HIPAA compliant, potentially leaving patients and their information vulnerable. Medici is secure, HIPAA compliant, and also allows doctors to bill in real-time for the virtual consults. Doctors spend 20 minutes on the average in-person office visit. Communicating directly with patients through Medici, practitioners are now able to help patients via virtual consults averaging five minutes. This also means doctors are more efficient with their schedule, fitting in more billable hours throughout the day as they assist patients they might not otherwise have been able to see. Medici is a value-add to patients and doctors alike, offering an immediate cost and time saving to the patient and a more balanced work life for the doctor. With 54% of doctors reporting they are "burned out" and 80% feeling "overextended," the Medici app helps address these issues by increasing the opportunity for more flexible scheduling and better continuity of patient care. The app also allows doctors to keep a record of each consultation, ensuring consolidated notes for future reference. "We could not be more excited to revolutionize communication between doctors and their patients," says Medici Founder, Dr. Clint Phillips. "It's just one of the many ways we will continue to make doctors' lives easier and communications more secure while finding ways for them to earn from their expertise." Download the free Medici app via App Store or Google Play. For more information, visit http://medici.md/. Medici's leadership team comprises executives from Amazon, Google and 2nd.MD. Headquartered in Austin, Texas, Medici has offices in Johannesburg, Paris and Washington, DC. Learn more at medici.md Contact: Mike Smith 703-623-3834 [email protected] SOURCE Medici Related Links medici.md NEW YORK and LONDON, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Periscope By McKinsey, a suite of solutions focusing on price, promotion, assortment, sales and marketing optimization to achieve sustainable revenue growth, has announced that Periscope Rep Planner, part of its Sales Solutions is now available on the Anaplan platform. Anaplan provides a cloud planning platform that connects data, people, and plans in every part of a business. Large and fast-growing organizations use Anaplan's cloud platform in every business function to make better-informed plans and decisions and drive faster, more effective planning processes. Periscope Rep Planner, now available on the Anaplan App Hub, is an end-to-end sales growth analytics solution that empowers companies to plan, prioritize, and pursue growth opportunities within their customer base. On average, Rep Planner enables clients to achieve a 5-10% annual rise in sales productivity through reduced planning time and improved operational efficiency, with fewer planning resources. "With the ever-increasing competition in today's market, B2B companies need to find ways to streamline sales processes and accelerate revenue. By making our Sales Solutions available on the Anaplan platform, our clients can run high-impact sales planning processes across their entire enterprise. We are excited to announce the availability of Periscope Rep Planner on the Anaplan platform to help more companies accelerate revenue and sales productivity," said Brian Elliott, Managing Partner of Periscope By McKinsey. Utilizing the Anaplan platform enables Periscope's Sales Solutions to provide additional capabilities including the ability to: Identify and prioritize growth opportunities in the users' customer base Organize and optimize deployment of the users' sales team Enable a comprehensive performance management approach including goals, quotas, and compensation systems "Anaplan represents a game-changing leap beyond traditional business intelligence and enterprise performance management systems. Helping companies excel at sales performance management is important to us at Anaplan," said Paul Melchiorre, Chief Revenue Officer, Anaplan. "Periscope Rep Planner is a vital solution to help our customers' sales organizations stay ahead of their competition." About Periscope By McKinsey Founded in 2007, the Periscope By McKinsey platform combines world-leading intellectual property, prescriptive analytics and cloud based tools with expert support and training. It's a unique combination that drives revenue growth, both now and into the future. The platform offers a suite of Marketing & Sales solutions that accelerate and sustain commercial transformation for businesses. Periscope leverages its world-leading IP (largely from McKinsey but also other partners) and best-in-class technology to enable transparency into Big Data, create actionable insights and new ways of working that drive lasting performance improvement, and typically sustain a 2-7% increase in return on sales (ROS). With a truly global reach, the portfolio of solutions is comprised of: Insight Solutions, Marketing Solutions, Customer Experience Solutions, Category Solutions, Pricing Solutions, Performance Solutions and Sales Solutions. These are complemented by ongoing client service and custom capability building programs. To learn more about how Periscope's solutions and experts are helping businesses continually drive better performance, visit http://www.periscope-solutions.com/ About Anaplan Anaplan is driving a new age of connected planning. Large and fast-growing organizations use Anaplan's cloud platform in every business function to make better-informed plans and decisions and drive faster, more effective planning processes. Anaplan also provides support, training, and planning transformation advisory services. Anaplan is a privately held company based in San Francisco with 18 offices and over 150 expert partners worldwide. To learn more, visit anaplan.com. SOURCE Periscope By McKinsey VANCOUVER, British Columbia, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- NRG Metals Inc. ("NRG" or the "Company") (TSX-V: NGZ) (OTCQB: NRGMF) (Frankfurt: OGPN), is pleased to provide an update on drilling and development at the Company's recent lithium discovery at the Salar Escondido Lithium Project ("Salar Escondido"), Argentina. As previously reported, the first hole was drilled to a depth of 307 meters. Samples were reported from 172 to 198 meters and averaged 189 mg/l Li (lithium), 868 mg/l Mg (magnesium), and 3,170 mg/l K (potassium). A sample interval from 183 to 198 meters returned 229 mg/l Li, 1,033 mg/l Mg, and 3,990 mg/l K. Further samples were attempted, however, hole caving and fresh water contamination from drilling fluids prevented the collection of further representative samples. The first hole at Salar Escondido has confirmed the presence of significant lithium mineralization and provided important information to guide the next phase of drilling and process development. Most importantly, the results have confirmed the target concept that Salar Escondido has the potential to host a significant lithium deposit. Given the history of lithium exploration at other salars in Argentina, the Company believes that the potential to encounter higher grades at greater depths is feasible. In addition to discovering lithium in the first hole, another positive characteristic of the basin noted during drilling is the potential for high permeability. The material that hosts the brine zone is comprised of mainly loosely consolidated sand and conglomerates, which should be highly permeable and allow high pumping and recharge rates. High permeability is an important factor in evaluating the potential of lithium brine bearing salars. The first drill hole ended in sediments so the thickness of the basin remains open at depth along with the potential of these sediments to host lithium bearing brine. The project size at 29,000 hectares, which is believed to cover a large portion of the basin, allows for significant further exploration. A request for quotation has been distributed to drill service providers. Key management will be reviewing proposals and conducting an on-site visit to both the Salar Escondido and Hombre Muerto North lithium projects during this week. The phase I drilling provided valuable information on the issues to be faced drilling at Salar Escondido that will be applied to the Phase II drilling. The updated program will resume as soon as practicable utilizing tricone or rotary drilling with perforated casing that will facilitate sampling of the brine targets defined by the geophysical surveys and our first test drill hole. The Company intends to rapidly define the new lithium discovery at Salar Escondido. Company President and C.E.O. Adrian F.C.Hobkirk is quoted "we are excited to have made an initial lithium discovery at Salar Escondido, and look forward to further drilling at this site in the coming weeks". Mr. William Feyerabend, a Certified Professional Geologist and a Qualified Person under NI 43-101, supervised and approves the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this press release. NRG Metals Inc. is an exploration stage company focused on the advancement of lithium brine projects in Argentina. In addition to the Salar Escondido lithium project, the Company is evaluating the 3,287 hectare Hombre Muerto North lithium project ("HMN") in the province of Salta. The HMN is located at the northern end of the prolific Hombre Muerto Salar, adjacent to FMC's producing Fenix mine and Galaxy Resources' Sal de Vida development stage project. The company has filed an environmental impact study with the mining authorities in Salta Province for permits to complete drilling, pump testing, and evaporation test pond construction. Approval is expected shortly. The Company currently has working capital of $3.13 million dollars. The Company plans to use its working capital to fund the ongoing exploration drill programs at the Salar Escondido and HMN Projects. NRG Metals Inc. currently has approximately 107 million shares issued and outstanding, and trades on the TSX Venture Exchange under symbol NGZ, on the OTC QB Market under symbol NRGMF, and on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange under symbol OGPN. The TSX Venture Exchange has not reviewed the content of this news release and therefore does not accept responsibility or liability for the adequacy or accuracy of the contents of this news release. This news release contains certain "forward- looking statements" within the meaning of Section 21E of the United States Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Except for statements of historical fact relating to the Company, certain information contained herein constitutes forward- looking statements. Forward- looking statements are based upon opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward looking statements. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The transaction described in this news release is subject to a variety of conditions and risks which include but are not limited to: regulatory approval, shareholder approval, market conditions, legal due diligence for claim validity, financing, political risk, security risks at the property locations and other risks. As such, the reader is cautioned that there can be no guarantee that this transaction will complete as described in this news release. We seek safe harbour. Adrian F.C. Hobkirk President and C.E.O. T: Investors / Shareholders Call +855-415-8100 Direct to Adrian Hobkirk +714-316-3272 E: [email protected] W: http://www.nrgmetalsinc.com SOURCE NRG Metals Inc. SEOUL, South Korea, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Pinnacle Industries, a new innovative start-up in Seoul, South Korea, has designed, developed, tested and now patented a smaller wind turbine known as T-VAWT. The company has released a new video that shows how the turbine works and its interesting characteristics and results. Pinnacle Industries The typical wind turbine is a tall ivory majestic tower protruding up and out of fields across the great plains or lining beach coasts. The T-VAWT, on the other hand, is a short pink and black mass of seemingly angry rotational force that simply will not stop moving even under the lightest of breezes. The design was concepted by Jacob Rojas, CEO of Pinnacle Industries. When asked why he chose the design with an increased number of moving parts that could ultimately lower reliability and increase cost, Rojas responded, "It is an odd design, and there are definitely too many moving parts, but that's how I intended it to be. Making an electrical wind turbine that will break down, requiring maintenance, is what I call 'responsible engineering.'" Rojas' company currently works on the engineering solutions side of the industrial power industry. He said that in Texas he has already seen many people laid off as wind power became more prominent, and shortly thereafter, power plant boilers began to shut down. Rojas wanted to develop a design to create sustainable jobs, not end them. He states, "Normally creating costs for the consumer is bad, which is also bad for businesses, but in this case, if profits can be generated, where normally none exist for those consumers, then no one cares." According to an article on Sciencing.com, today's normal wind turbines are not sustainable. A wind turbine that costs $1.5 million dollars is rated for 20 years and generates (optimistically) around $7,000 a year. Even if somehow those wind turbines did not need maintenance for that 20-year life span, it would still only make $140,000 or 1.3 million dollars, coming short of paying for itself. Real businesses want a shorter ROI, and unless it can be accomplished, then it becomes necessary to rely on government subsidies, which can all end with one election. Rojas likens his design to that of a car with parts that are made to break. Like a car, his design has two parts; the part that will last 20 years and the other that needs to be replaced once a year by a person employed to do that work. The design has four blades that are lightweight and clip in and out in under five minutes. Since the turbine is vertical, it also does not have to be located 100 feet above the ground. The turbine will also rotate with as little as 4 mph of wind due to the magnets that are used in the design. The four vertical blades transition from open to closed, dependent on wind direction. On those four blades are horizontal flaps that open during and because of rotation. During wind turbine rotation, the vertical blades would normally be stuck in the open position or basically slung away from the turbine center, but by placing the magnets in the right position on the turbine body, which face other opposing magnets on the blades, Rojas was able to negate the rotational forces that would make the blades too heavy for the wind to close. In essence, magnets pushing against magnets makes the blades lighter so the wind can open and close them easily, letting wind pass through one side while the other side catches it. The significance of this is that its only one side is really catching the wind. Rojas is currently working on gaining all the necessary certifications and seeking a good likeminded venture capitalist to partner with in efforts to speed up their international certifications and marketing needs. They have already locked down manufacturing partners in Korea and have all of the proper patents/business paperwork filed and completed. To learn more about the turbine, visit T-VWAT.com and the company, visit Pinnacle-inds.com About Pinnacle Industries Pinnacle Industries has a network of top manufacturing companies, government agencies for grants, certification firms. For more information, visit, Pinnacle-inds.com. Related Files T-VAWT Specs Brochure.pdf Related Images image1.png image2.png image3.png image4.jpg Related Links Pinnacle Website Product Website Related Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqneEXqeyNc SOURCE Pinnacle Industries Related Links https://pinnacle-inds.com TORONTO, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- PINpoint Information Systems, Inc., a leading Manufacturing Execution System (MES) software developer, today announced the release of its Version 5.1.1 (V5) MES and ANDON product's manufacturing performance dashboards. Their V5 MES and V5 ANDON software now features two (2) separate real-time reporting apps, i.e. a business and manufacturing intelligence dashboard for over-all plant performance monitoring and reporting for plant or engineering managers; and a corresponding plant floor or work station level dashboard screen for assembly line workers and area supervisors to track their progress. PINpoint V5 SmartScreen Assembly Line User Interface Dashboard (PRNewsfoto/PINpoint Information Systems In) PINpoint V5 Live Manufacturing Reporting Plant Management Dashboard (PRNewsfoto/PINpoint Information Systems In) "PINpoint V5 is distinguished by its' at-a-glance manufacturing performance dashboards," said Rob MacMillan, President of PINpoint Information Systems. "Real-time reporting empowers manufacturers to actually know how they are doing, whether they will be able to make rate by the end of the day, and what actions to take if they are trending downward." Combined, the dashboards afford manufacturers unprecedented transparency into understanding their unique manufacturing operations. The manufacturer receives valuable insight into how they are really performing right now, including live Over-all Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) data visualization. By simply opening a website on any device, manufacturing stakeholders can instantly see how their assembly line is performing at any given moment right to the second of cycle time. For example, the factory's manufacturing engineer is empowered and motivated first thing in the morning when she/he knows whether they are going to meet their production goal by the end of the day. Easy to understand data visualization is displayed to assembly line workers on V5 SmartScreens (see Figure 1. dashboard). Plant managers or manufacturing engineers can access the plant over-view dashboard (see Figure 2.) from the cloud on any computer or wireless device. The dashboards provide decision makers with vital information needed to act upon the information quickly. Trends in the data are visualized and understood without difficulty given the intuitive nature of how the information is presented or animated on the websites/screens. PINpoint V5 software makes the transition from manual data interpretation, or paper based process manufacturing to paperless manufacturing simple with a turn-key product that is ready-to-go right out-of-the-box. The new V5 performance dashboards empower the manufacturer with knowledge, or the truth about how their assembly line is really running. Step one is to identify that the problem exists in the first place (you do not know what you do not know). PINpoint V5 performance dashboards enable manufacturers to quickly identify the production line bottlenecks that are compromising product quality and process efficiency, so they can fix the problem quickly in turn. MES SOFTWARE PINpoint V5 software is meticulously designed and tested to 'Information Technology Infrastructure Library' (ITIL) standards before any official version release. Thoroughly proven the software is in use daily around the World in multiple languages by leading manufacturers. Headquartered in Burlington, Ontario, PINpoint services industry internationally from their offices in Canada, the United States, and China. For more information, please call: +1 (905) 639-8787, email: [email protected] or visit: http://pinpointinfo.com/ Media Contact: Anthony Borges [email protected] 1 (905) 639-8787 Additional Links: https://www.automation.com/the-top-7-manufacturing-pains-today-and-how-to-remedy-them https://www.automation.com/library/white-papers/manufacturing-execution-system-enables-aerospace-manufacturer-to-produce-safety-critical-electronics SOURCE PINpoint Information Systems Inc. Related Links http://pinpointinfo.com LOS ANGELES, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Luxury businesses have their advantages over traditional businesses, chief among those being their higher profit margins. But they also present unique branding challenges. Marketing methods that work for normal businesses could be ineffective and even turn off audiences in search of luxury products. Runway Waiters, an agency that provides fashion models with service skills to staff events, recently published a guide on what it takes to build a luxury brand. Runway Waiters has participated in events held by Ferrari. Ernest Sturm, the president of Runway Waiters, says that "When analyzing the most successful luxury businesses, including the established brands and the young upstarts that recently made a splash in the market, we were able to spot some key attributes those businesses had in common. They all focus heavily on product quality, they nail the exclusivity factor and they know how to reach their target audience." When Runway Waiters researched luxury businesses, they found several characteristics shared by luxury businesses in how they brand themselves. Being aware of these characteristics can help luxury business owners boost sales and improve brand awareness. Branding Starts With Quality A major factor in branding for a luxury business is making people believe in the quality of the product or service. Contrary to popular belief, slapping a high price tag on something doesn't fool consumers of luxury goods. They're a discerning audience who have learned how to tell what is truly high quality. The top luxury brands all built their reputations on high-quality products. As a luxury business owner, it's important to invest the necessary money into product development or the brand's reputation will never gain the reputation needed for success in a crowded luxury market. Luxury Brands Require Exclusivity In certain areas, luxury businesses must take the opposite approach of a traditional business. Product distribution is one example of this. The typical business develops its brand by getting its products in front of as many people as possible. Getting stocked in more stores is always a plus. With a luxury business, part of the brand's appeal is that customers can't find its products just anywhere. It's imperative to be selective about where to sell products, in order to separate the luxury brand from non-luxury brands. Marketing Affects Your Brand's Status Every business must use marketing to build its customer base, but the usual marketing methods won't work for a luxury brand. Most people either won't be in the luxury brand's target audience, because either they can't afford the products or won't want to spend much money on what is being sold. Successfully marketing a luxury business requires an understanding of where to reach the right target audience and how to pique their interest. Ads will need to emphasize luxurious elements, such as quality, craftsmanship and style, over price or other elements traditional brands would focus on. To view the entire guide, check out Runway Waiter's A Complete Guide to Building a Luxury Brand in Any Economy. Interview requests and press inquiries should be directed to Media Moguls PR at [email protected]. About Runway Waiters: Runway Waiters is a staffing agency that provides high-end brands with agency-signed models for hosting, bartending and event promotions. It operates in Los Angeles, Miami, New York and everywhere in between. Runway Waiters works with a variety of modeling agencies, including Wilhemina, Ford, NEXT and Vision. SOURCE Runway Waiters COLUMBIA, S.C., Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- PurePower Technologies, a leader in the engineering and manufacturing of new and remanufactured diesel fuel injectors and turbochargers for OEMs and the aftermarket, today announced Noel Ranka as its new chief sales and marketing officer. Reporting to President and CEO Jerry Sweetland, Ranka will be responsible for leading all sales, marketing and business development activities to expand PurePower's growing customer base. Ranka joins PurePower after a long career at JAC Products Inc., Pontiac, Mich., where he held senior leadership positions in sales, marketing, advanced product development and business development since 2004. Most recently, he served as JAC's chief marketing and sales officer, where he created and led a global sales team and developed and implemented corporate strategies for global growth. He also led a team of advanced engineers working on future products to market and sell. "Noel's decades of experience, not just in sales and marketing, but also product engineering, will provide us with a diverse background and understanding of the OEM and aftermarket commercial vehicle markets, which will help us fuel our continued growth," Sweetland said. Prior to joining JAC Products, Ranka worked in various product engineering roles for Ford Motor Company from 1997 2004. Ranka holds a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering from Western Michigan University, along with Master's degrees in business administration and industrial and systems engineering from the University of Michigan, Dearborn. "This is an exciting time for PurePower. I look forward to the challenges of serving our customers and growing our business. There is a momentum here and I am pleased to join the team and start contributing," Ranka said. About PurePower Technologies: PurePower Technologies, Inc. is the leader in engineering and remanufacturing of diesel fuel injectors and turbochargers for OEMs and the aftermarket. Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., the company is the authority for all precision fuel, air management, and after-treatment systems for light, medium, and heavy-duty diesel engines, having produced more than 30 million precision diesel fuel injectors since 1999. With more than 350 world-class engineers and technical specialists, PurePower offers a complete portfolio of design, engineering, manufacturing, and remanufacturing capabilities allows us to achieve levels of quality and precision that outpace the industry. For more information, visit purepowertech.com. SOURCE PurePower Technologies Related Links http://www.purepowertech.com CLEVELAND, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- OverDrive announced today that 58 library systems set a new record for lending 1 million eBooks and digital audiobooks in 2017. This milestone reaffirms the consistent growth of digital lending in the library and represents a significant increase from the 49 that reached 1 million checkouts in 2016. The libraries are based in the U.S., Canada, Singapore and New Zealand. See the complete list. The "Million Checkout Club" includes two library systems that exceeded 4 million digital checkouts, seven above 3 million, and five with 2 million or more. The top 10 digital-circulating library systems for 2017: Toronto Public Library (+19% growth over 2016) King County Library System, Washington (+13%) Los Angeles Public Library (+23%) New York Public Library (+20%) Seattle Public Library (+12%) Hennepin County Library, Minnesota (+15%) Cleveland Public Library (+11%) Public Library of Cincinnati and Hamilton County (+12%) Multnomah County Library, Oregon (+28%) Cuyahoga County Public Library, Ohio (+10%) The top 5 digital-circulating consortia and shared collections for 2017: Wisconsin Public Library Consortium (+7%) The Ohio Digital Library (+10%) Greater Phoenix Digital Library (+7%) Tennessee READS (+10%) Digital Downloads Collaboration, Ohio (+9%) "As a leader in transforming libraries into the digital age, King County Library System is known for its numerous technology programs," said KCLS Library Director Lisa Rosenblum. "It's no surprise, then, that KCLS is OverDrive's top digital-circulating library in America, thanks in part to King County residents who have embraced digital formats, and our dedicated librarians who encourage electronic readership by recommending digital titles on our website and social media platforms." In 2017, these libraries joined the "Million Checkout Club" for the first time: National Library Board of Singapore (+41% growth over 2016) (+41% growth over 2016) Sacramento Public Library (+40%) San Diego County Library (+22%) Nashville Public Library (+20%) Edmonton Public Library, Alberta (+15%) (+15%) Minuteman Library Network, Massachusetts (+15%) (+15%) Salt Lake County Library Services (+12%) Pierce County Library Services, Washington (+16%) (+16%) Austin Public Library (+11%) Public libraries reached record circulation as a result of innovative projects and campaigns designed to raise awareness and engagement. Examples include: Sacramento Public Library introduced a new Instant Digital Card where new patrons use their cell number to access the collection in less than 30 seconds. Circulation also grew after consolidating the library's eBook collection from another vendor to OverDrive to gain access to 20,000 additional titles compatible with Kindle devices and apps. devices and apps. Austin Public Library created targeted web graphics in English and Spanish, increased the number of titles readers can borrow, and frequently updated curated lists for readers, often on a daily basis. National Library Board of Singapore created an immersive experience on two commuter trains in Hobbit and middle earth themes and included QR codes for riders to instantly borrow the eBook as part of a national reading movement. The library also launched the first Digital Business Library offering 24/7 instant access to 19,000 world-class eBooks and audiobooks covering the latest business trends such as business intelligence, data analytics and cybersecurity. Libraries and readers also benefited from a series of OverDrive-powered innovations in 2017 that help readers discover or rediscover their local library. These included the new Libby app, Digital Book Clubs and Google search integration. Visit the OverDrive Blog to view the full 2017 "Million Checkout Club" list. To find your library and begin borrowing eBooks and audiobooks, visit www.overdrive.com or install the Libby app (iOS, Android, Windows). About Rakuten OverDrive and Libby OverDrive is the leading digital reading platform for libraries and schools worldwide. Libby is the highly rated "one-tap reading app" for libraries named one of Google Play's Best Apps of 2017. We are dedicated to "a world enlightened by reading" by delivering the industry's largest catalog of eBooks, audiobooks and other digital media to a growing network of 40,000 libraries and schools in 70 countries. Founded in 1986 and based in Cleveland, Ohio USA, OverDrive is owned by Tokyo-based Rakuten. We became a Certified B Corporation in 2017. www.overdrive.com Contact: David Burleigh OverDrive Director of Brand Marketing & Communication [email protected] SOURCE Rakuten OverDrive Related Links https://www.overdrive.com SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Reposify, a cybersecurity company which identifies, manages and defends organizations' global digital assets, has just released their flagship product, Reposify Grid. Grid offers a wakeup call to enterprise organizations everywhere - generating a comprehensive digital footprint by locating and mapping digital assets (internet-connected devices) that companies are completely unaware of while providing real-time alerts about security issues, such as data leakages, shadow IT, misconfigurations, phishing attacks and other breaches. This presents a considerable problem within leading digital asset security solutions. All too often, tools are implemented but don't offer sufficient protection. Companies are lulled into a false sense of security by a high Cyber Risk score, but it's incomplete at best. These scores usually only focus on part of the picture, such as third-party assets or assets in the company network, and don't give a score that represents the entire digital footprint and company's vendor supply chain. More assets are then added, and the vulnerability gap grows exponentially. "We've found that even big-name enterprise organizations are not aware of all of the digital assets that they own. Many companies think they've mapped out their entire asset ecosystem and are later surprised when they come to use Reposify's Grid system. We had one company who was shocked to discover that they were only mapping 40 percent of their total digital asset environment - at the expense of uncharted assets and third-party assets. We're finding this to be the case with more and more companies that we work with - who are unaware that they're being exposed to an all-out security crisis because of unmapped digital assets," said Yaron Tal, CEO of Reposify. Unlike other digital asset security solutions, which only map a selection of assets, Grid's technology continuously monitors the global internet to locate and map an organization's hidden assets. It locates the device type and attributes, organizing assets by device type, vendor, technology stack and more. Then, it inspects and assesses the assets in the entire ecosystem using a proprietary algorithm and machine learning. All of this data is then used to generate a complete, 360-degree security rating report for the organization's assets, including all third-party vendor-managed assets. With data breaches running rampant and Europe's GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) deadlines creeping up, companies remain unprepared and are struggling to reach or maintain compliance. The problem becomes amplified in an industry facing a deficit of over one million cybersecurity personnel while facing a predicted 200 percent increase in cyberattacks by 2021. Companies are scrambling to look for solutions that provide cyber protection while balancing a lack of manpower. Single-point cybersecurity is a paramount requirement to stop hackers from exploiting asset vulnerabilities. Meet up with Reposify at CyberTech Tel-Aviv Jan. 29-31 or at RSA April 16-20. To schedule a session, please contact us. About Reposify Reposify's cybersecurity solution identifies, manages and defends companies' global digital footprints. The technology allows businesses to locate and map known and unknown assets beyond the firewall, at scale and provide risk and alert management to any breaches or unusual behavior, helping them achieve cyber resilience. For more information, visit us at www.reposify.com or follow us on Twitter. Related Images image1.png Reposify Grid Dashboard image2.png You Can't Defend What You Can't See image3.png Reposify Logo Related Links Reposify Start a Free Trial For media inquiries contact: Daniela Sztulwark Reposify, Ltd. 917.628.2099 [email protected] SOURCE Reposify Related Links http://www.reposify.com "Our sponsorship provides the opportunity to connect with the loyal NASCAR fan base," states President Mark Reser. "This will be our third year sponsoring Erik and we continue to be impressed with him both on and off the track." Reser adds, "With a 38-week season that races in over 20 of our biggest markets, this sponsorship provides a great year-round opportunity for our retail partners to drive excitement in the deli and meat department with in-store promotions, social media and show car sampling events." Erik won the Sunoco Rookie of the Year award for the Cup Series in 2017 scoring five top-five finishes, 14 top-10 finishes and his first-career Cup Series pole at Bristol in August. He will re-join JGR in 2018 as will crew chief Chris Gayle to continue building on their success from the 2017 season. "I'm always grateful for our dedicated sponsors," said Erik. "I've had a great relationship with Reser's Fine Foods over the last couple of years and I'm thrilled they are joining our Cup Series program in 2018 and will continue to be a part of my career." 2018 Reser's Primary Race Schedule DATE RACE VENUE April 8th O'Reilly Auto Parts 500 Texas Motor Speedway May 12th MENCS at Kansas Kansas Speedway September 30th Bank of America 500 Charlotte Motor Speedway About Reser's Fine Foods: Family owned and operated, Reser's is the leading provider of fresh refrigerated deli salads, side dishes and prepared foods. For more than 65 years, Reser's has been making fun times easy and affordable for every family. Reser's famous deli salads and sides are family favorites at the race track, picnics, BBQs and tailgates. Founded in 1950, the company remains committed to providing delicious refrigerated foods for the supermarket and food service industries. Reser's operates 14 facilities in the United States and Mexico and employs more than 4,500 employees in the United States, Mexico and Canada. Visit www.resers.com. SOURCE Reser's Fine Foods Related Links http://www.resers.com The fracture maps, which are created in relevant time, show an operator the fracture half-length, height, and asymmetry for validating the completion design on every well at a fraction of the cost of legacy diagnostic technologies. The maps easily quantify this fracture geometry so operators will know whether a stimulation treatment is producing the planned fracture dimensions. All that is required is a pressure gauge and a bridge plug on a monitor well; hydraulic fracturing proceeds in the treatment well without downhole tools, downtime, or additional crew. "Instead of monitoring only 5% of their wells with older technologies that are complicated, intrusive, and expensive, operators can now monitor 100% of their wells with our streamlined pressure-based fracture maps," said Sudhendu Kashikar, CEO of Reveal Energy Services. "Our technology guides operators to work with factory mode consistency that increases reservoir contact." The company's project turnaround time continues to decrease significantly. In December, Reveal Energy Services announced the first near real-time DiverterSCANSM technology results, which allowed an operator to quickly identify a diversion design that enhances hydraulic fracturing fluid distribution. The operator is increasing fracturing efficiency by stimulating multiple perforation clusters in its STACK/SCOOP wells. DiverterSCAN technology is one of the company's five services that include: -FracSCANSM technology accurately quantifies 3D fracture maps of half-length, height, and asymmetry -DepletionSCANSM technology identifies the depletion boundary surrounding a parent well -PerfSCANSM technology enables an understanding of pumping rate effects on fluid distribution -ProppantSCANSM technology offers insight into the fluid system and pumping schedule. All five services are powered by IMAGE Frac pressure-based fracture maps that validate the completion design on every well with minimum operational risk and cost. The company is presenting the technology suite in booth 125 during HFTC. About Reveal Energy Services Reveal Energy Services offers simple, accurate, and affordable fracture maps that validate the completion design on every well with minimum operational risk and cost. The flagship IMAGE Frac pressure-based fracture maps with five services offer unparalleled diagnostic insight into completion design effectiveness and well-spacing decisions. Reveal Energy Services was formed as a wholly owned subsidiary of Statoil Technology Invest in January 2016. The company, which is privately held, is funded by Statoil and Lime Rock Partners. For more information, please visit: www.reveal-energy.com . Contact Sudhendu Kashikar [email protected] +1.832.529.1895 SOURCE Reveal Energy Services Related Links http://www.reveal-energy.com DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia today unveiled a first look at the Kingdom's unique data tool for measuring its performance trajectory in relation to other nations. The International Performance Hub (IPH) an interactive platform designed to track over 500 Key Performance Indicators under 12 main pillars that enables comparison for over 200 countries compiles metrics from prominent international bodies, including the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Developed by The National Center for Performance Measurement (Adaa) the International Performance Hub (IPH) is a landmark effort led by Saudi Arabia to encourage countries to use technology and performance data to track their progress as they work to achieve development goals. IPH aims to promote integrity, accountability and transparency in the public sector and beyond. As a demonstration of the commitment with which the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia approaches its 2030 goals, IPH also seeks to provide a credible and 'outside-in' perspective on the Kingdom's evolution along key quantifiable indicators across the socio-economic spectrum comparing progress at every stage to other countries and peer-groups around the world. Regarding the opening of the Benchmark in Davos this week, Mr. Husameddin AlMadani, Director General of the National Center for Performance Measurement said, "Saudi Arabia is undertaking a major multi-year transformation. The ambitious Vision 2030 program touches upon nearly every aspect of the country's performance and looks to make significant progress on the entire socio-economic frontier. As the nation pursues a long list of objectives in its transformation, comparing the country's performance progression against the backdrop of international best practices is crucial." Economist Jacques Attali, President of Positive Planet and the Positive Economy Forum, a data and knowledge partner of the IPH, described the significance of the tool, adding that "The International Performance Hub announces a much-needed tool to foster transparent and positive governance through shared knowledge about the impact of public policies. Its launch in Davos is a very promising beginning, and an opportunity to make it a truly global and collaborative ambition." With today's announcement, Adaa officially launches the beta phase of the International Performance Hub (IPH) in Davos, Switzerland. The final launch of the International Performance hub is awaiting later in 2018. For more details on the International Performance Hub (IPH), please refer to the website: https://iph.sa. THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR PERFORMANCE MEASUREMENT The National Center for Performance Measurement, Adaa, is a leading independent government body that was established in October 2015 upon approval by the Council of Ministers. Adaa is organizationally linked to the Chairman of the Council, King of Saudi Arabia, and aims to measure the performance of public entities within the Kingdom. Adaa aims to build and initialize performance measurement processes in public entities by providing the necessary support through the utilization of unified tools and models that assist public entities in their ability and efficiency to deliver better performance. Adaa also aims to enable public entities by means of effective training and consultation in performance measurement, aiming to drive them to excellence. Additional information may be found at adaa.gov.sa | Twitter: @IPH_SaudiArabia | Instagram: @iph_saudiarabia | Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/IPH_saudiarabia-109728776500600/ Contacts: Alison Patch, +1 949 616 2504, [email protected] SOURCE The National Center for Performance Measurement MOSCOW, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- On the verge of the 4th industrial revolution Russia has unique chances to become a leader in three priority areas: blockchain, quantum and convergent technologies. The development bank creates three world-class competence centers to achieve these goals, said Sergey Gorkov, Vnesheconombank Chairman, at the "Bits+Blocks+Forks" session of the World Economic Forum in Davos. He presented the program of introduction of blockchain in state management. "Blockchain is not a technology, it's a part of the strategic development of the Russian economy. Blockchain Commune is already operating. We expect other two competence centers on quantum and convergent technologies to open in 2018. VEB is focused on supporting and developing the Russian innovation ecosystem, creating national innovation champions and integrating them into global context. There are several directions of this large-scale work: legislative expertise (this year we expect state legislative regulation of blockchain to be developed), creating families of funds to attract investment, and developing an effective system to boost breakthrough startups, primarily in the Russian and Asian markets," Sergey Gorkov said. It is crucial for Russian innovations and non-oil economy to create additional conditions and sources of long-term investments. "VEB is studying the possibilities of investing in direct investment funds together with international partners. These funds will finance projects in the key sectors of the Russian economy. We are cooperating with the largest financial institutions in China and India. The system of decision-making and risk management in such financial institutions significantly differ from traditional banking. We will propose appropriate changes to the memorandum of VEB," said Sergey Gorkov. Earlier Vnesheconombank reached an agreement to create a joint venture company with the largest Indian infrastructure fund SREI. VEB and China Merchants Capital also agreed to finance joint projects as well as to create funds in the field of high technology and innovation. Vnesheconombank's subsidiary VEB Innovations is actively developing venture projects. In addition to traditional forms, like loans, the development bank provides other forms of support, such as acquiring a share in the capital. VEB supports innovative forms of state and business cooperation in introducing high technologies. Millions of people will get access to state services due to blockchain. PRESS OFFICE OF VNESHECONOMBANK SOURCE Vnesheconombank OLOMOUC, Czech Republic, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Scientists from the Palacky University (UP) in Olomouc have discovered a unique mechanism that enables bacteria to defend themselves against silver nanoparticles, which are widely used in antibacterial therapy. This mechanism does not require the bacteria to undergo genetic changes, and differs significantly from mechanisms of antibiotic resistance. The scientists have also found a way to suppress bacterial resistance to nanosilver, which could be crucial in addressing the global antibiotics crisis. The revolutionary discovery was published in January on the cover page of the journal Nature Nanotechnology, arguably the world's most prestigious journal in the nanotechnology field. This is also the first paper published in this journal that was written exclusively by Czech authors. The long-standing overuse of antibiotics during the second half of the last century has caused increasing levels of bacterial antibiotic resistance. Therefore, in recent years, many chemists, microbiologists, and physicians have studied the antibacterial effects of silver nanoparticles, which have gradually become incorporated into dozens of commercial products as well as successful options for local antibiotic therapy and preventing the evolution of bacterial infections. In 2006, scientists from the Palacky University in Olomouc described in detail the effectiveness of silver nanoparticles against a wide range of bacteria including highly resistant strains. This work, published in the American Chemical Society's Journal of Physical Chemistry B, attracted great scientific interest (it has received over 1200 citations) and prompted a flurry of work on nanosilver and its applications. However, scientists and physicians have been unable to determine whether repeated exposure to nanoparticles can cause bacteria to develop resistance similar to that seen with antibiotics. After approximately five years of work, this question has been answered by researchers from the Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials (RCPTM), the Centre of the Region Hana for Biotechnological and Agricultural Research, and the Faculty of Medicine of the Palacky University in Olomouc. "It is well known that silver nanoparticles lose their antimicrobial activity if they come together to form larger particles known as aggregates. We have discovered that flagellar bacteria can exploit this Achilles' heel: upon repeated exposure to nanosilver, they start producing the protein flagellin from their flagella. This protein first reduces the repulsive forces between the nanoparticles and then acts like glue, causing the nanoparticles to stick to one-another and lose their antibacterial properties," said Ales Panacek from RCPTM, the first author of the work, identifying it as a unique resistance mechanism. Unlike antibiotic resistance, however, scientists have discovered a way to counter this problem. "Resistance can be easily overcome by adding substances that suppress the formation and release of flagellin. Suitable substances are found in pomegranate extracts, among other things. If such extracts are applied together with silver nanoparticles, the bacteria do not produce flagellin and therefore lose their resistance to silver nanoparticles," explained Libor Kvitek from RCPTM, who has pioneered nanosilver research at Olomouc. The Czech scientists see the mechanism's discovery as a piece of good news at a time of widespread concern about a global antibiotics crisis. "Every year, hundreds of thousands of people die because antibiotics are losing their effectiveness against bacteria that have developed antibiotic resistance as a result of genetic changes. The surprising resistance mechanism that bacteria develop upon repeated exposure to silver nanoparticles simply proves that the oldest and most widespread organisms on our planet are continually acquiring new weapons in their ongoing struggle with scientists. However, it is important that this mechanism does not have a genetic basis and we can find ways to counter these weapons," said Milan Kolar, the head of the Department of Microbiology at the Medical Faculty of the Palacky University in Olomouc and a leading specialist in the study and treatment of bacterial infections. According to the scientists, silver nanoparticles have a lot more to contribute in the fight against bacterial infections. The team from Olomouc has developed a technology protected by European and American patents that involves using strong chemical bonds to anchor silver nanoparticles to materials such as plastics, metals, and textiles. "This kind of antimicrobial surface treatment prevents the formation of bacterial films, and several companies in Europe have shown interest in its use. We think this is the way forward because the tight binding of silver nanoparticles prevents their aggregation, and hence the occurrence of flagellin-based bacterial resistance, while simultaneously preventing the nanoparticles from being released into the body or the environment," said Radek Zboril, the director of RCPTM and a corresponding author of the work published in Nature Nanotechnology. The scientists from Olomouc have reported several other important results in recent years, describing, among other things, the high activity of silver nanoparticles against yeasts and the possibility of restoring antibiotics' activity against multi-resistant bacteria while simultaneously applying nanosilver at very low concentrations that are non-toxic to mammalian cells. Contact: Radek Zboril / General Director Regional Centre of Advanced Technologies and Materials Slechtitelu 27 78371 Olomouc, Czech Republic Phone: (+420)-775-733-378 Email: [email protected] References: A. Panacek, L. Kvitek, M. Smekalova, R. Vecerova, M. Kolar, M. Roderova, F. Dycka, M. Sebela, R. Prucek, O. Tomanec, and R. Zboril: Bacterial resistance to silver nanoparticles and how to overcome it, NATURE NANOTECHNOLOGY, vol. 13, iss. 1, pp. 65-71, 2018. A. Panacek, M. Kolar, R. Vecerova, R. Prucek, J. Soukupova, V. Krystof, P. Hamal, R. Zboril, and L. Kvitek: Antifungal activity of silver nanoparticles against Candida spp., BIOMATERIALS, vol. 30, iss. 31, pp. 6333-6340, 2009. A. Panacek, L. Kvitek, R. Prucek, M. Kolar, R. Vecerova, N. Pizurova, V. K. Sharma, T. Nevecna, and R. Zboril: Silver colloid nanoparticles: Synthesis, characterization, and their antibacterial activity, JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL CHEMISTRY B, vol. 110, iss. 33, pp. 16248-16253, 2006. A. Panacek, M. Smekalova, R. Vecerova, K. Bogdanova, M. Roderova, M. Kolar, M. Kilianova, S. Hradilova, J. P. Froning, M. Havrdova, R. Prucek, R. Zboril, and L. Kvitek: Silver nanoparticles strongly enhance and restore bactericidal activity of inactive antibiotics against multiresistant Enterobacteriaceae, COLLOIDS AND SURFACES B: BIOINTERFACES, vol. 142, pp. 392-399, 2016. R. Zboril, J. Soukupova, Method of immobilization of silver nanoparticles on solid substrates, patents: US 9505027, EP2701515. A. Panacek, L. Kvitek, R. Prucek, M. Kolar and R. Zboril, Antibiotic preparation and use thereof, patent: EP2950804. SOURCE Palacky University WALTHAM, Mass., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Skyhawk Therapeutics, Inc. ("Skyhawk"), a new private company focused on the discovery and development of small molecule therapeutics that correct RNA expression, today announced the close of $8 million in seed funding led by major family and biotech investors, including Tim Disney, the Duke of Bedford, Alexandria Venture Investments, and other undisclosed private investors. Proceeds of the financing will advance Skyhawk's portfolio of specific and selective small molecules that initially target RNA exon skipping, which drives a set of 50+ diseases that include both broad-based neurological conditions and previously "undruggable" oncogenes in cancer. "We are pleased be working with leading investors to advance our mission of revolutionizing disease treatment with small molecules that correct RNA expression," said founding investor and executive chairman of Skyhawk's board of directors, Bill Haney. "The Skyhawk team has spent the last 12 months building an expansive intellectual property base covering its unique drug discovery tools and small molecule library portfolio. The company's first drug candidate targets a set of exon-skipping-driven cancer indications, and we are focusing our energy on driving it into the clinic in 2019." Initially, Skyhawk is targeting diseases driven by a type of RNA mis-splicing called "exon skipping," where key regions on the RNA are left out during the RNA splicing process. Skyhawk's proprietary technology enables the rational design of small molecules that target specific binding pocket regions on RNA, using both sequence and structural specificity, at particular moments in the RNA splicing process. By doing so, they reverse the mis-splicing and treat the disease. "The ability to use small molecule therapeutics to selectively target RNA and correct RNA expression is potentially transformative," said Catherine Nuccio of Alexandria Venture Investments. "The technology has now moved beyond proof of concept and is applicable in a range of diseases for the benefit of a broad base of patients. We are excited to seed and support the team that helped to develop the initial technology and its mechanisms." There are 50+ known diseases driven by exon skipping, from broad based neurological conditions to major cancers, and hundreds more driven by similar forms of RNA mis-expression. Skyhawk Founders and Board of Directors Skyhawk founders and founding board of directors include: William Haney , Skyhawk co-founder and executive chairman of the Skyhawk board of directors, and co-founder and CEO of Dragonfly Therapeutics. Bill is currently CEO of Dragonfly Therapeutics, a Boston -based biotech that develops novel first-in-class therapeutics targeted at natural killer (NK) cells and other cells of the innate immune system. He is an investor and entrepreneur, having started or helped start more than a dozen technology companies. , Skyhawk co-founder and executive chairman of the Skyhawk board of directors, and co-founder and CEO of Dragonfly Therapeutics. Bill is currently CEO of Dragonfly Therapeutics, a -based biotech that develops novel first-in-class therapeutics targeted at natural killer (NK) cells and other cells of the innate immune system. He is an investor and entrepreneur, having started or helped start more than a dozen technology companies. Kathleen McCarthy , Skyhawk co-founder and CEO. Kathleen is a leading expert in developing small molecules to target RNA splicing. As a pre-clinical scientist at the Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Foundation in New York and at Roche in Basel, Switzerland , Kathleen helped bring the first-ever small molecule therapeutic targeting mRNA-protein interactions to clinical trials in SMA. She is a co-inventor and co-author on numerous patents and publications describing small molecules that specifically and selectively target RNA expression. , Skyhawk co-founder and CEO. Kathleen is a leading expert in developing small molecules to target RNA splicing. As a pre-clinical scientist at the Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Foundation in and at Roche in , Kathleen helped bring the first-ever small molecule therapeutic targeting mRNA-protein interactions to clinical trials in SMA. She is a co-inventor and co-author on numerous patents and publications describing small molecules that specifically and selectively target RNA expression. Kevin Koch , Skyhawk founding board member, venture partner with OrbiMed Advisors, LLC and President and CEO of Edgewise Therapeutics. Dr. Koch was formerly SVP of Drug Discovery: Chemical and Molecular Therapeutics at Biogen, where he managed global drug discovery and immunology. He was the co-founder of Array BioPharma, where he oversaw the invention of over 20 clinical development candidates, and has held senior positions at Amgen Inc. and Pfizer Central Research. , Skyhawk founding board member, venture partner with OrbiMed Advisors, LLC and President and CEO of Edgewise Therapeutics. Dr. Koch was formerly SVP of Drug Discovery: Chemical and Molecular Therapeutics at Biogen, where he managed global drug discovery and immunology. He was the co-founder of Array BioPharma, where he oversaw the invention of over 20 clinical development candidates, and has held senior positions at Amgen Inc. and Pfizer Central Research. Andrew Boyd , Skyhawk founding board member and Fidelity Head of Global Equity Capital Markets. Andrew is head of Global Equity Capital Markets at Fidelity Management & Research Company, where he leads the private equity investments across the Fidelity funds. In this role he has been at the forefront of technology development, and has been a leading investor in firms such as Uber, Snapchat and SpaceX. , Skyhawk founding board member and Fidelity Head of Global Equity Capital Markets. Andrew is head of Global Equity Capital Markets at Fidelity Management & Research Company, where he leads the private equity investments across the Fidelity funds. In this role he has been at the forefront of technology development, and has been a leading investor in firms such as Uber, Snapchat and SpaceX. Andrew Bedford , Skyhawk founding board member, technology investor and Duke of Bedford, England . Andrew currently manages a broad portfolio of London properties, and, as the 15th Duke of Bedford, England , serves as a British nobleman and peer. He is an investor and board member in numerous companies with 30+ years' experience in international real estate and technology. Skyhawk Founding Scientific Advisory Board Skyhawk's founding scientific advisory board (SAB) is comprised of scientists with expertise in RNA-based disease and neurological conditions, mechanisms of RNA splicing, alternative splicing regulation in cancer, DNA replication and RNA structural biology. Members include: Friedrich Metzger , founding chairman of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board and former Head of Discovery Rare Diseases at Roche. Dr. Metzger is a leading scientist in RNA-based disease and neurological conditions. At Roche, Dr. Metzger spent 15 years running drug discovery programs for Alzheimer's, ALS, Parkinson's, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). He is the senior author on the Science and Nature papers describing the first small molecules that could specifically and selectively target RNA expression. , founding chairman of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board and former Head of Discovery Rare Diseases at Roche. Dr. Metzger is a leading scientist in RNA-based disease and neurological conditions. At Roche, Dr. Metzger spent 15 years running drug discovery programs for Alzheimer's, ALS, Parkinson's, Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy and Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA). He is the senior author on the Science and Nature papers describing the first small molecules that could specifically and selectively target RNA expression. Jacqueline A. Lees , founding member of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board, Associate Director of the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, and Professor of Biology at MIT . Dr. Lees is a leading scientist in cancer cell cycle regulation and alternative splicing regulation in cancer. Her research focuses on metastasis and personalized medicine, and the genetic causes of cancer. , founding member of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board, Associate Director of the Koch Institute for Integrative Cancer Research, and Professor of Biology at . Dr. Lees is a leading scientist in cancer cell cycle regulation and alternative splicing regulation in cancer. Her research focuses on metastasis and personalized medicine, and the genetic causes of cancer. Adrian Krainer , founding member of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board, member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, and Professor at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Dr. Krainer is a world expert on the role of mRNA splicing proteins in cancer, and neurological and rare diseases. His lab is leading the understanding of mechanisms of RNA splicing, and the means by which faulty splicing can be corrected. , founding member of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board, member of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, and Professor at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory. Dr. Krainer is a world expert on the role of mRNA splicing proteins in cancer, and neurological and rare diseases. His lab is leading the understanding of mechanisms of RNA splicing, and the means by which faulty splicing can be corrected. Steven Bell , founding member of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board, Investigator at Howard Hughes Medical Institute, member of the National Academy of Sciences, and Professor of Biology at MIT . Dr. Bell is a leading scientist in the study of DNA replication, with an emphasis on how assembly of enzymes is regulated during the cell cycle to ensure genomic maintenance. , founding member of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board, Investigator at Howard Hughes Medical Institute, member of the National Academy of Sciences, and Professor of Biology at . Dr. Bell is a leading scientist in the study of DNA replication, with an emphasis on how assembly of enzymes is regulated during the cell cycle to ensure genomic maintenance. Frederic Allain, founding member of the Skyhawk scientific advisory board and Professor/Head of the Institute of Molecular Biology and Biophysics at ETH, Zurich, Switzerland . Dr. Allain is a leading scientist in the role of RNA in disease and the use of NMR technology to elucidate the structure of protein RNA complexes. He and his team are expert in the use of biophysical tools to study protein RNA interactions and mRNA splicing regulation, with a focus on the segment of genetic diseases that originate from post-transcriptional misregulation of gene expression often caused by splicing, RNA editing or translation defects. "Skyhawk's founding team has unique depth of experience in this growing area of small molecule therapeutic development." said Tim Disney, founding investor in Skyhawk. "To support their mission we put together a long-term, science-focused group of investors, who share their humility in the face of this great opportunity, and a strong interest on getting drugs to patients, quickly." About Skyhawk Skyhawk Therapeutics is a drug discovery and development company focused on revolutionizing disease treatment with small molecules that correct RNA expression. Our founders are leading experts in small molecule therapeutics development for RNA-based disease. Our first drug candidates are targeted towards cancers and neurological conditions. The company is based in Waltham, Massachusetts. For more information, please visit: www.skyhawktx.com. Media Contact: Maura McCarthy 617.858.0041 [email protected] SOURCE Skyhawk Therapeutics, Inc. Related Links http://www.skyhawktx.com LOS ANGELES, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- cheero USA has released the second generation Sleepion on IndieGoGo. Sleepion 2 helps you sleep easier and deeper by inducing sleep the natural way with Aromatherapy, Calm Music and Healing Sounds all in one device. Sleepion 2 is a tool designed to relax your brain through your three basic senses to let you fall asleep naturally, easily and deeply. Sleepion 2: Gadget that will take you to deep sleep. No more sleeping pills, SLEEP NATURALLY Sleepion 2 influences your three basic senses. Healing Sound, Calm Light and Aromatherapy heighten the quality of your sleep. Sleepion 2 is a healthy alternative to sleep medication which has troubled patients and healthcare practitioners for decades. Doctors and sleep specialists are thrilled to see a portable and holistic product that finally incorporates the multiple senses using proven techniques for relaxing the mind. The combination of aromatherapy, calming light, and healing sounds in Sleepion 2 relaxes the mind into a deeper non-REM (Stage 4) sleep states. Most sleep specialists agree, sensory stimulation directly affects the quality of one's sleep, including our sight, hearing, and smell. Sleepion 2 is the first device to directly target these three senses to allow you to naturally relax and prepare your body and mind for the most restful sleep of your life. Sleepion 2 Development Sleepion 2 is developed in cooperation with Osaka University Professor Norinaga Shimizu, who practiced sleep and health for over 30 years. Aromatherapy One of the most recommended methods for natural sleep. Aromatherapy is an essential component to fall asleep naturally. Scents calm the mind and relax your body to accept deep sleep. Many studies show that the scent of Lavender helps you sleep better. Sleepion 2 aromatherapy uses aromatized rings that insert easily into the top of Sleepion 2. It comes with Lavender, Hinoki (Japanese Cypress), Geranium and a Blank unscented ring as well to allow users to add their favorite essential oil. Light - Fluctuating light of 1/f frequency relaxes and heals your mind. According sleep studies, 2700 Kelvin in color temperature and 35% in luminance is the optimal range for sleep. Sleepion 2 has a 2,500 kelvin watt lightbulb that simulates the pulsing of a candle and the light of the moon, regulating biological rhythms and inducing a state of deep sleep. Sound Natural healing sound that relaxes your brain for a good night sleep. Audio impulse has a strong, sleep-inducing power and aids healing during your sleep. Sleepion 2 is equipped with 18 originally developed audio tracks with fluctuation inherent to nature which induces a healing effect during your sleep. Visit the Sleepion 2 IndieGoGo page for more information (https://igg.me/at/sleepion), or at Sleepion website http://sleepion.com/en/ About Cheero USA Cheero USA (https://cheerousa.com/) is a TRA-owned (www.tra.co.jp/e/) company and specializes in high-quality, aesthetically-pleasing mobile battery chargers. In Japan, Cheero is one of the top manufacturers of mobile battery chargers in Japan. Last year the company broadened its family of technology products with Sleepion. This year, they unveiled their latest product, Sleepion 2, which is customizable, offers a variety of music choices, and is a portable source of relaxation and comfort. Media Contacts: Hernan Palma | cheero USA| [email protected] | 323-546-3505 SOURCE cheero USA Related Links https://cheerousa.com BALTIMORE, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- As the nation's leading supplemental education resource and enrichment program provider, Sylvan Learning is proud to have added 49 franchisees to its growing system in 2017 as it looks ahead to 2018 with its sights set on signing over 100 transactions. "Sylvan has a long history of being a visionary in the education franchise industry, and our continued focus on building our curriculum and constantly looking for ways to stay ahead of the technology curve makes us an appealing brand for franchise candidates. Prospects interested in opening a Sylvan are drawn to the variety of programs that we provide for students of all levels and ages while actually making a difference in the communities in which they work and live," said Sylvan Learning CEO John McAuliffe. "We're looking forward to welcoming new franchisees into our growing family who understand the benefits of having a diversified revenue stream that helps to increase their bottom line, while also having the lowest all-in royalty fee in the industry." In 2016, Sylvan launched a new license agreement, and in 2017, the brand implemented changes to its operating requirements at franchise locations by focusing on delivering the best educational programs, building the best business model, leading the market, enhancing the brand and growing the franchise system across multiple states including Florida, Pennsylvania, Colorado, California and Virginia. The company also closed out the year with the opening of 14 new centers in 11 untapped territories, while the brand transferred ownership of 50 centers. The natural progression of a 37-year-old system has led to the retirement of many original franchisees, selling their existing locations to a second generation of Sylvan franchisees. In total, the company welcomed 49 new franchisees into the system in 2017. "One of the reasons that someone would want to buy a Sylvan franchise would be to not only have a lasting, positive effect on their community, but to also create a comfortable lifestyle for oneself, and to be able to one day retire and leave a legacy," said Georgia Chasen, Sylvan Learning's Director of Franchise Development. "As the anticipated evolution of the system has led to the retirement of some of our original franchisees, we welcome the ability to introduce new franchisees into communities where Sylvan has had a lasting presence and offers highly regarded programming for all students." In 2017, Sylvan successfully positioned itself for further international expansion, inking a deal to open in Saudi Arabia. The company partnered with Haitham Ahmed, an educator who wanted to bring the opportunity for a Sylvan education to young students in Saudi Arabia. He first encountered the brand while studying in Canada and enrolled his son in the local Sylvan center. Ahmed saw noticeable, positive changes in his son, including improved confidence, which left a lasting impact on the family and inspired him to bring the brand to his native country. Like many other Sylvan franchisees, this is a family affair. Haitham's wife and brother join him on the license, with their first location expected to open in the first quarter of 2018. "With our recent expansion into Saudi Arabia and Vietnam, we will continue to focus on international expansion in countries that place high importance on education, and our 2018 strategic plan includes a major growth initiative across America. We've even hired a new franchise development director based in California to help increase our presence coast-to-coast from our Maryland headquarters," said McAuliffe. "With our dedicated staff out in the field meeting with candidates, we know that we have put the right plan in place to increase our national footprint, and our team will be working diligently on the path to signing deals for more than 100 locations this year." In 2018, the brand is building on its momentum to increase its presence across North America with a significant focus on major metropolises. The brand is focusing its national development in major cities including Pittsburgh, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago, Orlando, Tampa, Atlanta, Washington, D.C., and New York City. To learn more about Sylvan franchising, visit sylvanfranchise.com. About Sylvan Learning, Inc. With more than 35 years of experience and more than 750 locations across the world, Sylvan Learning is the leading provider of personal learning for students in grades K-12. Sylvan is transforming how students learn, inspiring them to succeed in school and in life. Sylvan's proven tutoring approach blends amazing teachers with SylvanSync technology on the iPad for an engaging learning experience. Sylvan also leads the way with Sylvan EDGESTEM and accelerated courses and Sylvan Prep college and test prep courses. Sylvan supports families through every stage of the academic journey. For more information, visit www.SylvanLearning.com or SylvanLearning.com/blog. MEDIA CONTACT: Lauren Kaminski No Limit Agency 312.526.3996 [email protected] SOURCE Sylvan Learning Related Links http://www.SylvanLearning.com NEW YORK, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Another talcum powder lawsuit is heading to trial, as jury selection for a case involving the alleged link between Johnson & Johnson's talc-based powders and a deadly form of cancer called mesothelioma began earlier this month in New Jersey's Middlesex County Superior Court. The Plaintiff, a 46-year-old man from Verona, New Jersey, alleges that his frequent and long-term use of Johnson & Johnson talcum powders "generated dust and exposed him to respirable asbestos fibers." He further asserts that company officials had long-known that the talc used to manufacturer Johnson & Johnson's Baby Powder and Shower-to-Shower contained asbestos, yet they allegedly failed to issue any warnings out of a desire to protect the profits associated those products. (Case No. MID-L-7385-16) "We will be monitoring this trial closely, as our firm is currently representing a number of women who claim that Johnson & Johnson also concealed evidence linking Baby Powder and Shower-to Shower to ovarian cancer," says Sandy A. Liebhard, a partner at Bernstein Liebhard LLP, a nationwide law firm representing victims of defective medical devices, drugs and consumer products. The Firm is offering free legal reviews to women who were diagnosed with ovarian cancer that may be associated Johnson & Johnson's talc-based powders. Talcum Powder Ovarian Cancer Lawsuits Johnson & Johnson is currently named a defendant in more than 5,500 talcum powder lawsuits, all of which were filed on behalf of women who allegedly developed ovarian cancer due to their long-term use of the company's talc-based powders for feminine hygiene purposes. Plaintiffs pursuing these lawsuits point to a number of studies published since the 1970s that linked the regular and repeated application of talcum powder to the female genital to an increased risk for the often-deadly disease. Their complaints also cite internal Johnson & Johnson documents that allegedly show that company officials were aware of this evidence but chose not to warn consumers in order to protect profits derived from sales of its Baby Powder and Shower-to-Shower franchises. Missouri's 22nd Circuit Court in St. Louis houses one of the nation's largest talcum powder litigations. Since February 2015, juries there have awarded plaintiffs in four talcum powder lawsuits compensatory and punitive damages amounting to $110 million, $70 million, $72 million and $55 million. (Case No. 1422-CC09326-01) The $72 million verdict was dismissed in October, after a Missouri appeals court found that the state lacked jurisdiction over the case. In December, however, a state court judge rejected Johnson & Johnson's bid to overturn the $110 million judgment, after finding that the defendants' use of a Missouri-based company to label, package and distribute their talc products made jurisdiction appropriate. California completed its first talcum powder ovarian cancer trial in September, when a Los Angeles Superior Court jury awarded the plaintiff $417 million, including $340 million in punitive damages. However, that verdict was later dismissed by the trial judge. (Case No. BC628228) Women who were diagnosed with ovarian cancer following the long-term use of talc-based powder for feminine hygiene purposes may be eligible to file their own talcum powder lawsuit. To learn more, please visit Bernstein Liebhard LLP's website, or call 800-511-5092 to arrange for a free, no obligation case review. About Bernstein Liebhard LLP Bernstein Liebhard LLP is a New York-based law firm exclusively representing injured persons in complex individual and class action lawsuits nationwide since 1993. As a national law firm, Bernstein Liebhard LLP possesses all of the legal and financial resources required to successfully challenge billion dollar pharmaceutical and medical device companies. As a result, our attorneys and legal staff have been able to recover more than $3.5 billion on behalf of our clients. Bernstein Liebhard LLP is honored to once again be named to The National Law Journal's "Plaintiffs' Hot List," recognizing the top plaintiffs' firms in the country. This year's nomination marks the thirteenth year the firm has been named to this prestigious annual list. Bernstein Liebhard LLP 10 East 40th Street New York, New York 10016 800-511-5092 ATTORNEY ADVERTISING. 2018 Bernstein Liebhard LLP. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Bernstein Liebhard LLP, 10 East 40th Street, New York, New York 10016, 800-511-5092. Prior results do not guarantee or predict a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. Contact Information: Sandy A. Liebhard, Esq. Bernstein Liebhard LLP info (at)consumerinjurylawyers(dot)com http://www.rxinjuryhelp.com/ https://plus.google.com/115936073311125306742?rel=author SOURCE Bernstein Liebhard LLP Related Links http://www.bernlieb.com GoforIsrael addresses current issues in capital markets, and provides a forum for the establishment and advancement of strategic global alliances between Israeli businesses, companies and financial institutions. The Conference will showcase the best innovation coming out of Israel on an international level, in areas such as IT, Healthcare and Life Sciences, cyber security, media, energy, advanced manufacturing, autotech, and more. Edouard Cukierman, Chairman of Cukierman Investment House and Managing Partner of Catalyst CEL China Israel Fund: "The conference is a great opportunity to meet the leading Israeli entrepreneurs and investors in one place. Israeli technology companies will benefit from pre-organized meetings with potential investors, and the opportunity to present their technologies on stage. We expect to have continuous 1:1 meetings between investors and entrepreneurs during and following the conference". GoforIsrael 2018 will host key decision makers, business representatives and leading entrepreneurs. The conference expects to welcome hundreds of VCs and PE Funds as well as other investors. The Chairman of the conference will be Mr. Ronnie Chan, Chairman of Hang Lung Properties, one of China's biggest real-estate firms and Co-Founder of Morningside, Chan's family philanthropy foundation. Chan is one of the key speakers in the conference, among a long list of senior speakers, including: Yair Shamir - Former Minister of Agriculture of Israel and Managing Partner of Catalyst Fund, Yossi Vardi - Chairman International Technologies, Dr Sophie Kornowski-Bonnet - Head of Roche Partnering, Roche, Ziva Eger - Chief Executive, Foreign Investments - Ministry of Economy and Industry, Israel, Chen Shuang - Executive Director and CEO China Everbright Limited, Sean Epstein - Head of Private Equity SAP, Jean-Louis Bruguiere, former head of the French national anti-terrorism division, David Braun - Head of Medical Device Business Merck Group, Roger Cukierman - Board Member, Cukierman & Co, former CEO Rothschild, and many other leading business leaders and decision makers. For the Conference Agenda: GoforIsrael This year's conference panels will address issues such as: Israel M&A; Marketing strategies for Israeli companies in China; Investments and business between Israel and Europe; Investment in Israeli technology, including MedTech and BioTech companies and the Image of Israel abroad. Elevator pitches of selected innovative Israeli companies will be held during the course of the conference. These companies will be given the opportunity to present their products and solutions to potential partners and investors, in the fields of technology, media, telecom and life sciences. The GoforIsrael Achievement Prize will be awarded to a senior personality, to honor their contribution to strengthen Israeli hi-tech. Cukierman & Co. Investment House is the leading Israeli Cross-Border focused investment house, with a strong global network including many leading corporations, investors and financial institutions in key markets such as China and Europe. Headquartered in Israel, the company provides a full array of investment banking services including M&A, Private Placements, Public Offerings, Consulting and Family Office Services to Israeli, Chinese and European companies. With over 5.5 billion US $ in transactions completed, Cukierman & Co. has one of the largest Corporate Finance team in Israel with dedicated experts in the Life Sciences, Technologies, Media & Telecom (TMT), Green Technologies and Real Estate industries. Catalyst is a top performing Israeli based private equity multi-fund firm founded in 1999. With over US$250 million under management, Catalyst funds support capital and long-term growth of innovative Israeli middle-market companies in global markets. Catalyst assists portfolio companies in reaching their goals by leveraging the partners' Israeli and international network. Catalyst has invested in innovative companies and has a diversified portfolio, including companies from the Industrials, Telecommunications, Information Technologies, Enterprise Software, Medical Devices and Bio/Pharma industries. For further information visit: GoforIsrael CONTACT: Adi Braunshtain, marketing director, Cukierman Investment House, [email protected]. Moshe Mendelson, POSITIVE PR, [email protected] +972-37756333 SOURCE Cukierman & Co. Investment House Ltd. and Catalyst Funds Related Links https://goforisrael.com/ NEW YORK, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A highlight of any trip to Manhattan is seeing the area from afar. The skyline of Manhattan and all of New York City is one of the most admired in the world, and many tourists want to know where they can get the best view of it all. Liberty Cruise NYC, which offers cruises through the New York Harbor, has found that the view of Manhattan from the water is as good as it gets. See Ellis Island on a Liberty Cruise Blair Nicole, the PR Director for Liberty Cruise NYC says, "There's no better way to see the city than from a cruise. The water gives you a peaceful atmosphere and lets you see the entire area in the same way that immigrants would have in centuries past." When Liberty Cruise NYC surveyed customers to see what they enjoyed most about their cruise, a few important reasons stood out above the rest. If tourists are interested in getting some amazing pictures or just taking in the beauty of Manhattan, a cruise is worth considering. See It All Manhattan is home to many breathtaking landmarks, but it's difficult to get a great view of all of them when getting around on land. The Empire State Building, the World Trade Center, Times Square, the Statue of Liberty and the Brooklyn Bridge, are just a few of the must-sees. When touring the city from the water, seeing everything is a breeze. On a cruise, visitors get a chance to check out all the important sights from the ideal viewpoint. It Has a Peaceful Ambiance Manhattan is packed full of people, and while the hustle and bustle is part of its charm, it's not the most relaxing place to be. And to get anywhere, there's the issue of fighting the crowds or the traffic. It can make tourists feel like seeing everything is a battle of attrition. The experience is entirely different out on the water, so there won't be any dealing with any crowds, and instead, there will only be the other people on the boat. The rocking of the water is relaxing, and cruisers get to see the entire city without lifting a finger or navigating anywhere yourself. It's How Many Immigrants First Came to the United States In the 19th and 20th centuries, the most common way for immigrants to reach the United States was by boat, and they'd see New York as their ships approached Ellis Island. Of course, the city looked very different in those days than it does now. Although the city has changed and tourists will be taking a much different type of boat ride, it's still interesting to see the city as many ancestors first did. It's an experience that can bring about a vivid mix of emotions and make guests appreciate Manhattan's rich history. For more information on seeing Manhattan from the water, please visit Liberty Cruise NYC. Interview requests and press inquiries should be directed to Media Moguls PR at [email protected]. About Liberty Cruise: Liberty Cruise is a cruise company based in New York. The company offers its signature Liberty Cruise package and combination packages that also feature bus tours of the city. SOURCE Liberty Cruise LONDON, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- This market research report provides the market size and detail segmentation analysis of the global earphones and headphones market by Type (In-ear, On-ear, Over-ear) by Technology (Wired Headphones, Wireless Headphones) by Features (Smart Headphones, Non-smart Headphones) by Geography (North America, APAC, Europe, MEA, Latin America) Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5289128 The global earphones and headphones market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 7.31% during 20172023 and cross $20 billion in revenue by 2023. As mobile devices are getting affordable, the demand for entry-level headphones is also increasing globally. On the other hand, there is also a huge demand for specialized, high-end, best sound quality earphones and headphones. Beats Electronics, Bose, Sennheiser, Sony, and Skullcandy are the leading players in the market. The market research report provides a holistic view of the global earphones and headphones market, the companies involved in the market, and the factors driving its growth. It also provides information on some of the latest trends that have started to surface and are likely to become strong market driving forces over the next five years. This industry analysis report also provides the Porter's Five Forces analysis along with a description of each force and its impact on the market. Further, the report also provides complete value chain analysis of the market. Earphones and Headphones Market: Key Manufacturer Analysis There are more than 3,000 companies engaged in manufacturing of earphones and headphones. Although, most of these companies are small scale and has limited market research, there are many multinational, global companies which are engaged in designing and manufacturing. The top five manufacturers, Beats, Bose, Sennheiser, Sony, and Skullcandy have two-thirds of the global market share in terms of value and 50% of the market share in terms of volume. The major manufacturers included in the report, are as follows: Beats Electronics Bose Sennheiser Sony Skullcandy Other prominent manufacturers include AIAIAI, AKG Acoustics, Apple, Audio-Technica Corp., Beyerdynamic, Creative Technology., Denon, Grado Labs, The House of Marley, Jays AB, JBL, JVCKenwood, Logitech International, Molami, Monster Cable Products, Panasonic, Parrot, Pioneer, Shure Incorporated, SMS Audio, Sol Republic, Urbanears, and Westone Laboratories. Earphones and Headphones Market: Dynamics Affordable technological sophistication to propel market growth Rising demand for new technology, increasing sophistication in earphones and headphones, growing interoperability with smartphones and tablets, and growing increased partnerships with mobile device manufacturers are likely to propel the growth of the global market. Increased disposable income, enhanced technological awareness, and growth of multi-faceted consumer requirements have contributed to the growth of the global earphones and headphones market over the last decade and is expected to propel the market growth in the future. Earphones and Headphones Market: Segmental Analysis Innovators and early adopters to facilitate market growth Currently, the wired headphones segment leads the global market with 59% share compared to 41% by the wireless technology segment. This is, however, expected to change over the next few years, making the wireless segment the pre-dominant market segment. The smart and non-smart earphones segments are expected to follow a similar trend to the wired and wireless segments. Currently, the non-smart segment, which is leading the market, is expected to lose its market share to the smart devices segment over the next few years. Analysts at Arizton also anticipate innovators and early adopters, who are highly social, tech-savvy, affluent, young, and close to new scientific inventions to be the largest consumers of the technologically advanced and multi-faceted wireless headphones in the future Another segment of potential users is the people who use them while running or doing workout to keep themselves boosted and energized. The rise in the health conscious and fitness-aware population and the increased number of gym goers are also expected to aid the growth of the market globally. Earphones and Headphones Market: Geographical Analysis Latin American market to witness growth at a rate faster than other markets in terms of shipment In terms of volume (shipment) and value (revenue), the European market is strongly influenced by the popularity of music in Western Europe and Scandinavian countries. The penetration of smart headsets is high in these countries as they are technologically advanced. The second largest market, in terms of volume (shipment) and value (revenue), is the North American market that is heavily influenced by technology adoption in the US. The APAC market is driven by high population and increased disposable income of the middle-class population, which is prominent in developing countries in the region. Developed countries such as Japan and South Korea are considered as innovators in the market. The MEA market is witnessing a surge, and the demand for earphones and headphones that are noise cancelling specific are expected to significantly rise among audiophiles who are increasing in the region in the future. The Latin America market is expected to grow more quickly than the overall global earphones and headphones market in terms of shipment, which is closely linked to device adoption growth. Rising demand for technologically advanced and sophisticated earphones & headphones is likely to push the growth in the earphones and headphones market worldwide. The global earphones & headphones market size is expected to cross $20 billion by 2023, growing at an impressive CAGR of 7.31% over 2017-2023. Report Timeline Base Year: 2017 Forecast Year: 20182023 The major manufacturers included in the report are as follows: Beats Electronics Bose Sennheiser Sony Skullcandy Other prominent manufacturers include AIAIAI, AKG Acoustics, Apple, Audio-Technica Corp., Beyerdynamic, Creative Technology., Denon, Grado Labs, The House of Marley, Jays AB, JBL, JVCKenwood, Logitech International, Molami, Monster Cable Products, Panasonic, Parrot, Pioneer, Shure Incorporated, SMS Audio, Sol Republic, Urbanears, and Westone Laboratories. Scope of the Report The report considers the present scenario of the earphones and headphones market and its dynamics for the period 2018?2023. It covers a detailed overview of various market growth enablers, restraints and trends. It covers both the demand and supply sides of the market. The report also profiles and analyzes the leading companies and other prominent companies operating in the market. This report provides the details of the market size from the following segments: 1. Revenue 2. Shipment This market research report includes a detailed market segmentation of the market by the following segments: Type In-ear On-ear Over-ear Technology Wired Headphones Wireless Headphones Features Smart Non-smart Geography North America APAC Europe MEA Latin America Country China US UK Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5289128 About Reportbuyer Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers For more information: Sarah Smith Research Advisor at Reportbuyer.com Email: [email protected] Tel: +1 (718) 213 4904 Website: www.reportbuyer.com SOURCE ReportBuyer Related Links http://www.reportbuyer.com This funding will support international, multi-institutional, cross-disciplinary teams of scientists conducting highly innovative research with the highest potential for accelerating new and improved treatments for advanced prostate cancer. Each award-winning team received $1 million and will join 14 previously announced 2017 Challenge Award recipients in the PCF research portfolio. "Of the eight teams awarded, six are investigating novel precision drug discovery for advanced cancers and two are accelerating treatment science in precision diagnosis and imaging of prostate cancer," said Jonathan W. Simons, MD, president and chief executive officer, PCF. "We are highly optimistic that the research performed by these teams will lead to significant advances in precision medicine treatment for prostate cancer and improve and extend the lives of men with advanced disease." The winning teams were selected from a pool of 92 international applications following a rigorous peer review process that assessed each project's scientific merit and potential impact to patients. The PCF Challenge Awards are highly coveted. As part of PCF's commitment to accelerating innovation and supporting the career development of young investigators, teams are required to include at least three investigators, one of whom must be within six years of completing a research or medical training program. The following teams are award recipients: Targeting CBP/p300 to Suppress Oncogenic Transcription Factors in Advanced Prostate Cancer (exploring of the role of the gene expression regulator CBP/p300 in prostate cancer and its potential as a therapeutic target) Team Leaders: Karen Knudsen, PhD (Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center at Thomas Jefferson University), Johann de Bono, MD, PhD (The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust), and Myles Brown, MD (Harvard: Dana Farber Cancer Institute) Clinical, Environmental, Genetic and Genomic Profile of Men with Early-Onset Lethal Prostate Cancer (identifying clinical and molecular predictors of early-onset, imminently lethal prostate cancer) Team Leaders: Maha Hussain, MD (Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer of Northwestern University), Edward Schaeffer, MD, PhD (Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer of Northwestern University), Joshua Meeks, MD, PhD (Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer of Northwestern University; Jesse Brown VA Medical Center), Roohollah Sharifi, MD (Jesse Brown VA Medical Center), Scott Tomlins MD, PhD (University of Michigan), and Philip Palmbos, MD, PhD (University of Michigan) Synthetic Essential Approach to Identify Novel Therapeutic Targets for Prostate Cancer (identifying novel precision medicine drug targets that are effective in prostate cancers with certain mutations) Team Leaders: Ronald DePinho, MD, Yoaqi Alan Wang, PhD, and Glen Traver Hart, PhD (all of The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center) Characterizing Mechanisms of Sensitivity and Resistance to Anti-Androgen Therapy with Whole-Body Molecular Imaging (evaluating two new prostate cancer PET imaging methods, F-18 PSMA and FDHT, for their prognostic value, clinical utility, and ability to demonstrate tumor heterogeneity) Team Leaders: Michael Morris, MD (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center), Steven Larson, MD (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center), and Jens Voortman, MD, PhD (VUmc Cancer Center Amsterdam) CEACAM5-Directed Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cell Therapy for Lethal Neuroendocrine Prostate Cancer (developing a novel CAR T cell therapy for the treatment of neuroendocrine prostate cancer) Team Leaders: Owen Witte, MD (University of California, Los Angeles), John Lee, MD, PhD (University of California, Los Angeles), Stephen Forman, MD (City of Hope) and Saul Priceman, PhD (City of Hope) CD46 as a Novel Means to Target Immune Defense Mechanisms and Androgen Pathway Inhibitor Resistance in Metastatic Lethal Prostate Cancer (investigating targeting the immune-regulatory protein CD46 for the treatment of advanced prostate cancer) Team Leader: Eric Small, MD (University of California, San Francisco) Glutamine Metabolism in Prostate Cancer: Preclinical and Clinical Evaluation of Dual Inhibition of Glutaminase and PARP (investigating the therapeutic efficacy of targeting glutamine metabolism pathways for the treatment of prostate cancer) Team Leaders: Richard Lee, MD, PhD and Othon Iliopoulos, MD (both of Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center), and individuals from Massachusetts Institute of Technology Targeting Chemokine Signaling and MAPK/ERK Pathway in Advanced Prostate Cancer (investigating the role of the CXCR7/MAPK/ERK pathway in castrate resistant prostate cancer and the therapeutic efficacy of targeting this pathway) Team leaders: Jindan Yu, MD, PhD (Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer of Northwestern University), Maha Hussain, MD (Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer of Northwestern University), Peter Nelson, MD (Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center) and individuals from the University of Washington and the University of California, Los Angeles. About the Prostate Cancer Foundation The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) is the world's leading philanthropic organization funding and accelerating prostate cancer research. Founded in 1993, PCF has raised more than $740 million and provided funding to more than 2,000 research programs at more than 200 cancer centers and universities. The PCF global research enterprise extends to 19 countries and funds a robust research portfolio. PCF advocates for greater awareness of prostate cancer and more efficient investment of governmental research funds for transformational cancer research. Its efforts have helped produce a 20-fold increase in government funding for prostate cancer. More information about PCF can be found at www.pcf.org. Connect with PCF: Facebook | Twitter | LinkedIn MEDIA CONTACT: Colleen McKenna Prostate Cancer Foundation (310) 570-4722 [email protected] Donald Wilson for the Prostate Cancer Foundation (310) 428-4730 [email protected] SOURCE Prostate Cancer Foundation Related Links http://www.pcf.org NEW YORK, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Tradeworx, Inc. announced today it has sold its trading business in order to focus solely on the continued growth and expansion of the financial technology business of its wholly owned subsidiary, Thesys Technologies, Inc., a leading capital markets provider. As a result, Tradeworx Inc. has changed its name to Thesys Group, Inc. and the former trading business of Tradeworx was established as a separate firm named Blueshift Asset Management (Blueshift). Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The trading business was sold to a group led by Mani Mahjouri, Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer of Blueshift, who previously served as Tradeworx's Chief Investment Officer. As part of the transaction, Blueshift acquired all the trading assets from Tradeworx. Mike Beller, will remain CEO of Thesys Technologies and its holding company Thesys Group Inc., formerly Tradeworx Inc. Mike Beller, Chief Executive Officer of Thesys Group, Inc. said, "As we evolved both our technology and trading businesses over time, we realized it was mutually beneficial to separate the two businesses to maximize their potential. This new corporate structure better aligns with our recent growth as a market structure technology leader within capital markets, while allowing the team at Blueshift Asset Management to focus solely on institutional asset management." Mani Mahjouri, Chief Executive Officer of Blueshift commented, "I want to thank Mike and the entire team at Thesys for the support they've provided to the Blueshift team over the past several years and as we set out to launch our firm. As a standalone entity, we are very excited to have the opportunity to focus entirely on the pursuit of alpha generation on behalf of our investors." The trading business team formerly with Tradeworx is now part of Blueshift, which is based in Red Bank, New Jersey. Thesys Technologies, along with its holding company Thesys Group Inc. will remain in New York with offices in South Carolina. About Thesys Group Inc.: Thesys Group Inc. is a financial technology company headquartered in New York. Thesys Group operates Thesys Technologies, a capital markets technology leader and Thesys CAT LLC, the plan processor for the Consolidated Audit Trail. For more information, please visit the website at www.thesysgroup.com. About Thesys Technologies, LLC: Thesys Technologies, LLC is a capital markets technology leader with a focus on market structure technology, providing high performance trading technologies and big data solutions to financial market participants. Thesys' technology includes pre- and post-trade surveillance tools, low latency trading platforms, matching engines, and big data analytical tools such as those provided to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as the MIDAS system. Thesys Technologies, LLC is headquartered in New York with offices in Charleston, South Carolina. For more information on Thesys Technologies, LLC, please visit the website at www.thesystech.com. About Blueshift Asset Management: Blueshift Asset Management is a quantitative investment management firm headquartered in Red Bank, New Jersey. Led by Mani Mahjouri, a former Tradeworx, Sun Trading, and AQR executive who serves as Blueshift's Chief Executive Officer and Chief Investment Officer, the Firm deploys quantitative research-based trading knowledge to its statistical arbitrage and high-frequency strategies across a range of structures. The team's innovative approach has a 10-year history in statistical arbitrage and an 8-year history in high frequency trading. For more information, please visit the website at https://blueshift.am/. SOURCE Thesys Technologies, LLC Related Links http://www.thesystech.com ST. PETERSBURG, Fla., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- This year's flu season is the most widespread in more than a decade, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, causing concern among travelers who are closely gathered in crowded areas such as airports and planes. Leading travel insurance comparison company, Squaremouth, explains how the flu is covered by travel insurance. To be able to cancel or end a trip early and be paid back travel expenses, travelers need to have a policy in place before getting sick. If a traveler is already sick with the flu, it's too late for insurance. Too Sick to Travel Travelers who come down with the flu before their trip and are too sick to travel can often receive their money back. A doctor's note or medical records showing that the traveler is too sick to travel will be required when making a claim. Travel Companion or Non-Traveling Family Member is Sick A common misconception is that travelers need to be sick themselves to cancel their trip. Travelers can be covered to cancel their trip if a travel companion or family member such as a spouse, parent, child or grandparent has the flu. Too Sick to Continue If a traveler becomes so sick that they can't carry on with their trip, they can claim for the expenses of returning home early and their unused hotel. Treatment While Abroad While it may be well known that Medicare does not provide any coverage abroad, people may not realize that many domestic health insurance policies do not cover them abroad. Travel insurance is designed for this purpose and can pay back travelers for medical treatment while on vacation, as well as provide 24 hour assistance in an emergency. Squaremouth created the Flu Season and Travel Insurance Information Center to explain coverage for the widespread flu outbreak. This page is regularly updated by Squaremouth's travel insurance experts, and includes answers to frequently asked questions and official statements from providers. ABOUT SQUAREMOUTH Squaremouth compares travel insurance policies from every major travel insurance provider in the United States. Using Squaremouth's comparison engine and third-party customer reviews, travelers can research and compare travel insurance policies side-by-side. More information can be found at www.squaremouth.com Available Topic Expert: Carolyn Leckie [email protected] 727-260-5012 SOURCE Squaremouth Related Links http://www.squaremouth.com SPOKANE, Wash., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Triniti Consulting, a Gold level member of Oracle PartnerNetwork, is pleased to announce the successful implementation of Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management, Oracle Utilities Smart Grid Gateway, and Oracle Utilities Service Order Management at Avista Utilities, a provider of energy services and electricity to 379,000 customers, and natural gas to 343,000 customers in Washington, Idaho, and Oregon. The Oracle Utilities solution was selected by Avista in May of 2016 and the implementation has been unique because it involved not only a new implementation of Oracle Utilities Meter Data Management, but also the integration of an existing Oracle Utilities Customer Care and Billing implementation with Oracle Utilities Service Order Management, enabling service order automation. The benefits of aligning the Avista implementation with the fully integrated Oracle meter-to-cash architecture include: Leveraging productized integration models and increasing integration architecture flexibility. Improving system stability while promoting overall system performance. Facilitating accelerated business process improvements. Establishing an integrated system architecture that will simplify the adoption of additional Oracle Utilities functionality into the enterprise. Additionally, Avista determined that the Oracle Utilities integrated customer and meter solution best met their key business case requirements to: Improve customer service and billing accuracy. Decrease customer site visits and increase employee safety. Establish a platform for future smart grid initiatives and programs such as Conservation Voltage Reduction and advanced rate offerings. When asked about the partnership with Triniti, Vice President, Chief Information and Security Officer Jim Kensok had this to say, "Given Avista's long history of innovation, we chose to partner with Triniti because we knew that in order to manage this first-of-its-kind implementation, it would require a highly-experienced team. Despite the complexities of the project, it was executed on time. Equally important it has created the core foundation for future initiatives. It was one of most successful large project implementations that we've ever completed at Avista." Mary Silkworth, Manager of Enterprise Systems, adds, "At Avista, quality of service for our customers is one of the most important aspects of our business. Over the course of our go-live event, and throughout the weeks following go-live, our service quality measures remained consistent. In fact, our customers probably never even knew a system of this magnitude was being implemented. It was an amazingly efficient go-live weekend and the entire Avista / Triniti team accomplished an incredible achievement." Dan Byrnes, Group Vice President, Product Development at Oracle, reiterates this point, "It's exciting to see the partnership of Triniti and Avista embracing the integrated solution strategy that we've been focusing on for several years. We feel that this strategy will offer significant value by enhancing the customer experience and enabling operational efficiencies for our customers. Triniti has positioned Avista well to further benefit from our vision." To learn more about the success of this project or about Triniti Consulting, contact Triniti at [email protected]. About Avista Utilities Avista Utilities is involved in the production, transmission and distribution of energy. We provide energy services and electricity to 379,000 customers and natural gas to 343,000 customers in a service territory that covers 30,000 square miles in eastern Washington, northern Idaho and parts of southern and eastern Oregon, with a population of 1.6 million. Avista Utilities is an operating division of Avista Corp. For more information, please visit www.myavista.com. The Avista logo is a trademark of Avista Corporation. About Triniti Triniti Consulting is a woman-owned consulting firm that provides business-driven technology solutions to address the needs and challenges of the modern, digital utility. Triniti is composed of thought-leaders who not only understand how the industry is developing today but where it is going in the future. This allows Triniti to guide utilities in the best solutions to meet the most complex business requirements of today, while building scalable and adaptable solutions for the future. Triniti has extensive knowledge and experience in key industry processes supported by Oracle Utilities smart grid solutions, including but not limited to, streamlining meter-to-cash processes, promoting customer engagement initiatives, and advancing and optimizing distribution automation. Leveraging industry best practices, breadth of experience integrating with third party applications, and in-depth knowledge of the Oracle Utilities products, Triniti can help utilities of all sizes exceed short and long term strategic objectives. For more information, visit www.triniticonsulting.com About Oracle PartnerNetwork Oracle PartnerNetwork (OPN) is Oracle's partner program that provides partners with a differentiated advantage to develop, sell and implement Oracle solutions. OPN offers resources to train and support specialized knowledge of Oracle's products and solutions and has evolved to recognize Oracle's growing product portfolio, partner base and business opportunity. Key to the latest enhancements to OPN is the ability for partners to be recognized and rewarded for their investment in Oracle Cloud. Partners engaging with Oracle will be able to differentiate their Oracle Cloud expertise and success with customers through the OPN Cloud program an innovative program that complements existing OPN program levels with tiers of recognition and progressive benefits for partners working with Oracle Cloud. To find out more visit: http://www.oracle.com/partners. Trademarks Oracle and Java are registered trademarks of Oracle and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. SOURCE Triniti Consulting, LLC Related Links http://www.triniticonsulting.com Brian brings more than two decades of digital marketing leadership and expertise to the company, including 10 years building and managing high-performance teams at Google, Ebay and Teespring. In this new role, he will focus on extending TUNE's market leading position within the Fortune 1,000, where TUNE's suite of performance marketing solutions help companies find and win new customers at scale. In addition, Brian will oversee the global expansion of the TUNE brand, narrative and go-to-market activities. "Brian is an outstanding leader who knows the marketing world inside and out, and in fact helped create several of the largest and most successful performance marketing programs to date," said Ryan Buma, Chief Commercial Officer at TUNE. "He's played a pivotal role in the creation, execution and expansion of enterprise-focused marketing initiatives that enable us to drive new sales around the world. Not only is he a world-class marketer, but he's also one of the most passionate competitors I've ever met. Brian is the perfect person to lead TUNE marketing efforts." Prior to TUNE, Brian served as Global Director of the eBay Partner Network, eBay's largest paid acquisition channel at the time. At eBay, Brian and his team drove double-digit growth and marketing efficiency gains while simplifying the program for thousands of affiliate publishers. Prior to his work at eBay, Brian was a leader at Google, where his team launched Google's first full-scale affiliate network, Google Affiliate Network (GAN). Under Brian's leadership, GAN managed thousands of affiliate programs that ranged from the world's largest retailers and credit card issuers to self-service advertisers, and launched the original beta platform for what has evolved into Google's Product Listing Ads. While at Google, his team helped grow top-line revenue more than 30 percent year over year, and drove over $1B in online retail sales through the platform annually. Most recently, Brian served as Vice President of Marketing and General Manager at Teespring, a venture-funded custom apparel company. While in this role he was responsible for building and marketing the industry's best e-commerce platform to talented creators and performance marketers. "Over the course of my career, I've had a chance to meet and work with many amazing people in the performance marketing space," said Brian Marcus, VP of Marketing at TUNE. "I've always admired the TUNE team for its inventiveness and persistence in the creation of the first SaaS performance marketing and mobile attribution platform. As mobile and performance intersect to create new channels of revenue for CMOs and digital marketers, TUNE is poised to continue shaping the industry. I'm thrilled to play an important role in this mission." About TUNE TUNE delivers innovative measurement solutions that help marketers and their partners effectively manage campaigns, engage the right audiences, optimize ad performance, and grow their business. TUNE's solutions are trusted by innovative mobile marketers, the largest advertising platforms, and the world's most iconic brands. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington with over 300 employees in nine offices worldwide, TUNE solutions are used by Expedia, CVS, Subway, The New York Times, Line Corporation and more. For more information visit: www.tune.com. SOURCE TUNE Related Links http://www.tune.com LOS ANGELES, Jan. 22, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In commemoration of National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day (February 7, 2018), the University of Southern California Black Alumni Association and Institute for Diversity and Empowerment at Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism is partnering with the Black AIDS Institute and Full Frequency Media, to host a screening and discussion of the film 90 Days written by Nathan Hale Williams and co-directed by Jennia Fredrique Aponte and Nathan Hale Williams. 90 Days is a riveting story of love, integrity and compassion, that explores a beautiful young couple's journey through the challenges of HIV disclosure, stigma, treatment, prevention, and PrEP. The film is entertaining, authentic and a visual masterpiece: Taylor and Jessica have fallen in love. They've decided to delay sexual intimacy for 90 days. As the big day comes, one of them struggles to disclose their HIV status. The other must decide what to do with this information. Both of their lives are changed forever. Given the disproportionate impact HIV/AIDS continues to have on Black communities, especially young Black men and women, the film seizes the opportunity to draw attention and raise awareness regarding the current state of HIV in Black communities, and the need for meaningful discussions to end the epidemic in Black America. The discussion held after the film screening will capture scenes from the film and its applicability to Black communities. Through a panel discussion with the film's co-stars, directors, and producers, along with national HIV advocates and experts, including Phill Wilson, President and CEO of the Black AIDS Institute and long-time HIV positive activist, Hydeia Broadbent, the state of HIV in Black America and new HIV prevention tools like U=U, treatment as prevention, and pre-exposure prophylaxis will be addressed. "The 90 Days partnership is a part of a new national Black Women and HIV initiative the Institute began last year," says Marie-Fatima Hyacinthe, Black AIDS Institute mobilization coordinator. "In 2018, we are planning on fleshing out our Black Women's programming to include more fact sheets, workshops, discussion guides, national tours, and engaging our Black Hollywood Task Force on AIDS." According to the Centers for Disease Control, Black communities continue to be severely and disproportionately impacted by HIV with nearly half (45%) of estimated new HIV diagnoses in 2015 being among Black Americans. In Los Angeles County, while only representing 9.1% of the county's population, yet accounting for 24% of new HIV diagnoses, Black Americans diagnosed with HIV are less likely to be linked to treatment, to be retained in care, and to achieve viral suppression. Black PLWH are less likely to be linked to medical care than any other racial/ethnic group. "64% of new infections among women in the U.S. are Black women. Black women are 16 times more likely to become infected with HIV than white women, yet 85% of PrEP users are white men. What's wrong with that picture," says, Phill Wilson. "New bio-medical prevention tools (PrEP) provide over 96% protection against HIV infection with one pill a day. Yet, very few Black women know about them, let alone are using them. The Black AIDS Institute is committed to changing that." The 90 Days film screening and discussion will be held at USC Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism in Lecture Theatre L105A. Doors open at 6:00 pm. The moderator for the panel discussion will be USC Alum, Tensie Taylor, with panelists to include Nathan Hale Williams (90 Days writer and director), Nic Few (90 Days co-star), Jennia Fredrique Aponte (90 Days director and producer), Phill Wilson (CEO of Black AIDS Institute), Hydeia Broadbent (HIV positive activist), Sol Aponte (90 Days producer), along with special guest Vanessa Williams (actress and Black AIDS Institute board member). Due to limited seating, please RSVP at http://bit.ly/90DaysUSC. FB: www.facebook.com/blackaids Website: www.BlackAIDS.org SOURCE Black AIDS Institute Related Links http://www.blackaids.org TAMPA, Fla., Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- AACSB InternationalThe Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) announces that Valdosta State University (VSU) has earned accounting accreditation for its Harley Langdale, Jr. College of Business Administration. Founded in 1916, AACSB is the longest-serving global accrediting body for business schools, and the largest business education network connecting students, educators, and businesses worldwide. "AACSB Accreditation recognizes institutions that have demonstrated a focus on excellence in all areas, including teaching, research, curricula development, and student learning," said Stephanie M. Bryant, executive vice president and chief accreditation officer of AACSB International. "We congratulate Valdosta State University and dean Wayne Plumly on earning accreditation for its accounting program, and applaud the entire Langdale College teamincluding the administration, faculty, directors, staff, and studentsfor their roles in earning this respected honor." Synonymous with the highest standards of quality, AACSB Accreditation inspires new ways of thinking within business education globally and, as a result, has been earned by less than 5 percent of the world's business schools. Today, 799 institutions across 53 countries and territories maintain AACSB Accreditation. Furthermore, after today's ratification, 186 institutions now maintain an additional specialized AACSB Accreditation for their accounting programs. "Both Dr. Ron Stunda, department head of Accounting, and I wish to thank those at AACSB International for this recognition. The Accounting Department at Valdosta State University has worked hard to achieve this distinction and will continue to promote and employ the standards established by AACSB," noted L. Wayne Plumly, VSU's dean of the Harley Langdale, Jr. College of Business Administration. AACSB Accreditation provides a framework of 15 international standards against which business schools around the globe assess the quality of their educational services. These standards ensure continuous improvement and provide focus for schools to deliver on their mission, innovate, and drive impact. AACSB-accredited schools have successfully undergone a rigorous review process conducted by their peers in the business education community, ensuring that they have the resources, credentials, and commitment needed to provide students with a first-rate, future-focused business education. To realize accounting accreditation, an institution must first earn or maintain AACSB Business Accreditation. Then, in addition to developing and implementing a mission-driven plan to satisfy the business accreditation quality standards, accounting accreditation requires the satisfaction of an additional set of accreditation standards that are specific to the discipline and profession of accounting. "Valdosta State's commitment to earning both business and accounting accreditation is a true reflection of their dedication, not only to their students and the greater business community, but to the accounting industry as a whole," said Bryant. "Today's ratification signals that VSU accounting graduates have completed a program grounded in exceptional foundational skills, and are prepared to assume critical responsibilities and serve the public interest while promoting a sense of integrity to their practice of accounting." About AACSB International As the world's largest business education alliance, AACSB InternationalThe Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) connects educators, students, and business to achieve a common goal: to create the next generation of great leaders. Synonymous with the highest standards of excellence since 1916, AACSB provides quality assurance, business education intelligence, and professional development services to nearly 1,600 member organizations and more than 795 accredited business schools worldwide. With its global headquarters in Tampa, Florida, USA; Europe, Middle East, and Africa headquarters in Amsterdam, the Netherlands; and Asia Pacific headquarters in Singapore, AACSB's mission is to foster engagement, accelerate innovation, and amplify impact in business education. For more information, visit aacsb.edu. SOURCE AACSB International Related Links http://www.aacsb.edu SEATTLE, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- WatchGuard Technologies, a leader in advanced network security solutions, today unveiled the WatchGuard Learning Center an advanced learning management system for its worldwide channel community of over 9,000 value-added resellers (VARs) and managed security service providers (MSSPs). The WatchGuard Learning Center is accessible from the WatchGuard Partner Portal, delivering personalized educational paths in sales readiness, channel enablement, and technical trainings through a web-based learning environment that can be accessed at any time and from anywhere. WatchGuardONE is a value-based incentive program for channel partners that rewards their commitment to WatchGuard in terms of trained resources dedicated to WatchGuard - rather than revenue numbers with Silver, Gold and Platinum levels. Since implementing the WatchGuardONE partner program, WatchGuard's engaged partners have experienced a nearly 40 percent growth in revenue. Through the new WatchGuard Learning Center, partners can choose personalized training paths and complete courses available both live and on demand, enabling them to grow and maintain their WatchGuardONE partner status, while automatically tracking their progress. WatchGuard has made significant investments in its Partner Portal to provide channel partners with a one-stop-shop for enablement tools and resources. With the Partner Portal, they benefit from a centralized hub for managing their business with WatchGuard, including business visibility tools, marketing funds management, integrated marketing campaigns, renewals and deal registration, automated lead dispatch and opportunities management. Now with the inclusion of the new advanced learning management system, all WatchGuard channel partners can just as easily manage their personalized training experiences. SUPPORTING QUOTES: Don Gulling, President, Verteks Consulting "The reason I chose to partner with WatchGuard over 10 years ago is simple they value their channel partners unlike any other company in the industry. The level of support I get from WatchGuard including the account management team, the technical and sales trainings, channel enablement tools, and so much more is truly a game-changer for my business. While the company has grown significantly in recent years, their unwavering commitment to partner relationships has not changed." Sean Price, SVP, Worldwide Sales, WatchGuard "Partner training has always been the foundation of the WatchGuardONE program. The more trainings our channel partners achieve, the more WatchGuard rewards their efforts. As the industry and technology continue to evolve, so do the products and services we offer, as well as the tools and resources we make available to our partners. The WatchGuard Learning Center sets the stage to further enable our channel community as trusted advisors to our joint customers, with more personalized ways to learn than ever before." ADDITIONAL RESOURCES: About WatchGuard Technologies, Inc. WatchGuard Technologies, Inc. is a global leader in network security, secure Wi-Fi, and network intelligence products and services to more than 80,000 customers worldwide. The company's mission is to make enterprise-grade security accessible to companies of all types and sizes through simplicity, making WatchGuard an ideal solution for distributed enterprises and SMBs. WatchGuard is headquartered in Seattle, Washington, with offices throughout North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and Latin America. To learn more, visit WatchGuard.com. For additional information, promotions and updates, follow WatchGuard on Twitter @WatchGuard on Facebook, or on the LinkedIn Company page. Also, visit our InfoSec blog, Secplicity, for real-time information about the latest threats and how to cope with them at www.secplicity.org. Media Contacts: Chris Warfield WatchGuard Technologies 206.876.8380 [email protected] Anthony Cogswell Voxus PR 253.444.5980 [email protected] SOURCE WatchGuard Technologies, Inc. Related Links http://www.watchguard.com The heart of the first-ever global campaign from the Irish brand includes a video which will be revealed on digital platforms (view here ) and will air on TV in the U.K., which aims to be an authentic and exhilarating look at parenthood from apprehension to elation, from turbulent moments to those of pure bliss. The creative follows the journey of a woman experiencing defining and emotional parenting moments in beautiful and dramatic scenes. The milestones are mimicked by her engagement with the water: leaping into the waves, being swept up in the chaos and strength, only to experience its calmness. "Parenting is full of your highest highs and lowest lows, and we wanted to bring that to life in a way that felt powerful and true," said Sarah Lipes, brand marketing manager for WaterWipes USA. "Crashing waves signify rough times and tranquil water brings us back to those intimate, beautiful moments. As a brand that was founded by a parent, it's important for us to accurately capture the parenthood experience and showcase the entirety of the journey." WaterWipes conducted focus groups and partnered with Mother.ly, an online resource and community for new moms, to uncover real thoughts and feelings from new parents. Mother.ly surveyed nearly 1,000 new mothers and the parenthood study found: Biggest Life Changes 91 percent said that having a baby was the biggest transition in their life so far, compared to getting married, buying a house, and graduating college. said that having a baby was the biggest transition in their life so far, compared to getting married, buying a house, and graduating college. Half of the women surveyed (51 percent) said that 'trying to have it all' was the biggest stressor for new moms, followed by physical and mental recovery. said that 'trying to have it all' was the biggest stressor for new moms, followed by physical and mental recovery. Of the women surveyed, the top four adjectives used to describe parenthood were: challenging, amazing, exhausting and overwhelming. Relationship Changes More than half of the parents surveyed (54 percent) said they are more patient and appreciative of their partner after having a baby. From these parenting truths, WaterWipes, in addition to showcasing via the new campaign, is encouraging parents to celebrate both the perfect and imperfect moments. Partnering with new mom, creative director and influencer Whitney Port, WaterWipes will kick off the campaign with a panel discussion in New York City to give moms and dads a platform to discuss the beautiful and chaotic journey of what it feels like to be born as a parent. To follow along and share your parenthood journey, use #ParentIsBorn and follow @WaterWipesUSA on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. WaterWipes are available in retailers nationwide including Amazon.com, Walmart, Target, buybuy BABY, Walgreens and more. Survey Methodology This survey was conducted by 965 Motherly Insights Panel respondents between December 19, 2017 and January 3, 2018. About WaterWipes WaterWipes, a global Irish brand, are the world's purest baby wipes made with 99.9% water and a drop of fruit extract. WaterWipes were created by a concerned father looking for a better baby wipe after discovering his newborn suffered from diaper rash and sensitive skin. WaterWipes are one of the most well-known and loved baby wipe brands in Ireland in the UK and are now available in the U.S. For more information, please visit https://www.waterwipes.com/us/parent-is-born. Media Contact: Maureen Murray Zeno Group for WaterWipes [email protected] SOURCE WaterWipes Related Links https://www.waterwipes.com WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2018 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Students from three elementary schools and one college in West Virginia will speak with a NASA astronaut living, working and doing research aboard the International Space Station at 11:35 a.m. EST Thursday, Jan. 25. The 20-minute, Earth-to-space call will air live on NASA Television and the agency's website. Students will travel to West Virginia Wesleyan College in Buckhannon for the call to Expedition 54 astronaut Joe Acaba aboard the space station. The students will ask questions about life aboard the orbiting laboratory, NASA's deep space exploration plans, and doing science in space. Acaba arrived at the space station on Sept. 12 on his third space mission and is scheduled to return to Earth in February. West Virginia Wesleyan College was selected through a competitive process to host a downlink with the station. Students across the participating districts have been preparing for the event by studying the space station, astronaut biographies, and the current research and activities happening aboard the space station. Students and teachers are expected to be on-site at West Virginia Wesleyan College for the downlink. Media interested in attending the event should contact Bailee Miller via email at [email protected] or phone at 304-367-8270. West Virginia Wesleyan College will host the event at 59 College Ave., Buckhannon. Linking students directly to astronauts aboard the space station provides unique, authentic experiences designed to enhance student learning, performance and interest in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). This in-flight education downlink is an integral component of NASA's Year of Education on Station, which provides extensive space station-related resources and opportunities to students and educators. Follow the astronauts on social media: https://www.twitter.com/NASA_astronauts/ See videos and lesson plans highlighting research on the International Space Station at: https://www.nasa.gov/stemonstation/ SOURCE NASA Related Links http://www.nasa.gov Woodforest Bank Foundry is a creative incubation space where entrepreneurs can collaborate, create, test and launch their ideas. The Foundry blends practical mentorship through peers and professionals and proven educational programming. The goal of the Foundry is to foster a community of entrepreneurs, turning passion into actions, and shaping the businesses of tomorrow, while creating community value. "The graduation ceremony for our first cohort at the Maestro Center was awe-inspiring and invigorating. Watching the graduates present what they'd learned, and how they benefitted from this program is more than we could have hoped for, and we are excited to open additional foundries across 17 states in 2018 to help more entrepreneurs and small businesses grow," said Doug Schaeffer, CRA Executive Director, EVP, Woodforest National Bank. "I am deeply proud of the 11 businesses who underwent this transformative experience offered to them by the Maestro Entrepreneurship 10-Week Cohort Program," said Elizabeth Eguia-Garcia, Maestro's Executive Director. "The key to our success is our partnerships. I am grateful to The Woodforest Bank Foundry grant program and the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce who made this possible." About Woodforest Celebrating over 37 years of community banking service, Woodforest National Bank has successfully stood among the strongest community banks in the nation, proudly offering outstanding quality customer service since 1980. Woodforest currently operates over 700 branches in 17 states across the United States. For more information about Woodforest National Bank please visit www.woodforest.com. About MEC Maestro Entrepreneur Center is a nonprofit small business incubation center founded in May 2016 in partnership with the San Antonio Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Located in a HUBZone, Maestro Entrepreneur Center serves small minority, women and veteran owned businesses in the City of San Antonio and beyond by offering its unique Maestro Accelerator Program, and the Maestro Mentorship Program. Clients range from diverse industries such as the industrial and professional services to culinary catering services and product. Visit MaestroCenter.org for details. MEDIA CONTACT: Daniel Galindo Woodforest National Bank Vice President, Director, CRA Strategic Initiatives 210.862.0511 Email: [email protected] SOURCE Woodforest National Bank Related Links http://maestrocenter.org Barings Real Estate Advisers has acquired the Berceo Shopping Centre in Logrono in La Rioja in Spain from Retail Property Fund Iberica, managed by CBRE Global Investors. The circa 34,000 sq m property, which is the dominant retail destination in Logrono, is almost fully let to a diverse mix of inst... [] The CCP 5 Long-Life core-plus fund, advised by pan-European real estate investment manager Tristan Capital Partners, in a joint venture with Rynda Property Investors, has purchased Espace Rolin, a fully-let 19,839 m office building located on the fringe of the Leopold Quarter in Brussels decentralised business district. The fund purchased [] Sydney has 600,000 bedrooms not being used according to data compiled by EY from 2016 Census estimates. Unlocking the additional capacity within 30 minutes of the Sydney CBD could boost New South Wales GDP by $750 million annually, it suggests. The greatest numbers of unused bedrooms are North Sydney/Hornsby, Outer West/Blue Mountains and the Inner South West. The Eastern Suburbs, the Inner West, the Inner South West and Parramatta have a high number of available rooms that could meet accommodation needs between one and five times over. The most acute shortage where the number of surplus bedrooms is insufficient to meet demand is in the City/Inner South. The number of spare bedrooms equates to 190,000 unused dwellings, EY said in its report Sydney housing conversations: moving from affordability to accessibility. The EY Sydney managing partner Andrew Price suggested better questions needed to be asked about solving affordability problems in housing. "There is a need for an additional 135,000 bedrooms in the greater Sydney area, with the biggest demand in the belt stretching from the CBD to Parramatta; to comfortably house all residents in Parramatta an additional 22,000 rooms are required, while for the Inner South West this gure rises to 25,000. "While the largest untapped supply is in the outer ring and northern suburbs, there are nevertheless plenty of rooms in the population belt described: 40,000 in Parramatta, 60,000 in the Inner South West and 16,000 in the CBD/ Inner South." Click here to enlarge. He suggests the existing underutilised supply of housing stock could hypothetically meet the forecast demand for new stock for the next five years. It estimated if all unused bedrooms within 30 minutes of Sydney's CBD were to house a working adult, that the boost to productivity would equate to an additional $750 million injected each year into the NSW economy. SIU to host regional steel bridge/concrete canoe competition and conference by Tim Crosby CARBONDALE, Ill. Southern Illinois University Carbondale will play host to a major engineering competition this spring, bringing dozens of students from across the region for three days of fun and learning. The College of Engineering is making plans for the Midcontinent Student Conference of the American Society of Civil Engineers, April 19-21. The event, one of 18 such student conferences nationwide this year, includes the annual steel bridge and concrete canoe building contests, among others. The contests challenge college teams to build canoes out of concrete and design the most efficient steel bridge they can. 16 teams converge About 16 teams from the region will compete this year, said Mansor Sufran, an SIU graduate student in civil engineering who is coordinating the event. Along with the competitions, the conference will include business meetings, paper presentations, social activities and an awards banquet. Sufran said the event is an opportunity for SIU to provide an exemplary experience for students throughout the Midwest, and to highlight its programs for students interested in earning a degree in engineering. It is a great showcase for our College of Engineering and SIU, Sufran said. We are planning to invite many high school students to attend the conference, which is a huge recruitment opportunity for our college. The conference will give the Carbondale community a chance to see what engineering students do at school and in their future careers. We are very excited for this awesome event and cannot wait for it to happen, Sufran said. Games test engineering skills The competitions are aimed at testing the abilities and creativity of up-and-coming engineers and is just one of the ways SIU engineering students prepare for their future careers. In the steel bridge contest, the team starts each year by researching possible designs and types of steel for their bridge, looking at factors such as deflection, stress and bending moments to create the best bridge possible. The team then researches, designs and fabricates a scaled simulation of a steel bridge before the competition. During the contest, the team must build the entire bridge from the ground up while considering display, construction speed, lightness, stiffness, construction economy, structural efficiency and overall performance. The concrete canoe competition challenges teams to build a canoe out of a heavy material such as concrete an obvious engineering challenge. To do so, teams must experiment with different types of concrete mixes and designs. Judges rate canoes based on appearance, speed and other characteristics. SIUs winning legacy Students from SIU participate each year in the conference and competitions. Two years ago, they made history by winning the top spot in both contests at the Missouri University of Science and Technology. It is the first time the SIU teams have both won first place in the competitions. Sufran said students competing at the events can gain valuable hands-on experience. Along with the practical engineering skills needed for the concrete canoe steel bridge competitions, they also can hone their communication skills during the oral presentations portions. These competitions not only help students develop their technical abilities but also drive students to develop their leadership, communication, team building, and networking skills which are rarely touched on in the classroom, he said. Putting your faith in published data on prices is one of the great perils facing property investors around Australia. Anyone who bases a major investment decision on something they read about the pricing levels in a particular location and how much they are growing (or falling) may end up with a serious miscalculation. Its possible to access three sources for price information on a particular location and get three different results one suggesting prices are rising, another claiming theyre stagnating and a third declaring that values are falling. Heres an example: a couple of days ago, I was writing a report and did a Google search on the median house price for Alice Springs in the Northern Territory. The search engine brought up results from multiple sources. Here are three of those outcomes: According to Your investment property magazine, quoting CoreLogic data, the median house price was $299,950, up 5.7% in the past 12 months. According to realestateinvestar.com.au, the median house price for Alice Springs was $469,000, unchanged from a year earlier; and According to homesales.com.au, the median house price for Alice Springs was $1,109,913, down 1.7% on a year earlier. So the median price was either $300,000 or $469,000 or $1.1 million, depending on which source you chose to believe. And prices in Alice Springs were either down a little, unchanged or up moderately, depending on your source. If this was an isolated example, there wouldnt be a problem. But the experience of finding contradictory information on pricing is common. For the January edition of my monthly newsletter The Ryder Report, I compared price growth for apartments in the major cities, taking figures from three major sources. Firstly, the figures demonstrate (yet again) that we dont have a single property market in this country. We have many different markets, which currently are delivering contrasting results. And secondly, there are big differences in growth rates from one source to the next. Hobart is the clear market leader: all three sources have the Tasmanian capital leading on annual growth in the median apartment price, but there are big variations in the claimed rate of growth, ranging from 9% to 18%. Melbourne ranks second with two sources, but again there is quite a divergence in terms of the published annual growth rate in median prices. The ABS has apartment prices in Melbourne up 4% but CoreLogic has double the growth rate (a little over 8%) while SQMs growth rate (13%) is three times higher than the ABS rate. There is broad agreement that the Brisbane unit market is rather mediocre, but SQM record no change in prices, while ABS has prices down a little while CoreLogic has prices declining, but at three times the ABS rate of decrease. Its hard to know from these figures where the Canberra market is at: the three growth figures are 1.8%, 2.1% and 10%. Two sources suggest a quiet market while the third depict a strong rising market. Unit prices in Adelaide? CoreLogic suggests little change, SQM suggests a 2% annual rise and the ABS has prices up 6%. CoreLogic data suggests prices have stopped falling in Perth but both the ABS and SQM record an annual decline of about 6%. So, what do we make of that? My conclusion is: its all dodgy data, to a certain degree. All information about median prices and how much theyve risen or fallen is rubbery figures to some extent, with the discrepancies and contradictions partly explained by different methodologies and varying definitions about various elements, such as how do you classify townhouses and where do the boundaries sit for a city like Melbourne. But think about it. The Sydney metro area has over 700 suburbs and whats happening in the Northern Beaches is somewhat different to the situation in Penrith, while Bondi has few similarities with Campbelltown. Yet a research company will try to distil all the sales activity in the past 12 months down to a single growth figure, declaring that Sydney prices are growing well, the rate of growth depends very much on the source. Media treats them as fact, despite these kinds of discrepancies, which are common. And bases sweeping interpretations on individual figures from a single source. Terry Ryder is the founder of hotspotting.com.au [email protected] twitter.com/hotspotting Cookies What are cookies ? How do we use cookies? How to control cookies? Managing cookies in your browser see what cookies you have got and delete them on an individual basis block third party cookies block cookies from particular sites block all cookies from being set delete all cookies when you close your browser X A cookie is a small text file that a website saves on your computer or mobile device when you visit the site. 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After establishing her voice with a series of self-published autobiographical comics and online comics journalism, Whit Taylor will make her trade publishing debut with Ghost Stories, a collection of old and new comics short stories, to be published by Rosarium Publishing this month. Winner of the 2012 Glyph Rising Star Award for the best new comic by or about people of color, Taylor is a rising figure in the indie comics world. She has published comics everywhere from The Nib, an online political comics site, to the New Yorker. She is the coeditor (with Hazel Newlevant) of Comics for Choice, an anthology on abortion, and has edited online comics for the PEN America Illustrated series. Taylors trade book debut features a collection of ghost stories; tales of transformation, memory and loss, as well as a story based on her personal experience of sexual assault. PW spoke with Taylor about her professional background in anthropology and public health, moving from self-publisher to a conventional publisher, and the rise of the #MeToo movement and the global conversation among women sharing their stories of assault. Why did you decide to publish Ghost Stories as a trade book with Rosarium Publishing? I self-published Ghost [an earlier version of the book] in 2015 and figured that would be it. About a year after, I met Rosarium publisher Bill Campbell and he reached out to me about re-publishing Ghost in a collection of short stories, so that it could find a wider audience. I was hesitant initially, but Bill changed my mind when he expressed that this was the type of work that he would want his daughter to read one day. Ghost Stories contains three short stories: Ghost, Wallpaper, and Makers. All three are connected in the sense that they are non-traditional ghost stories that share imagery and represent different life stages: young adulthood, childhood, and adolescence, respectively. I didnt make any major modifications in my previously self-published stories, as I felt the need to preserve the original spirit of the pieces. Bill wanted me to add a new story for the book, so I wrote Makers to round it out. I hope that readers will draw connections between the separate stories, but also be able to appreciate them independently. What drew you into the comics scene in the first place? Ive been a lifelong comics reader and creator, but became involved in indie comics about ten years ago, after graduating college. The first show I attended was APE (Alternative Press Expo) in San Francisco. My most vivid memory was picking up a minicomic (Fleep by Jason Shiga) from Sparkplug Books, and realizing that I could tell my own stories through self-publishing. From there I started making minis, going to shows, blogging, building relationships, and reading as much indie work as I could. How does your social sciences and public health background inform you as a cartoonist? My backgrounds in anthropology and public health have definitely influenced what I choose to write about. Much of my autobio and comics journalism work explore cultural and identity related issues. Im often trying to work things out for myself as well as take on the challenge of trying to break down complicated ideas/concepts in a clear, simplified way. When I was in college, I often took notes in comics form to help me understand things, so its a continuation of a learning process thats been intuitive for me. One of your best known pieces is What is Race?, published on the political cartooning site, The Nib. Its a methodical and accessible explanation of the scientific basis for understanding race. The story got quite a reaction. After Trump was elected, I became increasingly bothered and scared by the hateful alt-right rhetoric and decided that I wanted to make a comic debunking the racial pseudoscience they used to justify their ideology. Overall, the piece was well-received, but of course I was harrassed by trolls. Charles Murray, who wrote The Bell Curve, which I denounced in the comic, read my piece apparently, and tweeted something snarky about it. I consider that a marker of success. In Ghost Stories you are portrayed getting a chance to interview dead idols, which include Charles Darwin, Joseph Campbell and, in a surprising turn, your former self, before your own experience of sexual assault. In light of the #MeToo movement, what does it mean to publish this story? The timing has certainly been odd. I knew when I initially published Ghost that it would be risky, not only because it was personally revealing and socially taboo (at that time), but because I was selling it at comic shows amongst my peers, some of whom were aware of the true story behind it. At that time, I felt so powerless about things, that the only way for me to feel heard was to write a comic about my experience and hope that it reached those who had been through similar situations. I found this to be true as I received lots of messages from women who read the story and felt less alone in their experiences. I am thankful for the #metoo movement, despite the fact that it is uncharted territory for everyone. It is giving a voice to many who have felt burdened and silenced for so long. Going public about abuse comes with the knowledge that one will largely shoulder the burden of the response far after that information is shared. It can be re-traumatizing and I have great respect for those who have come forward with their stories as well as those who are not in a place to do so. You also recently co-edited the Comics for Choice Anthology, a Kickstarter-funded anthology of comics about womens experiences with abortion. Do you consider yourself a social activist? I dont know if Id call myself an activist, but I do like to make comics that tell important political stories. I view Ghost Stories and C4C as connected in the sense that they intend to humanize personal and difficult experiences, but the reasoning behind them is different. Ghost Stories was born out of my personal experience. I agreed to be a co-editor on C4C because of my background as a clinical health educator who used to work in reproductive health. I think that making comics can be a form of activism in the sense that it is a communicative and expressive tool that has the power to inform and empower others. In what could well be the coup de grace of a long drawn-out saga, the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has provisionally found that Fox taking full control of Sky is not in the public interest due to media plurality concerns. Rupert Murdochs long-standing ambitions to acquire the 61% of the pay-TV giant Fox did not already own have been thwarted at every stage so far, first through News International before the phone-hacking scandal saw the break-up of the firm and then through 21st Century Fox. On 12 September the proposed takeover was referred to the UKs Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) by the then UK Secretary of State at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport, Karen Bradley, following a probe into the deal that had raised concerns about broadcasting standards and plurality. Revealing the findings of its investigation, the CMA has stated that if the deal went ahead, as currently proposed, it would likely operate against the public interest by leading to the Murdoch Family Trust (MFT), which controls Fox and News Corporation (News Corp), increasing its control over Sky, so that it would have too much control over news providers in the UK across all media platforms including TV, radio, online and newspapers. This, it said, would give it too much influence over public opinion and the political agenda.So keen was the Murdoch-owned organisation to drive through the bid that it was prepared to close down its core news channel Sky News in order to allay plurality fears The CMA noted that MFTs news outlets are watched, read or heard by nearly a third of the UKs population, and have a combined share of the publics news consumption that is significantly greater than all other news providers, except the BBC and ITN. It added that due to its control of News Corp, the Murdoch family already has significant influence over public opinion, and full ownership of Sky by Fox would strengthen this even further. Even though it accepted that there are a range of other news outlets serving UK audiences, the CMA provisionally found that they would not be sufficient to moderate or mitigate the increased influence of the MFT if the deal went ahead.The part of the CMAs investigation into understanding whether Fox, Sky and the MFT had a genuine commitment to broadcasting standards in the UK provisionally found that Fox taking full control of Sky was not likely to operate against the public interest.Overall, the media plurality concerns identified meant that the CMA provisionally concluded that the proposed transaction is not in the public interest. Media plurality goes to the heart of our democratic process. It is very important that no group or individual should have too much control of our news media or too much power to affect the political agenda, said Anne Lambert, chair of the independent investigation group at the CMA. We have provisionally found that if the Fox/Sky merger went ahead as proposed, it would be against the public interest. It would result in the Murdoch family having too much control over news providers in the UK, and too much influence over public opinion and the political agenda.The CMA has now set out a series of potential options for addressing these problems identified in its public remedies notice . It has also noted where Foxs decision to sell assets, including its 39% stake in Sky to The Walt Disney Company leaves the proposed takeover. These will be carefully considered before the CMAs report is finalised, and a final report will now be provided to Matt Hancock the new Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport by 1 May 2018 who will then make the final decision on the proposed deal. Donald Trump often growls about the utility of alliances. NATO has been a prominent target, with the President appearing most articulate in his silence on several occasions failing to explicitly reaffirm commitment to alliance's Article 5, which is the cornerstone of the transatlantic treaty. This mutual defence guarantee have always been of particular importance to the trio of Baltic countries - Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia. While recently rolled-out National Security Strategy declared that the United States intends to strengthen NATO's eastern flank'[i], President Trump's personal instincts seem to gravitate towards the opposite - pulling up the drawbridges and scaling back America's commitments abroad. Such apparent contradiction begs the following questions: To what extent his views about America's security pact with Europe are in sync with the sentiments of the public and Congress? More concretely, are we witnessing a time when the US is regretting bringing the Baltics into the transatlantic community? Ever since the Baltics regained independence and became their own masters in 1991, their geopolitical status and possible NATO membership have sparked passionate debates. The Bill Clinton administration spearheaded the idea of NATO open door policy' with an underlying objective redraw old security arrangements in Europe. Not everyone in the US political establishment saw merit in this argument. Celebrated Cold War strategist, George Kennan, had termed the possible NATO expansion eastwards a tragic mistake'.[ii] Kennan knew the Baltics first hand as his distinguished diplomat career was launched in Riga, Latvia, then a key US listening post' for Soviet Union affairs. Kennan never questioned the desirability of Baltic independence, but equally never came around to the idea that NATO should absorb nations in such close proximity to Moscow. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared at last weeks (January 18) special meeting of the United Nations Security Council that Russia had no intention of joining the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (a.k.a. the Nuclear Weapon Ban TreatyNWBT). In his opinion, the NWBT provokes deep contradictions in the international community (RIA Novosti, January 19). This came as no surprise: Not one of the worlds nuclear powers and none of the North Atlantic Treaty Organizations (NATO) member states support this fledgling treaty, which has nevertheless been approved by many states, including Kazakhstan. Indeed, Astana had called this meeting using its prerogative as the current temporary chair of the UN Security Council. Lavrov confirmed Russias commitment to the non-nuclear world ideal but lashed out against the dangerous tendency to ignore the interests of nuclear powers and to neglect strategic stability (Mid.ru, January 18). Yet, hidden in the diplomatic language on upholding the international order is Russias determination to undermine it from within by corrupting its core rules and normsas identified in the United States new National Defense Strategy (Kommersant, January 20). Some Russian commentators took pride in the fact that strategic competition driven by revisionist powers, rather than terrorism or other unconventional challenges, is now defined as the main source of threat to U.S. interests, seeing in this a recognition of Russias global role (Nezavisimaya Gazeta, January 18). President Vladimir Putin described the U.S. Strategy as aggressive, presenting the deployment of missile defense assets in Romania and Poland as proof positive of this tired propaganda (New Times, December 25). Many new features can be found in the key U.S. security and defense documents that, indeed, deserve attentive analysis in Moscow, instead of the habitual condemnation. Not least, this is because Russias massive nuclear modernization is recognized in Washington as a major security issue. The Russian leadership, however, continues to brag about new weapons systems, indicating that it is ready to abandon the 1988 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty but would prefer the U.S. to destroy this remnant of the golden era of arms control (Russiancouncil.ru, January 16). Russia embarked on the hugely expensive program of modernizing all elements of its nuclear arsenal at the start of this decade. That modernization is the main priority of the new 2027 State Armament Program, finalized last December, after many delays (Kommersant, December 18). Not every investment has paid off: the development of a new generation of strategic bombers by the Tupolev bureau is lagging, and some exotic projects, like for instance the rail-mobile Barguzin inter-continental ballistic missile, have been canceled (Ezhednevny Zhurnal, December 4). Eight Borei-class nuclear submarines constitute the most expensive entry in the rearmament effort, and the naval lobby keeps arguing for extending the service life of older strategic platforms (RIA Novosti, December 17; Voenno-Promyshlenny Kuryer, January 19). The Russian leadership seeks to harvest political dividends from this sustained investment, particularly since the monthly patrols by Russias aging strategic bomberscarefully intercepted by NATO fightersyield diminishing attention (Interfax, January 15). Moscow is seeking greater political uses for its modernized nuclear arsenal; but it has to tread carefully. Notably, the top brass abstained from introducing any battlefield use of nuclear weapons into the scenario of the Zapad 2017 large-scale exercises last September (Nezavisimaya Gazeta, December 28). The most promising path may be the controversial area of nuclear non-proliferation. And while presenting itself as a staunch upholder of this principle, Russia is spreading its bets widely. In particular, Lavrov condemned the U.S. stance on revising the nuclear agreement with Iran, but also asserted that without U.S. participation, the deal would break down (RBC, January 19). He expressed readiness to work with Washington on resolving the conflicts in the Middle East, but argued that Iran cannot be prevented from defending its interests in Syria and other conflict zones (RIA Novosti, January 19). A similarly ambivalent stance is taken in the oscillating crisis around North Korea. Russia voted in the UN Security Council for all resolutions enforcing sanctions but has tried to soften them. And it has argued persistently that sanctions were not going to work (Carnegie.ru, January 16; see EDM, January 18). Moscow misses no chance to criticize Washington for relying too much on military pressure but is keen to engage in bilateral consultations on the Korean problem (Newsru.com, January 20). The official position remains that de-nuclearization of the peninsula should be secured, but Moscow is very supportive of the Olympic rapprochement between the two Korean states, which to all intents and purposes amounts to an acknowledgement of the material results of the North Korean nuclear and missile programs (Russiancouncil.ru, January 12). By every objective measurethe number of strategic and non-strategic warheads or the size of its nuclear arsenal in proportion to the strength of the Armed ForcesRussia is the most nuclearized state in the world. The long experience of developing nuclear projects should have made Moscow aware of the safety risks, but it actually tends to take a relaxed attitude to problems that are seen as falling beyond the level of acceptable risk by Russias neighbors. The appearance of a radioactive cloud of Ruthenium-106 over Europe last year was never satisfactorily explained, and Russia opted not to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency to investigate the source (Interfax, January 15). The fire at the uranium and plutonium plant in Seversk, Tomsk region, was only a minor news item last weekend (TASS, January 21). The Russian high command is quite flexible in extending the service of nuclear weapon systems that should have been retired many years ago. But it is in denial of the technical problems with the Bulava missile for the Borei-class submarines, which has a checkered record of trials and was test-fired only once in 2017 and once in 2016. The experience of deploying thousands of nuclear weapons should have also informed the Russian leadership about the very limited political value of this arsenal. This conclusion, however, is resolutely dismissed; and Moscow seeks to maximize the benefits of its nuclear status. Russia insists on maintaining nuclear parity with the United States, but this old-fashioned bean-counting has little to do with upholding strategic stability and much to do with the propensity to wield nuclear instruments of policy. The desire to perform the Cold Warera role of a nuclear superpower par excellence brings much strain to Russias stagnant economy, pushes up the safety risks, and adds to the diminishing stability of the world order. Dr. Pavel K. Baev is a senior researcher at the International Peace Research Institute, Oslo (PRIO). This article appeared originally at The Jamestown Foundation's Eurasia Daily Monitor. With the change of administration in Washington came new clarity about U.S. policy on Syria. The admirable, short-term aim was to defeat ISIS. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), the organisation that would produce this outcome on the ground, was founded in late 2015 (the 'Democratic' in the name gives the appearance of inclusiveness, and downplays Kurdish dominance). The U.S. provided support to retake ISIS-held territory in Syria, and local commanders were given greater freedom by Washington to conduct operational manoeuvres. At the tactical level, it was a resounding success, with both Raqqa and Deir ez-Zour falling to the SDF and, in the case of parts of Deir ez-Zour, to the Syrian military. How the U.S. enabled its indigenous partner to defeat ISIS on the battlefield will rightly form the basis of many lectures in staff and war colleges. It was, by any measure, a successful intervention at the tactical/operational level in a complex environment. The post-ISIS phase was always going to be more difficult. The U.S. has several thousand troops deployed in north-east Syria who support the SDF. But their post-ISIS purpose was never clear. In a speech delivered last week at Stanford University on the administration's Syria policy, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson outlined the five key strategic outcomes Washington seeks to achieve: the enduring defeat of ISIS and al-Qaeda in Syria; resolution of the conflict through a U.N.-led political process, leading to a stable post-Assad government; diminishing Iranian influence in Syria; the voluntary return of refugees; and the elimination of weapons of mass destruction. Tillerson argued that a key element included a continued U.S. military presence, with any steps towards withdrawal based on an assessment of conditions as they unfold, rather than according to an arbitrary timeline. From a negotiator's viewpoint, the lack of a timeline is good, but only if the parties you're dealing with know you have significant leverage to exert. The challenge for Washington's Syria policy all along has been its lack of strategic levers. Russia has history, a defence pact, and close political relations with Damascus. Iran has more recent strategic links, growing commercial interests, and controls thousands of pro-Tehran militias in addition its own troops across the country. Turkey has massive commercial links, hosts hundreds of thousands of Syrians within its country, and has an 800 kilometre-long border with Syria. For Washington, the Kurdish-dominated SDF is a successful tactical partner, but a bit of a dead weight strategically. That the Kurds are a burdensome ally in Syria, and Washington has thought little about a post-ISIS Syria policy, was hinted at last week when a spokesman announced the formation of a 30,000-man border security force. The Turkish reaction to a U.S.-trained and supported Kurdish security force on its Syrian border was predictable. The government conveyed its displeasure when the U.S. charge d'affaires was called in by Ankara, and Turkish media portrayed the U.S. military and the CIA as creating a Kurdish terrorist 'North Army' on its border. Tillerson tried to repair the damage, claiming the U.S. wasn't creating a border force and that the situation had been misrepresented. But if this piece from a journalist who attended an SDF graduation ceremony two days ago is correct, Washington's message does not appear to have reached the local Kurds. The Turkish government has now signaled its dissatisfaction to Washington in a more pointed way. Last week, the Turkish military attacked Kurdish forces in Afrin, well to the west of the U.S.-supported forces. The move came as little surprise after Ankara linkedthe action to Washington's support for a Kurdish-dominated force in Syria's east. Governments are urging restraint on all sides, but the reality is that no one will come to the aid of the Kurds, just as they didn't last year when the Iraqi government seized back control of Kirkuk after the Iraqi Kurds' ill-advised referendum on independence. In the world of realpolitik, sovereignty always trumps friendship. The Turkish incursion simply highlights the problems that any Washington policy on Syria will face once the mission to defeat ISIS concludes. The allied force Washington has assembled is an amalgam of different ethnic and tribal groups, all of which know that U.S. forces will have to leave eventually. The allied force's propensity to fragment, as the Syrian Government and its allies negotiate directly or indirectly with its separate elements, is high. Washington's enemies can use proxies to target U.S. troops, increasing the pressure to leave. Kurdish forces are seen by Washington's NATO ally to the north as little more than the Syrian branch of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a proscribed terrorist group. Ankara may engage the SDF further to the east in areas under U.S. protection, threaten to expel the U.S. from its Incirlik Air Base, or worse. At the same time, Russia and its allies have been leading the diplomatic race in an attempt to broker a solution that can be rubber-stamped by the U.N. Washington has few non-financial levers of influence in Syria. With a weak hand to play, the lack of timeline may be more hindrance than help if domestic pressure builds in the face of U.S. casualties and a partner force that fragments or threatens to prompt further action from Turkey. If this week has already taught us one thing, it's that U.S. policy in Syria is full of holes. Dr. Rodger Shanahan is a Research Fellow at the Lowy Institute. A former army officer, he had extensive service within the Parachute Battalion Group (PBG) and has had operational service with the U.N. in South Lebanon and Syria, with the PBG in East Timor, in Beirut during the 2006 war, and in Afghanistan. He was the former director of the Army's Land Warfare Studies Centre, and has also been posted to the Australian Embassies in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. Dr. Shanahan has MAs in International Relations and Middle East Studies from the ANU, and a Ph.D. in Arab and Islamic Studies from the University of Sydney. This article appeared originally at Lowy Institute's the interpreter. Sure Looks Like ObamaCare Is Fueling Opioid Epidemic A new Senate report adds further support to the connection that ObamaCare's Medicaid expansion has contributed to the nation's opioid epidemic. Athens, GA (30605) Today Mixed clouds and sun with scattered thunderstorms. High 83F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%. Rainfall possibly over one inch.. Tonight Variably cloudy with scattered thunderstorms. Low around 70F. Winds light and variable. Chance of rain 50%. TORRINGTON A city man is facing charges after being caught with narcotics on South Main Street and lying about his identity, police said. Chad Weed, 31, was arrested Jan. 19 and charged with possession of narcotics, second-degree hindering prosecution, criminal impersonation and possession in a school zone, police said. Two officers were on patrol near the Cumberland Farms at 207 South Main St. in the evening of Jan. 19, The area is known for high narcotics activity, police said in a probable cause report. The officers saw Weed walking toward this location, periodically looking behind him, and looking at his phone, according to the report. Weed got into the passengers side of a vehicle, which pulled out of the Cumberland Farms parking lot on East Albert Street and turned onto Clarence Street without signaling, police said. The officer stopped the vehicle in the parking lot of 413 South Main St. and spoke with its occupants. Upon making contact with the witness and Weed in the vehicle, the witness provided their photo identification, and Weed informed me he did not have one, said the officer. I then asked for Weeds name and date of birth and he provided me with the name and birth date of another individual. According to the report, another officer arrived on scene and patted down Weed for officer safety, finding packaged heroin in the front-left pocket of Weeds pants. When questioned, Weed admitted to his real name, said the officer. The packaged substance found in Weeds pocket later tested positive for fentanyl. Weed was held in lieu of $5,000 surety bail and scheduled to appear in Superior Court in Torrington on Jan. 29, police said. Weed was also charged with seven counts of second-degree failure to appear, according to police records. He was given $30,000 combined bail in connection with those charges. Reach Ben Lambert at william.lambert@hearstmediact.com. This item is available in full to subscribers. Attention subscribers We have recently launched a new and improved website. To continue reading, you will need to either log into your subscriber account, or purchase a new subscription. If you are a digital subscriber with an active subscription, then you already have an account here. Just reset your password if you've not yet logged in to your account on this new site. If you are a current print subscriber, you can set up a free website account by clicking here. Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing. By the end of the 1986 student movement in Anhui, Nanjing, Shanghai and Beijing, I had heard of Liu Xiaobo, though I had never met him. He tried to visit me twice in 2007, but was stopped both times by police, who wouldn't let him in [to visit me under house arrest], and he had to leave again. Later, in 2007 and 2008, I met Liu Xiaobo, and we quickly became good friends. Liu Xiaobo's specialism was the theory of literature and art, and he had studied the theories of [Russian literary theorists] Dobrolyubov, Belinsky and Chernyshevsky in university, but didn't find them satisfying. He liked to live a relaxed and carefree life, meeting up with people, talking to them. In terms of his temperament, he was no politician. Chatting with him usually meant trivia, anything and everything, history through the ages. There was almost no political stuff at all. But whenever we would meet up to drink tea and talk together, the people around us would always be listening in. Once we got to know each other, we would meet to drink tea once a month, although we couldn't always make it every time for a variety of reasons. He knew that I would practice tai chi in Yuyuantan Park every morning, and sometimes he would seek me out there if there was something on his mind. On one occasion, in 2008, he came to the park to say that a few friends were drafting Charter 08, and that he was hoping we could discuss it. From that time on, we met more than once a month. Charter 08 wasn't entirely drafted by Liu Xiaobo, but he presided over it, and we discussed it together. He listened very carefully, and in great detail, to different opinions. He also argued, but not in a stubborn way. He would always choose his ideas on merit, and he wanted it written in a way that recognized as many people's contribution as possible. Liu Xiaobo was a very gentle man who never went to extremes, and was never subjective. His later statement, titled "I have no enemies," was a true reflection of the man. When he was drafting Charter 08, he also asked for my advice, but my opinion was simple, taking up only one sentence: the simpler, clearer and more moderate you can make it, the better. Besides that, I had no other opinion. Out of several friends who were busy discussing Charter 08, he was the busiest. Liu Xiaobo was smart, and he knew that things had to stay within the law, so as to attract more participants, and to meet with less resistance. The contents of the Charter are almost all to be found in the Chinese constitution. We just asked that their implementation be taken seriously. There was nothing new there. Under normal circumstances, this would be acceptable to the authorities, and there would be no reason to refuse us. For example, the idea that all the power in the People's Republic of China belongs to the people. Or that the people have freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly and assembly, freedom of demonstrations, all of which are expressly included in the constitution, and which the government should guarantee. Two things might meet with less acceptance, however. The first was the nationalization of the armed forces, and the second was the setting up of a federal system of government. We thought about leaving those things out, but the consensus was that we had to leave them in, because they were patriotic. It was our responsibility to say them, as patriots. As for the army, without nationalization, it might be privatized, or co-opted by partisan forces or warlords. That must not be allowed to happen, so the army should be nationalized, as it had been between 1937 and 1946. This had been the consistent position of Mao Zedong and Zhou Enlai, and we should uphold it. As for federalism, it was to be the foundation of democracy. China is so big, that it lends itself to centralization or federalism. Ever since the emperors, all subjective power has been associated with centralization. So a federal system would actually be a remedy for the country's symptoms. The successful experience of the United States has shown us conclusively that if there is no federal system, if there is no local autonomy, the people would never be able to implement their power. The history of the Communist Party of China advocated provincial self-government, When he was in Hunan, Mao Zedong even suggested Hunan should be independent, although that was really too extreme. The federal system is not the same thing, the United States is a federal system, and that's why it can't be broken up. Liu Xiaobo chose to take this route in a very thoughtful way: these ideas were all based on lawful, peaceful and non-violent principles: moderate rather than radical, well founded, and with a realistic legal and historical basis. At that time we were all much more optimistic, because China was said to be cultivating a "harmonious society." We already had the constitution, which, while it may not have been perfect, had some good things in it. A lot of people seemed to support them, and we thought there should be very little resistance to putting those good things into practice, because there was no good reason to oppose it. I, and everyone else, were full of hope. Liu Xia always listens quietly. She laughs and smiles brightly. But she has a melancholy temperament. She is a poet, and a painter, who likes to take photographs. The tone of her work is melancholy and sad, yet it sees the world with compassion. When Charter 08 was published, the authorities detained Liu Xiaobo and sent him to prison. I don't know if Liu Xia had any sense that this might happen. It certainly took me by surprise. Why was Liu Xiaobo found guilty of what were very serious charges, and sentenced to jail? To this day, I still can't see how patriotism and wanting to protect the rule of law can be a crime. There was a professor at Tsinghua University called Hu Angang, who said the Communist Party's Politburo standing committee system was a collective presidency. When this remark appeared in the Global Times newspaper, nobody in China said a word of criticism. It seemed to be a genuine consensus. The 16th and 17th Party Congresses seemed to abide by this principle, with each member of the Politburo standing committee sticking to their own turf. When Liu Xiaobo was formally arrested, Zhou Yongkang was minister of state security. So the only way I can make sense of it is this: that the arrest and sentencing of Liu Xiaobo was an act of mischief wrought by this corrupt official. But I belief that the truth will one day become clearer. Liu Xiaobo went on to win the Nobel Peace Prize, which was well-deserved. Liu Xiaobo trod the path of least resistance and most sense. His ultimate goal was one that nobody dared to oppose openly. If China really did set out on the path to democracy, the people of China, and the whole world, would benefit from the presence of a truly responsible great power, and could play a hugely positive role in the development of civilization as a whole. In memory of a great patriot, Liu Xiaobo. , 2017 Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Bao Tong, former political aide to the late ousted premier Zhao Ziyang, is under continual surveillance and frequent house arrest at his home in Beijing. Two stories in the news recently: one in Kenya where Beijing has claimed jurisdiction over a group of Taiwanese, and the other in which Beijing managed to shoulder out the Taiwan delegate from the International Iron and Steel Conference. Are these good things, or bad? Victories or defeats? I'm just an average Joe who doesn't know much about what's going on. All I know is that these things have the flavor of civil war about them. We shouldn't be oppressing foreigners any more than we should oppress our own, no matter how wily we think we are, nor how many troops we command, nor how much we regard ourselves as victims. Two wrongs don't make a right: they're just two scandals or two tragedies. Anyone who thinks they can export victimhood has already started to take on the quality of a madman. They have left universal values behind. I just don't get the mood on our side of the Taiwan Strait. I see the news regarding the other side, and I feel terrible. It's all about suppression. Whatever happened to detente, good conscience and wise statesmanship? It's hypocritical to claim that someone is your flesh and blood, but to display not even an ounce of goodwill towards them. Where's the glory in that? Where's the meaning in forced unity? It's the same problem in Hong Kong, whose return to Chinese rule is governed by the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration. Hong Kong people ruling Hong Kong. A high degree of autonomy. These things are crucial to the city's continuing stability and prosperity. Nobody has the right, regardless of their reasons, to trifle with an international treaty. The ruling Chinese Communist Party's actions in Hong Kong needs must be limited to military and diplomatic affairs. Now that line has been crossed, all kinds of conflicts have ensued, and they should bear responsibility for breaching the Joint Declaration. They should understand that it is sacrosanct. There are many different minority groups in China, and they need to get along together. All peoples, however small a group, should have the right to autonomy. Han chauvinism is of no use here. All it does is destroy and alienate. The past six decades have shown us that. Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Bao Tong, former political aide to the late ousted premier Zhao Ziyang, is under continual surveillance and frequent house arrest at his home in Beijing. Liu Xiaobo drafted Charter 08. This won him international acclaim, including the highly respected Nobel Peace Prize, but it also put him in the bad books of Zhou Yongkang, former member of the Politburo standing committee and minister for public security, and he was sentenced to 11 years in jail. Any discussion of the matter has been forbidden under socialism-with-Chinese-characteristics, and so I won't be talking about that today. Liu Xiaobo is now seriously ill. He wasn't informed that he had liver cancer until it was in its late stages, when he had already been in jail for more than eight years. Is this a reliable basis for assessing the level of medical care that is currently available in China? Or does it have more to do with the authorities playing God with a human life? It is impossible to investigate this question fully in today's China, so I won't be talking about that here, either. All I know is that it's for fate to decide when a person lives or dies, and that you sometimes have to move faster to save a life than you do to put out a fire. One cannot afford to lose a single day, a single hour, even. It must be given urgent priority. Liu Xiaobo has made it very clear that he would like to go overseas to seek medical care. Many in the international community have offered to help him. I would hope that he could even take a turn for the better, with so much concerted effort made to help him. But recent comments from the spokesman for the Chinese foreign ministry and the Global Times newspaper give me no reason for optimism. Volunteers around the world have so far been unable to make contact with Liu Xiaobo and his wife Liu Xia. If we have really reached the point where there is no further hope, then I am forced to ask President Xi Jinping to exercise the sacred responsibility conferred by the Chinese constitution on the head of state, and grant an amnesty to Nobel Peace Prize winner Liu Xiaobo. This may be our last chance: the last opportunity Liu Xiaobo will have to be treated well in his lifetime, and an excellent opportunity for President Xi to govern according to the rule of law. Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Bao Tong, former political aide to the late ousted premier Zhao Ziyang, is under continual surveillance and frequent house arrest at his home in Beijing. Chinese icebreaker, Xuelong, or "Snow Dragon", sets off from a port in Shanghai bound for Antarctica, where it will establish China's newest base as Beijing strives to become a polar power, Nov. 8, 2017. Chinas growing presence in Antarctica is causing alarm among some experts in Australia, which has big stakes in the resource-rich continent. A recent report from the nonpartisan Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) alleges that China has been conducting secret military activities in Antarctica and may be making a grab for land there. The reports author, Anne-Marie Brady, a highly regarded political science professor at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, says that Chinas aims may be at odds with Australias strategic interests. China, she says, has conducted undeclared military activities in Antarctica, is building a case for a territorial claim, and is engaging in military exploration there. Antarctica isnt a country. Its governed through an international treaty which was signed in 1959 by 12 countries whose scientists were working there at the time. China is a relative newcomer to Antarctica. It joined the Antarctic Treaty in 1983. According to the ASPI report, China is rapidly expanding its presence in a triangle-shaped area in the Australian Antarctic Territory. Chinese officials have stated in documents Beijings right to make a territorial claim. Antarctica, roughly the size of the U.S. and Mexico combined, is a mostly uninhabited, ice-covered land mass. Australia claims 42 per cent of the polar continent, the largest claim by far of any of the nations with a presence there. United States research program The United States claim is smaller, but New York Times reporters who visited Antarctica in the summer of 2017 reported that the U.S.-run McMurdo station on the edge of the continent has long been the most ambitious Antarctic research program run by any nation. On the negative side, the National Science Foundation, which runs U.S. research programs in Antarctica, has decided that aging, inefficient buildings at the McMurdo research station must be replaced. The cost of replacing those buildings would almost certainly come to hundreds of millions of dollars, according to the New York Times correspondents in a report published by The Times on July 17. They add, however, that in an era when the Trump administration is seeking to slash federal spending, the fate of Antarctic research is an open question. A more immediate issue, they say, is whether the U.S. Congress will allocate money for ice-breaking ships that would ensure that American bases in Antarctica can be resupplied every year. Meanwhile, China is now replacing Russia as the United States main competitor in Antarctica. China has four research bases, with a fifth planned. According to The Times report, the U.S. has three bases and multiple field camps, with an overall program still far larger than Chinas. The McMurdo base, originally built by the U.S. Navy in 1957 during the early stages of the Cold War, houses more than 1,200 residents, the largest community in all of Antarctica. Chinas goals China hasnt publicly explained its goals in great detail to foreigners, but Brady says that her Chinese contacts and Chinese-language research show that Beijing is looking for resources, including minerals, hydrocarbons, and fish. Other goals include the promotion of tourism, the opening of new transportation routes, securing sources of water, and bioprospecting. All of this fits into Chinas strategic goal of achieving great-power status, according to Brady. As she explains it, China also views access to both Antarctica and the Arctic as essential for the rollout of the countrys BeiDou satellite navigation system, Chinas space science program, and accurate weather forecasting in China. Concerns about Chinas satellite navigation system go back to at least October 2013, when an ASPI report warned about the possible militarization of Antarctic bases on a continent often called a land of peace and science. In 2014 Norwegian writer Brad Wormdal, the author of Satellite War, told Fairfax Media that China wanted to use the BeiDou navigation system to create a capability to guide missiles. A BeiDou base in Antarctica, he said, would make the system more reliable and precise. The BeiDou navigation system is based on dual use technology. This means that it can be used both for scientific research and for the guidance of offensive missiles. Chinas military involvement In a new book titled China as a Polar Great Power, Brady says that as far back as five years ago, in 2012, Chinese officials told her that the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) would increasingly participate in Chinas Antarctic expeditions. The Chinese officials cited the precedent set by Argentina, Brazil, Chile, New Zealand, and the United States, all of which use their armed forces and contractors in Antarctica to help staff research stations and provide transportation and cargo handling. Chinas decision to deploy its military, Brady says, would be legitimate if China were to publicly state that it is involving its military in Antarctic affairs. But she adds that other than in its first expedition, China has neglected to notify other Antarctic Treaty states of the PLAs ongoing involvement in Antarctic logistics and strategic science. Increasing the level of involvement of the Chinese military in the Antarctic program will greatly enhance Chinas operating capability and enable PLA personnel to gain experience in operating in polar conditions, says Brady. Brady says that Australia has underfunded its programs in Antarctica while over the past decade China, as a result of budget increases, has become a major investor, going from being a minor player in the polar region to becoming a major actor. ASPIs 2013 report said that Australias budget for Antarctic operations has faced crippling restrictions, with the overall budget for 2013-14 facing an eight percent cut from the previous years budget. A word about Antarctica Its worth noting that in contrast with the Arctic region, Antarctica is one of the coldest regions on earth. The BBC has called it the driest, coldest, windiest place in the world. But the French National Center for Scientific Research (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, or CNRS) explains that Antarctica turns out to be the best location for scientists According to CNRS, this includes cosmologists, geophysicists, space mission coordinators, and even psychologists pursuing research in their fields. And for astronomers, CNRS says that Antarctica is the worlds best earth-based observatory. According to the website World Data, Antarctica has the cleanest air with minimal background radiation. Cloud cover only rarely hides the stars. Research stations are spread across the continent, with a total of 70 permanent research stations representing 30 countries. Chinas propaganda at home and abroad In her book, Brady says that the Chinese government spares no effort to hide its designs on Antarctic mineral resources from possible foreign criticism to the extent of even deliberately mistranslating a speech by Chinas President Xi Jinping. One of the tasks assigned to Chinas state media, which includes among others China Radio International and CCTV International, now known as China Global News (CGN), is to respond, usually indirectly, to international controversies about China. Brady says that in November 2014, when President Xi visited Australia, the Australian media were speculating over the implications of Chinas expansion of its BeiDou satellite navigation system to Antarctica. The China Daily, Chinas official English-language newspaper, avoided commenting on the controversy directly. It instead translated a quote from Xis speech given while he was visiting a Chinese icebreaker in port at Hobart, Australia. Xi was quoted by China Daily on Nov. 19, 2014 as saying that scientific work in Antarctica is important work that will benefit humankind, and China has contributed to peaceful use of the continent. According to Brady, the official Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs website carried a more complete version of the speech, in English, that might have aroused greater misgivings if any of the journalists following the story had looked at it. As Brady notes in her book, Chinas expanding polar presence is consistently explained to the Chinese public, through Chinese-language sources, as being part of Chinas efforts to secure a share of polar resources. In the more complete version of Xi Jinpings speech, he was reported to have said, The Chinese side stands ready to continuously work with Australia and the international community to better understand, protect, and exploit the Antarctic. The China Daily version, however, used the word explore instead of the word exploit. Brady says that China is assuming that foreigners wont know what their leader is saying in the original Chinese and therefore not be aware that Chinas goal is to exploit the continents resources. Chinas expanding polar presence is explained to the Chinese public in Chinese as being part of Chinas efforts to secure a share of polar resources, Brady says. This will in turn, she says, underwrite Chinas continued economic growth and serve as an indicator of Chinas improved comprehensive national strength. In other words, the Chinese people, and not the just the scientists, will see a payoff from Chinas presence in Antarctica. Meanwhile, environmental experts are focusing on what could go wrong with Chinas many activities in Antarcticaregardless of whether they involve either exploration or exploitation. Theyre particularly concerned with the potential impact of any mining or fishing on Antarcticas marine life. Dan Southerland is RFA's founding executive editor. Chinas fishing fleet, which reaches as far as Latin America, West Africa, and even Antarctica, is adding to a worldwide strain on fish stocks. So its no surprise that Chinese fishermen have been involved in clashes with foreign fishermen and coast guards at great distances from their homeland. In perhaps the most dramatic clash, which occurred in March 2016, Argentinas coast guard sank a Chinese trawler that was fishing within its territorial waters more than 11,000 miles from its home base on the China coast. The trawler had tried to ram the Argentine vessel. Argentine Navy submarines have been assigned to chase down illegal fishing vessels in the frigid waters off southern Argentina, according to a Wall Street Journal report from that country published early this month. Reuters news agency, meanwhile, reported at the end of August that Ecuador had jailed 20 Chinese fishermen for up to four years for illegally fishing off the Galapagos Islands, where they were caught with some 6,600 sharks. Their vessel contained some 300 tons of near-extinct or endangered species, including hammerhead sharks. Incidents have also occurred near South Korea and in disputed areas in the South China Sea, where Chinese Coast Guard ships have clashed with Vietnamese fishermen. Pressures in the Yellow Sea, East China Sea, and South China Sea leading to incidents like this are driving China to fish elsewhere in the world. Chinese fishermen target West Africa In April 2017, The New York Times reported from Senegal that Chinese fishermen were increasingly heading to West Africa. The fishermen are enabled by corrupt local governments and their weak enforcement of fishing limits. Citing experts, The Times states that West Africa now provides the vast majority of fish caught by Chinas distant-water fishing fleet. Fishing off the coast of Senegal, most of the Chinese ships are so large that they scoop up as many fish in one week as Senegalese boats catch in a year, The Times report said. Most of the fish are sent abroad, with some of it ending up as fishmeal fodder for chickens and pigs in Europe and the United States. For Senegalese citizens, many of whom depend on fish as a source of protein, diminishing fish catches mean higher food prices. In nearby Sierra Leone, meanwhile, a similar scenario is playing out. The Economist Magazine reported on Dec. 7 from Sierra Leone that nearly half of the population of 7.4 million people in the small west African nation does not have enough to eat. But the countrys once plentiful shoals, combined with its weak government, have lured a flotilla of unscrupulous foreign trawlers to its waters. Most of the trawlers fly Chinese flags, but dozens also come from South Korea, Italy, Guinea, and Russia. According to Tabitha Mallory, an expert on these issues, by 2015 more than 160 Chinese fishing enterprises had agreements to operate off the shores of some 40 countries, the high seas, and Antarctica. But other Chinese vessels may be operating in more countries illegally. But in contrast with West Africa, where Chinese fishermen have done great harm to local economies, Antarctica stands out as a new frontier where the fishermen appear to have begun playing by internationally agreed upon rules. China has joined a commission for the conservation of marine life in Antarctica and has pledged its support for a marine protected area on the cold continent. However, poor regulation of Chinas distant-water fishing (DWF) fleet elsewhere has added to a strain on global fish stocks, according to experts and nongovernmental organizations monitoring the issue. Greenpeace, a nongovernmental organization which campaigns to change attitudes toward the environment, has found that from 2014-2016, Chinas distant water fishing (DWF) fleet -- vessels operating outside Chinese territorial waters -- increased by 400 to nearly 2,900. This followed a similar period of expansion between 2012 and 2014, when the fleet grew by 15 percent each year on average. By comparison, the United States had just 225 large-size DWF vessels, according to 2015 data. China plans to restrict fishing fleet growth The danger posed to fish stocks by Chinas growing fleet and the clashes between Chinese fishing boats and foreign fishermen and coast guards, appears to have caused Beijing to start trying to better regulate Chinas distant waters fishing fleet -- the largest in the world. Chinas Ministry of Agriculture recently released its 13th Five-Year Plan for distant water fisheries management, restricting the total number of offshore fishing vessels to under 3,000 in 2020 and capping the number of ocean fishing enterprises at 2016 levels. Writing for the Australia-based Policy Forum, Tabitha Mallory says that the recent policy moves by the Chinese government encouragingly point to a new focus on the long-term sustainability of global fish stocks. Fisheries experts, Mallory says, dont agree on the extent to which global fish stocks are depleted. But they do agree that most stocks are in decline. Fish stocks in Africa and Southeast Asia are under-assessed and under-regulated, says Mallory. But these are precisely the regions where the Chinas distant-water fishing fleet is highly active, says Mallory, who is an affiliate professor at the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies at the University of Washington. Mallory is also a consultant at the China Ocean Institute. The good news is that the Chinese government has recently acknowledged that theres a problem, she says. But Mallory says that this should not be overstated. Were not out of the woods, she says, adding that a number of Chinese fishing vessels are still fishing illegally and unsustainably. Chinas fishing fleet expansion has been fueled by preferential policies, including tax breaks on imports of fishing equipment purchased abroad and subsidies for fuel and vessel building. But for the first time, the Chinese government is currently no longer calling for an expansion of the fleet. These policy shifts indicate that China values its reputation abroad and that it pays attention to the reactions to its behavior from the international community, Mallory says. Another positive sign is that China has been shifting much of its fish production to aquaculture. Prof. Mallory describes this as a boom. But also worth watching in the future are Chinese provinces and companies which would still like to expand their fishing catch rather than curb it. Greenpeace says that a decision to delegate the management of Chinas vessel monitoring system (VMS) to the China Distant Water Fisheries Association, a private organization representing fishing boat operators, constitutes a conflict of interest. Then there is the murky issue of fuel subsidies for fishing-boat operators, which are often provided by provincial authorities. For more than a decade, the World Trade Organization has been calling for a more disciplined policy regarding fishing-boat subsidies. Dr. Mallory predicts that more mergers and acquisitions will occur in the Chinese fishing industry. Transparency in these deals is essential but often lacking, she says. Dan Southerland is RFA's founding executive editor. Despite two years of cuts, China's steel industry remains stuck in a trap of high production and pollution, leading to environmental damage at home and trade conflicts abroad. As the producer of half the world's crude steel, China has responded to international pressure with pledges to cut its vast manufacturing overcapacity, which has been blamed for unfair competition and job losses for a decade or more. In January 2016, Premier Li Keqiang first promised to reduce China's annual steel production capacity by 100-150 million metric tons, without saying when. Days later, the cabinet-level State Council said the cuts would take place over five years. Still later, the time frame was modified to "three to five years," raising expectations that the goal would be met by 2020. At first, the industry moved slowly to meet the annual reduction target of 45 million tons for 2016, prompting government warnings and a speedup in shutdowns in the second half of the year. In the end, the industry claimed it had exceeded the target, eliminating 65 million tons of capacity by the close of 2016. But the abrupt cuts coincided with a surge in demand for steel, spurred by the government's own economic stimulus and infrastructure programs. Steel prices climbed, causing closed mills to reopen. A study sponsored by the environmental group Greenpeace East Asia found that 54 million tons of capacity had restarted, raising doubts about what was achieved. The spike in steel output was also blamed for last winter's outbursts of coal-fired smog. This year, similar forces have been at work as the industry achieved its 2017 target to close 50 million tons of excess capacity. By midyear, shutdowns had reached 42.39 million tons, according to the China Iron and Steel Association (CISA). The annual goal for closures was reached by the end of August, the official English-language China Daily said. But the capacity cuts have done little to restrain China's crude steel production, which set a series of monthly records over the summer, hitting 74.59 million tons in August, even as the shutdown goal was achieved. In fact, the government-driven capacity cuts have had a contrary effect on production, by creating the appearance of a tightening market, pushing up prices and encouraging more output. "Prices are rising in 2017 due to government effort [sic] to close small mills that churn out low-quality steel made from scrap metal. As a result, a batch of money-losing producers begin to make a profit," said CISA's executive vice-chairman, Gu Jianguo, as quoted by the official Xinhua news agency on Nov. 27. On Monday, CISA said that steel export prices in October were the highest since February 2014, Xinhua reported. In the first 10 months of 2017, prices were up 43.1 percent from a year before, although exports were down 30.4 percent. Effect of anti-smog measures In addition to the profit incentive, the government's recent anti-smog measures may have inadvertently spurred production by threatening to close northeast steel mills for the entire winter heating season from mid-November to mid-March. The effect has helped to boost steel prices. "The war on smog has pushed spot Chinese steel prices to a nine-year high last week amid tighter supplies and unexpectedly healthy demand, especially in east and southern China," Reuters reported on Dec. 11. The interruptions may have added to anticipation of a tighter market and forced steelmakers to compensate by adjusting schedules for higher production in the prewinter months. Through October, crude steel production climbed 6.1 percent from the year-earlier period, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported. In November, production of 66.15 million tons fell 8.6 percent from the October level, thanks to the anti-smog shutdowns. But last month's output still rose 2.2 percent from a year before, Reuters said. Through 11 months, steel production remains 5.7 percent above the year-earlier period, the NBS said. The unintended consequences of downsizing are possible because China's steel production capacity still exceeds output by a wide margin, allowing the government to claim it is cutting while the industry is raising production at the same time. The exact size of the capacity surplus has been hard to pin down. Before the 2016 cuts started, overcapacity was widely estimated at 326 million tons, based on a capacity figure of 1.13 billion tons from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) and 2015 production of 803.8 million tons, as reported by the NBS and the World Steel Association. The huge surplus is more than the combined crude steel output of the second, third and fourth largest producers Japan, India, and the United States leaving plenty of room for both production increases and capacity cuts. Some reports put China's excess at nearly 400 million tons, based on a CISA capacity estimate of 1.2 billion tons at the end of 2015. Either way, the promised reduction of up to 150 million tons would do little to curb China's actual output. China produced 808.4 million tons of crude steel last year, according to World Steel Association figures. The country's domestic consumption is expected to rise 7.7 percent this year to 725 million tons, the China Metallurgical Industry Planning and Research Institute said. China's steel demand is forecast to increase 0.7 percent in 2018 to 730 million tons. These steel pipes manufactured in China will be loaded onto ships for export to various countries from a port in Lianyungang, eastern China's Jiangsu province, Dec. 1, 2015. Credit: AFP Not Chinas problem alone Responding to continued international pressure and the threat of new trade measures, officials have repeated the government's longstanding argument that the overcapacity problem is not China's alone. "Steel overcapacity is a common challenge facing countries across the world, rather than a problem unique to one country," Assistant Minister of Commerce Li Chenggang told a press conference at a steel conference in Berlin on Dec. 1, according to Xinhua. China's high production levels have been a major source of tension with trading partners in Europe and the United States. In April, U.S. President Donald J. Trump ordered an investigation under the rarely-used Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 to determine whether steel imports from China pose a national security risk. U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross has until mid-January to complete the probe, Reuters said. In a posting for the Peterson Institute of International Economics in Washington earlier this year, research analyst Zhiyao Lu examined the questions of how much spare capacity China needs to respond to increases in demand or operational issues and how much is real overcapacity. Lu concluded that nearly 200 million tons of spare capacity is "within the reasonable range" for China's industry, based on 2015 figures, leaving some 130 million tons as excess. But the analysis also found that official reports on capacity have mixed iron and steel together in their totals, making it hard to know how much crude steel capacity has really been cut. "In order to clearly track the progress of capacity reductions and implement effective policies to tackle the issue more efficiently, the Chinese government should separate the two sectors, set clear goals for each of them, and supervise each industry independently," Lu said. Putting questions of data manipulation aside, it could be argued that China's steelmakers are only responding to market forces by producing more when rising prices signal an increase in demand. But Derek Scissors, an Asia economist and resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute in Washington, rejected the idea that the Chinese steel industry is engaged in any meaningful reforms. Local governments are "still heavily subsidizing their steel firms so that some other province's firm will be the one to reduce output," Scissors said by email. The central government is also "heavily subsidizing the companies it has chosen to be the surviving players in the consolidation that never happens," he said. "Everyone wants someone else's firms to die and the central government has manifestly failed to impose any lasting discipline," Scissors said. Tugboats dock an oil tanker on a crude oil quay at a port in Zhoushan, eastern China's Zhejiang province, Nov. 11, 2016. China's dependence on foreign oil is growing and is likely to keep rising for decades to come, experts say. Despite increases in international oil prices this year, China's domestic crude production has continued to slide. Asian oil prices have jumped nearly 40 percent from their low point in June to a high in November. But China's crude output has dropped 4.1 percent through October after plunging 6.9 percent last year. China's state-owned oil giants have yet to respond to higher prices with increased production, although prices have already climbed past the range of U.S. $45-55 (297-363 yuan) per barrel, which would cover their presumed production costs. In October, domestic output dipped below 3.8 million barrels per day (bpd) from the average rate of 4 million bpd for all of last year, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The October level was near a low set in August, a record since the NBS began publishing data in 2011. While production is lagging, imports are rising to meet China's growing demand. In September, crude imports soared 12 percent from a year earlier to a near-record of 9 million bpd. Imports have averaged 8.4 million bpd so far this year, according to customs figures. Month-to-month changes have been attributed to a host of variables, including government-set quotas for imports by independent refiners. But the longer-term growth of imports over domestic production has been a consistent trend. This year's spread between rising imports and falling production has already surpassed China's forecasts for 2020 under its Five-Year Energy Plan, released by the National Energy Administration (NEA) and the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) in January. Falling investment at China's major oilfields, like the decades-old and now depleted Daqing field in Heilongjiang province, is likely to extend last year's drop in output through 2017. China's import dependence first reached 50 percent in 2008, gradually rising to 64.5 percent last year. This year's pace has put China's reliance on track to reach 69 percent. As fast as the proportion is rising, a recent study by the International Energy Agency (IEA) found no signs that it will slow down. By 2040, China's import dependence will hit 80 percent, the Paris-based IEA said last month in its annual World Energy Outlook. In a rare official comment on rising import dependence, a Ministry of Land and Resources research center said Saturday that China is "likely" to keep the import ratio within 70 percent until 2035, the official Xinhua news agency reported. Over the long term, the decline in China's oil output will prove "difficult to reverse" due to complex geological conditions at oilfields that "struggle to break even at (U.S.) $40-50 (264-330 yuan) per barrel," the IEA study said. Even taking new "tight oil" and offshore resources into account, production is forecast to slip to 3.1 million bpd, while demand will rise 35 percent to 15.5 million bpd, including bunker supplies for marine and aviation fuels. Huge appetite for oil China will become the world's leading oil consumer sometime soon after 2030, according to the IEA forecast. In 2040, China's net imports are expected to rise to 13 million bpd, taking up nearly 30 percent of all internationally traded oil. China's annual costs for imported oil will grow more than fourfold from about U.S. $110 billion (727 billion yuan) now to U.S. $460 billion (3.0 trillion yuan) by 2040, the IEA said. China has taken a series of steps aimed at reducing the risks to its energy security, including diversifying its sources and increasing its overland supplies with pipelines through Russia, Kazakhstan, and Myanmar. But limitations of production and logistics will make these only partial solutions. "This means that, in our projections, China has little alternative but to turn to its existing main suppliers in the Middle East for an additional 1.6 million bpd of supply," the IEA said. "This in turn would increase its reliance on trade via the Straits of Hormuz and the Strait of Malacca, two potential strategic chokepoints in global trade," the IEA said. Mikkal Herberg, energy security research director for the Seattle-based National Bureau of Asian Research, said that prospects for a turnaround in China's oil output due to this year's higher prices appear remote. "The notion that they might somehow suddenly increase domestic oil production seems extremely implausible," said Herberg. "Even if they can keep it flat, they're still headed toward 80-percent import dependence," he said. While pipeline deliveries may mitigate some of China's vulnerability to supply disruptions, an estimated 80 percent of its oil imports will still come by sea. "The 80-percent oil import dependence plus the 80 percent of that coming through the sea lanes will have pretty profound strategic implications for China," Herberg said. The IEA estimates that the Middle East will provide about half of China's oil supply in 2040, while China will consume about a quarter of the region's oil exports. The estimates may understate China's reliance on the Middle East for the grades of crude that it needs to refine into lower-pollution fuels. Chinese locals walk beside oil pumps in Daqing, northeastern China's Heilongjiang province, May 2, 2016. Credit: AFP Second pipeline from Russia China recently completed a second pipeline from the Russian border to its petroleum center at Daqing, doubling the route's import capacity to 600,000 bpd. Russia has been China's leading supplier for nine months in a row, but it has been struggling to stem the rising sulfur content of the crude that it has available. In October, Interfax reported that Russia is bound by contract under an intergovernmental agreement to supply China with scarce low-sulfur oil, forcing it to raise the sulfur content of oil to its other export customers in Europe. "The sulfur content of crude (for China) must not exceed 0.65 percent, according to agreements with Chinese partners, but it could take a year and a half to implement these measures," Interfax said. The sulfur content of oil available at some of Russia's western export terminals could rise to 1.8 percent next year as a result, the news agency said. China's growing reliance on imports is a crucial reason for its heavy investment in its twin trade and infrastructure initiatives the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, known as "One Belt, One Road," or OBOR, Herberg said. These are likely to become linked through port development with growing naval access and support facilities to help protect China's energy security. "I think it adds a very powerful driver to China's blue water naval development and power projection capacity through the Indian Ocean, and developing a whole set of strong diplomatic ties with the littoral Indian Ocean countries," Herberg said. Herberg sees the potential for rising tensions not only with the United States over China's increased presence, but also with Japan, which depends on the same maritime routes for its energy supplies. "To turn over those vital sea lanes to the tender mercies of the Chinese navy will put the hair up on the backs of the Japanese strategic planners," he said. India is also greatly concerned by the implications of a Chinese buildup in the region. "They see this as part of the Chinese encirclement of India," Herberg said. Despite the potential consequences of China's rapidly rising reliance, the government has said little in recent years about the risks of import dependence, leaving it unclear whether it is a motive or a pretext for expanding naval power. "It's not just about oil," Herberg said. A group of children pose for a group photo under the statues of late North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il on the 75th anniversary of the birth of Kim Jong Il, at Mansudae hill in Pyongyang, Feb. 16, 2017. It is widely known that the North Korean regime goes to extraordinary lengths to keep the majority of North Koreans from learning too much about the situation abroad and the lives of people in other countries. Unless they belong to a tiny elite, North Koreans cannot travel overseas freely, cannot read newspapers and magazines from foreign countries, and cannot listen to foreign broadcasts. The Internet, a symbol of our information age, is banned in North Korea as well. All these restrictions are relatively well known. However, the North Korean regime does not merely isolate North Koreans from the outside world, but also seeks to isolate them from North Korea's own past. Common North Koreans have virtually no opportunity to learn about North Korean history. If you visit a North Korean library now, you will not be able to see the official newspapers (such as, say, Rodong Sinmun) published in the 1970s and 1980s unless you have a proper security clearance, of course. Most books, published before the early 1990s, are also kept under strict control, in the special sections of larger libraries where only trusted people with formal security clearances are allowed to peruse such texts. This isolation, closely resembling the famous Orwellian dystopia of 1984, looks somewhat bizarre, but it is actually easy to understand. The authorities believe that North Koreans need to know only what their government allows them to know about their country's past. Of course, this permissible vision of history is only remotely related to what actually happened and can be described as largely an invention of North Korean propagandists. Admittedly, many other countries and political regimes use history as a handmaiden of propaganda and indoctrination. However, in most cases the people still had at least a theoretical chance to learn real history. They could read books representing alternative views or even access primary materials on such topics. However, North Koreans do not have such opportunities. Let's take just one example. Had North Koreans been allowed to read official newspapers from the 1950s, then they would know that at the time Kim Il Sung was always presented as merely one of many of North Korea's leaders. Apart from him, the newspapers mentioned other leaders like, say, Kim Du-bong, Pak Hon-young or Pak Chang-ok. All of them were eventually purged, after being accused of treason and espionage. However, in the old newspapers, one can see that Kim Il Sung himself praised these people, calling them outstanding revolutionaries'. If North Koreans find out about this, they may suspect that these alleged traitors were actually victims of political quarrels, not spies. This is indeed the case, but the North Korean government does not want its people to have such dangerous ideas and see Kim Il Sung not as a heaven-sent genius, but merely a successful and crafty politician who outmaneuvered his rivals to get supreme power. Foreign policy can also look confusing to a North Korean if he or she is allowed to read old books and newspapers. Until the late 1950s, North Korea claimed that in 1945 Korea was liberated by the Soviet troops, while Kim Il Sungs forces were seldom if ever mentioned. Of course, in those days the official media praised the Soviet Union at the time and described it as a liberator. In the early 1960s, the line changed: the North Korean media began to criticize the Soviet Union and praise China, while references to the Soviets role in liberation all but disappeared. From the late 1960s, it was claimed that the country was liberated by the glorious fighters of Kim Il Sung who allegedly defeated the Japanese Empire more or less single-handedly. This claim survived for decades, but the praise for China disappeared quite soon. If ordinary North Koreans are allowed to know this, many of them will not believe the official history created by the North Korean propagandists to reinforce the regime. That is exactly the reason why North Korean authorities are trying to control the past. If history is kept under lock and key, it is easier for the government to control people. Over the past five years, I cannot help but feel a bit strange when reading North Korean newspapers. Kim Jong Un inherited power in December 2011 and soon afterwards he, in fact, initiated reformist policies which are remarkably similar to what China had in the early 1980s, in the first years of Deng Xiaopings rule. However, in spite of all similarities, there is one curious difference: the North Korean media has not acknowledged that the country is reforming itself (with a measure of success, by the way). If one reads North Korean newspapers, it is impossible to escape the impression that the country remains the same stronghold of the Stalinist state socialism it used to be in the days of Kim Il Sung, the grandfather of the current leader. While little is actually left from the Soviet-style state socialism in the present-day North Korea, the North Korean newspapers and broadcasters are still talking about the socialist system, and seldom, if ever, mention the tremendous economic changes and the existence of the private economy. It looks bizarre, but, if we have a better look at the problems of the North Korean leadership, this silence is not strange at all. From the standpoint of Kim Jong Un and his advisers, the countrys economic development is important indeed, but it is more important to make sure that the country remains politically stable, with the Kim family and other hereditary elite groups staying at the top, no matter what happens with the economy. The necessary condition for maintaining stability is to ensure that the minds of the North Korean populace will not harbor dangerous, potentially dissenting ideas. The best way to achieve this goal is, of course, to constantly monitor the populace and, if necessary, punish those who show the slightest signs of discontent. This is the task of police and security forces. However, surveillance and police control is not enough: It is also very important to ensure that populace remains secluded from dangerous information and subversive ideas. If ordinary people become suspicious of the state ideology, it will be much more difficult to control them. This is why the North Korean leadership is trying to pretend that there is no change, let alone reform, in the country. If the North Koreans find out that there has been a change in their ideology, this might jeopardize ideological control. Indeed, Kim Jong Uns grandfather Kim Il Sung, as well as his father Kim Jong Il, both considered semi-divine creatures officially, once praised Soviet-style state socialism and, in the 1980s and 1990s, accused the Chinese reformist leadership of treason. If Kim Jong Un admits that now he is doing what the Chinese did in the 1980s, it would put his power under threat. Euphemism for reform needed This is the reason why the North Korean media remains silent about the ongoing reform. This is politically understandable, but, in the long run, these policies are quite problematic. Market economies and societies based on them are very complex structures, where one cannot solve all daily problems in a secret or informal way, through contacts and connections, and lengthy personal negotiations. To make sure things function properly, such a society needs courts, clearly written and enforceable laws, a system of private contracts and many other similar things. As soon as North Korea abandoned its anachronistic, Soviet-style state socialist economy, like China did in the 1980s, its economy began to improve palpably, and this is good news. However, the market economy is inevitably wrought by internal conflicts and contradictions. For example, what if a company does not keep its promise and does not pay for delivery, or ships substandard items? In the market economy, there is a great number of arbitration institutions, including the courts of law, which can solve such problems. However, these arbitration agencies can only function if the existence of the private economy is admitted, and proper laws and regulations are introduced. The North Korean leadership has no choice but to shift to a market economy and they seemingly understand this. Of course, while doing reforms they are not going to use the dangerous "R word," but, after all, you do not have to say ideologically suspicious words, like "reform" or "market." You can find nice-sounding euphemisms, like economic improvement measures or our style socialism. However, some kind of recognition is vital. Without admitting that things are really changing, it will be impossible to create an environment to sustain such change and make most of it. So, it has happened: Contrary to nearly all polls and predictions, Donald Trump, the Republican Party candidate, was elected the 45th President of the United States On Nov. 8. It was a sudden turn of events: Trump had faced not only intellectuals and minorities, as well as a significant part of the urban public opposing his candidacy, but also the highly critical attitude of the media. However, Trump was elected, receiving overwhelming support from farmers and other rural people and the angry white voters, and it is now a good time to think what his presidency would mean for the world. North Korean leaders tend to support Trump and are perhaps rejoiced with the news of his sudden victory. At least, the North Korean media treated him more favorably than Hillary Clinton. From the viewpoint of North Korea, Donald Trump is a good choice since he could be the president who might even consider the withdrawal of U.S. forces from South Korea, and at any rate, being an isolationist, he is likely to be less willing to engage with Seoul and Tokyo. But it is likely that the North Korean decision makers will soon discover that their hopes have little, if any, foundation. They are happy about Donald Trumps isolationist tendencies, but these tendencies are probably not that relevant from their point of view. Had North Korea been a small country which does not matter to the U.S., Donald Trumps pronounced unwillingness to get involved with other peoples problems would probably help Pyongyang. However, North Korea is a country which is not only developing nuclear weapons and delivery systems, but also frequently making highly bellicose statements, specifically targeting the U.S., and is working hard to design long-range missiles, capable of striking U.S. territory. In fact, in the modern world there are only two countries, China and Russia, which are capable of carrying out a nuclear attack against the U.S.. Other nuclear states either have no missiles capable of reaching the U.S. or are long-term American allies. North Korea is determined to become the third such country, and this is why the Trump Administration will not be able to ignore it. Of course, President Trump at the beginning of his term, as he said during the campaign, is likely to initiate a new round of negotiations with North Korea. There is a problem, though: No matter who is in charge in Washington, the U.S. government can currently accept only one solution to the North Korean nuclear issue that is, the complete denuclearization of the country. However, the only solution which is good for the Americans is unacceptable to the North Koreans, who are determined to remain nuclear no matter what. So, there is virtually no space for a compromise, and this is what Donald Trump and his negotiators will learn pretty soon. Once this becomes clear, it is likely that the Trump Administration will switch to a hard linevery hard, indeed. Trump and the majority of his Republican supporters belong to a foreign policy tradition which presumes that any grave challenge to the United States should be met with great toughness and, if necessary, application of force. No doubt, attempts to create long-range missile whose only conceivable target is the U.S., do qualify as a grave challenge. Therefore, even though the Trump Administration is likely to first try to negotiate with Pyongyang, these talks are likely to end in failure, and will be followed by a really tough set of sanctions. If North Korea continues to develop and test long-range missiles, submarine-based missiles and nuclear weapons, one cannot even rule out the possibility of a U.S. preemptive precision strike against North Koreas nuclear and missile research and production facilities. The policies of the Trump Administration toward China and Russia can influence North Korea's position in the international community. Donald Trump has already criticized China many times while was quite friendly to Russia. Therefore, under his watch, the United States might move close to Russia, but relations between the U.S. and China are likely to be strained. If such a situation arises, North Korea may find itself in a much more difficult economic situation. North Korean leaders should not congratulate themselves over the outcome of Nov. 8: Donald Trump as president is likely to strengthen, not weaken, the outside pressure Pyongyang now deals with. Cambodias Tonle Sap, a lake known as the countrys beating heart, faces a more rapid decline than previously estimated, according to a new study. Experts say that urgent countermeasures are needed to save Southeast Asias largest freshwater lake, which has served Cambodia for millennia. Millions of Cambodians depend on the Mekong River and the Tonle Sap for fish catches that provide them with their main source of protein. Cambodian fishermen pull more than 400,000 tons of fish out of the Tonle Sap each year, making the lake the worlds largest and most productive inland fishery. The new study focusing on the sediment flow in Southeast Asias longest river was produced by the Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI), an independent nonprofit research organization. The damage done to fish migration to and from the Tonle Sap by upstream dams in China and Laos has already been widely reported. The dams and their reservoirs block adult fish trying to migrate upstream and larvae and juveniles trying to migrate downstream. But the damage to the Tonle Sap caused by a decline in sediment flows which have been disrupted by the dams has been less well studied. Robust sediment flows to the Tonle Sap lakebed help to nourish the plants and smaller organisms on which the fish feed. Without this sediment, the lakes food chain is likely to collapse. According the SEI report, factors leading to a drastic reduction in sediment loads in the Mekong include hydroelectric dams, riverbed mining for sand, land-use changes, and climate change. Among these factors, the report says, the most important are the dams reservoirs and riverbed mining. Climate change, which has brought extreme weather changes, including increasingly intense floods and drought, exacerbates the situation, it says. The sand dredged from the Mekong riverbed goes mostly into concrete. The concrete has been used in the dams and in other Chinese projects being built along the riverbanks and for the Chinese-backed construction of a China-Laos railroad and its tunnels. The Stakes The stakes are huge. According to the World Wildlife Fund, the Mekong counts for up to 25 percent of the global freshwater catch and provides livelihoods for at least 60 million people. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) says that the Mekong is the second most biodiverse river in the world after the Amazon. The river supports the largest inland fishery in the world. But dams have been disrupting the migration of more than 100 species of fish. In Cambodia, researchers have warned in recent years that a loss of fish resources caused by dam building could devastate the health of rural children. And experts have documented signs of chronic malnutrition in a number of villages. In 2010, The Mekong River Commission (MRC) recommended that all damming be postponed through 2020. The MRC was formed in 1995 through an agreement among the governments of Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam to ensure the reasonable and equitable use of the Mekong River system. But the commissions findings are nonbinding, and China is not a member of the MRC. The importance of sediment Sediment might sound like an arcane subject studied by no one but agricultural experts. But for farmers and fishermen living downstream from China, it can mean life or death. According to Thanapon Piman, a researcher for the SEI and lead author of its report, sediment is critical for the formation and stabilization of deltas and the ecosystems they support. Sediment, or silt, enrichs the entire Lower Mekong Basin and supports farms, irrigation, fisheries, water quality, and water-based plants. Dr. Thanaphon says that if all of the dams proposed for the Lower Mekong Basin are developed, including dams that are planned or ongoing, this could prevent more than 90 percent of Mekongs sediment load from being transported downstream. The SEI report isnt the first of its kind to warn of looming, mostly man-made disasters on the Mekong. A 2012 study by the Washington, D.C.-based National Academy of Sciences identified Cambodias Lower Sesan 2 tributary dam as the most destructive to fish biodiversity of the countrys dams. The dam was expected to endanger 56 fish species. That impact will be felt across Cambodia as well as in the neighboring countries of Laos, Thailand, and Vietnam. In June 2014, The New York Times reported that a growing population of fishermen at the Tonle Sap were engaging in overfishing. The cutting of mangrove swamps that shelter fish added to the damage. During the dry season, the Tonle Sap feeds the Mekong River, releasing water that irrigates and nourishes crops to the southeast But during the rainy season, the Mekong backs up into the Tonle Sap. In brief, the waters of the Tonle Sap ebb and flow with the annual cycle of the river that feeds it. The Tonle Sap River connects the lake to the Mekong. The ebb and flow of its waters gives Southeast Asias largest freshwater lake the nickname Cambodias beating heart. The good news is that many internationally recognized scientists have been monitoring and reporting on the Mekong and Tonle Sap. A team involving some of these scientists has been studying the impact of upstream dams in China and Laos on the Tonle Sap since 2012 and has built a computer model to track developments there. International organizations such as the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the European Union have been supporting studies on environmental flows and food security in the region. The U.S. State Department runs a Lower Mekong Initiative in support of such activities. The SEI report was published with the support of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). Last year, Radio Free Asia sent a cameraman to document changes occurring along the Mekong. When he visited the Tonle Sap a representative for five communes depending on the lake spoke of its importance to Cambodia. If the Tonle Sap is alive, he said, then the Mekong is alive. But over the past five to six years, the water flow has been unpredictable and the fish catch declining. As RFAs cameraman reported in a series of blogs titled A River in Peril, fishermen working on the Tonle Sap on a daily basis report that they sometimes find no fish at all. Some fishermen have given up. Young men are leaving to find work elsewhere. Some head to neighboring Thailand or even as far away as South Korea. Writing for The Phnom Penh Post on Aug. 1 of this year, Alessandro Marazzi Sassoon summed up the view of many experts that Cambodias most important ecosystem is in crisis. The ecosystem of the gigantic lake is set to spectacularly collapse, he wrote. At least, he says, if drastic measures arent takenand soon. Such was the prevailing sentiment he says, at an International Symposium on Flood Pulse Ecosystems held in Siem Reap, Cambodia, where researchers convened in late July this year. Sassoon said that the tone at the conference alternated between frustrated and funereal. What can be done? Any solution to saving the Tonle Sap and other fishing grounds in or near the Mekong River would have to begin with a curb on dam building, much of it carried out by Chinese state-owned companies. In all, more than 15 countries companies are engaged in dam-building. In China, six dams have been completed with 13 more under construction or planned. Laos has plans for 140 dams with roughly 30 percent of them completed. Most of them are dams located on tributaries. According to Brian Eyler, an expert on the issues, tributary dams can disrupt environmental flows, such as fish migration and sediment distribution, just as seriously as mainstream dams do. Eyler directs the Southeast Asia program at the Stimson Center, a nonpartisan research center based in Washington, D.C. Two mainstream dams in Laos, which are still under construction, have designs intended to mitigate damage to fish built into them, such as fish ladders. Laoss Xayaburi dam has extensive fish modifications, including a fish elevator never tried before and accommodations for fish passage in the navigation lock system, Eyler says. Xayaburi also has installed expensive sediment flushing gates. The Don Sahong dam uses a modification of natural passages in channels adjacent of the dam site to permit fish passage. The developer deepened and widened these passages to permit fish passage in the dry season. But it remains to be seen, Eyler says, whether these innovations will produce predicted results. The simple truth is that we still dont know enough about the dams impacts on fish migration to determine before and after impacts of these two projects, says Eyler. According to Eyler, this is why The Mekong River Commission recommended in 2010 that all damming on the Mekong mainstream be postponed through 2020 until more data is collected. These dams use untested fish-mitigation technology, so even modeling results from the developer should be questioned and scrutinized, says Eyler. Cambodia itself has plans for 60 dams, with about 10 percent of them completed. But only one of the completed dams, the much-criticized Sesan 2 dam, is located in the Mekong Basin and relatively near the Tonle Sap. At a workshop held in Ho Chi Minh City on Nov. 30, experts argued that a growing awareness of the inefficiencies and high costs of hydropower should induce Laos and other countries to take another look at renewable energy. Eyler, who chaired the workshop, has long argued that the current hydropower system in Laos favors the needs of investors, which are short-term and driven by the bottom line. In Eylers view, the energy infrastructure in Laos, while designed to make Laos the battery of Southeast Asia, is highly inefficient. Nikky Nkiruka Avila from the Energy and Resources Group at the University of California, Berkeley, said that hydropower dams are becoming more costly. She advocated the increased use of other renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar powered energy, noting that the prices for the equipment needed for these sources have plummeted. Laos and Cambodia offer ideal conditions for solar and wind power generation. These renewable energy sources could potentially substitute for dams now in the planning stage. If built, those dams could become the most disruptive for environmental flows yet. Dan Southerland is RFA's founding executive editor. An action plan outlined by a member of Prime Minister Hun Sens cabinet ahead of Cambodias general election warns that the ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) must remove its agents from the opposition and should end support for smaller political parties in a bid to shore up power. An email dated July 30, 2017, which was obtained by RFAs Khmer Service over the weekend, appears to show a list of talking points compiled by Minister of Public Works and Transportation Sun Chanthol for Hun Sen ahead of a meeting of the CPPs Central Committee in Koh Pich, on the outskirts of the capital Phnom Penh. Sent nearly two months after the opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) won nearly 44 percent of votes in Cambodias commune elections, compared to 51 percent for the ruling party, Sun Chanthol advises SPM (Samdech Prime Minister) to acknowledge that the CPP will have a tougher election in 2018 and urge the party to work harder ahead of the July 29 general ballot. In a section entitled Action Plans for General Election, the minister includes the bullet points take out all CPP agents that stay with CNRP back to CPP and stop supporting the small parties, although he advises that they can participate in the election. Another talking point stresses the need for the CPP to show the result of reforms to the people by increasing national revenue, reducing criminal activities, increasing the salary of civil servants, providing better public service, and improving the education and health care sectors. At the national level, Sun Chanthol writes, a poll should be conducted to find out the popularity of the CPP. Encourage the workers to register to vote where they work and increase the participation of the youth, the email says, while the PM [prime minister] will go campaigning also. Monitor the Radio Free Asia and VOA [Voice of America], it adds, referring to two U.S. government- funded broadcasters that have aired content critical of the CPPs leadership. On a local level, Son Chanthol writes that the CPP should strengthen the local security and militia in the communes won by the party in local elections, grow youth membership, and set up one team of youth per commune to monitor the illegal activity of the opposition during the election. Sun Chanthol denied any knowledge of the alleged email when asked about it Tuesday by RFAs Khmer Service and said he would be busy with meetings throughout the week. On Wednesday, CPP spokesman Suos Yara rejected the authenticity of the purported leak in an interview with government-aligned Fresh News, calling it part of a bid to mislead the public. Election lead-up In the months since the email is believed to have been sent, Cambodias government has arrested the CNRPs leader, banned the party outright, and placed severe restrictions on NGOs and the media. Authorities arrested CNRP chief Kem Sokha in September on charges of treason, and two months later the Supreme Court ruled to disband his party for allegedly planning a rebellion with backing from Washington, essentially eliminating any challenge to the CPP ahead of the vote this year. Cambodian authorities have also used a pretext of tax and administrative violations to close independent radio stations carrying reports from RFA and Voice of America, and forced the closure of the American-owned Cambodia Daily newspaper in early September. RFA shuttered its Phnom Penh bureau soon after. In recent statements, the U.S. and EU said the CPPs targeting of the opposition, media and civil society had called the legitimacy of Cambodias 2018 general election into question, withdrawing electoral support and placing trade agreements with the Southeast Asian nation under review. Hun Sen has maintained that the vote will proceed as planned, and said it does not require international recognition to give it legitimacy. Reported by RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Nareth Muong. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Sam Rainsy, former president of the Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) who has lived in exile since 2015, on Jan. 14 in Houston, Texas unveiled to supporters his plan to launch the Cambodia National Rescue Movement (CNRM) as a way around the governments ban on his opposition party. The CNRM concept was rejected out of hand by the government in Cambodia, where courts on Tuesday ordered Sam Rainsy to pay National Assembly President Heng Samrin $60,000 over a defamation charge. Vuthy Huot of RFAs Khmer Service spoke to Sam Rainsy about the CNRM scheme. RFA: What is your purpose in forming the so-called Cambodia National Rescue Movement? Sam Rainsy: (We formed the CNRM) in order to carry out our mission, which is to rescue the nation, through another form and that is through a movement. Each of us shall take part in the mission to rescue our nation by any form. Yet we are of the opinion that, in the meantime, the movement formula is the best formula to attain our objective in 2018. RFA: Does this mean that it will not suffice to use the existing organizational structure of the CNRP framework? You and CNRP officials have always mentioned that the dissolution of the CNRP only exists on paper and that the CNRP remains alive. Why dont you use the existing mechanism of the CNRP and why do you find it necessary to form this new movement? Sam Rainsy: In reality, we must acknowledge that CNRP supporters and activists in Cambodia are facing difficulties. They find it hard [to carry out their activities]. They are really concerned. They get lost and get confused about the future of the party. This is because of the fact that following the arrest and jailing of the party president Kem Sokha and following the dissolution of the CNRP, the theft of the CNRP parliamentarian and councilor seats, we find it hard to work. We have since repeatedly faced all kinds of persecution, intimidation, and threats. We must acknowledge that some of our supporters and activists have had to take refuge by leaving their village or commune/sangkat. Some have to take refuge in Thailand. So it is very hard to communicate with one another. This is without mentioning the 55 leaders of the CNRP, the 25 members of the CNRP Permanent Committee. They all find it hard to meet with one another. They even dare not to make any decision as their president is in jail while two deputy presidents are taking refuge overseas. Another deputy president, Pol Ham, is in Cambodia and he dares not to do anything or speak out. So if we are waiting for the party via its organizational structure to make any decision or to seek advice from Kem Sokha who is in jail Kem Sokha dare not say anything. He is under all kinds of great pressure from [authorities] as we can see. Therefore, we have to overcome this very challenge that we cannot do anything. We must come up with a formula and the formula that we think is the best choice is the Cambodia National Rescue Movement. RFA: I still dont understand clearly. You mentioned that the CNRP is facing several issues already. To what extent can the newly formed movement help facilitate its work? Sam Rainsy: This can help a great deal, because a movement is a new framework with which we can carry out our activities without anyone daring to take action against us. Our movement cannot be dissolved. Not even on paper! We dont have to register our name or request authorization from any authorities so that government ministries can monitor us. Not at all. A movement is broad and is flexible by necessity. Hence, with such a movement, we can gather more support than through the party framework. For instance, civil society, members of non-governmental organizations, human rights organizations, land issues organizations, environmental organizations, journalists, and others cannot take part in any political party. But they can join with a broader movement with concrete goals. Our utmost purpose is to demand the release of Kem Sokha and all political prisoners. Also, we demand the return of civil rights and freedom namely freedom of expression, freedom of assembly, or freedom to hold demonstrations. There should not be any crackdown against our citizens like what they are experiencing at the moment. More importantly, we demand free, fair and just elections. Such elections absolutely must have the participation of the CNRP. All of us can make such demand. It is not merely the task of a political party. It is the promotion of democracy in Cambodia and the protection of civil rights and freedom. Therefore, through this movement formula, we are opening up extensively. I believe, and I have noticed, that there are many people from several walks of life which in the past were not supporting the CNRP, but now they are supporting the CNRM. RFA: You mentioned that there is interest in the CNRM from outsiders. You also mentioned that this movement will also open to civil society organizations and other networks to join. Up to now, can you elaborate a bit the name of these organizations that have shown signs of interest in joining this movement? Sam Rainsy: I am afraid I cannot disclose it now and that I must not specify any organizations now. We will announce the formal formation of the CNRM in late January. Then we will see the presence of those who are joining our movement. They will show up by themselves or they will send us petitions with their names and signatures. It will be more conspicuous then, rather than disclosing (supporters) one by one. We will stage an event to celebrate the official formation of this movement. RFA: Will this movement replace the CNRP in campaigning with the international community to put pressure directly against Prime Minister Hun Sens government and his officials? Or will the CNRP continue to carry out its campaign with the international community? Sam Rainsy: If there are any leaders of the CNRP who can carry out activities in order to push for the release of Kem Sokha and demand proper elections, they can do it. We can do it concurrently and there would be nothing wrong with that. Yet I trust that within the new framework as a movement, we enjoy full rights and freedom. We will have leaders who are free and are not being incarcerated. We dont need to wait for a command from anyone, not knowing who exactly is entitled to make decisions or from whom to receive advice. RFA: Arent you afraid that the international community will find it confusing, not knowing whether to communicate with the CNRP or the CNRM? What would you do to ensure that the international community can recognize the CNRM? Sam Rainsy: They will examine the movements legitimacy and representation of the citizens. The [movement] will be valued so long as it represents citizens at large in ways that can be noticed. We will see at least half of the CNRP lawmakers support this new movement. And we dont need to have support from all the CNRP lawmakers, because I understand that some of them still fear carrying out activities with the CNRP or the CNRM. So these individuals can remain quiet. But for those who dare to come out, they must come out to represent themselves with the CNRM. This also includes CNRP councilors since they all enjoy legitimacy to represent citizens who voted for them. These people can come out to support the movement. They will give legitimacy to the CNRM. Translated by Sovannarith Keo. The wife of Chinese rights lawyer Jiang Tianyong, who was jailed last November for two years for "incitement to subvert state power," says he recently received a visit from his father at the Changsha No. 1 Detention Center, and that he will be transferred in March from the police-run facility to prison to serve the remainder of his sentence. Speaking from her home in the U.S., Jin Bianling said Jiang's father had been brought to Changsha under the escort of two state security police officers on Tuesday. Their conversation took place under the watchful eyes of six or seven prison guards, she said. "Jiang Tianyong asked about some family matters, and had his father tell me not to worry too much about him," Jin said. "He said he was allowed to read books inside." "He also gave his father a message: to thank everyone for their concern and support," she said. She said Jiang has been in the Changsha No. 1 Detention Center for more than a year, but had only recently been issued with a payment card used to buy goods from the detention center store. "Jiang Tianyong didn't even know there was money in his account until his sister visited him last month. Only then did they issue him with a card," Jin said. "The food is, of course, terrible, in the detention center, and he can't sleep there. He should have lost weight but he seems to be as plump as he ever was, so I'm really worried about him," she said. Jin said Jiang is now waiting for a transfer in March to an unknown prison in Henan province, with the details of the transfer to be advised by phone at a later date. "His family will continue to fight for his visiting rights [after the transfer]," she said. "Also, we will continue to call on the international community to pay attention to Jiang Tianyong's case." "We don't know what the conditions will be like at the next prison he goes to, so I hope people will keep watching, to ensure that the authorities don't start to mete out worse treatment or torture to Jiang Tianyong," she said. Jin has previously said she received an account of his torture after he went missing on Nov. 21, 2016 in the central city of Changsha. He was identified as vulnerable to torture by Amnesty International in January 2017. Reported by Lin Ping for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. Authorities in the Chinese capital have confirmed they are holding a top human rights lawyer under criminal detention on public order charges, searching his home and denying him visits from a defense attorney, RFA has learned. "According to Article 80 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the People's Republic of China, this department has placed Yu Wensheng ... under criminal detention as of 1:00 a.m. on Jan. 20, 2018, on suspicion of obstructing public servants in the course of their duties," Yu's notice of criminal detention said. The notice, a copy of which was sent to RFA, was issued by the Shijingshan branch of the Beijing police department, and dated Jan. 20. Yu's wife Xu Yan said her husband hasn't yet been allowed a visit from a lawyer. "I [went to] the Gucheng police station in Shijingshan, and they gave me a notification of criminal detention," Xu said. "[Yu] has already been transferred to the Shijingshan Detention Center in Beijing." "They are saying that there was physical resistance when they went to detain Yu Wensheng, but I think that's just a pretext [for holding him]," she said. Xu said attorneys Ma Wei and Song Yusheng, whom she hired to defend her husband, hadn't been allowed to visit him on Monday when they showed up at the detention center. "When the lawyers arrived to see Yu Wensheng, the staff there told them to wait, because they were processing papers from other lawyers," Xu said. "Ma and Song then went to dispute this, and they were told they wouldn't be able to see [Yu] that day, and they made an appointment 48 hours later, for Wednesday." But Xu said she isn't hopeful that the scheduled meeting will go ahead as hoped, either. "Some of the other lawyers told me that there is no real reason for them to insist on a 48-hour gap; that a defense attorney should be able to show up and be allowed a meeting on the same day," she said. "I am very worried that something is going on with this 48-hour delay, and I hope people will keep following it," Xu said, adding that she was also prevented from topping up her husband's account in the detention center, so he can buy daily necessities from its store. "To start with, they said it was because the computer system hadn't yet issued him with a card, but I don't know how to get such a card; maybe it's the card he uses to buy stuff," she said. She said she believes the charge is a trumped-up one, and that the real reason for Yu's detention was an open letter he wrote last Thursday ahead of the second plenary session of the Communist Party's central committee. The letter called for an end to party control of China's People's Liberation Army, exercised via the Central Military Commission, and to the parliamentary advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), which the letter said has no basis in the country's constitution. Yu was detained the morning after he published the letter online. Home searched Beijing-based rights activist Zhang Baocheng said the police had searched Yu's home on Saturday. "They are searching right now, and won't allow [the family] to open the door," Zhang said from outside the apartment as police searched it. "I can't get in ... there are two plainclothes cops in their living room, watching me." Xu Qin, a spokesperson for the Hubei-based rights group Rose China, said dozens of people had signed Yu's letter to China's leaders after he posted it. "The latest figure is 54 signatures," Xu said, adding that Yu has been unjustly detained. "Yu is a former rights lawyer whose license to practice was revoked, and yet all he ever did was fight for Chinese citizens to enjoy the protection of the law." Yu, 51, has defended a number of clients in politically sensitive human rights cases in recent years, including forced evictees and the families of victims of a tainted vaccinations scandal in the eastern province of Shandong. In 2014, he was held by police for 99 days for showing public support for the pro-democracy Occupy Central movement in Hong Kong. Yu was stripped of his professional license to practice after he joined the defense team for detained fellow lawyer Wang Quanzhang, held in the northern city of Tianjin amid a nationwide crackdown on more than 300 lawyers and rights activists that began in July 2015. Reported by Qiao Long and Yang Fan for RFA's Mandarin Service, and by Wong Siu-san and Dai Weisen for the Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. Authorities in the southern Chinese province of Guangdong have revoked the business license of rights lawyer Sui Muqing after he ignored official warnings not to take on so many politically sensitive cases. Sui, who has defended high-profile activists including Sichuan-based rights activist Huang Qi and Guangdong-based legal advocate Guo Feixiong, told RFA that he had received a visit from two officials from the Guangdong provincial government justice department on. "Their names were Chen Wuming and Chen Huaying from the provincial justice department, and they came at around 11.00 a.m. and announced to me that my license was being revoked as a punishment," Sui said. "I had already said I wanted a hearing, but they suddenly produced this [document]," he said. Sui said the decision was likely the result of a series of actions on his part, rather than a particular case. "This has been a cumulative process, and the [ruling Chinese Communist] Party and government are unhappy with me, because I didn't cut back on the number of human rights cases I represented after my license was renewed in the wake of the crackdown," Sui said. "I think this is why they hate me so much." He said the decision to terminate his license was likely the result of a series of cases. "There are a large number of factors at play, and I think it's just a case of the straw that broke the camel's back," Sui said. An official who answered the phone at the Guangdong provincial government justice department declined to comment when contacted by RFA on . Beijing-based rights lawyer Lin Qilei said a large number of rights lawyers had been denied a business license during annual reviews following the crackdown, which saw more than 300 lawyers, law firm staff and rights activists detained, questioned, jailed, or placed under surveillance and travel bans along with their families. "The government is starting to use the justice departments and the Lawyers' Associations instead of criminal proceedings now, to target the legal profession," Lin said. "They are revoking the licenses of human rights lawyers; this is becoming a trend in all provinces now." "The revoking of licenses is their way of punishing certain human rights lawyers who are very active," he said. Last September, authorities in the eastern province of Shandong revoked the business license of lawyer Zhu Shengwu, to practice after he defended social media user Wang Jiangfeng, who was jailed for two years after he called President Xi Jinping by a forbidden nickname -- "steamed buns" -- in an online post. "It is very clear that this sanction imposed on Sui Muqing is a form of persecution, oppression and [political] revenge," Zhu told RFA. "This is definitely a sanction used against human rights lawyers, and likely has to do with the large number of sensitive cases that Sui Muqing has worked on." Fellow Beijing rights lawyer Ding Jiaxi said the revoking of lawyers' license was intended to send a political signal to other rights lawyers. "They are warning lawyers that they shouldn't speak out on behalf of prisoners of conscience," Ding said. "Basically, if you want to function as a lawyer in this system, you have to be a tool of the regime; and collude in the persecution of its victims." Reported by Ng Yik-tung and Sing Man for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by Yang Fan for the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. Screen grab of footage of the demolition of Golden Lampstand Church in Linfen city in northern Shanxi Province, Jan. 9, 2018. Scores of police and local officials demolished a large church in the Shanxi Province city of Linfen on Tuesday, thwarting efforts by congregants to halt the demolition and pressuring them to remain silent, witnesses told RFAs Cantonese Service. The Golden Lampstand Church was surrounded by officials, while cranes and bulldozers methodically reduced the large building to rubble, according to a witness who spoke to RFA. It has now been demolished, a church member told RF by telephone. The church member, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the demolition was carried out by anti-riot team, quite large. Asked if congregants were being beaten by police, the witness said they had not, quickly adding I'm under house arrest now before hanging up. Efforts by RFA to reach the church member by telephone received no reply. Calls to the Linfen City government also went unanswered. Ren Quanniu, a lawyer who frequently works on religious repression cases, told RFA that churches have often been demolished in China without means for members to seek legal redress. This is not a matter of demolition alone, but also involves a number of political and religious issues. It is very difficult for believers of this church to solve the dispute by law, he told RFA. If a demolition case is simply a demolition case, we can go through the formalities and look at the documents of the people. If there is a problem, it can be stopped by law, said Ren. However, in general, anything involving religious beliefs in China, is a more sensitive issue, he added. ChinaAid, a Texas-based Christian human rights organization, said the Golden Lampstand Church had been subject to government pressures since it was built in 2009. China repeatedly cracks down on house churches, which are churches that refuse to register, often to opt out of government monitoring. Officials often prosecute such choices, however, and some of Golden Lampstand Churchs leaders have been imprisoned for one to seven years, simply for serving at their church, ChinaAid said in a statement on Tuesday. ChinaAid said that on Sept. 13, 2009, church members who slept at the construction site were beaten by some 400 officials. After the 2009 incident, Pastor Yang Xuan spent three-and-a-half years in prison, and his wife Yang Caizhen was sentenced to two years in a re-education labor camp and beaten while incarcerated, ChinaAid said, quoting their daughter Yang Esther Xue. House churches, which operate without official registration documents and without the involvement of the local religious affairs bureaus, come in for surveillance and repeated raids, especially in more rural areas of the country, according to overseas rights groups. Freedom of worship was harshly restricted last year in China, where authorities physically abused, detained, arrested, tortured, sentenced to prison, or harassed adherents of both registered and unregistered religious groups, the U.S. State Department said in an annual report released in August. Reported by RFAs Cantonese Service. Written in English by Paul Eckert. Disappeared Hong Kong bookseller and Swedish national Gui Minhai has been kidnapped for a second time -- this time while in the company of Swedish diplomats, the Swedish foreign ministry said on . Hong Kong-based Gui "disappeared" under murky circumstances from his holiday home in Pattaya, Thailand on , only to reappear in China "confessing" to a decade-old alleged drunk-driving offense. One of five Hong Kong booksellers detained by Chinese police for selling "banned books" to customers across the internal border in mainland China, Gui was "released" by the Chinese authorities last October, but his U.K.-based daughter Angela Gui said he was still not free. Instead, Gui had been placed under various forms of control and surveillance to his birthplace, Ningbo, and had been reunited with his wife Jennifer, who is a German national, the Independent Chinese PEN writers' group said at the time. He was once more taken away by more than 10 plainclothes police officers while traveling from Ningbo to the Swedish embassy in Beijing by train in the company of two diplomats from the Swedish Consulate in Shanghai, Radio Sweden reported on . Sweden's foreign ministry confirmed the story to the station. "This incident will be handled with the utmost seriousness," foreign ministry official Patric Nilsson said. "We have taken strong measures at the highest political level." Angela Gui said she was "shocked but not surprised" by her father's second disappearance. "I'm most worried about his health," she said. "I am very scared that this means his time in China will be drawn out even longer and I am very worried that I might not get to speak to him again for a very long time." "I am very worried over how he is doing, considering he might not have so much time left," Gui added. Illegal move The New York Times reported on that mainland officials told Swedish diplomats that the bookseller was suspected of sharing secret information with them. Amnesty International China researcher Patrick Poon said he was "surprised and angry" at the incident. "I am very surprised and angry that he has been taken away once again, and worse, when he was in the company of diplomats," Poon said. "The Chinese government has acted recklessly." But he said the incident was unlikely to have occurred without orders from the highest level. "It's likely that the police were acting on orders from the highest echelons of leadership," he said. Poon called on the government to clarify Gui's detention and current status. "If they don't, then 's incident really is illegal," he said. The writers' group Pen Hong Kong also called for clarification of Gui's status. "Pen Hong Kong is extremely concerned about Gui Minhai, the Hong Kongs based publisher and bookseller reportedly snatched by police while on a train in China under the eyes of Swedish diplomats," the group said via its Twitter account. "We call for his release and clarity over what has happened." 'Shocking development' And Sophie Richardson, China director for the New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW), said Gui's disappearance was "a shocking development." "This is a shocking development, for Chinese police to do this to a foreign citizen, in the company of his countrys diplomats, and when Chinese authorities have themselves said he is free" Richardson said via Twitter. "If diplomats talking to their own citizens in #China is now considered spying, this is a massive problem," she wrote. And Amnesty International researcher William Nee said the group remains "very concerned" about Gui. "The government should stop any extralegal measures taken against him, and ensure he receives the medical care that he needs," Nee wrote in a tweet on . In , the U.K. accused Beijing of breaching the handover treaty by "involuntarily removing" Gui's colleague British national Lee Bo across the internal immigration border to mainland China. There is no record of Lee leaving Hong Kong, suggesting that he was spirited across the internal immigration border by Chinese police, while colleagues Lui Por, Lam Wing-kei and Cheung Chi-ping were also detained in late 2015 after they crossed the border into China. Lui, Cheung and Lam were later released after making televised "confessions" with a set of instructions from China's state security police: to reappear in Hong Kong, refute reports of their disappearance, and claim to be voluntarily helping police with their inquiries. But Lam Wing-kei, who refused to to stick to that script and has since traveled to the democratic island of Taiwan, has told RFA that Gui is very unlikely to be allowed to leave China now. Lam said the authorities are likely to use Gui's relatives still living in China as "hostages" to prevent him from speaking out even if he is allowed to leave the country. Reported by Pan Jiaqing for RFA's Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. North Koreas government has ordered the countrys provinces to build nursing homes for senior citizens as part of a New Years push to complete showcase projects, but is passing the cost of labor and construction on to local citizens who are already strapped for cash, North Korean sources say. One center is now scheduled to be built in the Puyun district of North Hamgyong provinces Chongjin city, a source in the northern province bordering China told RFAs Korean Service. But all the funding for construction, including materials and labor, is being demanded from area residents, RFAs source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Since the Central Committee ordered us to build the nursing facility, the amount of tax assessment we have to pay has been doubled, the source said. We now have to contribute 10 kg. of corn per family member to support the construction work. Other projects ordered by the government at the New Year now have citizens busy collecting scrap iron, scrap copper, and scrap paper, and producing manure for compost, the source said. Now the residents have the additional burden of building nursing homes, and they are complaining strongly that the country is demanding more and more from them without providing them with anything in return, he said. Facilities hidden away Orphanages for pre-school and older children are also being built in Chongjins Ranam district, far from the city center, and the nursing home being built in Puyun will be even farther away, the source said, adding, Many people are wondering if these facilities are being built in such remote areas to avoid spoiling the beauty of the city. Also speaking to RFA, another source in North Hamgyong said that construction on the nursing home is already under way. It is being built to fulfill one of the tasks ordered by the Central Committee in the New Years message, but the requirement forcing residents to supply the construction funds and materials has become a burden, he said. State authorities will say that this project is Kim Jong Uns achievement, though, so it is getting harder for the residents to remain calm. These requirements from the New Years message are just shackling the people and making their lives even worse, he said. Reported by Jieun Kim for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Richard Finney. HMD Global will be in Nigeria this week taking part in the Techpoint Build 2018 event. The gathering in Lagos will showcase Nigerian tech startups. Nigeria hopes tech will help it grow the economy and improve the countrys standard of living. In fact, the theme of the event is Using Technology to Accelerate the Nations Economy. The cost of customer acquisition, the extent to which the Nigerian market ready to play a role in the tech economy, and market dynamics, will be among the topics discussed at this gathering. Finnish company HMD Global, which is an event sponsor, has an interest in the event because it markets Nokia (News - Alert) phones in Nigeria, among other places. HMD is an independent company that entered the global smartphone market last year with Nokia phones running Android. HMD Global celebrated its first birthday last month. In just one year, HMD has introduced 11 devices and forged global partnerships with such companies as optics and electronics specialist ZEISS. Those devices include six Nokia smartphones and five feature phones. It unveiled the first of the devices, the Nokia 3310, at Mobile World Congress (News - Alert) early last year. We started our journey with huge expectations from fans and huge responsibility to deliver on the legacy of Nokia phones, says Juho Sarvikas, chief product officer at HMD Global. True to our Scandinavian roots, we designed beautiful devices adhering to the build-quality you expect from the heritage of Nokia phones. We took no shortcuts in integrating the latest technology to enhance your real-life experiences. At the same time, we delivered innovative propositions such as the Dual-Sight experience on Nokia 8 and the extraordinary two-day battery life on Nokia 2. Edited by Mandi Nowitz Royal Malaysian Police escort Indonesian defendant Siti Aisyah (left), from the Shah Alam High Court where she and another woman are standing trial on charges of murdering Kim Jong Nam early last year, Oct. 2, 2017. Returning to court on Monday after a seven-week hiatus, the prosecutors of two Southeast Asian women charged with murdering Kim Jong Nam called computer technicians to verify CCTV footage taken during and after last years chemical attack. Indonesian Siti Aisyah and Vietnamese Doan Thi Huong face a death sentence if convicted of fatally poisoning the estranged half-brother of North Koreas dictator by smearing VX nerve agent on his face at a Kuala Lumpur area airport on Feb. 13, 2017. Lead prosecutor Muhammad Iskandar Ahmad told the Shah Alam High Court that four witnesses were expected to testify this week before lead investigating officer (IO) Wan Azirul Nizam Che Wan Aziz returned to the stand for cross examination. Before the long pause in the trial, he testified about the two women being seen on CCTV footage attacking Kim before fleeing to airport restrooms and then heading to a taxi terminal. We hope to resolve the testimony of all [prosecution] witnesses by March, Iskandar told reporters following the court session. The schedule calls for sessions to be held on four more days in January, two in February and four in March before the defense presents its case. The defendants claim they thought they were participating in a game show. Four North Korean men who have been named suspects and were seen on CCTV videos at the airport, fled from Malaysia after the attack. Last week, defense attorneys said they planned to build the case for their clients through their cross-examination of Wan Azirul. Its too premature to talk about the witnesses. But Doans full defense will be known when we cross-examine the IO, Doan attorney Hisyam Teh Poh Teik told BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service. He said the defense hoped the court did not call the defendants to testify, but if that happened, he had four or five other witnesses to call. On Monday, the technicians testified about how they had downloaded CCTV footage during and after the attack and passed along disks with the footage to investigators. The defense teams had challenged the disks admissibility, claiming they were created after the women were arrested. Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service. North Korean residents are terrified that leader Kim Jong Uns recent call to eliminate remaining non-socialist elements in society will mean a return to the bloody executions and fearful politics of the past when nonconformists were weeded out and brutally neutralized, sources inside the country said. When Kim addressed the nation on the first day of the new year, as he has done annually since 2013, he said that eliminating non-socialist elements in society would be a key task for 2018 in the repressive nation. Under the campaign, high-level party executives and ordinary North Koreans alike are subject to screenings to determine if they have engaged in non-socialist activities, such as gambling, fraud, prostitution, usury, visiting fortunetellers, following Western culture, and watching or distributing foreign visual media. The directive comes as Kim, who has been in power for six years, tightens his control over the repressive country as it feels the squeeze of new tough sanctions imposed by the United Nations as punishment for recent missile launches, and experiences heightened tensions with the United States. Kims father, Kim Jong Il, who ruled North Korea from 1994 to 2011, directed previous rounds of grisly purges of non-socialist elements to fortify his grip on power. Though Kim also discussed the countrys nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs, the possibility of holding conditional talks with South Korea on sending a delegation to the upcoming Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, and the unprecedented level of sanctions North Korea suffered in 2017, his call to action about weeding out non-socialist elements reverberated with many citizens. Kim gave more details about this key task for the new year on Dec. 23, when he told a group of chairpersons of the ruling Korean Workers Party at a three-day conference that he had ordered rank-and-file organizations to lead a revolutionary offensive to uproot non-socialist practices, according to the official news agency KCNA. He said the offensive should be launched in the party cells, the bases educating the party members and other working people and training them into revolutionaries, and the lowest revolutionary posts defending Korean-style socialism, KCNA said in its English edition. In that speech, Kim stressed the role of party cells in building a powerful socialist country and said that destructive non-socialist practices have occurred because party organizations and officials had failed in their efforts to provide constant socialist education to people and to intensify the nations ideological struggle. When our socialist culture and art prevails over the corrupt bourgeois reactionary culture, it is possible for people not to harbor illusions about the enemies culture but to prevent ideological and cultural poisoning by the imperialists, he was quoted as saying. Kim also said that even though the country may face manifold difficulties and hardships in the days ahead, members of the Party Central Committee feel reassured about the hundreds of thousands of cell chairpersons who will carry out the regimes policies. What we have done is just the beginning and the Party Central Committee plans to conduct more new projects for the people, he said, though he did not provide details. Getting away with it North Koreans now fear that high-level executives in key government agencies who engage in non-socialist activities will get away with their misdeeds, while powerless ordinary people who get caught will bear the brunt of harsh punishments, including death, the sources said. To accomplish tasks from the New Years message, each regional party unit, judicial authorities, and organizations have announced their New Years plan, said a source from North Hamgyong province, who requested anonymity. The big part of the first project of the annual plan is focusing on rooting out non-socialist elements, so the social atmosphere appears uneasy, he told RFAs Korean Service on Tuesday. The North Hamgyong Party Committee will temporarily organize an agency under its auspices to root out non-socialist elements, the source said. The dominant Korean Workers Party, judicial authorities, and administrative officials are organizing members for their joint non-socialist elements team, he said. Residents are resentful of the high-level executives who will be on the team because they are the main culprits of non-socialist activities, the source said. It is because high-level executives have always been at the center of non-socialist phenomena. Residents have expressed anger over the results of the screenings, the source said, adding that the children of executives working for the party or the State Security Department who are summoned for screenings manage to get off on sick bail or another phony excuse. A powerless college student who has been accused of distributing improper visual images, for example, was executed by a firing squad, he said, illustrating the brutal punishments that authorities sometimes mete out for ordinary citizens who are thought to have engaged in forbidden activities. Authorities also often accuse people who are unemployed or who do not sell any goods at markets of being non-socialist elements of society, and they suffocate them by withholding electricity, water, or food, he said. Non-socialist elements will fade away on their own if there are reasonable [food] distributions by the country as a reward for labor, the source said. A second source from North Hamgyong confirmed that ordinary North Koreans are living in fear after hearing Kim Jong Un's New Years Day speech. Ordinary residents who barely make enough to get by from day to day do not have time to think about non-socialist elements, he said. When the screenings begin, however, the executives make false charges against powerless poor people to prove their own effectiveness when it comes to wiping out non-socialist elements, which is something that residents fear, the source said. Reported by Jieun Kim for RFAs Korean Service. Translated by Translated by Leejin Jun. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. Cambodian National Election Committee (NEC) officers pull a bag of used ballots from a truck at the NEC office in Phnom Penh, Aug. 3, 2013. UPDATED at 9:30 A.M. EST on 2017-05-17 More than 300,000 Cambodians may not be able to vote in next months commune elections because they do not possess identification cards required for casting a ballot under a new legal procedure put in place by the countrys election committee, election observers and analysts said on Thursday. A new and complicated procedure of the National Election Committee (NEC), the agency that supervises the countrys national elections, are causing difficulties for voters who must scramble to obtain forms confirming their identities, and jeopardizing their right to vote granted by the countrys constitution, they said. The legal procedure, adopted by the NEC on March 10 and publicly disseminated in April, requires citizens whose names appear on voter lists, but who do not have an official identification card, to apply for a certificate confirming their identity to vote in commune elections on June 4. To get a certificate, they must prove their identities, submit three photos of themselves, and have two witnesses appear before officials at commune/sangkat (administrative subdivision) election commission offices between May 4 and June 2. Observers said some Cambodians who already have registered their names on voter lists believe that they have sufficient documents in order to cast ballots. Others have applied for official IDs but have not yet received them from the Ministry of Interior. They also said Cambodian migrant workers in neighboring countries are the most at risk of losing their right to vote. The new legal procedure could disenfranchise more than 300,000 people, or roughly 4 percent of the nearly 7.9 million Cambodians who have registered their names to vote, analysts said. Independent analyst Lao Mong Hay noted that many other democratic countries have far less complicated procedures in place so their citizens can vote for their leaders. Cambodia, however, is not among them because the country has some legal procedures, such as the new NEC requirement, that prevent its citizens from exercising their right to vote, he said. The state is obliged to ensure that citizens can vote easily with minimal expense, he told RFAs Khmer Service. NEC deputy secretary-general Som Sorida has called on the media to help spread the news about the new procedure to those without ID cards so they can go to administrative offices and complete the paperwork for their certificates. If they dont possess documents confirming their identities for voting, even though they have their names registered on the voter list, they still cannot cast their votes, he said. All people must clearly understand this point." There are two kinds of documents that people can use to be able to cast their voteseither a Khmer national identification card or a certificate confirming a person's identity for voting, he said. Too much, too late Lao Mong Hay, however, questioned why the NEC did not announce the new procedure when citizens first registered their names to vote. He pointed to the new voting registration system that requires people to have their thumbprints scanned and possess documents that confirm their identity for voter registration in accordance with the election law. Because such people already have been issued official confirmations that they are eligible to vote, Lao Mong Hay said the NECs further legal procedure requiring prospective voters to apply for a certificate confirming their identity should not be necessary. Such legal procedures should have been done as part of a package by the time people went to register their names to vote, he said. And the NEC should have let the people know in advance and told the authorities responsible for issuing the identification cards to be well prepared. Cambodians in some provinces such as Poipet, Banteay Meanchey, and Kratie have complained about difficulties with applying for certificates confirming their identities. They said commune authorities are putting up obstacles to the issuance of the certificates and expressed concern that they will lose their right to vote in the June 4 elections even though they have already registered. Election observers said the NEC should remove the new legal procedure so that citizens who have their names on the voter lists and have received official voter name registration receipts can cast ballots. Korn Savan, an investigation coordinator for the Committee for Free and Fair Elections in Cambodia (Comfrel), said few people are aware of the requirement for a certificate confirming their identities in order to vote because of the limited dissemination of information and bad timing as election day approaches. Nheb Bunchin, spokesman for the royalist political party Funcinpec, agreed that the NECs new legal procedure has caused problems for voters, even though the agency, political parties, and other election stakeholders have all urged people to cast ballots. The NECs legal procedures and formalities are too burdensome, he told RFA. People may not go to cast their votes after seeing the procedure, so we are evaluating whether we can create any shortcuts in the procedure and will submit a request to the NEC. We are not sure that they will listen to us, he said. Nevertheless, we have to reduce the procedures. CNRP weighs in Cambodias main opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) also raised concerns over the issue that citizens whose names already appear on voter lists may face disenfranchisement. It has requested that the NEC simplify the new requirement to ensure all citizens can vote. They [voters] are facing difficulties, said Meng Sopheary, the CNRPs head of the Election Affairs and Legislation Department. First, the legal procedure is a bit complicated. Second, they have to spend time [getting the necessary documents]. Third, they have to spend money on transportation [to get to local election commission offices] because some of them work far away, or have migrated to neighboring countries to work, and they have to return. Such expenses, including their time, are reasons they cannot get certificates confirming their identities for voting, she said. This will affect the elections because they will not be able to cast their votes. In response to the CNRPs request, the NEC said it only can request that all microfinance institutions return IDs to citizens who have put up the cards as collateral for loans, so that they can use them to vote in the upcoming elections. Reported by Zakariya Tin for RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sovannarith Keo. Written in English by Roseanne Gerin. The head of Cambodias opposition Cambodia National Rescue Party (CNRP) on Wednesday called on his partys candidates to remain above the fray amid a slew of threats from Prime Minister Hun Sens ruling Cambodian Peoples Party (CPP) in the lead up to local elections set for next month. Speaking in the capital Phnom Penh ahead of a 12-day campaign period beginning on May 20, CNRP president Kem Sokha told a gathering of 103 top ranked female candidates that the party must adhere to nonviolence and avoid trading insults with the CPP ahead of the countrys June 4 commune elections. We are not cowards, brothers and sisters, but we are well aware that we are marching towards our goal, he said. Let me give you the example of a race: If we want to overtake our challengers and they turn to block us with their legs, should we bother ourselves with attacking them back? Do not engage, just continue on, brothers and sisters! Kem Sokha made specific reference to a warning by defense minister Tea Banh on Sunday that the army will smash the teeth of anyone protesting an election win by the ruling party and quickly suppress any demonstrations by CNRP members like those that followed the oppositions loss in national elections in 2013. Let the people make a judgment in regard to those who want to smash our teeth or whatever they plan, he said. We really do want their votes, but the people can make their own decisions. If they prefer those who want to smash our teeth, they should vote for them. But if they prefer gentle people, such as those in the CNRP, please vote for the CNRP. Kem Sokha suggested that the people of Cambodia will eventually elect peace lovers to lead the country, adding that the CNRP will opt for a nonviolent approach in both words and deeds during the upcoming campaign. Tea Banhs remarks came less than a week after Cambodias prime minister Hun Sen warned of civil war if the public does not support his CPP in local elections on June 4. Hun Sen, who has already ruled Cambodia for three decades, has made similar threats in recent months, with CPP-controlled media regularly alluding to violence if the party loses. In response to Kem Sokhas speech, CPP lawmaker and spokesperson Sok Ey San said Wednesday that the people of Cambodia are already well aware of which party can maintain peace in the country and which one will be stirring up trouble after next months polls. The people dont need a party that only knows how to speak lies and cheat them from one issue to another, he said. The people need a constructive party that protects peace for the sake of bringing progress and prosperity to their livelihoods. From left to right, Kem Sokha, Pol Ham, Mu Sochua, and Eng Chhay Eang at an extraordinary congress in Phnom Penh, March 2, 2017. Credit: RFA Deputies elected Also on Wednesday, the CNRP held an extraordinary congress to elect Mu Sochua, Pol Hom and Eng Chhai Eang as the partys vice presidents after amending a crucial bylaw in a bid to placate the Ministry of Interior, which rejected its previous method of selecting the same leaders in March. At the conclusion of the extraordinary congress, CNRP spokesperson Yim Sovann announced in a press briefing that the three lawmakers had been named vice presidents and said the party will forward official documentation detailing its hierarchy and leadership profiles to the ministry. Last month, the CNRP amended Article 47 of its internal regulations a second time, after an initial change at another congress in March, to state that if there is no vice president, the steering committee must choose new ones from its members by an absolute majority of votes, which it did Wednesday. The clash between the CNRP and ministry over the oppositions leadership selection process began in March after former party president Sam Rainsy resigned. On March 31, the CNRP notified the Ministry of Interior of amendments to its party bylaws after the ministry had declared the oppositions appointment of Kem Sokha as president and the three lawmakers as vice presidents illegitimate, throwing its participation in the upcoming elections into question. The ministry had claimed that the appointments during a March 2 extraordinary congress ran afoul of the CNRPs statute, based on documentation the party filed in 2013, requiring a moratorium on electing a new president for 18 months after the post was vacated. The CNRP had amended the statute at the congress before appointing new leadership. On Wednesday, Ministry of Interior spokesperson Khieu Sopheak said the ministry had yet to receive an official letter from the CNRP concerning the election of the oppositions vice presidents and declined to say whether the new appointments were done in accordance with the partys bylaws. I dont dare comment on anything yet, he said. We will have to wait for the letter before we can make a determination. Observers say the CNRPone of 12 political parties competing for 1,646 commune council seatscould give the CPP a run for its money in the June polls, foreshadowing a possible CNRP win in national elections scheduled for 2018. Reported by Neang Ieng and Vandeth Van for RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sovannarith Keo. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Cambodias government on Thursday rejected a report by a U.K.-based watchdog that warned of large-scale deforestation and illegal sales of timber across the border to buyers in Vietnam, saying its findings do not present an accurate portrayal of the situation. In a May 8 report, entitled Repeat Offender: Vietnams persistent trade in illegal timber, the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) said around 300,000 cubic meters of timberincluding endangered rosewoodhad been smuggled out of protected areas to Vietnam with the help of local authorities through some U.S. $13 million in bribes between November last year and March 2017. The EIA separately published 2016-2017 sales invoices from Cambodian companies and Vietnamese import data on Tuesday showing the total import value of Cambodian timber to Vietnam amounted to around U.S. $300 million since January 2016, despite Cambodias implementation of a ban on the trade that month. At the time the May 8 report was published, Cambodias Ministry of National Defense rejected its findings outright, while the Ministry of Environmentwhich is responsible for forest conservationacknowledged that illegal deforestation is occurring in the country and pledged to investigate the EIAs claims. On Thursday, just ten days after the release of the report, Ministry of Environment spokesperson Sao Sopheap dismissed its findings that Cambodian officials are often complicit in deforestation and smuggling, saying the EIA failed to recognize the countrys efforts to combat the problems. It does not reflect [the reality] of the fact that we have been working to crack down on and prevent such offenses, he told RFA's Khmer Service. We also dont allow any largescale destruction, as mentioned [in the report]. That is why I said it does not reflect what we have made efforts on and practiced in reality. Sao Sopheap did not specifically address the EIAs findings with regard to illicit cross-border trade volume other than to suggest that the scale was not as serious as reported, although he acknowledged that his statement was not based on a ministry investigation of the allegations. I did not base this conclusion on any kind of verification, he said. The ministry will need additional time to thoroughly study the EIAs report, he added, without providing a timeframe for its investigation. Sao Sopheap referred questions about what kind of data the Ministry of Environment is using to verify the EIAs findings to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries deputy director Keo Oum Malis said that his ministry had only issued licenses to Cambodian companies exporting furniture to China through Vietnam since the ban on timber exports to Vietnam went into effect last year, but never for trading unprocessed logs. We dont issue licenses because during the 2016 campaign, the government prohibited any export of whole timber [to Vietnam], he said. The campaign suppressed [the smuggling of] more than 60,000 cubic meters of timber. The governments response to the EIA report came days after Cambodias National Police issued a report accusing a company owned by business magnate Kith Meng of using its license to clear land for a reservoir for the Lower Sesan 2 hydropower dam as a cover to launder illegally logged timber before selling it across the border in Vietnam. On Thursday, EIA senior campaign official Jago Wadley told RFA that by issuing its report and other documentation his organization intended to warn the Cambodian government of the scale of the logging problem and assist in investigating and addressing it. The information will help Cambodia conduct law enforcement against illegal logging and timber smuggling in Cambodia, that is costing Cambodia's economy millions of dollars, while enriching Vietnam's government and timber traders, he said, referring to the data the EIA released on Tuesday. It is their job to use all information that will assist in the eradication of forest crime." Wadley urged Cambodias authorities to act against all individuals, regardless of how senior they may be, who are involved in illegal trade by fining or jailing them, in accordance with the countrys existing laws. EU response Ouch Leng, chairman of the Cambodia Human Rights Task Force, also weighed in on the EIA report Thursday, telling RFA that those who purchase timber from Vietnamincluding European Union (EU) member nationsshould source their wood elsewhere in order to end deforestation in Cambodia. When asked about its view of the EIA findings, the Brussels-based European Commission (EC)which proposes and implements EU policysaid in a statement that it took the report very seriously and had called on both Cambodia and Vietnam to look into the allegations of illegal timber smuggling. We expect the authorities of Cambodia and Vietnam to urgently investigate the reported illegal activities and take firm action against individuals and companies found to be involved in illegal logging and related trade, as well as to take steps to prevent any such activity in future, the statement said. Reports such as the one recently published by EIA also provide useful information with respect to the implementation of the EU Timber Regulation, which prohibits placement of illegally-harvested timber on the EU market and obliges EU operators to exercise due diligence to ensure the legality of their supply chain. The EC said the EIA report also demonstrated the importance of a May 11 agreement between the EU and Vietnam on Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade, which it said aims to strengthen cooperation in combatting illegal logging, improving forest governance and promoting trade in legally produced timber. It noted that the EU had stopped funding a community protected area in northeast Cambodias Virachey National Parkone of the protected areas mentioned in the EIA reportin 2015 amid allegations of illegal logging activities there. Reported by Sel San for RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sovannarith Keo. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. A company owned by business magnate Kith Meng is using its license to clear a reservoir for the Lower Sesan 2 hydropower dam in Cambodias Stung Treng province as a cover to launder illegally logged timber, according to a report by the countrys police force. Ang & Associates Lawyers, a subsidiary of Kith Mengs Royal Group, has been logging timber from areas outside the 36,000-hectare (89,000-acre) area earmarked for the 400-megawatt dams reservoir and selling it to buyers across the border in Vietnam, said the report, posted to the website of the National Police on Tuesday. Royal Group is constructing the dam in Stung Trengs Sesan district along with Chinese partners and provided Ang & Associates with a contract to begin clearing the reservoir in 2012. Forest destruction activities in Sesan district and timber smuggling for sale in Vietnam is ongoing in the name of the company clearing the Lower Sesan 2 reservoir, owned by business tycoon Kith Meng, but the relevant authorities have ignored it and failed to prevent it, the report said. A ban on timber exports from Cambodia to Vietnam has been in effect since January 2016. An Ang & Associates manager named Seng colludes with and recruits local residents to log outside the reservoir area, collects the timber, and puts the logs at the bottom of the reservoir to make the illegal timber seem legal, it added. The report cited unnamed sources as saying that Kith Mengan Australian citizenhad handed the logging operation over to another businessman, who in turn passed it on to two men named Tim Bunlin and San Choy. They are purchasing timber from area communes and laundering it in the reservoir, it said. Local communities have expressed concerns over the loss of natural resources in the area and warned of an environmental crisis if the practice is not ended, according to the report, which makes no mention of whether authorities plan to investigate. Massive destruction On Wednesday, villagers from Sre Kor commune told RFAs Khmer Service that several groups of people have destroyed forest in Sesan districts Phnom Krala Pos mountain area and a conservation area in Siem Pang district, using tractors and logging trucks to transport the timber to the Lower Sesan 2 reservoir. A villager named Puth Khoeun said a logging trail was cut through the forest last year to transport the timber, some of which originates from an area in between the Sesan and Sre Pok rivers near the border with Laos, known as the Koh (Island) area. Smaller logging trucks transport during the daytime and larger ones for transporting both inside and outside of the country usually do so at 6:00 p.m. or later, he said. This is a truly massive kind of destruction. According to Sre Kor commune chief Siek Mekong, the deforestation is being carried out in various regions by various groups, including residents and timber traders from elsewhere in the country. He said that due to the vast size of the reservoir, it is impossible for commune authorities to know how much of the timber had been harvested from other areas and deposited there. Besides looking at the size of the reservoir area, we cant truly know because we dont have concrete data, he said. Ouch Leng, chairman of the Cambodia Human Rights Task Force, told RFA that logging activities outside the reservoir area have been occurring for several years, and called on relevant ministries to carry out a full investigation of the issue. Kith Meng has no knowledge of thisits his subordinates who seek timber from outside to store at the reservoir before supplying it to saw mills owned by the Vietnamese and Chinese, he said, without providing details. They are the ones who order such timber and process it for export, the construction of homes, or sale at various depots throughout Cambodia. Company response Responding to the allegations, Ang & Associates representative Um Reth denied that the company had transported timber for laundering, saying it had yet to finish clearing timber from the 36,000-hectare reservoir area. He added that the harvested timber is used to supply the domestic market only after strict inspection by officials from the Stung Treng provincial Department of Agriculture or the Forestry Administration. Without such examination by expert officials, the timber could not be transported out of the reservoir, he said. All timber loads must be accompanied by authorization letters and expert officials conduct examinations and measurements prior to issuing any authorization letter for transport. Um Reths denial was echoed by Lean Seng, director of Stung Treng provinces Department of Agriculture, who the Cambodia Daily quoted as saying it doesnt happen officials from the Agriculture Ministry have come to inspect. The Daily was also able to reach Kith Meng by telephone, but he told the paper he was in a meeting in Beijing and hung up. EIA report Attempts by RFA to contact Ministry of Environment spokesperson Sao Sopheap about logging in Sesan district went unanswered Wednesday, though he has previously said the ministry is looking into the findings of a May 8 report by U.K.-based watchdog Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), which documented timber smuggling from Cambodia to Vietnam. In that report, entitled Repeat Offender: Vietnams persistent trade in illegal timber, the EIA said some 300,000 cubic meters of timber has been smuggled out of Cambodia and legitimized in Vietnam [through] kickbacks [that] are likely to have amounted to more than U.S. $13 million since the beginning of November 2016. Not only are Vietnamese officials corruptly profiting, but so too is the Vietnamese state, formally taxing the illegal traffic of logs and so effectively taking a cut of the illegal businesses it has sanctioned, the report said. At the time the report was published, Cambodias Ministry of Environment acknowledged that illegal deforestation is occurring in the country and said it would investigate the EIAs claims. Reported by Chanthy Men for RFAs Khmer Service. Translated by Sovannarith Keo. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Around 150 protesters gathered in Munaung township, in western Myanmars Rakhine state, Monday to demand the release of two ethnic Rakhine nationalists who were arrested and charged with incitement last week amid fallout from a deadly clash between members of the minority group and police. On Jan. 16, police shot dead at least seven protesters and wounded 13 others after thousands of members of the Rakhine minority group marking a Buddhist anniversary converged on the government office in the town of Mrauk U when authorities attempted to stop the event. Police have since arrested Rakhine social critic Wai Hin Aung and Rakhine nationalist lawmaker Aye Maung after they delivered speeches calling for revolt against Myanmars ethnic majority Bamar-led government in nearby Rathedaung township and charged them under Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act. On Monday, Rakhine state chief minister Nyi Pu said the government plans to charge the two men, and organizers of the anniversary eventwho did not obtain permission for the gatheringwith high treason under Section 122 of Myanmars Penal Code, which carries a maximum punishment of death. Protesters gathered in Munaung Monday demanding that authorities release Aye Maung and Wai Hin Aung and called the Mrauk U incident a violation of human rights. The act by the authorities will hurt national reconciliation, said protest leader Than Naing, referencing efforts to get Myanmars 135 ethnic groups to end their differences and work together in support of the union government. The authorities should work to resolve problems with patience, but we feel that they simply wanted to demonstrate their power to the people. While authorities have said police confronting protesters throwing bricks last week delivered warnings via loudspeaker, fired warning shots into the air, and fired rubber bullets into the crowd before switching to live ammunition, observers have questioned the account, suggesting the shots came without sufficient alert. The Rakhine government continued to beef up security in the region Monday amid public anger over the shooting incident and arrests, according to a report by Eleven Myanmar media group. Eleven quoted police colonel Aung Myat Moe of the Rakhine state police force as saying a security alert had been issued in 17 major townships in Rakhine, including the capital Sittwe, and that officers had been deployed in areas where crowds might congregate. According to a tip, terrorists and those who create riots are now monitoring the present situation in Sittwe aiming to cause violence again, he said, calling on the public to inform the authorities if they come across suspicious people, objects, or vehicles. Calls for probe Meanwhile criticism of the police response to last weeks protests continued to mount Monday, with Fortify Rights and ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights (APHR) issuing statements demanding urgent independent investigations into the crackdown. The Government must ensure these killings are properly investigated and that responsible police officers are prosecuted without delay, said Matthew Smith, chief executive officer of Fortify Rights, which is based in Southeast Asia and registered in Switzerland and the U.S. The victims and survivors, their families, and the people of Rakhine State deserve swift justice. Impunity in this case could easily enflame ethnic tensions. Fortify Rights noted that Myanmars army has used Rakhine civilians as forced porters during episodes of armed conflict against the Arakan Army, an ethnic Rakhine militia, while Rakhine farmers have reportedly dealt with unlawful land confiscation for years. Rakhine State has been shattered by conflict and human rights violations for too long, Smith said. Peace in Rakhine and elsewhere in the country is not going to come from the barrel of a gun. The governments response to this situation will influence the course of events in Rakhine State and much is at stake. APHR called last weeks incident a tragic event, which must be urgently investigated, with the groups chairperson, Malaysian MP Charles Santiago, citing reports that he said suggest police action was wholly disproportionate. The incident should be thoroughly and impartially investigated, and perpetrators must be held accountable, Santiago said. The events in Mrauk-U further emphasize serious concerns about the conduct of Myanmars security forces and the lack of accountability for their actions. The impacts of these actions on ethnic minorities are particularly acute, as this and numerous other recent events demonstrate. Santiago noted that on Jan. 18, Myanmars State Counsellor and de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi called for an investigation into the incident and assured that action will be taken against those found to have broken the law. The relevant authorities must act quickly on the State Counsellors call and take all steps necessary for an effective investigation, he said. It is the responsibility of the Myanmar government and military to ensure that all people, regardless of their ethnic or religious background are able to enjoy their rights to free expression and peaceful assembly. Last week, New York-based Human Rights Watch, London-based Amnesty International, and a group of 70 civil society organizations in Myanmar called for an independent probe into the killing of protesters in Mrauk U. Reported by Wai Mar Tun for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. A banner listing 21 pre-conditions made by a Rohingya group for the repatriation of refugees to Myanmar was palced at the Kutupalong camp in Ukhia, in Bangladeshs Coxs Bazar district, Jan. 19, 2018. About 500 Rohingya refugees staged protests Friday at a camp in southeastern Bangladesh to air concerns about their safety and other questions tied to a government plan to repatriate thousands of their people to Myanmar. The two demonstrations the first of their kind took place at the sprawling Kutupalong refugee camp in Coxs Bazar district while Rohingya leaders visited camps to post a list of 21 pre-conditions they want the government to meet before refugees would agree to be repatriated voluntarily. These demands include that the stateless people be given Myanmar citizenship. Listed on banners, the 21-points were formulated by a new group, the Rohingya Rights Establishment Committee, sources in Coxs Bazar told BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service. We appeal to Bangladesh, the U.N. and the international community not to repatriate us without securing our citizenship. If we get citizenship, we can get our houses and property back and compensation for the loss of lives and wealth, Abdul Khaleq, a Rohingya leader at the Madhuchhara camp in Kutupalong, told BenarNews. Otherwise, we will be thrown into the bay, said Khaleq, who was involved in framing the 21-point list. The list was circulated as officials from Bangladesh and Myanmar moved to implement a bilateral agreement signed on Nov. 23 to repatriate about 700,000 Rohingya refugees from southeastern Bangladesh to Rakhine, a state in Myanmar that borders Coxs Bazar. Two brief demonstrations took place on Friday one at block-B/3 and the other at block E/3 at the Kutupalong camps in Ukhia. I have talked to the protesters about their demands. They protested against the government plan to repatriate them without ensuring their safety and security in Rakhine, Nur Khan Liton, the former director of a leading Bangladeshi human rights NGO, Ain-O-Shalish Kendra, said in an interview from Coxs Bazar. They want to return to Rakhine; they are not against the repatriation. But their first demand is: Myanmar must announce granting them citizenship, and ensure their civil rights in Rakhine, Liton said. Voluntary, safe and with dignity At least 655,000 Rohingya fled from an outbreak of violence and a brutal military crackdown in Rakhine, which started in late August 2017 following attacks on government security posts by a Rohingya insurgent group. Overall, about 1 million Rohingya refugees are sheltering in Bangladesh, including those who fled earlier waves of violence in Rakhine. Liton said the demonstrators want to return to Rakhine under the protection of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). They also want assurances that returnees be taken to a safe zone under the auspices of the United Nations before going back to their home villages. They also demand that the Myanmar authorities must give them compensation for destroying their houses and other property, and try the perpetrators committing killings, rape, arson and other crimes against humanity, Liton added. He was referring to widespread allegations that Myanmar security forces and militiamen in Rakhine carried out atrocities against Rohingya civilians, including the burning of villages. Bangladeshi police and government officials on Friday denied any demonstrations had taken place at the Kutupalong camp in Ukhia, a sub-district of Coxs Bazar. Bangladeshi State Minister for Foreign Affairs Shahriar Alam said the first group of refugees would begin returning to Myanmar early next month. The repatriation would be voluntary, safe and with dignity, he told BenarNews. Meanwhile, on the other side of the border, government officials told the Myanmar Service of Radio Free Asia (RFA), a sister entity of BenarNews, that they were handling paperwork for more than 700 Muslims and 400 Hindu refugees from Rakhine who had applied to return home. About 1,100 Muslims and Hindus who lost their houses in fires informed us they want to come back. We have already checked their names and photos and asked Bangladesh to send their application forms, but we havent received the completed forms yet, said Myint Kyaing, permanent secretary at Myanmars Ministry of Labor, Immigration and Population. Set of demands In Coxs Bazar, District Deputy Commissioner Ali Hossain said he had not seen or obtained a copy of the 21-point list, which was circulated and posted at the Kutuplaong, Balukhali, Jamtoli and Thaingkhali, and Leda refugee camps and settlements in the area. We will investigate who set up the boards, he told BenarNews. Apart from a guarantee of citizenship, the pre-conditions for repatriation, as listed by the committee, include civil rights, freedom of movement, as well as rights to religion and education be guaranteed for Rohingya, and that perpetrators of atrocities against the minority group be arrested and put on trial. The 21-point list is similar to recommendations made last year by the Rakhine State Advisory Commission, which was headed by former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan. The Annan Commission recommended that Myanmar grant citizenship to the Rohingya and ensure their civil rights as a solution for easing long-running inter-communal tensions in Rakhine state. We support the demands. We must be given our civil rights back. Otherwise, we will not go back, Abdul Hakim, another leader of a Rohingya refugee camp, told BenarNews. Reported by BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service. Security personnel monitor the exterior of a government building in Sittwe, in Myanmars Rakhine state, Jan. 19, 2018. Authorities in western Myanmars Rakhine state are bolstering security measures amid public anger over a deadly incident in which police opened fire on a crowd of ethnic Rakhine protesters, a police official said Friday. On Tuesday, police shot dead at least seven protesters and wounded 13 others after thousands of members of the Rakhine minority group marking a Buddhist anniversary converged on the government office in the town of Mrauk U when authorities attempted to stop the event. Police have since arrested Rakhine social critic Wai Hin Aung and Rakhine nationalist lawmaker Aye Maung after they delivered speeches calling for revolt against Myanmars ethnic majority Bamar-led government in nearby Rathedaung township and charged them under Article 17(1) of the Unlawful Associations Act. Authorities have said they plan to charge the two men, and organizers of the anniversary eventwho did not obtain permission for the gatheringwith high treason under Section 122 of Myanmars Penal Code, which carries a maximum punishment of death. On Friday, after netizens posted comments on social media condemning Aye Maungs arrest, around 100 people gathered at Wingaba stadium in Sittwe in protest, but dispersed after police arrived and warned them to adhere to laws governing the right to demonstrate. Police colonel Aung Myat Moe of the Rakhine state police force told RFAs Myanmar Service that security personnel had been deployed to several areas of Sittwe to ensure calm. We made an announcement telling community leaders and the public to protest according to the lawthey can gather only after receiving permission, he said. We have deployed security guards at 10 places in Sittwe. The situation in town remains calm. Call for probe In a statement Friday, a group of 70 civil society organizations called for an independent probe into the killing of protesters in Mrauk U. While authorities have said police confronting protesters throwing bricks delivered warnings via loudspeaker, fired warning shots into the air, and fired rubber bullets into the crowd before switching to live ammunition, observers have questioned the account, suggesting the shots cam without sufficient alert. Soe Naing, a spokesperson or the committee representing the civil society organizations said that only an investigation independent of the government could be counted on to deliver a fair assessment of the incident and prevent a similar tragedy from occurring in the future. It is saddening to have this kind of incident take pace under a government elected by the people, Soe Naing said. The information released by the authorities is different from the situation on the ground and thats why the NLD (National League for Development) government needs to investigate who gave the order to shoot people, he said. If an independent inquiry group led by respected people works on this problem, we will have an answer about what really happened. Witness accounts Meanwhile, witnesses on Friday continued to deliver accounts of what occurred at Tuesdays protest that differed significantly from the official version, suggesting police had employed excessive force in response. A 31-year-old shooting victim and resident of Mrauk U who gave his name as Than said that police had initially fired into the air, causing the crowd to scatter. But when we ran, they shot at us, he said from his bed at Mrauk U hospital. I was shot and people sent me for treatment. Another Mrauk U resident recovering from a bullet wound at the hospital, named Kyaw Khine Win, told RFA that six police officers had fired about 60 rounds into the air and at the protesters. The police shot me when I was trying to assist those injured by the first volley, he said. Ei Phyu, the sister of 15-year-old Kyaw Thein Soe, who was killed in the incident, said that her brother wasnt killed by the shooting. We didnt see any bullet wounds on his bodyonly wounds from a knife and blunt objects, she said. The authorities came to the funeral and paid us 500,000 kyats (U.S. $370) for my brother. We dont know who paid it to us, but we returned it to the authorities. Is a life only worth 500,000 kyats? Other relatives of those killed in the incident reported being offered the same amount of money as compensation for their loved ones, but said they returned the money. Aung Thein, a local security officer who was tasked with offering the compensation, confirmed that the families of all seven victims had returned the cash. Methods questioned Local Rights groups questioned the police response to the protest and called for greater accountability. Yu Lwin Aung, a member of the Myanmar Human Rights Commission, said that without having witnessed the incident, he could not say whether police had violated the rights of the protesters. We dont know why police felt they had to use lethal force against the mob, he said. The relevant authorities must investigate whether the police addressed the incident according to the law or not. Aung Myo Min, the director of rights group Equality Myanmar, noted that the European Union had previously provided training to Myanmars police on how to address riots. We want to determine who gave the order to shoot because accountability is weak, he said. It is wrong to restrict people from gathering at an event, and the governments action can be seen as human rights violation. Reported by Min Thein Aung, Nay Rein Kyaw, Thinn Thiri and Khin Khin Ei for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khet Mar. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Buddhist monks sit on a football field next to goal posts as they listen to the teachings of the Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama in Bodh Gaya in India's Bihar state, Jan. 5, 2018. A local government in Chinas Sichuan Province issued a sudden order this month for Tibetan pilgrims in Bodha Gaya, India and Nepal to return home, forcing hundreds of travelers to cut short plans to attend teaching by their Buddhist spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, sources in the region told RFA. The Dalai Lama has been holding a month-long program of spiritual teachings in Bodh Gaya, a revered Buddhist site in Indias Bihar state, drawing religious tourists and pilgrims for instructions on Tibetan Buddhism. The recall order was for all Tibetans living in those counties under Sichuan province, predominantly the Kham area, such as Dege, Minyak and probably all other counties, a Tibetan living in Nepal told RFAs Tibetan Service on Sunday. It even includes Tibetan businessmen, who now fear their passports could be taken away, said the source. The Nepal-based Tibetan said the recall was surprising because many Tibetans living that areas Tibetan autonomous prefecture had been issued Chinese passports by their local governments not long earlier. But the Chinese government in several counties in eastern Tibet have issued a public notice, which stated that Tibetans who are on pilgrimages in India and Nepal, and those who are there to visit family and relatives, had to return at the earliest time. If they failed to return home on the given deadline, they would face consequences, said the source. A Tibetan from Tawu county living in Nepal confirmed seeing the Chinese official recall order, and said he was aware of about a dozen of Tibetans from Tawu who returned after the order was issued. The Tawu county local Chinese government suddenly issued a public notice on Jan. 12 urging all pilgrims from Tawu to return home by Jan. 16, he told RFA. Pilgrims from those counties had been compelled to stop midway during the ongoing teachings of His Holiness the Dalai Lama and forced to return home. The Chinese government issued the same order to several other counties in eastern Tibet, said the Tawu source in Nepal. The Tibetan pilgrims from Tibet had to leave against their will. The initial order came from Dranggo county, and was followed by Lithang, said a Tibetan monk living in South India who is originally from Lithang. There were about 300-400 Tibetan pilgrims arrived in India from Lithang alone, said he monk. They were required to return by Jan. 19, and others said their arrival should be reported in Chengdu by the end of January and so many have departed with tears in their eyes, he said. An official of the Central Tibetan Administration, the Dharamsala, India-based Tibetan government in exile, confirmed the Chinese governments forced return order for Tibetan pilgrims in India and Nepal. At the beginning of His Holiness the Dalai Lamas teachings there were about 2600 Tibetans, but after the Chinese recall, the pilgrims have started to leave, and now only around 200 Tibetans pilgrims remain, said the official. Reported by Dawa Dolma and Yandon Demo for RFAs Tibetan Service. Translated by Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Paul Eckert. Jordan Banjo and his pregnant girlfriend Naomi Courts are expecting their first baby [Jordan Banjo/Instagram] Jordan Banjo and his pregnant girlfriend Naomi Courts have been together for two years [Naomi Courts/Instagram] Jordan Banjo's girlfriend Naomi Ella expecting a baby boy [Naomi Ella/Instagram] Ashley Banjo is happy for his younger brother Jordan Banjo [Jordan Banjo/Instagram] Nickelodeon star Jordan Banjo is expecting his first baby with girlfriend Naomi Courts, who he has been dating for two years!Ashley Banjo's youngest brother who regulary presents Kids' Choice Awards and SLIMEFEST with co-host Perri Kiely for Nickelodeon UK & Ireland - couldn't be more excited to become a dad for the first time.The Diversity star who rose to fame in the dance group after winningin 2009 and has also featured onand is currently presenting on ITV's told OK! magazine about their baby news.Here's everything you need to know about Jordan and Naomi's baby details, from bump to birth...The couple revealed exclusively to OK! magazine the pregnancy news, after revealing they hadn't been trying for a baby.Naomi said: "I wanted to be sure so I went out and bought eight more tests. I sat with them all laid out in front of me on the bathroom floor, staring at them in disbelief."We always said we wanted kids together, we just didnt think it would happen this soon. Were over the moon, though!"Revealing the sex of the baby, Naomi admitted she was expecting it to be a girl.She told: "I started crying when they said it was a boy because I was completely convinced we were having a girl."I was delighted it was a boy but I felt very overwhelmed, as I'd mentally prepared myself for it to be a daughter."Jordan admitted his older brother who has been married to Francesca Abbott since 2015 is excited about the new arrival.He told the publication: "I think they half expected us to announce we were getting engaged! Ashleys really happy for us."Hes been calling me Papa Banj, which is what we call my dad."The couple have already found out the sex of their baby, meaning it's likely they've passed the 20 weeks mark.If this is the case, Jordan could become a dad in the spring of 2018.Unfortunately, Naomi has suffered with severe morning sickness, just like the Duchess of Cambridge.She explained: "I was signed off work for ten weeks with hyperemesis gravidarum. It felt like I was spending every minute of the day throwing up I couldnt even keep a glass of water down."The doctor gave me loads of different anti-sickness tablets but they didnt make a difference. Its only in the past few weeks that Ive started to feel more normal." Chinese authorities in Tibets Chamdo prefecture have forced Tibetan nomads from their land following the discovery of mineral reserves near a local mountain, moving those evicted to resettlement housing set up along a nearby highway, RFA has learned. The move followed nearly ten years of mining of copper, lead, and gold already carried out around Yulung mountain in Chamdos Jomda (in Chinese, Jiangda) county, a local resident told RFAs Tibetan Service. Last year, Chinese officials discovered additional reserves in the area of Lhato behind Yulung mountain, RFAs source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Therefore, early in 2017, they confiscated most of that land from the nomads living there, and they have put fences around the mining area, the source said. Authorities then warned local Tibetans not to go onto the land to collect caterpillar fungus, which is valued for its purported medicinal properties and was an important source of income for Lhato area Tibetans, the source said. And on top of that, they have now also lost their livelihood as nomads, which was passed down to them for generations, he said. About 400 to 500 nomad families in Lhato have been affected by the seizure of their land, with little money paid to them to compensate for their losses, the source said. In the past, the Tibetans appealed many times to Chinese authorities to stop mining operations in the area, as these have polluted the environment and caused widespread illness from cast-off waste, but the Chinese have never heeded their complaints, he said. Others also forced to move In April 2017, nearly 200 Tibetan families were ordered to leave their homes in another Chamdo area to make way for an unspecified government construction project, with the move to new locations to be made at their own expenses, sources told RFA in an earlier report. The families now live in two towns lying on opposite sides of the Gyalmo Ngulchu, or Salween River, in Chamdos Dzogang (Zuogang) and Pashoe (Basu) counties, sources said, adding that no explanation was given for their order to move. And in June 2014, police detained 60 men from a village in Dzogang rocked by protests over Chinese plans to excavate gold, sources said. The protests followed the death in May of a local Tibetan who stabbed himself and jumped from a roof to oppose the project. Tibetan areas of China have become an important source of minerals needed for Chinas economic growth, and mining operations have led to frequent standoffs with Tibetans who accuse Chinese firms of disrupting sites of spiritual significance and polluting the environment as they extract local wealth. Reported by Dawa Dolma for RFAs Tibetan Service. Translated by Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Richard Finney. Thousands of Tibetans gathered earlier this month at a monastery in Chinas Gansu province to commit themselves to more virtuous lives, promising to give up smoking, gambling, and the consumption of alcohol, according to a local source. The mass meeting took place on Jan. 9 at the Ganden Choeling monastery in Gansus Tsoe (in Chinese, Hezuo) county and involved Tibetans belonging to 21 separate community groups representing nearly a thousand separate families, a Tibetan living in the area told RFAs Tibetan Service. Those taking part in the ceremony of vowing to abandon social ills were mostly laypersons between the ages of 15 to 70, RFAs source said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Their commitment to lead better lives was prompted mainly by the advice of a highly revered Tibetan lama, Alak Setsang Rinpoche, the source said, adding that the gathering was the first of its kind in the area to be attended in such large numbers. Therefore, in order to honor and fulfill his wishes, the Tibetan community has now voluntarily come together to promise to live a more righteous life by giving up these vices." Setsang Rinpoche, who is also known as Setsang Lobsang Palden, was born in 1938 and was enthroned as a reincarnate lama at the age of four. He has regularly urged unity and harmony within the Tibetan community, often during large religious ceremonies that draw large crowds. Buddhist monasteries in Tibetan-populated regions of China have become a focus of efforts to promote not just religion but Tibetan national and cultural values, and annual public assemblies at the monasteries have greatly increased in size in recent years, Tibetan sources say. Concerned that large gatherings in Tibetan areas might launch sudden protests against Beijings rule, Chinese security forces frequently monitor, and sometimes close down, events involving large crowds, sources say. Reported by Lhuboom and Kunsang Tenzin for RFAs Tibetan Service. Translated by Dorjee Damdul. Written in English by Richard Finney. In a resolution passed by a majority of votes, members of the European Parliament called on China on Thursday to respect provisions in its own constitution guaranteeing the rights of Tibetans and other Chinese citizens to freedom of speech, religious belief, and assembly, including the right to criticize or protest against state policy. The resolution adopted by the parliament--the Strasbourg, France-based legislative body of the European Unions 28 member states--took particular note of the case of Tibetan shopkeeper Tashi Wangchuk, now facing a 15-year prison term for his advocacy for Tibetan language rights. Also noted for special attention was the case of the Tibetan monk Choekyi, jailed in 2015 for celebrating the birthday of exiled spiritual leader the Dalai Lama, with the European Parliament calling for the immediate and unconditional release of both men. In an interview with RFAs Tibetan Service, Michaela Sojdorvavice chair of the Czech delegation from the European Peoples Party Group and a co-author of the resolutionsaid, We are really afraid for the lives of these men, noting that Choekyi in particular is reported to be in failing health in prison. Speaking by phone, Sojdorva repeated the parliaments call in the document for Beijing to engage in talks with the Dalai Lama aimed at peacefully resolving the issue of Tibet, where the parliament noted in its resolution that Chinese criminal law is being abused to persecute Tibetans and Buddhists, whose religious activities are equated with separatism. We reiterate the call on the government of the Peoples Republic of China to engage with His Holiness the Dalai Lama through dialogue and negotiation with a view to guaranteeing Tibet genuine autonomy within the framework of the constitution of the Peoples Republic of China, Sojdorva said. We urge the Chinese authorities to immediately release all human rights defenders, and we call on the Chinese government to respect its own constitution with regard in particular to the protection of national minorities, she said. Calling on the European Union to regularly raise the issue of human rights violations in China in its dialogues with the country, the parliament urged in the adopted resolution a strong, clear and unified voice in its approach. China has opted into the international human rights framework by signing up to a wide range of international human rights treaties, the resolution noted. [The European Parliament] calls, therefore, for dialogue to be pursued with China in order to honor these commitments. Reported by RFAs Tibetan Service. Written in English by Richard Finney. UPDATED at 5:10 P.M. EST on 2018-1-12 Authorities in northwest Chinas Xinjiang region have arrested a prominent Uyghur intellectual for exhibiting nationalistic tendencies, according to a source in exile, amid an intensifying crackdown on notable members of the ethnic group. Halmurat Ghopur, president of the Xinjiang Food and Drug Administrations Department of Inspection and Supervision in the regional capital Urumqi, was taken into custody in November last year and is being held in an unknown location amid an investigation into his alleged acts against the state, according to Zumret Tursun, a Norway-based Uyghur activist. Tursun recently told RFAs Uyghur Service that one of her students was present when authorities arrested Ghopur, who is also the former president of Xinjiang Medical University Hospital in Urumqi. He said Halmurat Ghopur was taken away from his office, along with his computer, she said, withholding the students name to protect him from possible retribution. One of Halmurat Ghopurs students who is studying abroad had been in contact with him via a messaging app, and [Ghopur] had kept some of their correspondence on his phone without deleting it. According to Tursun, when state security police came to arrest Ghopur, he demanded to know why he was being taken away and an officer told him he had exhibited nationalistic tendencies, before reading some of the conversations on the messaging app WeChat that they had monitored. They said, for this reason we are taking away your computer, and you must come with us and cooperate, Tursun said, citing her student. He hasnt had a hearing yet, but it is obvious that he will be tried in court, she added. Since April last year, ethnic Uyghurs accused of harboring extremist and politically incorrect views have been jailed or detained in political re-education camps throughout Xinjiang, where members of the ethnic group have long complained of pervasive discrimination, religious repression, and cultural suppression under Chinese rule. Last week, RFA learned that authorities had sentenced the four wealthiest Uyghurs in Kashgar (in Chinese, Kashi) city to lengthy jail terms for acts of religious extremism that included undertaking unapproved, private hajj pilgrimages to the Islamic holy site of Mecca and connections to imams who were not sanctioned by the state. Differences with colleague Despite a successful career in medicine that included official acknowledgement for developing a treatment for respiratory illnesses which combined Western and traditional Uyghur medicine, observers suggested that differences Ghopur had with Xinjiang Medical University secretary Li Bing may have led authorities to target him. According to an article entitled We Must Be Vigilant Against Hidden Two-Faced Officials, published by China University of Political Science and Law professor Wu Danhong last summer, Li had actively fought the three evils of terrorism, separatism, and religious extremism in Xinjiang, but Ghopur was critical of his approach. In one case, the article noted, Liwho is ethnic Han Chinesehad suggested that students be prohibited from wearing Islamic clothing on the university campus, but Ghopur argued that the clothing is part of Uyghur traditional religious and cultural dress. Li was found guilty of accepting a 3 million yuan (U.S. $465,000) bribe and sentenced by Xinjiangs Intermediate Court in March last year to more than 10 years in jail for corruption, and Wu alleged in his article that Ghopur had framed him. According to the article, Ghopur was a two-faced official who had failed to follow Communist Party guidelines by recruiting students who were not fit to fill their positions at the university hospital, in a bid to fulfil his murky intentions. Two-faced is a term applied by the government to Uyghurs who do not willingly follow directives and exhibit signs of disloyalty that can include promotion of extremist sentiment, providing support to separatist groups, or publishing information that harms the unity of the country or distorts the history of Xinjiang. On break A Han Chinese staff member at the Xinjiang Food and Drug Administrations Department of Inspection and Supervision who spoke to RFA on condition of anonymity, said he was not aware of Ghopurs arrest and that the department president was on break. He directed further questions to the administrations Department of Organization. A Han official at Xinjiang Medical University, who also asked to remain unnamed, told RFA he had not heard that Ghopur was arrested and that it was incorrect to say so. Ghopur is being investigated for breaking party rules, he added. When asked if Ghopur had been accused of failing to comply with the central governments policy of ethnic unity, the official said he was unable to comment because he is not involved in the investigation. According to the official, differences between Ghopur and Li were not responsible for the formers current investigation. It is possible that that being a high-level official and communist party member, Halmurat might have broken party discipline and that is why he is under investigation, he said. Regardless of his connections with the government, if he broke the rules he will be held responsible and will be punished accordingly. Other sources told RFA that it is strictly prohibited to discuss Ghopurs case, even though the public is already largely aware that he was taken into custody by police. China regularly conducts strike hard campaigns in Xinjiang, including police raids on Uyghur households, restrictions on Islamic practices, and curbs on the culture and language of the Uyghur people, including videos and other material. While China blames some Uyghurs for "terrorist" attacks, experts outside China say Beijing has exaggerated the threat from the Uyghurs and that repressive domestic policies are responsible for an upsurge in violence there that has left hundreds dead since 2009. Reported by Kurban Niyaz for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by RFAs Uyghur Service. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Correction: An earlier version of the story erroneously stated that Li Bing was found guilty of accepting a 300,000 yuan (U.S. $46,400) bribe. Around 120,000 ethnic Uyghurs are currently being held in political re-education camps in Kashgar (in Chinese, Kashi) prefecture of northwest Chinas Xinjiang region alone, according to a security official with knowledge of the detention system. Since April 2017, Uyghurs accused of harboring extremist and politically incorrect views have been jailed or detained in re-education camps throughout Xinjiang, where members of the ethnic group have long complained of pervasive discrimination, religious repression, and cultural suppression under Chinese rule. Prior reporting by RFAs Uyghur Service found that as arrests in Xinjiang increased around the sensitive 19th Communist Party Congress in Beijing in October, the regions re-education camps have been inundated by detainees, who are forced to endure cramped and squalid conditions in the facilities. The security chief of Kashgar citys Chasa township recently told RFA on condition of anonymity that approximately 120,000 Uyghurs are being held throughout the prefecture, based on information he has received from other area officials. I have great relationships with the heads of all the government departments and we are in regular contact, informing each other on the current situation, he said, adding that he is also close with the prefectures chief of security. Tens of thousands of people are detained within Kashgar city alone, the Chasa township security officer said, citing statistics from the citys subdistricts. Around 2,000 [are detained] from the four neighborhoods of Kashgar city, as well as an additional 30,000 in total from the citys 16 villages, he said. Among Kashgar citys four neighborhoods, the largest number of detaineesmore than 500 peopleare from Yawagh, while among its 16 villages, the largest number are from Yengi-osteng, he added, without providing specific details. Kashgar city is home to four re-education camps, the security chief said, the largest of which was established in the citys No. 5 Middle School in May 2017. Its located in the Eshmika neighborhood and is newly built, he said. The plan was initially to build the new school in that area and transfer the current middle school students there. That is why it was named No. 5 Middle School. Around 80 people are living in the schools main hall, the security chief said, while 20-25 people sleep in each of its classrooms. Overcrowded and squalid Sources say that authorities often convert government buildings and schools into makeshift re-education camps to deal with overcrowding, and routinely shift detainees between locationsthat include prisonswithout informing their family members. In Bayingholin Mongol (Bayinguoleng Menggu) Autonomous Prefectures Korla citywhere sources told RFA recently that as many as 1,000 people have been admitted to the citys detention facilities over the course of a few daysa local government employee named Erkin Bawdun recently said that area re-education camps are completely full. Bawdun said that a friend who spent time as an inmate at a local re-education camp told him he had seen officials from the center tell the police to stop bringing people as it is already too full. He described cells that had previously held eight people now accommodating 14 inmates, who were not allowed pillows and had to lay on their sides because there was not enough room to lay flat, let alone space to turn over or stretch their legs. Other acquaintances told Bawdun that they had seen detainees walking barefoot, and that inmates were not allowed clothes with buttons or metal zippers, belts, shoelaces, or even underwear in some cases, despite average low temperatures of around 15 degrees Fahrenheit (-10 degrees Celsius) at night in December. Since Xinjiang party chief Chen Quanguo was appointed to his post in August 2016, he has initiated unprecedented repressive measures against the Uyghur people and ideological purges against so-called two-faced Uyghur officialsa term applied by the government to Uyghurs who do not willingly follow directives and exhibit signs of disloyalty. China regularly conducts strike hard campaigns in Xinjiang, including police raids on Uyghur households, restrictions on Islamic practices, and curbs on the culture and language of the Uyghur people, including videos and other material. While China blames some Uyghurs for "terrorist" attacks, experts outside China say Beijing has exaggerated the threat from the Uyghurs and that repressive domestic policies are responsible for an upsurge in violence there that has left hundreds dead since 2009. Reported by Shohret Hoshur for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by RFAs Uyghur Service. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Amid a campaign of arrests that has led to serious overcrowding in area political detention centers, authorities in northwestern Chinas Xinjiang region are neglecting the health of Uyghur inmates, according to sources familiar with the cases. Since April 2017, Uyghurs accused of harboring extremist and politically incorrect views have been jailed or detained in re-education camps throughout Xinjiang, where members of the ethnic group have long complained of pervasive discrimination, religious repression, and cultural suppression under Chinese rule. Prior reporting by RFAs Uyghur Service found that as arrests in Xinjiang increased around the sensitive 19th Communist Party Congress in Beijing in October, the regions re-education camps have been inundated by detainees, who are forced to endure cramped and squalid conditions in the facilities. Sources recently told RFA that Uyghurs in at least two detention centers in the region are suffering from medical conditions that they believe are being neglected by facility staff. Naman Bawdun, a Uyghur former head and Communist Party secretary of Awat townships Bashawat village, in Bayingholin Mongol (in Chinese, Bayinguoleng Menggu) Autonomous Prefectures Korla (Kuerle) city, said earlier this month that his wife, Patigul Dawut, had been detained on Oct. 9 for allegedly allowing others to preach religion, after workers were said to have delivered Islamic sermons at her carpet factory. Dawut was ordered to serve six months in a local detention center, despite suffering from a number of health complications, Bawdun said, adding that he hasnt seen her since she was taken into custody by police. She had her pancreas removed, underwent heart surgery, and got into a car accident that led to three additional surgeries, but now she is being detained and I dont believe she receives any medication for her conditions, he said. So many people have been detained that no officer would bother to ask her about her painful conditions unless she was to collapse, and only then would they send her to a hospital or to me for care. Thats what Im waiting for. Bawdun said that a friend who spent time as an inmate at a local re-education camp told him he had seen officials from the center tell the police to stop bringing people as it is already too full. He described cells that had previously held eight people now accommodating 14 inmates, who were not allowed pillows and had to lay on their sides because there was not enough room to lay flat, let alone space to turn over or stretch their legs. Other acquaintances told Bawdun that they had seen detainees walking barefoot, and that inmates were not allowed clothes with buttons or metal zippers, belts, shoelaces, or even underwear in some cases, despite average low temperatures of around 15 degrees Fahrenheit (-10 degrees Celsius) at night in December. Merchant hospitalized In a separate report, the security chief of Chasa township, in Kashgar (Kashi) prefectures Kashgar city, told RFA that a fruit and nut merchant from Uruk Bazaar in Kashgars Yengisar (Yingjisha) county named Mahat Omer is currently receiving medical treatment at a hospital in the city after developing serious complications from health condition while in detention. According to the security chief, who spoke on condition of anonymity, Omer, 55, had been arrested about six months ago after he went on an unapproved Hajj pilgrimage to the Islamic holy city of Mecca in 2016. The merchant had shown no other signs of extremist behavior, he added. In the beginning of 2017, authorities added those who make unsanctioned pilgrimages to Meccaan obligation to Muslims according to the Five Pillars of Islamto a list of The Six Types of Important People to Watch, despite only allowing a very small number of people to make the journey each year. He has diabetes and now his feet are oozing pus, so he is receiving treatment for that, the security chief said. He has been suffering from diabetes for some time. One of my sons who works in security in Uruk Bazaar is looking after him in the hospital. It was not immediately clear whether Omer had developed complications because authorities had refused to provide him with treatment, or if his condition had worsened due to neglect. The security chief said that around 30 Uyghurs from Uruk Bazaar are currently being held in detention. According to the US State Departments 2016 report on human rights, Uyghurs in China have complained of systematic torture and other degrading treatment by law enforcement officers and the penal system. Since Xinjiang party chief Chen Quanguo was appointed to his post in August 2016, he has initiated unprecedented repressive measures against the Uyghur people and ideological purges against so-called two-faced Uyghur officialsa term applied by the government to Uyghurs who do not willingly follow directives and exhibit signs of disloyalty. China regularly conducts strike hard campaigns in Xinjiang, including police raids on Uyghur households, restrictions on Islamic practices, and curbs on the culture and language of the Uyghur people, including videos and other material. While China blames some Uyghurs for "terrorist" attacks, experts outside China say Beijing has exaggerated the threat from the Uyghurs and that repressive domestic policies are responsible for an upsurge in violence there that has left hundreds dead since 2009. Reported by Shohret Hoshur for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by RFAs Uyghur Service. Written in English by Joshua Lipes. Rights activists and Uyghur advocacy groups today renewed their calls for the release from prison of Uyghur academic and blogger Ilham Tohti, who was arrested four years ago on charges of promoting separatism and is now serving a life term behind bars. An outspoken economics professor who regularly highlighted the religious and cultural persecution of the mostly Muslim Uyghur ethnic minority in northwest Chinas Xinjiang region, Tohti was sentenced on Sept. 23, 2014 following a two-day show trial. The court decision cited Tohtis criticism of Beijings ethnic policies, his interviews with overseas media outlets, and his work founding and running the Chinese-language website Uighurbiz.net, which was shut down by Chinese authorities in 2014. This week, the Germany-based Ilham Tohti Initiative called again on Beijing to immediately and unconditionally free the jailed writer and professor, calling the conditions of his imprisonment a calculated and cruel deprivation of his rights to family visits and outside communication. [All this has] been carefully engineered to punish the Uyghur scholar with degrading treatment and psychological torture, while at the same time keeping the attention on his plight from the outside world to a minimum, Initiative President Enver Can said. We are especially concerned about the reports that his wife and children would not be allowed to visit him during the current year of 2018, Can said. Instead of urging the separation of Xinjiangthe Uyghur peoples historic homelandfrom China, Tohti had called only for China to implement its own regional autonomy laws and had consistently promoted peace and dialogue between the Han Chinese and Uyghur communities, Can said. Thus, Ilham Tohti is a prisoner of conscience, who is being cruelly punished for peacefully challenging the Chinese governments policies toward ethnic minorities. Massive rights violations In a Jan. 17 statement, the international press freedoms watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF) described Tohtis situation as typical of the massive human rights violations taking place under [Chinese] President Xi Jinping. [Tohti] was calling not for separatism but for a dialogue to reach a peaceful solution to his communitys problems, RSF said. In his writings, Tohti had made valuable recommendations to the Chinese government to create genuine peace and harmony in East Turkestan, the Munich-based exile World Uyghur Congress (WUC) said in a Jan. 17 statement, using the name for Xinjiang preferred by many Uyghurs to refer to their traditional homeland. He is not a criminal. He is a voice of reason and peace, WUC President Dolkun Isa said. China has no reason to fear this moderate Uyghur voice and has no justification to imprison him for life. The international community will not stay silent until the day hes free, Isa said. Ilham Tohti was awarded Liberal Internationals Prize for Freedom in a ceremony held in absentia in The Hague in November 2017. He was also the recipient of the Martin Ennals Award for Human Rights Defenders in 2016 and the Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award from the PEN America Center in 2014. Reported by RFA's Uyghur Service. Written in English by Richard Finney. Vietnamese former state oil executive Trinh Xuan Thanh (front R) listens to the verdict in his trial at Hanoi's People's Court, Jan. 22, 2018. Vietnam put a former state oil executive who was allegedly kidnapped from Germany in jail for life on Monday and gave a recently dismissed senior Communist Party official 13 years for corruption and economic mismanagement related to millions of dollars of losses to the energy and banking sectors. The highest-profile corruption trial to target communist Vietnams political elite saw Trinh Xuan Thanh, the former head of PetroVietnam Construction (PVC), sentenced to 14 years for mismanagement and life in prison for embezzlement, according to the state-run VNExpress news site. Former politburo member Dinh La Thang, who once chaired the board of PetroVietnam, was sentenced to 13 years in prison, while other officials and executives got sentences as high as 22 years in jail. Thanh faces a separate trial for embezzlement Wednesday on charges that could carry the death penalty. Germany has accused Vietnam of kidnapping Thanh from a Berlin park and taking him home by force to face charges. Thang, is a former chairman of PetroVietnam and the most senior politician to face trial in decades in Vietnam, which has launched a crackdown on corruption in recent months that has netted dozens of former officials and bankers. Thanh has denied accusations that he was responsible for cash bribes to officials, while Thang has said that a decision by former Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and the Politburo led to PetroVietnams losses. In total a group of 22 people were put on trial for charges of deliberate mismanagement, embezzlement, or both, as part of the crackdown, which has widened since general secretary of the Communist Party Nguyen Phu Trong won a power struggle with Nguyen Tan Dung last year. Trong, who chaired the 13th session of the Communist Partys Central Steering Committee on Anti-Corruption on Monday, was quoted by state media as saying that in 2017, the Vietnamese government has disciplined more than 300 organizations and more than 18,600 individual party members, including more than 700 who were involved in corruption and intentional misconduct cases. Trong warned the party that hostile forces were abusing the anti-corruption drive to sew disunity, defame, and undermine the party and the State of Vietnam. Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Emily Peyman. Written in English by Paul Eckert Vuong Van Tha is taken into custody by police officers in An Giang provinces An Phu district, May 18, 2017. A court in southwestern Vietnams An Giang province sentenced a Buddhist hermit to 12 years in prison for spreading propaganda against the state under Article 88, a provision often used by the communist government to silence dissent, sources familiar with the secretive trial told RFA. Vuong Van Tha, his son Vuong Thanh Thuan, and his two nephews, Nguyen Nhat Truong and Nguyen Van Thuong, were arrested on May 18, 2017 after a nearly two-month standoff. Tha is a member of an unsanctioned sect of Hoa Hao Buddhism. Cong Ly Dan Toc, a writer whose Facebook name means Justice for the Nation told RFAs Vietnamese that Tha was sentenced under protest without the presence of lawyers or his family. Tha strongly protested during the trial because he didnt see his child. He also asked the court that why people were not allowed to enter the courtroom while the court itself is called Peoples Court. He also asked for his lawyers because there was no lawyer representing him, said Cong Ly Dan Toc He was screaming in protest against the trial and was subdued with violence before being taken to a private room where he was sentenced. When Tha was being subdued, his two nephews repeatedly banged their heads against the table, trying to commit suicide in protest, added the blogger. Cong Ly Dan Toc said that while Tha got 12 years in prison, his son, Vuong Thanh Thuan, was sentenced to seven years imprisonment and his two nephews, both of whom are illiterate, each received six years in jail. Attorney Nguyen Kha Thanh, who was approved by the People's Court of An Giang to be Thas lawyer but could not attend the trial, told RFA on Tuesday that he had not heard anything about the trial and was unable to contact Thas wife and daughter. "After the trial, I called Le Thi Le Ha (Thas wife) and Vuong Ngoc Thao (his daughter), but they didnt answer the phone, Thanh told RFA. Tha, who is in his late 40s, was sentenced to three years in prison in 2012 for "abusing democratic freedoms to infringe upon the interests of the State and the rights and interests of organizations and citizens and was released in October 2015. It was after Lunar New Year in 2017 that Tha began to raise his voice on social media about his situation and his views about Vietnams communist government. In the lead up to his arrest, nine members of his family were surrounded and isolated by police force for nearly two months, until May 18, 2017 when Tha, his son and two nephews were arrested. The Interfaith Council of Vietnam said in a statement issued in September that police had taken Tha into custody along with his son and two of his cousins after laying siege to the familys home in southern Vietnams An Giang province on May 18. At the time, the council said, hundreds of peopleincluding police, plainclothes officers, and thugsused a water cannon to attack Thas house, where nine members of his family were staying, including a man older than 80, a six-month-old child, three women and three young boys. The assault sent the women and children to the hospital to get treatment for their injuries, it said, while authorities in An Giangs An Phu district arrested Tha, his son Vuong Van Thuan, and his cousins Nguyen Nhat Truong and Nguyen Nhat Thuong. The family was not notified of the whereabouts of Tha and his three relatives until receiving an announcement more than three months later, informing them that they had been detained at Bang Lang Prison, in An Giangs Long Xuyen district. Prior to his arrest in May, Tha had used a loudspeaker to speak out against what he called the mistakes and crimes of Vietnams government. Since the May attack, authorities have cut off the electricity and water to his home and subjected his family members to frequent harassment. Reported by RFAs Vietnamese Service. Translated by Emily Peyman. Written in English by Paul Eckert. Former Vietnamese political prisoner Nguyen Dinh Ngoc, who blogs under the name Nguyen Ngoc Gia, was released from prison on December 27, 2017 from a sentence of three years in prison and three years of house arrest for allegedly spreading propaganda against the state under Article 88, a provision the government often uses to silence critics. He spoke to RFAs Vietnamese Service about his experience in jail. RFA: Why do you call yourself a human rights prisoner? Nguyen Ngoc Gia: I call myself a human rights prisoner because all I have done is exercise my human rights, but because of that, I was wrongfully sentenced to three years imprisonment and three years of house arrest. The concept of prisoner of conscience has been around for about 60 years. In my opinion, prisoners of conscience are of limited scope, not only including those arrested under Articles 88, 258 or 79, but also those who are arrested for exercising their human rights. I think all of those who have been exercising their human rights should be called human rights prisoners. Further, there are others who can claim to be fighting for human rights. Those who have been accused of tax evasion, acting against officers on duty, or those accused of causing public disorder, but who were in fact only exercising their human rights according to both international and domestic public opinion. Thats why I suggest you call us human rights prisoners. I want to assert once again that I am not acting against the State. I only exercise human rights in accordance with the Constitution, laws and all international conventions to which Vietnam is party. RFA: From your arrest to your release, there was no mention about you being allowed to leave detention. Can you share with us what you did during your time in detention? While being interrogated in the beginning of August 2015, a police officer suddenly asked me to think of my family and plead guilty. I said calmly to him that I have fully completed my fatherly responsibilities; that I live for democracy and I will never be an imposition on my children. Until August 25, 2015, the visitor log was brought in for me through the small hole on the wall. I was startled when I saw the writing and signature of my youngest son. I was so happy and anxious, I wept. It was the first and last time after eight months of imprisonment I saw his handwriting and signature. Then, my son died three days later. The next day, the guard informed me about his death. I will never forget that terrible day when I was told the heartbreaking news in such a cruel and emotionless way. Then, I offered to plead guilty, hoping to be allowed to go home to observe the 100th day after his death, but they did not allow me to go. When the investigation period was over, they still did not let me meet my family. RFA: Former prisoners of conscience have revealed the truth about Vietnamese prisons. What can you say from your own experience? I remember blogger Dieu Cay once said: Any prison in Vietnam is evil, but the one in Cai Tau, Ca Mau, is the "animal prison". For me, I have to say that each prison is different but the cruelty is equal. I saw with my own eyes the hard labor, I witnessed the miserable and dangerous tasks of prisoners who had to carry huge ice blocks up to the fourth floor every day. Sometimes the ice fell, causing bruises on their feet and nails which sometimes festered. They were also barbarically beaten by a number of guards. The police would drag them into a corner out of the camera coverage area to beat them. I remember on the afternoon of May 22, 2016, a group of five or six police used batons and took turns to beat a boy brutally. I clearly remember that day because it was parliamentary election day. From my cell, I witnessed many other brutal beatings when prisoners were caught smoking. The detention center where I was held looks like an extremely quiet cemetery. Sometimes we could hear the echo from far away when people were reading the bible for someone who had just died. This always frightened the prisoners. We dared not breathe loudly, laugh or make jokes with each other. Being depressed for years causes kidney, heart, and eye diseases, stomach pain, tooth loss, chronic headaches, arthritis, and more. I think what threatens the survival of this regime is not only corruptionas Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong acknowledgesbut also the human rights abuses of illegal arrest and inhumane execution, and the issue of the South China Sea. RFA: Since the congress of the Communist Party of Vietnam in early 2016 and the early months of 2017, Vietnamese authorities have conducted a strong crackdown on dissidents, voices of opposition, and activists for human rights and democracy. Some have been given lengthy sentences on charges of spreading propaganda against the State and acting with the intention to overthrow the people's government. What do you think about these measures? As many have said, the increased imprisonment reflects the words of Marx: "Where there is oppression, there is struggle." The more you fight, the more imprisonment you will get -- that is the rule. Naturally, no one wants to be imprisoned, but the Communist Party of Vietnam has few options other than imprisonment, harassment, and various means of oppression. The CPV is in a very difficult situation, like they are very sick but the illness cannot be treated with medicine. Therefore, I feel like they are in something of a "political deadlock" right now. RFA: It is 2018. A new year has just started. Do you have anything that you want to share with our audience? I write with my conscience based on three principles: truth, law and persistence. Perhaps that is why my readers love me. We can "trick" readers with a few writings, but we cannot lie to them with hundreds of them. I only write with these three principles in mind and never disseminate hatred, promote violence, or distort the truth. Translated by Emily Peyman. A 38-year-old Lagos-based businessman, Mr. Ahmed Buhari, has vowed to do all it takes to wrestle power from President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019. According to him, his decision to contest the presidency in 2019 was to take Nigeria out of the quagmire to a destination that will benefit all Nigerians. Speaking to Daily Trust, Ahmad Buhari, said he was tired of complaining about how things were being done in Nigeria, saying he had decided to come out of his comfort zone to contest. Loading... The young Buhari, who hails from Kontagora in Niger State, said he was ready to slug it out with President Muhammadu Buhari and other candidates in 2019. I am still consulting on which platform to use in contesting but, for now, I am of the view that most of the major political parties do not share ideologies that conformed with mine and that of my numerous followers, he stated. A man who petitioned for 11 years over a court decision in his son's murder now faces a heavy jail term for pursuing a long-running complaint against the Chinese government, RFA has learned. Liu Minjie, who hails from the northern province of Hebei, began pursuing a complaint after the Supreme People's Court in Beijing commuted a death penalty handed to his son's murderer to a suspended death sentence. Liu, now 56, has spent the intervening years appealing the decision, in a bid to win justice for his son from his hometown of Dingzhou. But now he has been detained on suspicion of "picking quarrels and stirring up trouble," and could face a lengthy jail term for his pains, his daughter Liu Xia told RFA. "My father has been charged with picking quarrels and stirring up trouble, which carries a penalty of [up to] five years' imprisonment," Liu Xia, who happens to share a name with the wife of late Nobel peace laureate Liu Xiaobo, said. Fellow petitioner Cai Zhiguo, a friend of Liu's, said the case dates back to a murder that took place in Urumqi, regional capital of Xinjiang. "When the Supreme Court came to review the death penalty, they didn't hold a public hearing." "They found errors in the material facts of the case, and changed the verdict, which meant that the main suspect, Du Peng, didn't get the punishment he deserved," Cai said. "Liu Minjie thought that this was because the deputy provincial governor of Hebei, Liu Jiansheng, and Du Peng, were very close friends." "After that, the deputy head of the Hebei High People's Court, Jing Hanchao, was promoted to the Supreme People's Court, and he was protecting Du Peng," Cai said. "So there was a channel established." The Supreme Court must review any cases in which the death penalty is handed down, in a bid to halt miscarriages of justice and limit the use of the ultimate penalty to the most serious crimes, according to recent government policy. Liu Xia displays a photo of her father at her home in Hebei's Dingzhou city, in an undated photo. Credit: Liu Xia Deliberately targeted Liu Xia said the authorities had deliberately targeted her father over his petitioning attempts. "Back in August, the Dingzhou police, and a vehicle owned by the Intermediate People's Court in [nearby] Baoding were waiting for my father outside the complaints office of the Supreme Court," Liu Xia said. "My dad probably spotted the car and tried to escape." "He didn't leave home for about a month, but when he did finally go [to Beijing again], he was detained by court police from the Supreme Court ... and he was brought back to Dingzhou," she said. "The only evidence they could produce was that my father frequently went to the complaints window of the Supreme People's Court to express his sense of injustice," Liu Xia said. "I think they are just framing him on purpose." She said she expects a heavy sentence amid a nationwide "stability maintenance" crackdown ahead of the ruling Chinese Communist Party's five-yearly congress on Oct. 18. "I don't think he'll get off lightly with the 19th Party Congress about to open," she said. Reported by Gao Feng for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. Li Aijie, wife of jailed rights activist Zhang Haitao, a critic of the ruling Chinese Communist Party's treatment of the mostly Muslim Uyghur ethnic group, landed with the couple's young child in the United States on Dec. 23 after fleeing China via Thailand. She had been targeted for threats by local authorities after Zhang was handed a 19-year jail term by the Intermediate People's Court in Urumqi, regional capital of the northwestern region of Xinjiang, on Jan. 15, 2016. She spoke to RFA's Cantonese Service about her escape, and her plans for the future: RFA: How did you decide on a route out of China? Li Aijie: Well, I have a story to tell about the first time I went to Hong Kong. I had signed up with a tour group, and I separated myself from them. I just left without telling them I was going. Then the tour group leaders reported it to the police, and several police came to find me. So [I knew] none of the tour group people could be trusted. If I was going to leave, I knew it would have to be with a friend [but] they weren't going to allow that. They followed us [as we were leaving] for quite a long way, all the way onto the subway. Back then I had been planning to bring my son along, but I didn't in the end, because the family didn't agree. This time, I just left, taking my son with me. I had a visa for Thailand and a return plane ticket, from Hong Kong to Thailand, so arrival went pretty smoothly. RFA: So you finally landed in Texas with your son on Dec. 23. What are your plans now? Li Aijie: I plan to get used to the new environment and learn the language, first of all. Now I am in a free country, I want to speak out about my husband's plight, and let the whole world know the truth. My husband is innocent, yet he has been sentenced to 19 years in prison. He is not guilty. RFA: How are things going for you here in the U.S.? Li Aijie: People here in the U.S. have been so very kind. I have really felt their genuine concern and care, as if we were their own family. [My son] is very happy. Sometimes he jumps and runs around the place, or he suddenly starts singing or dancing by himself. He is very, very happy. But my son has never seen his father before, and we just hope one day to be reunited with Zhang Haitao. We call on the international community to show concern for all Chinese prisoners of conscience, and to work for their eventual freedom. Reported by Ma Lap-hak and Pan Jiaqing for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by Gao Shan for the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. When President Xi Jinping unveiled his newly reshuffled Politburo standing committee after the 19th national congress of the ruling Chinese Communist Party closed last month, not one was female. This was less surprising than it might have been given that there has never been a woman in the all-powerful committee, and that less than a quarter of congress delegates were female. There is only one woman on the 25-member Politburo. U.S.-based activist Zhang Qing, who founded the group Women's Rights in China, told RFA's Mandarin Service about the challenges women face in getting to the top in Chinese politics: RFA: What do you think the new leadership says about women's status in China's political life? Zhang Qing: The Chinese Communist Party has a handful of men on its Politburo standing committee handle all of the research and implementation of policy and laws. It's the same with family planning policy. In the 1950s, they told women to have more children, then they told them to only have one. Now that has been relaxed to two children. A handful of men came up with all of this. On the surface, men and women are equal, but in reality, women are underrepresented in the job market and in education. Also, women in China are forced to retire at the age of 55. RFA: Do you see this as something that comes from the top? Zhang Qing: [President Xi wants] the husband to go out to work and the woman to stay home to support him and to bring up the family, to take the responsibility of educating the children. There has been an initiative to promote Confucianism across the whole country in the past few years, and some women believe in this idea too. There's a famous Chinese academic who told women they should get back in the kitchen. So all of this shows you the lack of respect for women on the part of Chinese men, who pay no attention to women's rights, whether they are high or low-ranking. RFA: What are your thoughts about the detention of the Feminist Five ahead of International Women's Day, 2015? Zhang Qing: All they did was to speak out against sexual harassment, and advocate for women's rights. It had very little to do with politics. It's not as if they were trying to overthrow the Communist Party. But the Chinese Communist Party ruthlessly suppressed them. The United States may not have had a female president, but at least there is justice in its laws, and the proportion of women in politics is higher. There are also NGOs and members of Congress elected by the people who have to listen to the people. In China, however, the National People's Congress is just there for decoration. And there is even less attention paid to women, children and other vulnerable groups. Even the recent Marriage Law and the Domestic Violence Law are unfair to women. RFA: Do you see any improvement during the Xi era in the status of Chinese women? Zhang Qing: Women are more than capable, with their deep social sensitivity, of running a country, and they are very good at mobilizing. But at the current time in China, their lack of participation in politics is something to be ashamed of. Taiwan is tiny, but it has a female leader. The chief executive of Hong Kong is also a woman ... and yet we have never had a woman on the Politburo standing committee in China, ever. I think it's very hard to see how there could be an improvement in women's rights during the Xi era. RFA: What do you see happening in the next five years? Zhang Qing: I think the next five years are going to be quite tragic for women, especially if Xi Jinping continues to make constitutional changes and governs for a very long time. It will be piling layer upon layer of tragedy, because, based on everything Xi Jinping has said about his views on women, he really doesn't concern himself with them at all ... The oppression of women under Xi is worse than it was under [former president] Hu Jintao. I don't think the new administration will do much at all for women. I'm not optimistic that there will be any improvement in women's rights at all. Reported by Han Qing for RFA's Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie. Bumeryem Muhammeds husband, Muhetar Rouzi, has been missing since July 16, when he attempted to travel from Egypt to Istanbul, Turkey as Egyptian secret police rounded up some 200 Uyghur holders of Chinese passports in an operation activists say was requested by Beijing. The Uyghur couple from northwest Chinas Xinjiang region had lived in Egypt for years and were studying religion at Cairos Al-Azhar Islamic University when the crackdown began in early July. Muhammed, who arrived in Istanbul with her two children days before her husbands disappearance, told RFAs Uyghur Service she last heard from Rouzi as he waited to speak with Egyptian immigration officials, and said she believes his name was on a deportation list issued by Chinese authorities. The worst is not being able to find out any information about my husband. The anxiety and the worry thinking about where he is or what has happened to him is increasing with the passing hours. It was on July 16 That was the last contact we had, since then there has been no news about him. No one has seen or heard of him. He was travelling with three other students, but they were let go after they were questioned and their documents checked. I assume it might be that my husbands name is on a wanted return list, which was issued by the Chinese authorities I learned from internal information, and my lawyer also said, that it is possible my husbands name is on their list. I also heard from those who were released that they were freed because they werent on the return list. One possibility is that he might have been placed in a detention center [in Egypt] where foreign students are held and forgotten about My second guess is that the Chinese pressured Egypt to have him immediately returned to China. The most important point is that he has never done anything in violation of the Chinese constitution or broken international law, nor was he involved in any unusual activities in Egypt. So why would China want him back? Some people talk about Chinese agents working in Egypt, so it may have been because he became well known there. 'Those in need' My husband and friends in his circle spared some money to help those who were in desperate situations. The money they gave was not much. As human being, it is difficult to watch others who are in need without helping them. All he did was collect some money and distribute it to those in need. Possibly [the Chinese] noticed that he is a man who has ability to support his own community. I only hope that he is being kept somewhere in Egypt, as my worst fear is that he has been taken back to China We [Uyghurs studying in Egypt] were branded so-called Islamic extremists and terrorists [by the Chinese government] and I am fearful that [in China] he would be accused of crimes that he has never committed. Having achieved degrees and developed careers, both of us wanted to improve our Islamic knowledge in the hope that we could serve our country and people better. Since the time I was at university, I dreamed of studying Islamic law. I thought that I could achieve a doctorate and become a researcher in international law. My husband has never been involved in politics. If he is branded an extremist, I want people to know that it is a complete fabrication of the truth. Under Chinas constitution, he is an innocent man. The only reason for his arrest is that he is a Uyghur and a Muslim. Above all, Egypt is responsible for all the current tragedies. Regardless of the circumstances, Egypt has the duty to protect those who are legally residing in the country who have not broken the law. Reported by Gulchehra Hoja for RFAs Uyghur Service. Translated by Alim Seytoff. The State Department says several U.S. citizens were killed and wounded in a recent attack on Kabuls Intercontinental Hotel by Taliban militants that left at least 30 people dead. The State Department gave no details in a January 23 statement on how many U.S. citizens were killed in the attack. Afghan officials have said 11 of the 14 foreigners killed were employees of KamAir, a private Afghan airline. "We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who were killed and wish for the speedy recovery of those wounded," the State Department said. Senior Afghan security officials have said the death toll could climb higher. Some local reports have said 40 people had been killed. Six attackers were also killed by security forces, although some reports stated there were only five assailants. The militants, dressed in army uniforms, launched the assault on the luxury hotel in the Afghan capital in the evening on January 20. Officials said the gunmen charged through the hallways and sought out foreigners and Afghan officials inside the hotel. More than 150 people, including 41 foreigners, were rescued or managed to escape during the siege. Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said on January 21 that six of those killed were Ukrainians and added that his office was working with Afghan law enforcement agencies "to clarify the circumstances of this terrorist act." However, Ukraines ambassador to Tajikistan and Afghanistan, Viktor Nikityuk, told the 112 Ukraine TV channel on January 22 that seven Ukrainian citizens working for KamAir had died in the attack. A citizen from Kazakhstan also was among the dead, according to a spokesman for the Kazakh Foreign Ministry. Afghan security officials speculated that the attack was timed to take place as more than 30 provincial officials were at the hotel, attending a conference organized by the Telecommunications Ministry. Among the dead was Ahmad Farzan, an employee of the High Peace Council, a commission tasked with facilitating peace talks between Kabul and the Taliban and other opposition groups. An initial investigation showed the insurgents had gained access to the hotel from the north side and stormed its kitchen. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack at the heavily guarded hotel that is popular with foreigners and Afghan officials. The Interior Ministry blamed the extremist Haqqani network, which is based in Pakistan and allied with the Taliban. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has ordered an investigation and said militant groups were being helped by neighboring countries. Afghan officials, along with U.S. President Donald Trump, have accused neighboring Pakistan of providing a safe haven for terrorists operating in Afghanistan, a charge Islamabad denies. Pakistan also condemned the "brutal terrorist attack" and called for greater cooperation against militants. The Western-backed government in Kabul has been struggling to fend off the Taliban and other militant groups since the withdrawal of most NATO troops in 2014. Trump in August unveiled his new strategy for the South Asia region, under which Washington has deployed 3,000 more troops to Afghanistan to train, advise, and assist local security forces, and to carry out counterterrorism missions. The United States currently has around 14,000 uniformed personnel in the country. Witnesses reported seeing U.S. military vehicles at the site after the attack, assisting Afghan security personnel. With reporting by Reuters, AFP, tolonews.com, AP, Interfax, and The Stars & Stripes BAKU -- Azerbaijan has sentenced a prominent opposition leader to three years in prison on charges that she tried to smuggle undeclared cash across the border, according to her lawyer, who says the case is politically motivated. Gozel Bayramli, deputy chairwoman of the Popular Front Party (AXCP), was arrested in May as she was returning to Azerbaijan from neighboring Georgia. Azerbaijan's border service said at the time she was detained after she failed to declare $12,000 in cash. The Qazax district court in Azerbaijan's northwest on January 23 found Bayramli guilty of smuggling $12,000 into the country and sentenced her the same day, her lawyer, Elcin Sadiqov said. Sadiqov called the ruling illegal and unfounded and said he would appeal it. Bayramli has maintained her innocence, saying the case against her is politically motivated. She insists that the banknotes were planted in her bag. Bayramli "rejected all charges brought against her as false and told the court that her prosecution was politically motivated," Sadiqov said. She called the trial "a black stain on a judicial system that executes a political order from the authoritarian regime," Sadiqov said. "I believe that people of Azerbaijan who managed to prevail during the 70-year-long [Soviet] empire are capable of prevailing over the corrupt regime of [President Ilham] Aliyev. Aliyev's rule is today the major barbaric impediment for freedom...." Critics of longtime President Ilham Aliyev's government say authorities of the oil-rich former Soviet republic frequently seek to silence dissent by jailing reporters, human rights activists, and civil-society advocates without grounds. Dozens of AXCP members have been arrested and some imprisoned in the last several years on what their supporters have called trumped-up charges. Aliyev denies any rights abuses. He took over in 2003 shortly before the death of his father Heydar Aliyev, a former KGB officer and communist-era leader who had ruled Azerbaijan since 1993. The European Union has sharply criticized Belarus for sentencing two men to death, and repeated its call for President Alyaksandr Lukashenka's government to abolish capital punishment. Maja Kocijancic, spokeswoman for EU foreign-policy chief Federica Mogherini, said on January 23 that the Minsk city court sentenced Vyachaslau Sukharka and Alyaksandr Zhylnikau to death on January 20 after a retrial. In December 2015, Sukharka and Zhylnikau were convicted of murdering three people and sentenced to life in prison. But in July 2017, the Supreme Court upheld an appeal by the prosecutor and the case was sent for retrial. "The European Union holds a strong and principled position against the death penalty, which is a cruel, inhuman, and degrading punishment and a violation of the right to life," Kocijancic said in a statement. "The death penalty does not serve as a deterrent to crime, and errors, inevitable in any legal system, become irreversible." "We expect the remaining death sentences in Belarus, which is the only country in Europe still applying capital punishment, to be commuted and a moratorium on the death penalty introduced as a first step towards its abolition," the statement said. The EU and rights groups have urged Belarus to join a global moratorium on the death penalty for years. According to rights organizations, more than 400 people have been sentenced to death in Belarus since it gained independence following the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Joe Biden, the U.S. vice president under Barack Obama, has praised a White House decision to supply Ukraine with more lethal weaponry, but also suggested that weaker U.S. policy toward Kyiv was leading to backsliding on crucial anticorruption reforms. Biden, who was the Obama administrations point person on Ukraine, called Kurt Volker -- the current U.S. special envoy for Ukraine -- a "solid, solid guy." But Biden suggested that Volker did not have enough authority to be tougher on Ukraines leadership on corruption and that backsliding on the reforms could hurt the chances of implementing the Minsk accords, the framework deal reached with Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine. Volker is "a solid, solid guy. But Kurt, to the best of my knowledge, does not have the authority, or the ability, to go in and say, 'If you don't straighten this up, you're out of here,'" Biden said. Biden made the comments on January 23 in an appearance at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington. The United States has been a stalwart supporter of Ukraine since 2013, when a series of street protests over closer integration with Europe evolved into a major confrontation with President Viktor Yanukovych, culminating in his ouster in February 2014. The Obama administration imposed economic sanctions for Moscows annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and for its support of separatists in the war with Ukrainian forces that has killed more than 10,300 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014. But Washington has also struggled to push Yanukovychs successor, Petro Poroshenko, to institute major governmental reforms and clean up the country's endemic corruption. The Obama administration was also reluctant to authorize more advanced weapons for Ukraine's military, fearing it would antagonize the Kremlin. Biden said he and other administration officials had to work hard to persuade European leaders to go along with U.S. sanctions on Russia. "If in fact you do not continue to show progress in terms of corruption, we are not going to be able to hold the rest of Europe on these sanctions," Biden said he told Ukrainian leaders. "And Russia is not going to roll across the inner line here and take over the rest of the country with their tanks, what they're going to do is take your economy down -- you're going to be absolutely buried, and you're going to be done. And that's when it all goes to hell." "There is no pressure that I'm aware of...on the present leadership in Ukraine to hold them together to be able to continue what looked like was a real possibility of turning Minsk into something that was doable by being much tougher than Germany wanted us to be," he said. "We were moving in that direction, but it now looks like the pressure is off and it requires day-to-day-to-day" reinforcement. Reached by RFE/RL by e-mail, Volker declined comment. The Trump administration policy toward Ukraine had been in doubt early on in his presidency, amid Trumps repeated calls for a more conciliatory approach toward Russia. During the 2016 election campaign, the Republican Party platform was reportedly changed to water down U.S. support for Kyiv. However, with Congress and key national security officials showing strong backing for Ukraine, the Trump White House has largely continued his predecessors policies. Last year, the White House signaled it was moving forward on a long-delayed plan to supply Ukraine with more advanced weaponry, to bolster its forces fighting Russian-backed separatists. Volker is a well-regarded former ambassador to NATO, and his appointment last year was seen by many in Washington as a strong selection to spearhead diplomacy over the Ukraine conflict. However, the position is only part-time, and Volker splits his attentions between Ukraine diplomacy and heading a Washington think tank named for Republican Senator John McCain. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has discussed Turkeys incursion into northwest Syria in a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to the state news agency Anadolu. Erdogan called Putin on January 23 after speaking with French President Emmanuel Macron earlier in the day, the agency added. The Kremlin said Putin had discussed Turkey's military operation in Syria's Afrin with Erdogan by phone and said that Syria's territorial integrity and sovereignty had to be respected. The Kremlin also said in a statement that Putin and Erdogan also discussed final preparations for Syria peace talks Russia is set to host in the Black Sea resort of Sochi next week. Reuters quoted an official from the United States on January 23, the fourth day of the Turkish cross-border offensive, as saying that President Donald Trump expects to speak with Erdogan soon to express his unease with the operation. The United States has been urging Ankara to show restraint after the Turkish military hit Kurdish militias that had aided the U.S.-led fight against the Islamic State (IS) extremist group. The Turkish military, meanwhile, said in a statement on January 23 that at least 260 Syrian Kurdish YPG fighters and Islamic State militants had been killed in its operation in Syria's Afrin. The statement said the Turkish military intervention in the Syrian enclave of Afrin was continuing as planned on its fourth day. The YPG, known as the People's Protection Units, is a key U.S. ally against IS and played a major role in driving the extremists from much of northern and eastern Syria. The U.S. military operates bases in Kurdish-controlled territory in northern Syria but not in or near Afrin. Ankara views the YPG as a threat because of its links to the decades-old Kurdish insurgency in Turkey. Turkey says it aims to create a 30-kilometer-deep "secure zone" in Afrin, which is in northwestern Syria near the border. Based on reporting by Anadolu, AP, and Reuters U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is meeting with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian as the U.S. administration is pressing ahead with efforts to convince European allies to address flaws in Iran's nuclear deal with world powers. Ahead of the meeting in Paris, the second leg of Tillersons weeklong trip to Europe, Le Drian insisted that signatories to the landmark 2015 accord curbing Iran's nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief must stand by their word." "There is a basic principle on which we are very firm. It's the upholding of the [deal] to the extent it is respected," the French minister said, noting that the UN nuclear watchdog has said Tehran is in compliance. After meeting with top British officials in London on January 22, Tillerson voiced cautious optimism about getting European backing. U.S. President Donald Trump said earlier this month that he wanted to work with European allies and Congress to fix what he called "disastrous flaws" in the nuclear accord signed under his predecessor, Barack Obama. Trump warned that Washington would withdraw from the deal curbing Iran's nuclear program in exchange for the easing of international sanctions if the terms of the agreement are not strengthened within four months. Tehran has ruled out any changes in the agreement, while the other signatories -- Britain, France, Germany, China, and Russia -- have closed ranks in support of the accord. But after meeting in London with British Prime Minister Theresa May, national security adviser Mark Sedwill, and Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, Tillerson said on January 22 that the United States, Britain, France, and Germany had a "common view that there are some areas of the [agreement] or some areas of Iran's behavior that should be addressed." He said that the four countries agreed to set up a working group of experts that would look at "some type of another side agreement perhaps or a mechanism that would address our concerns," the secretary of state said, citing Iran's ballistic-missile program, which is not covered by the nuclear accord, and provisions in the deal that allow Iran to gradually resume advanced atomic work. Johnson said that Britain was committed to doing what it could with its partners "collectively to constrain that activity." However, he insisted that "it is important that we do that in parallel and don't vitiate the fundamentals of the Iran nuclear deal." Pressuring Iran On Missiles Speaking after he arrived at a European Union foreign ministers meeting in Brussels on January 22, France's foreign minister said his counterparts would reiterate their concerns over Iran's activities in Yemen, Lebanon, and Syria, which he described as destabilizing. "We will also have the opportunity of underlining our firmness on Iran's compliance with United Nations Resolution 2231, which limits access to ballistic capacity and which Iran does not respect," Le Drian said. Meanwhile, the German government appealed to Tehran to join European powers and the United States in talks, citing concerns about the missile program and Iran's regional activities. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Adebahr said that German, French, and EU officials would launch high-level talks about their concerns. During a visit to Jerusalem, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence reiterated Trumps warning that the United States will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal if European allies dont join Washington to address flawed parts of the accord. "At the end of the day, this is going to be a moment where the European community has to decide whether they want to go forward with the United States or whether they want to stay in this deeply flawed deal with Iran," Pence said on January 23. After the French capital, Tillerson will spend two days in Davos shadowing Trump at his first visit as president to the annual economic forum. By January 26, he will be in Poland for more talks with senior officials on security and economic matters. With reporting by AFP, Reuters, and AP The regulator said it had, therefore, directed Glo to stop the sale of new SIM cards and recharge cards. Glo is required to notify its subscribers of the impending cessation of its activities and ask them to use up their available airtime and data within 30 days of the notification sent to them, according to the regulator. Glo Mobile will also have to maintain its passive co-location infrastructure with other operators for a period of three months, ARCEP stated. In September 2017, negotiations between Glo and the new administration failed. Glo has been operating in Benin since August 2007 and has grown its market share to about 12% over the 11 years period. If Glo finally leaves Benin, it would have been the second to leave after Bell Benin Communications SA exited some time back. That country would then be left with MTN, Libercom, Spacetel and Moov serving subscribers in that country. Russia's Culture Ministry has shelved the release of the British comedy film The Death Of Stalin. The ministry declared it was rescinding the permit that would have allowed Scottish writer-director Armando Iannucci's movie to be shown in Russian theaters. The film premiered in Britain in October and was scheduled to open in Russia on January 25. "The distribution certificate for the film The Death Of Stalin has been withdrawn," a ministry spokeswoman told French news agency AFP. The ruling came after calls by prominent conservative figures, including film director Nikita Mikhalkov, to prevent the movie from being shown in Russia. The Culture Ministry had warned in September that it might ban Scottish-born director Armando Ianucci's black comedy, which Communist Party lawmakers described as Western "psychological warfare" at the time. A license was issued, but there were new calls for its revocation after a recent showing for movie industry figures, lawmakers, Culture Ministry officials, and others. Yury Polyakov, the head of the Culture Ministry's advisory "public council," told Russian news agency TASS that the movie should not be shown because it contained elements of an "ideological struggle" against Russia. After the recent showing, "not a single person spoke out in support of this film as a work of art and history," Polyakov said. Critics of the Kremlin say that Russia will never come to grips with its past, and particularly the crimes committed by the Soviet state under dictator Josef Stalin, if the authorities block efforts to treat it with humor. Based on reporting by TASS and Meduza The Russian human rights group Memorial says unknown attackers have torched one of its cars in the North Caucasus region of Daghestan in the latest assault on the activists. The Moscow-based right group said the "arson attack" occurred late on January 22 in the regional capital, Makhachkala, adding that it was part of a "terror" campaign to chase it out of the North Caucasus. Memorial, which is documenting abuses in the region despite years of pressure, said in a January 23 statement that the driver of the Volga car received a phone call from a neighbor who informed him that the vehicle was on fire. The driver and his neighbors managed to extinguish the fire and found a gasoline canister next to the car. Oleg Orlov, a leading member of Memorial, said that the group's lawyer had used the car to travel to neighboring Chechnya, where the head of its local office is in jail on suspicion of drug possession. Oyub Titiyev was detained on January 9 by police who said they found marijuana in his car. Titiyev and Memorial said the drugs were planted. Police in Chechnya have searched Memorial's regional office in Grozny three times since Titiyev's arrest. Orlov said that police claimed that they found "suspicious" cigarettes and an ashtray made from an empty tin can during the search on January 19. And on January 17, Memorial said its office in Nazran, Ingushetia's largest city, had been torched in a "terrorist" attack. Orlov described the recent attacks targeting his group in Chechnya, Ingushetia, and Daghestan as "parts of the same chain," adding that the organizers of the attacks "must be sought in the Chechen Republic." "What is being organized against Memorial is intimidation, menacing, in other words, it is terror," he added. Western governments and international organizations have voiced concern about Titiyev's case and called for his release. But the Kremlin-backed leader of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, called Titiyev a "drug addict" and branded all human rights defenders "people without kinship, ethnicity, and religion." On January 11, the Shali district court in Chechnya extended the activist's detention until March 9. MOSCOW -- Two days before a black comedy on Josef Stalin's demise was due to hit screens in Russia, the country's Culture Ministry has barred it -- arguing that the British film about the power struggle that followed the Soviet dictator's death in 1953 was extremist, mendacious, and insulting to the Russian nation. The Death Of Stalin, directed by Scottish filmmaker Armando Iannucci, was all set to open at Russian theaters on January 25. But a last-minute decision by the Culture Ministry to revoke the film's distribution license means the film is barred from being shown, at least for now. The decision came after ministry officials earlier gave the film a bad review. The film had been screened for the officials after a group of lawyers within the ministry called on Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky to revoke the film's license in an impassioned letter seen by the TASS news agency. "The Death Of Stalin film aims to incite hatred and enmity, to humiliate the Russian (and Soviet) people, to propagandize the inferiority of a person on the grounds of his social and national status, and these are signs of extremism," they wrote. The letter took exception to the representation of historical figures in the film; in particular, that of the Soviet Union's most storied World War II officer, Marshall Georgy Zhukov. According to the letter's authors, the Soviet war hero is portrayed as a "militant clown." "We are sure the film has been made to pervert, to distort the past of our country -- so that the life period of Soviet people in the 1950s elicits only horror and disgust," the letter continues. Russia's most popular tabloid, Komsomolskaya Pravda, derided The Death Of Stalin as "a comedy that could have been filmed by Hitler" and possibly "the most sickening film about the Soviet Union in recent history." The 2017 film, which was released in the United Kingdom in October and will reach U.S. audiences this year, touches on some issues that Moscow is particularly sensitive to. The feeling that the Soviet contribution to the Allied victory in World War II is not adequately recognized, for all the millions of lives lost, has become a key ideological mooring for the Kremlin. WATCH: Iannucci has defended The Death Of Stalin, saying that it is both "funny" and "true." He made the comment days before Russia's Culture Ministry revoked the license for showing the movie in Russian cinemas. He spoke to Current Time TV at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah. The movie is also at odds with the quiet rehabilitation of Stalin that has taken place under President Vladimir Putin. State media have played up Stalin's role in industrializing the country and winning the war, while playing down his part in Soviet purges, forced collectivization, and gulags. Polls show that Russian public opinion has become markedly more positive toward Stalin under Putin, although he is reviled across much of the former Soviet Union and the West. 'Unusual Trash' Yury Polyakov, a writer and head of an advisory body for the Culture Ministry, told TASS on January 23 that Russian viewers should be protected, and the film should not be screened. He called the film an "insult to our civil and national feelings." Polyakov said that no officials at the viewing supported the film. "Everyone said it's a really bad film from a professional point of view, absolutely mendacious. It is a template of an ideological struggle against our country," he said. "This was a unanimous opinion." Aleksandr Khinshtein, an adviser to the director of the Russian National Guard, derided the film as "unusual trash to say the least." Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on the furor around the film during a phone conference with journalists, saying the Kremlin was unaware of the situation and adding that the question of barring the film was "absolutely the prerogative of the Culture Ministry." Zhukov Portrayed As 'Jerk' Prior to the suspension of the film's license, a member of the Culture Ministry's advisory body had called for simply postponing the film. Pavel Pozhigaylo told the RBC news outlet that Marshal Zhukov is "portrayed as a jerk," and that the film "defiles our historical symbols -- the Soviet hymn, the order, and medal." He also took issue with what he described as "extreme violence." He said that the film should not be shown ahead of the 75th anniversary of the victory over the Nazis at the Battle of Stalingrad in February. He also said that cinema screenings of such a film would be inappropriate ahead of the country's presidential election in March. The controversy around the film comes as President Putin is poised to cruise to victory, extending his 18-year rule by another 6 years. Putin is already the longest serving leader since Josef Stalin, who ruled the Soviet Union from the mid-1920s to 1953. KAZAN, Russia -- Officials with the regional Center For The Fight Against Extremism (Center E) in the capital of Russia's Republic of Tatarstan, Kazan, have confiscated hundreds of leaflets in which opposition politician and anticorruption crusader Aleksei Navalny is calling for a boycott of the March 18 presidential election, Navalny's office in the region says. Elvira Dmitriyeva, the head of Navalny's office in Kazan, told RFE/RL that the officials confiscated 537 leaflets on January 23. Dmitriyeva added that the officials also asked her if Navalny's supporters were planning rallies on January 25, when Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit Kazan. Dmitriyeva said she told the officials that no rallies were planned for that day but added that a public protest is being planned by Navalny's office on January 28. On January 18, police confiscated similar leaflets in the Volga regional city of Cheboksary and detained a teenage Navalny supporter, Vasily Kaverin, for hours for distributing the leaflets. Navalny himself said that the same day police searched his office in St. Petersburg. Navalny, a vocal opponent of President Vladimir Putin, called for the boycott of the presidential poll after election authorities in December barred him from running for president because of a criminal conviction he says was fabricated. His supporters plan to organize mass rallies across Russia on January 28 to protest against the decision. Putin, who has been president or prime minister since 1999, is seeking a fourth term in the upcoming election. Kremlin critics say most of the other candidates are window-dressing in a vote Putin is certain to win in Russia's tightly controlled political environment. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has said Russia is ultimately to blame for any use of chemical weapons in Syria, amid reports of a suspected chemical attack this week near Damascus. Tillerson spoke on January 23 in Paris, where 24 countries, including the United States and France, launched a new organization whose aim is to identify and punish those who use chemical weapons. Tillerson said Russia is violating a 2013 agreement it reached with the United States on the removal of chemical weapons from Syria. He also said Moscow is helping the Syrian government breach the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans their use. Tillerson said Russia must refrain from vetoing UN Security Council resolutions on holding the users of chemical weapons accountable. "There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments to the United States as a framework guarantor" of the 2013 agreement, Tillerson said. "Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution of the overall crisis. At a bare minimum, Russia must stop vetoing and at least abstain on future UNSC resolutions on this issue," he said. The new organization, the International Partnership against Impunity for the Use of Chemical Weapons, intends to publish information about chemical attacks to name and shame perpetrators and eventually punish them. UN efforts to sanction perpetrators in Syria have failed, repeatedly blocked by Russia. The French Foreign Ministry said the new group in no way intends to replace existing international mechanisms, nor does it plan to conduct its own investigations. But the initiative drew a vocal objection from Russia, which Western governments say has used its clout to protect Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's government from punishment for chemical attacks. Speaking on January 23, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said the initiative was a direct encroachment on the prerogatives of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) and a blow to the UN platform." Activists and rescue teams said the Syrian government is suspected of using poisonous gas that affected nearly 20 civilians in a rebel-held suburb near Damascus on January 22. Syria denies using chemical weapons, while Moscow says extremists have used chemical weapons in the past. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said, "Those who carry out chemical weapons attacks need to be made aware that we know who they are, and we will go after them." With reporting by AP and AFP Russian journalist and television personality Ksenia Sobchak has collected the 100,000 signatures necessary to register formally as a candidate in the country's March presidential election. Sobchak's campaign reported on January 22 that volunteers working across the country had collected the necessary signatures. The campaign added that it would continue working until it collected at least 120,000 names before making its submission to the Central Election Commission. The commission must then check the signatures and rule on their validity. Russian President Vladimir Putin is seeking a fourth term in the March 18 vote. Analysts note that Russian elections are heavily managed by the authorities and there is little doubt that Putin will be named the victor. Opposition politician and anticorruption blogger Aleksei Navalny has been barred from participating in the election because of a felony embezzlement conviction on charges he says were politically motivated. Navalny has referred to the election as "the reappointment of Putin" and has called on voters to boycott the polls. Sobchak, the daughter of Putin's mentor and former St. Petersburg Mayor Anatoly Sobchak, has positioned herself as an opposition figure. Kremlin critics contend that she and most other candidates are being used as window-dressing to create the appearance of political competition. Other candidates include nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky, liberal Grigory Yavlinsky, and Communist Party candidate Pavel Grudinin. A Russian court has convicted Soviet-born New York real-estate developer and socialite Janna Bullock of large-scale fraud and money laundering and sentenced her to 11 years in prison after a trial in absentia. Moscow's Basmanny district court issued the verdict and sentence on January 23, following a trial that began after what Russia said was Washingon's refusal to extradite Bullock. Bullock, a U.S. citizen, was convicted of stealing billions of rubles from the budget of the Moscow region. Bullock has repeatedly said she and her ex-husband, Aleksei Kuznetsov, are victims of corruption in Russia, accusing former business partners of colluding with officials to steal from a business empire whose worth she once estimated at around $2 billion. Russia accuses the pair of using Kuznetsov's position in the Moscow region's government to conduct financial machinations that resulted in the loss of more than 11 billion rubles from its coffers. The amount is the equivalent of $195 million now but was worth more than $400 million at exchange rates in place between 2005 and 2008, when the crimes were allegedly committed. The United States and Russia do not have an extradition treaty, and have sparred over mutual refusals to hand over suspects in high-profile cases -- most notably in the case of former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden, who fled the country in 2013 and has been granted asylum in Russia. Bullock, 50, was born in the Belarusian town of Pinsk and emigrated to the United States in the early 1990s, shortly after the Soviet collapse. Bullock met Kuznetsov later in the 1990s, when he was an executive at the now-defunct Russian lender Inkombank. She became prominent in New York real-estate circles in the years after Kuznetsov assumed the post of finance minister in the Moscow regional government. Based on reporting by Raspinews.ru and TASS The Tajik NGO did not intend to play matchmaker when it established a way to provide legal assistance to HIV-positive women. But that's precisely what the Network of Women Living With HIV has done, after leading at least a dozen HIV-positive people to love and marriage. "Sometimes HIV-positive young men come here to seek advice about marriage and family, and they ask us to help them find a suitable partner among the women registered with our network," says the agency's head, Tahmina Haidarova, noting that numbers are exchanged only with the consent of each person. While in name the center is for women, men are not excluded from taking advantage of its services. Most of the men who visit are aged between 18 and 35, and some are looking to find marriage partners among fellow HIV patients. Often Ostracized Some 700 women are currently registered with the network, which helps provide them with access to healthcare, education, and welfare or other assistance. Haidarova says there are many young single mothers among them, often having been left by their husbands or ostracized by their families.She says many of the women want to rebuild their lives. In 2017, six couples met and married through the Dushanbe-based NGO. Nozanin, who didn't want to give her full name, was among them. Like many other Tajik women living with HIV, Nozanin claims she contracted the virus from her husband, who eventually left her. Divorced and infected with a communicable virus that can develop into AIDS, Nozanin says she had no hope for the future. Nozanin, who works as an adviser with the NGO, met her current husband when he came to the office in search of advice on marriage and family issues. While there he asked Nozanin to help him find a wife. "I was busy finding a suitable match for him, but one morning he came in and proposed to me. I never thought I would find love again," says Nozanin, who at 40 is 10 years older than her husband. The couple's dream now is to have healthy children. Positive Impact Specialists at the NGO say marriage and family plans have had a positive impact on their clients' health and mental well-being, giving them a new lease on life. The men looking for a life partner at the HIV help center tend to be unconcerned if the woman has been previously married or already had children, Haidarova says. They want a good woman who is serious about marital life. The women often want to make sure their suitor is not a drug addict and strictly follows doctors' advice in keeping healthy, she adds. According to official statistics, the number of people infected with HIV in Tajikistan stands at 7,552 -- including 2,820 women -- in the country of some 8 million. The national HIV-AIDS center says that 1,004 children have been born to HIV-positive mothers since 2004.Some 600 of those children were born without HIV. The main problem in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Tajikistan is people's relatively low level of awareness about measures that can be taken to prevent the spread of infection. Most of the women who get infected claim that they married HIV-positive men who knew their status but didn't disclose it. Tajik authorities have now made it compulsory for men and women to undergo thorough medical check-ups and provide a medical certificate before getting married. Written by Farangis Najibullah based on reporting by RFE/RL's Tajik Service correspondent Zarangez Navruzshoh Tajikistan law enforcement sources told RFE/RL on January 22 that a Tajik student at Russia' Federal Security Service (FSB) Academy has been detained for allegedly attempting to join the Islamic State (IS) extremist group in Syria. According to the sources, Navruz Sangov was detained in Azerbaijan in November while on his way to Turkey and was later extradited to Tajikistan. He was charged with extremism and attempting to join a terrorist group, the sources said. Sangov's relatives confirmed to RFE/RL on January 22 that Sangov, who is 23, is in Tajik custody. His mother, Niholbi Rahimova, said her son has chronic stomachache and was on his way to Turkey to seek medical treatment. Sangov's brother, Sharif, told RFE/RL that Navruz planned to return to Tajikistan after graduating from the FSB Academy in Moscow and join Tajikistan's State Committee for National Security. There was no official statement on Sangov's situation. Tajik authorities have said that some 1,000 Tajik nationals are fighting alongside IS militants in Syria. Media reports in Uzbekistan say authorities are investigating how 16 sewing needles got inside the body of an 11-month-old boy in the eastern region of Ferghana. Health Ministry officials were quoted on January 22 as saying that in a nine-hour operation, doctors removed 13 needles from different parts of the boy's body including the colon, bladder, chest, throat, a kidney, and the heart area. The boy remained in serious condition and was expected to undergo further surgery to remove three remaining needles. Ministry officials said the needles had been in the baby's body for at least a month, the reports said. The boy's mother took him to the hospital and said she did not know how the needles could have gotten into his body, the reports said. They said his father was a migrant laborer currently working in Russia. With reporting by Kun.uz, Gaztea.uz, and RIA Novosti The National Palm Produce Association of Nigeria (NPPAN), Ondo State chapter, has raised the alarm that unrestricted and illegal importation of crude palm oil into the country from neighbouring African countries poses great threat to the nations economy. Aside the massive unemployment which it would cause the nation, the association revealed that substandard product identified as Taco and described as unhealthy and injurious to human health, is being brought into the country on a large scale. The NPPAN state chairman, Chief BolarinAdetula, lamented that the illegal entry of the product sabotages the efforts of the federal government to develop the nations palm oil industry. Since August last year, the prices of crude oil started witnessing down-ward trend, which is unusual during off-season, when its price is expected to be stable or going up because of high demand, low production in off-season period. No doubt, the product is illegally being massively imported into the country officially and also illegally smuggled into the country. A news publication in a national newspaper of November 27, 2017 confirmed the importation of the product. This, he explained, would return the country to the problem in the past that made many local producers to abandon their palm oil plantations, revealing that the new generation farmers had got loans to key into the FG initiatives to revive the sector. This new trend of allowing cheap palm oil into the country will definitely send all oil plantation owners out of the field once again and that will increase non-performing loans in the financial sector. The ripple effect on employment is left for everyones imagination, both in the agriculture and financial sectors of the economy. Loading... A member of the board of the association and Managing Director of Abia Farm, Chief AbiodunAdejo, noted that the trend is threatening the drive of government at all levels to solve unemployment crisis in the country. According to him, One hectare of palm plantation will employ five permanent employees. It may interest you to know that a ship load of palm oil imported into the country is killing not less than 4,000 jobs in Nigeria and sustaining not less than 4,000 jobs in the country where it is imported from. Adejo, who is also the Odole of Akure Kingdom, said it will be a great oversight if the government fails to stem this trend of importing cheap palm oil to Nigeria thereby killing a sector of the economy that can create thousands of employment for our unemployed youths. He alleged that some cabals and industrialists are behind the illegal activities, faulting the statistics they put forward that the nation produces 970, 000 metric tons of palm oil per annum. They have often failed to tell us how many stands of oil palm can the country boast of and how many hectares are such numbers occupying? They go about with these figures to justify importing cheap palm oil and thus killing the palm oil industry in Nigeria. The association, as a matter of urgency, urged FG to task its border monitoring agencies to aggressively beef up security at the borders to stem uninhibited importation of all manners of vegetable oils. The National Assembly should write the leadership of Nigeria Customs and other similar organisations for questioning. This is an act of sabotage. NPPAN also demanded that government should as a matter of policy, set up farm tanks in strategic locations in all palm oil producing states so that appropriate government agency can monitor the quality and quantity of production. The NPPAN chieftains argued that taking everyone for granted by dishing out bogus statistics of palm oil production in Nigeria will be out of it, and income generation for the government will be easy. Their words: The government should extend the policy on rice production to palm oil production, which is fast making Nigeria self-sufficient in rice production, thereby conserving of foreign earning. Borges secretary undergoes preventative arrest, seizure of property Cancun, Q.R. The Attorney Generals Office of Quintana Roo has ordered the preventive detention of the former Secretary of the Government, Gabriel Mendicuti, saying that his arrest was a precautionary measure. Ministerial police of the States Special Prosecutors Office for the Fight against Corruption (FECC) arrested Roberto Borges government secretary, Gabriel Mendicuti Loria, on charges of property damage for 534 million peso. Through a statement, the Office of the Prosecutor explained that the defense requested an extension. A hearing has been scheduled for January 26, where a judge will determine if Mendicuti is linked to the complaints filed by the office of the Attorney General. Gabriel Mendicuti Loria, former mayor of Solidaridad (2002-2005) and former government secretary during a time of the Government of Roberto Borge, is being investigated for irregularities that include millions of peso. Aside from his arrest, the state has also seized 18 properties in Playa del Carmen and one in Mahahual along with 21 vehicles. The arrest was made in the event the process ends in a conviction. It came just one day after presidential candidate Jose Antonio Meade campaigned in Cancun with Gabriel Mendicuti Loria. State Attorney General Miguel Angel Pech Cen confirmed that Gabriel Mendicuti Loria was arrested in Puerto Aventuras and has been transferred to Cereso prison in Chetumal. Since the past few weeks, cops in cities of Mysore and Bangalore, have been conducting drives where they are stopping bikers who are not wearing ISI certified helmets. They were confiscating helmets if they were not ISI certified, and destroying them. In some cases, bikers were fined as well. In this, there were some bikers who were wearing internationally certified helmets from brands like ARAI, Shoei, MT, LS2 and so on. These helmets cost anything from Rs 5,000 to Rs 1 lakh or even more in some cases. In comparison, ISI certified helmets costs anywhere from Rs 700 to Rs 1,500. Tests have proven that these helmets are among the safest in the world. There are videos online which show ISI certified helmets cracking after they are thrown from 1st floor, while expensive helmets are in one piece even after being thrown from the 10th floor of the same building. But, surprisingly, cops were stopping and fining bikers who were wearing these expensive helmets as well. The bikers tried explaining that their helmets are much more safer than those certified by ISI, but all in vain. This caused an uproar on social media. The air was finally cleared last week. Bangalore cops official twitter handle had confirmed that internationally certified (DOT, ECE, SNELL) helmets are valid and are not banned. But guess what. Bangalore cops are making a U Turn on their statement. R Hitendra, additional commissioner of police (traffic) has told Times of India that only ISI certified helmets are allowed from 1st February. Internationally certified helmets will not be allowed. We will not accept such helmets. We will only accept those with an ISI mark. When asked, what about the post on Twitter from the official handle? He replied, Somebody operating the Twitter handle has erred. Ill order the post to be removed. At the time of publishing this post, the tweet had not been deleted. Yes it can be used. BengaluruTrafficPolice (@blrcitytraffic) January 18, 2018 To add to this, Karnataka High Court passed a ruling that insurance compensation will not be given if the rider is not wearing an ISI certified helmet. Back in May 2014, two bikers had met with an accident in Pavagada taluk. In that case, the local court had ordered the Insurance company to pay a compensation of Rs 2.58 lakh to the bikers. This ruling, was appealed by the insurance company in the High Court, whose ruling came earlier this week. Justice L Narayanaswamy of the Karantaka High Court gave ruling that Insurance Companies should not give any compensation to bikers who are not wearing ISI helmets. Not only this, the helmets should also display name of manufacturer, year of manufacturing and size. In order to get insurance compensation (be it for medical bills or for fixing your motorcycle, etc), bikers will have to prove that they were wearing ISI certified helmet at the time of accident. Riding a two-wheeler on Indian roads in itself a challenge. Some road safety activists believe that the situation is such that two-wheeler riders have to contend with death every time they kick start their bikes. Time and again the authorities have pushed for compulsory wearing of helmets but riders throw caution to the wind and dare to break the law putting their very lives on the line. Surveys conducted on the number of road accidents involving two-wheelers has revealed that in more than 95% of the cases, the rider or pillion who died in the accident, were not wearing helmets. In the wake of such reports, traffic police departments across the country have conducted drives to promote the importance of helmet, which is a positive step. But banning world-class helmets, is a step in the opposite direction. UPDATE After the news was published this morning, there has been an uproar on social media. Bengaluru Police have posted following updates on their page. BTP will write to the transport department seeking clarification about the non ISI helmets in view of the claims from the buyers of imported helmets are better than ISI. Till they reply BTP will not take any action on them. Dr. B.R. Ravikanthe Gowda IPS (@AddlCPTraffic) January 23, 2018 Please send the written representation regarding imported helmets , if any to our Mail with all supporting documentation. Dr. B.R. Ravikanthe Gowda IPS (@AddlCPTraffic) January 23, 2018 Hello Bengaluru Traffic Police, BENGALURU CITY POLICE,In reference tothe ongoing fiasco over standardisation and Posted by Saquib Ahmad on Tuesday, 23 January 2018 BTP will write to the transport department seeking clarification about the non ISI helmets in view of the claims from Posted by BENGALURU CITY POLICE on Monday, 22 January 2018 This article was supported by The Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center. The project wants a clearer picture and open talk on poverty. Does it oversimplify? Tania Rabesandratana investigates. Every minute in Nigeria, 6.5 people fall into extreme poverty. And as this sentence is being written, 42.5 per cent of its population 82,640,203 people are extremely poor. These are up-to-the-second, specific estimates that come from the World Poverty Clock: a database, launched in May 2017, of national income figures paired with easy to follow, real-time graphics. Nigerias rising poverty trend translates to the colour red on the website's map. Official data sources do not give such specific poverty estimates. The 'global poverty today' figure often bandied at big international meetings is usually based on four-year-old data, says Homi Kharas, the lead economic adviser behind the clock, who also leads the global economy and development programme at the Brookings Institution, a US think tank. This is exactly the mind-set we are trying to break. We want everyone to talk about poverty dynamics. Homi Kharas The clocks team is aiming to paint a clearer and more timely picture, so that countries can check their progress to escaping extreme poverty by 2030 one of the targets under the UN's global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In the process, the clock can also come up with surprises. Unlike Nigeria, India is well on track to meeting the target and appears green on the map. At the time of writing the clock estimates that 83,653,728 people, or 6.3 per cent of its population, live in extreme poverty (with less than 1.9 US dollars per day) and 47 people escape it every minute. This means that within the next few months, Nigeria will have the largest absolute number of poor people in the world which Kharas says is unexpected, given that India has held that title for hundreds of years. A screenshot of the World Poverty Clock, showing poverty trends in Nigeria, captured earlier this month The clock is the brainchild of the non-profit arm of World Data Lab (WDL), an Austria-based company. Its models rely primarily on publicly available national household surveys, which governments typically conduct every three to ten years, to project income figures into the present and the future. For India, for example, the estimates are based on 2012 data collected by the National Sample Survey Office, adjusted and published by the World Bank on its PovcalNet website. Though the clock's algorithms rely largely on World Bank data, the bank is not responsible for the clock. Those algorithms estimate how people's incomes change over time in each country, using economic growth forecasts and long-term scenarios that account for global events such as climate change. The estimates, available for all nations except Syria, are then paired with graphics to display how fast each country is escaping poverty and whether they will meet the 2030 goal. We want this used by individual countries, to see how they are doing against their neighbours, says Kharas. A welcome provocation The project has received a mixed response. Some economists at the World Bank say its simple predictions give a false sense of accuracy If [providing such specific estimates and forecasts] was a safe thing to do, wed have done it, says Francisco Ferreira, who oversees the banks research programmes on poverty, inequality and agriculture. For example, if there is an epidemic or the price of oil goes through a drastic change, then the number of poor Nigerians will fall or rise, he says, adding that the Clock's visualisations hide these enormous uncertainties. But Kharas says Ferreira misses the point, and that the clock makes clarity a priority over economic jargon. Adding complexity detracts from that [communication] effort and reinforces the idea that poverty dynamics are a subject that only 'experts' should discuss, Kharas argues. This is exactly the mind-set we are trying to break. We want everyone to talk about poverty dynamics. [The clock] does make [poverty] information more accessible to a general audience, says Haishan Fu, director of the World Banks development data group. But wed like to see a better approach to communicating the often large uncertainties in these estimates. WDL's vice-president for Africa, Bitange Ndemo, believes that to spark conversation and action it is worth taking a risk on the numbers. We need to have a culture of using data to develop evidence-based policymaking, says Ndemo, who previously served as permanent secretary of Kenyas Ministry of Information and Communication. Other observers have embraced the clock's approach. For example, the SDG Index and Dashboards Report issued to monitor progress towards the targets uses the clock's data in its 2017 edition. The clock is a welcome provocation to the official data system, which has been slow to embrace new estimation techniques to provide real-time data, says Guido Schmidt-Traub, the report's scientific co-director. The International Organization of the Francophonie has also asked WDL to develop a specific clock comparing French-speaking African countries. Push for better data The clock's architects argue that one of its strengths is its effort to include subnational data using complex methods to correlate census data with household surveys. But Ferreira, again, urges even more caution with such finer-resolution data, especially for forecasts. WDL has added county-level data for Kenya, and is working on Indonesia and Pakistan. In Kenya, Ndemo says, the clock helps governors take better notice of problems by highlighting differences between counties. Meru and Nyeri, for example, are two largely agricultural counties; both are on track to escaping poverty by 2030, but Nyeri has a higher poverty rate and a slower escape rate and this means they require different policy interventions. The clock could be more accurate if private or philanthropic data was added, says Ndemo. For example, Kenyan mobile operator Safaricom has some of the best data from users and from its M-Pesa money transfer service, but is reluctant to share them, he deplores. It sounds like science fiction but is actually doable when you sit down with people who know their stuff Jesus Crespo Cuaresma To make up for unavailable or poor government data, the clocks team is looking for proxies from space. It sounds like science fiction but is actually doable when you sit down with people who know their stuff, explains Jesus Crespo Cuaresma, head of the Institute for Macroeconomics at the Vienna University of Economics and Business. In August, the team got together at the Rockefeller Foundation's Bellagio Center in Italy with Olha Danylo, a researcher at the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis in Austria, who uses machine learning to analyse remote sensing data. Researchers can estimate poverty from satellite images by extracting information about the location of human settlements, road infrastructure, agricultural areas and light intensity. Household data may be collected every five years, but satellite images are coming [in] every day, Danylo explains. For example, the team studied how to combine satellite pictures with records from mobile phone operators in Senegal. And in North Korea, where no data are available, they combined satellite images with images from tourists. The Bellagio meeting planted a seed, Crespo says, for research to estimate numbers of poor people across North Korea, with the method potentially applied to other data-poor places such as Somalia. It's still a very complicated task, says Danylo. But it's very exciting to work with people who have big ideas and want to make a difference in the world. A medical doctor identified as Ehidiamen Oakimena was allegedly killed by suspected Fulani herdsmen along Okada-Benin road in Edo state, according to multiple online reports. The doctor who was a senior registrar in Department of Anaethesia University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) reportedly died after suffering from complications and excessive bleeding after he was shot by his attackers. Loading... According to reports, about 30 pints of blood were donated for the doctor but he couldnt make it at the end. The doctor was a staunch Deeper Life member before his death. May his soul rest in peace. After narrowly surviving voter initiatives in 2012 and 2016, Californias death penalty law may soon be in jeopardy again, this time at the U.S. Supreme Court. The court is being asked to take up a challenge to the death penalty in Arizona, where the law makes virtually every first-degree murderer subject to potential capital charges. According to a lawsuit on behalf of a condemned double murderer, the state is violating Supreme Court rulings dating from the 1970s that limit capital punishment to specific categories of especially heinous killers the worst of the worst, in plain English. If at least four of the nine justices agree to hear the case, as numerous advocacy groups are urging, the court will schedule arguments and issue a ruling, most likely in the 2018-19 term that begins in October. If it strikes down Arizonas death penalty law, the ruling could also apply to the California law, which is nearly as broad. And that could spare the lives of the 746 prisoners on the nations largest Death Row. California, like Arizona, has expanded its definition of capital crimes and made the vast majority of murderers eligible for the death penalty, said Rudolph Gerber, a retired Arizona prosecutor and judge who drafted his states death penalty law in 1973 at the request of then-state Sen. Sandra Day OConnor, the future Supreme Court justice. That law initially was relatively narrow, but Gerber, in a brief filed with the Supreme Court, says the state Legislature has since expanded it far beyond constitutional standards. He told The Chronicle that a crucial Supreme Court-mandated function of death penalty laws, narrowing their scope to apply only to the worst categories of murders, has been diminished if not eliminated both in Arizona and in California. Kent Scheidegger, legal director of the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation in Sacramento and one of the authors of a November 2016 ballot initiative aimed at speeding up executions in California, said he thinks theres only a remote possibility that the Supreme Court will overturn the Arizona death penalty law. But he agreed that such a ruling would probably apply to California. State Attorney General Xavier Becerra, whose office would defend the California law in court, declined to comment on the case. The Supreme Court struck down all state death penalty laws in 1972 and began upholding revised, narrower laws in 1976. Both rulings said the laws, to be constitutional, must not define capital crimes so broadly that they give prosecutors and jurors virtually unlimited discretion to decide which murders should be punished by death. Such an approach would open the door to decisions based on politics, geography and race, the court said. The court reaffirmed that standard in a 5-4 ruling in 2005 barring death sentences against juveniles who, in the words of the majority justices, could not be reasonably classified among the worst offenders. In the Arizona case, lawyers for Abel Hidalgo said studies show that over an 11-year period in the states most populous county, Maricopa where Hidalgo was sentenced to death for two 2001 murders 99 percent of all first-degree murders could have been prosecuted as capital crimes. Arizonas death penalty statute, once narrowly drawn, now provides prosecutors and jurors with unfettered discretion, Hidalgos lawyers told the court. They said California, Colorado and Missouri have comparable laws. In response, Arizonas lawyers said the law provides clear, objective standards for capital murders, and that Hidalgo, one of 120 current Death Row inmates, was sentenced under a narrower version of the law. In California, the Legislature overrode Gov. Jerry Browns veto and passed a death penalty law in 1977 that was limited to selected categories of intentional killings, such as murder of a police officer or witness, murder for financial gain, and multiple murders. But a prosecution-backed initiative approved by the voters in 1978 removed most of those limits. A later state Supreme Court ruling interpreted the death penalty law as also applying to some unintentional murders, if the defendant or an accomplice accidentally killed someone while committing another crime. The 1978 initiative was designed to reach virtually every first-degree murder so no one would escape a potential death sentence, said San Francisco attorney John Mills, who filed the Supreme Court arguments in the Arizona case on behalf of Gerber and other former judges and prosecutors. Drought Map Track water shortages and restrictions across Bay Area Check the water shortage status of your area, plus see reservoir levels and a list of restrictions for the Bay Areas largest water districts. A study by University of Iowa law Professor David Baldus of all California first-degree murder convictions between 1978 and 2002 found that 95 percent could have been charged under the current law as capital crimes, punishable by death or life without parole. The California law is not directly before the Supreme Court. But that was also the case in 1972, when the court overturned Georgias death penalty law for failing to set meaningful standards for prosecutors and jurors. The ruling was quickly applied to similar laws in California and other states, which were required to re-sentence their condemned inmates to life in prison. If that happened again, the fate of the death penalty in California would be up to the voters, who could pass a new initiative that complied with the courts standards. Otherwise, life would become the maximum sentence for murder, as it is now in 18 states and the District of Columbia. While a new death penalty law would apply to future crimes, Scheidegger, of the Criminal Justice Legal Foundation, said past Supreme Court rulings indicate that a new law might also be used to retry current inmates and reinstate their death sentences. Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, disagreed. The Arizona case is comparable to the 1972 Georgia case, a substantive decision that was applied retroactively to everyone on Death Row across the country, Dunham said. The Supreme Court grants review in only a small fraction of the cases it considers. It has looked at the Arizona case in six previous closed-door conferences an unusually long period of deliberation without deciding whether to accept it for a hearing or to deny review, leaving in place a ruling by the states Supreme Court that upheld the law. Bob Egelko is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: begelko@sfchronicle.com TWitter: @egelko President Trumps tariffs on imported solar panels mark the biggest blow hes dealt to the renewable energy industry yet. The U.S. will impose duties of as much as 30 percent on solar equipment made abroad, a move that threatens to handicap a $28 billion industry that relies on parts made abroad for 80 percent of its supply. Just the mere threat of tariffs has shaken solar developers in recent months, with some hoarding panels and others stalling projects in anticipation of higher costs. The Solar Energy Industries Association has projected tens of thousands of job losses in a sector that employed 260,000. California could be hit particularly hard. No other state generates as much solar electricity both from rooftop installations and large-scale power plants as California, or boasts as many workers. It accounts for roughly 41 percent of all solar electricity produced nationwide, while solar companies many based here employ more than 100,000 Californians, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association lobbying group. Though some of Californias solar companies, such as Tesla, make panels in the United States, more focus on installing equipment made by others. A 30 percent tariff could strike a serious blow to their businesses. The tariffs are just the latest action Trump has taken that undermine the economics of renewable energy. The administration has already decided to pull the U.S. out of the international Paris climate agreement, rolled back Obama-era regulations on power plant emissions and passed sweeping tax reforms that constrained financing for solar and wind. The import taxes, however, will prove to be the most targeted strike on the industry yet. Developers may have to walk away from their projects, said Hugh Bromley, an analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance. Some rooftop solar companies may have to pull out of some states. U.S. panel maker First Solar jumped 9 percent to $75.20 in after-hours trading. The Arizona manufacturer stands to gain as costs for foreign panels rise. The Solar Energy Industries Association estimated that the decision will eliminate about 23,000 U.S. jobs this year and delay or kill billions of dollars of solar investments. Trump approved four years of tariffs that start at 30 percent in the first year and gradually drop to 15 percent. The first 2.5 gigawatts of imported solar cells are exempt for each year, the president said in an email. The duties are lower than the 35 percent rate the U.S. International Trade Commission recommended in October after finding that imported panels were harming American manufacturers. The idea behind the tariffs is to raise the costs of cheap imports, particularly from Asia, helping those who manufacture the parts domestically. American solar installers including SunPower, Vivint Solar and Sunrun jumped in after-hours trading. A 30 percent tariff in Year One is bad, said Gordon Johnson, a New York analyst at the Vertical Group, but its less than what the consensus was. Jigar Shah, co-founder of investor Generate Capital and an outspoken advocate for the solar industry, went as far as to describe the decision as good news. The tariffs are exactly what the solar industry asked for behind closed doors to prevent a negative impact on companies, he said. Sunrun said that while the decision lifts a cloud of uncertainty, it still runs counter to consumers, bipartisan elected officials, many military personnel, and the 99 percent of American solar workers whom this tariff will harm in the coming years. The San Francisco company called for the administration to clarify which countries wont be subject to the tariff. Trump didnt identify exemptions in his statement. Rooftop solar installer Sunnova Energy Corp. said the tariffs will not deter the industry. The solar industry has been tested before and we have always shown our resiliency, CEO John Berger said in a statement. Regardless of the tariffs, solar installer Tesla said its committed to expanding its domestic manufacturing, citing the gigafactory it opened in Buffalo, N.Y. The duties wont be entirely devastating for the U.S. solar industry, Bromley said, estimating that theyll increase costs for large solar farms by less than 10 percent. The costs of a residential system, he said, will rise by about 3 percent. The decision will destruct some demand for new projects in the next two years, Bromley said. But they will likely prove insufficient in magnitude and duration to attract many new factories. For Trump, they may represent a step toward making good on a campaign promise to get tough on the country that produces the most panels: China. Trumps trade issues took a backseat in 2017 while the White House focused on tax reform, but trade is now coming back into the fore: The solar dispute is among several potential decisions that also involve washing machines, electronics and steel. Trumps solar decision comes almost nine months after Suniva, a bankrupt U.S. module manufacturer with a Chinese majority owner, sought import duties on solar cells and panels. It asserted that it had suffered serious injury from a flood of cheap panels produced in Asia. A month later, the U.S. unit of German manufacturer SolarWorld AG signed on as a co-petitioner, adding heft to Sunivas cause. Clark Packard, a trade policy expert at the R Street Institute in Washington, described Trumps decision as regrettable, warning that more jobs will be jeopardized by the tariffs than could possibly be saved by bailing out the bankrupt companies that petitioned for protection. San Francisco Chronicle staff contributed to this report. Brian Eckhouse, Ari Natter and Christopher Martin are Bloomberg writers. Email: beckhouse@bloomberg.net, anatter5@bloomberg.net, cmartin11@bloomberg.net A 65-year-old woman killed in a murder-suicide last week in San Franciscos Sunset District was gunned down by her estranged husband, according to officials and court records. The victim, identified by the city medical examiner as Nellie Hue, was shot multiple times around 4:30 p.m. Friday in the driveway of a home on the 1800 block of 34th Avenue near Ortega Street, police said. She was pronounced dead at the scene. PORTLAND, Ore. Oregon aggressively expanded its Medicaid rolls under the Affordable Care Act, adding enough people to leave only 5 percent of its population uninsured one of Americas lowest rates. Now, with the reduction of a federal match that covered those enrollees, the state is calling on voters to decide how to pay for its ballooning Medicaid costs. A special election on Tuesday asks Oregonians whether they approve of a tax on hospitals, health insurers and managed care companies that would leave Medicaid, as it is now, untouched. More than 1 in 4 residents here rely on it. Maine voters were in the national spotlight when they recently approved Medicaid expansion. But experts say Oregons election is the only instance of voters not lawmakers getting the final say on the complicated question of how to fund rising Medicaid costs. The outcome could have significant consequences for the states health care spending. If its not supported, you have a huge hole, and where do you go from there? said Stacey Mazer, senior staff associate with the National Association of State Budget Officers. I followed these issues starting in the fall, and this was the biggie. Measure 101 would impose a 0.7 percent tax on some hospitals and a 1.5 percent tax on the gross health insurance premiums collected by insurers and on managed care organizations, raising anywhere from $210 million to $320 million over the next two years. Proponents call the tax an assessment and say money raised could cover the more than 350,000 low-income Oregonians who were added to the plan since 2014 while state lawmakers work out a long-term solution. The loss of that revenue could jeopardize an additional $630 million to $960 million in federal Medicaid matching funds that flow to the poorest in the state, according to the nonpartisan voter pamphlet. That possibility prompted the very hospitals and health insurers who would be taxed to come out as the measures biggest backers. They say the cost of the taxes would be less than that of uninsured emergency-room visits. The ballot measure arose from a grassroots campaign to put parts of a bipartisan legislative funding solution passed last year before voters. More than 175 organizations have backed the pro-Measure 101 campaign, including former Gov. John Kitzhaber, an emergency room doctor. People who support Measure 101 have raised $2.8 million. Opponents have raised $353,000. Portland resident Kelly Burke has volunteered at a pro-Measure 101 phone bank. She briefly lost her insurance years ago when she was pregnant with her second child. She now has an auto-immune disease and is thankful she has insurance through her partners employer. What people dont understand is that people are working, but they still cant afford health care, she said. Medicaid is a federal-state collaboration originally meant for poor families and severely disabled people. Over the years, its grown to become the largest government health insurance program, now covering 1 in 5 Americans. Gillian Flaccus is an Associated Press writer. The South African policemen responsible for the death of Ebuka Okori, a Nigerian, have been remanded in prison. Okori was allegedly killed by two members of the South African Police Service (SAPS), on Friday. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, senior special assistant to the president on foreign affairs and diaspora, said the Nigeria consulate in South Africa confirmed the arrest of the officers in a statement. The consulate reportedly said consular officers from the Nigerian consulate-general in Johannesburg and the Nigerian high commission in Pretoria were in Durban to witness the court proceeding. The accused were said to be remanded in prison custody till Monday, January 29, when the case would come up for further hearing. Loading... The Nigerian community reportedly mobilised its members to the court where the suspects were denied bail. Commenting on the latest development, Dabiri-Erewa appealed to Nigerians living in the affected areas to remain calm and await the outcome of the judicial proceedings. In a statement issued by her media aide, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, Dabiri-Erewa condemned the deaths. We condemn in strong terms the barbaric acts and call on the South African authorities to intervene and put an end to this ugly trend, the statement read. We also call on Nigerians to continue to be law abiding, as we work towards obtaining justice for the family of the deceased. In a related development, the consulate said investigation is on to unravel the cause of the death of another Nigerian in Rustenburg, north west province, South Africa on January 20. HASSA, Turkey Intense fighting flared Monday as Turkish troops and their allies advanced on a Kurdish enclave in northwestern Syria, the third day of Ankaras offensive to oust a U.S.-allied Kurdish militia from the area, according to the militia and a war monitoring group. Skirmishes between Turkish troops and Kurdish fighters also broke out farther east in Syria, threatening to widen the scope of the new front in the Syrian war that pits Turkey against Washingtons main ally in the region. The Turkish ground and air offensive on Afrin, codenamed Operation Olive Branch, began Saturday, raising tensions in the already-complicated Syrian conflict and threatening to further strain ties between Turkey and the U.S., both NATO allies. Turkey says it aims to create a 20-mile deep secure zone in Afrin, the Kurdish-controlled enclave on its border. NATO said Turkey has suffered from terrorism and has the right to self-defense but urged Ankara to do so in a proportionate and measured way. NATO also said it has no presence in Syria but that as members of the anti-Islamic State coalition, our focus is on the defeat of the extremists. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said diplomats are working on a solution to Turkeys confrontation with the Syrian Kurdish fighters, known as the Peoples Defense Units or YPG, who have been the key U.S. military ally in battling the Islamic State in Syria. Turkey considers the YPG a terrorist group because of its ties to its own Kurdish insurgency. Mattis said Ankara gave the U.S. military advance notice of its Afrin offensive. The U.S. has offered direct military and logistical support to a Kurdish-led group known as the Syrian Democratic Forces that spearheaded the fight against Islamic State in Syria. The U.S. is discussing with Turkey and others the possibility of setting up a security zone on the Syria border to address Turkeys concerns about a Kurdish enclave there, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said while traveling in Europe on Monday. Such a zone could help stabilize the situation and meet Turkeys legitimate concerns over security, he said. The U.S. recognizes Turkeys legitimate right to defend itself from terrorists, he said, but added that Washington wants Turkey to try to be precise in its Afrin operation and to limit it by showing restraint. But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to expand the operation. Mehmet Guzel and Bassem Mroue are Associated Press writers. Page Content The California Senate Judiciary Committee is considering several bills that would address sexual harassment in the state. The committee is also holding a series of hearings aimed at finding ways to strengthen the state's legal standards for preventing harassment. "It's my hope that we are consistent in what we do and that we make sure that we have covered all aspects of our effort to try to address a serious problem that is clearly in need of being addressed," said Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, D-Santa Barbara, the committee's chair. Legislative Harassment Prevention During a Jan. 9 hearing, Sens. Anthony Portantino, D-La Canada Flintridge, and Connie Leyva, D-Chino, presented the Legislative Discriminatory Harassment Retaliation Prevention Act, S.B. 419, which would declare that state legislators can't retaliate against legislative advocates or employees who opposed unlawful discriminatory practices. The bill would "complement the movement that has brought forth the importance of this issue and the courageous women who have come forward to highlight why this is necessary and why there is a need for a culture change in the [state's] capital," Portantino said. [SHRM members-only HR Q&A: What are the different types of sexual harassment?] S.B. 419 initially targeted sexual harassment but was amended to broadly cover all "discriminatory harassment." The bill would also require each legislative chamber to maintain a record of harassment complaints for at least 12 years. The record-keeping provision is important for transparency, Portantino said. The California Fair Employment and Housing Act already provides harassment and retaliation protections that cover legislative workers. The bill, however, will make explicitly clear that the legislature can't retaliate against legislative employees or advocates for filing a complaint, testifying, or assisting in a proceeding related to a harassment complaint, Leyva said. It is important for employees in the community to feel safe coming forward, she added. "If staff do not feel safe and protected in coming forward then how will individuals in other professions feel safe? The legislature must lead by example and we must be held to a higher standard." Leyva said that legislative staff and the community need to know: "We hear you. We believe you. And we want to regain your trust." The bill includes an urgency clause to become effective immediately upon signature by the governor. Extending Liability Jackson also presented an anti-harassment bill during the hearing. California law already makes certain people liable for sexual harassment when there is a business or professional relationship between the plaintiff and the defendant. Attorneys, real estate agents and appraisers, physicians, dentists, landlords, and teachersamong other professionalsmay be liable if the elements of sexual harassment are proven. S.B. 224 would add investors, elected officials, lobbyists, and film directors and producers to the list of professionals who may face liability. "The fundamental right of every woman to safely pursue economic security [and] advancement in professional opportunities free from harassment and abuse has been codified in statute and upheld in legal doctrines for decades, yet sadly, frustratingly and inappropriately, this prohibited behavior has persisted and damaged the lives and well-being of far too many women for far too long," Jackson said. "California must take every step possible to make it clear that sexual misconduct is not a fact of professional life for women," she added. Jackson said the bill makes crystal clear that there are legal protections for women that experience this kind of misconduct. The committee heard testimony from several women who shared their stories of sexual assault and harassment, including comments from actress Chantal Cousineau. She accused director James Toback of engaging in sexual misconduct during an audition and the subsequent filming of "Harvard Man" in 2001. When she complained to a union representative, Cousineau said, she was told that the union received many complaints about Toback, and she should just be happy that she got the part. Toback has denied the allegations. But during the California Senate committee hearing, Cousineau said hundreds of women complained about Toback. "If you stopped one director you could be stopping a great deal of exploitation," she said. To continue, please log in, or sign up for a new account. We offer one free story view per month. If you register for an account, you will get two additional story views. After those three total views, we ask that you support us with a subscription. A subscription to our digital content is so much more than just access to our valuable content. It means youre helping to support a local community institution that has, from its very start, supported the betterment of our society. Thank you very much! A Vietnamese former state oil executive who was allegedly kidnapped from Germany was jailed for life on Monday for embezzlement, in the highest-profile corruption trial to target the communist countrys business and political elite. The case also involving 21 other officials, including a former party politburo member has captivated a country where the affairs of the powerful are normally kept secret and the downfall of senior politicians rarely happens in public. Vietnam has mirrored China in its massive corruption purge, but critics say the campaign is as much about targeting political foes as it is about tackling graft in one of Southeast Asias most corrupt nations. The life sentence for Trinh Xuan Thanh, the former head of PetroVietnam Construction (PVC), capped a dramatic two-week trial closed to international media that included a tearful apology from the 51-year-old. Loading... Thanh was sentenced to 14 years for mismanagement and life in prison for embezzlement, according to state-run VNExpress news site. The jury said no one at PVC dared use money for wrong purposes without Thanhs direction, according to VNExpress. The embezzlement charges carry a maximum sentence of death but prosecutors recommended life instead. He faces a separate trial for embezzlement Wednesday that could see him put to death. Former politburo member Dinh La Thang, who once chaired the board of PetroVietnam, was sentenced to 13 years in prison, while the remaining defendants got punishments ranging between 22 years in jail and a 30-month suspended sentence. Public opinion on the prison terms remained divided on social media Monday, though some were swift to decry the sentences as too light. These were sentences for street thieves, wrote Facebook user Huan Pham after the verdict was announced. Avolon selects HID mobile access to upgrade headquarter security Founded in 2010, Avolon is the third-largest aircraft leasing company in the world with 824 aircraft and 145 customers in 62 countries. Its new global headquarters in Dublin is comprised of 6,967 sq m (75,000 sq ft) of secure office space across six floors that houses its IT, catering, legal, and communications departments. Need for a centralised monitoring solution Avolons new premises in the upmarket Ballsbridge area of Dublin provided an opportunity for the company to rethink its approach to building security. Avolon was looking for an innovative, flexible solution that could be personalised to individuals, easily accessed, and managed remotely. Additional requirements included: the need to provide different levels of security clearance in different areas of the building, the ability to manage individual security clearances, the facilitation of access outside of the usual workday, and secure parking lot access for employees and visitors. As a global company, Avolon wanted a solution that could be deployed worldwide to provide a consistent experience for its employees, regardless of their location. HIDs flexible access control solution Powered by Seos technology, the solution uses BLE and iCLASS readers to create a secure access control solution Avolon partnered with systems integrator Summit Security Systems Ltd and deployed HID Mobile Access at its Dublin headquarters. Powered by Seos technology, the solution uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and iCLASS readers to create a secure, convenient, and flexible access control solution for its headquarters. The buildings security system enables credentials on smartphones via an app rather than on physical access cards and uses iCLASS SE mobile-enabled readers installed at points of access. Key benefits of a mobile access system include: Employees are less likely to forget smartphones, which they always carry than an access badge Security clearances are more efficient and easily changed because security status is provisioned to an app A cloud-based central control system provides security administrators with easy oversight, access to a complete set of metrics, and the ability to manage a network of premises around the globe Employing various access control measures Avolon has implemented a range of different solutions for different parts of its premises that can vary by time of day. For example, elevators utilise access control measures to ease the flow of people within the building during work hours, while assuring that after-hours access is more controlled. Employees simply twist their iOS or Android phones when they approach the parking readers to gain entry The ease-of-use and security also extend to the parking lot, which benefits from HIDs Twist and Goes feature. Employees simply twist their iOS or Android phones when they approach the parking readers to gain entry. Avolon encourages its employees to cycle to work and has extended mobile access to a secure employee bike parking area that links directly into the shower and changing facilities. Advantages of mobile access solution The HID Mobile Access Solution provides many advantages over the previous card-based system including after-hours access (vital to a 24/7 business like Avolon), ready access to secure rooms, and easy management of security clearances. With HID Mobile Access, fine-grained security access for a global network of offices is controlled centrally through a cloud-based portal. Access levels can be set on an individual basis so they are very flexible and can be modified as needed. Using a mobile phone is much more convenient than access cards. People forget their access cards, but their mobile phone is with them all the time, said Allan Dawson, facilities project manager at Avolon. Its much more efficient. For example, we now have much lower instances of people leaving the perimeter and having to ask for re-entry because theyve left their pass in the office. Worldwide installation of physical access solution In the future, Avolon anticipates expanding its new physical access solution across its global campuses. As well as deploying in our Dublin head office we have also deployed in our New York, Florida, and Hong Kong offices, said Dawson. The benefit of using a global platform means our people can travel between offices with their security status intact and ready to go for each location. We learned a lot about some great area teams this past weekend. Some came through in the clutch, others played outstanding offense or defense the whole way through. Whatever the case, the picture is becoming a lot clearer, and it will be even more so in the coming weeks. Pisces, named for the Latin plural of fish, occupies 889 square degrees, making it the 14th largest constellation overall. While it is a fairly large constellation, its stars are faint none are brighter than fourth magnitude making it challenging to see in the sky with the naked eye. Pisces is notable for containing the point at which the sun crosses the celestial equator into the Northern Hemisphere around March 20 each year. This point, called the vernal equinox, used to lie in Aries, but has moved into Pisces because of the Earth's wobble on its axis, called precession, according to astronomer and author Ian Ridpath. Locating Pisces Pisces is in the first quadrant of the Northern Hemisphere and covers a large V-shaped region. Its large area, coupled with its dim stars, makes it hard to pick out in the night sky. Northern Hemisphere observers are able to see Pisces most clearly in early autumn. Right Ascension: 0.85 hours Declination: 11.08 degrees Visible: Between latitudes 90 degrees and minus 65 degrees. Best viewed: at 9 p.m. between Nov. 6 and Nov. 9. Pisces is located northeast of Aquarius and to the northwest of the constellation Cetus the Sea-monster. Other constellations bordering Pisces are Triangulum, Andromeda, Pegasus and Aries. One of the key ways to identify Pisces is to find the Circlet of Pisces also known as the head of the Western Fish to the south of the Square of Pegasus. The Eastern Fish can be seen leaping upward to the east of the Square of Pegasus. Notable stars and objects Eta Piscium, also known as Alpherg or Kullat Nunu, is Pisces brightest star. It is a bright giant star (G class) that is 294 light-years from Earth and has a luminosity that is 316 times that of the sun. The constellations second brightest star is a yellow giant about 130 light-years from Earth known as Gamma Piscium. Alpha Piscium is the third brightest star in Pisces and is made up of a pair of white dwarf stars in close proximity. It is also called Alrescha ("the cord") as it illuminates the spot where it appears that the tails of the two fish are tied together. Also known as Fum al Samakah, Arabic for mouth of the fish, Beta Piscium has a magnitude of 4.53 and is about 492 light-years from Earth. Pisces also boasts Van Maanens Star, named for Adrian van Maanen, the Dutch astronomer who discovered it in 1917. It is the 31st closest star system and the nearest single white dwarf to the sun, at just 14.1 light-years away. Pisces also contains a Messier object which are galaxies, nebulae and star clusters recorded by 18th Century French astronomer Charles Messier. Messier 74 is a spiral galaxy located between the stars alpha Arietis and eta Piscium. Recent news about Pisces The Hubble Space Telescope imaged a pair of bizarre galaxies, called Pisces A and Pisces B, in 2014. Two years later, researchers announced that data from those observations showed the dwarf galaxies used to be by themselves, but over time they moved to a nearby group of galaxies a process that accelerated star formation. Researchers said the study of Pisces A and Pisces B can also shed light on what dwarf galaxies today may have looked like in the ancient past. Researchers looking at the galaxy NGC 660 announced a huge explosion there in 2013, which likely came from a black hole. They ruled out a supernova (star explosion) event as the researchers saw five locations with bright radio emissions near the galaxy's core. "The most likely explanation is that there are jets coming from the core, but they are precessing, or wobbling, and the hot spots we see are where the jets slammed into the material near the galaxy's nucleus," stated Chris Salter of the Arecibo Observatory. Several exoplanets have also been found in the constellation. In 2014, researchers found a world called GU Pisces b that orbits an incredible 2,000 times the Earth-sun distance, which means the planet takes roughly 80,000 Earth years to go around its star once. The Kepler space telescope, when it started its new observing mission in later that year, discovered a super-Earth called HIP 116454b about 180 light-years from Earth. A Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) probe examined HIP 116454b for signals the next year, but the search turned up empty. Mythology In the sky, Pisces is represented as two fish swimming at right angles to each other, one to the north and one to the west. They are attached by a cord. The fish themselves are apparently the Greek goddess Aphrodite and her son, Eros, who turned into fish and jumped into the Euphrates River to evade the fiery breath of the monster Typhon, "the most awful monster the world had ever seen," according to Ridpath. In astrology, which is not a science, Pisces is the 12th sign in the Zodiac and represents those born between Feb. 20 and March 20. Additional reporting by Elizabeth Howell, Space.com contributor WASHINGTON The U.S. Air Force says it has made contact with a new missile-warning satellite that was launched Friday night from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The Air Force 460th Space Wing at Buckley Air Force Base, Colorado, reported late Friday it was "talking" with the billion-dollar space based infrared system geosynchronous satellite known as SBIRS GEO Flight 4. It the fourth in a constellation of similar satellites built by Lockheed Martin Corp. They are equipped with powerful scanning and staring infrared surveillance sensors. SBIRS GEO Flights 1, 2 and 3 were launched in 2011, 2013 and 2017. The 460th Space Wing is responsible for global missile warning, space surveillance and communications. It reports to the 14th Air Force and Air Force Space Command. The SBIRS GEO Flight 4 satellite flew aboard a U.S. Air Force Atlas V rocket. This was the 75th launch carried out by the Atlas V, provided by the United Launch Alliance. Laura Maginnis, vice president of ULA said this was the company's 125th launch, and the second one of 2018. The SBIRS GEO 4 was ULA's 46th launch for the U.S. Air Force. The Atlas booster for this mission was powered by the RD AMROSS RD-180 engine. Aerojet Rocketdyne provided the AJ-60A solid rocket booster and RL10C-1 engine for the Centaur upper stage. The mission differed from previous SBIRS launches in that a solid rocket strap-on motor was used to increase the vehicle's lifting power, reducing the amount of fuel needed by the rocket's Centaur upper stage to place the satellite into its proper transfer orbit. Once the satellite separated, the Centaur had sufficient fuel left over to propel itself into the ocean, reducing the risk of colliding with other spacecraft in an increasingly congested orbital environment, Eileen Drake, CEO and president of Aerojet Rocketdyne, said in a statement. ULA announced that the satellite is "responding to the wing's commands as planned" and signal acquisition was confirmed approximately 37 minutes after the satellite's 7:48 p.m. EST launch. The satellite will transition to its final location in geosynchronous orbit, approximately 22,000 miles above the Earth. There, the satellite's solar arrays, light shade and antennas will be deployed to begin on-orbit testing. Col. Dennis Bythewood, director of the remote sensing systems directorate at the Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center in Los Angeles, said that after separation, it takes about 10 days for the satellite to reach geosynchronous station. Turning on the equipment on the satellite is about "a month of activity," and beyond that, several months of on-orbit system tests. Lockheed Martin is already half-way through the production of SBIRS 5 and 6, scheduled to be delivered in 2020 and 2021. ULA's next launch is the GOES-S mission for NASA and NOAA on an Atlas V rocket. The launch is scheduled for March 1 from Space Launch Complex-41 at Cape Canaveral. This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. This image shows a portion of the sky mapped by the Dark Energy Survey. Stellar streams (including ones previously found) can be seen as yellow, blue and red streaks. A project designed to help uncover the nature of dark energy and dark matter in our universe has found that alien stars from other galaxies have been infiltrating the Milky Way. The Dark Energy Survey has found 11 new streams of stars that do not originate from our own galaxy. These stellar streams are ribbons of stars that are the remnants of nearby dwarf galaxies or star clusters that have been gravitationally altered or destroyed by the larger Milky Way. "We're interested in these streams because they teach us about the formation and structure of the Milky Way and its dark matter halo. Stellar streams give us a snapshot of a larger galaxy being built out of smaller ones," University of Chicago graduate student Nora Shipp said in a statement. Shipp led a large collaboration of astronomers studying the DES dataset to look for new stellar streams. "These discoveries are possible because DES is the widest, deepest, and best-calibrated survey out there." The majority of the new stellar streams are found in the Milky Way halo, the outer part of our galaxy that contains gas and stars and is several times wider than the disk of our galaxy. The halo is also home to the Milky Way's globular clusters tightly packed balls of hundreds of thousands of stars. The main component of the halo, however, seems to be dark matter, the mysterious substance that appears to pervade the universe. It produces no visible energy, but its gravity tugs at the visible matter around it. Helping to understand dark matter and its equally mysterious companion dark energy are DES's primary goals. This image shows the full area of sky mapped by the Dark Energy Survey and the 11 newly discovered stellar streams. Four of the streams in this diagram ATLAS, Molonglo, Phoenix, and Tucana III were previously known. The others were discovered using the Dark Energy Camera, one of the most powerful astronomical cameras on Earth. (Image credit: Dark Energy Survey) The announcement of the discovery came in conjunction with the public release of the first three years of data from the survey. DES uses one of the world's most powerful digital cameras, the 570-megapixel Dark Energy Camera (DECam), mounted on the 4-meter Blanco Telescope, located at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in northern Chile. Each of its images records data from an area 20 times the size of the moon as seen from earth. The data release includes information on millions of astronomical objects, including distant galaxies billions of light-years away, as well as stars in our own galaxy. "The DES data release includes measurements of 400 million stars and galaxies, about twice the number of objects in the [Sloan Digital Sky Survey], the premier survey of the last decade," Knut Olsen said team leader from the National Optical Astronomy Observatory's data lab, said in a statement. "The survey data extend deep and wide to stars 40 million times fainter than the human eye can see, covering one-eighth of the entire sky." The Dark Energy Camera is mounted on the Blanco telescope in Chile. (Image credit: Fermilab) DES has already released a series of detailed maps charting the distribution of dark matter in the universe and has mapped millions of galaxies. Shipp's team wrote in their paper that "while DES was designed to provide the evolution of the universe, it has already had a major impact on near-field cosmology and galactic archaeology." Specifically DES, which has been scanning the sky since 2013, has nearly doubled the number of known ultra-faint dwarf galaxies and increased the number of known faint outer-halo star clusters. The team said while finding dwarf galaxies is extremely challenging because they are faint and diffuse, stellar streams are even more difficult to pick out because their stars are spread out over a much larger area of sky. According to the team's paper, the number of main sequence stars in each stream varies from about 1,000 to 10,000 from stream to stream. "In big picture terms, these are small numbers of stars compared to the total number of stars in the Milky Way halo," Joan Najita from NOAO told Seeker. The Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile houses the Dark Energy Camera. (Image credit: Fermilab) Previous to the discovery of the 11 new streams, just 23 other stellar streams have been found. The new streams are the faintest and most distant streams ever discovered. "In general, these newly detected streams are wider and lower surface brightness than those detected in previous surveys," the team wrote in their paper. Alex Drlica-Wagner, a member of the DES team, said: "These discoveries are possible because the Dark Energy Survey is the widest, deepest, and best-calibrated survey out there." The streams provide important information about the history of the Milky Way's formation and can be used to trace the local distribution of dark matter. The streams form when a small nearby galaxy or star cluster ventures too close to the Milky Way and the gravitational pull of our larger galaxy pulls out streams of stars from the wandering galaxy. Astronomers think that many interactions like these have contributed stars to the halo of the Milky Way. RELATED: The Youngest Galaxies in the Universe Spin Like the Mature Milky Way The new stellar streams have names such as Molonglo, Jhelum, Aliqa Uma, and Wambelong. The DES team reached out to schools in Chile and Australia and asked young students to select names. The names are aquatic words in native languages from northern Chile and aboriginal Australia. Shipp and her colleagues wrote that they expect additional DES observations, improved data reduction techniques, and improved stream detection algorithms will allow fainter and more distant streams to be detected in the near future. "While the DES data currently provide the most sensitive wide-area view of the southern sky," the team wrote, "they are merely a precursor for larger sky coverage that can be achieved with DECam and, eventually, the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope." The LSST is currently under construction on Cerro Pachon in Chile. "In the 2020s, LSST will deliver a yet wider and deeper view of the Universe from distant galaxies, to our Milky Way, down to the solar system," said Adam Bolton, associate director for the Community Science and Data Center at NOAO, " and not just as a still photo, but as a high-definition movie that will capture the rich variability of the sky." Originally published on Seeker. NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei snapped this selfie outside the International Space Station during a spacewalk on Jan. 23. Two astronauts will head outside the International Space Station (ISS) for a spacewalk today (Feb. 16), and you can watch their entire excursion live online. NASA astronaut Mark Vande Hei and Japanese astronaut Norishige Kanai will emerge from the Quest airlock at 7:10 a.m. EST (1210 GMT) and will spend about 6.5 hours working outside the station. You can watch live coverage of the spacewalk here on Space.com beginning at 5:30 a.m. EST (1030 GMT), courtesy of NASA TV. The spacewalkers will relocate two degraded latching end effectors (LEEs), or the "hands" at each end of a 58-foot (18 meters) robotic arm known as Canadarm2. Both of Canadarm2's aging LEEs were replaced during two spacewalks, on Oct. 5 and Jan. 23. [In Photos: The Space Station Spacewalks of Expedition 54] One of the units, LEE-A, will be brought inside the Quest airlock, where it will eventually return to Earth inside a SpaceX Dragon cargo craft "to be refurbished and relaunched to the orbiting laboratory as a spare," NASA officials said in a statement. Astronaut Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency tries on a pair of spacesuit sleeves inside the Quest airlock of the International Space Station. (Image credit: NASA) The other unit, LEE-B, will stay at the ISS in a long-term storage location. "That LEE will be available as a spare part on the Mobile Base System, which is used to move the arm and astronauts along the station's truss structure," NASA officials said. Today's spacewalk was originally planned for Jan. 29, but NASA postponed it twice. First, ground controllers needed time to repair a software glitch on the newly replaced LEE. They rescheduled the spacewalk for Thursday (Feb. 15), but a two-day delay in the launch of a Russian cargo resupply mission this week delayed the spacewalk by one more day. The Progress 69 cargo ship arrived at the station Thursday morning. Email Hanneke Weitering at hweitering@space.com or follow her @hannekescience. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com. SpaceX and Iridium have set March 18, 2018 as the launch date for the fifth launch of Iridium Next satellites. The mission will use the same Falcon 9 rocket first stage as the third Iridium mission. WASHINGTON SpaceX and mobile satellite services provider Iridium, now halfway through deploying the Iridium Next constellation, are preparing for their fifth mission on March 18 from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. The Falcon 9 launch is expected to kick off a "rapid-cadence launch schedule targeting completion of the Iridium manifest by mid-2018,"according to a Jan. 22 Iridium statement. Iridium CEO Matt Desch told SpaceNews by email that the rapid cadence equates to "an average of about 5 weeks between launches to ensure we complete launch 8 mid-year." [Watch: SpaceX's Amazing Iridium 4 Rocket Launch] Following the March 18 mission, the sixth Iridium Next launch is scheduled for mid-to-late April. Like Iridium's last SpaceX mission, the March launch will employ a booster that previously carried 10 Iridium Next satellites into low Earth orbit. SpaceX will use the same first stage as its third Iridium Next launch in October. Iridium switched its fourth and fifth launches from new to pre-flown Falcon 9s in order to preserve the operator's deployment schedule. "We are entering the home stretch," Desch said in a press release. "This is going to be a monumental year for us as we complete our constellation refresh." All 10 satellites in the fifth mission will form part of the active constellation following testing and validation. Iridium Next consists of 66 active satellites, nine in-orbit spares and six ground spares. French satellite manufacturer Thales Alenia Space is building the 81 satellites, with U.S. satellite builder Orbital ATK assembling, integrating, and testing each spacecraft at its manufacturing facility in Gilbert, Arizona. The sixth Iridium Next launch will share a Falcon 9 with GRACE-FO, two research satellites for NASA and the German Research Center for Geosciences' (GFZ) Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On mission. Iridium ordered that launch in February 2017 to fill in for a Dnepr mission that fell years behind schedule in a Russian regulatory quagmire. The change in plans increased the number of orbital spares from six to nine. This story was provided by SpaceNews, dedicated to covering all aspects of the space industry. The space shuttle Enterprise arrives at Marshall Space Flight Center for the first test of all shuttle components together in 1978. Marshall served as the base and testing location for the Saturn rockets that fueled the Apollo missions, as well. Now, the center is responsible for the new Artemis mission's Space Launch System that will take astronauts back to the moon. NASA's George C. Marshall Space Flight Center has more than six decades of history designing, building and testing a storied series of rockets, rocket engines and instruments to fly in space. The centers accomplishments include the Redstone rocket used to launch Project Mercury, the Saturn rockets for the Apollo program, the Skylab space station, and the Hubble Space Telescope. Marshall is located on the grounds of the U.S. Army Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, a city in northern Alabama about 145 miles (233 kilometers) northwest of Atlanta, Georgia. The NASA Center employs nearly 6,000 people, according to its official NASA website. Marshall also manages NASA's Michoud Assembly Facility near New Orleans, where giant rocket stages can be built and loaded onto barges for transportation to launch facilities at Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Now, the Marshall Center is working on the Space Launch System (SLS) for the Artemis project that will land astronauts on the moon, as well as hosting private spaceflight company Blue Origin. The original von Braun team The Center's original core of rocketry talent was a team of about 125 Nazi engineers, led by Wernher von Braun, who had surrendered to the U.S. Army at the end of World War II. The group had been housed for a few years at Fort Bliss, Texas, where they supervised test firings of captured German V-2 rockets at nearby White Sands Proving Ground. In 1950 the team was moved to the grounds of Redstone Arsenal, an ammunition factory and test facility outside Huntsville, where they began work as the Army Ordnance Guided Missile Center, part of the Army Ballistic Missile Agency. The German team, augmented by American military and civilian personnel, developed two new missiles: Redstone and Jupiter. Although they were conceived as weapons, both later became famous for civilian missions. A Jupiter rocket launched Explorer I, the first U.S. satellite, into orbit on Jan. 31, 1958, and Redstone rockets boosted the Mercury capsules flown by astronauts Alan Shepard and Gus Grissom in 1961. The Redstone rocket carrying Mercury astronaut Alan B. Shepard, Jr. lifts off from Cape Canaveral on May 5, 1961. (Image credit: NASA) Meanwhile, the von Braun team was thinking bigger, clustering elements of the Jupiter and Redstone rockets to make a series of giant multi-engine boosters. The product of that ambition, the first Saturn I rocket, would eventually fly in 1961. When the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) was established at the direction of President Dwight Eisenhower in 1958, officials in both the Defense Department and NASA concluded that the Saturn rockets would be more useful for space exploration than for military missions. As a result, the von Braun team was transferred from the Army to NASA. As historians Andrew J. Dunar and Stephen P. Waring recount in "Power to Explore: A History of the Marshall Space Flight Center 1960-1990," (NASA History Office, 1999), von Braun believed in "dirty hands." Engineers, von Braun insisted, should have practical knowledge and should work closely with builders. This was especially true in the new field of rocketry, where so much was unknown and designs had to be worked out by experiment. Under his supervision, the Huntsville facility was laid out like a factory to keep design, manufacturing and testing in close proximity. President Eisenhower dedicated the Huntsville rocket facility as the George C. Marshall Space Flight Center on Sept. 8, 1960. The facility was named for Marshall, an Army General who had served as Army Chief of Staff and as Secretary of State, and who had received a Nobel Peace Prize in 1953 "for proposing and supervising the plan for the economic recovery of Europe" after World War II. Saturn rockets for Apollo NASA Deputy Administrator Robert Seamans, rocket engineer Wernher von Braun and President John F. Kennedy discuss the Saturn rockets developed at Marshall Space Flight Center that went on to power the Apollo program. (Image credit: NASA) NASA officials were thinking about possible flights to the moon (and the giant rockets such missions would require) while Dwight Eisenhower was still president, as historian Roger Bilstein reports in his history of the Saturn program, "Stages to Saturn: A Technological History of the Apollo/Saturn Launch Vehicles" (NASA History Office, 1996). With President John F. Kennedy's 1961 declaration of the moon as a national goal, the Saturn rocket family and therefore the Marshall Center were given a clear mission: to provide power for the lunar voyage. The Marshall Center took over management of the former Michoud Ordnance Plant near New Orleans, converting it into a factory that could build a Saturn stage and load it onto a barge for transportation to a launch site. The center already operated one such site in Cape Canaveral, Florida, which would eventually become the Kennedy Space Center. Marshall Center teams completed the following tasks for the Apollo program: Built massive test stands large enough to hold an entire Saturn rocket stage on the ground while its engines were test-fired. Built a dynamic test stand large enough to hold an entire Apollo-Saturn V rocket and subject it to vibration and stresses like those expected during a launch. According to Dunar and Warings history, this stand, over 400 feet (122 meters) high, was the tallest structure in north Alabama at the time. Selected metals and invented new methods of welding to make the Saturns giant propellant tanks. Supervised IBM in building the Instrument Unit, a ring of computers at the top of the Saturn V third stage that could control and steer the vehicle independently of the Apollo spacecraft. The instruments unit, or the "brain" of the Saturn V rockets that took astronauts to the moon during the Apollo program, was designed and assembled at Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. (Image credit: NASA) Once all the Saturn rockets needed for Apollo were finished or under construction, the Center got the job of providing the Lunar Roving Vehicle, an electric car that folded to fit in a spare compartment of the Apollo Lunar Module. Astronauts drove LRVs on the Moon as part of the Apollo 15, 16 and 17 missions. Looking beyond Apollo, Marshall engineers conceived the idea of using an empty Saturn V third stage as a space station. That station, Skylab, was launched in 1973 atop the last Saturn V rocket ever to fly. Skylab hosted three crews of astronauts, each launched on a Saturn IB rocket. Skylab also featured another Marshall creation, the Apollo Telescope Mount, which precisely pointed a set of eight telescopes to observe the Sun. The Marshall Center managed dozens of other science experiments using the Skylab microgravity environment, covering metallurgy, fluid dynamics, crystal growth and other sciences. One last Saturn IB carried a crew into Earth orbit in 1975 to perform the first link-up between American and Soviet spacecraft in the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project. From rockets to research A technician works on a model of LAGEOS, a 900-pound (408-kg) satellite developed at Marshall Space Flight Center and launched into orbit in 1976. (Image credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center) Diversifying beyond rocket propulsion post-Apollo, the Marshall Center took on new scientific projects, including: The first Laser Geodynamic Satellite (LAGEOS), launched in 1976. LAGEOS is a beach-ball-sized sphere of aluminum and brass covered with 426 retroreflectors that function as mirrors. The satellite reflected laser beams back to Earth to provide high-precision measurements of Earths continental drift. Gravity Probe-A launched from NASA's Wallops Island facility in Virginia in 1976. This suborbital space probe carried an atomic clock to a height of 6200 miles (9978 km). Comparing the flying clock to an identical one on the ground enabled physicists to test predictions about the effect of gravity on time in Einstein's theory of general relativity. Gravity Probe-B, launched into Earth orbit in 2004, used high-precision gyroscopes to test Einstein's predictions about spacetime near massive rotating bodies. A series of satellites called the High Energy Astronomical Observatories (HEAOs). HEAO-A, launched in 1977, spent 16 months surveying the sky for distant sources of X-rays such as pulsars, quasars and black holes. HEAO-B, also known as the Einstein Observatory, took the first astronomical images in X-rays in 1978, discovering that Jupiter and Earth emit X-rays. HEAO-C measured X-rays, gamma rays and cosmic ray particles during its 1979-81 mission. To test HEAO-B, Marshall engineers built a facility featuring a guide tube 1,700 feet (518 meters) long that can send a beam of X-rays into a vacuum chamber 20 feet (6 m) in diameter and 60 feet (18.3 m) long. A telescope or spacecraft designed to observe X-rays from space can be placed in the chamber so that its focusing and measuring capabilities can be tested, using the X-ray beam as simulated starlight. According to a NASA Fact Sheet, the system, now called the X-Ray and Cryogenic Facility (XRCF), was upgraded over the years to test the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, several meteorological satellites, the X-ray telescope on the Japanese Hinode satellite, and most recently the X-ray telescopes for NASA's Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) satellite. The test chamber can be cooled to minus 414 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 248 Celsius), and was also used to test the mirrors for the James Webb Space Telescope, which are designed to function at extremely cold temperatures. Space shuttle and ISS equipment This March 15, 1978, photo shows the space shuttle Enterprise being towed to the Marshall Center's Dynamic Test Stand (not shown) for vibration testing. (Image credit: NASA) During the space shuttle era, Marshall teams supervised several private companies in making parts for the new spacecraft. Rocket manufacturing company Rocketdyne was responsible for the Space Shuttle Main Engines (SSMEs); chemical corporation Thiokol created the Solid Rocket Boosters (SRBs); and materials supplier Martin Marietta worked on the shuttles external tank, which was assembled at Michoud. Marshall crews also managed the development of Spacelab, a pressurized module to host scientist-astronauts and their experiments on space shuttle flights, in a collaboration with European partners. Spacelab components flew on 36 Shuttle flights. As the program matured, the Marshall Center opened a Spacelab Mission Operations Control facility in Huntsville, where scientists could monitor experiments and communicate directly with astronauts conducting the experiments. Marshall was NASA's lead center for designing and building the Hubble Space Telescope, which was launched from the space shuttle Discovery in 1990, as well as the Chandra X-Ray Observatory, which launched into Earth orbit from space shuttle Columbia in 1999. Both telescopes were still in operation as of early 2021. The Hubble Space Telescope still relies on a 1980s-era payload computer, which was designed at the Marshall Center. (Image credit: NASA) As part of ongoing International Space Station operations, Marshall hosts the Payload Operations Integration Center, a control room that according to NASA has been staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year since 2001. Here, engineers and scientists manage the schedules and communications for science experiments aboard the Station. The Marshall Center was responsible for design and testing of the Ares rockets, which would have launched cargo and crew vehicles as part of the Constellation program, an early-2000s project to connect the completion of the International Space Station to human missions to the moon and Mars. Artemis at Marshall NASA's first Space Launch System megarocket test fires its four main RS-25 engines in a critical hot fire test at the Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi on Mar. 18, 2021. The booster, developed at nearby Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, will launch NASA's Artemis 1 mission around the moon in late 2021. (Image credit: NASA) The previous Constellation program has been superseded by the Artemis project, which aims to return astronauts to the moon using a new heavy-lift rocket, the Space Launch System (SLS). According to a NASA fact sheet, the Marshall Center hosts two new static test stands, huge concrete and steel structures that can hold versions of entire SLS stages on the ground, pulling, crushing and contorting the structures to see how much stress they can take before they break. Marshall engineers are also developing the software that will steer SLS. The 215-foot-tall structural test stand for NASA's Space Launch System is at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama. (Image credit: NASA) The Marshall Center, as manager of the Michoud Assembly Facility, hosts several private companies working on portions of the Artemis program. Staff from Boeing are working to build the SLS Core Stage and Exploration Upper Stage (EUS), for example, and according to NASA, a Teledyne Brown Engineering crew is building the launch vehicle stage adapter that will connect SLS's core stage to the upper part of the rocket. Meanwhile, a Lockheed Martin group is welding the primary structure of the Orion spacecraft that will carry astronauts atop the SLS, according to a NASA press release. Tests of the RS-25 engines for the SLS Core Stage are being conducted at a nearby NASA facility, the Stennis Space Center, on the Mississippi Gulf Coast near New Orleans. Now at Marshall Other current work at Marshall includes: Inventing methods to make rocket engines by 3-D printing using lasers and metal powder. Some 3-D printed engine components, as described in this NASA press release, have already survived hot-fire tests. Solar Cruiser, a solar sail nearly 18,000 square feet (1672 square m), to be launched in 2025 to demonstrate the use of solar radiation for propulsion, according to a NASA announcement. SERVIR, a project that, according to updates from Marshall, will translate NASA satellite data into useful information about land use, agriculture, weather, climate, water and disasters, intended to help more than 45 developing nations. Adapting a vibration-suppressing device originally developed for the Ares rocket into a system to stabilize offshore wind turbines, as described in this NASA publication. Blue Origin's New Shepard launch vehicle lifts from the company's West Texas launch site on a suborbital test flight. Blue Origin conducts some of its rocket testing at the Marshall Center. (Image credit: Blue Origin) In 2019, Blue Origin, the private spaceflight company headed by Jeff Bezos, signed an agreement with NASA to refurbish and use Marshalls Test Stand 4670, built in 1965 to test Saturn rockets. Blue Origin will use the stand to test engines the company will make at a new factory in Huntsville, a Blue Origin press release stated. According to a story in Made in Alabama, website of the Alabama Department of Commerce, the Blue Origin factory plan was originally code named Project Rumble, referring to the sound of rocket engines being tested at Marshall. Additional resources A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches the Zuma mission for an unspecified U.S. government agency on Jan. 7, 2018, from Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The mysterious payload, built my Northrop Grumman, apparently never reached orbit, according to media reports. The U.S. Air Force has given SpaceX a qualified vote of confidence in the wake of the presumed loss of the mysterious Zuma satellite, according to Bloomberg News. The news bolsters SpaceX's claim that its Falcon 9 rocket performed just fine during the Jan. 7 launch of Zuma, which apparently never reached orbit, according to unconfirmed reports. "Based on the data available, our team did not identify any information that would change SpaceX's Falcon 9 certification status," Lt. Gen. John Thompson, commander of the Air Force's Space and Missile Systems Center, told Bloomberg News in a statement. [See amazing photos of SpaceX's Zuma launch] This assessment came after "a preliminary review of telemetry that was available to us from the Zuma liftoff, Thompson told Bloomberg News, stressing that "the Air Force will continue to evaluate data from all launches." The Zuma payload was built by aerospace company Northrop Grumman, which also provided the adapter that connected Zuma to the Falcon 9's second stage. Thompson's statement will therefore likely focus more attention on Northrop Grumman, which has so far declined to comment on the mission, citing its classified nature. The secrecy surrounding Zuma is extreme. Pretty much all we know is that Northrop Grumman built it for the U.S. government (which agency was in charge is unclear) and that the payload was headed to low Earth orbit. Nobody has even confirmed that Zuma failed to reach orbit as planned, though the scuttlebutt in the spaceflight community posits that the satellite failed to separate from the Falcon 9's second stage and, as a result, ended up plummeting to Earth along with the launch gear. (The Falcon 9's reusable first stage, meanwhile, made a pinpoint landing at Landing Zone 1, a SpaceX facility at Florida's Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The rocket lifted off from Cape Canaveral's Space Launch Complex 40.) SpaceX has stressed that any blame for the Zuma failure if indeed the mission failed falls on someone else's shoulders. "For clarity: After review of all data to date, Falcon 9 did everything correctly on Sunday night," SpaceX President and Chief Operating Officer Gwynne Shotwell said in a statement on Jan. 9. "If we or others find otherwise based on further review, we will report it immediately," Shotwell added. "Information published that is contrary to this statement is categorically false. Due to the classified nature of the payload, no further comment is possible." Zuma was SpaceX's third national-security mission for the U.S. government. The California-based company also launched the NROL-76 satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office in May 2017 and the Air Force's robotic X-37B space plane in September of that year. Both of those liftoffs were successful. You can read Bloomberg News' full story here: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-01-22/spacex-keeps-u-s-air-force-s-confidence-after-satellite-s-loss Follow Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall and Google+. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on Space.com. The story of Lizzie Borden, the 32-year-old woman who allegedly butchered her family with an axe in the late 1800s, has been told countless times in film and on television, and the Fall River, Massachusetts woman has become a mainstay of urban legend, even inspiring a grisly nursery rhyme. But Craig William Macneill offers a fresh take on the Borden killings in his Sundance entry Lizzie, positing the accused murderess (Chloe Sevigny) as a headstrong woman and closeted lesbian so fed up with the patriarchy that she... well, you probably know the answer. This version begins six months prior to the incident, when Irish immigrant Bridget Sullivan (Kristen Stewart) arrives at the Borden household to begin her tenure as the family's maid. The rest of the family refers to their new servant as "Maggie," but Lizzie insists on calling Bridget by her given name, and seems to be the only member of the family to regard her as a human being. Indeed, Lizzie's stepmother (Fiona Shaw) forbids Bridget from accessing the second floor of the house unless expressly told to do so, and her miserly husband Andrew (Jamey Sheridan) rarely acknowledges her existence - except for those late-night visits to her bedroom, where he admonishes her to "be a good girl" before climbing atop her. Meanwhile, Lizzie's uncle (Denis O'Hare, especially slimy) conspires to become executor of his brother's will, under the guise that he will be best positioned to provide for Lizzie and her sister Emma (Kim Dickens). Lizzie sees right through this scheme and knows that with her father out of the picture, she'll be left with no inheritance and no means of survival. Mr. Borden already views his daughter with an abnormal amount of disdain, thanks to a struggle with epilepsy that leaves her prone to "fits" and deemed unworthy for marriage, and broaching this subject only serves to enrage him further. As the rift between Lizzie and her father grows, so does the attraction between Lizzie and Bridget. What began as a furtive glance from across the room escalates into clandestinely-passed notes and late afternoon walks, not to mention a beautifully shot, erotically charged sequence where Bridget helps Lizzie button her dress, and both girls strive not to let their desires take over. But the budding romance hasn't gone unnoticed, and the maid's sudden dismissal from the residence is the proverbial final straw. Lizzie opens in the aftermath of the murders, but audiences won't actually see these events unfold until well into the film's second half. Macneill uses the somewhat leisurely pace to build copious amounts of tension for the big moment, and when it arrives, it's even more shocking than one might have imagined. Sevigny's work in these sequences is astounding, giving herself over to righteous fury and transforming into a primal, rage-fueled creature fixated purely on vengeance. Stewart also impresses as the anguished young maid, forced to endure unspeakable cruelty in hopes of making a better life for herself, and exceedingly thankful for even the smallest bits of kindness and humanity that she finds in Lizzie. Lizzie is heavily influenced by old-school horror flicks, with the soundtrack emphasizing the creaks and groans of the ancient house and the soft glow of a candle turning a hallway into a mass of imposing shadows, and Macneill's slow-burn approach may not work for everyone. But thematically, it couldn't arrive at a better time: as we witness Andrew Borden's demise, it's hard not to envision in his place any number of rich men who used their power to subjugate and sexually abuse women, and even harder not to cheer when Lizzie, a blood-soaked vision of feminine rage, emerges from the carnage. And what is an Alienist, one might ask? It's an archaic term used in the late 19th century for those that study and help the mentally ill. It's really another word for a forensic psychologist or psychiatrist thus having an association crime or criminology and the justice system. The word mostly fell out fashion by the mid 20th century, but is sometimes still used in psychiatric facilities for those trying to determine if someone is mentally fit to stand trail. "That's what I admire about you, John. You represent the good that people want to believe is in all of us." -Dr. Kreizler The remainder of the episode then proceeds to to bring Sarah Howard slightly more into the fold, as Kreizler pushes Moore to get Howard to steal the case file that he was denied, which she initially declines, but Moore leaves her his drawing in hopes of changing her mind. We learn pretty quickly that Howard too is unconventional for women of her age--at this time. Not only does she tackle a male-dominated profession, which many seek to shock an insult her, but she also lives alone with just her maids and servants. Talking to her maid, she dismisses mens notions of a women's delicate nature, ironically also while undoing her corset, reminding the audience that despite the advancements Howard seeks, she is still bound by some convention, butconvention is not always delicate, but painstaking!Upon reviewing the illustration, she finds Moore at his local "house" and gives him the case file on the Santorelli boy's murder, and only asks to be informed of pertinent information. He agrees, but never confides to Kreizler about it. In the meantime it was revealed earlier that Kreizler believes that the latest murder may relate to another case from three years ago, the Zweig children. They were sent to his school to help the boy, Benjamin, deal with an obsession of wearing his sister's clothes. One day they were playing outside and mysteriously disappeared, only later to be found dead inside a rooftop water container. The girl's body in tact, but the boy's was mutilated and disemboweled! It's clear from Kreizler's determination he regrets not being able to protect them, since it happened under his watch. With the help of two Jewish brothers given to Kreizler from Commissioner Roosevelt, the bodies of the Zweig children are exhumed and the two forensic scientists begin to go to work, while Kreizler decides to step out with Moore for an early dinner, but Kreizler gets a creepy message in the form of a cut out tongue and finds himself on the hunt. Following a man through the crowded streets and with Moore barely following behind, Dr. Kreizler finds himself in a seemingly abandoned building chasing someone up several flights of spiral stairs, finally reaching the attic. The door ahead shuts, but he follows and opens it. He steps through. By this point Moore had caught up. He looks at Keizler and asks,Keizler looks up to reveal a hole on the roof.The final scenes show someone on the hunt for another little boy, while Kreizler explains his notions to Moore about how he thinks the mind of this potential serial killer works--explaining the killer feels deeply and needs to make the boys feel his pain, walk his path, and see as he does.One of my favourite things about this pilot was the cinematography. From the angled shots of Moore and Roosevelt climbing the wooden stairs unto the bridge (reminding of The Wall into the camera being placed just behind the horses of a horse-drawn carriage dangerously weaving through traffic, which is also similar to Dr. Kreizler following the man through the streets, or even the opening scene with the police officer looking up at the bridge parallelling the sequence of Kreizler's dead-end chase with a hole in the roof, all made the episode slightly, but pleasantly, dizzying episode full of suspense and great storytelling.There were other moments too, things pertaining to a dichotomy between gritty and elegant. Winter-street-scapes along with large sets, props, instruments, and clothing feeling genuinely authentic to the gilded age, all reminding me of other crime-horror period pieces such asor. And it's no wonder with cinematographers PJ Dillion () and Gavin Struthers () in tow!As for the cast, they're executed wonderfully through the episode where they're given just the right amount of nuance and alone time, but also with just enough interaction to get a good sense of characterisation, but not without taking away from the mystery or the introduction to the social inter workings of New York City, including the gritty horror and political corruption of it's underworld.Ultimately I feel that creator, executive producer, and director () Cary Fukunaga has something intriguing on his hands and seems well-suited to adapt Caleb Carr's Gothic period crime drama series, given how well this pilot pulls itself off. If you're a viewer who likes an interesting combination of a good period crime drama like, the philosophical and scientific musings & serial killing-horror aspects of, with a dash something likeorthis may be the perfect new limited series for you. But if you're at all squeamish, looking for something more pleasant and less bleak or more melodramatic, this might not be your cup of tea. Vampire Mockumentary Reboot Ordered to Series by FX FX Places Order for Comedy Series "What We Do in the Shadows" Co-Created By Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi Based on Their Feature of the Same Name Executive Produced By Clement, Waititi and Paul Simms Coming to FX in Spring 2019 LOS ANGELES, May 3, 2017 - FX has ordered the first season of What We Do in the Shadows, a half-hour comedy series based on the feature film of the same name by co-creators Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, it was announced today by Nick Grad and Eric Schrier, Presidents of Original Programming for FX Networks and FX Productions. The 10-episode first season will air on FX in the Spring of 2019. Set in New York City, What We Do in the Shadows follows three vampires who have been roommates for hundreds and hundreds of years. "What We Do in the Shadows only gets better with age thanks to this brilliant adaptation for television by co-creators Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi," said Grad. "Their feature version was a hilarious, fresh take on the mundanity of everyday life that even immortals must face. We are thankful to them, Paul Simms and Scott Rudin, and this amazing cast for taking us deeper into the shadows with this series." Clement, Waititi and Simms are Executive Producers with Rudin, Eli Bush, and Garrett Basch. What We Do in the Shadows stars Matt Berry, Kayvan Novak, Natasia Demetriou, and Harvey Guillen. Source: FX Co-Created By Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi Based on Their Feature of the Same NameExecutive Produced By Clement, Waititi and Paul SimmsComing to FX in Spring 2019LOS ANGELES, May 3, 2017 - FX has ordered the first season of What We Do in the Shadows, a half-hour comedy series based on the feature film of the same name by co-creators Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, it was announced today by Nick Grad and Eric Schrier, Presidents of Original Programming for FX Networks and FX Productions. The 10-episode first season will air on FX in the Spring of 2019.Set in New York City, What We Do in the Shadows follows three vampires who have been roommates for hundreds and hundreds of years."What We Do in the Shadows only gets better with age thanks to this brilliant adaptation for television by co-creators Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi," said Grad. "Their feature version was a hilarious, fresh take on the mundanity of everyday life that even immortals must face. We are thankful to them, Paul Simms and Scott Rudin, and this amazing cast for taking us deeper into the shadows with this series."Clement, Waititi and Simms are Executive Producers with Rudin, Eli Bush, and Garrett Basch.What We Do in the Shadows stars Matt Berry, Kayvan Novak, Natasia Demetriou, and Harvey Guillen. Source: The Hollywood Reporter What We Do in the Shadows stars Kayvan Novak (Danger Mouse, Thunderbirds Are Go), Matt Berry (Toast of London), Natasia Demetriou (Year Friends) and Harvey Guillen (The Thundermans, The Internship). It's unclear if Clement and Waititi, who starred in the feature, will also have an onscreen role. Vampire Mockumentary Reboot in Development at FX Novak will play Nandor, the head vampire of the house. Berry plays Lazslo is the goofiest in the house, the type of vampire that turns into a bat and flies into a wall. Demetriou plays Nadja, the badass female vampire of the house. Guillen is believed to play Nandors assistant. Source: Deadline The film, about a group of vampires who live together in Wellington, New Zealand, earned $6.9 million on a $1.6 million budget. It centered on Viago, Deacon, and Vladislav are vampires who are finding that modern life has them struggling with the mundane like paying rent, keeping up with the chore wheel, trying to get into nightclubs, and overcoming flatmate conflicts. You can watch a trailer of the original film below.Novak will play Nandor, the head vampire of the house. Berry plays Lazslo is the goofiest in the house, the type of vampire that turns into a bat and flies into a wall. Demetriou plays Nadja, the badass female vampire of the house. Guillen is believed to play Nandors assistant. We have used your information to see if you have a subscription with us, but did not find one. Please use the button below to verify an existing account or to purchase a new subscription. W omen should be given the chance to work on the biggest accounts as they come up the ranks if gender equality in the boardroom is to be achieved, the global chairman of EY said on Tuesday. Mark Weinberger, speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, said companies should not just be looking at the number of women taking boardroom roles but also working all the way through an organisation to help them prepare for the most senior posts. What really matters is giving women, and all minorities, an opportunity in the ranks, to get operating experience, get on the biggest accounts, learn the new skill sets so they can rise to the top, and hire more. And I think thats what weve got to work on, when we look at skill set development, Weinberger added. T he City gave Simply Be owner N Brown the thumbs down on Tuesday despite a rise in revenues and a strong Christmas. The online retailer, which owns a clutch of brands including plus-sized Jacamo, said revenues were up 3.2% in the 18 weeks to January, lifted by sales of dresses and knee-high boots over the festive period. However, a big spend on promotions to attract more shoppers dented margins on its wares. Shares were down 14% to 241.6p. But full-year profits are expected to remain the same, propped up in part by its finance arm, which allows customers to pay for their shopping on credit. Its a smaller part of our revenue, said chief executive Angela Spindler. The company today said it will sell some of its brands via Zalando, one of Europes biggest fashion retailers. I am the only adult woman in my family who does not wear the Islamic headscarf, the hijab. And 20 years ago, that statement would have caused people Muslim and non- Muslim to ask why the rest were covered rather than why I was not, which is the case now. Times have changed, and the conversation about the hijab which should be honest has moved in the wrong direction. This can be seen in the reaction of some Muslims to the initiative of the head of St Stephens School in Newham, Neena Lall, in banning girls under the age of eight from wearing the hijab. She also discouraged children from fasting at Ramadan. Some of the families at the school protested; local councillors and Muslim organisations criticised her; she apparently had death threats issued against her. She backed down and the chair of governors who had supported her resigned. St Stephens is one of the most successful primary schools in the UK. This is a backward step for the young girls who are pupils there. This should be a straightforward issue. The hijab is meant to be worn to cover women in order to avoid tempting men. Dont get me started on the issues I have with that as a feminist and as a Muslim woman. But putting children in a hijab is akin to dressing them in high heels and make-up. It is sexualised clothing. By covering up young girls, the implication is that they are sexual beings. In our attempt not to offend those who believe this, we are limiting girls rights and freedom. In the current climate of hyper- political correctness, with strident liberals on one side and ill- informed knuckleheads on the other, we have lost the ability to think straight. The hostility towards Muslims, of which I have been a victim, is being exploited by conservative men within communities such as mine to shut down legitimate concerns. It is not Islamophobic to ban the headscarf in primary schools or any school, for that matter. Indeed, it would help if the Department for Education were to issue guidelines for head teachers on this. Children need to be protected from the idea that their bodies are sexual and that if they dont cover up they will become victims. This should not be unsayable or even controversial just because it involves disagreeing with some people from minority ethnic groups. Schools should be a place for children to express themselves, not where they are boxed in. Lall is being depicted as anti-Muslim. Not so. Those who send their children to the school do so because she knows how to get the best from pupils. Those who prefer their couture extravagant and their ballgowns fit for a princess were not left disappointed by Giambattista Vallis latest showcase. The Italian designer, whose name has become synonymous with frothy fairytale confections, brought the first day of Pariss couture fashion week to dramatic close with a series of maximalist, multi-layered dressing options for evening - each more opulent than the last. From airy draped silk chiffon lavished with crystal bows to mille-feuille tiered embroidered tulle, these were gowns designed for when standing out from the crowd isnt just a fleeting fancy but a requirement. This is precisely why Valli has long been a go-to among the A-lists most daring red carpet regulars, with the likes of Rihanna, Emma Stone and Lupita Nyongo all calling upon his skills as a couturier to secure their spot on the top of best dressed lists. Getty Images People. Fashion. Power. Delivered weekly. Email Sign up Sign up I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice {{message}} {{permutiveUid}} {{message}} Clearly keen to court Hollywoods freshest crop of new faces, attire designed with a youthful super-rich customer in mind also played a starring role in last nights showcase. Cocktail dresses in micro mini lengths were cut from leather and lace or came shimmering with tiny crystal daisies, while a macrame tunic and trouser cocktail ensemble was trimmed with ostrich feathers. Getty Images Mullet dresses - sawn short at the front and left long at the back - are also a Valli calling card with waterfall ruffle organza, adorned with rose bud applique, featuring cascading trains. AFP/Getty Images Scandinavian style is typically synonymous with minimalism, functionality and a tightly edited capsule wardrobe. This week however, the Scandi style set that descended on Stockholm for its biannual fashion week were rocking a distinctly more maximalist vibe. Gone were the tonal grey ensembles, the white t-shirts and black polos. Instead the mood in the Swedish capital was colourful and ebullient. People. Fashion. Power. Delivered weekly. Email Sign up Sign up I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice {{message}} {{permutiveUid}} {{message}} Stockholm-based fashion blogger Caroline Blomst joined the colourful and furry brigade. Those wishing to recreate the look might want to try the Febbe Shearling Coat from Danish label Saks Potts, 1,095. Shop it here Matches Fashion Or a more affordable version from Swedish label Monki, 75. Shop it here. monki While another influential Swedish blogger, Felicia Akerstrom Ma posted an image of herself and her friends attending Stockholm Fashion Week in plenty of coloured faux fur, vinyl and winter whites. Get the look with this vinyl jacket from Danish brand Ganni, 260. Shop it here. farfetch Stockholm Fashion Week tends to be a good indicator of the trends that are set to dominate the runways and the streets in the coming months in New York, London, Paris and Milan. Tuesday January 30 Head to the Arts Theatre in Soho for the hospitality industrys panto, which this year is Aladdin. See big names from Londons restaurant, bar and hotel scene take the stage to raise funds for to The Springboard Charity. Tonight new play A Girl In School Uniform (Walks Into A Bar) opens at the New Diorama Theatre. As the unnerving title suggests, this one is a dystopian thriller exploring gender and power, set in a surreal but recognisable future, uncertainty is everywhere and violence against women is rife. B lack cab rapist John Worboys could be kept behind bars rather than released after a new alleged victim made sexual assault allegations against him, it has emerged. The serial sex attacker is currently in prison, but in a move that sparked nationwide outrage, he was due to be released after the Parole Board ruled he had served his sentence for rape. The Metropolitan Police is now understood to be investigating a fresh allegation of historical sexual assault against him. Although no arrest has been made, if Worboys is charged over the allegation it is unlikely he will be released as planned. Scotland Yard said in a statement: "The Metropolitan Police Service is investigating an allegation of non-recent sexual assault which was reported to police in January 2018. The incident is reported to have taken place in 1997. "Enquiries by officers from the Child Abuse and Sexual Offences Command are ongoing." It comes after it emerged that Worboys had been moved to a London jail ahead of his release. John Worboys in handcuffs for court in 2008 The 60-year-old was transferred from HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire to HMP Belmarsh, south-east London, at the weekend, it is understood. Lawyers for victims said the move was "extremely distressing" for them. News of his transfer, first reported by The Sun, follows a furore over the Parole Board's decision to agree to Worboys' release after a decade behind bars. Worboys was convicted of 19 offences against 12 victims but has been linked to more than 100 complaints in total. And London Assembly member Shaun Bailey, a former adviser to David Cameron, warned that the police would lose public confidence unless they revisited the claims. He was backed by MP Zac Goldsmith, who said the Crown Prosecution Services decision to take only 23 out of 93 allegations to court had been a misjudgement. B lack cab rapist John Worboys has reportedly been moved to a prison in London, where the majority of his attacks on women were carried out. Worboys, 60, has been moved over 200 miles from HMP Wakefield in Yorkshire to Belmarsh in south-east London, the Sun reported. The former black cab driver will be held at Belmarsh before being found temporary lodging at a probation hostel, less than 10 years after he was convicted of offences against 12 women. Last week London MPs including Boris Johnson and Zac Goldsmith signed a letter urging the Parole Board to ban Worboys from London. Some of his victims thought to number up to 100 have begged for him to be barred from the capital amid fears he kept a record of some addresses. One told the Sun: I am genuinely terrified he is going to come after me. Why should we think he wont? He knows where so many of his victims live. Justice Secretary David Gauke had commissioned legal advice to see whether it would be possible to bring a judicial review of the Parole Boards decision to free Worboys. But the minister announced on Friday in Parliament that it would not be going ahead with the challenge. A crowdfunding page to pay for a legal challenge to his release received more than 40,000 within a day amid mounting anger in the wake of the decision to free him. T he alleged Finsbury Park mosque attacker read a tweet from English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson about a day of rage before heading to London to try to kill Muslims, a court heard today. Darren Osborne, 48, is accused of repeatedly researching the far-Right founder in the days before he drove a van at worshippers as they left the mosque in the early hours of June 19 last year. Woolwich crown court heard that Osborne hired the van on June 17 and had seen a tweet from Mr Robinson which read: Where was the day of rage after the terrorist attacks. All I saw was lighting candles. Jurors heard Osborne had received a direct message from Mr Robinson on June 9, inviting him to a March in response to the Manchester Arena bombing. He wrote that it was left to us ordinary people in the UK to stand up to hate, unite, and in one voice say no more. Darren Osborne, 48, is accused of driving a hired van into a crowd of worshippers as they left the mosque during Ramadan It was also alleged that Osborne left a note in the van in which he branded Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn as a terrorist sympathiser and attacked London Mayor Sadiq Khan. Osborne is said to have written the note in his local pub in Cardiff before heading to London. It said: Why are their terrorists on our streets today? Weve had 2 Recent terror attacks, our children splattered against the walls of concerts. He allegedly criticised ferrel inbred raping muslim men hunting in packs preying on our children, signing off the note: Remember peaceful vigils only and please dont look back in anger, God Save the Queen. Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC said Osborne had that day looked at a tweet from Mr Robinson which read: Anger? When a Muslim bombed our kids we were told not to look back in anger. Mr Rees told the court: Thats a phrase that crops up somewhere else in the evidence, isnt it? Osborne denies the murder of Makram Ali, 51, and the attempted murder of several others. It is said Osborne turned against Muslims after watching a BBC drama about the Rochdale child grooming scandal, and was further enraged by Isis-inspired terrorist attacks in Manchester, Westminster and London Bridge. Osborne denies murder and attempted murder. T he alleged Finsbury Park mosque attacker claimed he was a solider and told pub-goers he was going to kill all Muslims days before the attack, a court has heard. Darren Osborne, 48, deliberately mowed down worshippers in north London using a van shortly after midnight on June 19 last year, prosecutors alleged. Days earlier he had received an email warning of the rise of Islam from an account linked to English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson, Woolwich Crown Court was told. The court heard how Osborne, of Glyn Rhosyn in Cardiff, spoke loudly about terrorism and Muslims at the Hollybush Pub in Pentwyn, near Cardiff, on the evening of June 17, the day before he allegedly travelled to London. Soldier Callum Spence said Osborne made comments including "Muslims are all terrorists", "I'm going to kill all Muslims" and that he would "take it into his own hands". An artist's impression of Darren Osborne during a court appearance in June / Elizabeth Cook/PA Mr Spence, a Royal Engineer, told the court: "He was pretty mumbling, but I heard him saying 'all our families are going to be Muslim. They are all going to be terrorists.' Things like that." The defendant also claimed to be a soldier but did not know the phonetic alphabet used by the military, and was "flinging his arms around", Mr Spence added. In a statement read to the jury, Angelo Lamberti, assistant manager of the pub, said Osborne was asked by Mr Spence what regiment he belonged to. He said: "I heard the odd male tell the soldier that he was also a soldier. The soldier asked him what regiment he was in, to which he replied, 'you will find out tomorrow'." Osborne, who was asked to leave the Hollybush, is also said to have written a letter to Parliament while at the pub and to have told a member of staff, "there is a lot of raping and pillaging out there". Darren Osborne, 48, is accused of driving a hired van into a crowd of worshippers as they left the mosque during Ramadan The court earlier heard that searches for Britain First leader Paul Golding, his deputy Jayda Fransen, and EDL's Mr Robinson were carried out just hours after the London Bridge terror attack on devices later seized from Osborne's family home. Eight people died in the June knife and van atrocity, which came a few weeks after 22 died when Salman Abedi bombed the Manchester Arena in May. The court was told that analysis of the iPad and two iPhones also revealed searches about bringing back capital punishment and about Islamic State supporters said to be celebrating the Manchester attack. Internet history showed that Infowars, described as a "conspiracy theorist and fake news website", was also accessed. An email message from Mr Robinson's account was also captured in a screenshot on one device on June 9. It read: "What Salman Abedi did is not the beginning and it won't be the end. "There is a nation within a nation forming just beneath the surface of the UK. "It is a nation built on hatred, on violence and on Islam." Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC said it was not suggested the message was sent directly from Mr Robinson. Just over a week later, Osborne is accused of travelling to London and deliberately ploughing into Makram Ali, 51, and nine other people on a crowded pavement in the Finsbury Park area. Mr Rees told the jury on Monday that the "act of extreme violence" was considered by the prosecution to be a terrorist attack. His estranged partner Sarah Andrews described him as a "total loner" who became "brainwashed" in a matter of weeks after watching a television drama about the Rochdale grooming sex scandal. He had become "obsessed" with Muslims in the weeks before the attack after watching BBC programme Three Girls, based on testimony from victims of the Rochdale grooming gangs, she said. Osborne denies the murder of Mr Ali and attempted murder of "persons at the junction of Seven Sisters Road and Whadcoat Street, London". The trial continues. The biggest ever crackdown on knife crime is to be launched next month following a rise in fatal stabbings in London. Nearly 40 police forces will take part in an Operation Sceptre week of action from February 12 to 18. Hundreds of police officers and trading standards officials will carry out intelligence-led weapon sweeps, stop and search operations and test purchases. Knife amnesties will be held using surrender bins and police will go into schools to speak to children. Home Office minister Victoria Atkins said: I want Operation Sceptre to continue to grow in its scale and its level of ambition, with more knife sweeps, more checks on retailers and more dangerous weapons taken off our streets. A senior Met officer urged the courts and prisons to help tackle Londons knife crime crisis. Assistant commissioner Martin Hewitt said on Sky News: Our officers are putting an enormous effort into operational activity to try to deal with this problem and that needs to be followed through in the courts. Scotland Yard has revealed some of the deadly weapons found in searches of estates and parks as police step up the war on knife crime in London. The blades were hidden by gangs and discovered in 1,094 searches over four days of action last week, carried out by police and members of local communities. T he former chief of a Kentucky police department allegedly told a new recruit to shoot black teenagers who he caught smoking marijuana. Todd Shaw, 50, was law enforcement veteran with nearly 30 years of experience before he was sacked over the messages in November, according to The Guardian. Court documents showed Mr Shaw responded to a new recruit's queries on police conduct with the words "F*** the right thing. If black shoot them", the newspaper said. The messages were allegedly exchanged with an unnamed recruit in the Louisville Metropolitan Police Department, where Shaw worked from 1995 to 2009. In the same exchange, the recruit asked what to do with the teen's parents in such a scenario. Mr Shaw is said to have replied: "If mom is hot then f*** her. If dad is hot then handcuff him and make him suck my d***. "Unless daddy is black. Then shoot him." Jefferson County attorney Mike O'Connell, whose office uncovered the messages, told The Guardian: "Any individual who shares such blatant racist views should not be given a badge, a gun and a position of authority. This type of bias from one officer gives a black eye to the countless policemen and women who do great work in our community each day. T ory politicians today urged police to look again at outstanding allegations against black cab rapist John Worboys before he is released from prison. London Assembly member Shaun Bailey, a former adviser to David Cameron, warned that the police would lose public confidence unless they revisited the claims. He was backed by MP Zac Goldsmith, who said the Crown Prosecution Services decision to take only 23 out of 93 allegations to court had been a misjudgement. Meanwhile it emerged that Worboys has been moved to a prison in the capital where most of his attacks on women took place. The Sun reported he was secretly driven to Belmarsh prison in Thamesmead from HMP Wakefield over the weekend ahead of his impending release on parole. John Worboys: The sex offender is to be freed from jail / PA Victims have called for Worboys, who was jailed in 2009 for 19 offences against 12 victims, including rape and sexual assault, to be banned from London. Boris Johnson, Sadiq Khan and Mr Goldsmith have urged the Parole Board to set the tightest conditions for his release to keep him from the capital. Police believe he had more than 100 victims. Worboys, who preyed on women while working as a cab driver, will be held at Belmarsh before being found temporary accommodation at a probation hostel. In a letter to Met Commissioner Cressida Dick, Mr Bailey demanded the police look again at some of the allegations against Worboys that were not brought to trial. It is understood the CPS felt they had enough evidence on the first 23 charges to put the rapist away for the maximum possible sentence. He was given an indeterminate sentence for public protection, but is eligible for release having served just nine years. Mr Bailey said: It is frankly staggering that such a prolific serial rapist could be released from prison after less than a decade in prison. As it stands, the Met is refusing to re-examine dozens of outstanding allegations from victims who never had their day in court. I am calling on the Commissioner to make public the rationale for only taking 23 of the original 93 allegations forward. The Met is at risk of seriously undermining public confidence unless it fully explores every possible avenue to keep this monster behind bars. A leading engineering organisation has called for more research to be done on the effects of commuters breathing in dust on the London Underground. The Institution of Mechanical Engineers called for "urgent action" to tackle the capital's "dangerous" levels of air pollution, including blackspots on the Tube network. Commuters on the Bakerloo and Victoria lines were found to be at greatest risk of exposure to "airborne respirable dust". The report said that although all platforms analysed were below the long-term workplace limit, "the impact and level of poor air quality is not well understood" and suggested more work be done to understand its effects. The Victoria line was among the most heavily polluted / Getty Images Specifically, it calls for the introduction of a national monitoring system to record all types of pollution, financial incentives for "cleaner" technologies, and the total electrification of rail links between the UK's major cities. Tests on the District, Jubilee, Piccadilly, Victoria Bakerloo, Central, Northern, Circle and Hammersmith & City lines found they were all below the technical workplace exposure limit of 4mg/m3 for respirable dust. TfL acknowledged the results nonetheless "raised concerns" and said it is now working with COMEAP (the Committee on the Medical Effects of Air Pollutants) to minimise health implications for workers and passengers. The Institute's report also claims the capital's commuters face the greatest exposure to dangerous pollution during rush hour - with concentrations of pollutants anywhere between 13 and 43 per cent higher than the early afternoon and evening. It also found that Paddington station is in breach of European limits of nitrogen oxide (NOx). A comprehensive study of British air pollution, the report calls for an update to the 1956 Clean Air Act, introduced in response to the Great Smog, to combat modern day emissions. It says that although road transportation accounts for the vast majority of pollution, the Underground's electric trains still promote the spread of dangerous air pollutants, largely due to a lack of ventilation. The lowest pollution readings were found on trains on the District, Hammersmith & City and Circle lines. Philippa Oldham, lead author of the report, said: London is currently ranked as 15th out of 36 major global cities in terms of overall air quality, lagging behind other European cities such as Berlin and Vienna. "The capital needs to prioritise this issue and create a modern Clean Air Act that takes a holistic approach; it must not just target individual sectors, but encourage everyone to play a role in reducing emissions. The report recommends the Government and rail industry work together to "develop incentives for cleaner technologies" and conduct trials to "understand the impact on the individual of exposure to pollutants". Research recently published in The Lancet Planetary Health claimed air quality alerts used in London by Sadiq Khan were "inadequate" in protecting public health. It said tackling filthy air was best addressed by enforceable laws on cleaner fuel and emissions and by targeting polluting industries rather than leaving people to protect themselves. A spokesperson for the Mayor of London said: The Mayor is doing everything in his power to clean up Londons toxic air, including getting the dirtiest vehicles off our roads, cleaning up our buses and investing record sums in tackling air quality. "He has instructed TFL to deliver a new Underground air quality programme using deep cleaning and enhanced monitoring. Trials at over 40 of the worst stations and tunnels resulted in pollution levels falling by up to 40 per cent on days when deep cleaning was used. "This scheme is part of a package of wider measures TfL is rolling out to help ensure Tube staff and passengers on the Underground breathe the cleanest air possible. However to tackle this problem once and for all the Government need to wake up to the scale of the toxic air pollution health crisis and deliver greater funding for London and a new Clean Air Act that is fit for purpose. Experts claimed that while such alerts could be responsible for a 25 per cent reduction in asthma-related A&E admissions, there was little evidence they reduced admissions for cardiovascular disease, or deaths from cardiovascular or respiratory disease. On the report's findings about the dangerous levels of NOx at Paddington, a Network Rail spokesman said: "Network Rail is working hard to improve the environment for both passengers and staff at its stations, including London Paddington. "Electrification of the Great Western main line from Paddington to Bristol and Cardiff is well on its way with the route out to Didcot now complete and local services already switched to this greener mode of transport." Responding to calls for its involvement in developing new incentives, a Government spokeswoman said: Air pollution has improved significantly since 2010, but we recognise there is more to do which is why we have put in place a 3.5billion plan to improve air quality and reduce harmful emissions. "We will also end the sale of conventional new diesel and petrol cars and vans by 2040, and this year we will publish a comprehensive clean air strategy which will set out further steps to tackle air pollution. Jill Collis, Director of Health, Safety and Environment for London Underground, told the Standard: We are committed to doing everything we can to make sure our staff and customers breathe the cleanest air possible when using the Tube and thats why we recently launched a new Underground air quality programme to ensure dust and particles are kept to an absolute minimum. "We closely monitor pollution levels on the Tube and, through a wide range of measures, ensure that particle levels are well within Health & Safety Executive guidelines. H ouse prices in one of the capitals most sought-after areas are plummeting amid uncertainty over Brexit, experts have said. According to top property company Savills, the demand for homes in upmarket areas of Fulham dropped 14.4 per cent in the period between January 2014 and December last year. Less foreign nationals are snapping up homes due to job fears surrounding Brexit, experts said. Frances Clacy, residential property analyst at Savills, told the Standard that despite the area being home to the popular Lycee Francais Charles de Gaulle primary school, French nationals now appear wary of buying in the area. She said: The area is always popular because of the Lycee but it does appear uncertainty over the stability of jobs after Brexit could put people off. Property prices in Fulham now almost match those in areas including Clapham and Battersea. Overall, the area that runs from Battersea, through Clapham and Wandsworth towards Fulham, Barnes and Richmond saw property prices fall 4.2 per cent last year. The average price of a property in Fulham now stands at 890 per square foot compared to 1,000 per square foot in 2013. Extraordinary Knightsbridge 'micro-penthouse' 1 /5 Extraordinary Knightsbridge 'micro-penthouse' The extraordinary Knightsbridge 'micro-penthouse' believed to be the smallest in London is on the market for 400,000 Specialist design: a sofa bed takes up the whole sitting area when extended The kitchenette of the apartment on the 10th floor of a block in Brompton Road opposite Harrods The tiny studio flat is perched on the 10th storey of a block in Brompton Road opposite Harrods The extraordinary Knightsbridge 'micro-penthouse' believed to be the smallest in London is on the market for 400,000 Battersea prices now stand above Fulham at 910 per square foot while properties in neighbouring Chelsea sell for 1,600 per square foot on average, according to Savills. In previous years Fulham was deemed to be comparable to prime areas of central London including Knightsbridge. The Financial Times reported an increasing trend in homeowners in the area carrying out renovations rather than moving up the property ladder. Head of residential research at the company Lucian Cook said buyers wish to spend money on pricey properties was weaker as Britain prepared to leave the EU. Mr Cook said: A backdrop of political and economic uncertainty means the market will remain highly discretionary, while the high tax environment means that even international buyers remain reluctant to take advantage of the currency play. Our forecasts anticipate it will be two years before we see a bounce in values. In September last year the Standard reported that the average price of a home in the capital dropped 0.6 per cent year-on-year to 471,761, according to figures from the Nationwide building society. T housands of mobile mini-masts are to be attached to lamp-posts all over London in a huge push to make the capital the most advanced hot-spot city in the Western world. The brick-sized devices miniaturised versions of the tall masts that currently deliver mobile signals will support the next generation of super high speed 5G networks in the early 2020s. The initiative comes after criticism that London was falling behind other cities, even within the UK, with large areas of the capital digital deserts. City Hall hopes the network of up to 500,000 small cells will help London to leapfrog rivals such as New York and Paris and rank alongside the most technologically advanced cities of Asia. The ambition is to make London Europes biggest gigabit city ultimately giving speeds of 1,000 megabits per second fast enough to download an entire HD movie in seven seconds. As well as lamp-posts, the mini-masts could be installed on any publicly owned structure, from council tower blocks to hospitals, schools and GP surgeries. Londons chief digital officer Theo Blackwell, appointed by Sadiq Khan last August, said the investment was essential to prepare London for the increasing demands for instant internet access from consumers and businesses. Regulator Ofcom has estimated there will be 156 million connected smartphones, tablets and other devices being used in the UK by 2024, with at least 30 million likely to be in London. The extraordinary popularity of streaming services such as Netflix has also placed massive pressure on Londons digital infrastructure that only 5G which is 40 times faster than 4G will be able to cope with. As well as the mini-masts, other elements of the blueprint include bringing a 4G mobile signal to Underground tunnels by the end of 2019 and creating a new high speed fibre optic network using the Tube network as a spine. Transport for London today bid for Government funding for the fibre optic investment alongside the GLA and town halls. On Tuesday, the Mayor launched a major listening exercise, asking the capitals huge tech sector what it needs to see to make London the worlds smartest city. The initiative follows damning criticism last June in a report from the London Assemblys Regeneration Committee on Digital Connectivity in London that said that the capital lacked a clear and ambitious vision and lagged behind York, Coventry and Edinburgh, which already enjoy gigabit download and upload speeds for their broadband . Rotherhithe was singled out by the committee as one of the slowest spots, with its ageing copper telephone wires failing to support high-band width demands. Mr Blackwell said: The Mayors ambition is for London to be a pioneering smart city with world-class digital connectivity for Londoners. A first step would be to use the huge range of street furniture, buildings and other assets in the capital to host the infrastructure to enable this. L AST year it was announced that Dame Vivienne Westwood, below left, would be getting the film treatment, with director Lorna Tucker, below right, following her around for a fly-on-the-wall documentary. But the anarchic fashion designer has now decided that Tucker didnt get her best side. The British fashion house posted a statement on Twitter over the weekend. The Vivienne Westwood documentary set for release this year, Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist, has been made and produced by a third party and as it stands is not endorsed by Vivienne Westwood, it reads. Lorna Tucker asked to film Viviennes activism and followed her around for a couple of years but theres not even five minutes of activism in the film. Instead theres lots of old fashion footage, which is free and available to view online. Its a shame because the film is mediocre, and Vivienne and Andreas [Westwoods partner] are not. Westwood is particularly proud of her activism she is an outspoken voice on climate change and fracking. But Tucker evidently was going for a wider scope: With exclusive, unprecedented access, the films official synopsis reads, Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist is the first film to encompass the remarkable story of Viviennes life, her fashion, her personality, her activism and her cultural importance. Tucker has worked with the brand, among others, on short films after seeing the industry first-hand as a model: she was scouted while a homeless teenager. The Londoner tried to contact a representative of Tucker this morning but has yet to hear back. The Westwood film is on the official selection for the Sundance Film Festival. Well see if audiences agree with Dame Vivs opinion. --- A social media blip from the TaxPayers Alliance, which is so looking forward to Davos 2018 that its looking back at last years highlights. Yesterday it tweeted a throwback: As the Prime Minister and shadow chancellor jet off to Davos, lets hope they can pick up some pearls of wisdom like this one, read the post, above a photograph of Kevin Spacey and an extract from his speech last year in which he said: Acting is a human profession; Im forced, by the nature of my job, to be somebody else. The TPA must not have picked up a newspaper in the past 12 months. Curtain up for a new Theatre Royal WE HEAR that one of Londons most iconic buildings is going up for sale. The Theatre Royal Haymarket, Grade I-listed and the third oldest theatre in London, has been the setting for plays starring everyone from Henry Fielding to Judi Dench. The Londoner was particularly taken with Pixie Lotts turn in Breakfast at Tiffanys at the theatre last year. The lease from the Crown Estate is owned by a company set up in the name of long-time Theatre Royal impresario Louis Michaels. Given the length of time left on it, its likely to fetch millions. Watch this space. Quote of the day Inspirational quotes: Henry Bolton (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images) / Getty Images In a single phrase, it is time to drain the swamp. Henry Bolton, the Ukip leader who announced yesterday that he wont resign, borrows one of Donald Trumps key lines. That bodes well. Pammy puts up a fight for the fourth estate On the frontline: Pamela Anderson THE Londoner was at the Frontline Club for the event Women, Whistleblowing, WikiLeaks compered by actress-turned-activist Pamela Anderson. The former Baywatch star chaired a discussion with WikiLeaks Sarah Harrison, Guatemalan human rights lawyer Renata Avila and German theatre director Angela Richter. The fourth estate didnt get a ringing endorsement from many of the panellists but we were pleased to hear Anderson fight our corner. I love the Evening Standard, she told The Londoner at the clubs bar afterwards. The feeling is mutual. --- RICHARD Curtis has long made west London look luminous in his films, which include Notting Hill and Love Actually. Now hes continuing the job off camera. A planning application has been posted in a well-heeled part of Ladbroke Grove with a Mr Curtis listed as the applicant. It is thought to be the writer. The application proposes a set of new windows and doors, plus a new conservatory. Presumably hes hoping for a bit more light, actually. Farron: the lads pin-up EVER since resigning as Liberal Democrat leader, Tim Farron has struggled with his public profile. He has reneged on statements he made about gay sex, for one, but now it seems his career might have taken him to a stranger place still: Australia. His image was used on news website LADbible Australia to illustrate an item about the dangers of energy drinks for young people. In the picture Farron was sipping a Red Bull while looking particularly youthful. The unexpected star was spotted by Lib Dem member Brian Stokes on Twitter, but it came as a relief for Farron. To be honest its just nice to have a picture of me on social media with a drink that isnt milk, he tweeted. Perhaps he can use his newfound energy for another U-turn. Farron the Brexiteer, anyone? --- Rivalry of the day: Cambridge alumnus Stephen Fry has tweeted that he was pleased to meet Oxford undergrad Malala Yousafzai. Shame about her choice of university, he wrote, but every diamond has one small flaw. Tweet of the day FT's Leo Lewis explains the WEF to the unititiated Gavin and his new furry friends B oris Johnson is reportedly set to demand 100 million extra a week for the NHS after Brexit. The Foreign Secretary made clear last week he thinks the health service should be "at the very top of the list" when the UK "takes back control" of money which is currently being sent to Brussels. Britain is expected to keep paying into the EU budget until the end of a post-Brexit transition period in around 2021, and Mr Johnson has insisted the Government will save hundreds of millions of pounds afterwards. He is set to use Tuesday's Cabinet meeting, when Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt will update ministers on the NHS winter crisis, to demand around 5 billion a year extra for the health service, it is understood. Mr Johnson was rebuked last week after he said the Leave campaign underestimated when it claimed Brexit would allow an extra 350 million to be spent on the NHS weekly. Leading health expert Professor Sir Michael Marmot said the Brexit campaign's highly controversial claim has already been confirmed "a lie". Chancellor Philip Hammond used his autumn Budget to commit 2.8 billion extra to the NHS in England. But the Foreign Secretary's move comes as Tories complain about a lack of boldness from Theresa May's Government amid the electoral threat of Jeremy Corbyn's radical Labour. Sir Nicholas Soames is the latest Tory backbencher to voice unease about the style of the Prime Minister's administration, after former minister Nick Boles warned of "timidity and lack of ambition". Using one of the extended hashtags which have become his social media trademark, Sir Nicholas asked: "Where's the bold and brave? So far, it's dull, dull, dull." "It really won't be enough to get people to vote against The Corbini," warned Sir Nicholas. "They must have really sound reasons to vote Conservative. We really need to get on with this. #wherestheboldandbravesofaritsdulldulldull." Sir Nicholas's comments came just days after Mr Boles warned the PM it was "time to raise your game" and claimed her Government "constantly disappoints". Asked about the concerns expressed by Mr Boles and Sir Nicholas, Mrs May's official spokesman said on Monday: "If you look at action taken by the Government in recent months, you can see it is getting on with the job of building a stronger economy and a fairer society that works for everyone." He cited cuts in stamp duty for first-time buyers, the launch of a 25-year environment plan and an industrial strategy, plans for an energy price cap, the recently published race disparity audit and the injection of money into health, social care and schools. T he Internet has reduced the number of violent attacks against sex workers and has made the job more safe, a new study has shown. Participants who were surveyed said that the Internet provided them with more safety precautions in their line of work. Sex workers said that conducting business online allowed them more control over their career with 85 per cent said they used the Internet to screen potential clients. They reported that online forums provide sex workers with a platform to discuss safety concerns with peers. The research conducted by academics at the universities of Leicester and Strathclyde, reported that only 5 per cent of the 641 sex workers interviewed had experienced physical assault in the past year. Teela Sanders, professor of criminology told BBC Radio 4s Today programme that one of the really interesting findings is that the types of crimes that sex workers are experiencing have changed. So there was a much lower incidence of violent crime, sexual and physical assault than in other studies. But there was high levels of digitally facilitated crimes harassment by email and and text, for example. Participants who were interviewed for the study reported that online peer forums were a good resource for workers to access safety alerts and other business-related information. Milena, 32, who is also an independent escort and provides BDSM services, said the forums were good for talking to other workers about safety concerns. She said: girls are very open because obviously we started talking about the safety from the very get-go If you didnt have that Internet everything would have been underground and everybody would be scared. Among the participants the main safety precaution taken to protect online identity was to use a different name, 91 per cent said they used a pseudonym when talking to clients. More than 70 per cent said they would not give out personal details online. An organisation called National Ugly Mugs allows sex workers to check phone numbers to see if a potential client has been reported. Of the participants surveyed, 33 per cent said that they used the organisation to do background checks on their clients. The vast majority of sex workers surveyed were well educated. More than a fifth had a degree and 14.4 per cent had a post graduate qualification. The sex workers reported rarely feeling stressed at work and more than half said that they thought they were well paid. According to the Associated Press, a dispatcher at the Kodiak police department answered a call to a reporter saying, "If this about the tsunami, you need to get to higher ground immediately." People reported on social media that the quake was felt hundreds of miles away, in Anchorage, Alaska's largest city. Social media posts showed people gathering in an emergency muster centre in Tofino, on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Keith Perkins, who lives in the southeast Alaska community of Sitka, said an alarm on his phone alerted him of the tsunami warning early on Tuesday morning before he arrived at school. He says the city's sirens also went off later. He said people on Facebook were chattering back and forth about whether this was real or not and what they should do. Given the magnitude of the earthquake, Perkins said he thought it best to head to school, the tsunami evacuation point, even though in the past he felt his home was at a "high-enough spot." A tsunami alert has been issued after an 7.9-magnitude earthquake hit off the coast of Alaska in the US. Residents were warned to seek higher ground as authorities said they did not know how high the tsunami could be when it hits land. The warning was issued for parts of Alaska and Canada after the quake hit some 300km south-east of the Kodiak community at a depth of 10km, the US Geological Survey said. An advisory remained in effect for a small part of the state of Alaska later on. Watches were cancelled for Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii. Officials in Japan also said there was no tsunami threat there. The earthquake hit at about 9.30am UK time (12.30am in Alaska). About two hours after the quake, the city of Kodiak, which was projected to see the first wave at about 1:45 a.m., still had no reports of a wave hitting. Loading.... Witnesses reported hearing tsunami sirens in the Kodiak community in Alaska and tremors from the quake felt on the Kenai Peninsula and south-east Alaska. Kylie, a Kodiak resident, shared video footage of the tsunami sirens playing as people were urged to get to higher ground. She tweeted: Tsunami sirens going off in Kodiak after the earthquake, I usually only ever hear the weekly siren test at 2pm on Wednesdays so hearing it at 1am on Tuesday is actually terrifying! A buoy off the coast of Alaska is said to have risen 32 feet (9.7m) after the earthquake hit, according to a US weatherman's report. The Anchorage Office of Emergency Management said in a warning for Alaska and British Columbia: "If you are located in this coastal area, move inland to higher ground. Tsunami warnings mean that a tsunami with significant inundation is possible or is already occurring." "Based on all available data a tsunami may have been generated by this earthquake that could be destructive on coastal areas even far from the epicentre," the Pacific Tsunami Warning Centre said. F rance today stepped up its recruitment of hundreds more customs officers ahead of Brexit. Adverts to fast-track the hiring of an extra 95 border officials were put on the French Customs website, bringing to 250 the number of additional British-focused staff it is seeking to recruit in 2018. Ahead of French president Emmanuel Macrons visit to the UK last week, The Standard revealed a split between France and Britain over the future of the border. The UK is seeking a system-based technological solution, with advance declaration of goods, to make trade and passengers flow as smoothly as possible. But there are concerns at the heart of government that the French will instead opt for a manpower response with the deployment of hundreds more customs officials and that extra checks will cause delays to lorries, cars and pedestrians crossing the Channel. French president Emmanuel Macron met Theresa May last week / AP A senior source within Mr Macrons ruling party confirmed plans were well under way to flood Calais with more customs and security guards. The French authorities are taking swift action to prepare for a possible return to customs checks on UK trade, especially given that the proposed new British hi-tech border system could take three years to fully implement. The deadline to apply for some 35 clearance officer jobs at Charles de Gaulle airport outside Paris is February 23, showing how pressing the need for new staff may be as the clock ticks towards Britains March 2019 departure date. Other hires will be made near Calais in northern France, near Metz in the east, and in Normandy. Rodolphe Gintz, the head of French customs, said the staffing would be recruited under a special fast-track process. Some 250 new customs officers will be hired this year to deal with Brexit, including by competitive exam as is traditional, with more expected next year, he added. Tory MP Bob Neill, joint chairman of the all-party parliamentary group on France, said: The French approach is a mistake. Its an old-fashioned way of thinking. He believes it shows that public sector unions in France still wield too much power, adding: Britain will continue to push for a modern, 21st-century solution. Macron says 'special' UK deal possible Meanwhile, Chancellor Philip Hammond acknowledged that uncertainty about the UKs future direction after Brexit is having an impact on the countrys economic outlook. Ahead of a meeting of finance ministers in Brussels, Mr Hammond said: Because of the negotiations that are going on theres a degree of uncertainty about our future direction and our future arrangements for trading with our European partners and thats bound to have an impact on thinking about the economy. The sooner we can generate certainty, the better, and thats why we are keen to build on the momentum that we generated in December and get the negotiations moving forward. There is also major uncertainty over the future of the Citys relations with the EU, with the Financial Times reporting that a paper setting out the Governments trade goals for financial services may never be published. Catherine McGuinness, from the City of London Corporation, said: It has always been our expectation there would be a position paper. When so many other sectors and issues have been given this clarity, the City is left in the dark. Elsewhere, former chancellor Lord Lawson of Blaby claimed civil servants would try and frustrate Brexit, because the idea that any bureaucrat could be in favour of radical change is a nonsense. C CTV footage has emerged which appears to show children escaping from the 'house of horrors' in California where they were allegedly shacked to beds and tortured by their parents. The footage, taken from a camera across the street from the house of horrors where they are alleged to have been imprisoned, shows the family filing out of the building. The children can be seen dashing out of the house in Perris one after the other. The video shows some of the older kids appearing to carry younger siblings into a van parked on the driveway. It is not known whether the footage was taken before or after their parents, David and Louise Turpin, were arrested suspicion of child endangerment and torture. The family pictured at David and Louise Turpin's wedding vow renewals in Las Vegas The pair were detained by officials after their 17-year-old daughter raised the alarm and led police to the home, where they discovered 12 other siblings living in squalid conditions. David and Louise Turpin Authorities have since claimed that the 13 kids aged between two and 29 were confined to the house and chained to furniture. Turpin parents plead not guilty to child torture and abuse charges Police said they were not given food and not allowed to use the toilet at times. Some of them did not know what a police officer was. The family seen in Dr Seuss-style shirts in a group photo which appears to have been taken in April 2016 / Facebook David, 57, and Louise, 49, were charged with carrying out years of torture and abuse that left their children malnourished, undersized and with cognitive impairments. Mr Turpin, who previously had a 100,000-a-year job as an engineer, is also charged with one count of a lewd act against a child under 14. Media report from 160 Muir Woods Road in Perris, California, / AFP/Getty Images They both pleaded not guilty in Riverside County, California, to all counts of torture, child abuse and false imprisonment. After the parents were arrested, shocked residents of the neighbourhood recalled how the children were often kept indoors. Court: The Turping pleaded not guilty / Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times via AP And a former neighbour of the family, from when they lived in Rio Vista, Texas, told the Los Angeles Times that the Turpins never socialized and rarely left their house. E mmanuel Macron has been praised for creating a new dawn in France by the boss of US finance giant Goldman Sachs. Lloyd Blankfeins remarks gave the French president another boost as he prepared to join the worlds political and business elite at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Mr Macron flies to the Swiss ski resort tomorrow where his keynote speech is expected to draw a big audience. Despite being offered a one-to-one meeting with Donald Trump, he will reportedly leave before the US presidents closing speech on Friday, leading to speculation about a snub. Arrivals at Davos were disrupted this morning by record snowfalls. President Trump has been warned that his armoured helicopters might not be allowed in because they could trigger an avalanche. Mr Macron built up expectations for his own arrival with a much-publicised summit of 140 global CEOs in the Palace of Versailles where he showcased investments worth more than 2 billion. Mr Blankfein tweeted afterwards: Great meeting ... Big effort sincere and effective. Feels like a new day has dawned in France. Actress Cate Blanchett was today giving a keynote address on the refugee crisis, after an opening speech by Indian premier Narendra Modi. Ms Blanchett and Sir Elton John were honoured in the alpine resort last night for raising awareness about human rights issues. Theresa May will speak on Thursday, and Labours shadow chancellor John McDonnell on Friday. T he Governor of Hawaii delayed telling the public that a widespread missile alert was a false alarm because "he didn't know his Twitter password". David Ige told reporters "part of the delay in notifying the public that the...missile alert was a false alarm was because he did not know his Twitter password," according to the Honolulu Star-Advertiser. Locals and tourists alike were left terrified on January 13 after a false alarm sent directly to their phones warned them: "This is not a drill." An "emergency alert" sent to people all over the US island state read: "Ballistic missile threat inbound to Hawaii. Seek immediate shelter. This is not a drill." Reports on social media claim sirens sounded across the island as panicked residents sought shelter amid the confusion. A spokesman for the Hawaii Emergency Managment Agency told NBC News there was "no missile threat to Hawaii". Commentators say the false alarm did little to stem local fears of a missile attack. In December, Hawaii reinstated its siren warning system designed to alert residents of an impending nuclear attack after North Korea successfully tested a new intercontinental missile. T he proposed 11.7 billion takeover of Sky by 21st Century Fox is not in the public interest, the UK's Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has said. Officials claimed the merger would give Fox too much control over Britiains news media. The CMA said if Rupert Murdoch-owned Fox's plan to take full control of Sky went ahead, it was "likely to operate against the public interest". However, the watchdog added despite concerns over media plurality, the takeover would not impact on broadcasting standards. Three proposals have now been put forward to tackle the concerns. One would see the deal blocked completely, another would see a spin-off of Sky News created and a third would see regulations put in place to protect the news channel from direct influence of the Murdoch Family Trust. Disney has agreed to buy most of Fox's business, so may end up owning Sky. Disney's proposed takeover, which still has to be approved by US regulators, includes Fox's current 39 per cent stake in Sky. And if the Sky-Fox deal does finally go through, the whole of Sky would be likely to transfer to Disney's ownership. Anne Lambert, chairwoman of the CMA's independent investigation group, said: "Media plurality goes to the heart of our democratic process. It is very important that no group or individual should have too much control of our news media or too much power to affect the political agenda. "We have provisionally found that if the Fox/Sky merger went ahead as proposed, it would be against the public interest. It would result in the Murdoch family having too much control over news providers in the UK, and too much influence over public opinion and the political agenda." Fox said it was "disappointed" at the provisional ruling. The company said it will push ahead with talks with the CMA ahead of the publication of its final report, which has now been put back to May 1. It added it still expects regulatory approval of the deal by June 30. M elania Trump will not accompany President Trump on his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos later this week, it has emerged. The First Lady of the US was due to travel with her husband to the annual conference, where the President is due to make an address to world leaders. But, according to CNN, she has changed her plans due to scheduling and logistical issues. Mrs Trumps communications director Stephanie Grisham previously announced the First Lady would be attending the event to support the President. Change of plans: The First Lady will no longer accompany her husband / AFP/Getty Images But Ms Grisham confirmed to the US news site that her plans had now changed. The Presidents attendance in Davos looked likely to go ahead today after a halt to the US government shutdown. Congress voted through a funding bill on Monday evening meaning the President could press ahead with plans to travel to the event in the Swiss Alps later in the week. Mr Trump tweeted: "Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown. Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security. Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table!" He is due to make a speech on the final day of the conference on Friday. UK and US emphasise 'special relationship' despite rumours of friction Press secretary Sarah Sanders said Trumps high profile delegation was due to leave ahead of him on Tuesday. Mrs Trump spent the weekend at the Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida where her husband was celebrating his first year in office, but she was not pictured with him at either of his celebratory dinners. Melania Trump - In pictures 1 /30 Melania Trump - In pictures Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, flanked by wife Melania Timothy A. Clary/AFP/Getty Images President-elect Donald Trump, left, kisses his wife Melania during an election night rally Evan Vucci/AP Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and his wife Melania Trump vote at PS 59 in New York, New York on 08 November 8, 2016 Carlo Allegri/Reuters Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump (C) walks off stage as (L-R) Eric Trump, Lara Yunaska, Vanessa Trump, Melania Trump, businessman Jared Kushner, Ivanka Trump, Vanessa Trump look on after the third U.S. presidential debate at the Thomas & Mack Center on 19 October 2016 in Las Vegas, Nevada Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Melania (L) and Ivanka (C) Trump sit next to Republican vice presidential nominee Governor Mike Pence (R) ahead of the start of the first debate between Republican U.S. presidential nominee Donald Trump and Democratic U.S. presidential nominee Hillary Clinton at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York ON 26 September 2016. Joe Raedle/Pool/Reuters Melania Trump sits down with CNN television host Anderson Cooper during an exclusive interview in New York to be aired on 17 October 2016 CNN Melania Trump defends husband Donald Trump in the interview with CNN CNN Melania Trump, Ivanka Trump, and Republican vice presidential nominee Mike Pence are seen in the audience of the first presidential debate at Hofstra University in Hempstead, New York on 26 September 2016 Mandel NganAFP/Getty Images Model Melania Trump wife of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump walks on stage to deliver a speech at the Main Line Sports Center in Berwyn, USA on 03 November 2016 Patrick Semansky/AP Melania Trump, wife of Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, delivers a speech on the first day of the Republican National Convention on 18 July 2016 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Melania Trump, wife of Donald Trump takes the stage after her introduction at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, America. Jim Young/Reuters Melania Trump kisses her husband and Presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, after delivering a speech on the first day of the Republican National Convention on 18 July 2016 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump and his wife Melania greet reporters in the spin room following a debate sponsored by Fox News at the Fox Theatre on 03 March 2016 in Detroit, Michigan Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Melania Trump, wife of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, stands on stage following the Republican presidential debate at St. Anselm College 06 February 2016 in Manchester, New Hampshire Joe Raedle/Getty Images Donald Trump, Barron Trump and Melania Trump attends Trump Invitational Grand Prix Mar-a-Lago Club at The Mar-a-Largo Club on 04 January 2015 in Palm Beach, Florida Getty Images Melania Trump attends The New York Ball: The 20th Anniversary Benefit For The European School Of Economics at Trump Tower on 19 November 2014 in New York Jamie McCarthy/Getty Imagess Donald Trump (L) and Melania Trump attend Central Park Horse Show presented by Rolex and produced by Chronicle of the Horse where Land Rover was the official vehicle on 18 September 2014 in New York City Eugene Gologursky/Getty Images Donald Trump and Melania Trump attend the "Schiaparelli And Prada: Impossible Conversations" Costume Institute Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art on 07 May 2012 in New York City Larry Busacca/Getty Images Donald Trump and wife Melania Trump arrive at the Vanity Fair Oscar party hosted by Graydon Carter held at Sunset Tower on 27 February 2011 in West Hollywood, California Craig Barritt/Getty Images Melania Trump attends the "Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty" Costume Institute Gala at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on 02 May 2011 in New York City Larry Busacca/Getty Images Melania Trump attends "Sex And The City 2" Premiere presented by Mercedes-Benz And Maybach at Radio City Music Hall on 24 May 2010 in New York City Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images Donald Trump and Melania Trump attend the Michael Kors Spring 2011 fashion show during Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at The Theater at Lincoln Center on 15 September 2010 in New York City Michael Loccisano/Getty Images Donald Trump, billionaire developer and producer of NBC's "The Apprentice," with his wife, Melania, and their son, Barron, pose for a photo after he was given a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles in 2007 Damian Dovarganes/AP elevision personality Donald Trump's wife Melania Trump arrives at the 13th Annual Elton John Aids Foundation Academy Awards Viewing Party at the Pacific Design Center on 27 February 2005 in Los Angeles, California Getty Images Real estate mogul Donald Trump's fiancee Melinia Knauss walks out of the Episcopal Church of Bethesda by the Sea, after her wedding rehearsal on Friday 21 January 2005 in West Palm Beach, Florida Alan Diaz/AP Melania Trump Donald Trump and Melania Knauss wedding, The Episcopal Church of Bethesda by-the-Sea, Palm Beach, Florida, on 22 Jan 2005 Jeffrey Langlois/PB Daily News/Palm Beach Daily News/Rex Playmate Victoria Silvstedt, Donald Trump and Melania Knauss at the Playboy 50th Anniversary celebration 04 December 2003 in New York Peter Kramer/Getty Images Donald Trump and Melanie Knauss arrive for VH1's Divas Live concert at the Beacon Theater in New York City on 13 April 13 1999 Diane Freed/Getty Images Melanie Knauss arrives for an event in New York City in the 1990's Diane Freed/Getty Images This picture provided by courtesy of Nena Bedek and taken in 1977 in Radenci, northeastern Slovenia, shows Slovenian-American former model and Donald Trump's wife Melania Trump (born Melanija Knavs)(2nd right) as a child, together with Nena Bedek (right), attending a fashion review of Jutranjka, the textile company where her mother used to work AFP/Getty Images She marked the one-year anniversary by tweeting an image of herself, her arm linked with a military escort, at Trump's inaugural swearing-in ceremony, saying the past year had been filled with "many wonderful moments". The President has been recently dogged by reports, published in January, that his lawyer paid off porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016 to cover up an affair. The affair was alleged to have taken place when during his marriage to Mrs Trump. The Wall Street Journal claimed Trumps lawyer paid the star, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, $130,000 a month before the 2016 election as part of an agreement that she would keep quiet about the liaison. D ermot OLeary has revealed that Prince William asked him for a Dermot hug when the pair met last year. The unusual request came as OLeary queued along with Louis Walsh and Nicole Scherzinger to meet the Duke of Cambridge at the 2017 Pride of Britain Awards. OLeary told The Sun: Everyone whos getting an award meets the royals. When it was Prince Charles there was more of a semi-circle with everyone waiting to shake his hand, but William was more chilled and was saying hello to everyone. Nicole told him her code name in Pussycat Dolls was Prince William, which he loved. Then he came to me and said, You know what I need? I need a Dermot hug. And I said, Right, bring it on. Dermot O'Leary revealed Prince William once asked him for a hug / Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA Wire/PA Images The presenter continued: So we had a hug and he went, Oh thats a good hug, and its important to hug. OLeary is well-known for his trademark hugs, consoling failed contestants on The X Factor something the 44-year-old reckons Prince William may have seen, or at least heard about. Dermot O'Leary on 1D If he was briefed he was exceptionally well briefed. It was a touching moment, we brought it in together. Hes a good hugger, he added. The host will return to the stage once more on Tuesday as he hosts the 23rd National Television Awards live from The O2 Arena. And OLeary admitted he will be rooting for Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly to scoop the Best Presenter(s) award for the 17th time. National Television Awards 2017 1 /36 National Television Awards 2017 Holly Willoughby Anthony Harvey/Getty Keith Lemon and Paddy McGuinness Ian West/PA Mark Wright and Michelle Keegan Anthony Harvey/Getty Katie Price Dave Benett Helen Skelton Dave Benett Myleene Klass Dave Benett Katie Piper Dave Benett Susanna Reid Dave Benett Keith Lemon and Paddy McGuinness Ian West/PA Emma Willis Anthony Harvey/Getty Mark Wright and Michelle Keegan Ian West/PA Fearne Cotton Ian West/PA Scarlett Moffatt and Caroline Flack Getty Images Faye Brookes and Gareth Gates Ian West/PA Mary Berry Anthony Harvey/Getty Alesha Dixon Anthony Harvey/Getty Piers Morgan Dave Benett Sir Tom Jones Dave Benett Aidan Turner Anthony Harvey/Getty Loose Women Ian West/PA Scarlett Moffatt Dave Benett Rochelle and Marvin Humes Anthony Harvey/Getty Tess Daly and Vernon Kay Ian West/PA Casey Batchelor Dave Benett Megan McKenna and Pete Wicks Ian West/PA Ola Jordan Ian West/PA Sarah-Jane Crawford Ian West/PA Honey G Anthony Harvey/Getty Images Martin Kemp Ian West/PA Wayne Bridge Dave Benett Danny Baker Dave Benett Larry Lamb and Jordan Banjo Matt Crossick/PA Bradley Walsh and Mark Labbett Anthony Harvey/Getty Jorgie Porter Ian West/PA Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes Ian West/PA James Arthur Anthony Harvey/Getty He told the publication: I desperately want them to win. One of the things Im most excited about is to announce that Ant is there. Its great to see a friend fit and healthy. He looks great, hes obviously been through a tough time but his health and his happiness are important. I wont hound anyone but Ill send him a text from time to time, just saying, Ant, how are you doing? Sending you love. Countries & Areas Search for country or area A Afghanistan Albania Algeria Andorra Angola Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Armenia Australia Austria Azerbaijan B Bahamas Bahrain Bangladesh Barbados Belarus Belgium Belize Benin Bhutan Bolivia Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana Brazil Brunei Bulgaria Burkina Faso Burma Burundi C Cabo Verde Cambodia Cameroon Canada Central African Republic Chad Chile China Colombia Comoros Costa Rica Cote dIvoire Croatia Cuba Cyprus Czechia D Democratic Republic of the Congo Denmark Djibouti Dominica Dominican Republic E Ecuador Egypt El Salvador Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Estonia Eswatini Ethiopia F Fiji Finland France G Gabon Gambia Georgia Germany Ghana Greece Grenada Guatemala Guinea Guinea-Bissau Guyana H Haiti Holy See Honduras Hungary I Iceland India Indonesia Iran Iraq Ireland Israel Italy J Jamaica Japan Jordan K Kazakhstan Kenya Kiribati Kosovo Kuwait Kyrgyzstan L Laos Latvia Lebanon Lesotho Liberia Libya Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg M Madagascar Malawi Malaysia Maldives Mali Malta Marshall Islands Mauritania Mauritius Mexico Micronesia Moldova Monaco Mongolia Montenegro Morocco Mozambique N Namibia Nauru Nepal Netherlands New Zealand Nicaragua Niger Nigeria North Korea North Macedonia Norway O Oman P Pakistan Palau Palestinian Territories Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay Peru Philippines Poland Portugal Q Qatar R Republic of the Congo Romania Russia Rwanda S Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Samoa San Marino Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia Senegal Serbia Seychelles Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia Slovenia Solomon Islands Somalia South Africa South Korea South Sudan Spain Sri Lanka Sudan Suriname Sweden Switzerland Syria T Taiwan Tajikistan Tanzania Thailand Timor-Leste Togo Tonga Trinidad and Tobago Tunisia Turkey Turkmenistan Tuvalu U Uganda Ukraine United Arab Emirates United Kingdom Uruguay Uzbekistan V Vanuatu Venezuela Vietnam Y Yemen Z Zambia Zimbabwe In addition to the increasing numbers of troops and aircraft ranged along Russias northern borders, the United States continues to deploy missile-equipped warships to the Black Sea, and on January 10 the UKs Sun newspaper headlined that US destroyer races to Russia-dominated Black Sea to ensure security and stability. The US Navy Times joined in by announcing that US Navy ruffles Russian feathers in the Black Sea and Stars and Stripes reported the US 6th Fleets Captain Tate Westbrook as saying that US ships will continue to enter the Black Sea and work with our allies and partners to ensure maritime security and stability, but nobody gave an example of insecurity. Indeed, nobody has ever provided evidence of any problems in the Black Sea that require the Pentagon or its NATO sub-office in Brussels to protect waters of economic and military importance. (And it is mildly amusing that the US refuses to ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.) It was reported on February 16 that NATO defence ministers have decided to beef up the military alliance's naval presence in the Black Sea in response to an increasingly aggressive Russia. Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said NATO will hold more war games and training in the strategically important sea. But there has never been an instance of a merchant vessel having been inconvenienced by Russia just as, in the South China Sea, where the US Navy also indulges in equally provocative antics, there has not been a single case of Chinese interference with any transiting commercial ship. The propaganda doesnt stop there. The US Navy Times reports breathlessly that Russian subs are regularly known to lurk beneath the waves on the East Coast of the United States and regularly in the Mediterranean again, according to multiple sources who spoke to Navy Times on background. Sailors are regularly squaring off with Russian jets when they operate on Putins doorstep in the Baltic and Black Sea. Ignoring the sneering reference to President Putin, the Navy Times makes a good point : the Baltic and Black Sea are indeed doorsteps to Russia, and it is wise to defend your own doorsteps when they are being used as bases for hostile foreign military deployments. The Navy Times argues that While President Trump has expressed interest in repairing US relations with Russia, some analysts say the U.S. must step up its aerial and maritime patrols in response to Russias own increase of deployed naval forces in the Black Sea. The increasing prevalence of tension and danger in the area signal that it might be time to get tough. So the Pentagon is getting tough and records that since the middle of last year the guided missile destroyers USS Carney and USS Porter conducted five maritime security operations in the Black Sea, and the guided missile cruiser USS Hue City held exercises with the Ukrainian navy ship Balta. According to the US Navy the USS Carney is equipped with the worlds most sophisticated weaponry systems. She is fitted with missiles that reach extended ranges. Land attack cruise missile strike capability is provided by Tomahawk missiles, which are launched from the MK 41 Vertical Launching System. Additionally, Carney has Harpoon anti-surface missiles. Its just the sort of warship that contributes to an atmosphere of stability and security. It has escaped the notice of the Pentagon and its sub-office in Brussels that Russia has a Black Sea coastline of 800 kilometres, excluding Crimea, and has every right to regard that area as home waters just as it has every right to sail in and fly over the Baltic. Theres plenty of aggression, to be sure. But it is entirely by the US-NATO military alliance which at vast expense deploys its combat ships, strike aircraft, Big Guns and special forces to countries and seas on Russias borders. Why not use all that money to improve mutually beneficial trade arrangements and transport infrastructure? That would be welcomed by Russia and by a growing number of European countries that are disturbed about continual confrontation of Russia by the Pentagon-Brussels military circus. But the big question is : Why does NATO continue its belligerent boogies along Russias borders? What benefits can possibly accrue from its bluster? All was made clear on January 19 when the US Defence Secretary, General James Mattis (he of the infamous it's fun to shoot some people comment about Afghans), declared that great power competition not terrorism is now the primary focus of US national security. Its back to the happy days of the Cold War, when Washingtons military-industrial mafia thrived and expanded and back to the language of the Cold War in the just-released National Defense Strategy. In this document the Pentagon says its objectives are to remain the preeminent military power in the world, ensure the balances of power remain in our favor, and advance an international order that is most conducive to our security and prosperity. One of the ways enabling the Pentagon to achieve this is to address the arc of instability building on NATOs periphery, which would be entertaining were it not so absurd. After the dissolution of the Soviet Union it wasnt Russia that increased its military capabilities. It was the US-NATO military alliance that expanded eastwards to Russias borders, increasing the number of countries from 16 to 29. There was no Russian threat to western Europe or anywhere else, and the Moscow government was concentrating on the economy, developing natural resources, and improving the living standards of its citizens. These priorities were disrupted by NATOs first expansion in 1999 when Poland, Hungary and the Czech Republic pushed NATO eastwards. In 2004 there was major success for the Cold Warriors when seven more countries were enlisted in the military alliance and NATO military power moved right up to Russias borders. The pattern was profoundly depressing for Russia, but nothing could be done to halt US-NATO military expansion. The New York Times observed that ceremonies in Washington and Brussels in 2004 marked the largest expansion in the alliance's history [which] officially culminated a military integration that began years ago. Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia have all trained with NATO forces, restructured their own forces to NATO standards and contributed soldiers to NATO operations. It was all part of a very long-term plan. The BBC reported that Russian lawmakers have voiced concern about Natos eastward expansion to Moscows doorstep. A resolution by the lower house of parliament, the Duma, said Russia may reconsider its defence strategy if Nato continued to ignore Moscow's interests. It urged Nato members to ratify an arms treaty to restrict deployment of weapons near Russia's borders The Duma said it would also recommend the government to strengthen Russia's nuclear deterrent and consider the deployment of additional troops on the country's western borders. The arc of instability is not within Russia: it is in the sweep of NATO and NATO-influenced countries surrounding Russia. The United States stations armed forces in some 800 military bases around the world. Russia has nine overseas bases and has no intention of establishing more. It is Washington that has expanded its global military presence so dramatically and created so much tension and instability. Its forays into Iraq and Afghanistan and its blitz on Libya were catastrophic, but it appears that more wars are being planned. US-NATO military fandangos in the Black Sea are part of the Pentagon-Brussels policy of poisonous confrontation that is intended to increase in intensity. The world is becoming an ever more dangerous place. Russia admits to a missing link in its air defense systems. This was made clear at the end of 2017 when the Russian controlled Hmeimim (or Khmeimim) airbase in northwest Syria came under regular attack by 82mm mortars. Russian weapons experts quickly concluded that the weapon used was probably a Russian 2B9 Vasilek (Cornflower) automatic 82mm gun-mortar. The evidence was the shell fragments from 3.24 (7.2 pound) 82mm shells and the fact that the shells were fired quickly. The 2B9 can use a four round clip that fires four 82mm shells in about two seconds. The Russian analysts realized that the only weapon that could have done that was the 2B9 but because Russia had never sold 2B9s to Syria the Russians accused Turkey of allowing Turkish smugglers to get such a large weapon across the border and into rebel hands. Turkish intelligence quickly eliminated that by pointing videos posted on YouTube in 2014 showing Syrian Islamic terrorist rebels using what was clearly a 2B9. This is not a small weapon and weighs 632 kg (1,400 pounds), is mounted on two wheels and looks like towed artillery, which it is, except it uses the same ammo as the 82mm mortar and can be fired using those four round clips or by dropping the 82mm mortar shell down the barrel as most mortars operate. The 2B9 has been manufactured in Russia since 1970 and by the 1980s China was manufacturing a clone called the W99. The Turks pointed out that Syrian rebels had, since 2014, boasted of capturing 2B9s from the Syrian army. How the Syrian army got them is an issue best not pursued by the Russians because 2B9s were in use by the Syrian army before 2011 and it is believed they were obtained from arms dealers or were Chinese W99s (you have to examine a W99 closely to be sure it is not a 2B9). After all that came to light, the Russians no longer blamed the Turks or wanted to discuss the 2B9 but did lament in the media that they do not have a weapon to stop 82mm shells while the Israelis, Americans and even the Germans do. The American anti-mortar system has been in use since 2006 and is a modified naval weapon (Phalanx) called C-RAM. This weapon has a range of about 2,000 meters and can knock down 70-80 percent of the rockets and mortar shells fired within range of its cannon. C-RAM uses high explosive 20mm shells that detonate near the target, spraying it with fragments. By the time these fragments reach the ground they are generally too small to injure anyone. At least that's been the experience in Iraq and Afghanistan. The original Phalanx used 20mm depleted uranium shells, to slice through incoming missiles. Phalanx fires shells at the rate of 75 per second. Another advantage of C-RAM is that it makes a distinctive noise when firing, warning those nearby that a mortar or rocket attack is underway, giving people an opportunity to duck inside if they are out and about. Germany later developed their own 35mm take on C-RAM while China developed a 30mm version that never caught on, even within the Chinese military. C-RAM and the German Mantis remain in service. Both of these offer short range defense, which is ok for protecting a base, or even an airfield. Israel developed a more ambitious solution. The Israeli solution is Iron Dome, which has been in service since 2009 and has proven itself in combat. By 2011 Israel had bought seven batteries of it, each battery has radar, control equipment, and 3-4 missile launchers (each with 20 missiles) and cost about $37-50 million. Iron Dome uses two radars to quickly calculate the trajectory of the incoming rocket or mortar shell and does nothing if the trajectory indicates the rocket or shell is going to land in an uninhabited area. But if the computers predict something coming down in an inhabited area, a $50,000 Tamir guided missile is fired to intercept the rocket. This makes the system cost-effective. So far Iron Dome has shot down 85 percent of the rockets it calculated were headed for populated areas. The Tamir missiles used by Iron Dome weigh 90 kg and have a range of 70 kilometers against rockets, mortar shells, and artillery shells up to 155mm. Iron Dome can also shoot down aircraft and helicopters (up to 10 kilometers/32,000 feet). Apparently, one reason for the current military alliance between Israel and Saudi Arabia was the Saudi (and other Gulf Arab states) desire to buy Iron Dome systems, which are seen as a more efficient solution for rocket/mortar attacks than C-RAM. Meanwhile Russian intelligence believes Syria rebels have mounted a 2B9 on the back of a truck or large van and rigged to quickly roll out the back, fire one or two clips of 82mm shells, they be hauled back in the truck and driven away, or back into a building or cave so that Russian aircraft or UAVs cannot track it down. But the Russian activity has apparently scared the mortar users away for the moment. The mortar attacks were an issue because they caused several million dollars damage to Russian warplanes at the base and killed several Russians. The Russians prefer to develop an offensive solution for this problem, which can be as effective, in Russian eyes, as C-Ram or Iron Dome. Punjab Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif came down hard on Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPPP) chairman Asif Ali Zardari while addressing party supporters in Layyah on Tuesday. Sharif told supporters that "Zardari says 'I have come to hold the Sharif brothers accountable,' he who is the architect of corruption is saying he will hold others accountable?" Lashing out at Imran Khan, the Punjab chief minister asked his supporters, "He, who is lying 24/7, is he worthy of your vote?" Sharif criticised Khan over his 2013 campaign promise of electrifying Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) and the rest of Pakistan adding that Khan did not add a single megawatt of electricity. Shehbaz promised the people of the district that he would transform the area and bring it on par with districts such as Multan and Sargodha if the PML-N is elected to power in 2018. The provincial chief executive also said PML-N would inaugurate the metro bus project in Layyah, just like in Lahore. He further added that medical facilities in Layyah were already at par with those in Lahore and Multan. Speaking about the work the incumbent government has done in Punjab during its present tenure, Shehbaz said the PML-N government and former prime minister Nawaz Sharif provided subsidies to farmers for manure and tube wells. Moreover, Shehbaz also announced Rs300 million for a university in Layyah. Click the image above to watch the video In todays weather we are expecting a sunny day, then some evening cloud and light winds. In other words, a perfectly fine summer day. Its a one-clothing layer day today with a predicted high of 29 and an overnight low of 19 degrees. Humidity is 96 per cent. High tide is at 12.50pm and low tide at 7.10pm. Sea temperature is 21 degrees. Theres a sea swell of .3m. Sunset is at 8.31pm. So its a perfectly fine summer evening for enjoying a seaside picnic. If youre going fishing today the best fish bite times are between 6 and 8pm. This day in NZ history in 1865 British troops invaded south Taranaki. Over a thousand troops commanded by Duncan Cameron set out on what was to be the generals final campaign in New Zealand. In 1980 on this day the Soviet ambassador was expelled. The New Zealand government ordered the Soviet Unions ambassador, Vsevolod Sofinsky, to leave the country within 72 hours after he allegedly delivered money to the pro-Soviet Socialist Unity Party. In world history on this day in the year 41 shortly after declaring himself a god, Caligula was assassinated. In 1848 gold was discovered by James Wilson Marshall at his partner Johann August Sutters sawmill on the South Fork of the American River, near Coloma, California. In 1946 the UN established the Atomic Energy Commission. In 1965 Winston Churchill died from a cerebral thrombosis at the age of 90. Today is the birthday of French dramatist Pierre de Beaumarchais, who wrote The Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro. Born in 1732 he once wrote "It is not necessary to understand things in order to argue about them". To get involved in activities and events across the Bay please check out our Whats on page. Have a great day! EU Removes Jurisdictions From Tax Blacklist by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels 23 January 2018 The EU has announced the removal of eight jurisdictions from its tax blacklist. On January 23, the European Council agreed to delist Barbados, Grenada, South Korea, Macao, Mongolia, Panama, Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates. These jurisdictions are being moved to a separate category of jurisdictions, and will be subject to close monitoring. The Council said that delisting was justified in the light of an expert assessment of the commitments made by these jurisdictions to address deficiencies identified by the EU. The Council added that the commitments were in each case backed by letters signed at a high political level. The decision leaves nine jurisdictions on the list out of the 17 announced initially on December 5, 2017. The remaining jurisdictions are: American Samoa, Bahrain, Guam, the Marshall Islands, Namibia, Palau, Saint Lucia, Samoa, and Trinidad and Tobago. Jurisdictions that are on the list are encouraged to make the changes requested of them. The list will be revised at least once a year, although the working group responsible for preparing it can recommend an update at any time. Vladislav Goranov, representing Bulgaria, which currently holds the EU Council presidency, said: "Our listing process is already proving its worth. Jurisdictions around the world have worked hard to make commitments to reform their tax policies. Our aim is to promote good tax governance globally." EU Tax Blacklist To Be Slimmed By Nine by Ulrika Lomas, Tax-News.com, Brussels 22 January 2018 At its meeting on January 22, the EU Council is to remove Barbados, Grenada, South Korea, Macao, Mongolia, Panama, Tunisia, and the United Arab Emirates from the EU's list of non-cooperative jurisdictions in taxation matters, according to an agenda released prior to the meeting. The EU Council said the decisions "follows commitments made by these jurisdictions since the list was published on December 5, 2017." The agenda for the meeting, newly published by the Government of Luxembourg, states that "letters signed at political level have been assessed, and member states agree that the commitments made justify removing these eight jurisdictions from the list." It said: "The decision is due to be taken without discussion, by an amendment to the Council's December conclusions. The eight jurisdictions will be moved from annex I of the conclusions (non-cooperative jurisdictions) to annex II (cooperation with respect to commitments taken)." The decision will leave nine of the original 17 jurisdictions on the list of non-cooperative jurisdictions. These are: American Samoa, Bahrain, Guam, Marshall Islands, Namibia, Palau, Saint Lucia, Samoa, and Trinidad and Tobago. The EU Council stated: "Whereas the list is to be revised at least once a year, the working group responsible for preparing it can recommend an update at any time. Letters are due to be sent in February 2018 to eight jurisdictions in the Caribbean, requesting that commitments be made to remedy EU concerns. These jurisdictions were included in the initial screening process that led to establishment of the list. However, the screening was put on hold following the tropical storms that struck the Caribbean region in September 2017." On Holocaust Memorial Day this Saturday, Holocaust survivor Eva Clarke will be giving her testimony in the Palmerston Room of St John's College Cambridge. Clarke was born in an Austrian concentration camp on 29th April 1945. She was the second child her parents had while imprisoned. The first, although he wasn't taken by the Gestapo, died of pneumonia when he was two months old. Clarke's father was shot a few months before she was born and just weeks before Auschwitz-Birkenau, where he was being held, was liberated. He had been deported from Terezin where he had been forced to work for three years his wife followed him the next day but he died before the two met again. Her mother worked for the first 6 months of her pregnancy while still imprisoned, and gave birth on an open cart with no medical assistance. She had gone into labour after the shock she had on arriving at Mauthasen concentration camp. When the war was over, Clarke and her mother returned to Prague where they lived before the war. There she married Clarke's stepfather and got married in 1948. The pair moved to the UK later that year, where Eva has had two sons. Clarke often speaks at schools about her mother's experiences. More information about the talk can be found on the Facebook event. Yesterday it was decided by CUSU Council that they would support the University and College Union (UCU) in strike action against proposed changes to pension schemes for academics. 88% of UCU members already voted in favour of industrial action following the measures proposed by Universities UK, which suggests pension income should be subject to stock market fluctuations, and proposes to do away with a minimum level of pension income. Modelling has shown this is likely to cause a typical lecturer to lose 200,000 in retirement. Daniel Davison-Vecchione, a PhD student, presented the motion to CUSU Council, asking them to vote in the name of staff-student solidarity and reminding them that we owe it to the teachers, administrators, and workers that keep our university running. Though acknowledging the negative impact this could have on student learning, and stating he was not going to pretend [he had] an immediate concrete solution for how it can be made up in term, Davison-Vecchione argued any detriment would be more than made up for in our interest to preserve the good functioning and purpose of the education sector in the long term. CUSU President Daisy Eyre also acknowledged the significance of any strike action, recalling a conversation with Martha Krish, CUSU Education Officer, in which they had acknowledged student-staff solidarity is a very important thing. The motion was carried by a significant majority after 29 voted in favour, only one against and three abstained. Universities UK hopes to avoid the strike, stating that, if industrial action takes place it could cause disruption to students at some universities. Strike action will begin on 22nd February followed by three, four and five-day protests. Nowadays when we hear of a data breach, we think of hackers getting into a database and releasing private information, or a company posting customer information on their website without proper security measures in place. However, not all data outings involve hacking or IT incompetence. Sometimes information leaks come in a low-tech package. Last week Aetna agreed to pay a $17 million settlement for compromising thousands of HIV patients medical information. The cause of the data leak was the over-sized envelope window used to send out HIV medication notification letters to clients in 23 states. Back on July 28, 2017, the health insurance giant sent out nearly 12,000 letters to customers who had filled prescriptions for HIV medications. Rather than using an in-house mailing department, Aetna outsourced the task. The outside vendor chose to send the letters in envelopes with large, clear windows to display the patients address. Unfortunately, the windows were so large that they also revealed personal health information (PHI) including the HIV diagnosis. The AIDS Law Project of Pennsylvania and the Legal Action Center immediately issued a demand letter to halt the mailings. In the meantime, Aetna had set up a relief effort to those affected. However, the two groups still filed a class-action lawsuit in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania on behalf of the 11,875 affected clients. Aetna promptly settled out of court for $17,161,200 and issued a statement via NPR. Through our outreach efforts, immediate relief program and this settlement we have worked to address the potential impact to members following this unfortunate incident. In addition, we are implementing measures designed to ensure something like this does not happen again as part of our commitment to best practices in protecting sensitive health information. The agreement sets aside $12 million to award $500 to those affected by the breach. Those who suffered additional financial and emotional distress can file for and claim up to $20,000 from the fund. There is also another group of about 1,600 who will receive $75 for having their PHI exposed to the mail vendor and Aetnas legal counsel. The remainder of the settlement will go towards lawyer fees and legal expenses. The settlement is still pending approval from the court, but that is just a formality. Lead Image by Jessica Hill/AP, Body Image via WHYY A shopper in China recently learned that biting a smartphone battery isnt exactly the best way to test its authenticity. According to a report from Taiwan News, a man entered an electronics store in China on January 19 in search of a replacement battery for his iPhone. Seemingly suspecting the battery on offer was fake, he inexplicably decided to bite into the unit to see if it was real. Much to his surprise, the battery was indeed legitimate as evident by the fact that it exploded upon being punctured. The incident was captured by the stores security camera and posted on Chinese video sharing site miaopai.com the following day. It has since been viewed more than 4.5 million times according to the publication. Fortunately, nobody was injured by the blast although as you can see in the clip (republished on YouTube), plenty of folks were startled by the episode. Exactly what the man was trying to accomplish isnt clear. Authenticity aside (the Chinese market is ripe with knockoff batteries attempting to pass as legitimate OEM parts), maybe he thought the battery was a dummy model that wasnt a real battery at all? Then again, we live in a world where people are eating Tide laundry detergent for fun so perhaps seeking a logical explanation is an exercise in futility. Nevertheless, it goes without saying: don't bite into your smartphone battery. Prior to this decision, abortion had only been decriminalized in Mexico, Oaxaca, Hidalgo, and Veracruz, that is, in 4 out of 32 states in the country. | Read More Almost three months after four ministers were dismissed from the PJD-led government, King Mohammed VI has approved five new cabinet members belonging to the same parties as the outgoing ministers thus keeping the government coalition parties unchanged. The new ministers are Abdelahad Fassi Fihri of the leftist PPS party who was appointed minister of National Planning, Urban Planning, Housing and Urban Policy succeeding to the head of his party Nabil Ben Abdellah. From the same party, Anas Doukkali was appointed Health Minister replacing his peer Houcine El Ouardi. The other government coalition member, the Popular Movement (MP), replaced his sacked members with Said Amzazi as minister of National Education, Vocational Training, Higher Education and Scientific Research and Mohamed El Gharas as State Secretary in charge of vocational training. The government reshuffle also introduces a new portfolio, that of a minister delegate to the foreign minister in charge of African cooperation. The Position was assigned to Mohcine Jazouli. The newly appointed cabinet members attended the oath taking ceremony before King Mohammed VI, who, by virtue of Article 47 of the constitution, appoints ministers upon proposals from the head of the government. Last October, King Mohammed VI sacked four ministers of the current cabinet for falling short of achieving social and development goals and held other senior officials and former ministers responsible for the delay witnessed in the implementation of a set of state-funded projects. Violet Paley and Sarah Tither on Good Morning America. Photo: Courtesy of GMA/ABC News Two women who accused James Franco of sexual misconduct appeared on Good Morning America on Tuesday, further detailing the actors alleged inappropriate behavior and asking him to finally just apologize for his actions. In an interview that aired the same morning the Oscar nominations were announced (Franco was snubbed following his Best Actor win at the Golden Globes), Violet Paley and Sarah Tither-Kaplan spoke out about their allegations against the actor. Tither-Kaplan, a former student in a sex scene class taught by Franco, cried as she talked about her childhood dream of working in the film industry. Two of James Franco's accusers speak out and allege inappropriate behavior by the star in a sit down interview with @arobach. "Please just apologize..." pic.twitter.com/U5yeJKTWxD Good Morning America (@GMA) January 23, 2018 James is absolutely not a Harvey Weinstein, she said. He is not an unfeeling monster who has no sense of reality. He created an exploitative environment for non-celebrity women on his sets. Paley told GMA of feeling pressured into performing oral sex on Franco during their first date. After that, she continued to have a sexual relationship with him. Im regretful. I was young. He was a celebrity that I looked up to, Paley said. A representative for Franco told GMA that the allegations against the actor are not accurate. But Tither-Kaplan called on Franco to use his power to create opportunities for women that are real and valuable and actually give them career advancement. Paley, meanwhile, asked Franco to please just apologize. To Tell the Truth Senator and poet Cory Booker. Photo: Tommaso Boddi/Getty Images for The Humane Soci Senator Cory Booker of New Jersey, like Rupi Kaur and his girlfriend Cleo Wade before him, has begun dipping his toe in the subtle, penetrating world of Instagram poetry. On Monday, he tweeted: If this country hasnt broken your heart, you probably dont love Her enough, (whoa) and then shared a screenshot of the tweet on Instagram. Booker has posted screenshots of inspirational quotes before, but seems to have started sharing more of his own words this fall. Unlike Kaur or Wade, he doesnt illustrate his posts (yet); he mostly just shares screenshots of his most profound tweets, and then presumably closes his eyes, rests a hand gently on his heart, and smiles. Sometimes, he blends his own words with quotes from inspirational figures in history, like Mahatma Gandhi, or Frederick Douglass. And although some of his posts are more prose than poetry, a lot of them call on people to be kind to each other, which is a nice message for everyone in government, on social media, and in New Jersey. I can think of a certain former governor who might benefit from hearing this, for example. In recent months, rumors have been swirling about Booker potentially running for president in 2020. But if that doesnt work out, at least he seems to have found a good fallback gig. To understand what is happening in Trump World, pay attention to the women. Disregard any impulse to dismiss, trivialize, or even pity the women hovering around this administration, for they never fail to telegraph deeper truths. When it comes to adult-film star Stormy Daniels (Stephanie Clifford), the media punditry is sticking to a simple mantra: Leave the sex out of it, focus on the politics. But what if the sex is inextricable from the politics? What if our zeal to extract sex from troubling events is actually what gets us into them in the first place? Last week, as the commentariat combed over Donald Trumps possible affair with Daniels and the alleged hush money paid to her, they frequently reminded us of how high-minded how clean we could all remain despite the muck. This story is not about breaking marital vows, they assured us; its about breaking the law, for if the Trump team redirected campaign funds to Daniels, it may have violated campaign finance law. Consider some of the coverage: The Stormy Daniels story is actually a follow-the-money story, whether or not you care about the sex part, explained Rachel Maddow, neatly cordoning off sex into a part. Slate Groups Jacob Weisberg, appearing on Maddows show, took care to note that such fare was not [his] usual type of journalism, before launching into all the details hed uncovered. On his show, Lawrence ODonnell squeamishly held up the issue of In Touch featuring Stormy Daniels barely letting his fingers touch the pages. It was, he assured us, the first time hed ever held such a magazine in his hands. His disdain, though, did not stop him from flipping through the tabloid for several minutes, musing on its coverage of the Kardashians and celebrity lip-plumping. The struggle between high- and lowbrow played out on daytime television too: On The View, Joy Behars volley of Trump-in-bed jokes amused everyone save co-host Meghan McCain who pleaded Just stop it, you guys! like a middle-schooler virtuously flustered by sex talk. Late-night comedians also wrestled with good and evil: After Seth Meyers made comic use of Trumps alleged remark that Stormy was beautiful, smart, just like his daughter [Ivanka], he made a great show of revulsion by appearing to chug Purell from a giant bottle. Stephen Colbert quoted the same IvankaStormy comparison, and then displayed his disgust by pretending to vomit. Lesson: If youre joking about incestuous desire, dont forget to perform the obligatory disinfecting or purging ritual afterward. (At least they didnt gouge their eyes out like Oedipus.) The journalists and wits have a point: The Stormy story may be part of a far larger pattern of corruption, which must be investigated. And, yes, the story is both funny and unsettling. But maybe we should also investigate our collectively sophomoric reaction to it. America is acting as if it had been caught in an affair with a porn star: guilty, embarrassed, yet proud, and still entranced by the gossipy, salacious, lowbrow, self-indulgent pleasure of it all. And maybe we are catching ourselves in such an affair, for what is Donald Trumps presidency if not proof that America has a fascination with salacious, lowbrow, self-indulgent pleasures and someone who shamelessly embraces them all? Perhaps Stormy is to Trump as Trump is to America. The appeal of discussing Stormy is undeniable: She is photogenic. She is sexy. And while Lawrence ODonnell condescendingly implied her intellect was lacking (referring to Trump having passed the porn stars intelligence test), Daniels is far from dumb. She can throw pretty good shade: Sex with Trump, she said, was just as youd expect for someone his age. Stormy even ran for Congress, with the marvelous campaign slogan Screwing people honestly literalizing the bond between sex and politics. And lets face it, with her gleaming white smile, pert features, shoulder-length highlights, ample bosom in fitted outfits, and heavily false-lashed eyes, she does not look completely unlike the First Daughter (as well as the First Lady, the First Daughters-in-Law, most Fox newswomen, and basically, the entire Trump-supporting corps of pulchritude). We might all notice that, but only our pre-Freudian president would blurt it out so unself-consciously. Our interest then is entirely understandable. Of course we find the Stormy story delicious, riveting, confirmatory. Of course we understand why Trump, in Danielss presence, might have thought of his daughter. But America has real trouble with its darker impulses and fantasies. We prefer to enjoy them in secret, then decry them in public: Make the joke, then gargle with Purell. Read In Touch but swear its the first time. Elect Trump as our raging id of a president but be sure Mike Pence tags along as the censorious, superego VP. This is America in a nutshell: We live in a Manichean universe, drawing clear lines between black and white, and dreading the blurry realm of gray. We shunt aside anything that smacks of moral impropriety, denying our ravenous appetites even while indulging them. Yet things denied tend to come roaring back. Consider that while our Puritan culture censors even the mildest profanity on network television, our computer and cell-phone screens are aglow with every type of pornography imaginable, which kids hide from parents, and spouses from each other. America has long seemed condemned to shuttle endlessly between these two planes, on which we exist simultaneously: the high-mindedly moral and the rank and embarrassing. Then Trump happened. With his election, the wall dividing those two planes came crashing down. Trump is the return of all we repress. As Leader of the Free World, he performs, on the loftiest, most public stage, an ongoing revelation of all we try to keep private: our self-serving hedonism, our greed, social disconnection, our racism and misogyny. Where once we decorously tried to keep those weaknesses out of public discourse, with Trump they surge into mainstream news, causing much collective hand-wringing and jokey discomfort. But it is our inability to weave a coherent public discourse, one that acknowledges both planes of our existence, that got us into this mess. As many critics have remarked, a large part of Trumps appeal was, precisely, his apparent freedom to say what were all thinking, the vicarious relief of witnessing his heedless, pleasure-seeking life. Yet the Daniels story helps us see that theres more going on with Trump than a relaxation of social norms. The connections between porn, Trump, and politics run deeper than just the allure of a disinhibited president. They have to do with the mechanics the structure of pornography, rather than its mere content. Think of how porn works: It replaces real, human, messy, interpersonal sex with an airbrushed, depilated, one-sided, surgically enhanced simulacrum of it. In some ways, in fact, porn is less about liberation than it is about repression or, at least, suppression: the suppression of emotion, of dialogue, of empathy, of flesh itself. And with todays digitized, perpetually iPhone-ready version of porn, youre left with a perfectly onanistic, sterile, corporate commodity that replaces attention to the feelings or humanity of others. What could better describe our foreign and domestic policy under Trump? Think of the slogan: Build that wall an exhortation to separate self from others, to live in a bubble of self-satisfaction, to idealize isolation. Think of the tax bill, which directs money away from social welfare and toward corporations (and their billionaire owners). These all reveal a pornographic refusal of empathy or engagement, a shunting aside of messy human need. America was well conditioned to accept such a state of affairs precisely because we have practiced denial and compartmentalization for so long. Our puritanism, that is, permits and fosters the politically pornographic. And what feels like relief in Trumps vulgar amorality is actually its opposite, it is the tightening of the noose of a dehumanizing, corporatized politics tarted up and made palatable with the allure of vice. Since porn corporatizes sex, it was so fitting that Trump (allegedly) had Daniels spank him with a copy of Forbes magazine (possibly featuring him on the cover). In that one, kinky act, an entire culture revealed itself: the ultimate respectable business magazine a bible of the corporate world repurposed as a prop for a porn star. Forbes, Trump, and Stormy form a perfect tableau of America today: We are indeed being spanked beaten bloody, really by our pornographically corporatized government as led by cover model Trump. In the past day, Stormy Daniels made headlines once more, launching Make America Horny Again, her new strip show. The media showed its usual sarcastic disdain: The New York Times described a topless Ms. Daniels standing beside her well-stocked jug of tips. The Washington Post, noting the crowd of reporters, said it was as if [Ms. Daniels] might instead of clutching a pole with her pelvis launch a news conference. But this condescension is misplaced: Ms. Daniels was launching a news conference as proven by the media swarm she attracted to a South Carolina strip club. It is at our own peril that we ignore or ridicule the powerful connection between Stormy Daniels and serious political matters. The distinction between porn-star news and presidential politics is blurrier than we think (a point made by the title of Ms. Danielss new show), as is the distinction between In Touch and Forbes, Stormy and Ivanka, us and them. Our gravest problems arise not from sin or sleaze, but from the impulse to wall ourselves off from what we perceive as undignified, which so often involves women, sex, and popular culture. Letting in the ambiguities, however uncomfortable, allows us to see connections between things, potentially allowing us to tear down the walls, and enjoy a richer, more integrated world. The Daily News building in midtown Manhattan. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images New York Daily News managing editor Robert Moore is reportedly under investigation by the papers parent company after being accused of sexual harassment, NPRs David Folkenflik reports. According to NPR, Moore has been accused of creating a sexualized atmosphere, pressuring women for attention and punishing those who objected. Moore started at the Daily News as a staff writer in 2004 and took over as papers managing editor in 2011. The Daily News parent company, Tronc, wouldnt say whether Moore is still working at the paper. (Moore hasnt commented on the NPR story.) Tronc also owns the Los Angeles Times, whose publisher and CEO Ross Levinsohn took a leave of absence last week after an NPR investigation found he had been sued for sexual harassment twice and his conduct in work settings over the past two decades has been called into question repeatedly by female colleagues. (Levinsohn has denied the allegations.) Read the full story here. Photo: Bill Dally/Getty Images Yesterday night, another one of Donald Trumps hotel locations got a makeover and it wasnt a business driven rebranding job. A protest slideshow was projected onto Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., courtesy of Population Connection Action Fund. One year after Trumps executive order reinstated The Global Gag Rule, protesters projected womens rights messages onto the hotels facade, including We wont stand by as women die, and #Fight4Her and It doesnt take a genius to know family planning works. Initially established by Reagan in 1984, the policy nicknamed the Global Gag Rule stopped federal funding for international nongovernmental family planning organizations that provide abortions or advocate for the procedure. Democratic presidents have a history of repealing the policy, while Republic presidents are usually quick to revive it; Obama repealed it in 2009, only to have the order reinstated by Trump in 2017. Photo: Courtesy of Twitter/popconnect The stunt timing yesterday also coincided with the 45th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, which declared the criminalization of abortion unconstitutional. Brian Dixon, Population Connection Action Funds spokesperson said in a statement that Trumps policy puts the U.S. on the side of oppression, not freedom. This is the groups second projection protest earlier this month the word shithole appeared on Trumps D.C. hotel after he referred to Haiti and African nations as shithole countries. In May, artist Robin Bell of Bell Visuals kicked off the popular protest medium after projecting Pay Trump Bribes Here onto the D.C. Trump hotel. The UN Secretary Generals Personal Envoy for the Sahara, Horst Kohler, invited the parties to the conflict to separate talks in Berlin, Moroccan media reported. The invitation was addressed after Kohlers ten-day tour in Europe and Africa to relaunch talks, said le360.ma. According to the news portal, Morocco, the Algerian-backed Polisario and Mauritania are the parties that will be invited. Morocco insists that Algeria is the real adversary of its territorial integrity and the perpetuator of the Sahara dispute through its generous military, financial and diplomatic support for the separatist Polisario front. The invitation was announced after a tour during which Kohler held talks with EU officials in Brussels as well as AU officials in Addis Ababa. As part of the same tour, Kohler met in Kigali AUs upcoming Chairman, Paul Kagame, the President of Rwanda. He also met the president of the AUs commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat. The United Nations opened negotiations between Morocco and the Polisario separatists in 2007, after Morocco presented an autonomy plan for the Sahara that the UN Security Council deemed as serious and credible. Several negotiation rounds were held since then, with the latest taking place outside of New York in 2012, but no progress was made. Under the autonomy plan, the Saharan population shall have exclusive powers with regard to managing local affairs within the framework of Moroccos sovereignty and territorial integrity. The Polisario and its mentor Algeria discard the autonomy option as they continue to stick to obsolete positions reminiscent of the Cold War era leading to the perpetuation of the conflict and the prolonging of the suffering of the Saharan population held in the Polisario-run camps in southwestern Algeria. Algeria continues to fund and support diplomatically and militarily the Polisario militias which it hosts in the region of Tindouf since the 1970s. The Polisario have been using Algerian territories as a rear base for their guerrilla warfare against Morocco until the UN-brokered ceasefire agreement in 1991. A bronze statue of director Woody Allen in Oviedo, Spain. Photo: Eloy Alonso/REUTERS Following accusations that Woody Allen molested his daughter Dylan Farrow, women in Spain are asking for the removal of a statue of the director, according to the Spanish publication The Local. The bronze statue stands in the tourist town of Oviedo in northwestern Spain where Allen filmed part of his 2008 film Vicky Cristina Barcelona. The activist group Asturias Feminist Organization reportedly sent a petition to the mayor of Oviedo demanding the town remove the statue, which the organization says serves to honor an abuser and pervert. The council said they would consider the proposal. We had another visit of Woody Allen to #Asturias and one of his favorite cities #Oviedo that describes as a fairytale pic.twitter.com/nldQpi8P97 whereisasturias.com (@whereisasturias) July 2, 2015 This news comes as Dylan Farrow gave her first television interview last week and again claimed that her stepfather, Woody Allen, molested her when she was 7 years old. Allen continues to deny all allegations against him. At the same time, several stars including Colin Firth, Greta Gerwig, and Timothee Chalamet have expressed reservations about working with Allen. Rebecca Hall, who appeared in Vicky Cristina Barcelona, and Allens current film A Rainy Day in New York said on Instagram earlier this month that she regrets working with Allen and has donated her salary to Times Up. After reading and re-reading Dylan Farrows statements of a few days ago and going back and reading the older ones I see, not only how complicated this matter is, but that my actions have made another woman feel silenced and dismissed, Hall wrote. That is not something that sits easily with me in the current or indeed any moment, and I am profoundly sorry. 14-Year-Old Florida Boy Charged as Adult Over Armed Carjacking A 14-year-old boy from Lauderdale Lakes, Florida, has been arrested over an armed carjackingand hes being charged as an adult. The Broward Sheriffs Office said that Shaquille Dixon is one of three juveniles who was involved in the carjacking of an elderly woman at gunpoint. The incident happened on Jan. 15, during daylight hours at a Walmart parking lot. Police said that Dixon was taken into custody on Jan. 19 and is now facing a felony carjacking charge. Officers are still searching for the rest of the trio and are asking anyone with information to come forward. Surveillance video from the sheriffs office show the trioall teenagersfollowing the victim into the store from the parking lot of the Walmart located at 3001 N. State Road 7. They can be seen re-emerging into the parking lot once the woman had finished her shopping. The woman can be seen walking back to her car as the three robbers split up: two flanked the victim while a third approached from the front. He pointed a gun at the victim and demanded the keys to the womans brown, 2015 Toyota Corolla. The victim complied before the three robbers quickly fled the scene in the vehicle, nearly hitting the woman as they pulled out of the parking space. Anyone with additional information is asked to contact BSO Detective Armando Enrique at 954-321-4229 or Broward Crime Stoppers, anonymously, at 954-493-TIPS (8477) or www.browardcrimestoppers.org. Anonymous tips that lead to an arrest are eligible for a reward of up to $3,000. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: How doctors in China turn into murderers A Chinese Hospitals Fraudulent Scheme to Acquire Money A recent expose has revealed the ways in which hospitals scam the insurance system to get insurance payments, akin to running a business operation to profit off patients. An article published in the state mouthpiece news agency, Xinhua, on Jan. 18 detailed how staff at the Anhui University of Chinese Medicine No. 3 Affiliated Hospital colluded to give false diagnoses to patients, in order to acquire insurance funds. A Xinhua reporter went undercover to pose as a relative of a patient, identified as Mr. Li (a pseudonym). When Li visited the hospital, the doctor asked simple questions about his symptoms, but did not conduct a physical exam or inquire about his medical historyand proceeded to fill out forms for him to be hospitalized. When Li expressed that he did not wish to be hospitalized, the staff still made him fill out a note for leave of absence, telling him to leave the dates blank so that if the insurance center staff checks the records, the hospital can fill in the date themselves. It turns out that the hospital can get more insurance payments from patients hospital stays. The reporter accompanied a female patient to the dermatology department, where the doctor explained that if the patient used only outpatient services, the ointment for her treatment would cost 8,000 to 9,000 yuanwhereas if she stayed at the hospital, the government-funded insurance would reimburse 90 percent of the cost. The female patient revealed that she previously stayed at the hospital twice, but did not receive any treatment. But that way, the hospital would get the insurance payment. She ended up paying under 1,000 yuan for her stay and received medicines worth 1,700 yuan and a voucher for a massage service worth 3,000 yuan. The hospital also took advantage of a provision in Chinas medical system that allows patients diagnosed with special illnesses to be reimbursed for the money they spend on medicine. Doctors gave certain regular patients fake diagnoses in order for them to benefit from this. These arrangements allowed the hospital to get revenue for treatment and attract more customers, while the patients themselves receive compensation and other health benefitswhile the countrys insurance funds are depleted. An anonymous insider source told Xinhua that the staff engaged in this fraud because each medical department is assigned quota targets, so the staff feel pressured to bring in more patients. The source also revealed that the hospital would accept any person who carried a social welfare card without checking to see if the person matched the name on the card. Thus, a patient could pass the card on to their relatives for them to get medicine, treatment services, and hospital stays at a discounted price. Some doctors even have kept the patients insurance cards with them, so the hospital could make all sorts of insurance claims on behalf of the patients, the source said. Meanwhile, patients would get some of the cash back. Xinhua learned that one patient who kept his insurance card at the hospital later found out that his hospital record showed him using outpatient services every month. Another patient found out that his insurance card was used more than 800 times within 11 years. This type of fraud is not uncommon. In December 2017, China Business News Daily and the state-run The Paper reported on hospitals in Zhengzhou City, Henan Province and Xiangtan City, Hunan Province that engaged in similar fraud in order to attract patients. The Paper noted that after the report was published, the hospital punished nurse staff, but hospital management and supervisors of the insurance system were not held responsible. Li Tianyu contributed to this report. British Couple Who Kept Woman as Sex Slave Jailed for Total of 22 Years A British couple who kept a young woman as a sex slave for almost 18 months has been sentenced to a total of 22 years in jail. Kevin Warren, 27, and his partner Donna Morris, 35, of Leicester, enslaved the woman and subjected her to 17 months of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse, police say. They also controlled her finances. The victim, a woman in her twenties who cannot be identified, said that she was treated worse than an animal during those months and had nothing left by the end, reported the Daily Mail. My spirit and fight had gone, and I was barely human. One day I could take no more, and fell apart. The pair pleaded guilty to a charge under the Modern Slavery Act at the start of the trial late last year. Warren also admitted to five counts of rape against the victim. On Jan. 19, Warren was sentenced to 18 years in prison and 5 years on license following his release. Morris was ordered to serve a 4-year jail sentence. According to the Daily Mail, the victim became enslaved by the couple after a chance meeting with Warren. The pairs crimes first came to light after the victim confided in a friend about the life she was forced to lead, who then persuaded her to contact police. The victim, who cannot be identified, said after the sentencing: They took complete control over all my finances, leaving me vulnerable and reliant on them in all aspects of my life, reported the Daily Mail. That led to police involvement, and the day I spoke to the police was the day I began to turn my life around. Looking back now, I cant believe how degrading, brutal, and traumatising it had been, and how it had all but destroyed me. I want to thank the police with all my heart. Without them, I dont believe I would or could have survived. Detective Inspector Mark Parish of Leicestershire Police, who oversaw the investigation, said the crimes committed against the woman were truly shocking in their wickedness, their wantonness, and their horror. I cannot begin to imagine the torment this young, vulnerable woman went through in those 17 months. It beggars belief that people can treat a fellow human being in such a grotesquely cruel fashion. The fact that the two defendants pleaded guilty is a tribute to the victims remarkable courage in coming forward and telling us what had happened to her. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: Brazen Pickpockets Steal 1,000 From London Pensioner California Babysitter Makes Mistake, Leaving Toddler to Roam Streets Alone An uncle babysitting his nephew recently made a mistake, leaving the parents furious at him and the child in custody of Child Protective Services. The incident in California took place in Fresno on Monday, Jan. 22. A neighbor found a 2-year-old boy in nothing but a t-shirt and socks, wandering around the streets near the Fancher Creek apartment complex. The father, Reggie Price, didnt know his son was missing until he saw the story on the news. Prices brother-in-law Jonte McCalister was watching the child and his four-year-old brother, and is taking blame for what happened. He says the younger child vanished but when he asked the older brother where his brother had gone, the older sibling said the toddler left with their mother. Where Im stupid is I didnt call the police, McAlister told ABC7. I didnt have my sisters number. I took my 4-year-old nephews word for it. The neighbor called police after finding the child and Child Protective Services arrived to take the two-year-old, Zion, into custody. The family spent the rest of the day with the agency, promising to find a better babysitter, and expects to have Zion back soon. He wasnt really thinking maybe I should dial 911. At the same time, he didnt call my wife to see if my wife had taken him either. Its different type of ways he couldve dealt with it, Reggie Price explained to KMPH about his brother-in-laws mistakes. I was ready to kill him, Price added to Nexstar. Police told Nexstar that there will be no criminal charges in the case. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: President Donald Trump: Year 1 Louise Anna Turpin, accused of holding 13 children captive, appears in court for arraignment in Riverside, California, on Jan. 18, 2018. (Gina Ferazzi-Pool/Getty Images) Disturbing Photo From Former Home of Horror House Family Found A disturbing picture from the former house of the so-called Horror House family shows a rope tied to the bed, apparently used to tie children to. The picture from the Texas home that the Turpin family moved to in the 1990s has emerged amid a spate of new revelations surrounding Louise and David Turpin and their 13 children. The Turpins were arrested on Jan. 14 in Perris, California, after one of their kids escaped imprisonment and called 911. When officers arrived at the Horror House they found squalid conditions and some of the children chained to beds or other large objects. Now evidence of the parents torturing their progeny back in Texas has been brought forward, including the shocking picture. Billy Baldwin and his mother went to the Fort Worth home where the Turpins lived from 1990 to 1999 about a year after the Turpins moved to another house in Texas. Baldwin said that when he and his mother went to the house to walk through, they found the interior completely trashed. They also found a handful of Polaroids taken immediately after the family had departedincluding one showing a bed with a metal rail that had a rope tied to it, Baldwin told the Los Angeles Times. The photo has not been shown publicly. Another man, Ricky Vinyard, walked through a trailer the family owned on the same property and found it filthy. It was waist-deep in filth. There were dead dogs and cats in there, he said, noting the smell was rancid. Vinyard then moved to the house and noticed something odd. Everything had locks on it: The closet had locks, the toy chest, the refrigerator, he said. There were no beds, just mattresses, he said, adding, There wasnt a place in that house that wasnt filthy. Riverside District Attorney Mike Hestrin told CBS last week that California authorities have confirmed that the siblings were restrained with ropes and chains, and suffered beatings, torture, and other abuse. These defendants eventually began using chains and padlocks to chain up the victims to their bed, he said. These punishments would last months at a time. Ashley Vinyard, Rickys daughter, previously told the Daily Mail that she and her family were friends with the Turpins initially but the Turpins broke off their friendship suddenly. Ashley Vinyard said that after the Turpins moved they found a kitten the family left behind. They had a huge garbage dumpster at their house and we heard a baby kitten crying. We pulled a baby kitty from the dumpster and kept it. There were other whimpering sounds coming from their property, but we could never find where they came from, she said. The dumpster smelled of death, who knows what was buried in it. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: Neighbors React to Parents Arrest After Their 13 Children Found Shackled, Malnourished in Home Ethiopia has rejected the World Banks (WB) mediation over the row with Egypt concerning the repercussions of the giant hydroelectric dam Addis Ababa is building on the Nile River, Cairo deeming the project threatens its water security. The Ethiopian stance was expressed by Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn on Sunday. Ethiopia will not accept Egypts request to include the World Bank in the tripartite technical committees talks on the dam, Desalegn told the state run Ethiopian News Agency after a visit to Cairo. Ethiopia has also refused to sideline Sudan from the talks in a sign that indicates rising frictions between Addis Ababa and Cairo, which fears that the Ethiopian dam will have repercussions on its share of Nile water. Egyptian President Sisi is apparently trying to defuse tension. The Nile basin enjoys great resources and capabilities that makes it a source of interconnection, building and development, not a source of conflict, Sisi had told reporters after meeting Ethiopias Prime Minister in Cairo. Commentators see tougher times ahead for negotiations over the Nile dam in light of the surge in tension between Egypt on one side and Sudan and Ethiopia on the other side. Egypt has sent its troops to a UAE military base in Eritrea, a foe of Ethiopia and Sudan. The Egyptian-Eritrean alliance is angering Addis Ababa and Khartoum who would use their rapprochement to strengthen their positions vis-a-vis Egypt that they accuse of benefiting from a colonial era agreement governing the distribution of Nile Water that is detrimental to their national interests. Ethiopia is building the dam to satisfy its electricity needs and export output to neighboring countries, while Sudan wants a reconsideration of the 1950s agreement. Egypt, which considers the Nile a matter of life or death, fears that the Ethiopian dam will further diminish its share of Nile water amid a surge in domestic demand. Security cam footage of a person of interest (L) in the disappearance of Jennifer Kesse (R). (Images via jenniferkesse.com) Family of Woman Who Disappeared 12 Years Ago Demands Answers In the twelve year search for Jennifer Kesse since she disappeared in Orlando, Florida, police have come up empty-handed, so her family is ramping up efforts to find the answers that have eluded investigators. Drew Kesse, Jennifers father, told Fox News that he is fed up with the way the case has been handled and has hired investigators and a legal team in an effort to move things forward. The missing womans father told reporters that, for the most part, the Orlando Police Department has not given the family the kind of access to information in the case that they have requested, and that he might sue. We need to get this information, Kesse told Fox News. After 12 years, we deserve that. The family allegedly received little else besides a two-page document. That was a slap in the face to us, he said. Fox News reached out to the Orlando Police Department for a comment and received an expression of commitment to get answers for the Kesse family, but also the caveat that the authorities would not divulge information in an ongoing investigation. It is the Departments standard practice not to release file materials in open and active cases such as this one, as the release of the records could jeopardize the investigation, the Orlando Police Department said, according to Fox News. Again, this decision has been made in an effort to ensure that our investigation can be conducted in a thorough manner, hopefully resulting in answers for the family. Jennifer Kesse was 24-years-old at the time of her disappearance on Jan. 24, 2006. Her family reported her missing when she didnt make it to work following a long weekend out of town with her boyfriend. Her car, a black Chevy Malibu, was found by police three days later approximately a mile from her condo. Police did not find any forensic evidence in her vehicle and the only real hard piece of evidence in the case is security footage of a person seen parking Kesses vehicle near a pool at an apartment complex and walking away. The suspect has never been identified. The Orlando Police Department reportedly increased the reward in the case recently and ramped up other awareness efforts, including billboards and bus wrap ads. An investigative podcast series called Unconcluded was launched last July to help find clues in the case. It was set up by a Tampa-area schoolteacher Shaun Gurd and associate Scott Jamison and examines details of Kesses disappearance. The true-crime podcast is drawing more than 300,000 downloads per month, according to USA Today, and has led to a half-dozen credible leads. In the most recent episode, titled Sidebar / 1.21.18 the hosts say their intention is to fill listeners in on additional information obtained from a follow-up conversation with an individual who made a bizarre string of admissions in the case. Commenting on the reason for setting up the podcast, Gurd said he hopes that increased public interest in the case might prompt an unwitting witness to come forward with crucial information. Every day we hope that, thats the day that someone comes forward or calls the police and says, hey, I heard this podcast I didnt know what I saw back then meant something but I have this information, said Gurd, ABC action news reported. Kesses father told USA Today he is supportive of Unconcluded because it raises awareness of the case and could help bring about a breakthrough in the case. Gurd says persistence is crucial. Its important to not give up and thats something we want to help make sure doesnt happen, he said. Anyone with information on Jennifer Kesse is urged to call the Orlando Police Department at 407-246-3982, or Crimeline of Central Florida at 1-800-423-8477. Recommended Video: Timelapse Video Captures Ocean of Clouds Over Vancouver, British Columbia Inmate Gives Birth Surreptitiously in Texas Jail; Baby Dies An inmate in a Texas jail concealed her labor pains and gave birth to a baby in jail. The baby didnt survive. Sheriff Adam King of Cleburne called what happened maybe the most horrible thing Ive heard in my life. Katlyn Noel Smith was arrested on Thursday, Jan. 18, on an outstanding warrant, but didnt let police know how far along she was in her pregnancy. She concealed her labor pains in the holding tank she was sharing with several other inmates, until the baby began to crown early Monday morning, King told the Star-Telegram. Only at that point did she start banging on the door to get a deputys attention. All the other inmates in the lockup with her have been interviewed, King said. None of them knew the extent of what was going on. We think she hid it because she is a hardcore drug addict. King said when officers booked Smith into jail, they found what they suspect is heroin. Tests confirmed that Smith had methamphetamines and opiates in her system. An inmate at the Johnson County Jail who was found to have drugs in her system gave birth to a stillborn baby in https://t.co/ZbdbSXiprj Cle. Times-Review (@ctrnews) January 23, 2018 Its just absolutely horrible. Theres some things that you just dont even want to talk about or repeat, and this is so horrible that you dont want to say it out loud, King told the Cleburne Times-Review. King said medical tests after the babys death indicated Smith was about seven months pregnant. If taken to a hospital, the baby could have survived. The district attorney may file additional charges against Smith in relation to what happened. King said counseling will be provided to Smith as well as the inmates who were in the cell with her. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: President Donald Trump: Year 1 Loose Pit Bulls Kill Five Chihuahuas in California Before Being Euthanized Four pit bulls went on a rampage after getting loose in California and killed at least five Chihuahuas in a neighbors yard before being caught and killed, officials said. The pit bulls escaped their yard in San Diego and entered the neighbors yard, where the attack took place. The pit bulls were eventually restrained and owner Juan Jimenez handed them over to officials, who had them euthanized. The pit bulls were males aged 2, 4, and 11 months; and a 6-year-old female named Toast. Officials disposed of the five dead Chihuahuas and two others were missing as of the last report. Officers had previously received complaints about the pit bulls, and in 2013 went to the Jimenez household to investigate a report of a pit bull breaking off its chain and attacking a deputy. Toast and another pit bull were impounded but later returned to Jimenez, reported the San Diego Union-Tribune. Another complaint in 2013 said two pit bulls were running loose but animal control officers were unable to verify the report so no action was taken, reported City News Services. Dan DeSousa, Department of Animal Services director, told the Tribune that animal control officers couldnt charge Jimenez on Saturday due to the current law because they didnt witness the attacks on the Chihuahuas personally. However, the owner of the Chihuahuas made a private arrest, so Jimenez was charged with eight counts involving the pit bulls killing the Chihuahuas. Animal Services Lt. Loren Bunnell told NBC that the owner of the pit bulls was remorseful and fully cooperating with authorities. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: Cookie-crazed squirrel attacks New York policemen Looted Cash, Gold Helps ISIS Recruit in Philippines MARAWI CITY, PhilippinesIslamist terrorists looted cash, gold and jewelry worth tens of millions of dollars when they occupied a southern Philippines town last year, treasure one of their leaders has used to recruit around 250 fighters for fresh attacks. The military said Humam Abdul Najib escaped from Marawi City, which the terrorists had hoped to establish as a stronghold for ISIS in Southeast Asia, before it was recaptured by the military in October after five months of ferocious battles and aerial bombardment. Since then, Najib, also known as Abu Dar, has used the booty looted from bank vaults, shops and homes in Marawi to win over boys and young men in the impoverished southern province of Lanao del Sur, military officers in the area said. Hardened mercenaries are also joining, lured by the promise of money. As a result, ISIS followers remain a potent threat in Southeast Asia even though hundreds of terrorists were killed in the battle for Marawi, the officers said. Definitely they havent abandoned their intent to create a caliphate in Southeast Asia, Colonel Romeo Brawner, the deputy commander of Joint Task Force Marawi, told Reuters. Thats the overall objective, but in the meantime while they are still trying to recover and build up again fighters and weapons our estimate is they are going to launch terrorist attacks. On Saturday, terrorists wounded eight soldiers in two attacks in Lanao del Sur, Brawner said, the first such violence since the recapture of Marawi. In the early days of the occupation of Marawi last May, as black-clad fighters burned churches, released prisoners and cut the power supply, other terrorists targeted banks and the homes of wealthy citizens, commandeering hostages to help with the plunder. It was in the first week. They divided us into three groups with seven people each, said J.R. Montesa, a Christian construction worker who was captured by the terrorists. Using explosives, the terrorists blew open the vaults of the citys three main banks, Landbank, the Philippine National Bank and the Al Amanah Islamic Bank, Montesa told Reuters in a town near Marawi. They trucked away the booty, easily slipping out of Marawi because a security cordon was not fully in place. They also raided jewelry stores, pawnshops and businesses. Landbank and Al Amanah did not respond to requests for comment. Philippine National said recovering losses because of the Marawi fighting was a concern, but did not give details. The Islamic celebration of Ramadan was looming at the time the terrorists struck and banks, businesses and homes had more money than usual, said Marawi City police chief Ebra Moxsir. The Maranaos, the ethnic group that dominates the area around Marawi, are mostly Muslims. There was a lot of money inside the battle area, he told Reuters. Maranaos keep millions of pesos in safety vaults in their homes. Gold, also. It is a tradition of the Maranao to give gifts of money (during Ramadan). Montesa said vans they loaded with the spoils of the raids were overflowing, with money, gold and other valuables stuffed into every crevice of the vehicles. They were saying it was a gift from Allah. They would say Allahu Akbar (God is greatest) while we were stealing. Dangerous Regrouping The military and police have also been accused by rights groups and by Marawi residents of looting during the conflict. Brawner said a small number of soldiers had been disciplined for looting but the practice was not widespread. However, the center of Marawi home to its major banks, main market and grandest residences was under the control of terrorists for months. Brawner said authorities were unclear exactly how much was taken by the terrorists. Its hard for us to say. We have heard about 2 billion pesos ($39.4 million) but thats just an estimate. In the first days, when we were not able to establish that security cordon around the main battle area, that was the time when they were able to slip out with their war booty. The government also said the regrouping of terrorists in Mindanao, the southern region of the Philippines that has been marred by Islamic and Communist uprisings for decades, was dangerous. Presidential spokesman Harry Roque told Reuters: There is always the danger of these groups regaining strength enough to mount another Marawi-like operation. Najib is believed to have fled Marawi early in the battle. There are conflicting reports about whether he had a dispute with other leaders or left as part of a preconceived plan. He attempted to return in August with 50-100 more fighters to reinforce the terrorists, who by then were losing ground, but he was prevented by an improved security cordon, said Brawner. According to reports, they were able to recruit another 100 to 150. So the estimate is 250 all in all, and this includes children, Brawner said. They are trying to recruit orphans, relatives of the fighters who died and sympathizers. Parents of children are offered as much as 70,000 pesos ($1,380) plus a monthly salary of as much as 30,000 pesos ($590) to hand over their sons to the group, according to security sources and community leaders briefed on the recruitment. The average family income in the Philippines is 22,000 pesos per month, according to a 2015 government survey. It was about half that in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, where Marawi and surrounding areas lie. Brawner said local residents had told the military that the terrorist group was also offering bonuses of up to 10,000 pesos ($200) for killing a soldier. Rommel Banlaoi, a Manila-based security expert, said more experienced fighters had also been recruited. These were mercenaries attracted by the payouts, he said, but Najib has also tapped into disaffection among Maranao angered by the destruction of large parts of Marawi by the Philippine militarys bombing campaign. That kind of narrative is being used by ISIS to lure people to continue the fight, Banlaoi said. Next leader? With the looted funds and a loyal following, Najib could become the new emir of ISIS in Southeast Asia following the death of Isnilon Hapilon in the battle for Marawi, security analysts say. Najib is a hardened fighter and cleric who studied in the Middle East and reportedly trained with terrorists in Afghanistan, they say. He co-founded Khalifa Islamiyah Mindanao, a terrorist group formed in about 2012 that launched a series of bombings in Mindanao. He is a very, very important person because he has been there from the start, said Banlaoi. Najib had links to Al Qaeda, which earned him the nickname al Zarqawi of the Philippines, a reference to the slain leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), Abu Musab al Zarqawi. AQI morphed into Islamic State, to which Najib pledged allegiance in 2014. According to Banlaoi, Najib worked closely with Mahmud Ahmad, a Malaysian terrorist believed to have died in Marawi who was the key conduit between the Philippines fighters and the Islamic State leadership in Syria and Iraq. Banlaoi said the recruitment effort by the pro-Islamic State remnants led by Najib was massive and systematic. If you are well funded, you can do a lot of things. By Tom Allard Recommended Video: Domestic terrorism brewing in the United States The Origins of Antifa Man Sent to Prison for up to 60 Years in PA School Stabbings A western Pennsylvania man was sentenced on Monday to up to 60 years in prison for stabbing 20 fellow students and a security guard with two kitchen knives in a high school rampage in 2014. Alex Hribal, now 20, was 16 years old at the time of the attack at Franklin Regional High School in Murrysville, Pennsylvania, 18 miles east of Pittsburgh. He suffered from pre-schizophrenia symptoms, according to court documents. Man sentenced to 23 1/2 to 60 years in Pa. high school stabbings https://t.co/rnqf21Z3Y1 PaPaShArMFbI (@PaPaShArMFbI) January 22, 2018 800 years behind bars is what Alex Hribal faces for stabbing 20 students and a security guard at Franklin Regional High School. Live reports on Channel 11 Morning News with more on what prosecutors are seeking pic.twitter.com/lZSYCzhWvs Lori Houy (@WPXI_Lori) January 22, 2018 I feel horrible about everything, Hribal said at the sentencing in Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court, Reuters reported. Theres no words I can use, and nothing I can say, to make it all better. Theres nothing I can say to fix it, he said. I would rather be in jail getting treatment for mental illness than free without it, he also said, WTAE reported. Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Christopher Feliciani sentenced Hribal to 23-1/2 to 60 years behind bars and ordered him to pay $269,000 in restitution. Each of the victims was consulted. They wanted 30-60 years, Westmoreland County District Attorney John Peck said. Although some have alluded to your actions as being caused by bullying, the facts do not support that, Westmoreland County Judge Christopher Feliciani said, according to Triblive. Hribal pleaded guilty in October to 21 counts each of attempted homicide and aggravated assault. His mother, Tina Hribal, told WTAE that she should have recognized her son had a mental illness. I should be sentenced, not Alex, she said. Im sorry, Alex, she also testified, according to Triblive. You just couldnt deal with the illness, Im sorry. In the attack, he used a pair of eight-inch kitchen knives and went after students in hallways before classes started in April 2014. Four were critically wounded. Court receives letters from victims, supporters of Alex Hribal (Via TribLive) https://t.co/PcsoFZOcVf Rich Cholodofsky (@RichCholodofsky) January 22, 2018 The slashing spree ended when Hribal was tackled by Assistant Principal Sam King, who testified at a previous court hearing that the teen said: I am not going to drop the knives, my work is not finished, theres more people to be killed. At the same hearing, several mental health professionals testified that Hribals untreated psychiatric disorders were to blame, saying he was obsessed with the 1999 Columbine school shooting in Colorado. Reuters contributed to this report. Recommended Video: How doctors in China turn into murderers Misplaced IV Needle May Have Crippled 3-Year-Old Daughter A mother is afraid her daughters only means of communication will be affected after nurses let a misplaced IV needle fill the childs arm with fluid overnight. Jalena Gunther, of Edmonton, Canada, is no stranger to medical emergencies. She adopted two children with severe medical conditions, hoping to give them better lives than they would have had in overseas orphanages, according to Metronews. She brought her 3-year-old daughter, Emmy, to Stollery Childrens Hospital early last week for open-heart surgery. The surgery went well, and Emmy was recovering, but not eating as much as doctors wanted, CTV News reported. Doctors decided to feed Emmy a solution of sugar, potassium, and sodium via an intravenous tube. The tube was inserted into the childs hand sometime around 6 p.m. local time on Friday, Jan. 19. Gunther told CTV that Emmy seemed fine for an hour but then started fussing and crying. Gunther asked doctors for more pain medication for the girl, assuming that she was experiencing discomfort form her surgery wound. Exhausted from staying awake for most of the prior few days, Gunther left Emmy in the care of her grandmother, and headed home for some much-needed sleep, reported CTV. Gunther received a text from her mother around 8:30 that night, saying Emmy was still complaining, and the doctors had not yet arrived. The grandmother requested again that Emmy be given more pain medication, but she never was. Nurses did come and assess the situation, but found nothing abnormal, she said. It was not until the next morning that a nurse noticed that the tape holding the IV in place was wet. The nurse then saw that the bed under Emmys arm was also wet. The nurse immediately ripped off all the tape and bandaging around the girls arm. She felt up her arm and felt that it was just stiff and swollen, which was the fluid in there, Gunther told CBC. She immediately started ripping off the tape and pulling everything off. Thats when shed seen her hand was very red, which was her skin starting to die. Emmys hand was horribly swollen, discolored, and covered with blisters. (See image hereWarning: may disturb some viewers) At some point, the IV needle had fallen out of the vein and continued pumping the nutrient solution into the flesh of the girls arm. Emmy, who has Downs syndrome and communicates primarily by hand signs, was unable to ask for help. Emergency Surgery Doctors rushed Emmy into surgery to undo as much of the damage as possible. Surgeons had to make a trio of incisions to release the excess fluid and cut away dead flesh, leaving the incisions open to drain. The next day they had to operate again to remove more dead flesh and to close the wounds. It hurts everything inside of me that this was avoidable, and now my daughter is going to go through weeks of intense pain, Gunther told CTV. Questions of Liability Nurses checked on Emmy at least three times during the night, and none of them saw the leaking IV line. Checking the IV is a standard procedure for nurses. I believe it was negligence, Gunther told CBC. Things were just missed and I really dont know why, truthfully. They knew she had the IV. It should have been checked. I wouldnt know to check her IV. I assumed it was her heart, as did her grandmother. But thats something that theyre trained to know and is in their protocol to check and I dont know why they didnt do it, so to me, it is negligence. Gunther thinks Stollerys management should at least reprimand the doctors and nurses involved in her daughters care. She also wants to see better training for the healthcare professional employed at the hospital. Alberta Health Services (AHS) said in a statement that they sympathize with Gunther and Emmy, and will review the case. We are doing all we can to make sure she receives the care she needs. We are involved with this family and reviewing the care that has been provided, the statement said. We are very sorry about the complication that this little girl has experienced. Our standards of care should not result in this type of complication for any of our patients. AHS takes every patient or family complaint regarding care extremely seriously, and we are thoroughly reviewing the circumstances of this case.This includes closely reviewing the care provided to Emmy, and working closely with the family to answer any questions or concerns they may have. We will continue to be available to them at any time. The problem, Gunther said, is that if any permanent damage was done, it will hurt her daughter especially deeply. Because Emmy communicates by hand signs, losing the use of one hand would amount to silencing her. We wont know for a few weeks what the use of her hand will be, Gunther said. Shell likely need physio. Even just because she hasnt used it for so long, there will be retraining of those muscles. If she cant have meaningful use of that hand or make a fist and move her hand, she wont be able to sign with her hand. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: How doctors in China turn into murderers Mother Says Son Was Abused at Home Daycare Center in Texas Police in Fredericksburg, Texas, are investigating allegations of child abuse at a daycare center run from a home, according to local reports. Child Protective Services is looking into the matter after police received a report on Thursday, Jan. 18. I never expected for my son to have to go through something like this, said the mother, who remained anonymous, according to News4 in San Antonio. The mother of the boy said she started taking her boy to the daycare earlier this week. On Wednesday, she found bruises on him. According to the mother, the owner of the daycare told her that a board got loose. Somehow this board had come off of her porch step and he fell, or the board hit him, she said, according to Dearly.com. She also sent the mother a video of the broken steps. Thats whenever I saw this bruise and I kind of freaked out, she said of seeing a bruise on the boys back. The next day, when she attempted to drop her son off at the daycare, her son lost it. He fought me in the car seat when I was trying to get him out. He was terrified to go in there, she said. She took her son to the emergency room instead. They literally pulled his pants down two seconds later, said thats not a fall, the mother said of what the nurses told her. I never expected for my son to have to go through something like this. Recommended Video: How doctors turn into murderers President Trump. Photo: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg via Getty Images Republicans have grown obsessed with purging the FBI of any figures they suspect lack the requisite loyalty to the Trump administration. Last night, Jonathan Swan reported that Christopher Wray, the FBI director Donald Trump installed to replace the fired James Comey, has threatened to resign in the face of intense pressure from Attorney General Jeff Sessions to clean out the Bureaus top staff. Does the news that Wray has resisted this pressure indicate that professional norms are holding fast in the face of Trumpism? Or does Sessionss willingness to carry out his bosss extraordinary demands indicate serious peril? The case for complacency about Trump is having a moment. And, to be sure, there is plenty of evidence American democracy will survive this presidency unscathed. Trumps party has suffered massive reversals in special elections in Alabama and Virginia, and expects to lose one or both chambers of Congress in the November midterms, and the president himself has been revealed as a hapless dope, snickered at by Republican legislators and even his own aides. One understandable conclusion some observers have drawn from this sorry performance is that Trump is not the threat to democracy his critics have made him out to be. Far from being an autocrat, he is a weak president susceptible to the views of the last person hes talked to and so deferential to Congress that he spent all of last year pining for a signing ceremony for literally anything lawmakers could send him on health care or taxes, argues National Review editor Rich Lowry. If authoritarianism is looming in the U.S., how come Donald Trump looks so weak? demands left-wing columnist Corey Robin. Ross Douthat reaches a similar, though slightly more hedged, conclusion. Its true that Trump has proven even less competent in office than his most dismissive critics anticipated. It is also true that the fears that Trump would permanently weaken American democracy have not come to pass, and the most hyperbolic fears that he would become an American Hitler will never come to pass. But the argument for complacency misunderstands how authoritarian leaders attack democratic governments, and how Trump might yet do so. (1) Trumps ignorance and authoritarianism are not mutually exclusive. Trump is not an ideologically committed authoritarian. He is an instinctive one, who understands relations between people and countries in terms of zero-sum dominance. He certainly has no coherent plan to dismantle the republic. But his authoritarianism springs primarily from his ignorance. Trump believes the government should be run like the Trump organization, with law enforcement and he military pledging personal loyalty to him as if they were his bodyguards. He cannot grasp any distinction between his interests and those of the government he represents, which explains his refusal to divest or even disclose his business interests, and his gleeful use of office for personal gain. The normal tensions a president experiences with independent actors, like the media and law enforcement, strike Trump as unforgivable impudence. To look at this behavior as pure weakness is to absorb a partial truth. (2) Democracy and authoritarianism lie on a continuum. Americans correctly understand democracy to be a fragile thing. But its not fragile like an egg, either kept intact or cracked open and ruined. The scope of a democracy can advance or retreat. American government has generally grown more democratic through its history, as the franchise was extended beyond white male landowners, the secret ballot was introduced, senators became subject to popular election, and so on. When they imagine threats to democracy, many people tend to grasp for well-known historical cases like Nazi Germany or the Soviet Union. Corey Robin devotes most of his column to knocking down the spurious comparisons between Trump and Hitler. But the concern of serious democracy scholars is not a totalitarian state that murders its opposition en masse. It is democratic backsliding. Voting can be more or less fair, legislators more or less representative, the governing party more or less able to use its power to ensure its continued control. (3) Fights over democracy are part of normal party politics. Studying democratic backsliding in foreign countries makes the crux of the issue easy for Americans to identify. When a president rigs legislative races to protect his party, or abuses law enforcement, or whips up sectarian anger and violence, we recognize those symptoms easily. When they happen in the United States, we process them as familiar red team versus blue team fights. That is one reason why comparative government scholars are relatively alarmed: They recognize Trumps anti-democratic rhetoric in a context outside the cable-news shoutfests in which Americans have processed it. (4). It doesnt always happen immediately. One of the most surprising conclusions in How Democracies Die, a new study of case histories in democratic backsliding by Harvard government professors Steven Levitsky and Daniel Ziblatt, is that some authoritarian leaders have waited a year or more to attack institutional constraints. But anti-democratic rhetoric can be a telling indicator of what lies ahead. Trumps refusal before the election to accept the possibility he might be fairly defeated, his blanket dismissal of all media not controlled by his party as fake news, his demands to lock up his opponent, and his attempts to turn law enforcement into an organ of personal control all have predictive value even in the absence of follow-through in his first year. When governments do undertake democratic backsliding, the process is gradual. For many citizens, it may, at first, be imperceptible, wrote Levitsky and Ziblatt. After all, elections continue to be held. Opposition politicians still sit in Congress. Independent newspapers still circulate. This raises the question of whether we are watching imperceptible, or only somewhat perceptible, democratic backsliding, or nothing at all. +++ From the standpoint of democratic backsliding, the most alarming development over the last year has been the Republican Partys almost total abdication of independent responsibility. Even before he took office, Trump shredded long-standing anti-corruption norms requiring a president to disclose tax returns and place his wealth in a blind trust. Even the vague fig leaf Trump offered of donating foreign profits has been completely ignored. House Republicans have assisted him by repeatedly blocking votes to compel the publication of his tax returns. We dont oversee the Executive, New Jersey Republican congressman Tom MacArthur lectured constituents last year. Congress is not the board of directors of the White House. In fact, the Constitution gives Congress precisely this duty. But the abdication of oversight has been almost total. One of the crucial concepts outlined by Levitsky and Ziblatt is capturing the referees. Any modern state is powerful enough that, if the ruling party were able to suborn its power to its own ends, it would be difficult for voters to dislodge it. A functioning democracy must therefore have offices and officials bound to act in a nonpartisan fashion. Much of the struggle to maintain neutral referees has focused on law enforcement. The perception of criminality was crucial to Trumps election. As far as the public knew, Trumps opponent was under FBI investigation a fact he reminded voters of at every turn and he was not. Trump is obviously determined to replicate this outcome. He is applying intense pressure on Attorney General Jeff Sessions to reopen dry investigations into the Clinton Foundation and a 2010 uranium sale. These efforts have borne fruit. It is true that Trump has not yet followed through on his repeated demands for Robert Muellers probe to be halted. Douthat, arguing that Trump has been hemmed in by the bureaucracy, notes that the scope of the Russia investigation has only widened since Trumps hamfisted intervention. On the other hand, any meager interest the GOP Congress had in protecting this investigation has evaporated. The House Intelligence Committee is running a counter-investigation of law enforcement. Its hyperbolic conclusion that the FBI is shot through with liberal bias has galvanized Congress and the rank and file. The purge Sessions is attempting to carry out is a mild version of the demands coursing through conservative media. I cant understand why the U.S. marshals havent been dispatched to the Justice Department and FBI to sequester everything and to at least take into custody the top people who are responsible for the operation of those organizations, demanded Lou Dobbs Monday night. The Washington Examiners Byron York cheerfully assented to Dobbss ravings. Dobbs may be confused about the organizational details (U.S. marshals work for the Department of Justice) but the gist of his sentiment is chillingly clear. It is now a perfectly mainstream conservative belief not only that the investigation of Trump is corrupt and illegitimate, but that allegedly anti-Trump officials should be subject to mass arrest. Trump is like a captured animal thrashing against the walls of his pen. So far the walls have held up. Will they hold up for the duration? That will be answered by a political fight of a still-undetermined outcome. Members of Mara Salvatrucha (MS13), held on Monday, March 4, 2013, in the Criminal Center of Ciudad Barrios in El Salvador. (Marvin RECINOS/AFP/Getty Images) MS-13 Wants to Send Younger, More Violent Members to America, Official Says Frustrated leaders of the notorious street gang MS-13 are feeling the pressure from the Trump administration and are looking to send younger, more violent offenders to the United States, officials say. Stephen Richardson, assistant director of the FBIs criminal investigative division, told the House Committee on Homeland Security in a meeting on Jan. 18 that the mass arrests and imprisonment of MS-13 members and mid-level leaders over the past year have frustrated the gangs leaders, reported VOA News. Theyre very much interested in sending younger, more violent offenders up through their channels into this country in order to be enforcers for the gang, Richardson said, reported the news website. The committees chairman, Peter King, said his staff recently visited El Salvador and were told by local authorities that the gang leaderswhich mostly operate out of prisons in the Central American countrywere frustrated because MS-13 members in the United States are not violent enough, reported VOA news. Its a horrifying thought, King added. What is MS-13? MS-13, or Mara Salvatrucha, is known for its violence and has been targeted for elimination by the Trump administration. One of its mottos is Mata, roba, viola, controla or Kill, steal, rape, control. During fiscal year 2017, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Homeland Security Investigations arrested 796 MS-13 gang members and associatesan 83 percent increase over the previous year. Most MS-13 members hail from El Salvador and the vast majority are in the United States illegally. Gang members use the unaccompanied minor program as a recruiting pipeline into the United States. Children under 18 who cross the border illegally into the United States usually seek out Border Patrol so that they can get processed and sent to the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is part of Health and Human Services. The minor is then placed with a sponsor, who is often a parent or relative who is already in the United States illegally. Often, minors who are not part of MS-13 when they enter the United States become prime targets for recruitment into the gangespecially if they have family members back home that gang members can threaten to hurt. According to the Justice Department, MS-13 has 40,000 members globally, with around 10,000 in the U.S. carrying out crimes ranging from extortion to gun trafficking, reported Fox News. Were looking at the information were getting and doubling down our efforts against MS-13, Raymond Villaneuva, an assistant director for ICE, said in response to Kings comments. The gang is also responsible for a number of brutal murders in the United States. On Jan. 8, a teenage MS-13 gang member, Venus Romero Iraheta, was convicted of stabbing a 15-year-old girl 13 times and slicing off her tattoo. Police arrested 18 young people in connection with the murder of the teen, which attracted national attention to the gangs violence. Charlotte Cuthbertson contributed to this report. From NTD.tv A frozen-over sailboat, symbolically related to the predicament of the USS Little Rock, which remains stuck in a Canadian port due to ice. (CC0) New US Navy Warship Trapped in Canada Until Spring Due to Ice A brand new warship of the US Navy is stuck in Montreal, Canada for the winter, after its voyage to Florida was held up by frigid weather. The USS Little Rock hit the water in Buffalo on Dec. 16 and set out for Mayport, Floridahome port for the 118-meter Freedom-variant vessel, Canadas CBC reported. Instead, heavy ice caused the ship to make fast to dry land, forcing this latest member of the Littoral Combat Ship class to remain docked in Montreals Old Port area since Christmas Eve. Newly-commissioned USS Little Rock to spend winter in Montreal after getting trapped in ice https://t.co/W9jad1Cs1E CTV News (@CTVNews) January 21, 2018 Lt. Cmdr. Courtney Hillson says the Navy is reconciled to letting ship and crew hibernate in Canada. The temperatures in Montreal and throughout the transit area have been colder than normal, and included near-record low temperatures, which created significant and historical conditions in the late December, early January time frame, Hillson told the Toronto Star. Keeping the ship in Montreal until waterways are clear ensures the safety of the ship and crew, and will have limited impact on the ships operational schedule. USS Little Rock Stuck in Montreal, Ship Might Not Leave Until Spring USNI Newshttps://t.co/Z0VxKWv40y pic.twitter.com/5OaKbbwGWx U.S. Naval Institute (@NavalInstitute) January 20, 2018 The navy spokesperson did not provide details on how common it is for its ships to face winter-related delays, but did say that previous ships did not face problems in December. The ships crew has been equipped with cold weather clothing and will focus on mission training while the delay continues. The hold-up will have limited operational impact, Hillson said and added that the vessel has been furnished with temporary heating units and 16 de-icers to keep the innovative aluminum hull from freezing over. Just announced: USS #LITTLE ROCK #LCS 9 to stay in #Montreal until ice in the St Lawrence River & Gulf breaks up enough to allow safe transit. Ship put in 24 Dec for Christmas then the river really blocked up. Navy notes stay will have limited impact on ships operational sked. pic.twitter.com/rkS8GtxpFQ Chris Cavas (@CavasShips) January 19, 2018 According to the New York Post, other US Navy members like the Littoral Combat Ship class faced technical problems, including engine snags and automation-related failures. The aluminum hull, the New York Post suggests, may be a factor in why the ship cant make it to the open seas even with some help from Navy icebreakers. The situation comes on the heels of a spate of collisions that have plagued the Navys 7th Fleet, which reports attribute to crew fatigue and deferred maintenance and training. Seven of the 300 sailors onboard the USS Fitzgerald died in a June 17, 2017 collision with a significantly larger civilian container vessel off Japan. Recommended Video: Timelapse Video Captures Ocean of Clouds Over Vancouver, British Columbia Police: Infant Drowns After Mother Falls Asleep in Bathtub A mother from Melbourne Beach, Florida, has been arrested after her 10-month-old son drowned in a bathtub while she was sleeping. Rosa Regina Feeney is facing charges of aggravated manslaughter of a child and child neglect, according to 9 ABC. She is currently being held in the Brevard County Jail on a $60,000 bail. The incident took place last month on Dec. 6. Deputies said they arrived at Deangelos by the Sea Hotel to find Feeney trying to revive her son by performing CPR. According to NBC affiliate WESH, investigators believe the mother was drinking before she took the bath, as her child played nearby. During the bath, Feeney put her son into the tub with her, before investigators believe she fell asleep. It was at this time the child slipped under the water. Later Feeney woke up and found her child unresponsive and ran to her neighbors for help. According to 9 ABC, deputies said she appeared intoxicated when they questioned her. In another similar incident, a young mother from the UK was left devastated after waking up to find her 8-day-old son had died in her arms after they fell asleep together on the couch. Chelsea Love, 24, had just taken her newborn son, Leo, out of his bouncy chair after she noticed he was falling asleep. The exhausted mom from north Hull then placed Leo on his back on her chest for a cuddle, then accidentally fell asleep herself, with the baby snuggled up next to her, according to Hull Daily Mail. An hour later, she was frantically woken up by Leos father, Sam Coles, who noticed their son had changed color. Leo was rushed to the Hull Royal Infirmary, where the doctors desperately tried to save him. They managed to restart his heart and transferred the baby to Leeds hospital for specialist treatment. During treatment, CT scans showed Leo had suffered extensive brain damage and would never recover. He died on Oct. 26 after his parents made the difficult decision to turn off his life support. Janita Kan contributed to this report. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: How doctors in China turn into murderers Pregnant Woman Who Died on Way to Hospital to Give Birth Identified The pregnant woman who died on her way to the hospital in Maine has been identified. The 27-year-old woman has been identified as Desiree Strout, reported WGME. Strout was rushing to the hospital on Jan. 22, when the car she was driving slid on ice, partially hit a snowbank, and rolled onto its side. Strout was killed but doctors at Redington-Fairview General Hospital performed an emergency C-section to try to save her baby. Strout had been nine months pregnant. The baby is in critical condition. The baby is currently in Bangor at EMMC, Skowhegan Police Chief David Bucknam told Central Maine. Unknown status, as the hospital will not give us an update. Dana Weeks, Strouts uncle, told WGME that she was a mother-of-two. Police say Desiree Strout, 27, crashed on her way to the hospital to deliver her baby. She died and the baby is at the hospital. #NEWSCENTERmainehttps://t.co/Zpj2szr9d0 Beth McEvoy (@bethmcevoynews) January 23, 2018 #BREAKING: Skowhegan police have identified the victim in Monday morning's deadly crash as 27-year-old Desiree Strout: https://t.co/JnbCdcsmlk pic.twitter.com/Sx1TfMPnXF CBS 13 News (@WGME) January 23, 2018 Now the little mans empty handed, you can find a dad figure any place, but moms are golden, you aint gonna find that every place, you cant, Weeks said. You cant replace a mom, not in my book. Franny MacMichael Clark, a family friend, express sadness over the death. The times that I was around her, she was a very loving mother, Clark told Central Maine. Her oldest daughter, Delanie, is such a smart little cookie and I know Desiree home-schooled her kids, so you could tell, it was evident, that she spent a lot of time with them and teaching them. She was a sweethearther parents are my neighbors. The 8-year-old in the vehicle, one of Strouts kids, is expected to fully recover. An adult male passenger in the vehicle, Harry Weeks, is also expected to recover. Weeks, 29, suffered a punctured lung and laceration, police told Central Maine. He is Strouts husband. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: High School Students Surprise Sweetest Janitor With New Work Boots for Christmas Stop Worrying About Not Getting Enough Exercise and Being Too Stressed You May Live Longer Its January, so many of you have likely set goals to be more physically active or less stressed in 2018. However, a better goal may be to stop worrying about how much exercise youre getting and how stressed you are. A recent study of more than 60,000 American adults examined the link between perceptions of exercise and mortality. The researchers found something curious: People who worried about being less active than others were up to 71 percent more likely to die in the follow-up period 21 years later, regardless of their actual levels of physical activity or overall health. Inversely, believing you are getting enough exercise can lead to better health. In a study conducted by Harvard University, a group of hotel workers was told that their daily work fulfilled recommended exercise guidelines. A second groupthe control groupwas not given this information. After just one month, people in the informed group showed significant health improvements, including a 10-point drop in systolic blood pressure and two-pound weight loss. The waist-to-hip ratios also improved and so did the body mass index. All of these changes were significantly greater than those of the control group. Meta-Stress It is a commonly held belief that stress is bad for you, but the evidence is not clear-cut. For example, a 2016 study of more than 700,000 women in the United Kingdom, found that self-reported levels of stress had no direct effect on mortality. Similar to what has been found with activity levels, how you perceive or think about stress may be as big a problem as stress itself. A number of studies seem to support this idea. In a large study spanning nine years, researchers explored the role of stress and its impact on health and mortality. In this study, the researchers not only explored peoples levels of stress but also their beliefs about stress being dangerous to health. The results showed that neither high amounts of stress nor the perception that stress has a negative effect on health were independently associated with premature death. However, people who both believed that stress affects health and reported a large amount of stress had a 43 percent increased risk of premature death. The authors concluded, The results suggest that the appraisal of both the amount of stress and its impact on health may work together synergistically to increase the risk of premature death. Interestingly, those who reported high levels of stress but who did not believe their stress was harmful, had the lowest mortality rates, even compared with those who had less stress. New Year, New Mindset What links both these areas of research is the idea that your mindset may be very important in influencing both the positive and negative effects of stress and exercise. So how can you change your mindset? A starting point with exercise is to give up worrying how much physical activity you are doing compared to others. This is particularly important if your comparisons are based on unrealistically high standards, such as those often portrayed on social media. Follow public health guidelines on appropriate levels of physical activity. But remember to praise yourself for the exercise you do get, and dont punish yourself for not doing enough. This may increase your motivation and provide a range of physical health benefitsas with the hotel workers. With regard to stress, you need to stop thinking of psychological stress as being directly dangerous, particularly if you are stressed, as it is the perceived effect on health that is linked to increased mortality. When people worry about stress being dangerous, it can lead to a range of behaviors that can be much more dangerous, such as smoking, binge eating, and excessive alcohol consumption. Two approaches may be helpful here: First, dont worry about stress being bad for you. Worry only heightens a sense of threat and strengthens the belief that stress is dangerous. By choosing not to worry, you can greatly reduce the stress you may have about stress. This may also reduce your desire to engage in unhealthy lifestyle choices. Second, accept stress as a normal part of life and a natural survival mechanism for dealing with threats. It has been shown that when people shift to seeing stress as enhancing rather than debilitating, it can result in more positive outcomes. A change in perception and a reduction in worry may be the most beneficial goals to strive for this year. Robin Bailey is a senior lecturer in psychological therapies at the University of Central Lancashire in England. This article was originally published on The Conversation. Top FBI Officials Discussed Secret Society Working Against Trump, Text Messages Show Two top FBI officials discussed a secret society working against President Donald Trump in text messages sent on the day after he won the election, according to two congressmen who reviewed the communications. Peter Strzok, a top counterintelligence official, and his mistress, Lisa Page, a senior FBI lawyer, exchanged tens of thousands of messages, many of which were anti-Trump. After the texts were discovered, Strzok was removed from Special Counsel Robert Muellers probe into interference in the 2016 election Strzok was also the lead FBI agent investigating Hillary Clinton over her use of a private email server. He was responsible for changing key language in FBI Director James Comeys exoneration statement on Clinton, removing legal language that could have criminally implicated her. Rep. John Ratcliffe (R-Texas) and Rep Chairman Trey Gowdy (R-S.C.) are reviewing over 9,500 texts sent between Strzok and Page that had been obtained by the Department of Justice (DOJ) Inspector General. The FBI said that it had failed to capture another 50,000 texts. We learned today about information that in the immediate aftermath of [Trumps] election, that there may have been a secret society of folks within the Department of Justice and the FBIto include Page and Strzokthat would be working against him, Ratcliffe told Fox News on Monday, Jan. 23. Im not saying that actually happened, but when folks speak in those terms, they need to come forward to explain the context with which they used those terms, Ratcliffe added. The mention of a secret society operating in the upper echelons of the FBI and DOJ is rare and significant. Trump has made frequent references to the so-called deep state. In a speech in Pensacola, Florida, on Dec. 8, Trump made a reference to the deep seeds inside. You know, there is no country like our country. But we have a lot of sickness in some of our institutions. And were working very hard. Weve got a lot of them straightened out, Trump said. The only thing they really care about is protecting what theyve been able to do, which is really to control the country. And its not to your benefit. Trump is the first president since John F. Kennedy to call out the deep state operating within the U.S. government. Kennedy issued a stark warning in a 1961 speech on secret societies. The very word secrecy is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings, Kennedy said. For we are opposed around the world by a monolithic and ruthless conspiracy that relies primarily on covert means for expanding its sphere of influenceon infiltration instead of invasion, on subversion instead of elections, on intimidation instead of free choice, on guerrillas by night instead of armies by day, Kennedy said. It is a system which has conscripted vast human and material resources into the building of a tightly knit, highly efficient machine that combines military, diplomatic, intelligence, economic, scientific, and political operations. Kennedy was assassinated two years after giving the speech. Strzok and Page have been under fire ever since their anti-Trump texts were revealed. In one message, Strzok mentioned an insurance policy in the event Trump would win the election. I want to believe the path you threw out for consideration in Andys officethat theres no way he gets electedbut Im afraid we cant take that risk. Its like an insurance policy in the unlikely event you die before youre 40 Strzok wrote. The couples discussion of a secret society working against Trump raises more alarming questions, according to Rep. Gowdy. Theres a text exchange between these two FBI agents, these two supposed to be objective fact-centric FBI agents, saying that perhaps this is the first meeting of the secret society, Gowdy told Fox News. So of course Im going to want to know what secret society youre talking about because youre supposed to be investigating objectively the person who just won the Electoral College; so yeah, Im going to want to know, Gowdy added. The news of the Strzok-Page talk of a secret society comes on the heels of the FBIs announcement that it was unable to preserve five months worth of communications between the couple. Trump referred to that announcement as one of the biggest stories in a long time, in a Tuesday morning tweet. The FBI now says it is missing five months worth of lovers Strzok-Page texts, perhaps 50,000, and all in prime time, Trump wrote. Wow! By prime time the president is likely referring to the fact that the missing messages all fall into a crucial window between the presidential transition and the start of the Mueller probe. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that the DOJ will leave no stone unturned to recover the missing text messages. We will leave no stone unturned to confirm with certainty why these text messages are not now available to be produced and will use every technology available to determine whether the missing messages are recoverable from another source, Sessions said in a statement. The fact that government officials were working against Trump shortly after he was elected became quickly apparent as the president was inundated with selective leaks on a nearly daily basis for five months. The leaking reached all the way to the top tier of the FBI when then-Director James Comey admitted that he leaked his notes to a friend with the intention of having them reach the media. The mention of a secret society also comes just days after 65 congressmen signed a letter calling the release of a potentially devastating House report on government surveillance abuses. Lawmakers have referred to the contents of the memo as worse than Watergate, a palace coup, and likened it to the KGB. Trump has accused President Barack Obama of wiretapping Trump tower during the election and called out the deep state in relation to the allegations. The House of Representatives seeks contempt citations(?) against the JusticeDepartment and the FBI for withholding key documents and an FBI witness which could shed light on surveillance of associates of Donald Trump, the president wrote on Twitter on Nov. 29. Big stuff. Deep State. Give this information NOW! That fact that senior government officials are involved in secret societies isnt itself a secret. George W. Bush and John Kerry both admitted to being members of Skull and Bones, a secret society founded at Yale University. Secret society researchers have long pointed to a common thread running through groups like the Illuminati, Freemasons, and Skull and Bonesall practice occult rituals. Footage recorded outside the Skull and Bones building at Yale shows a ceremony which includes actors carrying out a staged murder while hysteric yells and shouts fill the dimly lit private courtyard. While no proof exists that Skull and Bones is connected to the Illuminati, both have a unique fascination with death. Texts written by prominent Illuminati authors show that the society worships Satan, according to numerous citations in Illuminati Facts and Fiction a book by Mark Dice, a secret society expert who has dedicated more than a decade to researching these groups. From NTD.tv Recommended Video: President Donald Trump: Year 1 The victim of an attack lies of the sidewalk in New York City on Jan. 20, 2018. (Jon Levine/TheWrap) Trump Supporter Punched and Strangled by Antifa Extremist Outside NYC Gala A 56-year-old man attending a gala celebrating the anniversary of President Donald Trumps inauguration Saturday night was knocked down with a punch to the head and strangled by a black-clad member of the Antifa communist extremist group, WCBS reported. A video from the scene of the attack showed the victim bleeding on the sidewalk as police officers surrounded the handcuffed attacker. The victim was transported to Bellevue Hospital and listed in stable condition. The gala, arranged by independent journalist Mike Cernovich, took place at the FREQNYC nightclub on W. 50th St. According to Daily News, the attack occurred at 10:30 p.m. I saw him hit the old man, witness Ali Thomas told Daily News. One hit. He swung hard. He hit him hard. The old mans head hit the curb. NYPD officers arrested David Campbell, a Brooklyn resident. Campbell was charged with strangulation, assault, criminal possession of a weapon, assault of a police officer, resisting arrest, loitering, and obstruction of government administration, according to New York Post. The mob also surrounded and trapped James OKeefe, the president of Project Veritas, an undercover journalism outlet which recently published a series of reports exposing censorship, bias, and invasion of privacy by Twitter. OKeefe retreated behind a line of police officers. Antifa spotted me walking outside Cernovich Night for Freedom, had me surrounded, bypassed NYPD, started to charge, had to turn phone off as was trapped in violent mob for 10 minutes with a few cops escorting me to car, OKeefe wrote on Twitter. Antifa spotted me walking outside @Cernovich Night for Freedom, had me surrounded, bypassed NYPD, started to charge, had to turn phone off as was trapped in violent mob for 10 minutes w a few cops escorting me to car, jumped into backseat of @ImAndrewMarcus car. @JackPosobiec pic.twitter.com/MD2KDYLxmM James O'Keefe (@JamesOKeefeIII) January 21, 2018 Several other people were injured during and after the event, including a police officer, according to NYPD. Cernovich, the organizer, called the mob of protesters terrorists after the event. The event was billed as a gathering of patriots and political dissidents who are bored with mainstream political events. The festivities included a DJ set, a comedy routine, and speeches. Antifa is currently being investigated by the FBI for domestic terrorism. A joint intelligence assessment by the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) described Antifa as committing terrorist activities as early as last year. The confidential documents, first reported on by Politico, show that the intelligence assessment led the DHS under the Obama administration to formally classify the activities of Antifa as domestic terrorist violence. The organization was founded in Germany in the 1920s as the violent wing of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD), which at the time was trying to establish a communist dictatorship in Germany. Part of its role was to brand any form of capitalism and all rival political parties, including even social democrats, as fascist. Joshua Philipp contributed to this report. From NTD.tv Paratroopers engage ISIS terrorists with precise and strategically placed artillery fire in support of Iraqi and Peshmerga fighters in Mosul, Iraq, on July 6, 2017. (Army photo by Sgt. Christopher Bigelow) US Forces Kill 150 ISIS Fighters in Airstrike in Syria, Says Pentagon The Pentagon said that U.S. airstrikes killed 150 ISIS terrorists in eastern Syria amid the government shutdown over the weekend. The airstrike occurred near the Euphrates River near the border between Syria and Iraq, the U.S. Central Command said in a statement on Tuesday, Jan. 23. The headquarters that were bombed had a heavy concentration of ISIS fighters and they appear to have been massing for movement, according to Central Command. The strikes underscore our assertion that the fight to liberate Syria is far from over, said Maj. Gen. James Jarrard, who is a commanding general of Special Operations Joint Task Force-Operation Inherent Resolve. Our SDF partners are still making daily progress and sacrifices, and together we are still finding, targeting and killing ISIS terrorists intent on keeping their extremist hold on the region. We cannot take our focus off our mission, and we must not lose our momentum in taking these terrorists off the battlefield and preventing them from resurfacing somewhere else, said Jarrard. Central Command said that ISIS lost more than 98 percent of the land that it once controlled. The strikes took place near As Shafah, Syria and killed between 145 and 150 militants. The statement added that U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), which includes Kurdish YPG fighters, helped in target observation, Reuters reported. Turkey seeks to avoid any clash with U.S., Russian or Syrian forces but will take any steps needed for its security, a Turkish minister said on Tuesday, the fourth day of its air and ground offensive against Kurdish forces. The United States and Russia both have military forces in Syria and have urged Turkey to show restraint in its campaign, named Operation Olive Branch, to crush the U.S.-backed Kurdish YPG in the Afrin region on Turkeys southern border. The United States has led an international coalition conducting air strikes against Islamic State since 2014. U.S. troops have served as advisers on the ground with Iraqi government forces and with Kurdish and Arab groups in Syria. Reuters contributed to this report. Recommended Video: How doctors in China turn into murderers Wray did not immediately cave to political pressure. Huzzah! Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images President Trump has repeatedly demonstrated that he has little to no respect for the independence of the Justice Department, leaving many convinced that its just a matter of time before he carries out his own Saturday Night Massacre. But the wait might be a bit longer than anticipated. Axios reported on Monday that Attorney General Jeff Sessions has been pressuring FBI Director Christopher Wray to fire Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, but Wray refused, and even threatened to resign if McCabe was removed. We live in a world where its no longer shocking that the White House would push to fire top FBI officials for political purposes, but this tells us something about the Trump administrations current thinking, since Wray still has a job. Over the weekend, Axios reported that Sessions has been pushing Wray who replaced fired FBI director James Comey to make a fresh start by purging top FBI officials, including McCabe. The conversations about McCabe and the core team started shortly after Wray was confirmed [in August], said a senior administration source. They intensified from there. Now Axios says Wray conveyed to Sessions that he was fed up with being pressured to fire McCabe. Sessions then conferred with White House counsel Don McGahn, who urged the attorney general to back off, saying it wasnt worth triggering another showdown between the Trump administration and the FBI. The Washington Post backed up much of this reporting, but said the discussions between Sessions and Wray occurred mainly in December. Several sources told the paper that they werent aware of any explicit resignation threat from Wray. For those who havent been keeping track of all of Trumps grudges, his issues with McCabe can be traced back to a Wall Street Journal report that ran shortly before the 2016 election. The paper revealed that in 2015, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe recruited McCabes wife to run for a state Senate seat. McAuliffes political action committee poured nearly half a million dollars into the race, but she lost. Months later McCabe was promoted to deputy director of the FBI, which meant he helped oversee the investigation into Hillary Clintons emails. So wheres the scandal? McAuliffe, like many Democratic officials, has close ties to the Clintons. After Comeys firing, McCabe became acting FBI director and gave Trump more substantial, though improper, reasons for wanting him gone. In testimony before the Senate Intelligence Committee, McCabe refuted the White Houses claim that Comey had lost the confidence of FBI personnel, and called the Trump-Russia investigation highly significant. Over the summer Trump attacked McCabe on Twitter, falsely claiming that his wife received donations directly from Hillary Clinton, and complaining that Sessions hadnt fired him. Right-wing conspiracy theories about McCabe got more fuel last month when we learned an FBI agent was removed from Special Counsel Robert Muellers investigation for sending anti-Trump text messages to FBI lawyer Lisa Page, with whom he was having an affair. Page worked for McCabe, and one of her texts made cryptic reference to talk of an insurance policy in Andys office. It appears the officials were merely saying they should continue investigating Trumps Russia ties, just in case he won. Following reports last month that McCabe is planning to retire in March, Trump posted a tweet that appeared to mock him for waiting until his pension is fully vested. If true, McCabe will be gone in a few weeks anyway, yet White House spokesperson Raj Shah released a statement on Monday night that seemed to say Wray should prove hes unbiased by dismissing politically motivated senior leaders like McCabe. The president has enormous respect for the thousands of rank-and-file FBI agents who make up the worlds most professional and talented law-enforcement agency. He believes politically motivated senior leaders, including former Director Comey and others he empowered, have tainted the agencys reputation for unbiased pursuit of justice, said Shah. The president appointed Chris Wray because he is a man of true character and integrity, and the right choice to clean up the misconduct at the highest levels of the FBI and give the rank and file confidence in their leadership. While the White House is abandoning all pretense of avoiding interference in FBI operations, theres some good news here. First, Wray appears to be making good on his promise to stand up for the bureaus independence. During his Senate confirmation hearing, Wray said he wouldnt be pulling punches as FBI director. I will never allow the FBIs work to be driven by anything other than the facts, the law, and the impartial pursuit of justice. Period, he said. If Wray did threaten to quit, it may not be the first time. In 2004, Wray, who ran the Justice Departments criminal division at the time, reportedly told Comey, then the deputy attorney general, that if he and other top officials quit over the George W. Bush administrations use of warrantless wiretaps, he would join them. Look, I dont know whats going on, but before you guys all pull the rip cords, please give me a heads-up so I can jump with you, Wray reportedly said. The more surprising news in the Axios report is that Trump officials dont think they can get away with another Comey-esque scandal right now. As Jack Goldsmith and Benjamin Wittes wrote for Lawfare Blog: while the situation is fluid and Trumps temperament makes the future impossible to predict, the reality in which Wray holds a lot of cards in his hand may be a stable one. Trump has already fired one FBI Director for standing up to him and defending the institutional integrity of the Bureau. He did not materially improve his position by doing so. Indeed, since it resulted in the appointment of Robert Mueller and Wray himself, it almost certainly worsened it. McGahn seems to be acknowledging in the Axios story that Trump cannot afford to do this again. The power to fire is the power to direct. The unwillingness to fire, however, makes direction impossible. If Wray is not willing to facilitate the politicization of the FBI and the White House doesnt have the stomach to remove him, then a lot its leverage to effectuate the politicization it so apparently desires disappears. Ironically, President Trump has handed Wray this leverage by firing his predecessor and by acting so inappropriately towards the FBI since Wray became its Director. The Trump administrations fear of triggering a cascade of firings and resignations may also suggest that Muellers job is safe for now. But as Goldsmith and Wittes noted, you never can tell with Trump. Maybe certain former FBI officials concerned about maintaining the bureaus integrity should refrain from posting tweets that might encourage Trump to challenge it. 7 hours ago Why You Should Get To Know Large-Cap Stock EPAM Sometimes a large-cap stock from a growth sector remains relatively unknown to retail investors. Thats the case with EPAM Systems (NYSE: EPAM), a Pennsylvania-based company that provides outsourced infotech and lifecycle software development. Read Article Supporters of the Florida initiative think they have the signatures filed to get their constitutional amendment on the November ballot. Photo: Courtesy of Florida Rights Restoration Coalition In the vast arsenal of methods used over the years to suppress minority voting, one of the oldest is disenfranchisement of people with criminal records long after theyve paid their debt to society. In the South, permanent ex-felon disenfranchisement was common in the immediate wake of slaverys demise, and was used in combination with Black Codes criminalizing any exercise of personal freedom to restore as much white supremacy as was possible. Thats why permanent disenfranchisement of ex-felons entered Floridas Constitution in 1868. Even as most other states in the South and elsewhere abandoned such policies, Florida has retained this vestige of Jim Crow, making it one of just three states (the others are Iowa, Kentucky, and Virginia) where acts of executive clemency are required to allow ex-felons to vote. And under current Republican governor Rick Scott, past broad exercises of such clemency have all but come to a halt, as the New York Times notes: Gov. Rick Scott of Florida grants only 8 percent of the requests that come before the states clemency board, which he leads for a total of only a few hundred people each year, even though there is a backlog of more than 10,000 petitions awaiting review. Scott also instituted a waiting period of five years after a felon has completed his or her sentence before obtaining the right to petition the governor for a rare restoration of voting rights. The impact of these policies has been enormous, particularly for Floridas African-American population: The ACLU and other groups believe that now some 1.5 million Floridiansabout 10 percent of the adult citizen populationare voteless, some because they are still serving sentences, but most because of felony convictions in their past. Among African-American men in the state, the number is north of 20 percent. That could change this year. Today the Florida Rights Restoration Initiative succeeded in securing the 766,000 certified signatures necessary to place a constitutional amendment on the November 2018 ballot automatically restoring voting rights for people who have served their sentences (with the exception of murderers and sex offenders). A 60 percent yes vote will be needed to enact this proposal. Though theres no publicly available Florida polling on ex-felon re-enfranchisement, a national Rasmussen survey in 2014 found that likely voters favored restoration of voting rights for felons who had completed their sentences by a robust 6528 margin. Earlier national polling shows consistent majority support for re-enfranchisement, particularly when those who have committed heinous crimes are exempted (as is the case in Floridas initiative). The biggest threat to passage of FRRI is probably partisan polarization. Some prominent national Republicans have supported a general policy of ex-felon re-enfranchisement over the years, including Rick Santorum, Rand Paul, John McCain, Lindsey Graham, Orrin Hatch, and George W. Bush, who have signed onto a coalition supporting restoration of voting rights. Indeed, Bush is significant insofar as he is one of the more notable beneficiaries of Floridas ban on ex-felony voting; had even a small fraction of the estimated 600,000 disenfranchised voters disproportionately African-Americans; according to one estimate black males are seven times more likely than their white counterparts to be incarcerated for a felony been able to participate in the 2000 election, it would not have gone to overtime, much less to the U.S. Supreme Court. It would not be surprising if Florida Republicans decided that ex-felon voting is an existential threat to their political power in the state, particularly when combined with this years enormous influx of Puerto Ricans who can immediately vote and who lean heavily Democratic. So the ballot initiative could become a bloody partisan issue in Florida this year along with red-hot gubernatorial and Senate races. If it passes, though, Florida and its 29 electoral votes will probably be a ripe target for whoever runs for president as a Democrat in 2020. What began as a rescue mission for Middle Eastern Christians, and a gesture toward regional peace, wound up being a pep rally with Bibi Netanyahu. Photo: Menahem Kahana/AFP/Getty Images Vice-President Mike Pences long-planned and once-delayed trip to the Middle East lost its original rationale some time ago. Remember this? Speaking in Washington in October, Pence said the president had charged him with a mission to the Middle East to bring an end to the persecution of Christians there. One of the messages that I will bring on the presidents behalf to leaders across the region is that now is the time to bring an end to the persecution of Christians and all religious minorities, Pence said at the time. Then, the administration announced its decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital and move our embassy there. This offended virtually the entire Arab population of the region, including its Christians, whose leaders quickly made it clear that they werent interested in meeting with Mike Pence anytime soon: Church leaders in Jerusalem wrote to Mr Trump begging him not to go forward with a move they said would increase hatred, conflict, violence and suffering. The pope of Egypts ten million Coptic Christians told Mr Pence he would refuse to meet him in Cairo as a result. Its just as well that Pences original plan to visit Christian Holy Land sites just before Christmas was shelved, ostensibly because he had to be in Washington to make sure the GOP tax bill was planned. Pences scheduled trip to the West Bank city of Bethlehem and the birthplace of Jesus has reportedly been called off. The vice president was given a rebuke by the custodian of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, where Jesus is believed to have died, who said Pence would not be welcomed if he visited. With the marketing of Pences trip as a rescue mission for persecuted Christians not exactly working out, the rationale changed to general efforts to promote the sort of peace-process breakthrough that the administration is claiming to be imminent, despite the many signs to the contrary. But before the original trip was canceled, Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas had already canceled plans to meet with Pence, as a protest of the administrations embassy plans and the way the decision was handled. And Palestinian anti-Trump sentiment seems to be hardening: During a two-hour speech in the West Bank city of Ramallah a week before Pence arrived, Abbas declared that the deal of the century is the slap of the century and confirmed that the Palestinian Authority would not accept America as a peace negotiator: A believer shall not be stung twice in the same place, he said. Trump decided to withhold $65 million from a United Nations relief agency for Palestinians, leaving many worried. So, Pences trip has turned into a combination of damage-control meetings with the leaders of Egypt and Jordan, and an extended pep rally with the Netanyahu government of Israel. The latter is the real emphasis, as Emma Green notes: [T]he trip became a photo op, a chance for Netanyahu to exclaim praises of my good friend Mike before the Knesset. At a greeting ceremony on Monday morning, the two men stood shoulder-to-shoulder, as politicians like to say, in front of rows of Israeli soldiers carrying M-16 rifles. They listened as a military band played The Star Spangled Banner, Americas national anthem, followed by Hatikvah, which is Israels. Pence will head back to America on Tuesday having gotten at least one thing he came for: affirmation that the Israeli government is delighted with the Trump administration. And maybe thats all Pence really needs: a demonstration to his and the presidents conservative evangelical supporters that the U.S. is fully committed to Israels divinely ordained role in world salvation, and has a vision of peace that is co-extensive with a Greater Israel that rules or ejects the troublesome Arabs of the occupied territories. You do wonder at what point American Evangelicals will begin to notice or care about the long-standing antipathy of their Middle Eastern co-religionists toward current Israeli policy and toward Donald J. Trump. Its true that in purely religious matters, there isnt a lot of commonality between, say, Coptic Christians, with their ancient traditions and three-hour liturgies, and your average U.S. megachurch attendees, with their praise bands and stadium seats with coffee holders. But for a long time, Middle Eastern Christians have been treated mostly as symbols for the American Christian Right, as holy victims of the hated Muslims. Now, the idea of Middle Eastern peace is becoming mostly symbolic as well. Whats left is an increasingly exclusive alliance between the American and Israeli Right. God help anyone who gets in the way of that juggernaut. Chucked if you do, Chucked if you dont. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images The Democratic Party does not deserve the trust of its progressive base on questions of immigration or political strategy. After all, the last Democratic president oversaw the deportation of 3 million people; the one before him passed the law that made such mass deportation possible; and our current president is Donald Trump. Its understandable then, that the left is not inclined to take a generous view of the Democrats decision to help end a government shutdown just hours after it began to bite, and well before making any meaningful progress toward legal status for DACA recipients. But in this particular instance, that outrage doesnt seem warranted. Put simply, it is hard to see how the tactical costs of postponing the shutdown fight for three weeks outweigh the substantive benefits of immediately ending a months-long childrens health-care crisis. As of Monday morning, Congressional Republicans had allowed the Childrens Health Insurance Program (CHIP) to go without long-term funding for 114 days. This malign neglect had already led many states to scale back their enrollment efforts, while a few were on the cusp of suspending their participation in CHIP altogether a development that would have left thousands of children without access to affordable health care. By voting for a three-week continuing resolution, Democrats averted that disaster, and secured six years of funding for CHIP. In my understanding, the case against accepting that trade-off goes something like this: Action is urgently needed to protect 700,000 Dreamers from deportation; a prolonged government shutdown is a surefire way to force such action; and Republicans would agree to pass a clean CHIP bill in the middle of a government shutdown before they would allow states to start suspending CHIP. The first premise of this argument is true; although its a bit less true today than it was the last time Democrats voted to fund the government without a DACA replacement. The second premise seems suspect, and the third, laughable (these people do not care if poor kids lose access to health insurance they spent most of last year actively trying to take it away from them). On the first point: Much of the public discussion of DACA has implied that Dreamers will retain their legal status until early March. But this is mistaken. Roughly 22,000 DACA recipients missed the deadline for renewing their legal status until March 5 (when the program is set to expire). Thus, when Democrats declined to force a shutdown over DACA in December, about 122 Dreamers were losing their right to live in the United States every day. Activists could credibly claim that the party was ignoring the urgency of the issue. But in early January, a federal judge in California ordered the Trump administration to reinstate DACA. The White House has appealed that decision but, remarkably, they did not ask the Supreme Court to stay the ruling. Instead, the administration has begun accepting new DACA renewal applications. Now, the March 5 deadline is no longer misleading because many Dreamers will irrevocably lose their legal status before that date its misleading because most will (probably) be able to keep their legal status long after it, even if no legislative fix is passed. This isnt to say that the Dreamers current purgatorial position is acceptable. The White House isnt taking DACA applications from Dreamers who were never previously covered by the program. And the administration can still seek a stay that would shutter zombie-DACA whenever it chooses. Further, it will take time for the federal government to process renewal applications and in the interim, thousands of Dreamers will have to get by without access to legal employment. Still, their situation is less dire than it was in December, and is almost certain to stay that way over the next three weeks. And this fact strengthens the argument for backing a short-term continuing resolution that immediately resolves the CHIP crisis. All this said if we could be certain that a prolonged shutdown would force Republicans to pass a DREAM Act in (relatively) short order, it would have been worth it for Democrats to stick their guns today. But we cant be certain of that. In fact, theres reason to suspect that shutting down the government is simply not an effective tactic for forcing the GOPs hand on this. The strongest source of Democratic leverage on DACA is, and always has been, the fact that the Republican Party is afraid to strip legal status from 700,000 American-raised, law-abiding, gainfully employed people who have deep ties to American companies, churches, universities, and communities. The Breitbart right might applaud such a development, but polling suggests that no one else will. And once the dispossession of 700,000 Dreamers ceases to be a looming threat and becomes a present reality the backlash is certain to be immense. The risk of mass protest and unrest is high. The weakness of the Republicans position is reflected in their refusal to actually argue for it. Outside of the partys far-right fringe, no GOP lawmakers are arguing that the Dreamers should be deported. Even President Trump refuses to make that case. His Department of Homeland Security, meanwhile, has promised (however emptily) not to deport law-abiding Dreamers, even after they lose their legal status. The administrations recent actions give off a similar odor of ambivalence. Given the Supreme Courts conservative majority, the White House almost certainly could have won a stay that would have allowed it to proceed with ending DACA on March 5. Instead, it moved rapidly to reopen renewal applications for the program. The GOP isnt eager to pass a DREAM Act. It is about as afraid of angering its nativist base as it is of deporting Dreamers. The best option for Republicans is to do nothing; keep zombie-DACA in place past March 5; and direct the publics attention to some other topic like, for example, the negative effects of a government shutdown. During the mini-shutdown, Republicans felt no need to defend the substance of their position on DACA. There were, after all, so many other issues to talk about. The troops, the monuments, CHIP dear, sweet CHIP! And when pressed on the subject, they could simply argue that they were not going to discuss the issue until the government reopened to do otherwise would only embolden the hostage-takers. If hundreds of DACA recipients were still irrevocably losing their legal status every day, this gambit might not be sustainable. But in a context where the White House is accepting renewal applications and there is no imminent deadline for when DACA actually ends its hard for me to understand how an extended shutdown would put more pressure on Republicans to pass a DREAM Act, than it would on Democrats to reopen the government. Over the course of such a shutdown, the number of Americans inconvenienced by the Democrats obstruction would steadily grow, while the number of DACA recipients with no means of renewing their work permits would not. Its possible that the GOP, as the ruling party, would bear the blame for an extended shutdown. But if Republicans were constantly arguing for the urgency of funding the government and of renewing CHIP while Democrats were talking about immigration, it seems likely that the public would eventually side with the former. So: The efficacy of a prolonged shutdown, as a tactic for forcing action on DACA is, at the very least, unclear. And the substantive harms of the tactic are considerable. There are furloughed federal workers who live paycheck to paycheck. There are Americans who do contract work for the government who could lose wages that they wont get back. And countless Americans will be adversely impacted in ways we cant even predict during the 2013 shutdown, low-income Americans temporarily lost access to food stamps due to a computer glitch. Given the seriousness of these harms, and the uncertainty of success, its not clear to me that launching a prolonged government shutdown next month is a good idea. But sticking with one now, and thus, adding the slow-motion collapse of CHIP to the list of downsides when you can fund CHIP and still preserve the option to force a shutdown in three weeks seems borderline indefensible. The heavy Friday afternoon rain found me in Luzira Upper prison internet laboratory covering the release of the 2017 Primary Leaving Examinations results for the inmates school. Although it fell short of a celebration, the mood in the chilly afternoon was reassuring for a long-term inmate who had excelled and is looking forward to enrolling for secondary education in jail. Gilbert Nuwamanya, the general head teacher of the prisons schools, noted that this years performance was better although he had expected more first grades. Three of the inmates passed in first division; 36 were in second grade; 18 managed in third division while 20 pupils were in fourth division. There was only one failure. Luziras class of 2017 had just three women, who all passed, with the best scoring aggregates 26. Among them is 62-year-old Edigarida Bikwatirizo who scored aggregates 33. She has really surprised me, noted Nuwamanya. According to the way she has been complaining about her eyes, I thought she wouldnt do this well. Theres also 63-year-old Fred Tumwesigye who is serving many years for murder. He has been in prison for only two years. When I ask how he performed, Tumwesigye points to his name on the list, with almost no pride in his eyes. I want to do these exams again so that things dont disturb me in S.1, he says in a matter-of-fact-tone. Fred Ndorere, the primary section head teacher, encourages him to enroll for secondary school. Will I manage to compete with these young sharp men? he says, pointing at a group of young inmates who are glued to a computer. Tumwesigye, however, acknowledges that the two years he has spent studying in prison have been worthwhile. I was not educated. When they gave me this sentence, I decided to study, says Tumwesigye, who was a farmer in Rukungiri district before his conviction. For a man who could neither count his money nor the amount of coffee harvested from his farm, he feels that this chance, despite its timing and environment, is a life-changer for him. I also used to fear talking to people who are highly educated but now, I can talk to my fellow inmates who are highly educated, notes Tumwesigye. The father of seven has aspirations. He hopes to become an area councilor when he gets freed. However, the shortage of books and pens has been a challenge to Tumwesigye and the class at large. Sowedi Nsubuga, who emerged best with aggregate 11, said he would have performed better if there were textbooks and sufficient study materials. Challenges are there but we have to persevere, said the aspiring doctor, who is remorseful about his past and hopes to help save lives as atonement for his crime which he declined to mention. His colleague, 30-year-old Junior Tumuhimbise, the second with aggregate 12, talks about life lessons learned behind bars. Even if you dont go to school, prison itself teaches you so many things, says the soft-spoken remand-inmate who dropped out of school several years ago before turning to crime. He feels they would have performed better if they had more time. We only study for five hours yet we dont have morning or night preps, Tumuhimbise said. Nuwamanya, however, noted that being a security institution, extension of study hours could be difficult. Nevertheless, he urged the government to increase the Prisons service budget so that education can be improved. When our inmates are educated, it reduces the chance of re-offending, Nuwamanya noted, Our educational services have played an important role in rehabilitating the prisoners. In 2014, the International Journal of Criminology ranked Ugandas prison system as the best in Africa and fourth internationally due to its low re-offend rate. This is partly attributed to the comprehensive education services for inmates. priscabaike2@gmail.com Clever fox. Or so it seemed. In the middle of the NAFTA muddle Prime Minister Justin Trudeau seized the moment of the World Economic Forum at Davos to announce that Canada has reached agreement on joining the U.S.-absent, 11-member Trans-Pacific Partnership. So were pro global managed trade, and are on board now with a team that includes Japan, Singapore and others, but specifically does not include the trade-confused American president. Donald Trump is still scheduled to speak at Davos later in the week. But wait. While the prime minister opened his remarks with trade, and offered a nod toward progressive values in the context of globalization, he then veered into a montage of greatest hits on gender parity, diversity, the imbalance of corporate boards, single mothers, the Canada child benefit, future womens summits, the need for women in STEM, the urgency to create more well-paying middle class jobs. And much more. The dissonance was stark. This is a gathering for which Oxfam provided a notable curtain raiser, emphasizing ever-growing global inequity. Point one: the flow of generated wealth in the past year saw 82 per cent of new money heading to the richest one per cent while not a penny increase made its way to the 3.7 billion people who make up the poorest half of the world. Read more: Trudeau stresses importance of hiring, retaining women in Switzerland speech Canada, Trans-Pacific trade members agree to revised deal without U.S. This is a gathering that on Tuesday hosted a session entitled Saving Economic Globalization from itself. Sharon Burrow, general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, was a standout participant. The current model has failed working people, Burrow said, documenting the exploitative model of, for example, supply chains in the garment industry, with stitchers earning pennies. This is a gathering that pondered how to build better capitalism. The pendulum has swung way too far, Henry Blodget, CEO of Business Insider, said in introducing the capitalism panel, which included Nobel economist Joseph Stiglitz. Profits at an all-time high; wages at an all-time low. Theresa Whitmarsh, executive director of the Washington State Investment Board, with more than $100 billion (U.S.) in assets under administration, was sharp in insisting that shareholder concerns (making money) can be aligned with stakeholder duties. Fiduciary duty can be reconciled with societal commitments, she said, supporting a longer time horizon and eschewing the pressures of quarterly capitalism. A point about that Oxfam report. One of the recommendations reads: Require all multinational corporations to conduct mandatory due diligence on their full supply chains to ensure that all workers are paid a living wage, in line with the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Labour rights. Health and safety. Fair wages. When Trudeau made the decision to launch his speech with his pat-on-the back trade announcement, addressing a global audience in a snowy clime, he should have felt duty bound to convey to his audience that Canada is set to deliver on its progressive promises. And how that will be accomplished. He could have started with, say, Vietnam, and how the TPP aims to ensure the right to organize for all those garment workers. Or how about Malaysia, also a signatory to the TPP. Unless I missed it, Trudeau said not a word about the just-created Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise, announced last week with the feds chanting a first in the world mantra. Unlike its predecessor organization, this new CORE initiative will investigate allegations of human rights abuses in the extractive sectors, and garment too. Trudeau gave a nod to Larry Fink, chairman of BlackRock Inc., which has more than $5.7-trillion in assets under management. In Finks sense of purpose letter delivered to chief executive officers, Fink reminds corporations, both private and public, that they serve a social purpose. To prosper over time, every company must not only deliver financial performance but also show how it makes a positive contribution to society. Trudeau did deploy some timely watch phrases, acknowledging the ripple effect of uncertainty and inequality playing out across the world. If youre anxious, he said to the crowd, imagine how the people who arent in this room are feeling. Precisely. Too bad he failed to use the announcement of the TPP deal as his entree to explaining how Canada will define itself on the world trade stage. jenwells@thestar.ca OTTAWACanada and the remaining members of the old Trans-Pacific Partnership agreed Tuesday to a revised trade agreement that will forge ahead without the United States and give Canadians more access to Japans massive economy. The deal, which follows two days of high-level talks in Tokyo, was confirmed by a spokesperson for International Trade Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne. The partners are now expected to work toward signing the agreement by early March. The announcement came just hours after a Canadian government official said Ottawa was optimistic that a revised Asia-Pacific pact would be reached as early as Tuesday. Read more: Trudeau says NAFTA unpredictability keeps him awake at night Opinion | Robin Sears: Canada is playing the long game with China Trudeau to talk trade but thinking politics in state visit to India next month The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told The Canadian Press that Ottawa believed a deal could be struck, even as it pushed for more progress on negotiations surrounding the automotive and cultural sectors. After the announcement, another Canadian government official said Champagne pressed his counterparts for an exemption on culture-related elements that had been part of the original deal. Canada, the official said, will protect its cultural sector in the updated deal through legally binding side letters with each partner. On autos, the official argued Canada made progress in support of its automotive sector and ensured it can compete anywhere on a level playing field. Canada, the official added, struck a bilateral deal with Japan to resolve nontariff barriers on autos, including a binding dispute settlement mechanism. The official said it also reached a bilateral agreement with Malaysia to adjust auto rules-of-origin and is finalizing another one with Australia. Canada, the second-largest economy among the partners, was widely considered the main holdout in the negotiations. Last fall, the pact was rebranded the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership. The Tokyo negotiations were the first high-level talks since the leaders of the partner economies met in November on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation summit in Danang, Vietnam. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made international headlines there by deciding not to sign an agreement-in-principle on what became known as TPP11 following the U.S. withdrawal. Trudeaus decision in Vietnam to continue negotiating for a better deal, rather than striking an agreement, led to the abrupt cancellation of a TPP leaders meeting in Danang. Many believed the original TPP has suffered a fatal blow when Donald Trump withdrew from the deal in one of his first acts as U.S. president. The agreement was reached Tuesday, as Canada faces a tough renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement. NAFTA negotiators from Canada, the United States and Mexico are meeting in Montreal this week. The government official said Trudeau had been bringing up the Asia-Pacific trade pact in recent months every time hes had conversations with leaders from the other partner economies. Over the last week, he discussed the deal with the leaders of New Zealand and Chile by phone. Trudeau also dispatched well-connected Vancouver Economic Commission chief executive Ian McKay as his personal envoy at this weeks negotiations in Japan, the official said. McKay, a former national director of Trudeaus Liberal party, has deep knowledge of business in Japan and was engaging with the Japanese government at the highest level, they added. McKay joined Canadas chief and deputy chief negotiators in Tokyo for two days of talks that were scheduled to wrap up Tuesday. The 11 remaining economies started working to salvage the deal after Trump withdrew. Many of those leaders thought an agreement-in-principle was within reach in November when Trudeau decided not to sign the agreement-in-principle. The move made international headlines, as partner economies had been expecting him to come to an agreement. He made headlines at the summit for how he went about declining the deal. Trudeaus decision to continue negotiating for a better deal, rather than striking an agreement, led to the abrupt cancellation of the leaders meeting on the sidelines of the summit. The cancellation set off a confusing day of talks. Media reports directly blamed Canada and Trudeau for helping to scuttle the scheduled meeting. But Trudeau later argued he had sent signals for days that he would not be rushed into a deal unless it was the right one. At the time, trade ministers did agree to a number of changes to nudge negotiations closer to a deal, including stronger protections for the environment and labour rights. They also suspended controversial provisions from the original TPP related to intellectual property, which the Canadian tech sector had long called on Ottawa to remove from the deal. Besides Canada, the new deals partners are Australia, Brunei, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, and Vietnam. Most importantly, the deal will open up access for Canada to Japans economy, the third-largest in the world. Canadas agricultural, seafood and forestry sectors would see some of the greatest benefits, the official said. The official insisted that Champagne and Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland also remained engaged with their counterparts in recent months. They added that Trudeaus principal secretary, Gerald Butts, met with Japans ambassador last week to discuss the deal. Read more about: LondonUber Technologies Inc., whose losses have piled up in the quest for growth around the world, will be profitable in three years as its ride-hailing business matures and the company reaps the rewards from investments in areas such as autonomous vehicles, said chief executive officer Dara Khosrowshahi. Bending the companys financial trajectory out of the red would be a dramatic shift for the global ride-hailing service, which has been losing billions of dollars per year. Speaking to Bloomberg editor-in-chief John Micklethwait at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Khosrowshahi said that even as the company would continue to be aggressive about expansion, it was finding ways to be more efficient. While Khosrowshahi didnt give a specific time frame, he said well be profitable before 2022. The core ride-sharing business can be profitable within three years, he said, while also cautioning that we will continue to make very aggressive investments. During the third quarter, the company lost $1.46 billion, up from $1.06 billion during the previous three-month period. Almost six months into his tenure leading Uber, Khosrowshahi is attempting to reverse what has been an unprecedented period of turmoil. The company is facing various government investigations, allegations of sexual harassment and increasing competition from rivals around the world. Khosrowshahi said his goal for 2018 is to get back to normalcy after the challenges left by former CEO Travis Kalanick. Breakneck growth can hide cultural issues, he said. Khosrowshahi said the company was investing heavily in autonomous car technology and that it would begin adding the cars in some cities within 18 months. The vehicles will at first only carry passengers on select routes that will expand over time. The company is also developing vehicles that will fly people to certain destinations within cities that Khosrowshahi predicted will be available for customers within 10 years. Khosrowshahi has said he wants to take Uber public as early as next year, a process that would open the companys financial performance up to more scrutiny. The company recently finalized a deal that makes the Japanese technology conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp. its largest shareholder. Rajeev Misra, a SoftBank executive joining Ubers board, suggested in a recent interview with the Financial Times that Uber focus on core markets such as the U.S., Europe, Latin America and Australia. In the interview at Davos, Khosrowshahi disagreed, saying the company would be leaning forward to expand. Since taking over as CEO last summer, Khosrowshahi has been on a charm offensive to improve the companys image. He said the company must work more closely with regulators rather than the more combative approach it took with Kalanick. The technology industry will face more scrutiny, especially as it brings about changes to transportation and other areas affecting peoples safety, Khosrowshahi said. Regulation is appropriate, he said. The Uber CEO said he was originally more skeptical of driverless cars, but that hes been won over. He predicted the technology is advancing so quickly that a child born today wont need to learn to drive. He noted the general public still has to grapple with the impact of the technology, particularly when there are accidents. While he said traffic fatalities will fall, companies such as Uber will be held responsible when there are collisions. Khosrowshahi said hes been working to change Ubers boorish corporate culture. He commended former Uber engineer Susan Fowler, who wrote a blog post about the companys sexist culture that led to an investigation at the company and a broader debate about the treatment of women in Silicon Valley and business. He called the fallout difficult but one of the best things that happened at Uber because of the changes it brought about. Uber said Tuesday it hired Bo Young Lee as chief diversity and inclusion officer from insurance provider Marsh & McLennan Cos., a move first reported by technology website Recode. At Davos, Khosrowshahi said the company still has work to do to make its culture more welcoming for women. Read more about: OTTAWACanada has joined 10 other Pacific region countries in a sweeping new trade deal, one that Ottawa touts as a progressive step forward but critics warn puts the countrys auto sector at risk. The revised Trans-Pacific trade deal, called the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, was finalized in Japan on Tuesday, a reality few thought possible a year ago when President Donald Trump pulled the United States from the agreement. But the remaining nations, led by Japan, revived the pact with negotiations producing a finalized trade agreement, billed as the largest in the world. Its a great day for progressive trade around the world, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told a business audience in Davos, Switzerland, where he is attending the World Economic Forum. The agreement reached in Tokyo today is the right deal, said Trudeau, who stayed away from a meeting of TPP leaders in November in order to press for better terms. Our government stood up for Canadian interests, and this agreement meets our objectives of creating and sustaining growth, prosperity and well-paying middle-class jobs today and for generations to come, Trudeau added. Trudeau said Tuesday he was pleased with the work Canada had done to make the deal more progressive and stronger in the areas of intellectual property, culture and the automotive sector. When finalized, it will give Canada favoured market access to the TPP member nations. Japan is seen as the most valuable market, but the partnership also includes Australia, New Zealand, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Peru, Singapore, Vietnam and Mexico. Read more: Opinion | Thomas Walkom: Canada takes out insurance against NAFTAs collapse with Pacific trade deal Canada, TPP members strike trade deal without U.S. Opinion | Jennifer Wells: How Justin Trudeau missed his moment at Davos It may have initially been a political and psychological boost to the Canadian team in Montreal as a sixth round of trade talks with the United States and Mexico to rewrite the North American free trade pact get underway in earnest. But critics say it actually undercuts their attempts to work out a better deal with the U.S. Canadas minister of international trade, Francois-Philippe Champagne, said the Trans-Pacific Partnership will make Canada part of the largest trading agreement in the world, covering 500 million people, representing about 14 per cent of the global economy. He said it will provide billions of dollars in economic benefits to Canadians. While declining to link the announcement to the troubled NAFTA talks, which formally resumed Tuesday, Champagne said the announcement couldnt have come at a better time. The United States is our largest trading partner and will always be there our relationship is providing millions of good, middle-class jobs. But when you have more than 70 per cent of your exports to one country, I think people realize that its in Canadas best interest to look west and to look east, Champagne said. When you are looking at a fast-growing economy like Vietnam, like Malaysia, Japan, the third-largest economy of the world, I think it makes sense for Canada as a Pacific Nation to position itself for success for decades to come, he told reporters at a Toronto news conference. We wanted to make sure that Canada would be the first mover in one of the fastest-growing regions in the world, ensuring not only our current prosperity but obviously for decades to come. He pointed to specific industries in Canada that will see improvement: Vietnams steel tariff will drop to zero in 10 years from about 40 per cent today. Aluminum tariffs will go down by 30 per cent. News of a deal sparked a range of reactions across Canadian business. Pork producers who already export 70 per cent of their products to 100 different countries cheered the agreement, saying it would open up new markets. The Forest Products Association of Canada said their industry stands to benefit too by knocking down tariffs as high as 40 per cent across Pacific nations. But Unifor President Jerry Dias condemned it as the worst trade deal ever. Rebranding of TPP as Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership is a joke. With this deal its the same old story. Shameful broken trade promises. This isnt progress for workers its a mockery, he said on Twitter. Speaking in Montreal after being briefed on the deal, Dias said he was furious and said everybody in Canadas automotive industry feels the same. He now fears Canadian autoworkers will have to compete with cheap labour in Asia and suggested Toyota and Honda would be thrilled because theyll be able to make cheaper cars in Japan and ship them for sale in North American markets. We have such a trade imbalance with Japan right now its ridiculous. For every car we ship to Japan, they send 600 back, so this doesnt change it at all, Dias said. So now Ive got Ford, GM and Chrysler saying, why would we invest in Canada when they continue to sign trading deals with other nations that completely undermine the investments that were making? he said. That concern was echoed by other auto sector stakeholders who said the federal government needs to ensure reciprocal access to foreign markets. And until those concerns are put to rest, they want autos excluded from the trade pact. Were going to insist on it, Flavio Volpe, president of the Automotive Parts Manufacturers Association. He said rules of origin for autos and parts under TPP mark a much lower barrier to entry and will allow imports to be sourced from foreign markets, likely China. Youve just handicapped your own domestic market, he said in an interview. Mark Nantais, president of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers Association, said terms of the TPP could in fact lead to job losses as auto manufacturers move production to lower cost jurisdictions. All indications are that it fails miserably... it will disadvantage companies that have invested in job-sustaining manufacturing, he said in an interview. Moving ahead with TPP is not helpful at a time when Canada is trying to negotiate new trade rules with the U.S. and Mexico under a new North America trade arrangement that will also include autos, he said. Champagne tried to tackle those worries head-on, saying the revised pact includes improved arrangement on autos with Japan, including an effort to dismantle non-tariff barriers that have stood in the way of selling Canadian-made autos in that market. Canadas regulatory standards, for example, will now be recognized the same as the United States and the European Union. We have provided the auto sector for the first time, meaningful market access by removing these trade barriers that were present, Champagne said. Jacques Lefebvre, head of the Dairy Farmers of Canada, said Canadas agreement to open up its dairy sector in the TPP when the U.S. isnt part of it doesnt make sense. He noted that Canadas original concessions to allow an additional 3.25 per cent of foreign imports of dairy were made when the U.S. was at the table. He said the markets available to us through TPP today are 60 per cent smaller than what they were with the U.S. How is that going to create options or opportunities for Canadian dairy? He said he hoped the Liberal government would uphold the previous governments promise of a $4.3 billion, 15-year compensation package for farmers hurt by the TPP. Christopher Monette, spokesman for Teamsters Canada which represents 125,000 workers in affected sectors such as dairy and transportation, expressed surprise at the deal. Were disappointed Canada is giving away even more dairy market access. The government is going to have to make sure dairy workers in processing plants are fairly compensated just like dairy farmers. He flagged the labour protections in TPP as weak. Canadian workers are now going to be competing with cheap labour from around the Pacific Rim, especially in Vietnam and Malaysia. This signals a race to the bottom for wages, working conditions, environmental standards. WINNIPEGThe daughter of a Winnipeg couple killed in Jamaica says she is facing several challenges as she works to bring their bodies back to Canada. Debbie Olfert says she is waiting on a signature from the coroners office in Jamaica to release her parents bodies. After that, she says, it will cost about $13,000 plus airfare to transport them to Winnipeg. Melbourne Flake, 81, and his wife Etta, 70, were found dead in their Saint Thomas vacation home on Jan. 9. Jamaican police have confirmed they are investigating the deaths as homicides. Olfert told CTV Winnipeg in a telephone call from the Caribbean island that Interpol and the RCMP have offered to help, but the Jamaican Constabulary Force has turned down the offer. Because I have been informed that there are some strong leads that the police are following, I am extremely encouraged. However, I do understand the police department is extremely stretched, Olfert said Tuesday. She said a family of three, including a five-year-old girl, was also killed around the same time as her parents. I am grateful they have these leads on my parents behalf ... but when we asked for help in the initial stages, Im not sure why they said no, being so overwhelmed with these crimes. The Canadian government is warning travellers seeking sun in Jamaica to exercise a high degree of caution. Last week, Jamaican authorities imposed a military lockdown in the area of St. James Parish following 335 murders in 2017 twice the tally of any other parish. Olfert previously said that her mother was suffocated and her father was beaten in an apparent botched robbery at their home. Family members believe the couple is likely to have been killed by someone they know, because the home was secure. The Flakes had lived in Winnipeg for 53 years after immigrating to Canada with their two daughters, including Olfert. They had two more daughters and a son. Melbourne Flake retired as a carpenter with the Department of National Defence and his wife retired after years as a nurse. The couple had been spending their winters in either Florida or Jamaica, Olfert said, and started spending more time in Jamaica after her father built a home there a few years ago. Read more: Its a bad dream: Daughter in disbelief after Winnipeg couple killed in Jamaica Read more about: DAVOS, SWITZERLANDPrime Minister Justin Trudeau hailed Canada as an example for the world to follow as he urged the international community on Tuesday to do more to promote womens rights and gender equality. Trudeau took centre stage with a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he told the well-heeled crowd the gap between the rich and the poor is staggering. All the while, companies avoid taxes and boast record profits with one hand, while slashing benefits with the other, he said. But that approach cant and wont cut it anymore. Read more: Trudeau to talk trade but thinking politics in state visit to India next month Justin Trudeau takes heat from U.S. right-wing on abortion stance Trudeau visiting Ontario reserve where chief says housing shortage worse than ever Trudeau then switched the focus of the speech to a topic he said every single leader who was listening to him could act on immediately. Im talking about hiring, promoting and retaining more women, he said to loud applause from the audience. And not just because its the right thing to do, or the nice thing to do, but because its the smart thing to do. Trudeau, who is attending his second world forum as prime minister, said that would lead to much-needed innovation and change in the workplace. In Canada, like all over the world, much of the economic and labour force growth we have experienced over the last many decades is because of women entering into and changing the workforce, he said. But there is still so much room for improvement and such enormous benefit still to be had. Trudeau cited one study that said narrowing the gender gap in Canada could add $150 billion to the economy by 2026. He then referred to another that noted increasing the share of women in leadership positions from zero to 30 per cent translated into a 15-per-cent boost to profitability. The prime minister also discussed pay equity, saying the concept is important but does not address other key issues such as family planning, promotions or job security. We should be encouraging women and men to make the best possible decision for their family situation. In Canada, weve given parents more options for parental leave and invested billions in affordable, high-quality child care. He also highlighted what he called Canadas first gender-balanced cabinet. Earlier in the day, he held various bilateral meetings with political leaders as well as meetings with the heads of global giants. On Wednesday, he will participate in a Canada-U.S. economic roundtable with business leaders. The focus on the benefits of gender equality and the advancement of women in the workplace is a preview of the themes to be raised at the G7 leaders summit Canada will host in June. To that end, Trudeau announced that Melinda Gates and Isabelle Hudon, the Canadian ambassador to France, will serve as co-chairs of the G7 Gender Equality Advisory Council. Trudeau began his day by meeting with Dr. Ulrich Spiesshofer, the president and CEO of the ABB Group, a key player in the robotics, industrial automation and power grid industries. ABB Group made an investment in Montreal last year, which Spiesshofer said is going tremendously well and that the partnership with Canada is going the right direction. Trudeau also met with James Smith, president and CEO of Thomson Reuters Corp. Trudeau noted that they had met two years ago about the company coming to Canada and they moved their entire operation from the United States to Toronto. The prime ministers efforts to attract investment in Canada come amid an uncertain future for the North American Free Trade Agreement, with the sixth round of negotiations to renew the trade pact currently being held in Montreal. Read more about: Accused killer Bruce McArthur was sentenced for assault more than a decade ago, in a ruling that prohibited him from owning weapons for 10 years and ordered samples of his DNA to be taken and placed in a database. On April 11, 2003, McArthur who now faces charges of first-degree murder in the killings of Andrew Kinsman and Selim Esen was sentenced in Ontario for one count of assault causing bodily harm and one count of assault with a weapon, according to a Ministry of the Attorney General spokesperson. At the time, McArthur received a conditional sentence of two years less a day (the maximum allowed by law) and probation for three years. A conditional sentence is served in the community rather than in jail. McArthur was also subject to a DNA order and a weapons prohibition for 10 years, the spokesperson said. DNA orders allow bodily substance samples to be taken from an offender, typically through a mouth swab, to add to a database. Because assault causing bodily harm is whats called a primary designated offence, the judge was required to make a DNA order if a conviction was reached, said criminal lawyer Daniel Brown, who is not connected to the McArthur murder case or to the earlier assault case. The only exception is if a defendant is able to satisfy the court that the effect on their privacy significantly outweighs the public interest in protecting society through early detection, arrest and conviction of offenders, Brown said. Toronto Police arrested 66-year-old Bruce MacArthur in the murder of Selim Esen, 44, and Andrew Kinsman, 49. Police believe there are other victims. Mark Valois, a former Toronto police homicide officer who is now director of academic training at the Canadian Tactical Officers Association, said the sample is generally mandatory if you hurt somebody. Basically, thats what it boils down to. Domestic situations, anything to do with kids, obviously any type of sexual offences, Valois said, adding that the sample is typically kept on file indefinitely. In the McArthur case, its absolutely possible that having the historic DNA sample helped investigators narrow their search and make the arrest last week, Valois said. A DNA sample, he said, is like a fingerprint. Having such a sample can help police investigate crimes by identifying previously unknown DNA found at a crime scene, Brown wrote in an email. A DNA order can act as a significant deterrent for future criminality in that offenders will be less likely to commit crimes knowing there is a greater chance they will be identified and prosecuted if their DNA is already on file with the police, he told the Star. The murder charges against McArthur have not yet been tested in court. One count of carrying a concealed weapon was withdrawn on the same day McArthur was sentenced in 2003. The Ministry of the Attorney General was unable to confirm by Monday evening what weapon was used by McArthur at the time, or further information about the nature of the assault. The victim in the assault case is unknown. Police continued to search multiple properties on Monday in connection with McArthurs arrest, but told the Star they had no further details to release. Theyve been pursuing information connected to McArthur since at least September, when police reportedly arrived at an auto parts shop, seized a rusted maroon Dodge Caravan sold by McArthur, and had it towed from the yard. With files from Wendy Gillis Popularly known as Nagawa, CHARLOTTE BEAUVOISIN is a passionate wildlife conservationist currently working on a project called Conservation With Public Health. She is also a lover of tourism and an ardent blogger. She came to Uganda nine years ago and fell in love with the country that she wants to grow old in. Quick Talk recently had a chat with her at Coffee at Last cafe in Makindye. From which clan is your name Nagawa? [Laughing] Enkima clan. Ive got a very good friend, Rashid, a tour driver. When my family first came to Uganda, he took us on a trip to Queen Elizabeth and Murchison Falls national parks. He knew that I wanted to stay in Uganda because of the way I had fallen in love with the country. He said that to stay in Uganda I needed a Ugandan name. So, why Nagawa? It was his idea to call me Nagawa. I had no idea about the names and the clans. It was a really nice idea and a lot of people know me as Nagawa, because it is easier for people to say and I have a lot of fun with it especially when I am on a boda boda and they are trying to give me a mzungu price and I am bargaining and say salako. The boda boda guys start laughing. And when I say my name is Nagawa, they know Ive been here a while. They always have a good laugh about a Mzungu called Nagawa. What made you choose to settle in Uganda? I had a very good job and a good life in the UK, but I had a desire to live in Africa since I was a teenager. I cant even say why, but I just did. So, I came here for two years but at the back of my mind when I left UK, I felt this could be a long stay. And here I am. How old were you when you came to Uganda? How old? [Laughing] You dont wanna tell everyone in the newspaper how old I am! I was nine years younger than I am now. Lets just say that [this age thing really is a Ugandan women problem, then!] Okay! Outside work, what has interested you in this beautiful country? Gosh, I dont know where to start really. Ugandans make us feel very welcome; thats huge. And I like the fact that life is slow and people take time to greet you. Ive lived in London where people dont talk very much in public but here you get in a matatu and say good morning, how are you. That is really great. Yeah sure. I also find this country very inspiring with lots of things to do. When I arrived here, I thought I would have been everywhere in two years because the country is fairly small, but I am still discovering new things and places nine years down the road. I like living in Kampala because the nightlife is superb, the eating culture is great. I love my cappuccino and there are so many places I can get it. I love the music and events. There is always something happening. Isnt there? True. So, have you tried a rolex? Yes! In fact, this place has really good rolex. Theyve got about three or four different rolex on the menu and Ive stayed in Makindye for a couple of years and this was like my second office whenever my power would go off. I would come and work from here and eat their rolex. What about nsenene? Oh, I like them, but at first I didnt. I have a phobia for insects, particularly cockroaches. I am terrified of cockroaches. So, the thought of eating nsenene? No, you would never catch me eating those, but I actually tried them and I now enjoy them. A couple of days ago when my family arrived for their holiday, my mum asked me, So, when are we gonna try nsenene? Did she try them? Yes! My whole family tried them last week and my sister really liked them. I took her to the airport yesterday and she said, Oh, I wanted to have some more grasshoppers. Who is your favourite artiste in Uganda? I love Eddy Kenzo and the Ghetto kids. [Sings a line from Eddy Kenzos song, Sitya Loss] Danceee danceee! Thats all I understand in the entire song, but it is such a positive song and I just want to dance every time I hear it. I just love the original video with kids on the dusty street. I also like Cindy Sanyu, Bobi Wine and Afrigo band. Before I forget, what do white girls find fascinating about Rastafarians or guys with dreadlocks? [Nagawa wrote a popular article about fake Rastas who take advantage of white girls] First of all, these are not Rastafarians. They are just look-alikes. A true Rasta is a lovely person with a big heart and they dont normally drink [alcohol] but they smoke weed. But most of the Rasta look-alikes here are liars and cheats. But yeah, its crazy how many mzungu chicks like to hang out with these Rasta guys. But why? I think if you havent been to Africa before, you think that is a genuine African person, but there is so much to culture and that is just a superficial view of it. I dated a Rasta before and he was a total user and a liar but writing that story helped me get over the heartbreak. Is there any other thing you dont like about Ugandan men in general? Ugandan men tell women they love them very quickly, in my experience. They say I love you when they mean I want you. I know in my culture people will tell lies here and there, but its more common here. So, where does that put Ugandan men in comparison to the Brits? Ive dated a few Ugandan men but relationships here are quite difficult. As a British woman, I dont expect a guy to be two-timing me. It does happen of course, but here it seems to be very normal. I wish people would say I am polygamous rather than try to pretend that they are faithful. But yes, Ugandan men are very attractive. Oh, can you peel matooke? Yes I can. [Laughing] and I can also light a sigiri but I dont like to do it so often because it sometimes takes me too long. But I prefer using gas because its much better for the environment. Charlotte was born to Chris and liz Beauvoisin. She has a younger sister, Sarah Beauvoisin. She has a B.A degree in politics from the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London and a diploma from the Chartered Institute of Marketing at the London Metropolitan University. As Ottawa and Queens Park begin to pump billions of dollars into child care, Toronto is not living up to its pledge last fall to contribute 20 per cent, parents and advocates say. This is a false budget. It is a shell game, said East York-area Councillor Janet Davis, a longtime child care advocate. This is a cynical set-up for a good-news announcement further along in the budget process and a way to cover up the citys failure to keep its commitment to Toronto parents, she told reporters at city hall Monday, on the eve of this weeks budget committee deliberations. The citys $551 million child-care budget for 2018 represents a net decrease of 0.1 per cent over last year, according to budget documents. And it fails to account for $57 million in new federal and provincial child-care funds announced last year to pay for 825 new fee subsidies and other measures to make child care more affordable, Davis said. Both Mayor John Tory and city budget chief Gary Crawford have signaled more money is coming for child care. The question for parents and advocates Monday was: whose money? Other governments have stepped up to the plate after decades of pressure on behalf of all of us, including city council. Its time for Toronto to keep its promise, said Laurel Rothman of the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care. Crawford was not immediately available for comment. New parent Carolyn Ferns said her son Rowan, 8 months, is on wait lists for 12 child-care centres near her Kensington Market-area home. Even though our family can afford to pay full fees, we still cant find a space, said Ferns, who returns to her job with the child-care coalition in May. Entrepreneur Pooria Just, whose son Dustin, 4, was diagnosed with moderate autism a year ago, says finding affordable child care after three years has helped the boy develop social and communication skills. Lack of affordable high quality child care had a huge impact on our family, which we are still dealing with, including divorce, (financial) stress and lots of instability, said Just, a member of ACORN Toronto, an advocacy group for low- and moderate-income residents. I now see what was missing for the first four years of (my sons) life was a child-care system to help my family, he told reporters. ACORN is calling for a universal child-care system with $10-a-day fees for all families, a goal city council also endorsed last fall. Toronto is the epicentre of the child-care crisis in Canada. Fees have already increased in 2018 and show no sign of decreasing. We desperately need the city to keep its 20-per-cent commitment, he said. It is hypocritical for city councillors to pretend to care about low- to moderate-income parents when they expect other levels of government to provide the funding. There are about 72,000 licensed child-care spaces in Toronto for children up to age 12 and fee subsidies for almost 29,000 children. But there are only enough spots to serve 20 per cent of the citys young children and fee subsidies to support just 30 per cent of Torontos low-income kids. About 50,000 parents are on wait lists for licensed child care in Toronto, according to a survey by the Ontario Coalition for Better Child Care. More than 12,000 children are waiting for fee subsidies, city staff say. Meanwhile, the median cost of licensed child care for Toronto preschoolers is more than $1,200 a month, the highest in the country. Guilty. Just not as first charged, nor for the original sins. What began in the 2011 election as petty (albeit pricey) politics has concluded just in time for the 2018 campaign. Will the sordid gas plants saga influence the coming June vote, three elections later? The original sin is ancient history but not forgotten. Just hard to fathom, given that the Liberals were two times lucky in the 2011 and 2014 ballots despite the stench. On Friday, David Livingstons luck ran out. He paid a personal price for a political scandal, convicted of the crime of attempted mischief to data and unauthorized use of a computer for trying to delete emails. As chief of staff to former premier Dalton McGuinty, Livingston had nothing to do with cancelling those notorious gas-fired power plants. No, his mistake ethically, politically, criminally was more Nixonian: The cover-up was worse than the crime. In fact, the cover-up was the crime. For there was nothing illegal in the cancellation of those power plants by a panicky McGuinty desperate for re-election. The Liberals merely acquiesced to pressure from the equally opportunistic opposition parties who were promising angry suburban GTA voters that theyd unplug the plants. I wrote then and Ill say now that all three parties were wrong to do so, but cynical isnt criminal. Livingston wasnt even on staff at the time. His mistake, when he took over the premiers office many months later, was in scheming to delete emails that opposition MPPs who controlled the minority legislature had lawfully demanded be turned over by the government. Understandably, most public attention focussed on sensational courtroom accounts of how Livingston misled senior public servants to obtain an administrative password under false pretences, enabling an outside contractor to delete hard drives in the final days of McGuintys reign. But his sins were also more mundane, having many months before ordered staff to routinely double delete any emails targeted by a legislative committee. To borrow a pre-email phrase from the post office, Livingstons credo might well have been: Delete early and delete often. His hubris holds lessons for everyone in politics. No one is above the law even when the legislature acts beneath itself. Court testimony showed Livingston was contemptuous of opposition MPPs for going on email fishing expeditions. Its true that the Tories and New Democrats were using and abusing committee powers to go well beyond gas plants, but the legislature is supreme right or wrong. Given that the Crown never did prove precisely what was deleted in those scandalous final days, its quite possible that little of public interest was covered up for the simple reason that any truly embarrassing gas plant emails would have been eliminated years before. More likely, the old McGuinty regime was trying to cover its tracks before the new Kathleen Wynne team stumbled upon the puerile plotting that characterized the old premiers office, which is one reason the Crown dropped some of its original charges against Livingston. The Liberals like to say their electronic deletions were akin to the shredding trucks ordered in by the Tories when they lost power in 2003. The difference, of course, is that the Progressive Conservatives werent shredding documents sought by lawmakers. Thats what turned Liberal transgressions into Greek tragedy: Livingston, the prototypical private sector recruit into the public service, was a victim of his own can-do mentality that he could do as he pleased. Laws must be obeyed, even if inconvenient, unless unconstitutional. If the legislature in its infinite wisdom votes to legitimize its own politically motivated fishing expedition, it cannot be thwarted by a chief of staffs personal preferences. Whether it was truly wise for opposition MPPs to then call in the Ontario Provincial Police, rather than formally sanction Livingston for violating the legal privileges of parliamentarians, is quite another matter. Criminalizing political deeds and misdeeds is not only overkill, it tends to hoist the opposition on its own political petard. It is supremely ironic that in the same week that a Liberal operative was convicted for illegally deleting embarrassing emails, the Progressive Conservatives won a costly court ruling in a separate case to ensure that embarrassing emails about their own antics must be deleted by anyone in possession of them. An awkward transcript of top PC operatives discussing a disputed nomination contest was distributed electronically to various journalists last year, but must be deleted by order of the court. Or perhaps double deleted, just to be sure. Proof that one partys illegal cover-up is another partys court-ordered concealment. To delete, or not to delete, is a question of law and politics. Voters had the last word in the last two elections and will have their say again in the next one. Judging by their past verdicts, people may be disinclined to believe that any one political party is much purer than another when it comes to concealment. Martin Regg Cohns political column appears Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. mcohn@thestar.ca, Twitter: @reggcohn Read more about: Unsung for seven decades, the real Rosie the Riveter was a California waitress named Naomi Parker Fraley. Over the years, a welter of American women have been identified as the model for Rosie, the female war worker of 1940s popular culture who became a feminist touchstone in the late 20th century. Fraley, who died Saturday at 96 in Longview, Wash., turns out to have staked one of the most legitimate claims of all. But because her claim was eclipsed by that of another woman, she went unrecognized for more than 70 years. I didnt want fame or fortune, Fraley told People magazine in 2016, when her connection to Rosie was first made public. But I did want my own identity. The search for the real Rosie is the story of one scholars six-year intellectual treasure hunt. It is also the story of the construction and deconstruction of an American legend, and of the power of the mass media in perpetuating it. It turns out that almost everything we think about Rosie the Riveter is wrong, James J. Kimble, the scholar in question, told The Omaha World-Herald in 2016. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. For Kimble, the quest for Rosie, which began in earnest in 2010, was an interest that developed into a real deep curiosity that became an obsession, as he explained in an interview for this obituary in 2016. His painstaking work ultimately homed in on Fraley, who had worked in a Navy machine shop during the Second World War, as a highly likely candidate. It also ruled out the best-known incumbent, Geraldine Hoff Doyle, a Michigan woman whose innocent assertion that she was Rosie was widely accepted for years. On Doyles death in 2010, that assertion was promulgated even more widely through obituaries, including one in The New York Times. Kimble, an associate professor of communication and the arts at Seton Hall University in New Jersey, reported his findings in Rosies Secret Identity, an article in the journal Rhetoric & Public Affairs in the summer of 2016. The article brought journalists to Fraleys door at long last. Pleased to Be an Icon The women of this country these days need some icons, Fraley said in the People magazine interview. If they think Im one, Im happy about that. The confusion over the identity of Rosies flesh-and-blood forebear stems partly from the fact that the name Rosie the Riveter has been applied to more than one cultural artifact. The first of them and the first to use the name Rosie the Riveter was a wartime song, so titled, by Redd Evans and John Jacob Loeb. It sang the praises of a munitions worker who keeps a sharp lookout for sabotage/Sitting up there on the fuselage. The song, recorded by bandleader Kay Kyser, among others, became a hit. The identity of the Rosie who inspired that song is well established: Rosalind P. Walter, the daughter of a well-to-do Long Island family who as a young woman worked as a riveter on Corsair fighter planes and in later years was a noted philanthropist, most visibly as a benefactor of public television programs. Another Rosie sprang from Norman Rockwell, whose cover for the May 29, 1943, issue of The Saturday Evening Post depicts a muscular woman in overalls, with a sandwich in one hand (the name Rosie is visible on her lunch box), an immense rivet gun on her lap and a copy of Mein Kampf crushed gleefully underfoot. Here, too, the inspiration is beyond doubt: Rockwells model is known to have been a Vermont woman named Mary Doyle Keefe, who died in 2015. But in between these two Rosies lay the source of the competing claims that arose in the late 20th century and afterward, Geraldine Doyles included: a wartime industrial poster displayed briefly in Westinghouse Electric Corp. plants in 1943. Rendered in bold graphics and bright primary colours by Pittsburgh artist J. Howard Miller, it depicts a young woman, clad in a blue work shirt and red-and-white polka-dot bandana. Flexing her right bicep, she declares, We Can Do It! Millers poster, one of a series the company commissioned from him, was never meant for public display, and barely a thousand copies were printed. Like the others in the series, it was intended only to rally Westinghouse employees, and deter absenteeism and strikes, in wartime. For decades, the poster remained all but forgotten. Then, in the early 1980s, a copy came to light most likely one in the National Archives in Washington, one of only two known originals extant. It quickly became a powerful feminist symbol, and only then was the name Rosie the Riveter applied retrospectively to the woman in the picture. You start to see the first mentions of it in popular culture in about 82, 84, Kimble explained in the 2016 interview with The Times. Because the Norman Rockwell image, protected by copyright, was reproduced only rarely in the postwar years, the newly anointed Rosie of We Can Do It! soon came to be regarded as the platonic form. It became ubiquitous on T-shirts, coffee mugs, posters and other memorabilia. Rosies new-found exposure piqued the attention of women who had done wartime industrial work. Several came forward and identified themselves as having been the posters inspiration. The most plausible claim seemed to be that of Doyle, who in 1942, as a teenager, had worked briefly as a metal presser in a Michigan plant. Her claim centred on two images: the first a 1942 photograph, the second the Miller poster. Read more: Once Upon a City: Women who were unsung heroes of war effort Mystery of the Lathe Woman The photograph, distributed to news organizations by the Acme photo agency, showed a coverall-clad young woman, her hair wound in a polka-dot bandana, in profile at an industrial lathe. It was published in U.S. newspapers in the spring and summer of 1942, though rarely with a caption identifying the woman or the factory in which she worked. The third of eight children of Joseph Parker, a mining engineer, and the former Esther Leis, a homemaker, Naomi Fern Parker was born in Tulsa, Okla., on Aug. 26, 1921. The family moved wherever Joseph Parkers work took them, living in New York, Missouri, Texas, Washington, Utah and California, where they settled in Alameda, near San Francisco. After the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the 20-year-old Naomi and her 18-year-old sister, Ada, went to work at the Naval Air Station in Alameda, among the first of some 3,000 women to do war work there. The sisters were assigned to the machine shop, where their duties included drilling, patching airplane wings and, fittingly, riveting. It was there that the Acme photographer captured Naomi Parker, her hair done up in a bandana for safety, at her lathe. She clipped the photo from the newspaper and kept it for decades. I even got fan mail, Fraley told People magazine in 2016. During this time, Kimble was searching for the woman at the lathe, scouring the internet, books, old newspapers and stock-photo collections for a captioned copy of the image. At last he found a copy from a dealer in vintage photographs. It had the photographers original caption on the back, including the date March 24, 1942 and the location, Alameda. Best of all was this line: Pretty Naomi Parker looks like she might catch her nose in the turret lathe she is operating. Using genealogical records, Kimble located Fraley and her sister, Ada Wyn Parker Loy, then living together in Cottonwood, California. He visited them there in 2015, whereupon Fraley produced the cherished newspaper photo she had saved all those years. I would say there is no question that she is the lathe woman in the photograph, Kimble said. But an essential question remained: Did that photograph influence the Miller poster? As Kimble also learned, the photo of Fraley at the lathe was published in The Pittsburgh Press, in Millers hometown, on July 5, 1942. So Miller very easily could have seen it, he said. Then there is the telltale polka-dot head scarf, and the general resemblance between Fraley at her lathe and the Rosie in the poster. There is a pretty decent similarity, Kimble said, adding, We can rule her in as a good candidate for having inspired the poster. LEGAZPI, PHILIPPINESThe Philippines most active volcano spewed fountains of red-hot lava and massive ash plumes anew Tuesday in a dazzling but increasingly dangerous eruption that has sent more than 56,000 villagers fleeing to evacuation centres. Lava fountains gushed up 700 metres above Mount Mayons crater and ash plumes rose up to 3 kilometres Monday night. At least three major blasts followed Tuesday, including an explosion at nightfall that was capped by one of the most massive lava displays since the volcano started acting up more than a week ago, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology said. We couldnt sleep last night because of the loud rumblings. It sounded like an airplane thats about to land, Quintin Velardo, a 59-year-old farmer, told The Associated Press at an evacuation centre in Legazpi city where he took his wife, children and grandchildren on Tuesday. Read more: More than 34,000 villagers flee as Philippine volcano continues to erupt Despite the danger, he said he needed to return to his village, about 8 kilometres from the erupting volcano, to take his cow and water buffalo to safety. A few minutes later, the volcano belched a massive column of greyish ash that punched through white clouds into the blue sky. There it goes again, Velardo said, his family huddled near him. Authorities warned a violent eruption may occur in hours or days, characterized by more rumblings and pyroclastic flows superheated gas and volcanic debris that race down the slopes at high speeds, vaporizing everything in their path. After Mondays explosion, officials raised Mayons alert level to four on a scale of five, and the danger zone was expanded to 8 kilometres from the crater, requiring thousands more residents to be evacuated, including at least 12,000 who returned to their homes last week as Mayons rumblings temporarily eased and then scrambled back to the emergency shelters this week. At least 56,217 people were taking shelter in 46 evacuation camps Tuesday and army troops and police were helping move more villagers from their homes, officials said. Authorities struggled to prevent villagers from sneaking back to check on their homes and farms and to watch a cockfight in an arena in Albays Santo Domingo town despite the risks and police patrols and checkpoints, said Cedric Daep, a provincial disaster-response official. In a sign of desperation, Daep told a news conference that he has recommended electricity and water supply be cut in communities within the no-go zones to discourage residents from returning. If pyroclastic flows hit people, there is no chance for life, Daep said. Let us not violate the natural law, avoid the prohibited zone, because if you violate, the punishment is death penalty. The daytime eruptions have plunged nearby villages in darkness and sent lava, rocks and debris cascading down Mayons slopes toward the no-entry danger zone. There have been no reports of deaths and injuries. Airplanes have been ordered to stay away from the crater and ash-laden winds and several domestic flights have been cancelled. Volcanic ash fell Monday in more than a dozen towns in coconut-growing Albay and nearby Camarines Sur province, with visibility being heavily obscured in a few towns because of the thick grey ash fall, Jukes Nunez, another Albay provincial disaster response officer, said by telephone. It was like night time at noon, there was zero visibility in some areas because the ash fall was so thick, Nunez said. More than 30,000 ash masks and about 5,000 sacks of rice, along with medicine, water and other supplies, were being sent to evacuation centres, Office of Civil Defence regional director Claudio Yucot said late Monday. Food packs, water, medicine and other relief goods remain adequate but may run out by mid-February if the eruption continues and adequate supplies fail to come on time, officials said. With its near-perfect cone, Mayon has long been popular with climbers and tourists but has erupted about 50 times in the last 500 years, sometimes violently. The 8,070-foot volcano has generated tourism revenues and jobs in Albay, which lies about 340 kilometres southeast of Manila. Lava continued to flow down the slopes of the Philippines' most active volcano on Jan. 15. Molten rocks and lava at Mayon's crater lit the night sky for a second night, sending thousands of residents into evacuation shelters. (The Associated Press) In 2013, an ash eruption killed five climbers who had ventured near the summit despite warnings. Its most destructive eruption, in 1814, killed more than 1,200 people and buried the town of Cagsawa in volcanic mud. The belfry of Cagsawas stone church still juts from the ground in an eerie reminder of Mayons fury. Since childhood, Velardo, the farmer, said he has gambled his and his familys lives in Mayons shadow but that he and thousands of other landless farmers have no place else to go. I tell my grandchildren to study hard so they can live elsewhere without a volcano to keep an eye on all your life. The Philippines, which has about 22 active volcanoes, lies in the Ring of Fire, a line of seismic faults surrounding the Pacific Ocean where earthquakes and volcanic activity are common. In 1991, Mount Pinatubo in the northern Philippines exploded in one of the biggest volcanic eruptions of the 20th century, killing about 800 people, covering entire towns and cities in ash and partly prompting the U.S. government to abandon its vast air and naval bases on the main northern Luzon island. NEW DELHIFor the first time ever, the Taj Mahal, Indias monument to eternal love, is getting a serious cleaning. For more than 350 years, monsoon rains in Agra, the bustling city where the monument sits, were enough to wash dirt off the structures walls. But pollution has worsened over the last couple of decades, and parts of the marble facade have turned yellow and black. Since 2015, workers have scaled the monuments minarets and walls to correct discolouration and remove layers of grime from the 17th-century structure, which was built by Muslim emperor Shah Jahan as a mausoleum for his favourite wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Behind the monument, the Yamuna River has also filled with sewage and other waste, worsening the problem by attracting millions of mosquito-like insects. They settle near the backside of the Taj Mahal and excrete a green substance on its walls during mating flights. Cleaning the monument is time-consuming and challenging. To remove discolouration, workers suspended on scaffolding are caking Fullers earth a mud paste that absorbs dirt, grease and animal excrement, and that is commonly used to treat skin impurities on the entire monument. The mud is then washed off, leaving a pristine surface. No chemicals are used, said Bhuvan Vikrama, a superintendent with the Archaeological Survey of India, which is overseeing the cleaning. This is the best option, so far, that we have come across. We have been using it for decades on marble surfaces. Over the last few years, the scaffolding has mostly prevented people from taking unobstructed photographs of the monument. Workers have tried to clean the minarets in stages, in part to ensure that the millions of tourists who visit the Taj Mahal every year come away with a good view of the tomb, which Rabindranath Tagore, Indias celebrated poet, once compared to a solitary tear suspended on the cheek of time. But this year, workers may face their biggest hurdle yet: restoring the monuments dome to a pearly white. The metal scaffolds that workers used to apply mud paste to the minarets are too heavy and rigid to assemble around the dome, so a type of bamboo scaffolding, which was used for conservation work in the 1940s, is being considered instead. Cleanup efforts have become a topic of conversation around Agra, where some people said that the extra scaffolding, which forms a black web around the marble, may deter visitors. Prominent politicians have shown up for the cleaning, including Yogi Adityanath, chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, the state that includes Agra. Adityanath, a Hindu nationalist, came under fire last year for questioning the centrality of the Taj Mahal, with its Muslim heritage, in Indias tourism circuit. But on a recent visit, he, too, picked up a broom to sweep near an entry gate, calling the monument a unique gem. Investment has recently poured into Agra. In 2012, a fast-track highway connecting New Delhi, Indias capital, with Agra opened, allowing visitors to reach the Taj Mahal in around three hours. In December, the World Bank announced that it would provide a $40-million (U.S.) loan to the Indian and Uttar Pradesh governments to develop the Taj Mahal and other monuments. It is unclear how much if any of that money will be spent on the cleaning, which officials are hoping to complete by November. Although tourism numbers at the Taj Mahal have dropped slightly over the last few years, perhaps because of the scaffolding, the crowds are still enormous, prompting the Archaeological Survey of India to float a proposal to cap the number of daily visitors at 40,000 people and limit entry to three hours for each tourist. Fodors Travel Guide has advised visitors to skip the Taj Mahal until restoration work on the dome, which has yet to start, is completed. But Shamsuddin Khan, a longtime tour guide in Agra, said he was unconcerned. He expressed confidence that people from all over the world would continue to wake up before dawn, just as they have for years, to catch a glimpse of the tomb blanketed in soft, golden light. The Taj Mahal is going to remain the Taj Mahal, he said. Read more about: His frazzled face, rosy cheeks and icy hair lit up the internet. Now Wang Fuman, the 8-year-old Chinese student known as Frost Boy, is taking on a new role: propaganda star. Fuman was thrust into the spotlight this month when a teacher at his school in southern China shared a photo showing him covered in frost, the result of a 4.5-kilometre trek to school on a frigid day. The picture provoked a national conversation about the tens of millions of children who live without adequate food, clothing and shelter in the Chinese countryside. Now the government is turning Fumans story into a rallying cry for a robust, resilient China. A Communist Party website invited Fuman to the capital over the weekend and celebrated him as a patriotic hero. He waved a Chinese flag in Tiananmen Square, tried on riot gear at a public security bureau and swore an oath to be loyal to China and the ruling Communist Party. Ill leave the mountains for sure, he said during one appearance, according to news reports. Ill study hard and become a police officer. An official report said Fumans dream was to see Chairman Mao in Tiananmen Square, where his portrait still hangs. Social media users circulated memes showing Fuman dressed as a police officer and holding a rifle. Some drew comparisons between the young boy and soldiers who endure harsh conditions protecting Chinas border. My eyes welled up with tears, one user wrote of Fumans visit on Weibo, a microblogging site. China has a long tradition of lionizing figures who have suffered hardship but kept faith in their country and the Communist Party. Many people were critical of the rush to idolize the boy, though, saying officials were using Fuman as a prop and neglecting the broader issue of rural poverty. A salute under the national flag is not going to solve anything, wrote Zhishang Suping, the pen name of one commentator. Others were concerned about the effect of the media hype on Fumans well-being. In this age of consumerism and amusing ourselves to death, said a commentary published by China News Service, it seems everything can be hyped fortune, family, charity and even misery. David Bandurski, co-director of the China Media Project, said the government was using Fuman as an antidote to criticism of its treatment of impoverished citizens. He noted that Fumans struggle was depicted as one against the harshness of winter, rather than the social and political roots of his condition. The invitation to Beijing essentially fuses this narrative of personal struggle with the ruling partys narrative of national struggle, Mr. Bandurski wrote in an email. The focus on Fumans story helped the authorities temporarily avoid painful policy discussions and potential public blame, said Haifeng Huang, an associate professor of political science at the University of California, Merced. A worthy story has been trivialized, Professor Huang added. Fuman returned to his hometown on Monday. The family has received about $1,200 in donations, according to news reports, and local youth charities have gotten hundreds of thousands more. In response to Fumans story, Jack Ma, the billionaire founder of the e-commerce giant Alibaba, recently vowed to help finance boarding schools for children who live in isolated rural areas. During his visit to Beijing, Fuman spoke about missing his mother, who left the family two years ago, and wanting to help catch thieves. At times, he seemed tired of the attention. My name is Wang Fuman, he said during one appearance, not Frost Boy. Read more about: On Jan. 9, an operator in Atlanta manning the public contact number for CNN received a phone call. According to a federal arrest affidavit unsealed Monday, the male caller launched into a threat. Fake news. Im coming to gun you all down. F--- you, f---ing n-----s. The caller then clicked off. Three minutes later, the same caller, dialing from the same number, again rang the CNN line. I am on my way right now to gun the f---in CNN cast down. F--- you, the caller said. The operator asked the caller his name. F--- you, he responded. I am coming to kill you. Thirty minutes later, the caller again reached the CNN public switchboard. He whispered his threats. Im coming for you CNN. Im smarter than you. More powerful than you. I have more guns than you. More manpower. Your cast is about to get gunned down in a matter of hours. According to federal law enforcement, the man on the other end was Brandon Griesemer of Novi, Michigan. In an arrest affidavit released Monday, FBI agent Sean Callaghan wrote that Griesemer made approximately 22 total calls to CNN between Jan. 9 and Jan. 10. Four of the calls resulted in threats. In the last message, the caller made disparaging remarks about Jewish individuals, before stating: You are going down. I have a gun and I am coming to Georgia right now to go to the CNN headquarters to f---ing gun every single last one of you. I have a team of people. Its going to be great, man ... You gotta get prepared for this one, buddy. Court records indicate Griesemer was arrested on a charge of interstate communications with intent to extort, threaten or injure. He made an initial appearance in court on Jan. 19. Griesemer is currently free on a $10,000 unsecured bond. On Monday night, a man who identified himself as Griesemers father told The Washington Post that this whole thing has been a mistake. He really didnt mean any of it. Griesemers father added: He didnt know what he was saying, the seriousness of it. Were not even gun owners or anything like that. We dont have any, neither does he. The father declined to comment further. More will come out later. Hopefully, this can be settled. The threats were made public less than a week after U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled his Fake News Awards. The term, trumpeted by the president in his frequent clashes with the press, has become a popular rallying cry among Trumps base. CNN has been a regular target of the presidents fake news attacks; the president has also shared violent images featuring the cable news giant, including pictures of the CNN logo crushed under a shoe and a GIF of the president personally attacking the CNN logo. On Monday night, CNN released a statement about the threats. We take any threats to CNN employees or workplaces, around the world, extremely seriously. This one is no exception. We have been in touch with local and federal law enforcement throughout, and have taken all necessary measures to ensure the safety of our people. Public records indicate Griesemer was born in 1998. According to the arrest affidavit, an investigator working for CNN originally traced the threatening calls back to Griesemer. The number allegedly used in the threats traced back to Brandon Griesemers father and an affiliated wireless number. At one point, the investigator called the number and spoke with someone who identified himself as Brandon. The investigator recorded the conversation, then compared the audio with the recordings of the threatening CNN calls. The voices sounded like the same individual, the affidavit states. This was not the first time Griesemer allegedly made threatening phone calls. The arrest affidavit notes that on Sept. 19, an employee of the Islamic Center of Ann Arbor received a phone call. The male caller made derogatory comments relating to the mosque and Muslims. Police tracked the number to the Griesemer house. In a phone call with police, Griesemer stated that he had called the mosque on September 19, and that he was angry at the time of the call. DAVOS, SWITZERLANDFirst lady Melania Trump will not accompany U.S. President Donald Trump to a global summit in Davos this week. White House spokesperson Stephanie Grisham said Tuesday that Melania Trump will not attend the World Economic Forum due to scheduling and logistical issues. The White House had previously said she would accompany the president on the trip to the annual summit in a Swiss Alpine resort. Melania Trump has not made a public statement since Jan. 12, when the Wall Street Journal first reported that the presidents longtime lawyer Michael Cohen had arranged a $130,000 payment to prevent porn star Stephanie Clifford from publicly discussing an alleged affair with Donald Trump. Clifford, who goes by the stage name Stormy Daniels, told In Touch in a 2011 interview that was first published this month that she met the future president in 2006, shortly after Melania Trump had given birth to their son Barron. The presidential couple marked their 13th wedding anniversary on Monday. The brief U.S. government shutdown earlier this week had threatened to upend the presidents trip to Davos, but it is back on. A Cabinet delegation was expected to leave Tuesday, and the president later in the week. The president is set to address the gathering Friday. The World Economic Forum is billed as a place for the worlds decision-makers to put their power to good use, but American presidents have tended to shun the glitzy annual gathering. The last sitting U.S. president to attend the summit was Bill Clinton in 2000. Barack Obama, George W. Bush and George H.W. Bush all opted out. Ronald Reagan appeared via video link. The theme this year is Creating a Shared Future in Fractured World. Trump, who is expected to bring his message of America First, and will speak last among a parade of world leaders from places like India, France and Canada. Well be talking about investing in the United States again, Trump said Tuesday, as he signed new tariffs that could draw criticism from the Davos crowd. Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters marched in Zurich, about 150 kilometres northwest of the Davos summit, Tuesday to denounce Trumps visit. With a phalanx of shield-bearing security forces keeping watch, the marchers in Zurich chanted slogans, clapping and waving flags with anti-capitalist messages on them. One at the front read: Dump the Trump, and others said simply: Smash WEF. The protest was the latest and potentially most combative among a few anti-Trump protests since the White House announced his plan to join the conference. Read more about: NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps, who was slated to become the first African American crew member to live on board the International Space Station, was unexpectedly pulled from her June flight. In a brief news release Thursday, NASA announced that Serena Aunon-Chancellor, a fellow member of Eppss astronaut class who was scheduled to launch later in the year, would be bumped up to take Eppss place. Epps, who had already started training for her role on Expedition 56/57, will return to Johnson Space Center in Houston, where she will be a candidate for future crews. NASA did not give an explanation for the crew change. But Eppss brother blamed racism at the space agency. My sister Dr. Jeannette Epps has been fighting against oppressive racism and misogynist in NASA and now they are holding her back and allowing a Caucasian Astronaut to take her place! Henry Epps wrote in a Facebook post Saturday (the post has since been removed). He linked to a MoveOn.org petition asking NASA to reinstate Epps. In an email, Epps said she could not comment on her brothers post or the reason for the crew change and clarified that neither she nor anyone in her family created the petition. Epps said that she did not have a medical condition or family problem that would have prevented her from participating in the mission, and that her overseas training in Russia and Kazakhstan had been successful. NASA likewise declined to comment about Henry Eppss post, but provided a statement saying, Diversity and inclusion are integral to mission success at NASA and we have a diverse astronaut corps reflective of that approach. Last-minute crew changes are not unusual at NASA. Apollo 13 pilot Ken Mattingly was famously pulled from his mission days before launch after being exposed to German measles. Its also common for NASA to give limited explanations for these changes, which may involve private medical reasons or other sensitive information. Epps, who has a PhD in aerospace engineering, was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2009 after seven years of working for the CIA. In an interview with New York Magazine last year, after her historic assignment to the ISS crew was announced, Epps said she felt a huge amount of responsibility. Fourteen African American astronauts have flown in space, and several have visited the space station. In 2008, astronaut Leland Melvin was part of the space shuttle crew that delivered the Columbus science laboratory to the space station. But Epps would have been the first to serve on the ISS long term. As a steward, I want to do well with this honour, Epps said. I want to make sure that young people know that this didnt happen overnight. There was a lot of work involved, and a lot of commitment and consistency. It is a daunting task to take on. Alongside Epps, Aunon-Chancellor was one of 14 astronaut candidates selected out of some 3,500 applicants for NASAs 20th astronaut class in 2009. She has a medical degree and previously served as a surgeon and managed medical operations for a range of NASA missions. Aunon-Chancellors selection was also history-making: She will be the first Hispanic woman to live on the space station. Read more about: KAMPALA, UGANDAUgandas president says he loves U.S. President Donald Trump and that he should be praised for not mincing words. I love Trump because he tells Africans frankly, President Yoweri Museveni said Tuesday, shortly after the U.S. ambassador apologized for Trumps recent reference to African nations as s---hole countries. I dont know whether he was misquoted or whatever. But he talks to Africans frankly, Museveni said. In the world, you cannot survive if you are weak. The Ugandan leader was addressing members of the regional East African Legislative Assembly. Several African nations have expressed shock and condemnation at Trumps remark. He has denied using that language while others present says he did. Museveni, one of Africas longest-serving leaders, also called Trump an honest man during his State of the Nation address on Jan 1. Earlier on Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador Deborah Malac met Ugandas speaker of parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, and described Trumps controversial remark as obviously quite disturbing and upsetting. Read more: Trump questions why immigrants from s---hole countries are allowed into U.S. Trumps s---hole remark draws sharp response from African countries, Haiti, former Canadian governor general Opinion | Shree Paradkar: Trumps s---hole countries remark casts remarkable light on immigration policies U.S. President Donald Trump is drawing an angry response, after using an expletive to describe the countries that many immigrants in the U.S. came from. One critic is Republican congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, who says Trump has a long history of making racist statements. (The Associated Press) Read more about: Nakawa MP Michael Kabaziguruka Nakawa lawmaker, Michael Kabaziguruka, who suffered a nasty accident mid last year, was seen being wheeled into parliament during the debate and passing of the age limit bill, now assented into law by President Yoweri Museveni. The law scrapped the upper age limit (75 years) and also lowered the age limit to 18 years from 35. Under the same law, the MPs also extended their term office from five to seven years, BAKE BATTE LULE talked to the legislator whether it wasn't after all a futile fight? You had an accident recently how is your health now? I was involved in an accident in July, spent a month in hospital but currently Im on physiotherapy. Im not feeling bad, although I walk with the aid of clutches, but with the grace of God, I know I will heal completely very soon. Initially, the doctors had given me four months, but Im already in the fifth month but by February 2018, I hope I will be able to walk normally without aid. We saw you being wheeled in parliament to participate in the debate on age limit. What motivated you to do so seeing that you were evidently in pain? When I offered myself to stand as MP, I knew what it entailed. I knew what I wanted to do. When I took my oath of office, I vowed to uphold, defend and protect the Constitution of the republic of Uganda. So when there are attempts to break the Constitution by individuals led by Hon. Raphael Magyezi, I had a duty to go to parliament and make my voice heard to present the views of the people of Nakawa. That was the reason why I sacrificed myself that day and put my health on the line to go to parliament. To me it has always been the country first. Thats why I was there. Was it worth it? It was every bit of it. I had the objective of defending the Constitution and I did whatever was humanly possible under the circumstances. Despite the challenges, despite the attacks on parliament, the wanton beatings and arrest of honorable colleagues, I still think it was worth it. We managed to stand and say this is wrong; whatever the cost. What are your thoughts about the process that ushered in the Magyezi Bill? The whole process was shrouded in illegalities right from the time it was first mooted. The mere fact that an individual member of parliament presented the proposed amendment was fraudulent. We, as members of parliament swear an oath; to uphold defend and protect the Constitution. It is not my responsibility to propose amendments to the Constitution. Parliament has the powers to amend the Constitution but it is not my duty to propose the amendments. Once the amendments have been proposed, its my duty to look into the amendments, and, where I find it necessary that these proposed amendment are necessity in the good governance of this country, then we would incorporate them in the Constitution. Quite clearly the Magyezi amendment are in total breach of these two, because as a practicing accountant, Im trained to look at the substance of a transaction not the form. In this case, the substance of this amendment is, really to prolong Musevenis tenure as president of this country. That was the sole aim of Magyezis bill. Unfortunately, the colleagues who voted in favor of this amendment did not even have the courtesy of hiding it that the bill was also for other people. All of them were saying point-blank that this was for Mr Museveni. First of all, the mover of the motion doesnt tell us anybody who has been disenfranchised by the article as it is. I neither saw a group of individuals go before the committee and say that they were disenfranchised. So you can see that there is a lot of illegality. Secondly, the justification that Hon. Magyezi gave that these amendments were as a result of the Supreme court ruling in the Amama Mbabazi Vs Museveni, and the Electoral Commission was also fraudulent. It is true that the learned justices gave some recommendations to improve the electoral environment in this country, but the justices were very clear, they expressly ordered the attorney general to present electoral reforms within two years. And in the event that they failed, they should [go] back to court and seek an extension of time. The attorney general is not time barred because the two years expire next year. So we still have time to put together a raft of electoral reforms. Just before the 2016 election, the opposition and other civil society organizations put together a raft of proposed electoral reforms which are still lying on the desks of the attorney general and the minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs. It is therefore an irony that Magyezi would rely on that ruling and present lifting age limit as the only amendment that will cause a free and fair election. Seeing all these illegalities as you call them, why would you go ahead and take part in them? Our point was to be on record and I think we managed to do that. I think when one is engaged in an illegal act, I have a duty to come and say this is illegal. In criminal matters, there can never be neutrality because you are either on the side of the oppressor or the oppressed. To claim to remain neutral you would be choosing the side of the oppressor. In this case, we couldnt just look on, we had to come in and be counted as we put these issues on record - pointing out why they are illegal. In future if we decide to challenge them like we are going to do anyway, the conduct, the misconduct, the misinterpretation by the speaker of the Constitution, of the rule of procedure and other laws all cannot go unchallenged. We needed to be in parliament to point all these out and put the speaker on notice and the MPs. We dont serve our interests, we have our masters, who voted for us and we had to make their voices heard. People are used to seeing us walk out, but this time we said lets have a change in strategy because the previous walkouts have not yielded much results. It instead gave these unscrupulous individuals room to go ahead and do what they want to do in a free environment. So we had to come in and make it very hard for them to do as they pleased. In a way, are you not helping President Museveni cleanse what some have termed as a satanic bill by saying there was tight scrutiny and everybody said what they needed to say. We actually managed to unmask Museveni. Not that we didnt know we were dealing with a dictator. Not that the international community didnt know we had a dictator here. We wanted to further unmask him for anybody who still thought that we were dealing with a sane government. We actually managed to expose the extent of the tragedy facing Uganda. You remember on September 27 when MPs were attacked by a gang of unknown assailants? People that the speaker also said she didnt know? Of course it beats my understanding that after such an episode, the speaker would come in and act as though it was business as usual and allow Magyezi to present the bill that was illegal. She sheds crocodile tears by writing to the president seeking explanation as to who those who attacked members were. In my thinking, the speaker should have suspended the House and sought explanation about those who attacked MPs and probably work tooth and nail to bring them to book. But to proceed as if nothing happened, is hypocritical on the part of the speaker. She was simply trying to sanitize her image that had been soiled. What is your take on the MPs decision to extend their tenure by two years? Of course that can only by termed as greed on the part of MPs. They have lost sight of why they were voted to represent the views of the people. People said no to the amendments but the MPs came to parliament and said yes. So many of them fear they will not make it back to parliament, so they have resorted to cutting deals with Mr Museveni in which case he has duped them that he can extend their tenure by two year yet clearly he knows it is an illegality that cant stand. How can you be sworn in for a five year period and then turn around and increase it? In as much as the Constitution gives parliament the mandate to amend the Constitution, we definitely cannot extend our own term. You cant have an amendment that seeks to serve your interests. We can extend the term of parliament but not retrospectively. In the event that court okays what parliament did, what will be your recourse? Would you resign after your five years? I dont want to speculate, Im still hopeful that the court will rule against what parliament did. Im hopeful that the judiciary will exercise their mandate free of coercion and find this attempt to rape the Constitution illegal. In the unlikely event that the judiciary goes along with MPs who misrepresented their people, then I pray that the people of Uganda take up the mantle, I will borrow some words from the Constitution of New York to the effect that; Whenever the ends of government are perverted and public liberty manifestly endangered, and all other means of redress are ineffectual, the people may and are right to reform the old and establish a new government. The doctrine of nonresistance against arbitrary power and oppression is absurd, slavish and destructive to the good and happiness of mankind, then we shall refer this matter to the people who are enjoined under the Constitution that the power belongs to them and that they are commanded to do anything to resist a constitutional overthrow. Next time you lace up your running shoes, consider who made them. Lan stitches 1,200 pairs of shoes like yours each day in a factory in Vietnam. Let that sink in for a moment: 1,200 pairs. Lans wage is so low, she not only cant afford a pair for her young son, but she doesnt see him and his baby sister for months at a time. While she toils for a dollar an hour, six days a week in the city, her children live with their grandparents in the Vietnamese countryside. Under pressure to meet daily targets for a leading fashion brand, she barely gets breaks or vacation time. Some days, Lan works so hard, she faints on the job. Meanwhile, it takes a CEO from the top five fashion retailers just over 11 days to earn what a Vietnamese garment worker like Lan makes in her lifetime. This kind of extreme inequality is on the rise around the world, making it impossible for people to lift themselves out of poverty. To put this in perspective, 82 per cent of the wealth created last year went to the richest 1 per cent of the population, while the 3.7 billion people who make up the poorest half of the world saw no increase. Nothing. Zero. And while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has repeatedly expressed concern about economic inequality in Canada, we also continue to see wealth amongst the superrich rise at a rapid pace. Oxfam calculates Canadian billionaire fortunes grew by $28 billion last year alone. Thats enough to pay for universal child care and lift 4.9 million Canadians out of poverty. The superrich are building massive wealth on the backs of the poorest workers the majority of whom are women. Here in Canada and abroad, women workers consistently earn less than men and do the lowest-paid and least secure forms of work. Oxfam has spoken to women who experience this in a variety of sectors, including the hotel industry. Female housekeepers in Toronto, the Dominican Republic and Thailand told us they live in fear of losing their jobs if they complain about low pay, working conditions or sexual harassment. And some of the hardest work women do isnt even paid at all. They shoulder the vast majority of unpaid care work around the world cleaning the house, tending to children, looking after sick and elderly family members. The McKinsey Global Institute estimates women contribute an estimated $10 trillion in unpaid care annually to support the global economy. Tax cuts for the rich, tax havens, cuts in public services and a race to the bottom on wages and labour rights all hurt women more than men. Reading all of this might make you feel powerless. What can you really do to change a global system rigged in favour of the superrich? Well it turns out, a lot. You can spread the word. You can demand better from the companies that produce the goods you buy. You can demand action from the politicians who get your vote. As Prime Minister Trudeau meets with the rich and powerful in Davos for the World Economic Forum this week, he has an opportunity to move beyond words and take real, meaningful action. Trudeau can press fellow leaders to limit returns to shareholders and top executives, and eliminate the gender pay gap. He can talk to CEOs especially those who employ large workforces of poor women about better wages and treatment for workers, as well as stronger sexual harassment policies. But there is also work to do when he returns to Canada. The government must raise taxes for corporations; close the loopholes that allow the superrich to avoid paying their fair share in taxes and crack down on those who stash their wealth in tax havens overseas. We need investments in social infrastructure, and better employment insurance and labour protections for those in precarious jobs. These fundamental changes are not a pipe dream. Just a few weeks ago, Iceland made it illegal for firms to pay women less than men. The government hopes to eliminate the gender wage gap entirely by 2020. In 2010, Ecuador introduced a minimum dignity wage to cover basic costs of living, helping lift hundreds of thousands of people out of extreme poverty. That country now has one of the lowest unemployment rates in Latin America. Change is possible. We know what action we need to take to fight inequality and end poverty. We owe it to women like Lan to create an economy that rewards work, not wealth. We owe it to Lans daughter to one day be able to afford a pair of shiny new running shoes for her own kids. Kate Higgins is the director of policy and campaigns at Oxfam Canada I had no idea there were so many right-leaning columnists and activists in Canada who cared so passionately about human rights, and the freedom of Christians. That must be the case, because it has been impossible to pick up a newspaper or look at social media in the last few days without seeing outrage and anger at the governments reforms to the summer jobs program. Its all largely a sham of course, just a convenient vehicle to drive at Justin Trudeau and the Liberals. The premise is that Ottawas reform of the summer jobs program discriminates against Christians. In fact, its a reaction to the revelation that sizable amounts of public money were being given to militant anti-abortion groups across Canada, some of which describe womens choice as murder, compare abortion to the Holocaust, and put leaflets with bloody, graphic pictures on them through peoples doors. To prevent this, the government inserted a new statement in the application form, stating: To be eligible, the core mandate of the organization must respect individual human rights in Canada, including the values underlying the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Charter) as well as other rights. These include reproductive rights and the right to be free from discrimination on the basis of sex, religion, race, national or ethnic origin, colour, mental or physical disability, sexual orientation or gender identity or expression. Its not quite as draconian as critics have been making out, and theres something else here. Many of us would like to see abortion rates reduced, but still believe that womens choice is a fundamental right and that safe, legal, and rare is a pretty noble aspiration. We can support this text without rejoicing at the idea of abortion; or is it that some of the groups involved want abortion to be criminalized? I can tell you from extensive personal experience that they do, even in cases of rape and incest. Of course there are far more moderate organizations that are caught in the middle of all this, and thats a problem, but we must define who the real discriminators are. Opponents of the government have singled out the abortion issue, but many, if not most, of these same groups would not hire someone who was in a same-sex relationship. In other words, young LGBTQ2 people those most at risk of persecution, suicide attempts, and depression will be told by those complaining of the unfairness of the new policy, that they are not acceptable as employees, and this policy often extends to straight people living together outside of marriage. They often have what are known as morality clauses to which they demand signatures, and I for one have been fired from a major evangelical media organization because of my support for equal marriage. So its not quite as simple and linear as some would have you believe. Then there is consistency. In 2010 Stephen Harpers government removed $7 million in funding from KAIROS, a Christian aid organization representing 11 major churches. The Conservatives claimed it was because they were reforming their foreign aid approach, but it soon became public that it was actually because they thought, wrongly, that KAIROS supported boycotts of Israel. The Harper government also removed funding from 14 womens groups that were pro-choice, and to Canadian organizations that included abortion as part of their maternal care policy in the developing world, even though these were often life-saving procedures. I suppose that hypocrisy shouldnt surprise us. What does surprise, and disappoint, are how so many conservatives are playing the Christian card, and portraying the Liberals as oppressive. These same accusers have often been silent over the years when social program are trashed, inner-city education reduced, homelessness explained away. These are the genuine Christian issues. Abortion isnt really mentioned in The Bible, and when there is a reference its vague and about Gods communal plan rather than abortion as we know it today. Poverty, refugees, and the marginalized are constants however, and Jesus seldom shuts up about them! Frankly, the government has been a little clumsy in all this, and played into the hands of those who care far more about scoring points than preserving freedoms. Nobody, however, is arguing that conservative Christians shouldnt be allowed to oppose abortion and LGBTQ2 equality, just that financing them to do so is going too far. Michael Coren is a Toronto writer. From the pristine waters of the North French River in Ontario to the tree-lined shores of the Great Bear Lake in the Northwest Territories, Indigenous Nations are working to conserve the land. Some are caring for the countrys iconic places, like Gwaii Haanas and the Torngat Mountains. And some are creating protected areas that will provide clean water, fresh air and abundant animals for generations to come. Now, as Canada embarks on one of the biggest conservation initiatives in its history, Indigenous efforts to protect the land are taking on even greater significance. Canada has committed to protect at least 17 per cent of lands by 2020 in accordance with the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity. The country has protected about 11 per cent so far. Indigenous-led conservation can help Canada accelerate toward its goal and advance reconciliation at the same time. Honouring Indigenous values and aspirations for the land is a vital element of Reconciliation, yet Crown governments havent always recognized the protections Indigenous Nations put in place. Now, as part of its new conservation commitment, Canada can work with Indigenous Nations to respect and expand Indigenous protected and conserved areas. This will strengthen our partnerships and protect more fresh waters and vibrant landscapes for everyone. This conservation project has broad support. A resounding 87 per cent of Canadians favour protecting at least 17 per cent of lands, according to a recent survey conducted by Earnscliffe Strategy Group for the Schad Foundation and the Boreal Songbird Initiative. And this month, 116 Members of Parliament and the Senate called on Finance Minister Bill Morneau to increase federal investment for new parks and protected areas in order to safeguard the environment and strengthen rural economies. Many Indigenous people support conservation as well, since caring for the land is an important part of respecting our cultural responsibilities. Several Indigenous Nations have embraced land use planning as a tool to determine which areas we want to protect and where exploration and development can occur. It helps us assert our right to sit at the table and hold the pen when lines are drawn on the map. With these plans as our guide, we have helped establish national parks, UNESCO biosphere reserves, world heritage sites and tribal parks. Much of this work has been done in partnership with Crown governments. On the eastern shore of Great Slave Lake, for instance, the Lutsel Ke Dene First Nations wanted to conserve large areas of their territory. They negotiated with Crown governments to develop a new kind of park one co-created by First Nations and Canada together. Called Thaidene Nene, the proposed park will encompass 3.5 million acres. The Lutsel Ke Dene will co-manage the protected area with the help of NihatNi Dene program Indigenous Guardians who monitor wildlife, watersheds and cultural sites by drawing on Indigenous and Western science. Meanwhile, the Innu are partnering with federal and provincial governments to co-manage the Mealy Mountains National Park Reserve in Labrador and implement a suite of other conservation measures in Quebec. And the Sahtugotine Dene successfully worked to designate the Great Bear Lake Watershed as Canadas largest Biosphere Reserve. More Nations are ready to conserve lands, and the Canadian public favour these efforts. Three out of four Canadians support Indigenous communities creating and managing Indigenous protected and conserved Areas, according to the survey conducted by Earnscliffe Strategy Group. To move forward, Indigenous Nations need support. All Crown governments will need to recognize Indigenous protected areas and help to fund their long-term management and stewardship. More investment will help Indigenous Nations complete land use plans, establish Indigenous protected and conserved areas and expand Indigenous Guardians programs to manage these areas and work with companies on monitoring projects in development zones. This support will move us closer toward Reconciliation on the land. It will help the government put important policies into practice, from the United Nations Declaration on Indigenous Peoples to the Department of Justices new principles on Nation-to-Nation relationships. It will help Indigenous Nations express our right to determine the future of our lands and our future as Peoples. And it will help ensure the land sustains all Canadians far into the future. Valerie Courtois is the executive director of the Indigenous Leadership Initiative, an organization dedicated to strengthening Indigenous Nationhood and honouring the cultural responsibility to the land.Steven Nitah is lead negotiator for Lutsel Ke Dene First Nations on the proposed Thaidene Nene National Park Reserve and a member of the Indigenous Circle of Experts advising on Canadas conservation goals. Now that Grand Touring Auto has moved to Dundas and the DVP, Torontos east end is definitely the place to be if youre looking for a Rolls-Royce. Whether that means the power and prestige of the west end are moving to the other side of Yonge or simply that theres more land there not yet slated for condos remains to be seen. Regardless, the lower east side is awash in car dealerships. Architecturally, most are generic structures, almost invisible in their ordinariness and lack of originality. Grand Touring, which sells Bentleys, Bugattis, Jaguars and the like, is no exception. Indeed, designed by Plaston Architect and Weis Architecture, the new showroom sums up the logic of the downtown dealership nicely; its shiny but empty metallic surfaces and large glass facades are meant to grab our eyeballs and not let go. But in a city like Toronto, where every other building wants us to stop and look, this sort of architectural aggression is doomed to fail. The only heads turned here will be those of drivers stuck on the Don Valley Parking Lot, which the showroom overlooks. To those passing by on Dundas, the building is easy to miss. So is the entrance on Carroll St. The most interesting aspect of the new structure is its location in the floodplain of the Don River; given the regularity with which the Don bursts its banks, the showroom could well become a visual icon of a city beset by climate change. Other more retro dealers such as Downtown Toyota at Queen and Broadview are noisy attention-seeking spaces lined with flags. It looks like something youd expect to see on a suburban highway, not a busy downtown corner. It wont be around much longer, however, condos are on the way. On the other hand, some showrooms are intended to blend into the streetscape. The Lincoln outlet at King and Cherry is a good example. Located in the ground floor of a nondescript midrise condo, it presents the sophisticated image of a fully urban operation, more a car store than a traditional auto dealership. Whether by design or irony, the compactness of Lincolns premises stand in stark contrast to the tank-like vehicles it sells. Still, given the cost of Toronto real estate, this is the way of the future. At the same time, one wonders how much longer cars as we know them will be around. Even in Toronto, where the mayors focus is vehicular congestion, its clear the auto has taken us about as far as it can. Then theres the intersection of Front and Parliament; it tells a complicated story about the awkward relationship between past and present. Some may remember that the Porsche dealership now at Front and Parliament used to be on Front at Berkeley. It moved to Parliament after a land swap involving the province, the city and the land owner who, in return for the Berkeley site, got the one at Parliament. The city and province wanted his site because it was close to the Ontarios historic first parliament building. In 2012, the original Porsche showroom became a provincial interpretive centre dedicated to the War of 1812. That was closed after a few years, and now the building houses a Nissan showroom. Where there was one dealership, today there are two. Another row of car retailers, on Front east of Parliament, make no pretence at anything more than basic utility. They are occupying space until the condo builders show up. The two exceptions the BMW and Mini showrooms on Sunlight Park Rd. stand out from the crowd by virtue of architectural excellence. Their function is the same; but although both were designed to sell cars, they do so indirectly. This architecture engages passersby for its own reasons; it isnt a bright shiny object, but a statement of value and tastefulness. Like Grand Touring, BMW faces the DVP. The top two-thirds of the six-storey facade form a screen, divided into sections, but the 2004 building also takes its civic duties seriously. In short, it is a landmark. So is the Mini showroom. Designed by Roland Rem Colthoff, then of Quadrangle Architects, who also did BMW, this one presents a striking arrangement of glass cubes outlined in yellow, green and orange panels. Theres more to a building than meets the eye, of course, but at the same time, what you see is what you get. Christopher Humes column appears weekly. He can be reached at jcwhume4@gmail.com As world leaders, billionaires and celebrities gather this week for the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, they would do well to keep in mind a new warning from the anti-poverty organization Oxfam International: If the global growth in income inequality keeps on at its current pace, populist and nationalist trends around the world will flourish. If that doesnt make the glitzy Davos crowd think twice about the policies they are debating (and creating), then shocking figures in Oxfams report, Reward Work, Not Wealth, should do the trick. Top among them: A CEO from any one of the worlds top five global fashion brands has to work for only four days to earn what a garment worker in Bangladesh will earn in an entire lifetime. Not a year. A lifetime. If thats not a wakeup call to world leaders, consider that the report also found that 82 per cent of the wealth generated last year went to the richest 1 per cent of the global population. The poorest half of the worlds population 3.7 billion people saw no increase at all. Indeed, the wealth of the billionaire class has risen by an annual average of 13 per cent since 2010, over six times faster than the wages of average workers. The number of billionaires rose at an astonishing rate of one every two days in the year to March 2017. And billionaires are getting richer by the minute. Last year, alone, they would have seen an uptick in their collective wealth of $762 billion enough to end extreme poverty seven times over. As Oxfam Internationals executive director, Winnie Byanyima of Uganda, put it: The billionaire boom is not a sign of a thriving economy but a symptom of a failing economic system. Oxfam proposes a prescription to balance the growing disparity between rich and poor. Governments, it says, need to get back into the driving seat and challenge the big corporations and billionaires. They can do that by limiting returns to shareholders and top executives, ensuring workers receive a minimum living wage, and pushing through policies to eliminate the gender pay gap and protect the rights of women workers. The report also urges governments to clamp down on tax avoidance and other associated practices highlighted in the recent Panama Papers and Paradise Papers, and to plow the estimated $7.6 trillion that is being hidden from authorities into education, health care and jobs. This is a fundamental challenge to the established order, reflected in the rich and powerful gathered at Davos. At the very least, its a starting point to imagine an alternative to the increasingly unequal reality of the global economy. The Trudeau government wants to make sure federal money for summer jobs isnt spent on paying young people to hand out anti-abortion leaflets. Thats a reasonable goal, one the great majority of Canadians would agree with. Theres no reason tax dollars should fund activist campaigns against a womans right to choose. And no one has a right to demand money to do that. But the government has overreached on this issue. Instead of focusing on what summer-jobs money would pay young people to do, it has made an issue of what the organizations that apply for the funds believe. In doing so, its handing a PR victory to anti-abortion militants, right-wingers and religious groups eager to spread fear that the Liberals are out to ban conservative beliefs. The governments support for Charter rights in general, and reproductive rights in particular, is admirable. But it should re-think its approach on this issue. At the very least, it should reword the attestation now attached to applications for summer-job funding so that organizations seeking grants dont have to sign on to a broadly worded values statement. Instead, it should limit the conditions to what the jobs would actually involve. That would be a well-considered response to the events that put this issue on the governments radar in the first place. Last spring it emerged that, over the past seven years, just over $344,000 of summer-jobs money went to four groups whose explicit mission is to campaign against reproductive rights, often by shoving graphic images of aborted fetuses in peoples faces. Stopping tax money from going to fund campaigns like that is one thing. But the governments response was to attach the attestation to the application form for its Canada Summer Jobs program. Groups applying for money must now declare they support Charter values, and the guidelines make clear that includes the right to access safe and legal abortions. That means, for example, that a group affiliated with the Catholic Church looking to hire students to work at a day camp or a homeless shelter over the summer is in a tough spot. Does it tick the box declaring it goes along with the attestation, and worry that its compromising its beliefs? Or does it stand on principle and forgo the money? The government insists it doesnt have to choose. Employment Minister Patty Hajdu points out the wording applies only to an organizations core mandate, so even faith groups with reservations about abortion can sign up. But those seeking federal funds shouldnt have to wrack their brains over the distinction between core and other beliefs. And they shouldnt be ruled ineligible for tax money because theyre connected to groups out of tune with a government values statement, however worthy. Of course, as Michael Coren notes in the Star, theres the usual load of hypocrisy involved in the increasingly noisy campaign against the governments summer-jobs policy. Right-wingers werent speaking out so loudly about freedom of conscience when the Harper government exercised its own ideological bent and cut funding for religious groups it disagreed with. Theyre also wilfully exaggerating the likely real-life effects of the policy, portraying the government as blatantly anti-Christian. Still, the government should fix its policy or risk looking heavy-handed at best, oppressive at worst. It needs to address the problem of funding for anti-abortion activists in a way that takes into account all rights those of conscience and religion as well as a womans right to choose. It needs to return the debate to one about actions, not beliefs. Government doesnt have to fund actions that violate rights, but it shouldnt try to police what people believe. By agreeing to a new Pacific trade deal, Canadas Liberal government has taken out what it hopes is an insurance policy against the collapse of NAFTA. Canadas decision to join 10 other nations in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership comes as negotiators huddle in Montreal in a desperate effort to keep the North American Free Trade Agreement alive. Back in November, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that he was in no hurry to make a decision on the Pacific deal. But that calculation appears to have changed as prospects for a successful NAFTA renegotiation dim. Canada did not get what it wanted in the important area of auto parts from the Pacific deal. Nor is it clear that it successfully exempted its cultural industries from the new deals free-trade rules. Yet at a meeting Tuesday in Tokyo, Ottawa agreed to join anyway. The new pact, which includes Japan, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Chile, Brunei and Peru, comprises only 14 per cent of world trade. But for fans of free-trade deals including most of Canadas big business class it is better than nothing. And nothing is what Canada might get from the NAFTA talks. American President Donald Trump has repeatedly said he will pull the U.S. out of the three-nation pact unless Canada and Mexico meet all his demands. Canada and Mexico have responded by saying that some of those demands, particularly one that would eliminate the right of NAFTA signatories to challenge one anothers trade practices before an independent panel, are deal breakers. Yet Ottawa has also signalled a new willingness to bargain other Trump demands that it had once dismissed out of hand, such as his insistence on eliminating NAFTAs investor-state dispute settlement system. This allows foreign companies to challenge domestic laws before special trade panels. How will Canadas decision to buy into the Pacific pact affect the NAFTA talks? First, it will irritate the Americans. One of Trumps first actions as president was to pull the U.S. out of this pacts predecessor, the Trans-Pacific Partnership. He will not be amused that his good buddy Trudeau is going ahead with a truncated version of that Pacific deal before NAFTA is resolved. Second, it may make some of the NAFTA issues more difficult. Under the Pacific deal, autos and auto parts may be traded among member nations duty-free as long as 35 to 45 per cent of their content is manufactured within the bloc. Under NAFTA, the rules of origin are far stricter, demanding 62.5 per cent North American content. Yet even then Trump thinks they are too loose. Its not clear how he would respond to a situation in which Canadian auto manufacturers were following two rules-of-origin regimes, with the possibility of cross-over between them. Third, Ottawas decision to join the Pacific pact puts paid to the already remote possibility that Canada and the U.S. might come to an agreement without Mexico. Mexico is part of the new Pacific deal. If Trump doesnt want direct free trade with Mexico, hes unlikely to accept indirect free trade with it via Canada. In the end, Ottawa didnt get what it wanted in the new and revamped Pacific pact. It is signing side deals with Japan, Australia and Malaysia on autos. But it appears to have acceded to Japans insistence that weak rules of origin for auto parts remain in place. It did not win an exemption for Canadian cultural industries within the deal itself. But it will sign so-called side letters on cultural matters with the other 10 nations when the deal is inked. Its not yet known what will be in those letters. And while promoting the deal as progressive (Canada insisted that the pacts name be changed to reflect this), Ottawa has raised little objection to Vietnams request that it be given more time to improve labour rights. Politically, however, all of this is secondary. With NAFTA on the ropes, the Trudeau government needs to show that it can still pull off free-trade deals. The Pacific pact, however imperfect, is the one that can be most quickly done. Thomas Walkoms column appears Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Read more about: The Trump administration imposed 30% tariffs Monday, Jan. 22, on imported solar-energy cells and modules -- the latest sign that the president is playing hardball with China, which dominates the sector. The administration also slapped tariffs on foreign-made washing machines. "The president's action makes clear again that the Trump administration will always defend American workers, farmers, ranchers and businesses in this regard," U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in announcing the move after markets had closed. The decision imposes a 30% tariff on imported solar cells and modules in the action's first year, with levies slowly falling to 15% four years from now. The U.S. government will exempt the first 2.5 gigawatts of solar cells imported into America in each of the next four years. The new tariffs follow a lengthy U.S. International Trade Commission investigation into whether Chinese manufacturers have been "dumping" solar products on the American market at unrealistically low prices in an attempt to drive U.S. manufacturers out of business. Lighthizer said the ITC concluded "that U.S. producers had been seriously injured by imports." First Solar Inc. (FSLR) - Get First Solar, Inc. Report shares were rising in premarket trading on Tuesday, up 3.1% to $71.11. Fellow solar-energy name SunPower Corp. (SPWR) - Get SunPower Corporation Report rose 2% in premarket trading. Goldman Sachs, in a note issued late Monday, said the impact of the tariffs would be "relatively benign" and added that it expects rooftop solar developers such as SunRun Inc. (RUN) - Get Sunrun Inc. Report and Vivint Solar Inc. (VSLR) - Get Vivint Solar Inc Report to rally in the near-term and said it sees First Solar outperforming Chinese peers JinkoSolar Holding Co. (JKS) - Get JinkoSolar Holding Co., Ltd. Sponsored ADR Report and Canadian Solar Inc. (CSIQ) - Get Canadian Solar Inc. Report . With its move on imported washing machines, the administration decided on a combined tariff and quota for the next three years, the New York Times reported. "In the first year, the first 1.2 million washing machines that are imported will face a tariff of 20 percent, while all subsequent imports will have a tariff of 50 percent," the Times said. Shares of U.S. washing machine maker Whirlpool Corp. (WHR) - Get Whirlpool Corporation (WHR) Report rose 3.2% in after-hours trading on Monday. Not everyone supported the administration's move on solar. "President Trump says his intention is to save jobs, but the specifics show this decision is a job killer," said John Rogers, senior energy analyst with the pro-environmentalist group the Union of Concerned Scientists. "The first year of tariffs is high enough to blunt the growth of solar energy in the United States and hurt domestic solar jobs, but the package is not nearly enough to give U.S. solar-panel manufacturers the ill-conceived walls of protectionism they were looking for." South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. blasted the Trump administration's move on washing machines. "Everyone will pay more with fewer choices," Samsung said. Monday's move also comes at a time when markets are anxiously waiting to see what the Trump administration does with an ongoing investigation into alleged Chinese steel dumping. Some claim Chinese steel exports to America violate the U.S. 1962 Trade Expansion Act's Section 232, which provides for trade barriers to resources important to U.S. national defense. This story has been updated from Monday, Jan. 22. More of What's Trending on TheStreet: Employees of TheStreet are restricted from trading individual securities. President Museveni addressing East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) legislators today. Photo: Nicholas Bamulanzeki President Yoweri Museveni has praised US President Donald Trump for being 'frank' and telling Africa that they are a weak continent. In reference to recent comments attributed to Trump, when, he allegedly expressed discomfort in allowing in more immigrants from shithole countries, Museveni says the US president must thanked for telling Africa the truth. While meeting US lawmakers recently Trump allegedly referred to Haiti, El Salvador and African nations as shithole countries. While the US Ambassador to Uganda Deborah Malac earlier today said she regretted the disturbing and upsetting comments attributed to Trump, Museveni later told parliament that Africa must thank Trump for his honesty, and perhaps it will reawaken Africans to reunite and work together to focus on developing the continent. I love Trump, because he tells Africans frankly, said Museveni. Africans need to solve their problems. In the world, you cannot survive if you are weak. Museveni also urged the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) legislators to focus on prosperity as opposed to fighting for speakership for the congress. For Africa to be strong and to survive, we need integration to speak with one voice, he said, adding that EALA members should strive to provide opportunities for those engaged in production. #Africa must thank #DonaldTrump for telling them frankly that they are weak, says #Uganda President Museveni. M7 was delivering his state of East African Community address in Kampala today #Shithole ? @bamulanzeki pic.twitter.com/TfiuZUvbRe The Observer (@observerug) January 23, 2018 matsiko@observer.ug Only two units of blood were available at Kawempe General hospital On Friday, January 5, at 1pm the stand-in national referral hospital for women, Kawempe General, had only two units of blood in its storage fridges. Under normal circumstances, the hospital bank must have at least 40 units daily for emergencies. As The Observer entered the labour suite on the fourth floor, there were many women due for emergency caesarean section but were unattended to and in immense pain because doctors had stopped operations. A similar suspension of services was seen at the China-Uganda Friendship hospital at Naguru and Mulago national referral hospital also due to the blood stock-out. The helplessness of medical staff in the face of such tragic circumstances highlights just how bad Ugandas perennial blood shortage problem has become. Blood is vital though perishable. It cant be kept beyond 35 days, which is why the bank has to be regularly replenished. Stranded at Kawempe, was Alice, a new mother referred there from St Marys hospital Lacor in Gulu with a retained placenta. There was another severely bleeding woman after giving birth to twins. A third needed an emergency operation to give birth. Nothing could be done for them. We are in a crisis since the ambulances bring in patients every minute to give birth when they are bleeding and they need blood. Other mothers might deliver well or the operation might be successful but later bleed severely, Joseph Kiiza, the manager of the blood bank at Kawempe, told The Observer. And when there is no blood, there is nothing doctors can do even if they give her all types of medication and care. She can die within an hour when doctors are watching but cant save her yet when blood is available, it takes a minute to save her life, he said. The death rates for mothers have increased due to blood shortage in hospitals but [we] cant tell exact figures [which] alarm the public because even if we do, the government will not change fast or invest money quickly in Uganda Blood Transfusion Service (UBTS), he said. John Baptist Ebaat, an administrator at this hospital, said patients in need of blood come in from regional referral hospitals across the country. Some three kids were referred here last week when they were anaemic but died because we didnt have blood. We receive women daily referred here when bleeding and some die when they fail to get blood, he said. He told The Observer that Ugandas increased population, high birthrate and diseases like cancer which require constant blood transfusion, have led to increased blood consumption yet very few people donate. Donor funding cuts This year, things have worsened with the withdrawal of a key Western donor. State minister for Primary Health Care, Sarah Achieng Opendi, said over the weekend that 45 percent of Uganda Blood Transfusion Services (UBTS) budget was funded by the US PEPFAR initiative. PEPFAR withdrew funding and government took over by taking a critical look at the operations of UBTS. We are aware they have expensive equipment that are being used to process blood but we may review this in line with the funding challenges, she said. We have requested for additional supplementary funding from the ministry of Finance and I have had discussions with Finance Minister Matia Kasaija and this will be resolved. Last financial year, we received an additional Shs 7bn but this budget was not maintained in this years budget, Opendi said. Kiiza said UBTS used to supply 100 units daily for use in Mulago, Kiruddu and Kawempe but now he collects less than 20 units. At the moment, there is no blood in our blood bank at Kawempe. The most demanded blood group O which donates to all blood groups is also not available. The only two units available are group A and AB because their blood groups are rare. At times we go to UBTS five times and there is no blood and then the mother dies. So, we are in a very risky situation and more women will die as they give birth, Kiiza said. The public relations officer at Mulago said the crisis is more pronounced with blood group O. Previously, we have been receiving between 50 and 60 units per day, but at the moment we get between 25 and 40 units, which is not enough. Since students are still in holidays, we call upon public to donate since its a national problem, Enock Kusasira said. UBTS Mobilization for donation requires money which is not there. Michael Mukundane, the blood donor recruitment coordinator for Central region, said continuous blood shortage partly arises because less than one per cent of the population donates blood. The communitys response to donate blood is not yet very good. We target to collect over 270,000 units of blood annually but we only collect 240,000 units, he said. Budget allocations have dropped from Shs 9.4bn in 2017/18 to Shs 8.9bn in the coming financial year. But Jim Mugunga, the spokesman for ministry of Finance, took a dim view of UBTS officials blaming the blood crisis on budget cuts. He said what was slashed is non-core spending on purchase of new vehicles, travel abroad, trainings, allowances and workshops. zurah@observer.ug After Tata Trust counsel argued at the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) on Monday that the Trust wanted Tata Sons to acquire the stake of Mistry family in the holding company, the question doing rounds in the industry circles is that whether Tatas will attempt it. Experts say that it won't be possible if Pallonji Mistry family doesn't want to do so and the court will not intervene in this matter. "But Tatas wish to remove Mistrys from share ownership of Tata Sons," says an industry veteran. Now the question that arises is whether Tata Sons would come upfront to facilitate an exit deal. The Trusts' senior counsel Sudipta Sarkar said during the argument that it would be in the interests of Tata Sons to buy out Shapoorji Pallonji (SP) Group's stake in the holding company. He alleged that the SP Group has been exercising their rights in a "disruptive manner" which is not in the best interest of the company. The hearing was in relation to the case filed by SP Group's family firms against Tata Sons and Tata Trusts for alleged mismanagement and oppression of minority shareholders. The petition was filed after Tata Sons removed Cyrus Mistry as its chairman on October, 2016. It was believed that SP Group got the Tata Sons shares when they bought into the financing firm F.E. Dinshaw and Co in the 1930s. But Tata counsel argued in the court that Mistrys didn't hold any shares until 1965 and they bought it later from the sibilings of JRD Tata. However, SP Group had been a silent shareholder until the controversial ouster of Cyrus Mistry from the post of Tata Group chairman. Earlier, in September last year, the shareholders of Tata Sons voted in favour of the Tata group holding firm becoming a private company in the first annual general meeting (AGM) under the chairmanship of N. Chandrasekaran. The move was opposed by the Mistry family, which owns an 18.4 per cent stake in Tata Sons at present, as it would restrain them from selling their stake. The shareholders of the Tata group companies also complained that it would leave less information on what is happening at the holding company level. Cyrus Mistry's counsel C. Arya Sundaram earlier argued before NCLT for the introduction of certain "safeguards" within the Tata Group to protect the interests of minority shareholders. Later, Mistry sought that his SP Group, the single largest shareholder in Tata Sons, be given board representation proportionate to its holdings. Countering the Mistry family's arguments, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing the Tata Group's holding company, said Cyrus Mistry during his time as a Tata Sons board member was party to almost all decisions that he now alleges amounted to mismanagement, and not a word of protest came from him till he was removed. He also said that Mistry was removed from the chairpersonship of the company as its board had lost confidence in him. Singhvi reaffirmed that the nominee trustee directors of the company had no personal interest in Mistry's removal. Mistry was removed only because the company's board had "lost confidence in him" and it was purely a "commercial decision," he said. DTE Energy Co. operates as a diversified energy company, which engages in the provision of electricity and natural gas sales, distribution and storage services. It operates through the following segments: Electric, Gas, Non-Utility Operations, and Corporate & Other. The Electric segment engages in the generation, purchase, distribution and sale of electricity to residential, commercial and industrial customers in south-eastern Michigan. The Gas segment engages in the purchase, storage, transportation, distribution and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial and industrial customers throughout Michigan and the sale of storage and transportation capacity. The Non-Utility Operations segment engages in gas storage and pipelines, power and industrial projects, and energy trading. The Corporate & Other includes various holding company activities, holds certain non-utility debt, and holds energy-related investments. The company was founded in January 1995 and is headquartered in Detroit, MI. Read More Wall Street analysts have given Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but Vanguard Short-Term Corporate Bond ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys. View MarketBeat's top stock picks here. Exelis Inc. (Exelis) is a diversified aerospace, defense, information and services company. The Company delivers mission-critical solutions to military, government and commercial customers in the United States and globally. It operates in two segments: Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C4ISR) Electronics and Systems, and Information and Technical Services. Its C4ISR Electronics and Systems segment provides engineered systems and solutions, including: ISR systems; integrated electronic warfare systems; radar and sonar systems; electronic attack and release systems; communications solutions; space systems, and composite aerostructures. The Companys Information and Technical Services segment provides a range of service solutions: systems integration; network design and development; air traffic management; cyber; intelligence; advanced engineering, and space launch and range-support. Read More India will be the fifth most attractive market for global industries in 2018, a CEO Optimism survey conducted by international consultancy PwC says. Launched at the World Economic Forum Annual meeting in Davos, the survey suggests that 57 percent of the business leaders are bullish about global economic growth in the next 12 months. It's almost twice the level of last year (29%) and the largest ever increase since PwC began asking about global growth in 2012, an official statement said. The survey covered almost 1300 CEOs around the world. Optimism in global growth has more than doubled in the US (59%) after a period of uncertainty surrounding the election (2017: 24%). Brazil also saw a large increase in the share of CEOs who are optimistic global growth will improve (+38% to 80%). And even among the less optimistic countries such as Japan (2018: 38% vs. 2017: 11%) and the UK (2018: 36% vs. 2017: 17%), optimism in global growth has more than doubled since last year, it said. "CEOs' optimism in the global economy is driven by the economic indicators being so strong. With the stock markets booming and GDP predicted to grow in most major markets around the world, it's no surprise CEOs are so bullish," comments Bob Moritz, Global Chairman, PwC. According to PwC, CEO confidence in the US market extends overseas, with non-US based CEOs once again voting it the top market for growth in the next 12 months. This year, the US reinforces its lead on China (46% vs 33%, with the US lead over China up 2% compared with 2017). Germany (20%) remains in third place, followed by the UK (15%) in fourth place, while India overtakes Japan as the fifth most attractive market in 2018. "Backed by definitive structural reforms, the India story has been looking better in the past one year. Most of our clients are optimistic about their growth. The Government has made efforts to address concerns around areas like infrastructure, manufacturing and skilling, although newer threats like cybersecurity and climate change are beginning to play on the minds of our clients," says Shyamal Mukherjee, Chairman, PwC India "Even with high levels of global growth confidence, business leaders want and need safe harbours for investment to secure short-term growth," added Bob Moritz, Global Chairman, PwC. "Access to consumers, skills, finance and a supportive regulatory environment are reinforcing leading markets' positions, for business leaders to achieve their short-term growth targets." This optimism in the economy is feeding into CEOs' confidence about their own companies' outlook, even if the uptick is not so large. 42% percent of CEOs said they are "very confident" in their own organisation's growth prospects over the next 12 months, up from 38% last year. The top three most confident sectors for their own 12-month prospects this year are Technology (48% "very confident"), Business Services (46%) and Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences (46%) - all exceeding the global "very confident" level of 42%. Strategies for growth remain largely unchanged on last year's survey - CEOs will rely on organic growth (79%), cost reduction (62%), strategic alliances (49%) and M&As (42%). There was a small increase in interest in partnering with entrepreneurs and start-ups (33% vs 28% last year). Confidence in short-term revenue growth is feeding into jobs growth, with 54% of CEOs planning to increase their headcount in 2018 (2017: 52%). Only 18% of CEOs expect to reduce their headcount. Healthcare (71%), Technology (70%), Business Services (67%) Communications (60%) and Hospitality and Leisure (59%) are amongst the sectors with the highest demand for new recruits. On digital skills specifically, over a quarter (28%) of CEOs are extremely concerned about their availability within the country they are based, rising to 49% extremely concerned in South Africa, 51% in China and 59% in Brazil. Overall, 22% of CEOs are extremely concerned about the availability of key digital skills in the workforce, 27% in their industry and 23% at the leadership level. Investments in modern working environments, learning and development programmes and partnering with other providers are the top strategies to help them attract and develop the digital talent they need. While recent research by PwC showed that workers were optimistic about technology improving their job prospects, CEOs admit that helping employees retrain, and increasing transparency on how automation and AI could impact jobs is becoming a more important issue for them. Two thirds of CEOs believe they have a responsibility to retrain employees whose roles are replaced by technology, chiefly amongst the Engineering & Construction (73%), Technology (71%) and Communications (77%) sectors. 61% of CEOs build trust with their workforce by creating transparency, at least to some extent, on how automation and AI impact their employees. "Our education systems need to arm a global workforce with the right skills to succeed. Governments, communities, and businesses need to truly partner to match talent with opportunity, and that means pioneering new approaches to educating students and training workers in the fields that will matter in a technology-enabled job market. It also means encouraging and creating opportunities for the workforce to retrain and learn new skills throughout their careers. As the interest in apprenticeships and internships shows, lifelong training relevant to a business or industry is critical." Moritz says. The digital and automation transition is particularly acute in the Financial Services sector. Almost a quarter (24%) of Banking & Capital Markets and Insurance CEOs plan workforce reductions, with 28% of Banking & Capital Markets jobs likely to be lost to a large extent due to technology and automation. PwC conducted 1,293 interviews with CEOs in 85 countries between August and November 2017. The sample is weighted by national GDP to ensure that CEOs' views are fairly represented across all major countries. With crude oil price inching towards $70 a barrel, Oil Ministry has reportedly sought the intervention of the finance ministry to cut down the excise duty on petrol and diesel in the upcoming budget. This comes a day after petrol price in Mumbai breached the Rs 80 mark. The cut in excise duty is likely to offset the hike in global crude prices ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha elections. According to a report in Reuters, the ministry has also sought inclusion of petrol, diesel, jet fuel and natural gas in the GST to help companies claim tax credits against the tax paid on the purchase of equipment meant to produce refined fuel. Taxes on petrol and diesel make up about 40-50 per cent of the pump prices in the country. Another excise duty cut is likely to put an additional burden on the fiscal deficit target as the government is grappling with lower indirect tax revenues after the GST implementation. Centre had steadily increased excise duty on petrol and diesel when the global crude prices had plummeted below $30 a barrel. The government had in November 2015 and January 2016 raised excise duty on petrol and diesel five times to take away gains arising from plummeting international oil prices. Prior to that, the government had in four installments hiked the excise duty on petrol and diesel between November 2014 and January 2015 to buffer the gains from fall in global crude prices. Excise duty on petrol was hiked by Rs 11.77 per litre and that on diesel by 13.47 a litre ever since Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government came to power in 2014. After moving to daily revision of fuel prices in June last year, the government had cut basic excise duty on petrol and diesel by Rs 2 per litre in October. The government has excluded petrol and diesel from the ambit of GST (Goods and Service Tax). Petroleum products still attract state and central levies such as excise duty and VAT (Value added tax). The latest uptick in crude price follows comments from Saudi Arabia that major oil producers were in agreement that they should continue cooperating on production after their deal on supply cuts expires at the end of 2018. To remind you, a group of oil producers including OPEC and Russia, the world's biggest crude producer, started to withhold production in January last year to prop up prices. Declining drilling activity for new oil production in the United States has further supported crude prices. Once brought under GST, prices of petrol and diesel are likely to stabilise and may remain within the Rs 50-mark since it will do away with the excise duty imposed by the Centre and the Value Added Tax (VAT) levied by the states. Under the new tax regime, the maximum tax imposed on petrol and diesel will be capped at 28 per cent. The government, however, may choose to levy an additional cess on diesel and petrol. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley recently said that the Central government favours bringing petrol products under the GST umbrella, but is looking for consensus with state governments to do the same. Incidentally, the BJP-led government has cut excise duty only once during its tenure but raised it nine times between November 2014 and January 2016. You can now pick up two leading Android phones for the price of one from Verizon, though not without having to first jump through a couple of different hoops to take advantage of this deal. (Image credit: Tom's Guide) Starting today (Jan. 23), Verizon is offering buy-one-get-one deals for four top Android models Samsung's Galaxy S8, the Google Pixel 2, the LG V30 and the Moto Z2 Force. Of those four phones, the S8 and Pixel 2 look like the most appealing choices. Even though Samsung's S8 has been out for nearly a year, we still rank it as the top Android phone (though the S9 is expected to make its debut at next month's Mobile World Congress). The Pixel 2 is also highly rated, particularly for its AI-powered camera, which holds its own against the top-performing camera phones. As for the other phones eligible in Verizon's BOGO deal, the LG V30 has strong camera capabilities of its own, particularly for shooting video, while the Z2 Force supports customizable Moto Mod add-ons. Both existing Verizon customers who upgrade as well as new subscribers switching over from other carriers are eligible for this Android flagship BOGO deal, though the fine print has some notable caveats. MORE: The Best Android Phones You Can Buy Right Now You can't mix and match the phones, for starters. Verizon says your free phone has to come from the same maker of the other phone you buy. You're actually paying for both phones at once, spreading out those payments over 24 months. You'll receive credit for the free phone in the form of monthly bill credits spread out over that 24-month period. That's a fairly standard practice for BOGO deals, as it binds you to carrier for two years. (You're on the hook for paying off both phones if you bolt early.) Verizon says you'll need to trade-in your current phone to snag this deal, with a wide variety of phones eligible for trade-in. Eligible devices include the iPhone 5s and later; the Galaxy S4 and later; Samsung's Note 4 and later including the Note Edge; any Google Pixel, LG's G4 and later or its V10 and later; any Moto Z phone or Moto Droid Turbo 2; and the HTC One M9, One M9+ or HTC 10. Verizon has said that you'll get a trade-in value for your phone on top of the bill credits, though you'll need to trade in that phone within 30 days of buying your new devices. Finally, Verizon requires you to activate a new line for that free phone, and it has to be on one of the carrier's unlimited plans. We've found the more expensive Go Unlimited option to offer more bang for the buck as you get HD video streaming and unlimited mobile hotspot data. The less expensive Go Unlimited plan streams video at 480p resolution, slows hotspot data to 600 kbps and gives Verizon the right to slow down data speeds if its network is congested. Starting January 25, both unlimited plans will let you use your talk, text and data in Canada and Mexico at the moment that's only available to Beyond Unlimited subscribers. Two lines of Beyond Unlimited cost $160 a month. That's $30 more than the $130 a month Go Unlimited customers would pay for two lines. All told, that's an awful lot of conditions just to get a second free phone. Still, if you've been eyeing one of these particular models and need to pick up two phones, Verizon's BOGO offer may have some appeal. Verizon hasn't said when this offer will disappear, though it's billed as a limited-time deal. Editors' Note: Originally published on Jan. 22 and updated at 3:16 p.m. ET on Jan. 23 with eligible trade-in devices. No question...Just wanted to post what a GREAT train trip we had over Christmas and New Year's through 3 countries. Back in the spring Lonely Planet travel magazine had an article about taking trains from London to Venice. Realistically, with work, my husband and I didn't have that kind of time to explore, but he was very interested in the part about the Bernina Express from Chur to Tirano. He doesn't usually get too interested in picking out a vacation so I jumped at this, and I asked if he wanted me to see if I could figure it out, and he did. 8 months later, with train tickets from 4 national railways in hand, we flew into Paris, stayed near the Gare de Lyon and took the SNCF on the fast train to Zurich. I had it booked First class early for the best pricing, and at that time I thought we'd get lunch, but then it became Oui, and different classes and we didn't which was disappointing. It was fun watching the kilometers on the display go up and up! My husband pointed out to me at the Zurich station the Swiss Rail clock design that Apple paid so much for "after the fact"! Interesting story that one. We only had one night in Zurich; I'd do more there the next time. From Zurich we booked tickets to Tirano (with the helpful site of the Man in Seat 61) by using his link and booking a day early on the Deutsche Bahn website. We booked the Bernina panoramic train upgrade on the Rhaetian Railway site. As people answered in my question on TA, it was very simple to exit the train from Zurich and cross over to the Bernina express train at Chur. VERY simple. The Bernina route was stunning with a fresh snowfall making everything picture perfect. I booked our Italian regional trains ahead of time at Trenitalia; for me it was one less thing to worry about. So at Tirano I had etickets for Varenna, and it was just a matter of leaving the Swiss train building, crossing the square to the Italian train building and finding our train there waiting. Though I admit we were a little confused on that simply because the train display sign had not changed to Milan yet, but we were fine. Varenna was beautiful to stay at, though super quiet this time of year. Their station did not have people selling tickets when we were there which I'd read might happen so we had etickets for Milan already. Though by chance we did find the tobacconist/wine/sandwich store in town which sold tickets. From Milano Centrale we trained up to Basel and were then on to Strasbourg. The Basel to Strasbourg leg was the only one I didn't buy tickets ahead of time, and of course it was the most confusing one. At Basel (I could be wrong) but there were 2 separate train "sections". We got off at the Swiss section, but needed to get to the French train section. So when we got off we saw ticket machines but they didn't show tickets to Strasbourg. We had to find the French ticket area. Luckily there was a tourist information booth downstairs, selling tickets for all kinds of things. A very helpful woman explained that due to construction we had to exit the building walk aways outside, then come around and follow signs. Finally we found it, and then another very helpful woman showed us how to buy tickets from that machine, and yet a third lovely person showed us where the ticket validator machine was. Whew! Such helpful and friendly people! After a few nights in Strasbourg we made it back to Paris. I definitely know that all the planning helped make for a fantastic trip. I've never been on a train here in the US, but find them to be so on time in Europe (we've been on a few other trips) that I need to remember I don't have to be so early to the station LOL. What a wonderful way to travel though. I'm just posting in the event anybody had any questions on any of the legs that we did. Just loved the whole thing! We were there 2 weeks ago, for the 3rd time in 18 months, and the only difference I noticed was more police presence on the beach. We weren't even hassled by vendors as much as in the past. I traveled all over Negril, everyday, without incident. The transfer to/from the airport was just like each time before, safe. Yes, there is violence in certain locales, but those areas should not be part of your itinerary to begin with. Any driver you hire is NOT going to take you through those areas. They NEED tourism to survive, they will try hard not to jeopardize that. Norris, from Island Turf Tours, will guarantee that safety for you. Having worked security for years(also trained security guards), he prides himself on safety/security. Airport transfer or a day excursion, he will make sure your experience is safe, enjoyed, and memorable. Edited: 3 years ago Re: Planning a vaction to Costa Rica and need help! 2. Re: Planning a vaction to Costa Rica and need help! -:- Message from Tripadvisor staff -:- This topic has been closed to new posts due to inactivity. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one. To review the Tripadvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason. -:- Message from Tripadvisor staff -:- This topic has been closed to new posts due to inactivity. We hope you'll join the conversation by posting to an open topic or starting a new one. To review the Tripadvisor Forums Posting Guidelines, please follow this link: http://www.tripadvisor.com/pages/forums_posting_guidelines.html We remove posts that do not follow our posting guidelines, and we reserve the right to remove any post for any reason. was hopeing someone would know, if the flights from HCMC to siem reap ever drop in price. on the cambodia angkor air web site they are 120 or 160 dollars. while if i fly to Phnom penh they have offers of 2 dolars. thanks for any help Re: How much Japanese do I need to know? 6. Re: How much Japanese do I need to know? Try to keep your English phrases short and simple to maximize understanding This made me think of the following conversation I witnessed in Nara between an American tourist and a temple official. Tourist ( in rapid American English): Excuse me, could you tell me where the restrooms are? My girlfriend really needs to go. I told her she should go at the train station, but she didnt and now we are here and she really needs to go. Temple official: Eeehh.... Tourist: Where are the restrooms because my girlfriend really needs to go to the restroom. Temple Official: Aah restaurant? (Happily points toward cafe across the street.) Tourist: No not restaurant. I mean water closet, where is the water closet (Yes, he literrally spoke the words water closet). Temple official: Yes, yes, restaurant sell water. Tourist: No, water closet! Where is the water closet?! At that point I felt so sorry for the temple official who was more than willing to help, but simply couldnt understand what the tourist wanted, that I stepped up and spoke the magic word toilet. Much to the relieve of both the temple official and the girlfriend, the nearest toilets were located quickly now. Hi all, I'm planning to book an air ticket from NYC to BUFFALO on March 18 2018. My estimated arrival will be around 10am. Then, i will return to Dallas on 20th 12pm flight.I need some suggestions on these. 1. Upon arrival I am planning to rent a car for these two days or would you advise going via public transport as I have researched that it will take me 2 hours bus ride to downtown then to Niagara Falls. 2. I am planning to visit both sides, I understand that I can drive to the Canada side( if I rent the car) or opt to walk across the bridge. After crossing the bridge do I immediately arrives at the Canada side of the falls or do I need further transportation to get me there? 3. If I choose to either walk across or drive to Canada side do I need ESTA? I am holding a Singapore passport and I understand that if I fly via plane into Canada I will banned ESTA, however if I doing this by ground transport do I need ESTA? 4. Is choosing a hotel in Canada side more favourable? Thank you and I appreciate everyone's replies. PPP supported hanging convicts of child sexual abuse and murder ISLAMABAD: The PPP on Monday strongly supported the hanging of those convicted of child sexual abuse and murder. Senate Standing Committee on Interior Chairman PPP Senator Rehman Malik suspended the agenda of the parliamentary bodys meeting and announced that the committee will discuss the kidnapping, rape and murder of two girls, seven and four, from Kasur and Mardan. During his tenure as the interior minister, the then president Asif Ali Zardari had put a moratorium on death sentences on the demand of the European Union. In the meeting on Monday, Mr Malik proposed that the child sexual abuse and murder be punished by hanging. We need to know why the murderers could not be tracked down. Many people have called me and suggested that culprits of such heinous crimes should be hanged in public. According to section 364-A of the Pakistan Penal Code, a person can be given the death penalty, life imprisonment or a minimum of seven years of imprisonment for kidnapping or murdering a child of less than 14 years. It is unfortunate that we have failed to give justice to our children, he said. He then tabled a resolution which was unanimously passed by the committee. He said a draft bill will be moved to make amendments to the law. However, Senator Javed Abbasi said the execution of death sentences can be done by amending the rules and that new legislation is therefore not needed. The interior ministry was then directed to give input on whether public executions can be done by making amendments to the rules. Supreme Court advocate Anees Jillani disagreed with the suggestion and said its implementation will mean there is no difference between the government and the Taliban. The father of seven-year-old Zainab, who was kidnapped, raped and killed in Kasur, Ameen Ansari was also invited to the meeting. He said his daughter and her five-year-old cousin were going to their aunts house on Jan 4 for Quran lessons. Zainab had some money and she went to the shop while her cousin went to their aunts house. The shop is just 100 metres from their aunts house. When Usman came home, the family got to know that Zainab had not gone to her aunts house and that she was missing. I was in Saudi Arabia so my brother-in-law informed the police, he told the meeting. Residents of the area cooperated but the police did nothing for the recovery of the child. They were requested to get sniffer dogs to track down Zainab and the family even offered to pay for this, but the police did not. When the body was found and identified, we once again requested the police to get sniffer dogs but they refused. Locals cooperated with us and provided CCTV footage in which my daughter can be seen with the suspect, Mr Ansari said. He added that the CCTV footage shows the suspect passing through the area the morning after the abduction which meant he was still in the area. My family requested the police to cordon off the area and search all houses, but they refused. Officials visited [us] a few times and would go back after eating oranges, he said. Mr Ansari said he was told that the suspect had used a spray which dazes children. Additional Inspector General of Police (IGP) Investigation Punjab, Khuda Bakhsh said nine such cases had been reported since June 2015 within a three kilometre radius in which girls between the ages of five and 10 were kidnapped and sexually abused. DNA tests show that in eight of the cases, the culprit is the same. He throws the dead bodies near the victims house so the family gets the bodies. We have deputed as many as 200 people for the arrest of the suspect and 692 DNA tests have been conducted despite the fact that one test costs Rs60,000. Inter Services Intelligence is also helping us in identifying the culprit, he said. Senator Malik suggested that a national database of DNA be formed with the help of the National Database and Registration Authority. Culprits will be identified within minutes if we had such a database, he said. Editor's Note: Today's TUKO.co.ke blogger of the day is Sammy Kwinga. He looks into recent comments by former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka who warned that should President Uhuru Kenyatta refuse to agree to dialogue with Raila Odinga, Kenya will go the South Sudan or Somalia way. Kwinga believes the comments only serve to portray Kalonzo as a warmonger disguised as a peacemaker. Millions of Kenyans are dismayed by NASA co-principal Kalonzo Musyokas latest pronouncements to the effect that Kenya will plunge the Somalia or South Sudan way should Jubilee fail to engage in dialogue with the opposition before January 30, the set swearing-in date for Raila Odinga. It is both saddening and baffling to see how Kalonzo has degenerated into an abrasive warmonger with absolutely no regard for the welfare and prosperity of his own country. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Muimbaji wa Tanzania - Ray C - asema angependa kuolewa na Rais Uhuru, atoa sababu For starters, the Wiper leader is a respected diplomat and international relations supremo who among others, brokered peace in war-torn South Sudan. Kalonzo has warned that Kenya will be like South Sudan or Somalia Photo: Facebook/Kalonzo Musyoka READ ALSO: NASA dismisses media reports that it changed swearing-in venue from Uhuru Park He has for most of his long career in politics been synonymous with peace and serenity. Kalonzo is as well known to be God-fearing; an attribute from his youth where he even served as the Christian Union leader in university. Following the highly-inflaming and divisive remarks, and his generally provocative remarks in recent days, many have been left wondering what has struck the son of Tseikuru. Just how could a man who has been a voice of reason and peaceful co-existence in the country, a leader who has witnessed the horrifying cost of civil strife, wish the same on his motherland and countrymen? Kalonzo wants dialogue between Raila and Uhuru Photo: Facebook/Kalonzo Musyoka READ ALSO: 100k jobs lost due to Raila and Uhuru political stand- Atwoli COTU boss Just what stirred him to wish that brothers and sisters turn against each other, a wicked desire that goes against the very tenets of Christianity? Which leader of substance hopes for doom and gloom to engulf his country so that he may push his selfish political agenda? The only plausible answer to this question can only be that the NASA leader has realized that there is no guarantee that other NASA leaders, including Raila, will back his 2022 presidential bid. As matters stand, chances are high that Raila could be on the ballot in 2022, something that is causing jitters not only to Kalonzo but also his inner circle. Kalonzo and Raila will be sworn in on January 30 if no talks happen Photo: Facebook/Kalonzo Musyoka READ ALSO: Uhuru being used to vote in cartel-friendly MPs to parliament committees - embattled Jubilee MP claims It could be this kind of desperation, uncertainty and bitterness that makes him consider anarchy as the only way out of the imminent political oblivion. At 64, one wonders whether Kalonzo is out to give a different meaning to the saying aging gracefully by saying things he wouldnt ordinarily say some years back. Kalonzo is what the famous American political scientist Frank Fukuyama described as survivalist leaders who profit from the tribulations of their subjects. Kalonzo should know that no Kenyan is ready to die so that him and his ilk can ascend to power. READ ALSO: Witchdoctor's human skull mysteriously goes missing from police station If anything, blatant talk about bloodshed and anarchy is the last thing that a family man of his stature should talk about. Kalonzo has warned of a possible civil war Photo: Facebook/Kalonzo Musyoka The remarks have had a section of Kenyans from both NASA and Jubilee questioning whether the former vice president has been a perennial pretender whose only interest is to push his agenda even if the cost is bloodshed. The Wiper leader must know that the use of violence and anarchy cannot and will never suffice to cower a duly-elected government. READ ALSO: Services at KNH paralysed as mortuary attendants face off with protesters Kalonzo must realize that the horse has since bolted; that there is a government in place and that Kenyans have already moved on with their lives. He and other NASA leaders advocating for anarchy must know that them and their families are not immune to the lawlessness that could emanate from their anarchist pronouncements. He and other NASA leaders advocating for anarchy must know that them and their families are not immune to the lawlessness that could emanate from their anarchist pronouncements. TUKO.co.ke welcomes writers, bloggers, photographers and all sorts of noise makers to become a part of our Bloggers network. If you are a seasoned writer or a complete newbie, apply and become Kenyan's next star blogger. Send us some info about your career, interests and expertise and why youd like to contribute to the Blogger Network at blogger@tuko.co.ke. Please send us the link to your blog and three examples of your work. You can also share your thoughts, feelings and suggestions on this story on news@tuko.co.ke After 2017 Kenya will never be the same on TUKO TV Source: Breaking News - Majority Leader Aden Duale has threatened to punish Wilson Sossion in parliament - Duale was angered by Sossion supporting Alfred Keter when he was ousted from labour committee - He warned Sossion that parliamentary business is not the same as running a trade union - Sossion was nominated to parliament by Raila Odinga's ODM National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale has threatened to use the powers that he wields in parliament to punish nominated MP and Kenya National Union of Teachers (KNUT) Secretary General Wilson Sossion. The Garissa Town MP was irked that Sossion threw his support behind Nandi Hills MP Alfred Keter when he was ousted from the labour committee by his Jubilee colleagues. Send 'NEWS' to 40227 to receive all the important breaking news as it happens READ ALSO: Muimbaji wa Tanzania - Ray C - asema angependa kuolewa na Rais Uhuru, atoa sababu As reported by TUKO.co.ke, Keter defiantly refused to vacate the chairmanship of the labour committee despite calls by President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto. Duale says he will punish Sossion and others in parliament Photo: Star READ ALSO: Jubilee MPs get their way, push out 4 colleagues rejected by Uhuru and Ruto He was, however, voted out by Jubilee members in the committee as their NASA counterparts boycotted. However, Sossion attended and castigated the MPs and indeed the Jubilee leadership for planning to oust Keter. "This motion is reckless and defiling the independence of this house and should therefore be dismissed," Sossion said during the meeting. READ ALSO: NASA dismisses media reports that it changed swearing-in venue from Uhuru Park This angered Duale who told off the embattled KNUT boss and threatened to punish him in the floor of the house through the Speaker of the National Assembly. Duale said Sossion should keep off matters pertaining the Jubilee party and should not confuse the leadership of trade unions with that of the national assembly. Sossion was nominated by Raila's ODM Photo: Nation "I am going to write to the Speaker that when a matter that concerns these trade unions is being discussed, they must, as per the standing orders, excuse themselves and they can't take part in any deliberation and they can't vote," Duale threatened. READ ALSO: Former presidential candidate Abduba Dida supports legalisation of female circumcision The MP added that unlike trade unions where Sossion and others run affairs as they wish, parliament has an order and rules that govern its operations. Sossion was nominated to parliament by National Super Alliance (NASA) leader Raila Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) to represent the interests of workers. However, this has landed him in more trouble as he has been de-registered as a teacher by the Teachers Service Commission (TSC) and is likely to lose his seat as the KNUT sec gen. READ ALSO: Uhuru being used to vote in cartel-friendly MPs to parliament committees - embattled Jubilee MP claims As reported by TUKO.co.ke, already, TSC has written to Sossion and other trade unionists in parliament informing them of the move. After 2017 Kenya will never be the same on TUKO TV Source: Tuko Colonel Daniel Pryce (right), gives an update on security operations under the Public State of Emergency in St. James Russian-backed militants violated ceasefire in the anti-terrorist operation (ATO) area in eastern Ukraine six times over the past day. This is reported by the ATO Headquarters press center. The enemy violated ceasefire six times over the past day. One serviceman of the Armed Forces of Ukraine was killed in mortar shelling, the report reads. In Luhansk direction, militants used 120mm mortars to fire at Ukrainian strongholds outside Troitske (69km west of Luhansk). ATO troops near Luhanske (59km north-east of Donetsk) came under 120mm and 82mm mortar and grenade launcher fire. In Donetsk direction, illegal armed formations fired 82mm mortars on Novotroitske (32km south of Donetsk). In the same area, militants launched provocative attacks by opening mortar fire on Ukrainian positions as well as on the infrastructure of Dokuchaevsk (30km south of Donetsk, DPR-controlled). ol Vice Prime Minister of Moldova - Economy and Infrastructure Minister of Moldova Chiril Gaburici discussed prospects for trade and economic cooperation between the two countries with First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine - Economic Development and Trade Minister of Ukraine Stepan Kubiv. This was reported by the press service of the Moldovan government, an Ukrinform correspondent reports from Moldova. During the telephone conversation, the Moldovan Vice Prime Minister noted that Ukraine remained a strategic partner of Moldova, stressing the need to continue fruitful cooperation in transport, energy, food, agriculture and other fields. Kubiv, in turn, drew particular attention to the need to implement the Roadmap for Economic Cooperation between Ukraine and Moldova for 2018, which was signed by the two countries' premiers in October last year in Chisinau, the press service noted. ol Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin plans to meet with Polish Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz in late February. The minister said this during a press conference on January 22, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. "I agreed with the Polish foreign minister to hold the first meeting at the end of February. There are lots of things to talk about, including the Security Council, since we passed the baton to Poland," Klimkin said. He adds that some issues are already actively discussed by the ministers at the working level. Klimkin also informs that in mid-February Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine Pavlo Rosenko will visit Warsaw, where he will meet with Deputy PM, Minister of Culture and National Heritage of Poland Piotr Glinski to discuss ways to remove some tension on historical issues. ish The opposition Conservative Party of Canada calls on the countrys government to join the international "Marshall Plan" to support Ukraine. The relevant statement was issued by Shadow Minister for National Defence James Bezan, an Ukrinform correspondent reports. "The Conservative Party of Canada believes in principle-based foreign policy and in keeping with our greatest tradition of offering a hand to those seeking peace, freedom and security. We call on the Trudeau government to support the long-term support package for Ukraine proposed by Lithuania, in partnership with the European Union," Bezan says. According to him, the proposed package will strengthen Ukraines ties to its allies in the West and provide much needed investment for both economic development and political reform. Canada must work in concert with the European Union and NATO to support Ukraine and hold the Russian government accountable for their illegal activities in Ukraine," the Canadian lawmaker believes. As reported, the governmental delegation of Lithuania visited Ottawa at the end of 2017 and actively raised the issue of Canada's accession to the multibillion-dollar investment plan to support Ukraine. ol The Foreign Ministry of Ukraine recommends Ukrainians to refrain from traveling to Angola because of an outbreak of cholera and an increase in the number of malaria cases. This has been reported on the website of the Foreign Ministry. "In connection with the cholera outbreak, as well as a significant increase in the number of malaria cases in the north of the Republic of Angola, particularly in the province of Uige (290 km from the capital city of Luanda), the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry recommends that citizens of Ukraine who plan their trips abroad refrain from visiting the province of Uige until the epidemiological situation returns to normal," the report reads. The Foreign Ministry urges those Ukrainians who are already in Angola to be careful and comply with the recommendations of local authorities, medical and other competent services. ish "As of the end of 2017, if I am not mistaken, we have already denounced 35 various documents with Russia, in particular, interstate, intergovernmental, and interdepartmental ones," the Foreign Minister told an annual press conference on the performance of Ukrainian diplomacy in Kyiv on Monday, Jan 22, DW wrote. Ukraines top diplomat added that another eight Ukrainian-Russian agreements are in line for termination. Read alsoVOA: U.S. special envoy for Ukraine confirms Russia talksSpeaking about the negotiations on the Donbas settlement, Klimkin did not rule out that a meeting of foreign ministers of the Normandy Four would take place at the margins of the Munich Security Conference scheduled for February 16-18. "I live in Austria, in Vienna. I reside there absolutely legally. The Austrian authorities had been verifying my status for a long time and gave me permission to stay and work there," he said in an interview with ZIK TV channel. Portnov assures that he has registered a law firm and opened a bank account in Austria. Read alsoPortnov wins case against EU Council on sanctionsAnswering the question about the Euromaidan in Ukraine, Portnov denied his participation in drafting the so-called "dictatorial laws" of January 16, 2014. However, he refused to call out the authors of these laws. Although he noted that some of them had left Ukraine. The report claims another round of searches is being conducted in the village of Novy Mir (Simferopol district) and the town of Stary Krym (Kirov district). In Stary Krym, security forces came to a 27-year-old local resident Mukhsin Dzhambazov, while in Novy Mir they broke into the house of Ismail Ramazanov. "In Novy Mir (near the village of Rodnikovo, Simferopol district), according to preliminary data, at 04:00 local time, the FSB broke into the Ramazanov's house, after which they searched Ismail Ramazanov (son). At 07:00, he was taken to 26 Turgeneva Str.," the report says. According to Ismail's father, security officials seized the man's phone, a tablet and Ukrainian IDs during. More than 20 ammunition pieces were also "found" under the bed. The search was conducted in a rough manner. Ismail was immediately handcuffed and charged with "propaganda of extremism." Lawyer Mammet Mambetov said that Ismail Ramazanov was beaten as he was being taken to the local HQ of Russia's Investigative Committee. Read alsoPoll reveals what Ukrainian youth think about Russian aggression in UkraineAt the same time, during the search in the house of Mukhsin Dzhambazov, the FSB officers smashed windows despite the fact that the house belongs to the man's parents, while an elderly woman was in the house as the law enforcers arrived. At the time of the search, Mukhsin was at work, but returned immediately as he learned about the search. After the search of the house, the security services went over to his apartment in the village of Primorskoe. As UNIAN reported earlier, the EU had called on Russia to release all Ukrainians, illegally detained both in the occupied Crimea and in Russia. Oleksandr Khara First of all, it should be noted that this is not really about "Russia's return to the PACE" as such, but rather about lifting the moratorium on the Russian delegation's voting, as well as their participation in governing bodies. Formally speaking, Russias membership was suspended, not terminated as some may think. However, throughout the period when Russians are stripped of their voting right, they continue their active diplomatic and other efforts aimed at restoring their full participation in PACE. After all, the PACE is the kind of an organization, where Russians need to pursue their propaganda line and claim that "the rest of the world is wrong, while Russia is simply protecting itself from everyone," and alike. Formally speaking, Russias membership was suspended, not terminated as some may think As reported earlier this week, Italys Michele Nicoletti was elected PACEs new president. We are aware of the fact that Southern Europe, in general, and Italy in particular, is more pro-Russian. Therefore, Nicoletti will be lobbying, although very timidly, for the idea of reinstating Russias voting rights in the PACE. After all, the Europeans believe, everyone has the right to express their position, because only in a dialogue can one find truth. But this idea simply doesnt work out when it comes to Russia. Firstly, there is no actual parliament there as such - it is a Putin-controlled organization. Secondly, Russians constantly distort the truth, so no objective information could be heard from them. Besides, Moscow has long sought to amend procedural regulations to be able to return to the PACE through the "back door". And Russians will continue to do so. It is really difficult to say, to which extent Russia will succeed in regaining its voting rights in the PACE. Thats because we can only assess the public part of the latest developments but there is also a non-public, including corruption-related, part, as well as lobbying for Russian interests through certain structures. That is, there is not just public diplomacy thats in play here. Moscow has long sought to amend procedural regulations to be able to return to the PACE through the "back door" Besides, we should also keep in mind that Russia is a major financial contributor to the organization. The amount of funding Moscow provides does not seem to be critical but from the perspective of the organizations functioning at the current level, this money is indeed required. As to the consequences, Ukraine should not be too nervous about Russia possibly regaining its voting right in the PACE. After all, one cannot always win - sometimes there are defeats. The most important thing is that the PACE is an extremely important platform that Ukraine uses to represent itself in European structures thats the first thing to note. Secondly, the PACE focuses on issues of vital importance to us, in particular, on human rights. On the one hand, human rights must be observed for the Ukrainians to live better by reaching European standards in this field (which is an internal task for the Ukrainian authorities). On the other hand, it is the best tool against the "Russian world" since the Russians believe that all that the modern Europe praises just cannot be in line with Russian values. So this platform is needed to break the myths and show that people are born free, while democracy is better than Putinism. Human rights are Russias weakest link, starting with the occupied Crimea where this problem has reached an incredible scale (only in Soviet times could there be such level of persecution of dissidents, Crimean Tatars, Ukrainians, mass media, civic organizations, as well as oppression of political and social rights and freedoms), and across the entire Russia, where people have been living like this throughout the past 17 years of Putins reign. Therefore, even if the Russians return to the PACE, I would in no way advise Ukraine to limit its presence in or withdraw from the organization. Of course, certain demarches are acceptable, but nothing more. We do need PACE. Oleksandr Khara is a director of the Department of International Multilateral Relations at the Maidan of Foreign Affairs Foundation "Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland, whom Ukrainian experts called their biggest diplomatic disappointment of 2017, went even further in his PACE address, claiming that the annexation and occupation cannot be grounds for sanctions, and that it could only be direct violations of Article 4 of the European Convention on Human Rights, such as executions, torture, and forced slave labor. Does Strasbourg receive any news from Ukraine at all? Is Jagland not aware of the fact that the Soviet-era criminal code with the death penalty in it has been reinstated in the occupied areas of Donbas, that the militant leaders executed Ukrainian military servicemen, including near Ilovaisk, Debaltseve, Donetsk airport - and those were public executions?... That the Ukrainian hostages are being tortured, that this is violence, that military hostages were forced to slave labor on dismantling the debris of the Donetsk airport, that there were those humiliating 'parades of prisoners', that Crimean Tatars and Ukrainians are being tortured in Crimea, and that Chiygoz and Umerov told about this at the Council of Europe, that Panov, Sentsov, Afanasyev, Klykh, Karpiuk, Kolchenko were tortured in Russian prisons?" she wrote on Facebook. "It is a shame that our European colleagues pretend that they are unaware. But our mission, no matter how unpleasant it might be for them to hear this, is to each time remind them of their loyalty to torture if they support it," Gerashchenko stressed. Read alsoRussias path to return to PACE: through back door or with help from Assembly head"During the EPP group (the European People's Party) meeting, I asked how they are going to record human rights violations in the occupied territories and to combat violence and torture, illegal detention and slave labor. It will be a difficult year, we see how many Europeans are trying to turn a blind eye to the obvious things, defend the value of dialogue, forgetting about the key values the right to life," the politician said. "But we, the Ukrainian delegation, are not going to go with the flow and allow them forgetting about Crimea and Donbas and ceasing discussions on these topics. We will not allow them turning a blind eye to violence, rape, torture, mockery, illegal detention, disrespect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty, a flagrant violation of human rights everything that became the norm with the Russian-occupied territories," Gerashchenko added. A sociological survey presented by the Foundation chief at a Kyiv presser Jan 23 showed that if the presidential election were held in December 2017, some 15.9% of those who intended to come to the polling stations would vote for a politician whose surname had not yet been specified among the possible candidates. At the same time, Bekeshkina noted that 12.1% of respondents would support leader of Ukraine's Batkivshchyna Party, Yulia Tymoshenko, while 10.2% of those polled would vote for Petro Poroshenko. Some 7.8% of the respondents would support leader of the Hromadianska Pozytsia (Civic Position) Party Anatoliy Hrytsenko, leader of Za Zhyttya (For Life) Party Vadym Rabinovych would gain 7.7%, chief of the Radical Party Oleh Liashko would win 6%, head of the Opposition Bloc Yuriy Boyko 5.2%, while leader of the Samopomich Party Andriy Sadoviy would see 4.9% support. Read alsoPoll reveals what Ukrainian youth think about Russian aggression in UkraineUkrainian Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman and leader of the All-Ukrainian Union Svoboda Oleh Tyahnybok are supported by 2.9% of the respondents each; leader of the People's Front party Arseniy Yatsenyuk would win 1%, Ukrainian MP Nadiia Savchenko would get 1.1%, while 1.3% of the respondents would support Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko. The study was conducted by the Democratic Initiatives Foundation and the Razumkov Center sociological service on December 15-19, 2017. A total of 2,004 respondents aged 18 and older were interviewed in all regions of Ukraine, with the exception of Crimea and the occupied areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The margin of error does not exceed 2.3%. The Assembly called on all member States "to use their joint political efforts to put an end to this conflict and the sufferings of the civil population," reads a resolution, based on the report prepared by Egidijus Vareikis (Lithuania, EPP/CD). Read alsoUkrainian delegation not to allow PACE forgetting of invaders' crimes in Crimea, Donbas GerashchenkoSome 56 PACE members voted for the resolution, 10 out of the 66 who participated in the voting abstained, no one voted against the document. The adopted text calls on Russian authorities to cease all financial and military support to the illegal armed groups in Donetsk and Luhansk regions, uphold all its obligations under applicable international law as an occupying power and to ensure respect for the human rights and the security of all people living in occupied Crimea and ensure unhindered access to annexed Crimea to international organizations. All sides of the war should "release and exchange all prisoners of war and people captured during the war," respect the civilian nature of infrastructure and ensure the protection of civilians and their full access to essential services. The Assembly also said it is alarmed by the humanitarian situation which is a consequence of the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine, which is taking place in certain areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, and of the occupation and attempted annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. According to the Assembly, more than 4 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. The armed conflict has taken the lives of more than 10,000 people. The number of people injured during the war has reached more than 24,000. Besides, more than 1.6 million people are internally displaced and almost half a million people are seeking asylum in other countries. Biden, who was the Obama administration's point person on Ukraine, called Kurt Volker, the special envoy for Ukraine appointed by President Donald Trump, a "solid, solid guy," RFE/RL said. Read alsoVOA: U.S. special envoy for Ukraine confirms Russia talksBut Biden said Volker hasn't been given enough authority to be tougher on Ukraine's leadership, not only on corruption but also implementing the Minsk accords, the framework deal reached with Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany to end the conflict. Volker is "a solid, solid guy. But Kurt, to the best of my knowledge, does not have the authority, or the ability, to go in and say, 'If you don't straighten this up, you're out of here,'" Biden said. Biden made the comments January 23 in an appearance at the Council on Foreign Relations in Washington. The United States has been a stalwart supporter of Ukraine since 2013 when a series of street protests over closer integration with Europe evolved into a major confrontation with President Viktor Yanukovych, culminating in his ouster in February 2014. The Obama administration imposed economic sanctions for Moscow's annexation of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula and for its support of separatists in the war with Ukrainian forces that has killed more than 10,000 people in eastern Ukraine since April 2014. But Washington has also struggled to push Yanukovych's successor, Petro Poroshenko, to institute major governmental reforms and clean up the country's endemic corruption. Biden said he and other administration officials had to work hard to persuade European leaders to go along with U.S. sanctions on Russia. "If, in fact, you do not show progress in terms of corruption, we are not going to be able to hold the rest of Europe on these sanctions," Biden said he told Ukrainian leaders. "And Russia is not going to roll across the line and take over the rest of the country with tanks. What they're going to do is take your economy over, and you're going to be absolutely buried. It's going to be done. And that's when it's all going to all go to hell." "There is no pressure that I'm aware of on the present leadership in Ukraine to hold them together" on implementing the Minsk accords, he said. "We were moving in that direction, but it now looks like the pressure is off and it requires day-to-day-to-day" reinforcement. Neither Volker nor his advisers responded immediately to an e-mail seeking comment from RFE/RL. The Trump administration policy toward Ukraine had been in doubt early on in his presidency, amid Trump's repeated calls for a more conciliatory approach toward Russia. During the 2016 election campaign, the Republican Party platform was reportedly changed to water down U.S. support for Kyiv. However, with Congress and key national security officials showing strong backing for Ukraine, the Trump White House has largely continued his predecessor's policies. Last year, the White House signaled it was moving forward on a long-delayed plan to supply Ukraine with more advanced weaponry, to bolster its forces fighting Russian-backed separatists. Russian-supported de-facto officials are trying to arrange coal supplies to African countries. "These schemes are planned to be realized thanks to the lobbying and patronage by a deputy of the regional parliament of the administrative region of Piemonte (Italy) from the "Brothers of Italy" (Fratelli d'Italia) party, chief of the "DPR Center in Italy" Maurizio Marrone," the report says. Read alsoUkraine almost halves anthracite consumption in 2017 Deputy PMAt the same time, as the Information Resistance reports, wage arrears are increasing across enterprises located in the occupied areas of Donetsk region, eventually leading to their liquidation. "In particular, as of today, such arrears at the Artemvuhillia state enterprise (Horlivka) amount to RUB 241.9 million, as well as at Ordzhonikidzevuhillia (Yenakieve) - some RUB 341.9 million," reads the report. UNIAN memo. Hostilities in the eastern regions of Ukraine have caused a significant shortage of coal, primarily that of thermal anthracite group produced in militant-controlled areas of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. The energy companies began to transfer the thermal power plants' units from anthracite to gas coal feeding. However, there has been a shortage of the latter since the output of gas coal did not keep pace with its consumption growth. To solve the problem, the companies signed contracts for coal imports from South Africa and the United States. It is reported that Holovko represented the state as a prosecutor in cases of Maidan activists Roman Tysovsky and Eduard Kryzhanivskiy. The trials went impressively fast. It was probably just up to 90 seconds before people left the courtroom. Everyone was handed down a template ruling and escorted to Lukyanivka [pre-trial detention facility], Kryzhanivsky recalls. The prosecutors wife, Alina Holovko, who also happens to be his colleague, also spoke in court against activists of the Revolution of Dignity. Among the activists she required that the court remand in custody was a 72-year-old Mykola Pasechnyk, the one who was badly beaten and detained by riot police on January 22, 2014, and whose photos showing him, with his head bloodied, being dragged away by police, went viral at the time. On January 25, Ms Holovko requested that the court rule to arrest another activist, Vasyl Slyvynsky. The journalistic investigation notes a peculiar detail mentioned prosecutors motions in relation to said activists are for some reason missing from the Unified Registry of Court Decisions. To their astonishment, journalists revealed that Pavlo Holovko has been appointed a senior investigator at the PGO's special investigations department deals with investigations of crimes against the Maidan and the Revolution of Dignity. Read alsoBBC Monitoring analysts say "Italian sniper" claims about Ukraine's Maidan doubtfulAt the same time, in a so-called dignity application, Holovko stated that he had not committed actions that could have compromised him or the prosecutor's office in general, and that would have cast doubt on his objectivity and independence. Alina Holovko also filed such application. At present, she is employed by a prosecutor's office No. 6 in Kyivs Pechersky district. Commenting on an apparently absurd move to make part of the high-profile investigation team an official who could theoretically be among the targets of their probes, Head of the Special Investigation Department of the PGO Serhiy Horbatiuk claimed he had limited influence on the selection of personnel for said unit, adding that its the local offices that provide their nominees for the job at the PGO request. At the same time, he has noted that does not deny responsibility for the fact that Holovko has been appointed. Read alsoEuromaidan's anniversary: The Revolution of Dignity in flashback (Photo, video)Also, the journalists revealed inconsistencies between the prosecutorial couples official income and their property, namely real estate. Both Pavlo and Alina Holovko turned down requests to provide a comment on their asset declarations and cases against the activists of the Revolution of Dignity. On January 27, 2015, the two men discuss the deployment of Wagners militants and military equipment to combat positions in the Ukrainian territory, the SBU claims. The Russian General instructs that Utkin warn his militants not to shoot at the armored vehicles that he had deployed there earlier and that they would see on their way as they approach their positions. Dont let them shoot! As they will approach their positions, in the forest to their left side there will be tanks, infantry fighting vehicles Seven MBTs, 5 IFVs, 2 APCs at their firing positions. A short extract of the two mens conversation intercepted the next day, January 28, 2015, hears a Russian General telling a PMC chief that a curator had been sent to their positions. However, a distressed Wagner chief complains to the Russian General that his unit had come under heavy fire [from the Ukrainian side]. They're kicking our a***s already, Yevgeny Valerievich, Utkin is heard shouting, still addressing the General by his first name and patronymic as to his senior, but with a hint of criticism. After being told to retreat, he says he had already made this decision himself and that his unit is already backing off. At the moment of the publication, the clip has only Russian subtitles Earlier in November 2017, the SBU released another piece of intercepted communications between Dmitry Utkin and the so-called "interior minister of the Luhansk Peoples Republic Ihor Kornet. As UNIAN reported earlier, the SBU has identified more than 2,000 militants who are part of Wagner PMC, including their names, places of residence and other personal data. The second half of the last day, starting at about 17:30 Kyiv time, saw no ceasefire violations, while Russian occupation troops breached Minsk accords early afternoon. "The enemy continued to use mortars of various calibers, blatantly violating the Minsk agreements, [firing] not only on the positions of the Ukrainian defenders but also toward an occupied front-line settlement," the press center said. Read alsoSBU releases intercepted comms between PMC Wagner chief, Russian army General on Donbas incursionIn the Luhansk sector, the militants fired 120mm mortars on the Ukrainian fortified positions near the village of Troyitske. The aggressor also repeatedly opened fire from 120mm and 82mm mortars, as well as grenade launchers on the fortified positions near the village of Luhanske. In the Donetsk sector, the occupiers used 82mm mortars on the Ukrainian positions near the village of Novotroyitske. "Here, to provocatively accuse the ATO forces, they alternately led mortar fire on our fortified positions and on the infrastructure of the temporarily-occupied town of Dokuchaivsk," the report says. "Everywhere we observe indications that the sides are preparing to continue the conflict or even escalate it," Hug said via a video conference speaking from the occupied Donetsk. "New trenches, more weapons, freshly-laid land mines all indicating that the sides are preparing to ramp up this conflict rather than end it." "Last week, yet again, we saw more violence along the contact line, while the number of ceasefire violations across Donbas recorded by the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission last week was just slightly higher than the previous week," he said. Read alsoOlenivka incident update: One civilian killed, another wounded in shelling by occupation forcesHug stressed that the situation around the town of Svitlodarsk was particularly worrying. "We, in fact, recorded twice as many ceasefire violations in that area last week compared to the previous week. On Tuesday evening, January 18, our monitors at their forward patrol base in the town actually heard over 400 incoming and outgoing explosions." Separately, Hug said that on the way to the city of Donetsk, he and observers passed through the village of Olenivka, where a civilian was killed over the weekend. "It is a place that has long been associated in my mind with the horrors of this conflict." Read alsoOSCE hopes this year will be decisive for Minsk implementationHe also recalled that four people were killed in Olenivka in April 2016, including a pregnant woman, as they slept in their car waiting for the entry-exit checkpoint to open. "...They are victims of a refusal to compromise, to make hard choices. Above all, they are victims of the sides' continuing refusal to abide by the agreements designed to end the conflict; victims of the sides' failure to withdraw weapons, disengage forces and formations, and demine. Instead of fully complying, instead of withdrawing weapons, disengaging and demining, it seems the sides are, in fact, doing the opposite," Hug stressed. Two U.S. military officials said the Russian ship is being tracked by the destroyer USS Cole and other naval assets, CNN reported. Outfitted with a variety of high-tech spy equipment and designed to intercept communications signals, the Viktor Leonov was observed operating in the Caribbean last week, a U.S. defense official told CNN.It was unclear at the time where the vessel was heading, but the official said the spy ship has typically traveled up the eastern seaboard near Cape Canaveral, King's Bay, Norfolk and New London in the past. All these locations are home to US naval installations. Read alsoFox News: Russia sends spy ship near U.S. coastA second official told CNN last week that based on historical patterns the ship is likely on a four-to-six month deployment off the East Coast where it will be conducting intelligence operations. The Russian ship routinely performs this mission. The ship sailed along the east coast of the United States in February and March of last year, lingering in international waters just off the coast of U.S. naval installations. Read alsoSweden sends leaflets to 5 mln homes on how to prepare for war with RussiaLast March, the Viktor Leonov was spotted some 20 miles south of the U.S. Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay near the Florida border, a U.S. defense official told CNN. In February, the U.S. Navy spotted the same ship sailing 30 miles off the coast of Connecticut, the farthest north it had ever ventured, according to a US defense official. The Vishnya-class spy ship also conducted similar patrols in 2014 and 2015. Speaking on Monday evening at the Royal United Services Institute, Carter said conflict with Russia could begin in an unpredictable way, the Guardian reports. "This is not a crisis, or series of crises, which we face. It is a strategic challenge. And it requires a strategic response." He devoted almost all of his 40-minute speech to the threat he said was posed by Russia. To ram home the point, he included a three-minute Russian video that set out its strength in planes, submarines and other hardware. Read alsoBritish Army chief to call for investment to keep up with Russia - BBCCarter said weapons in this new warfare would no longer have to involve "something that goes bang" but could involve the exploitation of energy, bribery, corrupt business practices, cyber-attacks, assassinations, fake news, propaganda and military intimidation. He described Russia as presenting "the most complex and capable security challenge we have faced since the cold war". The deduction the UK and the west should draw from watching Russia's moves in the last few years, he said, is that there are no longer distinct states of peace and war, but a series of stages in between. "The risk we run in not defining this clearly, and acting accordingly, is that rather like a chronic contagious disease it will creep up on us, and our ability to act will be markedly constrained and we'll be the losers of this competition." "Russia could initiate hostilities sooner than we expect, and a lot earlier than we would in similar circumstances," he said. "Most likely they will use nefarious sub-article 5 actions to erode the credibility of NATO and threaten the very structure that provides our own defense and security this is the divide and rule which the international order is designed to prevent. "It won't start with little green men it will start with something we don't expect. We should not take what we've seen so far as a template for the future." Read alsoRAF jets scrambled to intercept Russian bombers less than 35 miles from UK airspace - mediaMeanwhile, the former defense secretary, Sir Michael Fallon, used his first speech since resigning in November to add to calls for increased defense spending, citing what he called growing threats from Russia and cyber-attacks. He called for the defense budget to be increased to 2.5% of GDP, an extra GBP 7.7 bllion a year. "We have all the evidence we need of Putin's intent to subvert western democracies, from the Netherlands to Montenegro, from Germany to even the United States." Sessions, who was accompanied by his private attorney Charles Cooper, was questioned for several hours last week, said Justice spokesman Ian Prior, who declined to elaborate on the nature of the questioning, USA Today said. Read alsoPOLITICO: Manafort trial likely to start in September at the earliestThe attorney general is the first Trump cabinet official known to be interviewed by Mueller's team. It was long expected that Sessions would be interviewed, given his role in the abrupt firing of FBI Director James Comey last May and his election-year meetings with Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. Mueller is examining whether Trump obstructed justice in the dismissal of Comey, who had been managing the Russia inquiry. While the White House originally said Trump fired Comey due to his controversial handling of the investigation into former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's use of private email when she was secretary of State, Trump later acknowledged in an interview with NBC that he dismissed Comey because of his handling of the Russia probe. Sessions has recused himself from the Russia investigation, in part because of his his meetings with Kislyak, which did not immediately disclose during his confirmation hearing last year. The attorney general's recusal eventually led to the appointment of Mueller, a former FBI director, as special counsel to oversee the investigation. The special counsel is negotiating with Trump's attorneys for some kind of testimony from the president. In the 500th episode of Pawn Stars, Rick Harrison celebrates by spending some capital in our nations capital. First up is a set of silver spoons made by American patriot Paul Revere. Can Rick cut a deal for this cutlery? (Photo credit: Denise Truscello / WireImage) Meanwhile, back at the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop, things get lit when a talking candle prop from H.R. Pufnstuf fires things up. Later, a flamingo given away at the opening of the 1946 Las Vegas Pink Flamingo Hotel flies in. Will Corey Harrison swoop in to peck it up? Finally, back in D.C., Rick gets his hands on two items worth millions of dollars that belonged to our American forefather, George Washington. The Gold & Silver Pawn Shop is brushed with a stroke of luck when an original Marc Chagall painting draws Rick Harrisons attention. Will he master this piece, or will he gloss over it? Later, Rick takes a swing at buying a Boston Red Sox World Series ring. Can he strike a deal, or will he strike out? Corey Harrison goes crazy for a first edition of Ken Keseys novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest. When the BMW that legendary rapper Tupac Shakur was shot in rolls up, all eyes are on Rick and Chumlee. Will they drive this deal home, or decide to steer clear? The history of money-lending dates back thousands of years; long before the pawnbrokers from HISTORYs hit series Pawn Stars helped people make ends meet by providing loans in exchange for personal items of value. There is no better example of todays pawnbrokers than the Harrison familys Gold and Silver Pawn shop in Las Vegas the modern day mecca for people in need of quick cash. Three generations of Harrison men clash with friendly camaraderie over items from classic cars to samurai swords. Here, everything has a history, and everything has a price. And you never know whats going to walk through the door. As the annual Spring Festival nears, two iconic Las Vegas shopping destinations, Fashion Show and Grand Canal Shoppes inside The Venetian and The Palazzo Las Vegas, will celebrate the Year of the Dog in true fashion with several events in honor of the Lunar New Year. Fashion Show will host the 7th Annual CNY in the Desert Opening Ceremony and ring in the Year of the Dog with a special ribbon cutting and dinner on Friday, February 16. To commemorate Chinese New Year, guests are invited to partake on a journey to China and experience cultural performances by the Tianjin Dance and Acrobatic Theater Company as they take on the runway. Guests will be able to enjoy a live authentic dragon dance and eye painting ceremony by Las Vegas Lohan School of Shaolin, followed by a ceremonial blessing of the department stores where team members will feed the dragon red envelopes to bring good luck for the year. Following the ceremony, guests also have the option to enjoy a special Lunar New Year family-style dinner catered by Kona Grill and cocktails sponsored by Remy Martin. Tickets are priced at $88 (excludes tax and gratuity), and will be available for purchase at Eventbrite. Grand Canal Shoppes will help kick off the Lunar New Year festivities on February 16 with the signature fan dance above the waterfall at 4:00 p.m. and 4:45 p.m. During and after the fan dance, more than 250 envelopes will be distributed to guests. The envelopes will be filled with prizes from gift cards to chocolate gold coins. Each red envelope will also be bundled with signature store incentives available at participating Grand Canal Shoppes stores and restaurants. For Immediate Release NEW YORK Syrian medical facilities have experienced a dramatic increase in attacks, particularly in opposition-controlled areas of Hama and Idlib, according to new data from Physicians for Human Rights (PHR). PHR has received reports of 16 attacks between December 26 and January 8, concentrated in southern Idlib and northern Hama, eight of which PHR has independently verified to date. Medical workers have confirmed with PHR that most, if not all, facilities in the areas affected by the recent bombing campaign have been forced to close down or are operating at a very limited capacity. This surge in attacks is the most significant escalation PHR has documented since de-escalation zones were declared last May. The limited ceasefire agreement negotiated at the time called for the cessation of hostilities between opposition groups and Syrian government forces in four so-called de-escalation zones in mainly opposition-held areas of the country. Many displaced civilians from other provinces have fled to this area, where they are now, again, under attack. We havent seen this many facilities targeted in such a short period of time since last May, when the area was ostensibly put under protection, said Marianne Mollmann, director of PHRs research and investigations team. These illegal attacks are basically herding civilians from one area to another with bombs. One of the facilities hit by the recent airstrikes was Idlibs al-Salam Maternity Hospital, in an incident on January 3 which killed several civilians, including a newborn. According to field sources contacted by PHR, the hospital was targeted more than once, with two airstrikes landing meters away and putting the hospital out of service indefinitely. This hospital was one of only two hospitals in the area providing pediatric and gynecological medical services. Field sources also say the neonatal intensive care unit was rendered inoperable in the airstrike, forcing premature babies to be removed from their incubators. A staff member from al-Salam Hospital, who asked not to be named for fear of retaliation, told PHR that caregivers at the facility dont fear death anymore, as they are expecting the building to be hit at any moment. Abdul Aziz Ajini, media spokesperson for Idlib Health Directorate, told PHR recently that medical and professional staff have been struggling for years to keep facilities running, many of which have been targeted on multiple occasions. It is really frustrating that never before in the history of conflicts have health facilities been destroyed in this savage way and yet the world is silent, the Idlib Health Directorate representative said. People are killed twice once when they are targeted and once when they are deprived of their right to get health care and medical services. The Hasan al-Araj Hospital in Hama was impacted by at least three separate airstrikes during one week between December 28 and January 5. The assault blocked one of the entrances, forcing the facility to suspend operations. This hospital was built into a cave to provide some measure of protection, but it has not escaped being the target of airstrikes. In October 2016, PHR documented a wave of attacks on Hasan al-Araj Hospital, which forced the temporary evacuation of staff and patients. At this stage of the Syrian conflict, even fortified hospitals are not secure, said Dr. Homer Venters, PHRs director of programs. If ever there was an indication that this is a deliberate attack on health care workers who risk their lives to provide care, this is it. It is incomprehensible that the international community is allowing these unthinkable war crimes to continue unabated. The beginning of January also saw several reported attacks on medical facilities in eastern Ghouta, as well as suspected chemical attacks affecting civilian populations there. In addition, on January 19, a psychiatric hospital was reportedly struck in Afrin in northern Aleppo. Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) is a New York-based advocacy organization that uses science and medicine to prevent mass atrocities and severe human rights violations. Learn more here. It was only the British who restructured the market ecosystem at first. When their economy began to stabilize and the textile mills started growing they were in need of dyes. They started imposing restrictive rules on the farmers who were growing Indigo in their farms. The farmers were forced to use their seeds and follow their process of cultivation. They bought Indigo from our farmers to export it to their country. It led to the decline of exporting our textile products. At some point of time they started growing Indigo in their own country and therefore stopped procuring it from our farmers. That led to the loss of livelihood of many of our farmers, leading to the destructing of rural economy and eventual suffering of farmers. First, let us take a look at Ancient History. The major concepts to keep in mind include Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic eras, tools used and discovered during these periods, the major geographic regions involved in these periods (with their past and present names), etc. Also, Indus Valley civilization, Vedic period, etc, and their major events, places, and tools used need to be learned in detail. The next important topic is the Maurya Empire founded by Chandragupta Maurya in 321 BCE. When learning about empires such as these, the first thing to study is the ruling time periods of the kings of that empire. Also, the unique features of each ruler, important books written during that time, major travelers who visited the kingdom, main locations, administrative systems, titles of administrative positions, etc., need to be studied. Nicknames and special names need to be remembered. For instance, Emperor Asoka and King Dasaratha both were addressed as Devanampriya. Mostly for TNPSC, such things would be asked directly. When it comes to UPSC, U.S. civil society groups have encouraged their Cambodian counterparts to continue to resist the ongoing government crackdown against political opposition and civil society that has seen NGOs and media targeted. Three heads of NGOs in Cambodia were charged last week with breach of trust over the management of the funding for the funeral of slain political analyst Kem Ley, who was assassinated in 2016. Another three NGOs remain on the government watch list for their criticism of Prime Minister Hun Sens ruling Cambodian Peoples Party. Cambodia is home to more than 3,000 NGOs which provide a wide range of services where government support is lacking. Amid the crackdown, the U.S.-funded National Democratic Institute was ordered to leave the country and the Cambodian Center for Human Rights, formed by the jailed opposition leader Kem Sokha, was almost ordered to close after more than a quarter of a century of operations. Other critical civil society groups have been forced to close their offices or suspend activities, fearing a possible shutdown, while other NGO leaders have fled the country over fears of arrest. Three prominent civil society leaders who face legal action if caught -- Pa Nguon Teang, director of Cambodian Center for Independent Media; But Buntenh, founder of Independent Monk Network for Social Justice; and Meoun Tola, executive director of the Center for Alliance of Labor and Human Rights -- could not be reached for comment. Laura Rosenberger, director of the US-based Alliance for Securing Democracy, told VOA Khmer on the sidelines of a panel discussion in Washington, DC at the launch of Freedom Houses Freedom in the World 2018 report, that the vibrancy of the Cambodian people was the best thing that can ultimately push forward democracy and freedom in Cambodia. Hun Sen has in recent months overseen the dissolution of the main opposition, the Cambodia National Rescue Party, and the jailing of Sokha on treason charges. More than 100 CNRP officials have been barred from politics for five years, while many succumbed to fear and intimidation tactics and defected ahead of a contentious general election in July that could further cement CPP rule. I have a lot of confidence in Cambodian civil society and it's very important for Cambodian civil society to be strong and try to resist the best they can, Michael J. Abramowitz, president of Freedom House, told VOA Khmer. Separately, Sia Phearum, executive director of the Housing Rights Task Force, one of the three NGOs under government watch list, said even minor action in the current climate could lead to legal action. Let along rallying to criticize the government. Just sharing a Facebook post can land you in jail, he said. This is what the current illegitimate government is doing; it is moving to the same status as North Korea. Civil society has nothing to defend themselves, unlike dictators. The dictator group has weapons, jails and the courts of all sorts. So, we can only train more activists so that they can stand up against the dictators, he added. Hun Sen has repeatedly dismissed criticism of the crackdown as unimportant and said upcoming elections do not require approval from Western countries. John Norris of the Center for American Progress, a research and advocacy organization, said: When you feel the system is under threat, then you begin to take extraordinary measures that might go outside the system itself. Soeung Senkaruna, a senior investigator with Cambodian rights group Adhoc, said the government should ensure that all Cambodians were able to exercise their right to vote for a candidate of their choosing at the election. The government needs to make sure its citizens can participate and compete in all political activities, as enshrined in all international elections procedures, not the one set up by any particular group or individual or political party as it wants, he said. However, CPP spokesman Sok Eysan said the government was acting in accordance with the existing laws and democratic principles. The legal measures taken against the opposition leader and its senior officials were to strengthen democracy, not to undermine or damage it, he added. A volunteer U.S. medical team is providing free treatment to impoverished Cambodians in Prey Veng province. The humanitarian mission, led by the Cambodian Health Professionals Association of America (CHPAA), began on Monday and will last until Saturday. Some 110 volunteers, including 18 doctors, will take part, the CHPAA President, Dr. Song Tan, said. We have general treatment for children, elderly people, and surgical service, he said. We also hand out artificial arms and provide oral treatment. This is the groups eighth annual mission to their homeland. CHPAA is a non-profit organization providing free medication and treatment services and regular education to Cambodians. It was founded in 2001 by medical practitioners in Long Beach, CA, according to the association's website. Dr. Visal Nga, an internal medicine specialist, has participated in the mission since it launched. Nga said that Cambodian adults often suffer from rheumatism, diabetes, high blood pressure and abdominal pain, as commonly seen in his patients in the US, but the difference is that the quality of health services in the United States is much higher, while Cambodia is still relatively limited. "These four diseases are common and many patients have suffered from them, Nga told VOA Khmer last week before heading to Cambodia. They dont seek treatment and their conditions are severe. Here, if there is a problem, we go to see the doctor every month, but there is not a lot of medication over there. Cambodia lacks skilled doctors and they require additional training overseas to meet the increasing demand of Cambodians, according to Nga. The team always advise their patients to take preventive measures because treatment is costly and time-consuming, Tan said. Tan added that Cambodians do not take good care of their eyes, despite the fact that Cambodia is often dusty. "Everybody does not pay much attention, especially when going out on a sunny day, no one likes wearing sunglasses, he said. Some dare not wear sunglasses because they are afraid of being deemed as rude or inappropriate. Dental health is also another major problem, said Tan. "Our people are less likely to take care of their teeth, such as brushing, he said. After eating sweet food, they should often wash their mouth and brush their teeth. If it is possible to go to see a dentist regularly, but often its hard for them to afford it. More than 70 local volunteers are also joining the mission, including medical students. Another part of the mission is to transfer knowledge to local practitioners. "Cambodian medical students assist us in translation and they are keen to learn from us by asking lots of questions, said Nga. "It is a great pleasure to be with such people who really give everything to make this mission successful, said Dr. Hadi Emamian, a specialist in gynecology, who accompanied the team. Since its first mission in 2011, CHPAA has treated more than 35,000 out-patients, including in Phnom Penh, Koh Kong, Takeo, and Svay Rieng provinces. STATE DEPARTMENT - The U.S. State Department is confirming Americans were killed and injured in a Taliban attack on a luxury hotel in the Afghan capital, Kabul. "The attack on the hotel, once again, shows the depravity of terrorists who seek to sow chaos.Sadly, we can confirm that Americans are among the victims," State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said Tuesday. Nauert did not specify how may Americans were killed or hurt during the siege on the Intercontinental Hotel. She said the U.S. government is in close contact with Afghan authorities regarding the investigation, and Washington stands firmly by the Kabul government. Afghan government forces ended an overnight attack on the Kabul hotel Sunday that resulted in at least 22 deaths, including 14 foreign nationals. Map Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul Map Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul Map Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul "We express our deepest condolences to our American families and to all the victims of the attack," said Nauert, adding Washington is grateful to Afghan security forces for their rescue efforts. The siege lasted nearly 14 hours, during which six assailants either blew themselves up or were gunned down by Afghan forces. An Afghan security guard stands at the entrance ga An Afghan security guard stands at the entrance gate of the Intercontinental Hotel after an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Jan. 23, 2018 An Afghan security guard stands at the entrance gate of the Intercontinental Hotel after an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan Jan. 23, 2018 U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attack and extended his condolences to the families of the victims. Afghanistan's foreign ministry confirmed the newly appointed Afghan consul general to the Pakistani port city of Karachi was among those killed in the hotel attack. Rahimi said more than 161 guests, including 41 foreigners, were rescued. International forces reportedly assisted Afghan partners in dealing with the attack. A group claiming to represent the Afghan Taliban said the hotel attack killed and wounded "dozens" of "foreign occupiers," including U.S. Special Forces, commandos and intelligence officers. The Taliban insurgent group claimed its suicide bombers carried out the assault, which they said targeted a meeting of Afghan and American security officials. The Taliban often inflates its casualty claims. The siege began when gunmen wearing army uniforms and suicide vests stormed the hotel kitchen. They then moved into conference halls and other floors of the building, while shooting at guests. An Afghan Interior Ministry statement claimed the Taliban-allied Haqqani network plotted the violence. JOHANNESBURG - Since taking office four months ago, Angolas new president has made some attention-grabbing moves that he says are part of his campaign promise to clean up the nations ailing, corruption-riddled economy. In December, President Joao Lourenco removed Isabel dos Santos, eldest daughter of former President Jose Eduardo dos Santos, from her post at the head of the nations oil company. FILE - Isabel dos Santos, the daughter of Angolan FILE - Isabel dos Santos, then-head of state energy giant Sonangol, speaks during an interview in Luanda, Angola, June 9, 2016. FILE - Isabel dos Santos, then-head of state energy giant Sonangol, speaks during an interview in Luanda, Angola, June 9, 2016. Then, earlier this month, he sacked Jose Filomeno dos Santos, as head of the nations $5 billion sovereign wealth fund. The moves are aimed to inject energy into a stagnant economy that has long been dependent on oil exports and foreign investment. But by doing so, says Alex Vines of the Chatham House research group, Lourenco has earned a nickname: The Terminator, after the time-traveling cyborg assassin played by Arnold Schwarzenegger in the 1984 blockbuster film. The dos Santos family anticipated change, Vines told VOA ... What none of the family, I think, recognized was that change would come so quickly. And I think that, again, has to do with the fact that Angola could not sustain the sort of previous business model that happened in the last years of the dos Santos presidency. "And so, theyve been removed out of their positions much more quickly than anybody would have imagined, hence the nickname for Joao Lourenco in Angola now." He had to do it Johannesburg-based Angola analyst Paula Roque says that she is reluctant to give the new president too much credit as a reformer. Its significant, but he had to do it, she told VOA. You cant run a country, you certainly cant reform an economy, without taking the lead or the control, of the revenues. And the oil company was certainly one of them. The sovereign wealth fund was created for rainy days, and Angolas certainly going through a crisis. So he really didnt have much of an option but to do what he did. FILE - A woman walks past the head office of Angol FILE - A woman walks past the head office of Angolan state oil company Sonangol in the capital Luanda, Aug. 26, 2012. FILE - A woman walks past the head office of Angolan state oil company Sonangol in the capital Luanda, Aug. 26, 2012. But, she notes, this is far from a clean sweep. Analysts and anti-corruption watchdogs have estimated that the former first family still controls billions of dollars worth of government resources. In reality, she said, Isabel [dos Santos] still dominates the diamond sector of Angola. So it goes much deeper than just having key positions that we know of. Were talking about holding companies, shell companies, were talking about the use of state resources to invest in private enterprises." The tip of the iceberg And Rafael Marques de Morais, a prominent journalist and anti-corruption campaigner, says be believes Lourencos moves only serve to distract from his lack of economic plan. The presidents children were only the tip of the iceberg, and he only dealt with the tip of the iceberg, he told VOA from Luanda, Angolas capital. And now people are realizing he has not terminated the iceberg, but just broke some ice. ... I think at this point that people are realizing that this is just a show, because he doesnt have a clear economic policy. Economists have, however, lauded the governments recent moves, like last weeks announcement that Angola would repay its $5 billion debt by 2019. But Lourenco has also drawn fire from anti-corruption activists for defending the nations former vice president, who stands accused of bribing a Portuguese magistrate when he served as head of Angolas state-run oil company. Angola gained independence from Portugal in 1975. Manuel Vicentes corruption trial began this week in Lisbon, because Portugal has refused to transfer the case to Angola, saying they dont believe Vicente will be properly investigated if he comes back home. WASHINGTON - The key U.S. question about Turkey's offensive in northwestern Syria is whether Ankara pushes on from Afrin to Manbij, where U.S. forces and their allies against the Islamic State militant group are on the ground, U.S. officials said on Monday. Turkey shelled targets in northwest Syria on the third day of a campaign by its forces and Syrian rebel allies against Kurdish YPG fighters, which Ankara sees as allies of Kurdish insurgents who have fought the Turkish state for decades. While the United States does not have forces in the area of Afrin, where the offensive is focused, it does in Manbij to the east, raising the possibility of conflict between forces allied with Turkey and the United States. Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in nort Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in northern Syria controlled by U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters, in Hassa, Hatay, Turkey, Jan. 22, 2018. Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in northern Syria controlled by U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters, in Hassa, Hatay, Turkey, Jan. 22, 2018. Moreover, the United States hopes to use the YPG's control of the area to give it the diplomatic muscle it needs to revive U.N.-led talks in Geneva on a deal that would end Syria's civil war and eventually lead to the ouster of President Bashar Assad. The United States and Turkey, while themselves allies in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, have diverging interests in the Syrian civil war, with Washington focused on defeating Islamic State and Ankara keen to prevent Syria's Kurds from gaining autonomy and fueling Kurdish insurgents on its soil. Preventing Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan from carrying out a threat to drive Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a U.S.-backed umbrella group dominated by the YPG, out of Manbij is central for Washington, U.S. officials said. "Manbij was liberated by the coalition (fighting Islamic State) and (this) would be looked at differently if Turkey started to go in that direction," said one U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. "The Turks have talked about it but there is no indication that they are going to go further east where we are," he added. "At this stage in Afrin it's a very different fight and a very different situation than if they do come further east." In Talks With Turkey Any Turkish operation in Manbij is likely to be met with serious U.S. concerns, with a number of U.S. troops in and around the city. The troops were deployed in March to deter Turkish and U.S.-backed rebels from attacking each other and have also carried out training and advising missions in Manbij. Manbij, Syria "That would be a cause for concern and we're monitoring it closely," said a second U.S. official on condition of anonymity. "The protection of our forces is a top priority." This official added there had not been an impact on U.S. operations from Turkey's Incirlik air base. While much of the fighting against Islamic State has moved to small pockets, the United States would still need the YPG to hold territory, ensuring that the Islamist militant group does not reemerge. Speaking as he arrived in Paris, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the United States was in talks with Turkey and hoped to find a way to create a "security zone" that would meet Turkey's "legitimate" security interests. Pentagon officials are currently in Ankara as part of a U.S. delegation to discuss security issues, including in Afrin, Major Adrian Rankine-Galloway, a Pentagon spokesman, told Reuters. He said that "the armed Kurdish groups in Afrin" are not part of the coalition against Islamic State, also known as ISIS. "Increased violence in Afrin distracts from efforts to ensure the lasting defeat of ISIS," Rankine-Galloway added. "It also has significant potential to increase civilian displacement, refugee flows, and casualties." Gonul Tol, director of the Middle East Institute think tank's Turkey program, said persuading Erdogan not to move against Manbij could prove extremely difficult. The Trump administration's Syria strategy - crushing the remnants of Islamic State and reviving the U.N.-led Geneva talks on ending the Syrian civil war - almost entirely depends on preserving the 30,000-strong YPG as a fighting force. "The entire U.S. strategy rests on the Kurds. Even if Turkey doesn't attack Manbij, the fall of Afrin will weaken the Kurds, and that will weaken the U.S. influence with the Kurds, Tol said. "The only leverage the U.S. has (in Syria) is through the Kurds. "If Manbij falls, Raqqa is going to be threatened and that is key for the U.S.," Tol continued, referring to the Syrian city that Islamic State declared as its capital and from which it was driven out last year. "The U.S. will do everything to ease the tensions with Turkey. But I don't know what they will come up (with). They have to be very creative." PORTO ALEGRE - Brazilian politicians, voters and investors will find out on Wednesday whether an appeals court will allow the country's most popular leader, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, to run for president this year after being found guilty of accepting a bribe. The former two-term, leftist president was convicted in July of corruption and money laundering for accepting a beachside penthouse apartment from an engineering company vying for government contracts. If the court's three judges uphold the conviction, which carries a sentence of nine years and six months, Lula would be ineligible to run for re-election on the Oct. 7 ballot and he could be sent to jail. That would radically alter the political landscape of Brazil ahead of a campaign in which Lula is the early favorite, with 36 percent of voter preferences according to pollster Datafolha. That is double the percentage of his nearest rival, the far-right congressman and former army captain Jair Bolsonaro. Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silv FILE - Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva addresses supporters gathering to protest his conviction in Sao Paulo, Brazil, July 20, 2017. FILE - Brazil's former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva addresses supporters gathering to protest his conviction in Sao Paulo, Brazil, July 20, 2017. The case has polarized Brazil, with Lula's critics calling for him to be put behind bars and his Workers Party supporters claiming the charges were trumped up to stop him from running. The appeals court, known as the TRF-4, has confirmed 95 percent of the convictions and sentences handed down by crusading anti-corruption judge Sergio Moro, who sentenced Lula. Brazil's benchmark Bovespa stock index has risen more than 10 percent in the past month on the prospect of Lula being barred from the election sooner than originally expected. That would improve the odds of a more centrist, market-friendly candidate winning this year's race and continuing austerity policies to reduce a budget deficit run up by Lula's impeached successor, Dilma Rousseff. Lula, 72, has been touring the country preparing the ground for a presidential bid. CUT, Brazil's largest labor union federation and an ally of the Workers Party, plans to launch his candidacy in Sao Paulo the day after the ruling, whichever way it goes. The party's leader, Senator Gleisi Hoffmann, went as far as to say last week that authorities would have to "kill" people to put Lula in prison, though she later qualified her comment after it created an uproar. Lula plans to travel to Porto Alegre on Tuesday to rally his supporters, though the court denied his request to address the judges amid criticism he was turning the case into a pulpit for alleging political persecution. Some 3,000 Lula supporters arrived in the southern city of Porto Alegre on Monday and intend to protest outside the court, which has been cordoned off by police in a four-block radius. Lula's opponents plan to celebrate in a park on the affluent side of Porto Alegre on Thursday if his conviction is upheld. Influential Politician Despite the conviction and four other corruption probes against him, Lula remains Brazil's most influential politician, loved by Brazilians who benefited from social programs that lifted 30 million people out of poverty during his presidency from 2003 to 2010. "If Lula is cleared, he will be a strong contender who would certainly reach the second-round runoff," said Lucas de Aragao, a political scientist and partner at consultancy Arko Advice in Brasilia. "But if he is convicted again, the Workers Party will have to get real and find another candidate, because it will be very hard for Lula to get registered to run." For now, the party insists there is no plan B and is casting Lula as a political martyr being illegitimately blocked from the race by Brazilian elites who see him as a threat. "Whatever the ruling is on Wednesday, President (Lula) cannot be barred by the appeals court from registering his candidacy," his lawyer Cristiano Zanin told foreign news media. Presidential hopefuls must register with Brazil's electoral authority, the TSE, by Aug. 15. Lula's defense team will try to delay a final decision on his conviction as long as possible to place him on the ballot. If an adverse ruling on Wednesday is not unanimous, Lula will have more options for appeals that could delay the process for as long as seven months, legal experts say. Even if the TSE bars Lula, there is a chance he could appeal to higher courts on constitutional and other grounds to seek an injunction suspending his ineligibility declared by the TSE, said Henrique Neves, a former judge on the electoral court. If Lula were to run in the elections but lose his case, his votes would be annulled, Neves said. YANGON, MYANMAR - Myanmars top business leaders have rallied behind State Counselor Aung San Kyis plan for Rakhine State, expending money and resources on frontline efforts to resettle refugees and rebuild infrastructure. A government agency chaired by the countrys de facto leader is also wooing private capital into an area cleared of a substantial portion of its people. Rohingya militant attacks on police posts in August provoked a military sweep driving more than 650,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh. In an e-mailed statement to VOA, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said, conditions in Rakhine State are not yet fully conducive to the safe and sustainable return of refugees. The repatriations have been put on hold and Rohingya community leaders have demanded the restitution of community land, legal redress for atrocities, and a path to citizenship as essential preconditions. While Myanmars civilian government, led by Aung San Suu Kyis National League for Democracy (NLD), is constitutionally barred from holding the army to account, it has tried to take control in other ways, chiefly via the Union Enterprise for Humanitarian Assistance, Resettlement and Development in Rakhine, or UEHRD. It was formed in October to mobilize Myanmar society in a shared patriotic venture. Roads and fences Pivotal to the vision is the support of Myanmars tycoonsthe dozen or so business leaders who made fortunes during military rule and continue to dominate the economy through privately owned, highly diversified conglomerates. They were quick to oblige. A UEHRD ceremony held in the capital, Naypyidaw, in October drew close to $13.5 million from a roster of well-known company chairmen: Aung Ko Win of KBZ, Zaw Zaw of Max Myanmar, Steven Law of Asia World, Chit Khine of Eden, and Khin Shwe of Zaykabar, among others. Nyo Myint, senior managing director of KBZ Group, told VOA some of the $2.2 million donated via its charitable arm, the Brighter Future Foundation, would be spent on a new fence across a stretch of the border with Bangladesh. He said this would benefit both countries in deterring illegal migration, a supposed conflict trigger. Other support has been more direct. Chit Khine, the Eden Group chairman, told VOA over the phone that his companywhich constructed substantial parts of Naypyidaw, launched as Myanmars new capital in 2005was now helping build structures in Nga Khu Ya, one of two processing sites for returning refugees established near the border. In early January, Myanmar state media ran a press release from Asia World, Myanmars largest conglomerate. It depicted a non-for-profit 80-kilometer road in northern Rakhine State built under the banner of its own charitable foundationa proud effort undertaken as part of UEHRDs construction taskforce. The thaw The heads of Eden, KBZ, and Asia World were previously under Western sanctions for their alleged links with the former military junta. Their prominence in Aung San Suu Kyis plan marks a broader rapprochement between the former dissident leader and the tycoons whom, during her years of house arrest, she lambasted as military cronies. The thaw began early in her government tenure. In an October 2016 event for top taxpayers, she told assembled tycoons she wouldnt dwell on past misdeeds but asked for, those who have previously worked for their own self-interest work for others in the future. Gerard McCarthy, associate director of the Myanmar Research Center at the Australian National University, told VOA that enlisting the support of tycoons for national causes is not a departure from core NLD values, which center on a morally virtuous project, defined by individual acts of merit. Under this ethos, he said, capitalists can be moral as long as they contribute. But Aung San Suu Kyis public-private fix for Rakhine State doesnt stop at charity. It also involves presenting Rakhine State as a promising business opportunity in answer to a recommendation by the Advisory Commission led by former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan for increased, albeit responsible, investment in one of Myanmars poorest states. Former glories To spur private sector interest, the government in October rebooted a stalled economic zone, with a focus on trade facilities, in Maungdaw in northern Rakhine State, by signing a memorandum of understanding with a consortium of local and Yangon-based firms. The Union of Myanmar Federation of Chambers of Commerce and Industry (UMFCCI) is coordinating a private sector investment drive in Rakhine, on behalf of UEHRD, covering sectors ranging from agriculture to micro-finance to tourism. Ye Min Aung, vice chair of the UMFCCI and secretary-general of Myanmar Rice Federation, told VOA, Some people, they dont want to donate, but they want to invest. The root of all the problems in Rakhine is the desperate economic situation, he said, adding they would promote agribusiness for peace by establishing a new firm, the Rakhine Agribusiness Public Company, which would eventually trade on the Yangon Stock Exchange. He said he was lobbying the government to offer more concrete incentives for investors. Patriotic duty Vicky Bowman, director of the Myanmar Center for Responsible Business, told VOA via email that while humanitarian needs should come first, there was a need for public investment in infrastructure to combat Rakhines isolation and associated poverty. She added, the private sector may be a suitable partner. However, among other risks, Bowman noted local resentment that businesses from outside of Rakhine have had more opportunity than locals. The entry of major conglomerates could foment tensions at a time of heightened Rakhine nationalism. On January 16, the local governments banning of a ceremony commemorating the 1784 fall of the Rakhine kingdom to the Burmese, led to deadly confrontations between the police and thousands of angry locals in the town of Mrauk-U. Yet, both Ye Min Aung of UMFCCI and Nyo Myint of KBZ described their efforts in terms of patriotic duty. This is the time the Myanmar private sector should be united to show solidarity under the leadership of the present government, said Ye Min Aung. China is sending a top economic adviser and rising politician to lead its largest entourage to date to attend the World Economic Forum in Davos this week. More than 130 members will join Liu He to attend the global economic gathering, where he is expected to speak and outline Chinas vision for its economy in 2018, analysts said. He is also expected to warn Washington against the dangers of a possible trade war. When President Xi Jinping attended the meeting last year, he talked about the importance of globalization at a time when President Donald Trump was becoming the United States' new leader. China's President Xi Jinping looks on at the World FILE - China's President Xi Jinping looks on at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 17, 2017. FILE - China's President Xi Jinping looks on at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 17, 2017. At the time, Xi also warned that a trade war will only lead to suffering on both sides. Some of the messaging is expected to be the same this year. But this time, the threat of a trade war appears to be more a reality than a worry. I think what Liu He will do is [try] to persuade the U.S. from imposing more trade actions against China. I think that is the most urgent thing to do, said Tao Ran, an economist and nonresident senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. Tougher US stance President Trump has long promised to get tough on China and other exporters he argues compete unfairly with U.S. manufacturers, but that talk is now turning to action. Employees install solar panels at a roof of Yiwu I FILE - Employees install solar panels at a roof of Yiwu International Trade City in Yiwu, Zhejiang province, China, July 17, 2017. FILE - Employees install solar panels at a roof of Yiwu International Trade City in Yiwu, Zhejiang province, China, July 17, 2017. On Monday, the U.S. government imposed stiff tariffs on solar panels and washing machines. Last week, Trump told Reuters in an interview that the United States is considering issuing China a big fine over alleged intellectual property theft. More tough measures from the Trump administration are expected in the weeks and months ahead in 2018. Over the past year, the United States and China have made strides in trying to work together on North Korea and to solve their differences over trade but now as some analysts note the Trump administrations policy is growing teeth and there is a shift away from engagement. Beijing has made repeated pledges to reform and open up its economy and when Xi Jinping won a second term during 19th Party Congress late last year, he talked about giving the market more sway in the economy. FILE - A security guard stands in position in fron FILE - A security guard stands in position in front of the company's and Chinese flags outside the headquarters of Aluminum Corp of China (Chinalco) in Beijing in this June 5, 2009 file photo. FILE - A security guard stands in position in front of the company's and Chinese flags outside the headquarters of Aluminum Corp of China (Chinalco) in Beijing in this June 5, 2009 file photo. But he also talked about bolstering state-owned enterprises, a persistent concern from the United States, one that was mentioned late last week in an annual report on Chinas World Trade Organization compliance, and lack thereof. "China is determined to maintain the state's leading role in the economy and to continue to pursue industrial policies that promote, guide and support domestic industries while simultaneously and actively seeking to impede, disadvantage and harm their foreign counterparts, the report said. Heading for a trade war? Some analysts argue that if China wants to avoid a trade war, it is Beijing that needs to loosen controls over sectors that have long been off-limits to foreign investments. A move they argue will not only boost foreign investment but ultimately help the Chinese economy as well. Victor Gao, director of the China National Association of International Studies, said that instead of focusing on punitive measures, the United States should think about ways to grow exports to China even more such as increasing its export of oil and gas to the worlds second largest economy and opening up high-tech exports. The United States needs to do whatever it can to sell more to China, Gao said. And make the bilateral trade in a dynamic way more balanced, rather than getting at each others throats and tearing each other to pieces." FILE - A container is loaded onto a cargo ship at FILE - A container is loaded onto a cargo ship at the Tianjin port in China. FILE - A container is loaded onto a cargo ship at the Tianjin port in China. What happens this week at Davos could be key in determining where all of this is heading. Unlike last year, President Donald Trump will attend the meetings in Davos. Liu's future Financial analysts will be watching closely to see what Liu He has to say at the gatherings. In addition to currently holding key economic advisory positions, Liu is a member of the Communist Partys Politburo and a man widely expected to soon become Chinas next vice premier for finance and the economy. There is also speculation that he could take over for Zhou Xiaochuan as governor of the Peoples Bank of China. All evidence seems to indicate that he is very much trusted by the Chinese president and he also travels now ever since the 19th Party Congress very often with the Chinese head of state, said Gao. This gives him good access to the real insight of the Chinese [governments] decision making. Ultimately, nothing regarding Liu Hes future posts will be certain until Chinas National Peoples Congress meets in March and approves a slate of new government appointments. Some have even suggested that he could fill both the vice premier and central bank post much like Zhu Rongji did in the early 1990s. These two [positions] are not mutually exclusive of each other, Gao said. WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump imposed stiff tariffs on imported solar panels and washing machines Monday, aiming to protect U.S. manufacturers. The U.S. Trade Representative's office made the recommendation to the president for the tariffs. It said the independent U.S. International Trade Commission found that such imports were a "substantial cause of serious injury to domestic manufacturers." "The president's actions make clear again that the Trump administration will always defend American workers, farmers, ranchers and businesses," U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said Monday. Trump has often promised to get tough with China and other exporters that he says compete unfairly with U.S. manufacturers. The tariffs start out at 30 percent on solar panels and decline over time. On imported washers, they begin at 20 percent on the first 1.2 million machines and jump to 50 percent before also declining. Two solar panel manufacturing companies were seeking higher taxes to protect them from competition by low-cost imports in hopes of reviving their troubled firms. The $28 billion solar energy industry employs 260,000 people in the U.S. But a solar industry trade group says only a fraction of the industry's workers actually manufacture panels. It says the rest install the panels in homes and businesses, whether they are made in the U.S. or elsewhere. The Solar Energy Industries Association says the new tariffs will cost tens of thousands of U.S. jobs and delay or cancel billions of dollars in clean energy investment. China and other nations that face these new tariffs may challenge the decision at the World Trade Organization. A series of earthquakes and volcanic eruptions jolted locations on opposite ends of the Pacific Ocean Tuesday. The U.S. Geological Survey says a massive 8.2 magnitude earthquake struck about 280 kilometers southeast of Alaska's Kodiak Island, initially prompting emergency officials to issue a tsunami warning for large parts of coastal Alaska and Canada's British Columbia and place the entire U.S. west coast and the U.S. Pacific state of Hawaii under a tsunami watch. Residents in the immediate were urged to evacuate to higher ground or move inland. The tsunami warning was later canceled. Alaska Japan volcanic eruption Several hours earlier and more than 5,000 kilometers away, a Japanese soldier was killed and several other people injured as a result of a volcanic eruption near a mountain ski resort. Dozens of skiers were struck by flying rocks caused by the midday eruption of Mount Kusatsu-Shirane, including a group of six members of Japan's Self Defense Force who were taking part in a training mission. The eruption triggered an avalanche that buried them under mounds of snow for a few hours until they were rescued. The volcano knocked out power at the resort, which left at least 80 other skiers stranded at a gondola station at the top of the mountain for several hours before they were rescued by helicopter. A few skiers were reportedly injured when flying rocks shattered the glass of their gondola. Philippines volcano In the Philippines, authorities have raised the alert level after several days of increasingly intense activity at its most active volcano. The 2,642-meter tall Mount Mayon, located more than 300 kilometers from Manila, gushed lava fountains as much as 700 meters in the air above its crater Tuesday, followed by ash clouds reaching three (3) kilometers in the air Tuesday. The volcano first began belching red-hot lava, ash and superheated gas and volcanic debris nearly two weeks ago. The Philippine Institute of Volcanology has raised its alert level for Mayon to four on a scale of five, signifying hazardous eruption is imminent. The agency also expanded the danger zone surrounding the volcano to eight kilometers. As many as 40,000 residents have been forced to evacuate to safer ground as Mayon becomes more and more unstable. An Indonesian security officer talks on his radio An Indonesian security officer talks on his radio as people evacuate from buildings after an earthquake in Jakarta, Indonesia, Jan. 23, 2018. An Indonesian security officer talks on his radio as people evacuate from buildings after an earthquake in Jakarta, Indonesia, Jan. 23, 2018. Indonesia quake And office workers in the Indonesian capital of Jakarta ran out into the streets in panic Tuesday when a magnitude 6.0 earthquake shook high-rise office buildings. The U.S. Geological Survey said the quake was centered off about 43 kilometers off the coast of the western island of Java, but Indonesian emergency officials did not issue a tsunami warning. Japan, the Philippines and Indonesia are all located along the so-called "Ring of Fire," a line of seismic faults in the Pacific Ocean that is prone to earthquakes and volcanic activity. Mike West, a seismologist with the Alaska Earthquake Center, told VOA the earthquake that struck the U.S. Pacific state Tuesday was not connected to the seismic activities in the three Asia Pacific locations. MILAN - Four helicopters were evacuating some 100 tourists and hotel workers from a four-star mountainside hotel and a nearby guesthouse in northern Italy after an avalanche overnight, civil protection authorities said Tuesday as heavy snow caused disruption across the Alps. The Langtauferer Hotel, located near the Austrian border at 1,870 meters (6,135 feet) above sea level and some 100 kilometers (about 60 kilometers) northwest of Bolzano, was not directly hit, but was in an area of extremely high risk for further avalanches, said Katia Squeo of the civil protection agency in Bolzano. "The electricity was restored and the guests didn't want to go, so the mayor ordered the evacuation," Squeo said. "The avalanche risk is still present." The evacuation was taking place under clear conditions, with each helicopter ferrying seven people at a time to a school gymnasium in nearby San Valentino, where they were being fed and looked after. A nearby guesthouse was also evacuated, and the whole village was cut off from the nearest major road, some 20 kilometers away, by the heavy snowfall and avalanche risk. The whole northern crest of the Alps bordering Austria was under the highest avalanche risk following an extraordinary snowfall of up to two meters (6.6 feet,) beating record levels dating to the early 1980s in some places, officials said. The Langtauferer hotel boasts views of a 3,700-meter summit and advertises itself as being ideal for skiers, who can start their runs right outside the hotel door. Martina Doene, the hotel's manager, said the evacuees remained calm. The civil protection agency said teams also were working to open roads to Val Senales, where thousands of tourists and residents had been isolated since Monday above Merano. The town itself was protected by avalanche barriers and they were at no immediate risk, Squeo said. Heavy snow has created dangerous conditions and disrupted transport across the Alps. In France, the Chamonix ski area at the foot of Mont Blanc was closed due to what officials said was the highest avalanche risk. Several major roads and tunnels in the area were shut down. In Switzerland, a highway leading to the Gotthard tunnel toward Italy was shut. Swiss public broadcaster SRF reported that the A2 highway near Gurtnellen was hit by an avalanche and was temporarily closed in both directions. The Swiss ski resorts of Zermatt, Andermatt and Saas-Fee are cut off from the outside world due to the risk of avalanches. A snipper holds his position on the roof of a hote A snipper holds his position on the roof of a hotel during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in the Swiss Alps resort of Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 22, 2018 A snipper holds his position on the roof of a hotel during the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in the Swiss Alps resort of Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 22, 2018 Heavy snowfall has also hampered the arrival of participants at the annual World Economic Forum in the Swiss town of Davos. Schools in some cut-off villages in Austria's western state of Tyrol remained closed Tuesday, according to Austrian broadcaster ORF. ALBUQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO - The Trump administration announced Monday it was preparing to replace existing vehicle barriers along a stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border in New Mexico that officials call "an area of high illegal entry." The notice published in the Federal Register said the area extends around 20 miles (32 kilometers) west of the Santa Teresa Port of Entry. According to the notice, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will replace the existing barriers with bollard walls to deter and prevent illegal crossings. Bollard walls are made up of sturdy, vertical posts that are spaced to provide visibility to the other side but are difficult to walk through. "There is presently a need to construct physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the border of the United States to deter illegal crossings in the project area," Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said in the notice. The targeted area is part of the U.S. Border Patrol's El Paso Sector that federal officials say remains an active route for human smuggling and drug trafficking. In 2016, officials said the Border Patrol in the sector arrested more than 25,000 immigrants suspected of trying to enter the country illegally and seized around 67,000 pounds of marijuana. Santa Teresa, New Mexico a booming industrial border town is west of El Paso, Texas. Use of waivers This marks the third time Homeland Security under President Donald Trump has used broad powers under a 2005 law to waive laws such as the National Environmental Policy Act and Endangered Species Act for the border barriers. In September, it waived reviews for a 3-mile stretch in Calexico, California. President George W. Bush's administration issued the previous five waivers in 2008. But critics said the waivers are an overreach and a threat to the environment. Brian Segee, a senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity, said federal authorities are waiving more than 30 environmental laws to speed construction of the proposal area around Santa Teresa, New Mexico. "The Trump administration is stopping at nothing to ram through this destructive border wall," Segee said. "Trump's divisive border wall is a humanitarian and environmental disaster, and it won't do anything to stop illegal drug or human smuggling." Funding the wall The Center for Biological Diversity said it is considering whether to challenge the waiver in court. The administration has insisted new wall funding be part of any pending immigration reform deal, but Trump has been unclear about how long the wall would be and how it should be designed. The administration has asked for $1.6 billion this year to build or replace 74 miles (118 kilometers) of barriers in Texas' Rio Grande Valley and San Diego and plans to request another $1.6 billion next year. A proposal by Customs and Border Protection calls for spending $18 billion over 10 years to extend barriers to cover nearly half the border. Mexico has steadfastly rejected Trump's demand that it pay for the wall. Military authorities in Gambia arrested two of ex-strongman Yahya Jammeh's generals after they returned unexpectedly from exile over the weekend, the army said in a statement Monday. Gambia's current President Adama Barrow was sworn in a year ago as a West African regional intervention force closed in on the capital Banjul forcing Jammeh, who had refused to accept his defeat in elections, to flee to Equatorial Guinea. Umpa Mendy, Jammeh's principal protection officer, and the former head of the State Guards Battalion Ansumana Tamba had both accompanied the former leader into exile. But the army statement said they flew back into Gambia on Sunday. "They were arrested at their respective homes ... and are currently detained at the Yundum Military Barracks, where they are helping the military police with their investigations," the statement said. It did not say why the two men returned to Gambia or on what charges they had been arrested. Barrow is seeking to assert control following the end of 22 years of Jammeh's authoritarian rule under which the military served as a key pillar of a regime notorious for jailing and torturing political opponents. The new government has replaced or dismissed a number of senior military officers, some of them suspected of being members of a group called the Jungulars, which many Gambians say carried out killings on behalf of the government. However, the army still contains many former supporters of Jammeh. Barrow's allies have repeatedly warned of the possibility that exiled officers were working to undermine the new government from abroad. GENEVA - The global unemployment rate is stabilizing after years in a slump due to a faltering economy, the International Labor Organization reports in "World Employment and Social Outlook: Trends 2018." However, unemployment which the ILO says stands at more than 192 million people globally is expected remain persistently high in many parts of the world. The ILO reports that unemployment in wealthier countries is expected to drop to 5.5 percent this year, the lowest rate since 2007. The labor situation has improved in emerging and developing economies, as well. However, the report warns that employment growth in these countries will not keep pace with the increased numbers of people entering the labor market. FILE - Young men carting sacks of potatoes to the FILE - Young men carting sacks of potatoes to the market encounter a steep hill just outside Nairobi, Kenya, June 13, 2001. FILE - Young men carting sacks of potatoes to the market encounter a steep hill just outside Nairobi, Kenya, June 13, 2001. ILO Director-General Guy Ryder expressed concern that low-quality employment is on the rise. He says nearly 1.4 billion people are in vulnerable jobs, meaning they work in difficult conditions for low wages with little security, and that three out of four workers in developing countries are holding down such jobs. "Very much more effort needs to be made to improve the quality of jobs," he said. "Despite the uptick in economic and employment growth, which is welcome, working conditions are failing to improve for a very large share of the global workforce. In addition, the projected employment growth in the service sector can be expected to make only a limited contribution to the improvement of job quality." The report notes that working poverty defined as having income below the poverty line is falling in emerging countries, but in developing nations, progress in this area is too slow to keep up with the expanding labor force. It says the number of people living in extreme poverty at less than $3 a day is expected to remain at more than 114 million for the coming years. The report's authors say the gender gap remains wide, with women more likely to have lower-quality jobs and lower salaries than men. A device that heats tobacco without burning it reduces some of the harmful chemicals in traditional cigarettes, but government scientists say it's unclear if that translates into lower rates of disease for smokers who switch. U.S. regulators published a mixed review Monday of the closely watched cigarette alternative from Philip Morris International. The company hopes to market the electronic device as the first "reduced-risk" tobacco product ever sanctioned by the U.S. government. Philip Morris' pen-like device, called iQOS, is already sold in more than 30 countries, including Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom. But Philip Morris and its U.S. partner, Altria, need the permission of the Food and Drug Administration to sell it in the U.S. FILE - An iQOS store is pictured at Ginza in Tokyo FILE - An iQOS store is pictured at Ginza in Tokyo, Japan, Dec. 18, 2017. FILE - An iQOS store is pictured at Ginza in Tokyo, Japan, Dec. 18, 2017. iQOS heats strips of Marlboro-branded tobacco but stops short of burning them, producing a tobacco vapor that includes nicotine. This is different from e-cigarettes, which don't use tobacco at all but instead vaporize liquid usually containing nicotine. Nicotine is what makes cigarettes addictive. Philip Morris believes its product is closer to the taste and experience of traditional cigarettes, making it more attractive to smokers and reducing their contact with tar and other toxic byproducts of burning cigarettes. Company scientists will present their studies and marketing plan to a panel of FDA advisers this week. The panel's recommendation, expected Thursday, is non-binding: The FDA will make the ultimate decision on the device later this year. A green light from FDA would mark a major milestone in efforts by both the industry and government to provide less harmful tobacco products to smokers who can't or won't quit cigarettes. Despite decades of tax hikes, smoking bans and campaigns, about 15 percent of U.S. adults smoke. The FDA review paints a mixed picture of the potential benefits of the iQOS "heat-not-burn" approach. FILE - A man smokes iQOS at a restaurant in Tokyo, FILE - A man smokes iQOS at a restaurant in Tokyo, Japan, Nov. 2, 2017. FILE - A man smokes iQOS at a restaurant in Tokyo, Japan, Nov. 2, 2017. Levels of certain harmful chemicals were between 55 and 99 percent lower in the vapor produced by iQOS than in cigarette smoke. But animal and laboratory studies submitted by the company also suggested the chemicals could still be toxic and contribute to precancerous growths. A company study in mice could help clarify the cancer risk, but the FDA said the results would not be available until later this year. FDA requirements Under a 2009 law, the FDA gained authority to regulate a number of aspects of the tobacco industry. The same law allows the agency to scientifically review and permit sales of new products shown to be less dangerous than what's currently available. But the FDA has not yet allowed any company to advertise a "reduced-risk" tobacco product. To meet FDA requirements, a company must show that the product will improve the health of individual users and the overall population. Additionally, the product should not appeal to non-smokers or interfere with smokers looking to quit. The FDA review said some non-smokers, including young people, would likely experiment with iQOS. Reviewers also questioned if smokers would completely switch to iQOS from cigarettes. In company studies, less than 20 percent of U.S. users switched completely to iQOS over six weeks. Philip Morris and other global tobacco companies are diversifying their products beyond traditional cigarettes, making investments in e-cigarettes, heated tobacco products and chewable tobacco pouches, among other alternatives. While cigarettes remain enormously profitable, the global market continues to contract amid worldwide campaigns to discourage smoking. The FDA itself has signaled its intention to begin pushing U.S. consumers away from traditional cigarettes toward alternative products. As part of the effort, FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb wants to drastically cut nicotine levels in traditional cigarettes to help smokers quit. LONDON - "The Lord of the Rings" director Peter Jackson is going from Middle Earth to the Western Front, transforming grainy black-and-white footage of World War I into 3-D color for a new documentary film. Jackson's movie, announced Monday, is among dozens of artworks commissioned by British cultural bodies to commemorate 100 years since the final year of the 1914-18 war. The New Zealand-based director of "The Hobbit" and "Lord of the Rings" series has restored film from the Imperial War Museum using cutting-edge digital technology and hand coloring, pairing it with archive audio recollections from veterans of the conflict. He said the aim is to close the 100-year time gap and show ``what it was like to fight in the war.'' "We all know what First World War footage looks like," Jackson said in comments broadcast Monday. "It's sped-up, it's fast, like Charlie Chaplin, grainy, jumpy, scratchy, and it immediately blocks you from actually connecting with the events on screen." "But the results we have got are absolutely unbelievable. They are way beyond what I expected. This footage looks like it was shot in the last week or two, with high definition cameras," he added. The film will premiere during the London Film Festival in October before being broadcast on BBC television. Every school in the U.K. will also receive a copy. The film is part of the government-backed 14-18 Now project, which has presented works by more than 200 artists over four years to remember a conflict in which 20 million people died. Other works premiering this year include a large-scale performance piece by South African artist William Kentridge about African porters who served in the war; processions to mark the 100th anniversary of some British women winning the right to vote; and a performance celebrating wartime homing pigeons that includes birds fitted with LED lights. "Slumdog Millionaire" director Danny Boyle who helmed the 2012 London Olympics opening ceremony will create a mass-participation work to be performed on the anniversary of the Nov. 11, 1918, armistice that ended the war. GAZA - The head of the U.N. agency that helps Palestinian refugees said on Monday that U.S. plans to cut funding to the body were abrupt and harmful and risked destabilizing the Middle East. Pierre Krahenbuhl, commissioner-general of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), visited the Gaza Strip on the same day that U.S. Vice President Mike Pence told the Israeli parliament in Jerusalem that the U.S. would move its embassy there by the end of 2019. The United States, by far the largest contributor to UNRWA, announced on Jan. 16 that Washington will withhold $65 million of $125 million that it had planned to send to UNRWA this year. WATCH: U.S. funding cuts ?UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions from U.N. member states. U.S. President Donald Trump questioned the value of such funding, and the State Department said the agency needed to make unspecified reforms. In Gaza to launch a global funding appeal to keep UNRWA's schools and clinics open through 2018 and beyond, Krahenbuhl said the American cuts would cause difficulties for the agency. "The reduction is a very severe one, it is abrupt and is harmful," said Krahenbuhl. "The world has to ask itself this question: does the Middle East need more instability? Is it reasonable to think that by reducing amounts to UNRWA one is achieving anything else but greater instability in the region?" Palestinian schoolchildren watch a news conference Palestinian schoolchildren watch a news conference by UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl at a U.N.-run school in Gaza City, Jan. 22, 2018. Palestinian schoolchildren watch a news conference by UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl at a U.N.-run school in Gaza City, Jan. 22, 2018. More than half of the two million people in Gaza are dependent on support from UNRWA and other humanitarian agencies. Palestinians say the funding decision could deepen hardship in the Gaza Strip, where the unemployment rate is 46 percent. UNRWA was established by the U.N. General Assembly in 1949 after hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fled or were expelled from their homes in the 1948 war that followed Israel's creation. Around 525,000 boys and girls in 700 UNRWA schools could be affected by the U.S. fund cut, Krahenbuhl told Reuters while visiting a girls' school in Gaza City. Palestinian access to primary health care could also be impacted. "I can't imagine to come to this school or to any other school in UNRWA in few weeks and say to the students, 'Sadly we failed.' Failing is not an option," Krahenbuhl said. Washington gave $355 million to UNRWA in the 2017 fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, U.S. officials say. In a Twitter post on Jan. 2, Trump said that the U.S. gives the Palestinians "HUNDRED OF MILLIONS OF DOLLARS a year and get no appreciation or respect." Trump added that "with the Palestinians no longer willing to talk peace, why should we make any of these massive future payments to them?" Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has called for a gradual cut in UNRWA funding and for its responsibilities to be transferred to the U.N. global refugee agency UNHCR, has voiced measured support for the U.S. fund cut. But Netanyahu has also appeared to acknowledge that it could leave Israel - which maintains tight restrictions on the movement of people and goods across its border with Gaza - with a potential humanitarian crisis on its doorstep. NAIROBI, KENYA - Protesters marched in Nairobi Tuesday following accusations that staff at one of the city's largest hospitals have tried to sexually assault new mothers. The hospital denied the claims but has joined the health ministry in calling for a criminal investigation. It was a Facebook post gone viral that led to this march demanding better security and better maternal care at Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi. The administrator of a popular Facebook group known as "Buyer Beware posted the story of new mother who said she was nearly raped in the corridors of the hospital while going to breastfeed her baby. Other group members chimed in, alleging similar experiences and other misconduct by hospital staff. Later that same day, the Ministry of Health ordered police to investigate. On Tuesday, hundreds of protesters marched to the Ministry of Health to present a petition and then on to the hospital itself. There, outside the main gate, the marchers traded insults with hospital staff. Police acted as a buffer. Hospital staff held placards, some which read, We are not Rapists. We are Professionals, while protesters held signs calling the hospital a vulgar name. The hospital head, Lily Koros, responded to the allegations. We wish to state that there is no mother or patient that has reported to have been raped or an attempted rape at Kenyatta National Hospital. KNH has 24 hour CCTV surveillance in the lifts and along the corridors and along the wards including the newborn unit. Besides there is a security team, including uniformed officers, who oversee the safety and security of patients in the hospital during the day and night, said Koros. But the social media posts have struck a nerve in Kenya. Edna Okerosi took the day off work to participate in the protest. Rape is stigma in itself, even in our homes and even in our estates. When someone is raped, it is so hard for even somebody to go out because at the end of the day when you go out to report, its like you are being raped again because you are reliving the experience, said Okerosi. KNH is the citys main public referral hospital. Other allegations facing the hospital administration are rampant petty theft in the facility, slow service delivery and overcrowding in the wards. Health Cabinet Secretary Cleopa Mailu has pledged to take action based on those findings. JAKARTA - U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis on Tuesday issued a strong rebuke of Turkeys offensive against a U.S.-allied Kurdish militia in northern Syria, saying it is distracting from the fight against Islamic State militants. The violence in Afrin disrupts what was a relatively stable area of Syria. It distracts from international efforts to ensure the defeat of ISIS, and this could be exploited by ISIS and al-Qaida, Mattis told reporters in Indonesia. Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in nort Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in northern Syria controlled by U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters, in Hassa, Hatay, Turkey, Jan. 22, 2018. Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in northern Syria controlled by U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters, in Hassa, Hatay, Turkey, Jan. 22, 2018. Turkey last week began bombing and has sent troops into northern Syria's Kurdish-controlled region of Afrin along the Turkish border, in an attempt to drive out the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units, or YPG. We urge Turkey to exercise restraint in their military actions and rhetoric and ensure its operations are limited in scope and duration, said Mattis, who is meeting with his Indonesian counterparts in Jakarta. Afrin, Syria On Sunday, Mattis said Turkey, a member of NATO, had alerted the United States ahead of the attack. But at that point, Mattis did not criticize the Turkish operation. His tone changed Tuesday. In the Afrin area, we had actually gotten to the point where humanitarian aid was flowing and refugees were coming back in. The Turkish incursion disrupts that effort, Mattis said. Fighters from the Kurdish People's Protection Uni FILE - Fighters from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) monitor troop movements in the area of Afrin, along Syria's northern border with Turkey, on June 9, 2017. FILE - Fighters from the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) monitor troop movements in the area of Afrin, along Syria's northern border with Turkey, on June 9, 2017. The YPG is a key U.S. partner in the war against the Islamic State group, and makes up a large portion of the Syrian Democratic Forces a coalition that has forced Islamic State militants from virtually their entire so-called caliphate. But Turkey views the YPG as a terrorist group and accuses it of having links to Kurdish separatists. WATCH: US Indonesia Relations The U.S. decision to back the YPG has been a source of rising tension between Washington and Ankara, and Turkey this week repeated its calls on the United States to end its support of the militia. Donald Trump's habit of slapping down Mexico is feeding nationalist sentiment in the country's presidential election campaign, prompting contenders to defy him and strengthening the hand of the front-runner, who is courting the anti-establishment vote. In the past week, the three top contenders for the July election have all said Mexico will not pay for the wall the U.S. president wants to build on the U.S. southern border. None has made the point more forcefully than Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, a veteran leftist leading the opinion polls. A victory for Lopez Obrador, who was runner-up in 2006 and 2012, could usher in a more distant and confrontational relationship between the two nations as he promises to lessen Mexico's economic dependence on foreign powers. Presidential hopeful Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador g FILE - Presidential hopeful Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador gives a press conference in Mexico City, June 9, 2017. FILE - Presidential hopeful Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador gives a press conference in Mexico City, June 9, 2017. That dependence is strongest with the United States: Mexico sends about 80 percent of its exports to its northern neighbor and the United States has traditionally been the source of the bulk of foreign direct investment. Under Trump, however, Mexican views of the United States have soured. "Without being disrespectful, we're going to put him in his place," Lopez Obrador said of Trump on Thursday in the Gulf of Mexico port of Veracruz, the scene of a notorious national humiliation when U.S. forces occupied it in 1914. Earlier that day, Trump told his Twitter followers that Mexico was "rated the number one most dangerous country in the world." Although violence is rising in Mexico, its murder rate remains well below that of several Latin American countries, data compiled by the United Nations and the World Bank show. Lopez Obrador, who said earlier this month he would put an end to what he called puppet governments in Mexico taking instructions "from abroad," promised to hit back against Trump's barbs and tell the American "what I think" on Twitter. A December survey by polling firm Parametria gave Lopez Obrador an 11-percentage-point lead, while another last week by Mitofsky gave him a three-point advantage, but growing. Since taking office a year ago, Trump has often expressed negative views of Mexico, blaming it for drugs entering the United States, criticizing U.S. companies with operations south of the border, and insisting Mexico will pay for the wall he wants to stop illegal immigration. He has threatened to tie payment to the terms under which the two neighbors trade by reworking or canceling the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Each time, President Enrique Pena Nieto's government has pushed back. This week presidential hopeful Ricardo Anaya of the conservative National Action Party (PAN), who heads a left-right coalition, and the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party's (PRI) contender, Jose Antonio Meade, also weighed in. FILE - Jose Antonio Meade, former Mexico Finance M FILE - Jose Antonio Meade, former Mexico Finance Minister, poses for selfies with his supporters in Mexico City, Mexico, Dec. 3, 2017. FILE - Jose Antonio Meade, former Mexico Finance Minister, poses for selfies with his supporters in Mexico City, Mexico, Dec. 3, 2017. "Mexico will NOT under any circumstances pay for that wall," Meade said on Twitter on the day Lopez Obrador was in Veracruz. Few issues unite Mexicans more than dislike of Trump, who kicked off his presidential bid in 2015 by accusing the country of sending rapists and drug runners across the U.S. border. Jorge Buendia of pollster Buendia & Laredo said Trump had made it advantageous for Mexican politicians to criticize him, and that it would be "very costly" for the next president to extend the hand of friendship toward his government. "So it's only a matter of time before there are much more critical proposals about Trump and U.S. relations," he said. The most obvious beneficiary of opposition to Trump, at least initially, would be Lopez Obrador, Buendia said. 'Anger among Mexicans' A study published last week featuring data from the Pew Research Center and Buendia & Laredo showed that since Trump entered presidential politics, the image of the United States has deteriorated sharply in Mexico. In 2015, 66 percent of Mexicans held a favorable view of the United States and 29 percent an unfavorable opinion, it showed. Ricardo Anaya, presidential pre-candidate for the Ricardo Anaya, presidential pre-candidate for the National Action Party (PAN), who leads a left-right coalition, addresses supporters during a rally in Huixquilucan, on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico, Jan. 20, 2018. Ricardo Anaya, presidential pre-candidate for the National Action Party (PAN), who leads a left-right coalition, addresses supporters during a rally in Huixquilucan, on the outskirts of Mexico City, Mexico, Jan. 20, 2018. By October 2017, 65 percent of Mexicans had an unfavorable view of the United States and only 30 percent a positive one. Heriberto Galindo, a former PRI congressman and ex-consul general of Mexico in Chicago, said Trump would end up unifying the rhetoric of all the presidential candidates against him. "I'm not saying we're heading for war with the United States, because Mexico is pacifist," he said. "But President Donald Trump is causing a lot of anger among Mexicans ... and a negative attitude toward the United States, which is not helpful, beneficial or healthy, least of all with a neighboring country." Anti-Trump feeling is only likely to intensify if the president follows through on threats to dump NAFTA, which underpins much of Mexico's trade, if it is not reworked to better favor U.S. interests. Negotiators hold another round of talks this week to try to overhaul the deal. Agustin Barrios Gomez, a former federal congressman and head of Fundacion Imagen Mexico, a group dedicated to promoting Mexico's image abroad, argued Lopez Obrador does not even need to sharpen his rhetoric to benefit from Trump, because he has no credible rivals to oppose his nationalist arguments. Both Meade and Anaya represent parties that defended closer economic integration and cooperation with the United States and are the only ones to have held power, Barrios Gomez noted. Now Trump's hostility has shattered that model, he added. "The feeling's there: You trusted these guys [the United States], and they turned on you like the left have been saying for God knows how long," he said. "And that plays to Andres Manuel's strengths because he doesn't have to say anything." A Myanmar court will decide next week the fate of two Reuters journalists arrested and charged with violating the country's Official Secrets Act. Wa Lone, 31, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 27, appeared in court Tuesday, nearly six weeks after their arrest and two weeks after being charged. The two face 14 years in prison for possessing classified material related to military operations in Rakhine State, which rights groups and the United Nations say amount to ethnic cleansing. Their families claimed the two were arrested immediately after meeting police sources for dinner, where they were handed the documents. National League for Democracy spokesperson Win Htein says they were likely caught in a trap. The journalists' defense lawyer told VOA Burmese a court hearing to decide their fate is scheduled for February 1. Their request for bail was blocked Tuesday. U Khin Maung Zaw and Wa Lone both told VOA Burmese of discrepancies between their accounts and the prosecution's accounts of the names of police officers accused of leaking secret documents to the journalists, as well as their time of arrest. Wa Lone also told VOA the two police officers accused in court, Moe Yan Naing and Khin Maung Lin, were not the officers he and Kyaw Soe Oo met on the day of their arrest. CAPITOL HILL - U.S. President Donald Trump has signed a bill reopening the government, ending a 3-day partial shutdown that was triggered in part by a partisan brawl over immigration. Late Monday, members of the House of Representatives voted to approve the bill the U.S. Senate passed earlier in the day. The so-called continuing resolution keeps the government funded until February 8 to allow Congress time to reach a longer-term budget agreement. "It's good news for the country," Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio told reporters. "Today is a day to celebrate," Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine said. "When government shuts down, it represents the ultimate failure to govern." U.S. Senators' Susan Collins (R-ME) addresses repo U.S. Senators' Susan Collins (R-ME) addresses reporters with fellow Senators' Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ). U.S. Senators' Susan Collins (R-ME) addresses reporters with fellow Senators' Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Tim Kaine (D-VA), Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Jeff Flake (R-AZ). "I am pleased that Democrats in Congress have come to their senses and are now willing to fund our great military, border patrol, first responders," President Donald Trump said in a statement read by Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders. Trump later tweeted that after a "Big win for Republicans" he wants "a big win for everyone" on those issues. "Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table!" he said. Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown. Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security. Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 23, 2018 The White House argues Democrats "caved" after Trump refused to negotiate with them on immigration policy until the government reopened. Democrats had been holding out for a firmer commitment to provide protections for some 700,000 younger immigrants brought illegally to the United States as children. Earlier, Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky reassured Democrats that the Senate would address a range of immigration topics, including hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants brought to America as children. "So long as the government remains open, it would be my intention to take up legislation here in the Senate that would address DACA [Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals], border security, and related issues as well as disaster relief, defense funding, health care and other important matters," McConnell said. Democrats, who banded together to help defeat a funding bill late Friday, signaled a wary acceptance of the Republican offer. "While this procedure will not satisfy everyone on all sides, it's a way forward," Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said. "We expect that a bipartisan bill on DACA will receive fair consideration and an up-or-down vote on the [Senate] floor." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., arri Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., arrives at the Capitol at the start of the third day of the government shutdown, in Washington, Jan. 22, 2018. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., arrives at the Capitol at the start of the third day of the government shutdown, in Washington, Jan. 22, 2018. Enacting immigration reform will require more than the Senate, however. Action by the House of Representatives and Trump's signature will also be required. The White House has sent conflicting signals on what the president will accept in a final immigration deal. House Republicans, meanwhile, said they are not bound by promises made in the Senate. "What they do inside their [Senate] chamber is up to them," Oklahoma Congressman Tom Cole said. "The Senate's finally doing the job, but that doesn't commit us to doing anything other than what we said," Republican Rep. Chris Collins of New York said. "We will also negotiate [on immigration] in good faith." Democrats, who had been hailed by immigrant rights advocates for drawing a line in the sand Friday, were blasted as weak-willed for taking the Republican deal. "This Congress needs to get a heart and grow a backbone," the California-based Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights said in a statement. "Democrats need to grow some courage and keep their word. It is a shame the leadership of the Democratic Senate chose to wait one more time to fulfill their promise to the Latino and immigrant community and the country as a whole." Demonstrators rally in support of the Deferred Act Demonstrators rally in support of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), and to avoid the government shutdown on Capitol Hill, Jan. 19, 2018, in Washington. Demonstrators rally in support of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), and to avoid the government shutdown on Capitol Hill, Jan. 19, 2018, in Washington. In a statement Congressman Luis V. Gutierrez (D-IL) complained, "This simply kicks the can down the road with no assurance that we will protect Dreamers [DACA recipients] from deportation or fight Republican attempts to curtail or eliminate legal immigration." President Trump repeatedly accused Democrats of siding with illegal immigrants over the American people, a charge Democrats firmly rejected. On Monday, however, the White House expressed hope for a bipartisan deal on immigration. WATCH: Government reopens ?"I don't think there's a whole lot of daylight between where we are and where the Democrats are," Sanders said at a press briefing. "We certainly want to negotiate and get to a place [agreement], and we're hopeful we can do that over the next couple of weeks." The U.S. government's 2018 fiscal year began in October of last year, but Congress has yet to authorize a full year of spending, passing a series of short-term funding measures at 2017 levels, instead. Democrats went along with three extensions but balked at a fourth last week after immigration talks with Republicans and the White House broke down. VOA's Peter Heinlein and Katherine Gypson contributed to this report. The United States said Tuesday it hopes to unveil a Middle East peace plan later this year, but Vice President Mike Pence says that depends on the Palestinians' willingness to return to negotiations with Israel. As Pence ended a three-day Middle East trip, he told the Reuters news agency, "The White House has been working with our partners in the region to see if we can develop a framework for peace. It all just depends now on when the Palestinians are going to come back to the table." A senior White House official told reporters in Jerusalem that U.S. negotiators are reluctant to insist on a timeline because past deadlines for negotiations have often been missed. WATCH: Pence ends Middle East trip ?"It'll come out both when it's ready and when both sides are actually willing to engage on it," the White House official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Pence said in the Reuters interview that he and President Donald Trump believe the decision to move the U.S. embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem would boost peace-making possibilities. Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas denounced Trump's December announcement about moving the embassy and refused to meet with Pence on the vice president's trip. Pence said in a speech Monday before the Knesset, Israel's lawmaking body, that the United States would move the embassy by the end of 2019. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence listens as U.S. Pre FILE - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence listens as U.S. President Donald Trump announces that the United States recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and will move its embassy there, during an address at the White House, Dec. 6, 2017. FILE - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence listens as U.S. President Donald Trump announces that the United States recognizes Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and will move its embassy there, during an address at the White House, Dec. 6, 2017. Pence repeatedly stated during his trip that the U.S. considers Jerusalem the Israeli capital, a break from long-standing U.S. policy, although he reiterated American policy that final borders in any creation of a Palestinian state must be negotiated. Palestinians also say they consider east Jerusalem to be their eventual capital. Very inspiring The U.S. vice president visited Jerusalem's Western Wall, one of Judaism's holiest sites. Wearing a black skullcap, Pence inserted a piece of paper inside a crack in the ancient stone wall with a prayer, as is tradition for visitors. "It is my great honor to pray here at this sacred place," he wrote. "God bless the Jewish people, and God bless the state of Israel always." After walking away from the wall, Pence said the quiet moment was "very inspiring." Pence's wife, Karen, visited the wall separately, as required by the ultra-Orthodox Jewish authorities who govern the site, among the last remnants of the second Jewish temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. It is in east Jerusalem, occupied by Israel in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed by the Israelis, but never recognized by the international community. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence touches the Western U.S. Vice President Mike Pence touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City, Jan. 23, 2018. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence touches the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest prayer site, in Jerusalem's Old City, Jan. 23, 2018. On his final day in Israel, Pence and his wife also visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, along with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his wife, Sara. The museum has displays remembering 6 million Jews killed during the Holocaust of World War II. In talks with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin, Pence reiterated the Trump administration's view that the international deal on Iran's nuclear program should be changed. Pence said the U.S. is sending a signal to its European allies about the need to alter the 2015 agreement that brought sanctions relief to Iran in exchange for limiting the country's nuclear program to ensure it would not develop nuclear weapons. Trump and Israeli leaders have objected to the agreement, arguing Iran got too much while giving up too little. Negotiators from the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia and Germany all worked to reach the deal with Iran. European leaders have defended the deal as working, including citing the conclusions of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency in charge of monitoring Iran's compliance. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence sits next to Israel U.S. Vice President Mike Pence sits next to Israeli President Reuven Rivlin during a meeting at the Presidents residence in Jerusalem, Jan. 23, 2018. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence sits next to Israeli President Reuven Rivlin during a meeting at the Presidents residence in Jerusalem, Jan. 23, 2018. The European Union has also expressed its support for continuing to seek a two-state solution in negotiations with Israel and the Palestinians with Jerusalem as a shared capital. EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini reassured Abbas of that position during talks Monday. Randolph-Macon College history professor Michael Fischbach said it is not surprising to see a difference in U.S. and European positions. "I think the Europeans, and indeed most of the world community, for a long time have had very different visions for how Israel and the Palestinians should forge a lasting peace, a vision based on internationally accepted norms, based on international law, based on U.N. resolutions. And that has been quite at odds with United States policy over the decades and most recently as expressed by President Trump," Fischbach told VOA. "What will be interesting is to see whether the Europeans actually move forward and propose some sort of alternative peace process." Historic statement Trump's decision parted from long-standing U.S. policy that left the status of Jerusalem as an issue to be resolved by Israeli and Palestinian negotiators. Israeli Arab members hold signs in protest as secu Israeli Arab members hold signs in protest as security pushes them out as U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks in Israel's parliament in Jerusalem, Jan. 22, 2018. Israeli Arab members hold signs in protest as security pushes them out as U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks in Israel's parliament in Jerusalem, Jan. 22, 2018. Netanyahu thanked Trump and Pence for what he called the "historic statement" and declared the U.S.-Israel relationship has "never been stronger." He later told reporters that the sooner the Palestinians "accept the truth" about Jerusalem, the sooner the two sides can reach an agreement "that will create a better future for both our peoples." On Monday, a group of Arab lawmakers greeted Pence's Knesset speech with protests and signs that said, "Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine," before being removed from the chamber. Palestinian chief negotiator Saeb Erekat called Pence's words "a gift to extremists" and proof that the Trump administration "is part of the problem rather than the solution." "His message to the rest of the world is clear: Violate international law and resolutions, and the U.S. will reward you," Erekat said. JAKARTA, INDONESIA - The Pentagon is looking to boost counterterrorism cooperation with an elite Indonesian special forces group, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Tuesday during a visit to Jakarta. The special forces unit, known as Kopassus, has been accused of a range of human rights abuses, including killings and torture, mostly in the 1990s. Mattis says the group has since reformed. "That was upwards of 20 years ago, and we'll look at it since then," Mattis said after meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo, Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu, and other leaders. Mattis' visit aims to expand overall military cooperation with Indonesia, which is modernizing its military and has shown an increased willingness to push back against China's territorial claims. Indonesia is also dealing with the possible return of hundreds of Indonesians who fought with the Islamic State terror group in Syria and Iraq. "We are out to expand in ways that respond to any requests from Indonesia on counterterrorism to include the special forces units," Mattis said alongside his Indonesian counterpart. Following those talks, Ryacudu said he would like Mattis to help relax the legal limitations on closer U.S. ties with the elite special forces group. "Under our rules, there are established procedures for rehabilitating a unit that has been alleged or has committed certain acts," Mattis said. "And we will go through the established procedures." U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, Talks to U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, Talks to reporters at a joint conference with his Indonesian counterpart Ryamizard Ryacudu in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (W. Gallo.VOA) U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, Talks to reporters at a joint conference with his Indonesian counterpart Ryamizard Ryacudu in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (W. Gallo.VOA) Rights abuses Kopassus' alleged abuses include massacres in East Timor, the abduction and forced disappearance of student pro-democracy activists, and a torture campaign in Aceh during a now-ended insurgency. Rights groups say many of those responsible have not been held accountable. Amid those concerns, the United States severed ties with Kopassus in 1999. In 2010, the Pentagon took initial steps toward reestablishing cooperation, but the ties have been limited and non-lethal, consisting of staff exchanges and low-level subject matter dialogue. Mattis says he believes the group has reformed and would now stand up to the scrutiny of the so-called Leahy Law, which prohibits the United States from providing military assistance to foreign security forces that violate human rights. Joseph Felter, the top U.S. defense official on Southeast Asia, said the Pentagon sees "real value and potential in working with Kopassus as a partner in counterterrorism," if the State Department were to loosen restrictions. "They are a very, very effective counterterrorism unit," Felter said. The United States already has very close ties with the Indonesian military. Since 2013, Felter said the United States has sold more than $1.5 billion to Indonesia under the foreign military sales program, including the Apache helicopter and the F-16. And Felter says Jakarta is considering buying more F-16s. "Any time we can help a partner uphold a free and fair rules-based order in a free and open Indo-Pacific, that's what we're here for," the deputy assistant secretary of defense for South and Southeast Asia said. Vietnam On Wednesday, Mattis heads to Vietnam, where China is likely to be a major focus. The Pentagon last week unveiled a new National Defense Strategy that prioritizes the U.S. geopolitical rivalry with China and Russia. Vietnam is one of the most vocal critics of China's expansive claims in the South China Sea, and has repeatedly clashed with Chinese ships in the area. During his visit to Indonesia Tuesday, Mattis repeatedly spoke about the importance of the "rule of law" and "freedom of navigation" - comments apparently aimed at China. WARSAW - Polish prosecutors on Tuesday charged three men for allegedly propagating Nazism after hidden camera footage of a group celebrating Adolf Hitler's birthday sparked uproar in the country, still grappling with the memory of Nazi occupation. The footage, filmed in southwestern Poland and aired on news channel TVN24 this weekend, shows a group of men wearing Nazi-inspired uniforms performing Nazi salutes. Among those caught on camera was a man identified in the report as Mateusz S., the leader of neo-Nazi group Pride and Modernity (DN). He appears to have been speaking at an event marking 128 years since the birth of Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, held on a hill near the southwestern Polish village of Wodzislaw on an undisclosed date. Poland's Internal Security Agency on Tuesday arrested him and two other men identified only as Adam B. and Thomas R. for legal reasons. A search of their residences turned up Nazi paraphernalia, including uniforms, flags and literature along with an illegal firearm. They face charges of publicly propagating Nazism for having organized the event which "praised and affirmed this type (Nazi) of government with emblems, recordings and texts as well as other gestures referring to Nazi symbolism," Ewa Bialik, spokeswoman for the national public prosecutor's office, told the Polish PAP news agency. Totalitarian ideologies like fascism or communism and ethnic or racial hatred are banned in Poland, and carry a penalty of up to two years behind bars. Poland's deputy justice minister Patryk Jaki on Tuesday asked the national public prosecutor's office to ban the Pride and Modernity group. 'No tolerance' Undercover journalists also filmed large red flags with Nazi swastikas hanging on trees and an altar with a portrait of Hitler. Participants in the event set fire to a large wooden swastika soaked in flammable liquid that was fixed to a tree as they played a soundtrack of Nazi military marches. Referring to the neo-Nazi event, Poland's right-wing Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said Monday on Twitter that "there is no tolerance for these kinds of behaviors and symbols." World War II erupted when Nazi Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. Some six million Polish citizens, half of whom were Jewish, perished under the Nazi occupation that lasted until 1945. In November, leaders of the governing right-wing Law and Justice (PiS) party spoke out against xenophobia after a controversial Independence Day march organized by far-right and nationalist groups that drew 60,000 participants and a chorus of condemnation from around the globe. While many marchers denied membership of or sympathy for extreme right groups, the event also drew representatives of far-right parties from across Europe. PENTAGON - A newly declassified investigation says the U.S. military knew about dozens of reported human rights abuses by Afghan military and police, but used a legal loophole to keep funding the offending Afghan units. Afghan security forces were involved in at least 75 gross violations of human rights from 2010 to 2016, including murder and child sexual assault, according to a report from the U.S. Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR) that was requested by 93 members of Congress last year and declassified on Tuesday. The report also notes that it was not until September of 2015, when the New York Times reported on allegations that sexual abuse of children by members of Afghan military and police forces was "rampant," that the U.S. military in Afghanistan provided related training and issued clear guidance that personnel should report suspected child sexual assault. A U.S. law, dubbed the Leahy law, prohibits the Pentagon and the State Department from providing aid to foreign military or police units if there is credible evidence the units have carried out a gross violation of human rights. But a clause within the Defense Department's Appropriations Act allows for an exception to this rule when support to the units is deemed to meet a "national security concern." Despite evidence that Afghan units committed violations, the Pentagon used this loophole to continue most funding for about a dozen implicated Afghan security force units. In its report, SIGAR suggests that Congress could eliminate that exception, explaining the Pentagon has used the clause to allow the Secretary of Defense to "forgo implementation of the Leahy Law." The Pentagon disagrees. "The ... report does not reflect an understanding of the challenges faced by U.S. forces in Afghanistan in developing and sustaining the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces," Pentagon official Jedidiah Royal wrote in a response included in the report last year. The investigation also raises concerns of underreported abuses. The SIGAR report said an Afghan government official expressed surprise at the low number of reported cases, noting that "most of the cases are not reported or investigated" because the police do not self-report and other people fear retaliation if they report the abuses. According to the report, 24 of the 37 individuals and organizations interviewed said they were aware of child sexual assault incidents or related exploitation, such as "bacha bazi" boy play, by Afghan security forces. by Afghan security forces. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has vowed zero tolerance for "bacha bazi" in the country's security forces, and the United Nations has called on Afghanistan to swiftly prosecute state officials guilty of the practice. The investigation found that at least three U.S. service members reported hearing what sounded like child sexual assault but did not know how to address it. MOSCOW - Russia said on Tuesday it had canceled the release of Death of Stalin, a dark, satirical movie from British director Armando Iannucci, saying many Russians would find it an insulting mockery of the country's Soviet past. The film, which focuses on backstabbing and infighting among the Soviet leader's closest allies as they vie for power immediately after his 1953 death, had been privately viewed by culture ministry officials and advisers. Vladimir Medinsky, the culture minister, said Tuesday that his ministry had received a number of complaints after the showing, which had prompted him to withdraw its general release license. He said he had asked legal experts to make extra checks on its content. "Many people of the older generation, and not only, will regard it as an insulting mockery of all the Soviet past, of the country that defeated fascism and of ordinary people, and what's even worse, even of the victims of Stalinism," Medinsky said in a statement. He said his ministry had told the film's distributor that it was inappropriate to release the film on the eve of the 75th anniversary of the victorious World War II Battle of Stalingrad, in which so many Soviet soldiers died fighting for a city that bore Stalin's name. But he said the distributor had not heeded the warning. "We don't have censorship," said Medinsky. "We are not afraid of critical and unpleasant assessments of our history. But there is a moral line between the critical analysis of our history and desecrating it." Russia holds a presidential election on March 18 that incumbent Vladimir Putin is expected to easily win. Putin, who has dominated Russian politics for the last 18 years, has put patriotism at the center of his rule. FILE - A bust of Soviet leader Josef Stalin stands FILE - A bust of Soviet leader Josef Stalin stands on the front lawn of a house-turned-museum in the village of Khoroshevo, west of Moscow, Russia, Dec. 9, 2015. The Stalin museum was opened this year in this small village where the Soviet leader is said to have stayed the night on his only visit to the front during World War II. FILE - A bust of Soviet leader Josef Stalin stands on the front lawn of a house-turned-museum in the village of Khoroshevo, west of Moscow, Russia, Dec. 9, 2015. The Stalin museum was opened this year in this small village where the Soviet leader is said to have stayed the night on his only visit to the front during World War II. ?'A complex figure' Stalin was repudiated by the Soviet Union after his death. He is recognized as responsible for the deaths of millions, from policies that included the forced collectivization of farms that caused famine, and from a succession of purges that saw mass executions and imprisonment at an archipelago of camps. But the wartime Soviet leader is still associated by many Russians with the country's greatest achievements. Putin has called Stalin "a complex figure" and has said attempts to demonize him were a ploy to attack Russia. Some of the people who attended the film's private viewing told Reuters they were disgusted. "It's a despicable film," said Nadezhda Usmanova, head of the Russian Military Historical Society's department of information. The group was involved in organizing the pre-release screening. "It's a bad film, it's a boring film, and it's vile, repugnant and insulting," Usmanova told Reuters. Elena Drapeko, deputy head of the culture committee in the State Duma, the lower house of Parliament, said she found "extremism" in the movie. "It's an effort to breed bad blood into the social harmony that has been reached in Russian society," said Drapeko, who earlier in her career was a popular Soviet and Russian actress. The United States government headed back to work Tuesday, but Russia does not appear to be done trying to capitalize on the nearly three-day-long shutdown. U.S. President Donald Trump signed a bill late Monday, funding the government through February 8. But even as lawmakers and the White House reached agreement, Twitter accounts linked to Russian influence operations continued to post hashtags seemingly aimed at amplifying the country?s political divisions. Throughout the three-day shutdown, the governing Republicans and opposition Democrats each sought to pin the blame on the other, with the Democrat Party labeling it the Trump Shutdown while Trump and his Republican Party allies using the more alliterative Schumer Shutdown ? a reference to the Senate?s top Democrat, Chuck Schumer of New York. Among those using #schumershutdown Monday were U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and Trump?s son, Donald Trump, Jr. ?Thanks to the firm stand taken by @POTUS & Senate & House Republicans, the gov't shutdown is coming to an end. The #SchumerShutdown failed,? Pence tweeted Monday while visiting Israel. Thanks to the firm stand taken by @POTUS & Senate & House Republicans, the gov%27t shutdown is coming to an end. The #SchumerShutdown failed. Now that the government is re-opening, Congress can get back to work advancing the Presidents agenda that is Making America Great Again! pic.twitter.com/yTajh2WKG4 Vice President Mike Pence (@VP) January 22, 2018 But the Schumer label was getting a big boost from Russian-linked websites according to Hamilton 68, an online site run by the German Marshall Fund think tank that monitors trends on about 600 Twitter accounts with ties to Moscow. As of 10 p.m. ET Monday night, the hashtag #schumershutdown had been used 535 times in the previous 48 hours, it said. The core issue in the shutdown was a Democratic demand for legislation to protect the so-called ?Dreamers,? undocumented immigrants brought to America as children, from possible deportation. In the end, the Democrats won only a verbal promise to debate and vote on the issue in the coming days. That prompted the rise of another top hashtag that cast the Democratic leader in a poor light: #schumersellout. Use of that hashtag, suggesting the Democrats have given up too easily, increased by 4,800 percent on the Russian-linked websites monitored by Hamilton 68. The #schumersellout hashtag began trending on Twitter Monday, used in 19,700 tweets as of about 10 p.m. ET. While many of those using the hashtag may have been frustrated Dreamers and their allies, it also was used by at least some Republicans hoping to embarrass the Democrats. Among the accounts using it was the Michigan Republican Party, which tweeted, ?Schumer Sells Out the Resistance #SchumerSellout,? along with a link to an opinion column in The New York Times. The Hamilton 68 website makes clear that hashtags like #schumershutdown or #schumersellout are often not created by the Russian-linked accounts. Instead, they often take hashtags created by Twitter users who are not necessarily linked to Russia and try to amplify them to help perpetuate existing divides. The site said other top hashtags being heavily promoted by the Russian-linked accounts included "releasethememo", "QAnon", "maga", "Syria", "nodaca", "wethepeople" and "Russia." #ReleasetheMemo, which the Russian-linked accounts tweeted 480 times Sunday and Monday, saw their heaviest usage late last week (Thursday and Friday), when the accounts tweeted the hashtag more than 3,000 times. It also gained popularity among Twitter users, including some in Congress, pushing the House Intelligence Committee to release a confidential report written by the committee?s chairman, Republican Devin Nunes. They argued the report shed light on bias at the FBI and the Department of Justice, both of which have been investigating possible ties between the Trump presidential campaign and Russia. U.S. intelligence officials and lawmakers from both parties have warned Russia is continuing to try to meddle in U.S. politics with an eye on the 2018 midterm elections. Russia has denied the allegation. "They're trying to undermine Western democracy," Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats told the Aspen Security Forum this past July, admitting Russia's influence efforts are "quite a bit more sophisticated than they used to be." "I think all of my colleagues probably are worried or should be worried about it," Senate Intelligence Committee chairman Richard Burr warned last month. "To believe that Russia's not attempting in the United States to do things potentially for the '18 cycle I think would be ignorant on our part," Burr said. Two people were killed and 12 others wounded in a shooting Tuesday at a high school in the southeastern U.S. state of Kentucky, according to Governor Matt Bevin. Bevin said the suspected shooter was a 15-year-old boy who was apprehended at the school and will face murder and attempted murder charges. A 15-year-old girl died on the scene and a 15-year-old boy died at a hospital. Bevin said he believed all of the victims were students. FILE - Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin. FILE - Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin. FILE - Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin. The shooting occurred at Marshall County High School in the city of Benton in western Kentucky. Bevin issued a statement saying, "It is unbelievable that this would happen in a small, close-knit community like Marshall County." Federal authorities have joined state and local law enforcement agencies in the investigation. Authorities investigate the scene of fatal school Authorities investigate the scene of fatal school shooting, in Benton, Kentucky, Jan 23, 2018. Authorities investigate the scene of fatal school shooting, in Benton, Kentucky, Jan 23, 2018. Kentucky State Police said they have no reason to believe anyone else was involved shootings. The school, which has an enrollment of more than 1,100 students, is about 40 kilometers from Paducah, Kentucky, where a 1997 school shooting claimed the lives of three people and injured five others. Four people have been killed and six others wounded in a remote-controlled improvised explosive device explosion near the Somali capital on Tuesday, officials and witnesses said. Three government soldiers and a seven-year-old-boy were killed after the explosion hit a military vehicle at K-13, a suburb near Mogadishu, witnesses said. District commissioner Kahda Mohamed Ismail Abdullahi told VOA Somali that the three soldiers were in the vehicle targeted in the explosion. The child was about seven years old; he was bystander walking on the side of the road, Abdullahi said. The injured include soldiers as well as civilians, he said. The explosion occurred just before 2 p.m. local time in one of the suburbs predominantly inhabited by internally displaced people along the Mogadishu-Afgoye corridor. Al-Shabab militants claimed responsibility for the explosion and said it killed an officer. Al-Shabab relies heavily on IEDs, including remote-controlled, magnetic, vehicle-borne and under-vehicle devices, to target government soldiers, African Union troops and civilians. Abdullahi says authorities dont have the expertise or equipment to search for explosives every day as vehicular traffic begins and members of the public start going about their business. He said militants infiltrate areas in the dead of night to bury IEDs. We only rely on our eyes. When we spot, we call for explosive expertise to defuse, he said. MADRID - Russian hacking operations to support Catalonian independence are continuing and could intensify, according to a report published this week by the Center for Strategic and Defense Studies, CESEDEN, a Spanish Defense Ministry think tank. The report claims Russia is destabilizing Spain as tensions escalate in the rebellious northeastern region. "The Kremlin is taking advantage of the Catalan crisis to destabilize, employing a policy intended to generate confusion in the social media," the report said. People wait for the opening of a polling station t FILE - People wait for the opening of a polling station to cast their vote for the Catalan regional election in Barcelona, Spain, Dec. 21, 2017. FILE - People wait for the opening of a polling station to cast their vote for the Catalan regional election in Barcelona, Spain, Dec. 21, 2017. While Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy hoped the elections he called in the region last month would defuse tensions, they instead returned the pro-independence majority to the regional parliament. This week, the pro-independence majority continued to defy Madrid by nominating exiled leader Carles Puigdemont as president. Suspicions of Russian meddling in Catalonia have been voiced by Spanish defense minister Maria Dolores Cospedal, as well as EU and NATO analysts. FILE - Spain's new Defense Minister Maria Dolores FILE - Spain's new Defense Minister Maria Dolores Cospedal poses for the media as she arrives for the first cabinet meeting of the new government at the Moncloa palace in Madrid, Nov. 4, 2016. FILE - Spain's new Defense Minister Maria Dolores Cospedal poses for the media as she arrives for the first cabinet meeting of the new government at the Moncloa palace in Madrid, Nov. 4, 2016. Although Cospedal has been reluctant to blame Russia directly, she said last November that her government was analyzing how thousands of robot accounts supporting Catalonias independence operated from Russia. Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has accused Spain of trying to blame Russia for its internal weaknesses. But a 2,000 percent increase in social media traffic has been detected since a referendum and subsequent declaration of independence by the Catalan parliament late last year. The moves triggered the imposition of direct rule by the Spanish government, which issued an order of arrest for Puigdemont. Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont arrive Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont arrives at Copenhagen Airport, Denmark, Jan. 22, 2018. Catalan separatist leader Carles Puigdemont arrives at Copenhagen Airport, Denmark, Jan. 22, 2018. Indirect target: NATO Spains Defense Ministry has said it agrees with the CESEDEN reports conclusions in a section titled Impact of Geopolitical Dynamics on Spain. The report's author, University of Barcelona political scientist Josep Basques, said Russia was using Spains unrest to weaken NATO. Moscow does not have specific interests in Spain, as it's too far from its area of influence. But Moscow aspires to foment problems in Catalonia as a way of debilitating a member of NATO, he said. Basques warned that the strategy could be repeated in other European countries with secessionist minorities. A NATO specialist in cyber warfare who testified before Spanish congressional hearings says the Kremlin's investment in cyber operations targeting Spain represent a tiny fraction of the estimated $1 billion Moscow spends in official and unofficial media outlets. 'Troll farm' at work Much of the pro-secessionist social media traffic has been traced to a Russian troll farm operating from a building on the outskirts of St. Petersburg. A company called Internet Research is housed in the building, which is owned by Evgeny Prigozhin, a close business associate of Russian president Vlaldimir Putin. FILE - In this picture taken April 19, 2015, a wo FILE - In this picture taken April 19, 2015, a women enters the four-story building known as the "troll factory" in St. Petersburg, Russia. The troll factory is where hundreds of young Russians work around the clock writing blogs and posting comments. FILE - In this picture taken April 19, 2015, a women enters the four-story building known as the "troll factory" in St. Petersburg, Russia. The troll factory is where hundreds of young Russians work around the clock writing blogs and posting comments. IR employs dozens of hackers, bloggers and writers to disseminate fake news and articles favorable to the Kremlin, according to former employees who have talked to the western press and describe an operation resembling a boiler-room scheme. "They are capable of putting out any type of news, commentary and opinion extremely quickly, said Spanish cybersecurity expert Manuel Huerta. They try to create a trend by following each other and attracting real profiles, whose following they enhance for further impact. Ukranian cyberanalyst Katrin Palanska has said that IR also targets Ukraine and Baltic states where Moscow is supporting pro-Russian separatists. Russian cyberattacks have reached highly intense levels and have even involved attempts to commandeer Ukraines electrical grid and government records, according to Palanska. Anti-independence journalists in Catalonia say their websites and email accounts have been systematically hacked from electronic dominions in Russia. Eric Encinas, publisher of a digital magazine, showed VOA a Post Office Protocol (POP3) Google notification received last week of unusual detected activity in his hotmail account that was traced to a location in Russia. There was a similar attempt to hack his gmail account last month from Ekaterimburg, where the IR troll farm is located. Venezuela involved Over 30 percent of robot accounts supporting Catalonian independence also originated in Venezuela, according to Spanish defense spokesmen. Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro, a close Russian ally, has attacked Rajoy for supporting opposition to his government. Accounts such as #VenezuelaSalutesCatalunya have boosted messages calling Rajoy a brutal dictator and urging Catalans to resist." Social media narratives may yet have influence in Catalonia, where the exiled Puigdemont plans to govern telematically. His supporters in the Catalan parliament plan to inaugurate him by Skype. Oriol Soler, a close media adviser to Puigdemont, has met with Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, whose Russian connections were highlighted by his role in the social media campaign against Hillary Clinton in the 2016 U.S. elections. Assange has generated 40,000 tweets in support of Catalan independence since meeting with Soler last November. Soler said he met Assange at Ecuador's embassy in London to discuss a digital publishing project. ISLAMABAD - Police in northwestern Pakistan say a student shot and killed his college principal on campus on Monday after accusing him of blasphemy. The incident occurred at the private Islamia College in the northwestern town of Charsadda. The shooter was arrested, according to area police chief Zahoor Afridi. Afridi explained that the slain principal, Sareer Ahmed, reprimanded one of his students for skipping classes to attend an Islamist rally supporting Pakistan's blasphemy laws. The argument angered the student, who fired six shots at Ahmed. Police arrived at the campus and took the shooter into custody along with his weapon. An investigation has been launched. In a video recorded during the arrest, the unnamed student can be heard justifying his crime in the local Pashto language, saying he believed the college principal had committed blasphemy. I have been taught to kill the blasphemer and dont be afraid of disrespecting those who insult God. I, myself, killed him, and I confess it, proclaimed the 12th grade student. The young man had traveled to Islamabad in November to participate in a sit-in protest organized by a radical Islamic group, Tehreek-e-Labaik, to denounce attempted changes in an electoral law for allegedly being blasphemous. The protest paralyzed the national capital for three weeks and ended only after the government accepted all the group's demands, including removal of the federal law minister. Under Pakistani blasphemy laws, insulting Islams prophet is punishable by death. Mere accusations can stir mob violence and lynchings of alleged blasphemers in the predominantly Sunni Muslim nation. Last April, student Mashal Khan was beaten to death at his university campus in the nearby city of Mardan after fellow students accused him of posting blasphemous material on social media. The incident provoked widespread outrage and condemnation across Pakistan. Police have since arrested nearly 60 people, including students and some faculty members, for playing a role in Khan's lynching. Rights activists have long complained about misuse of blasphemy laws in Pakistan, where dozens of people have been murdered over unproven allegations of blasphemy. LONDON - For the thousands of Syrian rebels fighting alongside Turkish forces in northern Syria this week in a military offensive Ankara has called Operation Olive Branch, each village retaken from Kurdish militiamen is payback for what they see as the Kurds' betrayal of the rebellion against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Ankara says the goal of its intervention, launched Saturday, is to create a safe zone 30 kilometers wide to protect its borders from Syrian Kurdish separatists, whom Turkey dubs "terrorists" and says they're tied to its outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, which has been waging an insurgency in the southeast for decades. FILE - Kurdish fighters from the People's Protecti FILE - Kurdish fighters from the People's Protection Units (YPG) chat with members of U.S. forces in the town of Darbasiya next to the Turkish border, Syria, April 29, 2017. FILE - Kurdish fighters from the People's Protection Units (YPG) chat with members of U.S. forces in the town of Darbasiya next to the Turkish border, Syria, April 29, 2017. The broader Turkish aims, say analysts, is to try to drive a wedge between the United States and People's Protection Units, the Syrian Kurdish militia known as the YPG, a key ally of Washington in the battle against Islamic State. The Turkish government sees the YPG as an offshoot of the PKK. But the participation of Syrian rebels in the Turkish offensive has a strongly personal element, one of revenge. Many of the rebels aligned with Turkey come from rural northern Syria. They see the battle to wrest control of the northern Kurdish enclave of Afrin and outlying Arab villages as vengeance for the coordination they allege took place in February 2016 between the YPG and Russian-backed forces loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in an offensive to encircle Aleppo. That offensive saw the YPG grab the opportunity to seize a string of Arab villages and towns in northern Syria to the southeast of Afrin, including traditionally Arab Tell Rifaat. "The problem is not only that the Kurdish fighters cooperated with the Syrian regime and the Russians during the battle for Aleppo, but that the YPG burned dozens of Arab villages and displaced their inhabitants," Gen. Salim Idris, a former rebel chief of staff, told VOA. The loss of Tell Rifaat was a calamity for Syrian rebels, depriving them of the chance to establish a defensive line. Revenge by many factions Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army, FSA, fighters stan Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army, FSA, fighters stand on the roof of a building with a poster of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hanging on it in the Syrian town of Azez near the border with Turkey, Jan. 19, 2018. Turkey-backed Free Syrian Army, FSA, fighters stand on the roof of a building with a poster of Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan hanging on it in the Syrian town of Azez near the border with Turkey, Jan. 19, 2018. And it was seen by Turkey-based Free Syrian Army (FSA) insurgents battling Assad as a stab in the back by the YPG, one they vowed they would get even for. Now, they say, their time has come. "The goal of the Free Syrian Army is to regain 16 Arab towns and villages occupied by the YPG" in 2016, said Major Yasser Abdul Rahim, the commander of Failaq al Sham, a rebel militia. The Turkish offensive has the support, too, of the Syrian rebels' main political organization, the Syrian Coalition, which says it is backing Ankara's intervention. The coalition is urging YPG militiamen to "pull out of the towns and villages they occupied and from which they displaced their residents." Turkey's operation highlights the tangled mess that northern Syria has become with its dizzying array of sectarian and ideological groups, all claiming right is on their side, eager to extract revenge for the bloodletting. There seems no end in sight to the war in Syria: micro-conflicts proliferate, aggravated partly by outside powers, with friend becoming foe, and foe turning into a temporary ally in an instant. Russian approval International reaction to Turkey's intervention illustrates the complexity of interests involved. Russia appears tacitly to have blessed Ankara's move. In the days leading up to Operation Olive Branch, it moved Russian military advisers out of Afrin. On Monday, Turkish President President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said, "We have discussed it with the Russians and we have an agreement with them." Fighters from the self-defense forces of the Kurdi Fighters from the self-defence forces of the Kurdish-led north hold their weapons during a rally in Hasaka, northeastern Syria, Jan. 23, 2018. Fighters from the self-defence forces of the Kurdish-led north hold their weapons during a rally in Hasaka, northeastern Syria, Jan. 23, 2018. The Kurds accuse Damascus, which has formally denounced the Turkish intervention, and Moscow, of having struck a bargain with Erdogan, in which the Turkish leader will ignore an Assad offensive on nearby Idlib, the last remaining Syrian province in rebel hands, while they will give Turkey free rein in Afrin to punish the Kurds. NATO Meanwhile, Turkey's NATO allies appear divided over whether to rebuke Ankara for the offensive. U.S. Defense Secretary James Mattis warns Turkey's offensive against the U.S.-allied YPG distracts from efforts to ensure the final defeat of IS and cautioned that jihadists would exploit it. In a statement Monday, British Prime Minister Theresa May's office said, "We are closely following developments in Afrin in northwestern Syria. We recognize that Turkey has a legitimate interest in the security of its borders." The Turkish intervention comes just weeks after Washington said it planned to shape, train and arm a mainly Kurdish manned border force to help stabilize northern Syria a move Turkey has denounced, saying it feared such a force could be used to help the Kurds form an autonomous region in a swathe of land along its border. Tension in East Africa is rising after Ethiopias prime minister this weekend rejected Egypts suggestion the World Bank arbitrate ongoing disagreements over the construction of a dam on the Nile River. The stakes are high for both countries. Ethiopia says the $5 billion hydroelectric dam will provide power to millions in desperate need of electric power. Egypt says it will disrupt the flow of water from the Nile, jeopardizing agriculture in the country. Ethiopia anticipated the dam, now in its seventh year of construction, would be completed last year, but the project is only about 60 percent complete, according to the Associated Press. The nixed arbitration is the latest setback in a months-long dispute between the regional powers. Its also one of many regional conflicts heightened by a growing power struggle among Gulf states that continues to spill into East Africa. If diplomatic tensions go unresolved, they could morph into military confrontations and proxy wars, say experts who closely watch the region. Gulf crisis East Africa has long faced a volatile mix of internal and external pressures, but Middle East states that see potential alliances in East Africa have complicated diplomacy in the region, according to Rashid Abdi, Horn of Africa project director at the International Crisis Group. A major competition has emerged between several Arab parties, with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates on one side and Qatar and Turkey on the other. The Gulf crisis has simply, I think, brought out the long-simmering tensions between these regional powers. It is not the primary cause, but it is actually a potent catalyst of many of those fault lines, especially over the Nile waters, Abdi said. Turkeys expanding role has had an especially destabilizing effect, he added. Turkey plans to build a naval dock in the Sudanese port city of Suakin, Sudans foreign minister said in December. Last year Turkey built a military base in Somalias capital, Mogadishu, to help train Somali soldiers in their fight against militant group al-Shabab. Emerging powers While Egypt and Ethiopia command most of the diplomatic clout in the region, other players see opportunities to assert themselves amid fresh tensions and a growing Arab presence. Ethiopia and Sudan have developed a strategic alliance in the past year. Egypt and Eritrea have also grown close, with unconfirmed reports in recent weeks of Egyptian soldiers at the Sawa military base in Eritrea. Those reports might have been part of a diversionary crisis manufactured by Sudan, Abdi said. In this photo provided by Egypt's state news agenc In this photo provided by Egypts state news agency, MENA, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, left, meets with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi at the presidential palace, in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 9, 2018. In this photo provided by Egypts state news agency, MENA, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, left, meets with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi at the presidential palace, in Cairo, Egypt, Jan. 9, 2018. Earlier this month, Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki met with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi in Cairo to discuss mutual interests. For Sudan and Eritrea, the tension between Egypt and Ethiopia represents a chance to gain new footing and forge beneficial partnerships. Sudan faces a difficult road toward rebuilding its economy in the wake of lifted U.S. sanctions. Eritrea, still under sanctions, sees an opportunity to emerge from isolation and cope with its own vulnerabilities and migration issues, according to Abdi. Hope for solutions Its unlikely Egypt and Ethiopia will go to war, Abdi said, as long as the countries use diplomatic channels and stay at the bargaining table. The destabilizing potential of the Gulf crisis can be discussed, but I think the more these discussions are in the open, [the more] that can probably modify behavior, Abdi said. But the possibility of military conflict persists. Unless, I think, there is an urgent understanding of the risks and also attempts to diffuse these tensions, I think theres a likelihood we may see conflict, not immediately, but at some point, Abdi said. And Im not necessarily talking about an open conflict between states but largely an escalation of proxy conflicts. TOKYO - The Japanese capital of Tokyo on Tuesday dug out from more than 20 cm of snow that had snarled traffic, trapping cars on bridges and in tunnels, although transport delays remained around the metropolis. The snow that began on Monday morning tapered off early on Tuesday after dumping some 23 cm on a city that rarely has snow accumulate, with freezing temperatures keeping snow-choked roads slick and pedestrians wary. Most commuter lines were operating normally, but a number of train services were canceled and highways remained closed, while airports struggled to clear a backlog of flights. Canceled flights and a lack of transport left 6,000 people stuck at Narita airport overnight. "I slept on the floor last night, but at least my flight to Hawaii will leave later today, so I'm looking forward to that," one woman told national broadcaster NHK. A woman and her baby make their way on a snow-cove A woman and her baby make their way on a snow-covered sidewalk in Tokyo, Japan, Jan. 23, 2018. A woman and her baby make their way on a snow-covered sidewalk in Tokyo, Japan, Jan. 23, 2018. More than 740 traffic accidents due to the snow were reported, and 67 people were injured from falls as of last night, NHK added. About 50 cars got stuck and unable to move on the "Rainbow Bridge" along Tokyo's waterfront on Monday night, while traffic jams set off by heavy snow trapped a number of cars inside a tunnel for as much as 10 hours. The Japanese capital, which is on roughly the same latitude as the U.S. city of Raleigh, North Carolina, often sees snow at least once a year, but it rarely accumulates. GENEVA - The new executive director of the U.N. Children's Fund, Henrietta Fore, warns conditions for millions of children in war-ravaged South Sudan are seriously worsening, as children face hunger, illness and possible death. Fore has been on the job as UNICEF chief for only 23 days. Yet, she thought it important to visit South Sudan, one of the biggest humanitarian crises in the world, to assess the situation and see what can be done. She describes conditions as abysmal. She says the country is experiencing the worst food shortages in years, acute child malnutrition rates that already are above the emergency threshold of 15 percent, and escalating gender violence by all warring parties. "Seventy percent of the children are out of school," she said. "One-third of those schools are closed either due to violence or teachers running away or villagers running away, so that there is no school. And, there is, as many of you know, 17 percent literacy in the country. It is just too low for any of us to feel that you can have a well-governed country or citizens that really will be able to govern their country." Rebel fighters walk through town after receiving f Rebel fighters walk through town after receiving food in Akobo, near the Ethiopian border, in South Sudan, Jan. 19, 2018. Rebel fighters walk through town after receiving food in Akobo, near the Ethiopian border, in South Sudan, Jan. 19, 2018. South Sudan's government and rebels signed a cease-fire agreement in December. Fore says this gives her hope that people can move toward reconciliation and peace. Another hopeful sign, she says, is the government's intention to release some child soldiers in the coming weeks. UNICEF reports more than 19,000 children have been recruited to fight by all the armed groups. She says UNICEF is working hard to provide education, health, water and sanitation, and protection for children against violence. But, she says funding is not keeping pace with the needs. Most contributions come from governments. Fore tells VOA in addition to this source, UNICEF is exploring new partnerships in the private sector. "We really are reaching out to corporations and foundations and individuals across the world," she said. "We think everyone should care about children and their lives and should care about young people.So, our purview is the ages from birth through 18 years old. And, that is a very critical element of all of our world." The humanitarian crisis in South Sudan has gone on for so long, the UNICEF chief says she worries it is sometimes forgotten by the world at large. She urges nations to remain alert to what is happening there, as so many lives hang in the balance. NEW YORK - The United Nations agency that supports Palestinian refugees launched a $500 million funding campaign this week in the aftermath of a decision by the Trump administration to substantially cut the U.S. contribution to the agency this year. The announcement two weeks ago that Washington has committed $60 million this year instead of its traditional $350 million, shocked and upset Palestinian refugees. It also left the UN agency, known as UNRWA, scrambling not to disrupt services to the 5 million registered Palestinian refugees it assists in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. "We provide schooling to over 500,000 children in 700 schools around the region," said Peter Mulrean, UNRWA's New York director. "We provide healthcare, 9 million visits in 150 clinics last year. We have 1.7 million Palestine refugees who are food insecure, a million of them in Gaza. These are things that you don't stop from one day to the other." Palestinians receive food aid at a U.N. warehouse Palestinians receive food aid at a UN warehouse in the Shati refugee camp, Gaza City, Jan. 14, 2018. Palestinians receive food aid at a UN warehouse in the Shati refugee camp, Gaza City, Jan. 14, 2018. Tensions have been high between the Palestinian Authority and Washington since President Donald Trump announced December 6 that he would recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the U.S. embassy there. The Palestinians pushed for a vote at the UN General Assembly that overwhelmingly condemned the U.S. decision, leading to speculation that the funding cut to UNRWA was political retaliation. "This is not aimed at punishing anyone," said Heather Nauert, a State Department spokesperson. "The United States government and the Trump administration believe that there should be more so-called burden sharing to go around." But last week, the U.S. ambassador to the UN took a tougher line in an interview with VOA. "They go and take us to the United Nations and are basically very hostile in what they say and what they do," Nikki Haley told VOA. "We are not going to pay to be abused, it doesn't make sense." In a waiting room in a UNRWA clinic in southern Be In a waiting room in a UNRWA clinic in southern Beirut, Palestinians Ahmad Said, second from left, and Abed Ghosein, third from left, await treatment. (J. Owens/VOA) In a waiting room in a UNRWA clinic in southern Beirut, Palestinians Ahmad Said, second from left, and Abed Ghosein, third from left, await treatment. (J. Owens/VOA) Both officials also said that the administration wants to see UNRWA make some internal reforms before the U.S. considers allocating any future contributions. "I have not been communicated and I have not received any specific indication at this point from the U.S. administration about specific reform-related questions," said Pierre Krahenbuhl, the commissioner general of UNRWA. "And I must tell you that I'm absolutely clear in my mind, that the decision that was taken in funding terms was not related to our performance." Krahenbuhl launched the $500 million funding campaign on the same day that U.S. Vice President Mike Pence visited Israel and addressed the Israeli parliament. In the meantime, UNRWA aims to keep all communications channels open with the Trump administration while it seeks new donors to fund the work it has done for 70 years. STATE DEPARTMENT - The United States is expressing concern about Turkeys offensive in northern Syria and top officials are appealing for restraint and fears that the conflict could spread. At Mondays White House briefing, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the U.S. understands Turkeys legitimate security concerns and is committed to working with Turkey as a NATO ally. Increased violence in Afrin disrupts a relatively stable area of Syria," she said. "It distracts from international efforts to ensure the lasting defeat of ISIS, it could be exploited by ISIS and al-Qaida for resupply and safe haven, and it risks exacerbating the humanitarian crisis. Sanders also urged Turkey to exercise restraint in its military actions and rhetoric, ensure that its operations are limited in scope and duration, ensure humanitarian aid continues, and avoid civilian casualties. We want to ensure that Assad's brutal regime cannot return to Afrin, and we will continue working diplomatically to end the Syrian civil war. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders FILE - White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders talks to reporters during a press briefing in the Brady press briefing room at the White House, in Washington, Jan. 11, 2018. FILE - White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders talks to reporters during a press briefing in the Brady press briefing room at the White House, in Washington, Jan. 11, 2018. Tensions between US, Turkey While Washington wants to preserve its relationship with Turkey. it also has ties to Kurdish and other forces forces targeted by Turkey. In a London press conference Monday, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said The U.S. is in Syria to defeat ISIS (the so-called Islamic State), and weve done that with a coalition of partners, and the Syrian Democratic Forces in particular, which are comprised of Kurdish and Arab, but also elements of Christian forces. It is truly a multiethnic group of fighters who are defending their home territory. And so we are concerned about the Turkish incident in northern Syria." Later, Tillerson downplayed concerns about rising tensions between Turkey and the United States. I don't think youre going to find two NATO allies facing off at all, he said. WATCH: Tillerson discuss Turkey, Syria ?Tillerson said Turkey is worried about terrorists crossing the border into Turkey and carrying out attacks and we appreciate their right to defend themselves, but this is a tough situation where there are a lot of civilians mixed in. So weve asked them to just, try to be precise, try to limit your operation, try to show some restraint. Advance notification U.S. Central Command spokesman Lt. Col. Earl Brown told VOA the U.S. has no coalition operations in Afrin. He also said the U.S. has a MOU (memorandum of understanding) with Turkey where they let the U.S. know of operations in Syria and they have kept to that memorandum. Turkey's actions in Afrin are unilateral and not associated with coalition operations in Syria," he said. "In accordance with an existing memorandum of understanding, Turkey is providing advance notification of its operations to the Coalition to ensure awareness prior to military actions. The French ambassador to the United Nations, Francois Delattre, asked for the opportunity for an emergency meeting on the wider situation in Syria, the humanitarian situation in particular. He added, our priority is about Eastern Ghouta and Idlib where there is a tragedy happening before our eyes that is totally unacceptable. French Ambassador Francois Delattre speaks to repo FILE - French Ambassador Francois Delattre speaks to reporters as he arrives for a Security Council meeting, July 24, 2017, at U.N. headquarters. FILE - French Ambassador Francois Delattre speaks to reporters as he arrives for a Security Council meeting, July 24, 2017, at U.N. headquarters. ?Tillerson to meet with French On Tuesday, Tillerson will meet with senior French officials to discuss a range of issues, including Syria, Iran, Lebanon, Libya, the threat from North Korea, and Ukraine. He will also attend the launch of the International Partnership against Impunity for Use of Chemical Weapons. State Department officials say Tillerson is set to make remarks in Paris on Syria and chemical weapons. Tillerson told reporters he would have an exchange of views on stopping the use of chemical weapons. Obviously, we know chemical weapons are being used in Syria. We've seen it, he said. Asked about new reports that Syria is again using chemical weapons against its own civilians. U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs, Steve Goldstein, could not confirm the report, but he told reporters in Washington Monday: Civilians are being killed and it is not acceptable, he said. U.N. to address use of chemical weapons? Asked whether the United States would raise the issue at the U.N. Security Council, Goldstein said: We'll see tomorrow. Goldstein added that Russia needs to do more to stop the killings. Russia had failed to rid Syria of chemical weapons, and theyve been blocking chemical weapons organizations. Enough is enough, he warned. VOA's Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb contributed to this report WASHINGTON / HASAKAH, SYRIA - The U.S.-led coalition fighting the Islamic State (IS) in Syria concluded a training course for 500 members of the Syrian Democratic Forces this week. The goal, the SDF says, is to prepare them to protect their borders after the removal of IS in northern Syria. Without giving a timetable, Kurdish commanders at the training camp in the northern Syrian city of Hasakah told VOA the new graduates will join a 30,000-strong border army that the coalition announced it would form last week. All borders of Syria should be protected by the people of Syria, and this force takes on itself that responsibility, Kani Ahmed, a Kurdish commander of the Syrian Democratic Forces, told VOA. Syrian fighters attend their graduation ceremony n Syrian fighters attend their graduation ceremony near Syria's northeastern city of Hasakah, Jan. 20, 2018. Syrian fighters attend their graduation ceremony near Syria's northeastern city of Hasakah, Jan. 20, 2018. While Kurdish commanders say the goal is to prepare them to protect their borders after the removal of IS in northern Syria, the Pentagon says the force will be "internally focused" on stability to prevent "freedom of movement" by remnants of the IS terror group "These local security forces are aimed at preventing the potential outflow of fleeing ISIS terrorists as their physical presence in Syria nears its end and, pending a longer-term settlement of the civil war in Syria, to ensure that ISIS cannot escape or return," Pentagon spokesman Marine Maj. Adrian Rankine-Galloway said, using another acronym for Islamic State. Commander Ahmed said this weeks training was the second in preparing new fighters. Another group of 500 men received their training in late December. Ahmed added the men will be deployed to the northern Syrian towns of Kobani, Tal Abyad and Suluk along the border with Turkey. The force consists of all Syrian components, including Kurds, Arabs and Chaldeans, he told VOA. Our objective is to protect Syrian borders wherever we can reach. However, a U.S. military official told VOA Tuesday that calling these fighters a "border force" is a misrepresentation. He said some border security activities are included in the training because they are protecting areas that are near the border, but that their primary purpose is localized security for their area, not border defense. Turkey considers the Kurdish-led YPG, the backbone of the SDF, a terrorist organization. Turkey alleges the group is an extension of the Kurdish separatists inside Turkey, known as the PKK, which is designated a terrorist organization by both the U.S. and the EU. But Washington rejects Turkeys claims and considers the YPG a key ally in fighting IS. A VOA reporter who visited the schoolyard training site for the new border force in southern Hasakah this week was told by Kurdish commanders that the training was supervised by the U.S.-led coalition. WATCH: Graduation Ceremony Takes Place in Hasakah Izet Omer, one of the graduates of a training program in the city of Kobani, told VOA his training was directed by American commanders stationed in Syria as a part of coalitions anti-IS operation. "We are very happy that America is supporting us, and we hope they increase this type of support, Omer said, as he was celebrating his graduation. Another graduate, Adhem Heyder, told VOA that the training included instructions on how to entrench along border points and prevent cross-border infiltration. They instructed us on how to dig trenches and how to expel the enemy from a trench, Heyder said. They also trained us on how to move in convoys along the border and how to retreat with minimum loss when the enemy attacks. But, a senior administration official dismissed talk that the U.S. had ever considered establishing a force that would have a presence on the Syria-Turkey border, writing it off as baseless allegations. There was never such a plan that had any policy approval, and in fact [it] wasnt even considered here in [Washington], D.C. at a policy level, a senior U.S. administration official told VOA Tuesday. There may have been some blue sky type thinking by military planners at a tactical level based on the mission parameters that theyve had, but that was never put forward as a policy option, never considered by the interagency decision makers here, he said. Erdogan's Threat Last week, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan threatened to strangle the U.S.-backed force before its even born. Syrian fighters hold up their weapons during their Syrian fighters hold up their weapons during their graduation ceremony near Syria's northeastern city of Hasakah, Jan. 20, 2018. Syrian fighters hold up their weapons during their graduation ceremony near Syria's northeastern city of Hasakah, Jan. 20, 2018. In an effort to calm tensions with Turkey, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson last Wednesday, said the U.S. had no intention of building a border force, adding that the issue was "misportrayed." That entire situation has been misportrayed, misdescribed. Some people misspoke. We are not creating a border security force at all, he said while traveling back to Washington after hosting a meeting on North Korea in Canada. I think its unfortunate that comments made by some left that impression. That is not what were doing. But U.S. assurance has failed to convince Turkey, which along with its allied members of the Free Syrian Army, continues its offensive in Afrin. ISLAMABAD - The United States has redeployed a squadron of A-10 ground attack planes to Afghanistan, bolstering the air campaign against the Taliban being conducted in partnership with Afghan forces. The U.S. military said Tuesday the aircraft, commonly known as the Warthog, supports the increased requirements for close air support and precision strike capacity, while undertaking counterterrorism missions and targeting drug factories funding insurgent activities. Those aircraft will be joined by MQ-9 Reaper drones for "armed overwatch" and reconnaissance of the battlefield, and HH-60G Pave Hawk helicopters for personnel recovery, according to a military statement. Under the authorities granted in the South Asia Policy, precision strikes with A-10s will hit the Taliban where they are most vulnerable: their revenue streams and profits from developing and selling illegal narcotics, it said. President Donald Trumps new policy has already dramatically increased the number of airstrikes against militant targets and the A-10s return is expected to escalate the war effort. The U.S. military dropped nearly 1,900 bombs in just the past four months of 2017, compared to only 524 for the same period the year before. With the arrival of new air assets and the growing capabilities of Afghan pilots, the Taliban will have a constant eye towards the sky as an integrated unified fight is aimed directly to them, said Major General James Hecker, a U.S. commander in Afghanistan. The military said the A-10s will conduct their first strike against the Taliban in a matter of days. Since November, 30 strikes conducted against Taliban narcotics production facilities destroyed more than $20 million in Taliban revenue, according to NATOs Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan, which mostly comprises U.S. troops. Tuesdays announcement also said the Afghan Air Force (AAF) will more than double their fleet of aircraft during the next seven years. The introduction of AC-208 attack aircraft and UH-60 Black Hawk assault helicopters, as well as additional A-29 attack aircraft and MD-530 attack helicopters are part of the planes to strengthen AAF. Critics have warned the war in Afghanistan is likely to intensify in 2018 in the wake of a stepped up U.S. military campaign in a country where civilian casualties spiked to record levels in the previous year. CAPITOL HILL - U.S. senators expressed differing expectations on Tuesday for what Congress might produce on thorny immigration topics, one day after a government shutdown ended on a promise of Senate action to protect young immigrants and boost border security. "Now, serious negotiations can resume," Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said. "We have a fresh start today. I challenge every one of us to make the most of it." Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., fla FILE - Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., flanked by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., left, and Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks to reporters about efforts to avoid a government shutdown this weekend, at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 17, 2018 FILE - Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., flanked by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., left, and Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks to reporters about efforts to avoid a government shutdown this weekend, at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 17, 2018 On Monday, McConnell said he intended for the Senate to consider legislation addressing the plight of undocumented immigrants brought to America as children and other issues by February 8, when U.S. government funding expires once again. The assurance convinced more than 30 Senate Democrats to join Republicans in voting to end a three-day partial federal shutdown. "The Republican majority now has 16 days to work with us to write a bill that can get 60 votes [in the 100-member Senate] and prevent Dreamers [young immigrants] from being deported," Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said. "The clock is ticking." President Donald Trump already rejected an immigration proposal negotiated by three Republican and three Democratic senators that reportedly included a legislative fix for recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals [DACA], enhanced border security and reforms to legal immigration. A top Trump ally on Capitol Hill, Republican Sen. David Perdue of Georgia, dismissed the deal as a starting point for negotiations going forward. "It [the bipartisan proposal] doesn't solve the problem. We've got to move past that to find a solution," Perdue told reporters. The border wall FILE - Three of U.S. President Donald Trump's eigh FILE - Three of U.S. President Donald Trump's eight border wall prototypes are shown near completion along U.S.- Mexico border in San Diego, California, Oct. 23, 2017. FILE - Three of U.S. President Donald Trump's eight border wall prototypes are shown near completion along U.S.- Mexico border in San Diego, California, Oct. 23, 2017. Schumer, meanwhile, retracted a tentative offer on border wall funding he reportedly made to the president in private talks at the White House last week. Trump has repeatedly pledged to build a wall spanning the U.S.-Mexico border but backed away from promises that Mexico would pay for it. Democrats opposed the wall but expressed willingness to back limited funding for physical barrier construction in order to reach a deal on DACA recipients. Given the president's rejection of that deal, Democrats said negotiations must start from scratch on all items, including the border wall. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, accompanied Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, accompanied by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), speaks with reporters following the party luncheons on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 23, 2018. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, accompanied by Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA), speaks with reporters following the party luncheons on Capitol Hill in Washington, Jan. 23, 2018. "We're going to have to start on a new basis, and the wall is off the table," Schumer said. Trump wrote on Twitter late Tuesday that "if there is no wall, there is no DACA." Hardening positions, new start Despite a hardening of bargaining positions by both Republicans and Democrats, many senators said they were heartened by discussions by some two-dozen members of both parties laying the groundwork for Monday's end of the government shutdown. "Every now and then, we vote our hopes over our fears, and yesterday, that's what we did," Democratic Sen. Tom Carper of Delaware said. "I think that eventually we're going to have to get together [reach an agreement]," Iowa Republican Sen. Chuck Grassley said. "We're all trying to find a way to provide for the humanitarian needs of the DACA kids." "The Senate had been a partisan dead zone," Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse of Rhode Island told VOA. "The fact that we ended up coming to a bipartisan solution is more than just an act of faith. I hope it's something of a new morning for senators to treat each other with respect and end the appalling partisanship." Trump weighed in on Twitter, saying, "Nobody knows for sure that the Republicans & Democrats will be able to reach a deal on DACA by February 8, but everyone will be trying." Senate Majority Whip Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, sp Senate Majority Whip Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks to reporters as he walks to the Senate Chamber at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 22, 2018, after the Senate reached an agreement to advance a bill ending government shutdown. Senate Majority Whip Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks to reporters as he walks to the Senate Chamber at the Capitol in Washington, Jan. 22, 2018, after the Senate reached an agreement to advance a bill ending government shutdown. To that end, one powerful Republican had a suggestion for the White House: End widespread confusion on Capitol Hill about what the president will and won't accept in an immigration deal. "My hope is that the president will release some further details on what it is he's expecting to see," Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas told reporters. Lawmakers told VOA they are well-aware that a continued impasse on immigration could spark another government shutdown next month. Asked if he expected a deal that could pass both houses of Congress and be signed into law, Hawaii Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz said, "It's too early to tell." STATE DEPARTMENT - The United States joined its NATO allies Tuesday in launching a pressure campaign against the use of chemical weapons in Syria, while singling out Russia for protecting Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime. "The recent attacks in East Ghouta raise serious concerns that Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime might be continuing its use of chemical weapons against its own people," U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said in Paris. Tillerson said at least 20 people were killed Monday in an apparent chlorine gas attack in rebel-held East Ghouta, near Damascus. A Syrian man shows remnants of rockets reportedly A Syrian man shows remnants of rockets reportedly fired by regime forces on the rebel-held besieged town of Douma in the eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, Jan. 22, 2018. A Syrian man shows remnants of rockets reportedly fired by regime forces on the rebel-held besieged town of Douma in the eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, Jan. 22, 2018. He singled out Russia and its support for the Assad regime. "Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in East Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons since Russia became involved in Syria," said Tillerson during a conference hosted by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian on an initiative to target those responsible for chemical attacks. Tillerson, along with foreign ministers from France, Germany and Turkey, were among those who on Tuesday launched the International Partnership Against Impunity for Use of Chemical Weapons. More than two dozen like-minded nations endorsed a political commitment to share information on combating the use of chemical weapons worldwide. The U.S. secretary of state said Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria called into question its commitment to the resolution of the overall crisis. "At a very minimum, Russia must stop vetoing and at least abstain from future security council votes on this issue," Tillerson said. A Syrian man wears an oxygen mask at a makeshift h A Syrian man wears an oxygen mask at a makeshift hospital following a reported gas attack on the rebel-held besieged town of Douma in the eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, Jan. 22, 2018. A Syrian man wears an oxygen mask at a makeshift hospital following a reported gas attack on the rebel-held besieged town of Douma in the eastern Ghouta region on the outskirts of the capital Damascus, Jan. 22, 2018. Russia used its council veto last year three times to prevent the so-called Joint Investigative Mechanism, or JIM, from carrying out its mandate to find out who had perpetrated chemical weapons attacks in Syria. Its third veto, in November, effectively killed the mechanism. In New York, the Russians hastily called a Security Council meeting Tuesday afternoon. Russian envoy Vassily Nebenzia criticized the JIM as a "complete failure" and a "mechanism of political manipulation." He said Russia was circulating a draft resolution proposing a new mechanism. "We wish to rise above these differences and to propose the establishment of a new international investigative body, which, on the basis of irreproachable and corroborated information received from transparent and credible sources, would be able to establish evidence for the Security Council to identify perpetrators in the use of chemical weapons or chemical warfare agents," Nebenzia told council members. "This mechanism needs to be professional, and it must be an apolitical mechanism." But U.S. Ambassador Nikki Haley appeared to reject the Russian proposal. "We're not going to accept any Russian proposal that undermines our ability to get to the truth or that politicizes what must be an independent and impartial investigation," she said. "If they want to work in good faith toward that goal, we are ready to re-establish the JIM, with its original independent and impartial mandate, right now. But anything less is unacceptable." Haley criticized Russia for accepting the JIM's conclusions when they pointed to Islamic State militants being responsible for gas attacks, but not when they found the Assad regime culpable. Turkey's Afrin offensive Turkey's offensive in the northern Syrian enclave of Afrin was also a focus of Tuesday's talks in Paris, with Tillerson meeting with his Turkish counterpart, Mevlut Cavusoglu. A day earlier, during remarks in London, the top U.S. diplomat said the United States was "concerned" about the offensive against U.S.-backed Kurdish YPG fighters in Syria. Turkish forces intensified military operations Monday to push the Kurdish militia out of the Afrin area. Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in nort Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in northern Syria controlled by U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters, in Hassa, Hatay, Turkey, Jan. 22, 2018. Turkish army tanks enter Afrin, an enclave in northern Syria controlled by U.S.-allied Kurdish fighters, in Hassa, Hatay, Turkey, Jan. 22, 2018. The Turkish operation is aimed at ousting from Afrin the Syrian Kurdish group that has controlled territory in northern Syria and proven effective in the U.S.-coalition-led fight against Islamic State militants. Turkey considers the YPG to be a terrorist organization associated with the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, which has fought for Kurdish autonomy in Turkey. French Foreign Minister Le Drian on Tuesday joined Tillerson in expressing his concern about Turkey's military operation in Afrin. "I had the opportunity to tell my Turkish colleague that this offensive worries us," Le Drian said. "While we understand the concerns Turkey has about border security, we cannot but call on Turkey to show the greatest level of restraint on this issue," the French foreign minister added. Turkey's shelling into Afrin came after the U.S.-led coalition said it would form a 30,000-strong Kurdish-led border security force in northern Syria. Washington later said the effort had been mischaracterized and that the U.S. was not creating a border force, but that the coalition would provide security to liberated areas, blocking escape routes for Islamic State militants. China and South Korea are protesting U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to impose steep tariffs on washing machines and solar panels, a move that is fueling concerns in Asia that more U.S. protectionist measures are forthcoming. Trump said Tuesday that the U.S. was also considering raising tariffs on steel and aluminum. "We're looking at it; we're looking at a lot of things," he told reporters. South Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong called the tariffs "excessive" and said they violate World Trade Organization rules. Kim said South Korea planned to file a petition against the U.S. at the WTO. The tariffs significantly impact South Korea's Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, which have captured about one quarter of the U.S. washing machine market that is dominated by American companies Whirlpool and General Electric. Samsung said the tariffs are "a tax on every consumer who wants to buy a washing machine." China, the U.S.' largest trade partner and the world's biggest solar panel manufacturer, said the tariffs are an "overreaction" that would hurt the global trade environment. Beijing's Commerce Ministry said it would collaborate with other WTO members to "resolutely defend its legitimate interests," without offering specifics. Trump has frequently criticized China for engaging in what he believes are unfair trade practices that have led to the elimination of U.S. jobs. "After a year's preparation, Trump is ready to take action to address the huge trade deficit with China and get even," said Zhang Yi, chief economist with the Beijing-based Capital Securities. Washington will impose tariffs of up to 50 percent on large washing machines over a three-year period and up to 30 percent on solar panels over four years. They were imposed after the U.S. International Trade Commission found that the imported products were "a substantial cause of serious injury to domestic manufacturers." CARACAS, VENEZUELA - Venezuela is set to hold a new presidential election by April 30, with President Nicolas Maduro seeking a second six-year term over divided opposition. Chafing at a new round of international sanctions, the pro-Maduro Constituent Assembly unanimously approved the new election Tuesday as the ruling Socialist Party attempts to consolidate its power. The election was scheduled to be held by the end of 2018, but some analysts had predicted Maduro would encourage an earlier vote to take advantage of opposition that has splintered in its complaints about his rule. Not long after the assembly vote, Maduro said he would seek re-election. "I'm a humble worker," the Associated Press reported him as telling journalists at a rally. "I will accept the presidential candidacy if that's what the social and political forces of the Bolivarian revolution decide." The rally marked 60 years since the country overthrew a military dictatorship. Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, greet supporters at a rally marking the 60th anniversary of the end of dictator Marcos Perez Jimenez's regime, in Caracas, Jan. 23, 2018. Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, greet supporters at a rally marking the 60th anniversary of the end of dictator Marcos Perez Jimenez's regime, in Caracas, Jan. 23, 2018. Defying international sanctions Maduro's possible re-election would flout "financial persecution and sanctions" by the United States and its allies, Vice President Tareck El Aissami said at the rally, to cheers and applause. More foreign sanctions could be imposed. U.S. President Donald Trump has continued to put pressure on the Maduro government, which it has called an "illegitimate dictatorship" since changing the constitution to consolidate his hold on power. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert was asked whether Venezuela would benefit from Maduro seeking a second term, Reuters news agency reported. "I don't think so," she said to reporters. "I don't think that that's a good idea. Certainly the people would have to decide." The Lima Group a bloc of at least a dozen Latin American nations that formed in 2017 to promote democracy in Venezuela issued a statement Tuesday saying the decision would undermine a "transparent and credible" election. "We demand that the presidential elections be convened with adequate anticipation, with the participation of all Venezuelan political actors and with all the corresponding guarantees," said Chile's foreign minister, Heraldo Munoz. Diosdado Cabello, who is second-in-command of the ruling United Socialist Party, proposed Maduro as the party's sole candidate. Cabello had been considered a possible contender. Maria Corina Machado, an opposition leader, described the proposed elections as "fraudulent." "These are not elections, they are military decisions ... and under the presence of foreign irregular groups in the heart of Venezuela," Machado told Radio Caracas RCR on Tuesday. In an interview with VOA, Jose Brito, a member of the opposition-led National Assembly, accused the Maduro government of chipping away at the South American country's democratic foundations. Venezuelans who fled their homeland line up for te Venezuelans who fled their homeland line up for temporary residence permits in Lima, Peru, Jan. 23, 2018. Venezuelans who fled their homeland line up for temporary residence permits in Lima, Peru, Jan. 23, 2018. Council to determine election date The National Electoral Council, which must ratify the assembly's decision, is responsible for setting an election date. The Constituent Assembly is not recognized by the United States or entities such as the European Union, which on Monday blacklisted seven more senior Venezuelan officials from doing business with its member countries. Instead, the United States, European Union and other countries support the National Assembly, the parliament that largely has been sidelined since the other assembly was formed in late summer and assumed extraordinary power. "Before the sanctions, we call for elections," Cabello said on his Twitter account. The sanctions are intended to pressure the Maduro government to restore democratic measures, including free and fair elections. Other goals of the sanctions are to obtain the release of political prisoners and access to humanitarian aid. Many in the country of 30 million are suffering from severe shortages of food and medicine. Others have fled the country. Venezuela's foreign ministry touted the assembly's decision in a tweet, contending the Constituent Assembly "is absolutely constitutional, the people elected it. Today it is again summoning the Venezuelan people to elections." Venezuela's constitution decrees the new presidential term must begin in January 2019. Maduro, whose popularity is around 20 percent, became president in April 2013 following the death of his predecessor and mentor, Hugo Chavez. WHITE HOUSE - U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday denied that Federal Bureau of Investigation director Christopher Wray threatened to resign under pressure from the White House and Attorney General Jeff Sessions to fire his top aide. "No, he didn't at all. Not even a little bit. Nope," the president said when asked about it during an Oval Office event in the White House. "And he's going to do a good job." The Axios news website says it stands by its report that Sessions, at Trump's urging, pressured Wray to fire his top deputy, Andrew McCabe, and other members of the inner circle of former FBI director James Comey. This comes amid allegations that senior officials of the top domestic intelligence, national security and law enforcement agency had shown political bias in their professional work. FILE - Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe appears b FILE - Then-Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe appearing before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing about the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 7, 2017. FILE - Then-Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe appearing before a Senate Intelligence Committee hearing about the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, on Capitol Hill in Washington, June 7, 2017. Trump fired Comey last year when he was heading the agency's investigation into alleged Russian interference in the 2016 U.S. presidential election to help Trump win. "We have 100 percent confidence in Director Wray," White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters following the president's comment, echoing a remark she gave earlier in the day to VOA. Asked by reporters about whether Trump maintains there are others in the FBI echelon who have a bias against the president and should be removed, Sanders replied that "he feels that if any changes need to be made the director will make that decision and carry them out." Axios, noting that firing Wray would have created a media firestorm, reported that the White House relented after the FBI director pushed back against the pressure to oust McCabe. Trump has on several occasions fired off Twitter comments expressing displeasure with McCabe, noting that the FBI official's wife received $700,000 in campaign contributions from what he described as "Clinton puppets" when the official's wife ran for a state legislative seat in Virginia as a Democrat, and noting with approval that McCabe is eligible to retire with full benefits in March. .@FoxNews-FBIs Andrew McCabe, in addition to his wife getting all of this money from M (Clinton Puppet), he was using, allegedly, his FBI Official Email Account to promote her campaign. You obviously cannot do this. These were the people who were investigating Hillary Clinton. Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 24, 2017 FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe is racing the clock to retire with full benefits. 90 days to go?!!! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2017 How can FBI Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, the man in charge, along with leakin James Comey, of the Phony Hillary Clinton investigation (including her 33,000 illegally deleted emails) be given $700,000 for wifes campaign by Clinton Puppets during investigation? Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 23, 2017 Sanders declined further comment Tuesday on McCabe, except to note that he is expected to leave the FBI soon. "He's already in the process of retirement, and I don't have further comment on that other than to say the president wants Director Wray to make the decisions that he sees fit and sees necessary to run his agency," she said. Trump on Tuesday kept up his Twitter pressure on the nation's premier law enforcement agency, noting that FBI officials have admitted that they cannot locate thousands of text messages between two senior officials accused of displaying anti-Trump bias in their work on investigations involving the president. In one of the biggest stories in a long time, the FBI now says it is missing five months worth of lovers Strzok-Page texts, perhaps 50,000, and all in prime time. Wow! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 23, 2018 The latest Trump tweet comes days after Senator Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, sent a letter to Wray asking to explain why it failed to preserve the text messages between Peter Strzok, the top FBI counterterrorism official, and agency attorney Lisa Page. Strzok, who was also the lead investigator on the FBI team looking into Hillary Clinton's email server prior to the 2016 election, was removed from the Trump Russia probe months ago after it was discovered that he and Page, who were linked romantically, had disparaged Trump in text messages during the presidential campaign. The missing texts cover a five-month period from shortly after the election through May 2017. Page had left Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigative team before the text messages were discovered. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal last month, Trump called Strzok's behavior "treasonous." Attorney General Jeff Sessions listens at the begi FILE - Attorney General Jeff Sessions listens at the beginning of a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, Nov. 14, 2017 in Washington. FILE - Attorney General Jeff Sessions listens at the beginning of a House Judiciary Committee hearing on Capitol Hill, Nov. 14, 2017 in Washington. As Republicans in Congress stepped up efforts to learn more about allegations of political bias at the FBI, Attorney General Sessions on Monday vowed to get to the bottom of the missing text issue. "We will leave no stone unturned to confirm with certainty why these text messages are not now available to be produced and will use every technology available to determine whether the missing messages are recoverable from another source," Sessions said. "If we are successful, we will update the congressional committees immediately." Shakil Afridi has languished in jail for years since 2011, when the Pakistani doctor used a vaccination scam in an attempt to identify Osama bin Laden's home, aiding U.S. Navy Seals who tracked and killed the al-Qaida leader. Americans might wonder how Pakistan could imprison a man who helped track down the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks. Pakistanis are apt to ask a different question: How could the United States betray its trust and cheapen its sovereignty with a secret nighttime raid that shamed the military and its intelligence agencies? "The Shakil Afridi saga is the perfect metaphor for U.S-Pakistan relations" a growing tangle of mistrust and miscommunication that threatens to jeopardize key efforts against terrorism, said Michael Kugelman, Asia program deputy director at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington. The U.S. believes its financial support entitles it to Pakistan's backing in its efforts to defeat the Taliban as a candidate, Donald Trump pledged to free Afridi, telling Fox News in April 2016 he would get him out of prison in "two minutes. ... Because we give a lot of aid to Pakistan." But Pakistan is resentful of what it sees as U.S. interference in its affairs. Mohammed Amir Rana, director of the independent Pakistan Institute of Peace Studies in Islamabad, said the trust deficit between the two countries is an old story that won't be rewritten until Pakistan and the U.S. revise their expectations of each other, recognize their divergent security concerns and plot an Afghan war strategy, other than the current one which is to both kill and talk to the Taliban. "Shakil Afridi [is] part of the larger puzzle," he said. Afridi hasn't seen his lawyer since 2012 and his wife and children are his only visitors. For two years his file "disappeared," delaying a court appeal that still hasn't proceeded. The courts now say a prosecutor is unavailable, his lawyer, Qamar Nadeem Afridi, told the Associated Press. "Everyone is afraid to even talk about him, to mention his name," and not without reason, said Nadeem, who is also Afridi's cousin. In Nadeem's office, the wind whistles through a clumsily covered window shattered by a bullet. On another window, clear tape covers a second bullet hole, both from a shooting incident several years ago in which no suspects have been named. Another of Afridi's lawyers was gunned down outside his Peshawar home and a Peshawar jail deputy superintendent, who had advocated on Afridi's behalf, was shot and killed, said Nadeem. Afridi used a fake hepatitis vaccination program to try to get DNA samples from bin Laden's family as a means of pinpointing his location. But he has not been charged in connection with the bin Laden operation. He was accused under tribal law alleging he aided and facilitated militants in the nearby Khyber tribal region, said Nadeem. Even the Taliban scoffed at the charge that was filed to make use of Pakistan's antiquated tribal system, which allows closed courts, does not require the defendant to be present in court, and limits the number of appeals, he said. If charged with treason which Pakistani authorities say he committed Afridi would have the right to public hearings and numerous appeals all the way to the Supreme Court, where the details of the bin Laden raid could be laid bare, something neither the civilian nor military establishments want, his lawyer said. Pakistan and the Taliban Tensions have grown between Pakistan and the U.S. since Trump's New Year's Day tweet in which he accused Pakistan of taking $33 billion in aid and giving only "deceit and lies" in return while harboring Afghan insurgents who attack American soldiers in neighboring Afghanistan. Days later, the U.S. suspended military aid to Pakistan, which could amount to $2 billion. Infuriated by Trump's tweet, Pakistan accused Washington of making it a scapegoat for its failure to bring peace to Afghanistan. The Wilson Center's Kugelman advocated a "scaled-down relationship" between the two countries. He said both sides need to agree to disagree on some issues and instead focus on those areas where they can agree to cooperate against terror groups that both regard as threats, including the Islamic State group and al-Qaida. Pakistan and the Taliban sanctuaries it provides are a big part of the insurgents' success in Afghanistan, but it's only one of many factors, Kugelman said. "It's foolish to suggest that if the Pakistani sanctuaries were eliminated, the insurgency would magically go away and the U.S. would be able to prevail in Afghanistan," he said. "The Taliban has persevered because the U.S. still struggles to fight wars against non-state actors, and because the Afghan government has remained a weak and corrupt entity that has failed to convince a critical mass of Afghans that it's a better alternative to the Taliban." 'Unjustly imprisoned' Afridi spends his days alone, isolated from a general prison population filled with militants who have vowed to kill him for his role in locating bin Laden, said Nadeem. Still, Nadeem said authorities are treating Afridi well and he is in good health, according to those who have seen him. There was a no indication whether U.S. Acting Assistant Secretary of State Alice Wells brought Afridi's case up in recent meetings in Pakistan. But in a statement, the U.S. State Department told the AP that Afridi has not been forgotten. "We believe Dr. Afridi has been unjustly imprisoned and have clearly communicated our position to Pakistan on Dr. Afridi's case, both in public and in private," it said. In the past, Pakistan has compared Afridi's dilemma with demands for the release of Afia Siddiqui, a Pakistani woman who is in U.S. custody convicted of trying to kill an American soldier in Afghanistan. "To America, she [Siddiqui] is a terrorist," said Kugelman. "To Pakistan, she is a wrongfully imprisoned innocent." Pope Francis apologized Monday for remarks he made defending a Chilean bishop accused of covering up sex abuse, but he did not back down in his support of the bishop. On a flight to Rome following a weeklong trip to Chile and Peru, the pope told reporters he was sorry for his choice of words and the tone of his voice when answering a reporter's question about Bishop Juan Barros last week. He said his words "wounded many" and were a "slap" in the face. Last week, Pope Francis responded to allegations against Barros. The day they bring me proof against Bishop Barros, I'll speak. There is not one shred of proof against him. Everything is slander. Is this clear?'' On Monday, he acknowledged that the word "proof" may have hurt many victims. "To hear the pope tell them to their faces, 'Bring me a letter with the proof', it's a slap, and I realize now that my expression was unfortunate," he said. He added that he should have used the term evidence, which he said could include testimony. But the pope doubled down on his support of Barros, saying the Vatican had investigated the bishop and did not find "any element to condemn him." Pope Francis said he was "convinced" of Barros' innocence. Barros' critics say he was complicit in keeping quiet about the sex abuse of his former mentor, Chilean priest Fernando Karadima. The Vatican sanctioned Karadima in 2011 to a lifetime of penance and prayer, based on the testimony of victims who said the priest molested and fondled minors in his Santiago parish. Barros has denied accusations that he knew about the abuse. Pope Francis' comments last week about Barros dominated news coverage of his trip to Chile and Peru and led to unusual criticism by Cardinal Sean O'Malley, Pope Francis' top adviser on abuse. OMalley said the pope's words were a source of great pain for survivors.'' On Monday's plane ride to Rome, Pope Francis called O'Malley's comment "very fair." "He recalled everything I did, and what I do, and what the Church does, and then he spoke of the pain of the victims," Francis said. Various youth who attended the town hall in Harare, where President Emmerson Mnangagwa was a guest, said they are encouraged by what he had to say. Harare residents Precious Mutendi and Kudadwashe Muzembe, said the president addressed their concerns and found his perspective, "refreshing." Please enable cookies on your web browser in order to continue. The new European data protection law requires us to inform you of the following before you use our website: We use cookies and other technologies to customize your experience, perform analytics and deliver personalized advertising on our sites, apps and newsletters and across the Internet based on your interests. By clicking I agree below, you consent to the use by us and our third-party partners of cookies and data gathered from your use of our platforms. See our Privacy Policy and Third Party Partners to learn more about the use of data and your rights. You also agree to our Terms of Service. About Me Scott Because prophetic scriptures are found throughout the bible, it is obvious that a comprehensive, systematic approach would be useful, if not necessary, for the understanding of prophecy. Past prophecies have been fulfilled in a literal manner, as confirmed by the dating of these writings and historical records of confirmation. These past prophecies also serve as a model of how to interpret future prophecies. A literal view of prophecy clearly indicates a certain sequence of events will occur within a single generation, concluding with the Tribulation and Second Advent and these events will be obvious. The prophetic signs appear to be present in this generation and we believe these signs are revealed in the news from around the world. View my complete profile Theres so much outlandish, futuristic technology already available on the fringes these days waiting for the market to catch up, so when something from a mainstream brand hits the market it makes everyone pause. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/1/2018 (1324 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion Theres so much outlandish, futuristic technology already available on the fringes these days waiting for the market to catch up, so when something from a mainstream brand hits the market it makes everyone pause. Opening the first Amazon Go store to the public in Seattle on Monday may be one of those moments. Its a store with no cashiers. No checkout lines. You have to download an app onto your mobile device to be able to enter the store. After that, the sensors and cameras basically do the rest. After you finish shopping you "just walk out" with your "purchases," even though youve not officially acknowledged to anyone what youve bought. Amazon spent the last year fine-tuning its Just Walk Out technology. The headlines are all about eliminating checkout lines which is a glorious concept to even those slightly impatient shoppers. Amazon officials are saying that at this point there are as many employees at their Seattle store about the size of a typical 7-Eleven as there are in traditional stores. But one wonders if, for instance, the company rolled out scores of these stores across the country, would they be staffed with the same level of intensity as the pilot store, which is located basically on-site at the Amazon corporate headquarters. But considering that low paying, unskilled jobs across the broad spectrum of industry are becoming more and more vulnerable, that might not be the most serious impact of this kind of technology. Retailers are having their world rocked with some regularity, much of of it thanks to Amazon, the original disrupter. Sylvain Charlebois, the dean of the business school at Dalhousie University and one of the keenest observers of anything to do with the food industry in Canada, sees the development of Amazon Go as something even more transformational than mere convenience. "I think Amazon is using a chapter out of its own book," Charlebois said on Monday. "This is really more about data analytics than automation and the modernization of food distribution as a whole." What he means is that its not so much about figuring out ways to get people in and out of stores as fast as they can, which is pretty excellent, but its about knowing what people want to buy in the first place and having it on hand. Amazon Go opens the same day that Sobeys announced a partnership with a U.K. company that has the technology that will allow Sobeys to get into the online grocery home-delivery business a lot quicker than if it tried to develop the technology itself. "Amazon is developing a model that will allow it to become a more efficient grocery retailer," Charlebois said. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. "Right now, grocery stores have access to the data but most of them dont know how to deal with it. Amazon is equipped to do that. Most grocery businesses in Canada are not hard-wired to sell online, let alone in a store with only a few employees." And by the way, Charlebois thinks this is a good thing for consumers. He said there are plenty of challenges, especially for grocery retailers, to be able to have the products on hand that people want to buy right now. He said artificial intelligence technology that is being deployed will, in effect, know what the consumer wants to buy even better than the consumer themselves. On a broader scale, this is the kind of development that gives a glimpse of the shape of things to come. Brendan Witcher, principal analyst with Forrester Research, who shopped in the store last week told USA Today, "This is the definition of disruption. This is Netflix replacing Blockbuster, this is Uber replacing taxis." martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca The Assiniboine Park Conservancy is holding a naming contest for two orphaned polar bear cubs who arrived at the Winnipeg zoo in early December. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/1/2018 (1324 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. The Assiniboine Park Conservancy is holding a naming contest for two orphaned polar bear cubs who arrived at the Winnipeg zoo in early December. The polar bear zookeeping team came up with two choices for each bear and is inviting zoo fans to take part in an online poll. Allison Ginsburg, curator of animal care at the Assiniboine Park Zoo interacts with polar bears Juno (left) and York. A contest is underway to name two new bear cubs. (Boris Minkevich / Winnipeg Free Press files) For the female bear, the choice is between Willow and Tundra. For the male bear cub, the choices are Baffin and Arctic. The two unrelated cubs were identified by Manitoba Sustainable Development in separate circumstances as being candidates for transfer to the Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre. "Our visitors and the community at large form strong attachments to the polar bears in our care, so we are happy to give them the opportunity to help choose names for these young cubs," zoo spokeswoman Laura Cabak said in the press release. The naming poll is open on the Assiniboine Park Zoo website for voting until 4 p.m. on Thursday. People can go to assiniboineparkzoo.ca/vote to cast their votes. The results will be announced Friday. The cubs will make their public debut at 11 a.m. Friday morning at the Leatherdale International Polar Bear Conservation Centre. They will remain on exhibit there with access to both indoor holding and an outdoor enclosure. The zoo is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Syrian and Kurdish Manitobans late this afternoon plan to protest recent attacks by the Turkish government on U.S.-backed Kurdish troops in Syria. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/1/2018 (1324 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Syrian and Kurdish Manitobans late this afternoon plan to protest recent attacks by the Turkish government on U.S.-backed Kurdish troops in Syria. They're organizing a demonstration from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday outside the Canadian Museum for Human Rights, a press release issued by the group said. The Kurds, who have been credited with destroying the Syrian base of the Islamic State in Syria, are labelled terrorists by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan because Kurdish separatists inside Turkey are seeking independence. Turkeys "Operation Olive Branch" offensive is against the Kurdish Peoples Protection Units, or YPG, in north Syria. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights Monitoring group said Tuesday that at least 24 civilians, 24 Kurdish fighters and 25 Turkish-backed Syrian militiamen have been killed in the clashes in the north Syrian district of Afrin since Saturday. Most of the civilians were killed in Turkish airstrikes, which have targeted towns and cities in the enclave. There are an estimated 800,000 civilians in Afrin, including many who arrived there after fleeing fighting from other parts of Syria. The fighting threatens to destabilize what was once a safe haven in a country convulsing with war, said the press release issued by Kurdish Manitobans organizing today's rally outside the rights museum at The Forks. The release said local Kurds have families in the targeted region and they fear for their safety. "The Turkish attack is an aggressive violation to human rights and against the international treaties of civil peace," it said. Staff/ The Associated Press Time was, a plan to bury highly radioactive materials 500 metres from a river that provides drinking water for many people and flows into Lake Winnipeg would attract a fair bit of attention in Manitoba. Maybe even a mild uproar. The provincial government, at least, would have had something to say about it, one imagines. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/1/2018 (1324 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion Time was, a plan to bury highly radioactive materials 500 metres from a river that provides drinking water for many people and flows into Lake Winnipeg would attract a fair bit of attention in Manitoba. Maybe even a mild uproar. The provincial government, at least, would have had something to say about it, one imagines. So how is it that this scenario seems destined to unfold soon and there is scarcely a murmur to be heard in the public sphere? What has changed? A few things, as it turns out. First, when the WR-1 research reactor was built in Pinawa in 1963, the agreement between the federal government and the province of Manitoba was that at the end of the reactors life, the site would be restored to "green field" conditions. The original licence to "decommission" the reactor planned exactly that: the spent fuel having already been moved, the reactor would be completely dismantled and its remaining radioactive inventory, consisting mostly of contaminated reactor parts, taken off-site to await "disposal" in whatever Canadas final nuclear waste solution was going to be. Now, however, Canada wants out of the original agreement and instead prefers "in-situ decommissioning" (ISD), a proposal which leaves all the (non-spent fuel) radioactive inventory (some of which will remain deadly for tens of thousands of years) grouted in place in a shallow grave next to the Winnipeg River. This new "project" is now subject to another environmental assessment and licensing process. Second, the original proponent of the reactor decommissioning was Atomic Energy of Canada Limited (AECL), a federal Crown corporation and "owner" of the nuclear waste that the WR-1 reactor now constitutes. But that has changed, too. The new proponent is Canadian Nuclear Labs (CNL), a consortium of multinationals, including SNC Lavalin, Mitsubishi, Fluor Corp., Rolls Royce and CH2M HILL, to which the federal government has given the responsibility for "reducing Canadas nuclear waste liabilities" with a reward of billions of taxpayer dollars. A quick Google search on consortium members turns up multiple international scandals and charges. None of the now-retired nuclear scientists who live in Pinawa and who know the reactor and the site well were consulted by CNL for the new plan and are highly critical of it. Third, the regulatory environment has changed. The Harper governments changes to environmental assessment legislation placed responsibility for the safety and soundness of nuclear plans in the hands of the regulator, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission (CNSC), sometimes referred to as a "captured regulator" due to its cosy relationship with nuclear proponents. CNSC has never actually denied a nuclear reactor licence, demonstrably does not understand the planning necessary for sound environmental assessment and, moreover, its decisions may not be overturned by government. Its hardly comforting to know that in nuclear matters, Canada is now reputed to have a "benign regulatory environment," according to World Nuclear News. Fourth, governments have changed, of course. Here in Manitoba, the Progressive Conservatives seem blissfully unconcerned about the new plans for Pinawa. In Ottawa, the Liberals are working toward repairing former prime minister Stephen Harpers damage to environmental assessment, but seem reluctant to extend their amendments to the nuclear situation. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. Instead, we are encouraged by Minister of Natural Resources Jim Carr (ironically, the senior minister from Manitoba) to trust the regulator and join him in believing that CNSC would never make a decision that would risk the health and safety of Canadians. Some things dont change, such as successive Canadian governments cheerleading for the nuclear industry, and perhaps worse, the continued absence of a coherent policy to deal with the stockpile of nuclear waste including spent fuel, contaminated reactor components and uranium mine tailings that continues to accumulate across the country. Instead, we are being asked to trust in ad-hoc and unproven schemes to render our nuclear liabilities temporarily invisible. And thats a real problem, because something else that hasnt changed is the profound danger of these materials to human health and ecosystems when (not if) they become mobile in the environment. Manitobans should not be guinea pigs for this particularly inappropriate and precedent-setting proposal. Anne Lindsey is a former executive director of the Manitoba Eco-Network, a longtime observer and activist on nuclear and environmental issues, and a Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives Manitoba research associate. Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is an angry man at the best of times, but he recently outdid himself: This is what we have to say to all our allies dont get in between us and terrorist organizations or we will not be responsible for the unwanted consequences. That was a barely-veiled threat that he will use force against U.S. troops if they try to stop him from attacking the Syrian Kurds. Hey there, time traveller! This article was published 23/1/2018 (1324 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current. Opinion Turkeys President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is an angry man at the best of times, but he recently outdid himself: "This is what we have to say to all our allies dont get in between us and terrorist organizations or we will not be responsible for the unwanted consequences." That was a barely-veiled threat that he will use force against U.S. troops if they try to stop him from attacking the Syrian Kurds. The iron law of international politics in the Middle East is that everybody betrays the Kurds. It was on display again in Iraq last October when the Baghdad government seized almost half the territory ruled by the Kurdistan regional government. In obedience to that unwritten law, nobody else objected including the United States, even though it had armed the Iraqi Kurds to fight IS. But now the U.S. government has effectively told the Syrian Kurds that they can keep the huge chunk of Syria they control for the indefinite future. And the Turkish government, predictably, has gone ballistic. In President Erdogans book, any Kurd with a gun in his hand is a "terrorist," and the Syrian Kurds are a "terror army." In fact, they played the main role, under U.S. air cover, in destroying the Syrian base of the real terrorists: Islamic State. As a result the army that the Kurds dominate, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), now controls almost half of Syrias territory. Its the northeastern, relatively empty half, with less than one-fifth of Syrias population, but it includes all of Syrias border with Iraq and almost all its border with Turkey. Earlier this month, Washington confirmed that it will help the SDF create a new 30,000-strong "border security force" over the next several years that will police those borders and also the "internal" border between Kurdish-controlled Syria and the rest of the country. The "rest of the country" is now mostly back under the control of Bashar al-Assads regime, thanks largely to the intervention of the Russian air force and Iranian militias. Both Moscow and Tehran immediately accused the United States of planning to partition Syria, and there is some substance in the accusation. Washington is indeed creating a Kurdish-ruled protectorate in the northeastern half of Syria and has declared that 2,000 U.S. troops will stay there indefinitely. Or until progress has been made in the UN-led peace talks in Geneva and it is certain that Islamic State is permanently defeated. The main purpose of this sudden escalation in the U.S. commitment in Syria is presumably to stop the Russians from winning a total victory in the country. The Syrian regime, of course, has denounced the plan as a "blatant attack" on its sovereignty but Turkey is the only country threatening to kill Americans over it. The Kurds always get betrayed because what they really want is an independent Kurdistan, including all 20 million Kurds. But to create that, the four most powerful countries in the region Turkey, Iran, Syria and Iraq would all have to be partially dismantled. They will do whatever it takes to prevent that. Erdogan restarted the war with Turkeys own Kurdish separatists two years ago, mainly for electoral advantage, but he really is fanatical on the subject. He is convinced that the Syrian Kurdish organization, the YFP, is really just a branch of Turkeys own PKK (which does have a terrorist past), and he is determined to destroy it. Want to get a head start on your day? Get the days breaking stories, weather forecast, and more sent straight to your inbox every weekday morning. Sign Up I agree to the Terms and Conditions, Cookie and Privacy Policies, and CASL agreement. The declaration of a de facto American protectorate over the Kurdish-dominated parts of Syria only makes the matter more urgent in Erdogans eyes. "A country we call an ally (the U.S.) is insisting on forming a terror army on our border," Erdogan said in a speech in Ankara on Jan. 15. "What can that terror army target but Turkey? Our mission is to strangle it before its even born." Thats nonsense: the Syrian Kurds are not terrorists. They are American allies and when the Turkish army first attacked Kurdish-controlled areas of northern Syria last spring, U.S. troops drove in front of the Kurdish lines, flying very large American flags to protect their allies from Turkish fire. What Erdogan meant in that quote at the start was that next time, if American soldiers and flags obstruct Turkish operations, they will be blown away. Does he mean it? He may not know himself, but his army is going to move into several parts of Syrian Kurdish territory this week or next. Turkish artillery is already softening the targets up. But the likelihood of a shooting war between Turks and Americans remains very low. Like former U.S. president Barack Obama before him, Donald Trump is pursuing a policy in Syria that is not backed up by enough force to make it credible. Everybody assumes he is bluffing, and that he will betray the Syrian Kurds in the end. For the peace of the world, its probably better that he does. Gwynne Dyer is an independent journalist whose articles are published in 45 countries. On Sunday, at 11 AM local time, Turkish tanks and infantry invaded Afrin, a majority-Kurdish multi-ethnic region in northwestern Syria. The Turkish forces are targeting the US-backed Syrian-Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its militia, the Peoples Protection Units (YPG), which control Afrin. At the same time, the Free Syrian Army (FSA), Ankaras proxy force in Syria, attacked Afrin from the south and east, supported by Turkish tanks and Special Forces. This aggression by Turkey is a reckless escalation that will exacerbate the conflicts raging across the Middle East and intensify the danger of war between the major powers. With Moscows tacit support, Turkey is attacking the YPG, the backbone of the main US proxy force in Syria, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militia. The danger of this triggering a clash between US forces and Russian and Turkish forces in Syria, and all-out war between the United States and Russia, is very real. The ground invasion, code-named Olive Branch, came after hours of Turkish air strikes on Afrin, including strikes on an airfield used by US forces to deliver equipment and arms to the SDF. It signifies a historic breakdown of the NATO alliance, of which the United States and Turkey are both members. Given that the Turkish invasion apparently has support in Berlin, it reflects deep and mounting conflicts between the major NATO powers. In the first hours of the operation on Sunday, Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim told reporters that its aim was to create a 30-kilometer safe zone along the Turkish-Syrian border. He said the operation would proceed in four phases, without giving further details. It seems likely to continue eastwards to Manbij, a region occupied by the SDF since it fought Islamic State (ISIS) forces in August 2016. That development provoked Operation Euphrates Shield, an invasion by the Turkish army to block the Kurdish offensive in Syria and break up what Ankara called a terror corridor along the Turkish border. Initial press reports of the Turkish attack were contradictory. Turkish officials and media unanimously hailed the operation as a great success. However, the YPG claimed to have repulsed Turkish and FSA forces after fierce clashes. The Kurdish Communities Union (KCK), an umbrella group including the PKK (Kurdistan Workers Party) of Turkey and Kurdish organizations in Syria and Iran, condemned the operation and declared it would stand by Afrin with all its strength. In a written statement, it accused Russia and Syria of permitting Turkey to attack Afrin. The offensive threatens to provoke civil war in Kurdish-majority areas of southern Turkey. Speaking in Bursa, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to crush all opposition within Turkey to the war, including from the pro-Kurdish Peoples Democratic Party (HDP). Whoever takes to the streets on the call of HDP, KCK and PKK should know that our security forces will keep a tight rein on them and they will pay a heavy price, he said. Late yesterday, Turkish media reported three missile attacks in the southeastern Turkish province of Reyhanl, killing one and wounding 32 civilians. Within Turkey, Erdogans Justice and Development Party is using the invasion to escalate its crackdown on political opposition, with the support of the opposition Republican Peoples Party and the fascistic Nationalist Movement Party. Hundreds of people protesting the invasion were arrested in several Turkish cities. The judiciary launched investigations of Democratic Society Party (DTP) Co-Chair Leyla Guven, HDP spokesperson Ayhan Bilgen and HDP Deputy Co-Chair Nadir Yldrm for criticizing the Afrin invasion. Turkey was able to launch the operation only due to tacit Russian support. Moscow withdrew its forces stationed in Afrin as part of the Russian intervention against NATO-backed Islamist militias in Syria, and allowed Turkish aircraft to operate in the regions air space. It also mediated for Turkey in relations with the Syrian and Iranian governments, which criticized the invasion. Yesterday, Russian officials blamed Washington for the attack, saying it took provocative steps by saying it would arm the YPG and use it to control the Syrian-Turkish border. The Syrian Foreign Ministry said Syria strongly condemns the flagrant Turkish aggression on the city of Afrin, which is an integral part of Syrian territory, stressing that this aggression is the most recent in a series of Turkish transgressions against Syrian sovereignty. It dismissed claims by Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu that Turkey had informed Syria beforehand, calling them lies that the Turkish government continues to spout. Iran, Syria's main regional ally, said it hoped that the operation will immediately come to an end. Turkeys invasion of Syria is the outcome of decades of escalating carnage and imperialist war in the Middle East, led by Washington, since the Persian Gulf War and the Stalinist bureaucracys dissolution of the USSR, both of which occurred in 1991. With the removal of the Soviet military threat, Washington was free to launch ever bloodier wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Syria and beyond, with the aid of some or all of its NATO allies. It is increasingly clear, however, that the growing international conflicts provoked by these wars, including Ankaras outrage over US reliance on Kurdish proxy forces, have reached an entirely new stage. As Turkey moves to destroy the main US proxy force in Syria, NATO is on the verge of collapse and Washington is increasingly isolated. It faces a powerful coalition of opponents in the Middle East that enjoys support even among Washingtons nominal European allies. It is responding by announcing a military strategy that centers on preparations for total war against nuclear-armed powers such as Russia and China. Initial US statements on the invasion were unclear and self-contradictory. US State Department sources said that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had spoken to his Russian and Turkish counterparts about securing stability in the north of the country, but gave no details. Pentagon officials said they encourage all parties to avoid escalation and to focus on the most important task of defeating the Islamic State. In fact, the Pentagon on Friday unveiled a National Defense Strategy that proclaims the war on terror to have been supplanted by the need to prepare for war against rival great powers. Great power competitionnot terrorismis now the primary focus of US national security, Defense Secretary James Mattis said as he unveiled the document, which singles out Russia and China as the preeminent threats to US global dominance. The US is clearly concerned with the Turkish invasion. The Center for American Progress, a Washington think tank, warned that it could trigger a new, bloody phase of the long-running Syrian civil war and may also be aimed at the United States, which has spent three years balancing a troubled relationship with Turkey with the imperatives of the counter-IS campaign in Syria. The Center for American Progress statement continued, With the end of that campaign in sight, that balancing act is once again teetering on the brink. The contrast to the policy of Germany, the leading European power, could not be more striking. Berlin appears to have green-lighted the invasion. Last Wednesday, as Turkish artillery strikes on YPG positions began and Erdogans National Security Council threatened to invade Syria, a delegation of high-level Turkish security officials arrived for two days of friendly talks in Berlin. In these talks, German and Turkish officials discussed measures against the Kurds. As the German press discussed Berlins new turn back toward Turkey, German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said Berlin intended to have better negotiations with Ankara, for the benefit of Turkey, Germany and Europe. Berlin announced a new crackdown on PKK activities in Germany, with the Federal Prosecutors Office opening 130 investigations. Berlin also signaled that Turkey will continue to enjoy German military support even after attacking US proxies in Syria. It did so by moving to fast-track Turkeys requests for the modernization of its German Leopard tanks by Rheinmetall. The federal government is showing itself to be flexible in its new turn back towards Turkey, Der Spiegel wrote. According to Der Spiegels sources, Berlin now wants to give the nod to a multi-million-euro arms deal with Ankara. These statements of German support for Turkey even as it bombards US proxy forces in Syria point to the profound tensions tearing apart the NATO military alliance and the escalating danger of direct conflict between the major world powers. The Public Health Agency of Canada announced last month that an estimated 4,000 Canadians lost their lives due to drug overdoses in 2017more than ten per day. Dr. Theresa Tam, chief public health officer of Canada, said this estimate is probably lower than the true figure because Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba had yet to report all of their opioid-related overdose deaths for even the first half of the year. Three-quarters of overdose deaths in 2017 were males, with the highest proportion, 28 percent, clustered among those aged 30 to 39. In 2016, there were 2,861 overdose deaths, with the Yukon and British Columbia having the highest death rates, at more than 15 per 100,000 people. This means that even based on preliminary statistics for 2017, opioid deaths increased by more than 30 percent last year. The dramatic increase in deaths is primarily the result of the spread of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid estimated to be a hundred times stronger than heroin. Even a tiny amount of the substance can be enough to trigger a fatal overdose. Successive federal and provincial governments bear political responsibility for creating the terrible social conditions that have exacerbated the drug crisis and of chronically underfunding the healthcare system, which has proven utterly incapable of coping with the opioid emergency. Justin Trudeaus Liberals have imposed a miserly 3-4 percent increase in provincial health transfers, which amounts to a substantial cut in health spending when the rising cost of healthcare and population growth and aging are taken into account. In the worst-affected provinces, BC and Alberta, New Democratic Party (NDP) governments are in power. In Alberta, the NDP has enforced austerity budgets since 2015, including for healthcare and critical social services. Last year, it even cut the number of available hospital beds in public mental health facilities in the face of warnings from psychiatrists about the devastating impact this would have on those suffering as a result of the opioid crisis. Meanwhile, BC Premier John Horgan has frequently boasted that his budgetary plans are based on the financial framework laid down by the former Liberal government, which held power for 16 years and slashed public spending, gave tax handouts to big business and attacked workers living conditions. The few token measures the NDP has proposed, including the creation of a mental health ministry and testing various pilot projects to tackle the overdose crisis, are a drop in the bucket. Canadas public health care system does not cover the cost of prescription drugs nor drug rehabilitation programs. Injured workers, or those who have a medical condition requiring pain-killing medications over an extended period of time, frequently cannot afford the prescribed pain medications and instead turn to much cheaper, but highly addictive street drugs. Drug users cannot just check themselves into a hospital or detox centre to remove the drugs from their system because there are not enough publicly-funded beds and because detox programs run by provincial health services often require the addict be clean for a period of months in order to gain admission, creating a Catch-22 situation. Barrier-free housing to help drug users get a stable routine before attempting to manage their addiction is virtually non-existent. Private rehabilitation clinics are out of reach for the vast majority of working people, with average care packages for a month-long treatment program running into the tens of thousands of dollars. For every overdose death in BC, 27 others are treated and survive. A January 11 Angus Reid Poll on the effects of opioid use in Canada found 49 percent of BC residents and 28 percent of Albertans thought there was a province-wide opioid crisis. Yet only BC has declared a public health emergency. It also found that 81 percent of Canadians support mandatory treatment programs for people who have survived overdoses and 64 percent of Albertans support safe supervised-consumption sites. Health Canada has only approved supervised consumption sites in Vancouver, Surrey, Victoria, Kelowna, Kamloops in BC, Calgary, Edmonton and Lethbridge in Alberta, Toronto and Ottawa in Ontario, and Montreal in Quebec. The Angus Reid survey also found one in eight Albertans have close friends or family members who have become addicted to opioids in the last 5 years, which is in line with the national average. One-fifth of Albertans have been prescribed opioids for pain in the last 5 years. Alberta Healths quarterly report in November 2017 projected 550 fentanyl-related deaths for the year. It said carfentanyl, an opioid up to 100 times more toxic than fentanyl, had been detected in 138 of the fentanyl-related overdoses in 2017, as compared with 29 in 2016. Growing numbers of paramedics, police and hospital workers require assistance to process what they are dealing with. Paramedic and police suicide rates are rising and PTSD-related despair is believed to be a major contributor. While BC and Alberta have been hit hardest, overdose deaths are rising across the country. In New Brunswick, paramedics administered naloxone, a drug that reverses the effects of an opioid overdose, 214 times in the first 9 months of 2017, with 22 deaths. There were 32 overdose deaths in New Brunswick in 2016. In September 2017, Dr. Robert Strang, Nova Scotias chief public health officer, reported that about 800 people were being treated through the provinces addiction program and another roughly 450 through charity Direction 180s methadone program. Another 250 were on a waiting list for detox. Data released the same month by the Federal, Provincial and Territorial Special Advisory Committee on the Epidemic of Opioid Overdoses showed 57 Nova Scotians died of overdoses between March 2016 and June 2017. Nearly a quarter of those deaths were adults aged 30 to 39 years. Between July and September 2017, there were 2,449 emergency-department visits related to opioid overdoses in Ontario, a 29 percent increase from the 1,896 such visits in the previous 3 months and a staggering 115 percent increase over the same period a year earlier. Chief coroner Dr. Dirk Huyer said the data revealed the mean age of the deaths were 41. Fifty-one percent of the deaths occurred in those between the ages of 25 and 44. Its a terrible tragedy from that perspective, he said, noting a skyrocketing amount of fentanyl found in overdose victims. In 2015, it was 19 percent; in 2016 it was 41 percent; and in the three months ... of our snapshot (for 2017), 67 percent of the time fentanyl was detected. A series of arrests and deportations of immigrants in the state of Michigan over the last week points to a broader escalation of the Trump administrations reactionary crackdown on immigrants and undocumented workers across the United States. On January16, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers arrested Lukasz Niec, a 43-year-old physician, at his home in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Niec immigrated to the US from Poland as a five-year-old in 1979 along with both of his parents. He obtained a Green Card, which grants permanent residency status, in 1989, and has lived and worked in Michigan almost his entire life. Niec, who does not speak any Polish and has no family in Poland, remains in a county jail awaiting a bond hearing and potential deportation order based on two criminal convictions when he was a teenager 26 years ago. One of the incidents reportedly involved an altercation with a driver after a car crash. The second incident was expunged from his criminal record, but can still be used against him as grounds for deportation. Also on January 16, Ded Rranzburgaj, a 48-year-old Detroit worker, announced he was seeking refuge in the Central United Methodist Church in a desperate last-ditch effort to prevent his planned deportation on January 25. Rranzburgaj came to the United States from Albania in 2000, along with his wife, Flora, aged 44, and eldest son, Laurence, who is now 24 years old. He was denied legal residency but has been allowed to remain in the US for the last 11 years, reportedly under humanitarian status, because he is the sole caregiver and provider for his wife Flora, who is wheelchair-bound and suffers from multiple sclerosis, a debilitating autoimmune disease. Ded has worked in construction and as a cook in a Detroit Coney Island restaurant to provide for his family. In comments cited by the Detroit Free Press on January 16, Rranzburgaj said: My family needs me. I take care of my wife, and I work to support my sons, every day. If they deport me after taking care of my wife for 11 years, I may never see her again. My sons would need to leave school to take care of her. It would be devastating for my family. His wife commented: I am scared that they will deport my husband. He takes care of me every day. Every day he helps me shower, change clothes, he cooks my food. If they deport him, there will be nobody to take care of me. Rrankburgajs youngest son Erik was born in the US and is now 12 years old and attends a high school in Southgate. Laurence Rrankburgaj, who attends the University of Michigan Dearborn, is currently enrolled under the DACA program, which provides temporary residency to people who entered the United States as children. Last September, the Trump administration announced that it was rescinding the DACA program. House Democrats announced today they would vote to end the weekend federal government shutdown without obtaining any agreement from Republicans on the maintenance of the DACA program, bringing to an end the political charade by which the Democrats had absurdly postured as defenders of immigrants. ICE has refused comment on whether it will raid the church to arrest Rrankburgaj. ICEs sensitive locations policy states that raids and arrests should only be carried out in churches and schools in limited circumstances and should generally be avoided, but there is no law preventing such actions. These incidents follow the January 15 deportation of Jorge Garcia, 39, a Lincoln Park resident who has lived in the US for three decades. Garcia, now staying with his aunt in Mexico City while seeking re-entry to the United States, has been forcibly separated from his wife, Cindy, a former worker at the Ford Dearborn Truck Assembly Plant, from his 15-year-old daughter Soleil, and his 12-year-old son Jorge Garcia Jr. All three are US citizens. Jorge had arrived in the US from Mexico as a 10-year-old with an undocumented family member. In 2005, he applied for a Green Card, but his attorney filed the wrong paperwork. As a result, Garcias application was denied, automatically initiating deportation proceedings. Since then, Garcia had been forced to apply for stays of deportation each year. Last November, immigration officials informed him that he would be detained for deportation. Diego Bonesatti, legal services director at Michigan United, a non-profit immigrant rights organization that has provided assistance to Garcia and his family, told the World Socialist Web Site that the soonest that Jorge could hope to return to the US would be in 18 months, assuming his application is approved. Jorges wife Cindy has filed two waivers that are needed to allow him to re-enter the US despite having been deported for being in the country unlawfully. Cindy has stated that the family has already spent $125,000 on legal fees. Completing the fees for the waivers alone will cost between $5,000 and $7,500. Cindy Garcia told NBC News on January 18: Its going to be very tough because Im medically disabled from Ford Motor Company, and am retired. So I am living off low income. It will be very rough. I have to support two households: mine and Jorge in Mexico, until he gets a job. The wave of arrests in Michigan is part of a broader escalation of Trumps anti-immigrant crackdown across the country. On January 10, ICE agents conducted mass workplace raids on 100 7-Eleven convenience stores, arresting 21 workers. Last week, immigrant communities across California were thrown into panic after a local newspaper reported that ICE was planning a mass police-state dragnet aimed at rounding up 1,500 undocumented workers. The administrations attacks on immigrants are aimed at promoting racial and ethnic divisions in the working class, as a spearhead of the efforts of both parties to attack democratic rights and prepare for dictatorship. This is being carried out by Trump through the promotion of an extreme-right and fascistic base of support, and by the Democratic Party through the demands for stepped up police-state censorship of politically oppositional websites on the Internet, under the McCarthyite banner of targeting Russian influence. The Democratic Party has picked up the case of Jorge Garcia and is seeking to exploit it in an utterly cynical manner, as part of the partys campaign in the 2018 midterm elections. Debbie Dingell, the Democratic Congresswoman from the district including Dearborn, announced on January 18 that she had invited Cindy Garcia to be her guest at Trumps 2018 State of the Union address in Washington, DC. Dingell stated that it is time for Congress and the President to find the political will to do what is right, not what is convenient, and fulfill this nations promise to those who come here seeking a better life... What a fraud! Where was the Democratic Partys supposed support for those seeking a better life under the Obama administration? Obama appropriately earned the title of deporter-in-chief because he deported more immigrants than any president before him. Despite Trumps mass roundups of immigrants, he deported fewer immigrants in 2017 than were deported in the Obama administrations final full year in office. Obama was responsible for the massive militarization of the southern wall along the US-Mexico border, including with predator drones, which has led to hundreds of migrant deaths in the desert borderlands. Fighting raged in northwestern Syria as Turkeys Operation Olive Branch completed its third day Monday. Turkish special forces troops and Turkish-backed Islamist militiamen of the so-called Free Syrian Army opened up a second front in their assault on the Kurdish enclave of Afrin, advancing from the town of Azaz to the east. The apparent aim is to drive forces of the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia south and away from the Turkish border. Intense fighting had previously been reported between advancing Turkish forces and YPG fighters for control of two villages northwest of the city of Afrin. This new front in the seven-year-old war that was launched as a regime-change operation backed by both Washington and Turkey, along with Saudi Arabia and the other Persian Gulf oil monarchies, has threatened to disrupt US imperialisms military strategy in the region, while exacerbating already sharp tensions within NATO and between the US and Europe. The offensive, which is being carried out against elements of a Kurdish militia that has served as Washingtons main proxy ground force for its intervention in Syria, marks a new low point in relations between the ostensible NATO allies, the US and Turkey. These ties had already been severely strained over Ankaras rapprochement with Russia, from which it is buying advanced air defense systems, over NATOs objections, and charges that Washington provided covert backing to an abortive 2016 coup against the government of President Recip Tayyip Erdogan. The White House issued a statement Monday warning that the Turkish offensive distracts from international efforts to ensure the lasting defeat of Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). With ISIS already crushed in both Iraq and Syria, what Washington really means is that the Turkish action disrupts US efforts to assert its hegemony over the region and destroy the influence of Russia and Iran. As the National Defense Strategy document released by the Pentagon last week made clear, the US militarys priority is no longer the so-called war on terrorism, but rather preparation for great power confrontation, including war with both Russia and China. The White House statement went on to declare that Washington was urging Turkey to exercise restraint in its military actions and rhetoric; ensure that its operations are limited in scope and duration; ensure humanitarian aid continues; and avoid civilian casualties. The statement was slightly more pointed than earlier remarks by US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary James Mattis. Tillerson, speaking in London, also urged restraint, but appeared to legitimize the Turkish invasion, stating, We recognize and fully appreciate Turkeys legitimate right to protect its own citizens from terrorist elements that may be launching attacks against Turkish citizens and Turkish soil from Syria. The depth of the ongoing crisis was indicated by a reporters question of whether the Syrian conflict could become a direct military confrontation between two NATO members. I dont think youre going to find two NATO allies facing off at all, Tillerson replied. Similarly, Mattis stated that Turkey has legitimate security concerns, adding that Ankara warned us before they launched the aircraft they were going to do it, in consultation with us. NATO echoed the US position in a statement that could only have been issued with Washingtons approval. Turkey is situated in a volatile region, and has suffered significantly from terrorism, it said. All countries have a right to self-defense, but its important that this is done in a proportionate and measured way. US officials have even sought to distance themselves from the Kurdish force in Afrin, claiming that it is not the same as the Kurdish militia that it has armed and supported in northeastern Syria. This is pure sophistry, exposed by the fact that leaders of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the umbrella group for the YPG-dominated US proxy force, have discussed sending reinforcements from the east to Afrin to oppose the Turkish invasion. US appeals for restraint appeared to have little effect upon President Erdogan, who responded with a blistering statement during an appearance in Ankara Monday. Turkey would not take a step back from its military operation in Afrin, he declared. The US is urging that the operation should not last too long and should be conducted within a certain time frame, he continued. I ask the US: Does your operation in Afghanistan, which you launched more than 10 years ago, have a certain time frame? When will it be completed? You are also still in Iraq, arent you? Do these kind of operations have a certain time frame? The Turkish president also said that the campaign in Afrin would be extended to Manbij, a Syrian town on the western side of the Euphrates River that was taken from ISIS by the YPG militia with the assistance of US special operations forces that are still deployed in the area. In an earlier speech on Saturday, the Turkish president vowed to annihilate the terror corridor up to the Iraqi border, and there were reports Monday of exchanges of fire across the border in eastern Syria. Turkeys declared aim is to create its own buffer zone extending 18 miles into Syria. Erdogan has also spoken of returning the 3.5 million Syrian refugees in Turkey to the zone, raising the specter of an ethnic-cleansing operation to remove the Kurdish population. One must be a fool not to understand that this treacherous projects target is Turkey, Erdogan said of the US use of the YPG. They refused to give arms to us with money but they are giving weapons to the terrorist organization free of charge. Why are we strategic partners? Why are we strategic allies? The Turkish offensive was triggered by Washingtons announcement that it was building up a 30,000-strong border security force to take control of Syrias northern border with Turkey and eastern border with Iraq, with the main forces being drawn from the YPG. In the face of Turkish protests, Washington gave an unconvincing retraction, claiming that it was not building a border force, but was keeping its more than 2,000 ground troops in Syria indefinitely. The mission of this force includes continuing the war for regime change against the government of President Bashar al-Assad and countering the influence of Iran and Russia. The Turkish daily Hurriyet reported Monday, If US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had given a clearer message in support of Turkey on Jan. 17, a day after his meeting with Turkish Foreign Minister Cavusoglu, things could have unfolded differently. The USs apparent indifference to Turkeys security concerns prompted Ankara to seek Russian support to act on what it perceives as an existential threat. Moscow has also blamed the Turkish action on the provocative US announcement of its proposed occupation of Syrian territory with a Kurdish-dominated border force. Washington has actively encouraged and continues to encourage separatist sentiment among Kurds, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Monday. This is either a lack of understanding of the situation or an absolutely conscious provocation. Erdogan said that his government had spoken about the Turkish offensive with our Russian friends and that We have an agreement. While Moscow has not confirmed such a deal, it withdrew the small number of troops that it had on the ground in Afrin and has not opposed Turkish warplanes from bombing in skies over Syria that Russia has effectively controlled. Turkey also reportedly used Moscow as a go-between in communicating its intentions to the Assad government. According to some reports, Ankara has offered to restore diplomatic relations, broken off in 2011, and to recognize the Assad government in return for a free hand on the Syrian border. It would appear that Moscow and Damascus are prepared to accede to Ankaras reactionary aims as a means of countering Washingtons plans for carving out its own zone of control inside Syria. Washingtons unilateral actions in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East, combined with its increasingly bellicose threats of war against Russia, have also opened up a serious breach with its erstwhile Western European allies. This divide was highlighted Monday with the simultaneous appearances of US Vice President Mike Pence before the Israeli Knesset, where he pledged that the US embassy would be moved to Jerusalem next year, and of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas in Brussels before European Union minsters, who reiterated their support for Jerusalem as a shared capital as part of a so-called two-state solution. The depth of the crisis of US imperialist policy in Syria found its unmistakable expression in the reaction of a section of the pseudo-left. A group of activists and academics, led by Noam Chomsky, professor emeritus of linguistics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the supposedly radical critic of US foreign policy, issued a statement condemning the Turkish action in Syria and the inaction by the US to stop it. The thrust of this appeal is for US imperialism to launch another war in the name of human rights, this time to assert its dominance over a challenge from a formal ally and de facto regional rival, that could lead to a massive escalation of the carnage in the Middle East. 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Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe Star Wars Battlefront 2 Goes Back to the Original Trilogy in The Age of Rebellion Update Ann Curry stopped by The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, where she discussed her reaction to Matt Lauers being fired from Today following sexual misconduct allegations. Or, at least, as much as she could discuss due to a nondisclosure agreement. Host Stephen Colbert asked Curry if she had an NDA, to which Curry responded, I do, but I can talk. Im bold. Colbert then asked Curry if she was aware of the initial Twitter response to Lauers firing, which was actually more focused on her. But let me just ask you this. When Mr. Lauer was let go at NBC, were you aware that Twitter blew up with Somewhere Ann Curry? He then showed her a few of the best tweets, which included, This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Although many people on Twitter thought Curry celebrated the news, Curry explained that that wasnt quite the case. The truth is that I was raised Catholic by a Buddhist, she told Colbert. So think about the Catholic guilt, which you know something about, mixed with the karma. Worries. The intensity of that. It was like all of a sudden my brain, like, think Game of Thrones. The wall, like, it went up, and it was a whole wall of, Uh-uh, you cant talk like that. You cant think like that. So I didnt actually get to enjoy it. Curry also pointed out that she thinks more about the pain that a lot of people have suffered, which has not allowed her to have a chance to celebrate. Im sort of limited, she concluded. And when Colbert asked Curry if she thinks a seasoned journalist like herself could be forced out of her job by a powerful man today, Curry stated that were not done fixing the problem. I think we are a long way from fixing the problem. Its more about conversation. Its about action, and its not just about telling people they cant do certain things. Its about changing the dynamic, the power balance within companies so that women are not seen as people who could never rise to the top. Once we figure that out, we might have a chance to figure this out. Story continues The Late Show With Stephen Colbert airs weeknights at 11:35 p.m. on CBS. Check out Get Out star talking about his touching moment with Oprah, thanks to Denzel: Read more from Yahoo! Entertainment: Tell us what you think! Hit us up on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram or leave your comments below. And check out our host, Kylie Mar, on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram. The married couple accused of abusing their 13 children in a house of horrors in California were married more than three decades ago, when she was 16 years old and he was 23, PEOPLE confirms. David and Louise Turpin, now 56 and 49 respectively, wed in Pearisburg, Virginia, on Feb. 11, 1985, according to the court clerks office in Giles County, Virginia. Both Turpins reportedly grew up in nearby Princeton, West Virginia, just over the state line, and the nature of their years-long relationship remains a key area of scrutiny in the investigation of how the suspected abuse of their children carried on for so long, getting worse over time, without being detected. Authorities have alleged the violence intensified as the family moved first from the area of Fort Worth, Texas, to Murrieta, California, in 2010, and then to Perris, California, in 2014 where they were living when David and Louise were arrested early last week. Before California, the Turpins lived in Texas for 17 years. Over the course of their marriage, they renewed their vows at least three times, according to the Elvis impersonator who presided over each ceremony. Louises half-brother Billy Lambert tells PEOPLE she met David in church and the two ran away to get married when she was 16 but they were returned home to West Virginia by police, at which point Louises father signed off on the nuptials. At 20, Louise had her first child, Lambert says. The couple has 13 children ranging in ages from 2 to 29, according to investigators. David and Louise were taken into custody after one of their kids, a 17-year-old girl, escaped the home on Jan. 14 and called 911. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. From left: David and Louise Turpin The Turpin home in Perris, California Responding officers said they found the Turpin children severely malnourished from lack of food, with some in chains, according to prosecutor Michael Hestrin. Story continues A motive has not been publicly confirmed but Hestrin told reporters last week that it appears no one [outside the family] noticed what was happening. What started out as neglect became severe, pervasive, prolonged child abuse, Hestrin said. This is severe emotional, physical abuse. Theres no way around that, he said. This is depraved conduct. Asked about a possible religious or cult-like motivation for the suspects behavior, Hestrin said, Not that I know, no. Any time I saw them I never saw [David] raise his voice, I never saw him or [Louise] angry, Lambert tells PEOPLE. It seemed like they had the perfect little family. They always went out to Six Flags or Disneyland. We thought, Wow this is nice. To us it seemed normal. Hestrin said Thursday that David and Louise face 12 counts each of torture as well as seven counts of abuse of a dependent adult, six counts of child abuse or neglect and 12 counts of false imprisonment. David is additionally charged with one count of lewd act on a child under the age of 14 by force, fear or duress. For more compelling true crime coverage, follow our Crime magazine on Flipboard. The Turpin family Louise and David Turpin (seated, first and third from left) in court in California following their arrests The charges cover alleged behavior dating back to 2010, Hestrin said. David and Louise are not charged with torturing the 2-year-old as the toddler, for some reason, seems to have been fed enough though we dont know why, Hestrin said. He stressed that the basis for the torture charges was a combination of alleged, severe abuse over time. Among the punishments the Turpin children suffered were frequent beatings and strangulation, Hestrin alleged. David and Louise were arraigned on Thursday afternoon, where they pleaded not guilty to their charges. Jail records show they remain in custody as of Monday and Hestrin said prosecutors were requesting bail be set at $13 million for each. Speaking to reporters after their court hearing on Thursday, attorneys for David and Louise declined to comment beyond broad reactions about the allegations against them. The allegations carry life in state prison, Louises attorney, Jeff Moore, told PEOPLE. In terms of possible sentences, this is about as serious as it gets. Anyone with information about the Turpin family is urged to call 888-934-KIDS. James Franco Attends 2018 SAG Awards Amid Allegations of Inappropriate Sexual Behavior The actor, who is nominated for 'The Disaster Artist,' did not walk the red carpet or do interviews. James Franco chose to attend Sunday's Screen Actors Guild Awards despite recent accusations of inappropriate sexual behavior. The actor, who is nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role for The Disaster Artist, did not walk the red carpet or do interviews. Franco's sister-in-law and co-star, Alison Brie, explained to ET's Cameron Mathison why his attending the show was the right choice, saying, "Tonight is about the work that has been done, and I think it still is important for all of us to celebrate that. So much goes into these projects that is behind-the-scenes that people don't see, so it's nice to still celebrate them. And, you know, I really admire how he's handling everything, listening and being open to change. I think we all need to support men being open to change if we want to see major change in this industry." Franco previously skipped the Critics' Choice Awards -- where he won -- as a result of his controversy. TNT "James will still attend the SAG Awards because there is no reason not to," a source close to Franco told ET. "He will carry on supporting the cause and moving forward." The Los Angeles Times first published an article on Jan. 11 in which five women accused Franco of inappropriate sexual behavior and abuse of power. A source close to Franco disputes that number, claiming that the accusations being made against the actor are "false." Franco himself denied any misconduct on both The Late Show with Stephen Colbert and Late Night with Seth Meyers. Franco was previously criticized for wearing a Time's Up pin to the Golden Globes, and, on Saturday, Scarlett Johansson called him out -- although not by name -- in a speech at the L.A. Women's March, saying, "My mind baffles. How could a person publicly stand by an organization that helps to provide support for victims of sexual assault, while privately preying on people who have no power? I want my pin back, by the way." Story continues RELATED CONTENT: Aziz Ansari Skips SAG Awards in the Wake of Inappropriate Sexual Behavior Allegations SAG Awards 2018: How the All-Female Presenters Have Spoken Up About Inequality SAG Awards 2018: The Complete Winners List WASHINGTON The Senate on Monday voted to end the three day government shutdown after an arrangement was agreed to eventually allow a vote on protecting Dreamers from deportation. The vote was 81-18 on a motion to end debate. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said he had reached a commitment with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to fund the government through Feb. 8. Under the terms of the arrangement, as Schumer called it, legislation to protect Dreamers will be brought to the floor if a global agreement on issues like immigration, budget caps and spending is not reached before then. The House now has to vote on the bill, but there is expectation that it will pass on Monday afternoon. Its a shamethat the American people and the Senate have had to endure such hand wringing, finger pointing, stridency to secure a guarantee that we will finally move to address this urgent issue, Schumer said from the floor. He also bashed President Donald Trump, not only for backing away from several bipartisan deals, but for not being part of the process of settling the shutdown over the weekend. He said that the great deal-making president sat on the sidelines. McConnell treated it as a victory. If we have learned anything during this process, it is that the strategy of shutting down the government over illegal immigration is something the American people do not understand, he said. The shutdown started at midnight on Saturday after the Senate failed to reach an agreement on a short-term funding bill. Democrats wanted the legislation to include a resolution of the Dreamer issue, as the the Trump administration in March will phase out the existing program to provide protected status. Californias two senators, Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris, both Democrats, each voted against the funding bill to reopen the government. Two Republicans, Mike Lee of Utah and Rand Paul of Kentucky, also voted no. Story continues The Majority Leaders comments last night fell far short of the ironclad guarantee I needed to support a stopgap spending bill, Harris said in a statement. She said that the government made a promise to our Dreamers and it is long past time that we kept that promise. A deal looked likely going into the noon vote, after a number of moderate Democrats said that they planned to vote Yes after receiving assurances from McConnell on the Dreamer issue. Some immigration and progressive groups expressed dismay that the Democrats did not demand an immediate vote on the Dreamers, and treated the commitment between McConnell and Schumer as just a three-week reprieve. Todays cave by Senate Democrats led by weak-kneed, right-of-center Democrats is why people dont believe the Democratic Party stands for anything, said Stephanie Taylor, the co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee. Others blasted Democrats for placing their trust in McConnell. We cannot rely on empty promises from those who have already proven to play politics with the lives of Dreamers, said Lorella Praeli, director of immigration policy and campaigns at the American Civil Liberties Union. Today, Republicans and too many Democrats in Congress betrayed our American values and allowed bigotry and fear to prevail. After the vote, Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.) were part of a bipartisan group, called the common sense coalition, that had been meeting over the weekend to end the shutdown. In the end, I give our leaders a lot of credit for listening to the ideas that we put forward, Collins said. They listened and thats what moved it because we werent backing off, Manchin said. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said that he would start to work on a more comprehensive solution on Monday, now that it looked like the government would reopen. Asked what role Trump should have in coming to a longer-term spending bill, he told reporters, Be constructive, just be constructive. The past few days have seen a blame game over who was responsible for the shutdown. Trump referred to it as the Schumer shutdown, while Schumer himself noted often that it was the first time the federal government had closed when the executive and legislative branches were controlled by both parties. The immediate impact of the shutdown was varied across federal agencies. Some closed to all but essential employees, while the FCC remained open, operating on reserve funding. A longer-term shutdown could have meant the FCC would have closed most of its operations. A protracted closure also could have forced federal courts to scale back operations as their reserve funding ran out. Related stories Shutdown Set to Begin as Senate Fails to Reach Funding Deal As Trump Nears One-Year Mark, Shutdown Looks More Likely Senate Democrats Close to Majority on Vote to Restore Net Neutrality Rules Subscribe to Variety Newsletters and Email Alerts! Two teenagers have died and 18 other people are wounded after a shooting at a Kentucky high school this morning, Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin said. The suspect, a 15-year-old male student, was taken into custody, Bevin said. Sixteen people suffered gunshot wounds, including the two victims who died, officials said. A 15-year-old girl, later identified as Bailey Nicole Holt, died at the scene and a 15-year-old boy, later identified as Preston Ryan Cope, died at the hospital, officials said. PHOTO: On Jan. 23, 2018, emergency crews respond to Marshall County High School after a fatal school shooting happened in Benton, Ky. (Ryan Hermens/The Paducah Sun via AP) PHOTO: Emergency crews respond to Marshall County High School shooting, Jan. 23, 2018, in Benton, Ky. (Ryan Hermens/The Paducah Sun via AP) The shooting took place just before 8 a.m. local time at Marshall County High School in Benton, Kentucky, about 120 miles northwest of Nashville, Tennessee. According to The Associated Press, 16-year-old Lexie Waymon said, I blacked out. I couldnt move. I got up and I tried to run, but I fell. I heard someone hit the ground. It was so close to me. ... I just froze and did not know what to do. Then I got up and I ran. Waymon ran to McDonalds, struggling to breathe, the AP said. All I could keep thinking was, I cant believe this is happening,'" she said, according to the AP. PHOTO: Authorities investigate the scene of fatal school shooting, Jan 23, 2018, in Benton, Ky. (Stephen Lance Dennee/AP) The scene has been secured, the state police said. It's believed that everyone who was injured was a student. PHOTO: Google Earth image of Marshall County High School, Jan 23, 2018, in Benton, Ky. (Google Earth/Handout via USA TODAY NETWORK) Five of the victims were taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, officials said. Among the patients was the 15-year-old boy who did not survive; he was shot in the head, doctors said. "Of the four remaining victims at Vanderbilt, three are in critical but stable condition and one is in stable condition," the state police said late Tuesday. 15-year-old girl shot in Texas high school cafeteria The suspect will be charged with two counts murder and multiple counts of attempted murder, according to Rick Sanders, Kentucky State Police commissioner. PHOTO: Gov. Matt Bevin speaks during a media briefing at the Marshall County Board of Education following a shooting at Marshall County High School in Benton, Ky., Jan. 23, 2018. (Ryan Hermens/The Paducah Sun via AP) One student told ABC affiliate WHAS in Louisville that he was in the library when he heard what sounded like a fight. "Someone was hitting on the window. I took off my headphones and turned around and everyone was just broken up, they were running. I saw the flashes from the gunshots and by that time I was just running," he said. "We all started running toward the library office, and once we got in there, we just shut the lights off, sat down, locked the doors. We were taught what to do in a lockdown scenario and that's what everybody did." Story continues Parent Barry Mann told the AP his 14-year-old son called him as soon as he ran out of the school. It sounded like his heart was in his throat," Mann said, according to the AP. All the parking lots were full with parents and kids hugging each other and crying and nobody really knowing what was going on," local business owner Dusty Kornbacher told the AP. PHOTO: Emergency crews respond to Marshall County High School after a fatal school shooting, Jan. 23, 2018, in Benton, Ky. Authorities said a shooting suspect was in custody. (Ryan Hermens/The Paducah Sun via AP) Landon Kornbacher, who graduated from this high school in 2016, told ABC News he was in "shock" as his girlfriend was inside the school and on lockdown. "Never would have thought this would happen here," Kornbacher said. PHOTO: Marshall County High School in Benton, Ky., as seen on Google Maps. (Google Maps) White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said the president has been briefed on the shooting. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the families in Marshall County," Sanders said. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., tweeted today, "My thoughts are with the students, teachers, faculty, and the entire community. Thank you to the first responders who continue to put themselves in harm's way to protect others." This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. "The souls of Marshall County have been bruised and the fabric of the community has been torn, but the people of Benton, KY and the surrounding communities are strong," the governor tweeted this afternoon. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Bevin said earlier in a statement, "This is a tremendous tragedy and speaks to the heartbreak present in our communities. It is unbelievable that this would happen in a small, close-knit community like Marshall County." The school shooting in Kentucky comes a day after a 15-year-old girl in Texas was shot and injured in her high school cafeteria, allegedly by a 16-year-old male student. The 15-year-old was hospitalized in unknown condition. Alison Brie took a moment to address the allegations against brother-in-law James Franco at the 2018 SAG Awards on Sunday, telling E! red carpet host Giuliana Rancic that now is the time for listening. Rancic asked the GLOW star about the recent headlines involving Franco, noting Bries support of the #TimesUp movement. We spoke a little bit about the Times Up movement at the Golden Globes, Rancic began. I know youre a supporter of the movement, as am I, and so much of the movement has to do with transparency. And as you know, your family and your brother-in-law has been in the news recently. What are your thoughts on that, and what can you share with us in terms of how thats affecting you and your family? Brie, who is married to Francos brother Dave, spoke slowly, replying, I think that, above all, what weve always said is that it remains vital that anyone who feels victimized should and, you know, does have the right to speak out and come forward. I obviously support my family, and not everything thats been reported is fully accurate, so I think were waiting to get all the information. But of course, now is the time for listening, and thats what were all trying to do. The allegations against Franco surfaced (or in some cases, resurfaced) after he wore a Times Up pin to the Golden Globes, where he won best actor in a musical or comedy for The Disaster Artist. Following his win, several people called him out on Twitter for his alleged treatment of women. And later that week, the Los Angeles Times published a report alleging that he behaved inappropriately toward multiple former acting students. Francos attorney disputed the allegations. The actor himself has not addressed them directly, but he previously spoke to the tweets about his behavior during an interview with Stephen Colbert on The Late Show. The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate. But I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice, because they didnt have a voice for so long, so I dont want to shut them down in any way. I think its a good thing, and I support it, he said at the time. Pressed to elaborate, he added, The way I live my life, I cant live if theres restitution to be made, I will I will make it. So if Ive done something wrong, I will fix it. I have to. I mean, I think thats how that works. I dont know what else to do. Im here to listen and learn and change my perspective where its off. (photos via Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images + Frazer Harrison/Getty Images + Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Turner) Over the weekend, thousands of protesters took to the streets of Washington, D.C., Manhattan, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and other cities and towns across the United States for the second annual Womens March. The organizations mission to dismantle systems of oppression that have failed women, girls, and gender-nonconforming individuals of all backgrounds, as well as the evolution of the #MeToo movement, has inspired countless individuals to join the crusade. But in the midst of the voiceless being given a voice, many believe that women of color have been noticeably silenced or erased from the conversation. Tarana Burke attends The Will and Jada Smith Family Foundation presents Broadening the Lens: Perspective on Diverse Storytelling panel on Jan. 21, 2018 in Park City, Utah. (Photo: Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for The Blackhouse Foundation at Sundance 2018) While white celebrities such as Alyssa Milano and Rose McGowan helped to propel the movement thanks to their massive social media followings, they eventually became the faces of a crusade that had been originated by a black woman. McGowan went so far as to raise her fist in a manner reminiscent of the black power fist (a symbol of black nationalism often used to represent unity and strength) while giving remarks last October at the Womens Convention in Detroit. While the raised fist has been used in logos and by individuals in various movements, many took to Twitter to explain why McGowans gesture, and the subsequent use of the photo by the media, is problematic. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Upworthy writer Erin Canty delved even deeper into the issue with an article entitled, Inconvenient truths about Rose McGowan and that raised fist at the Womens Convention. She wrote: Women like Jemele Hill and Leslie Jones had their names driven through the mud and their character attacked and on Twitter no less. Where was their rallying cry? Where were the powerful white women, their fists high in the air, having their back? Tarana Burke, however, launched a campaign 10 years ago to unify victims of sexual violence with the popular catchphrase Me Too. Fast-forward to today, and A-list actresses have used the powerful phrase in hashtag form to call out Harvey Weinstein, Matt Lauer, Russell Simmons, and other high-profile men for sexual misconduct. Story continues It wasnt built to be a viral campaign or a hashtag that is here today and forgotten tomorrow, Burke told Ebony. Whats happening now is powerful, and I salute it and the women who have disclosed, but the power of using Me Too has always been in the fact that it can be a conversation starter or the whole conversation but it was us talking to us. Rose McGowan raises her fist during her opening remarks to the audience at the Womens Convention in Detroit, Oct. 27, 2017. (Photo: Rena Laverty/AFP/Getty Images) The fact that so many were unaware of Burke or that the #MeToo movement didnt start in 2017 is why actress Anika Noni Rose says, People need to listen to women of color. Rose tells Yahoo Lifestyle, So often weve been screaming about something for so long, including the actual #MeToo movement, and yet no one actually hears it until it comes out of someone elses mouth. Just listen. And when you hear it give that person credit for what theyve said. Give them their platform before you hand it to somebody else. When Time had the opportunity to correct this error with its Silence Breakers/Person of the Year cover, the publication instead chose to place Burke inside the issue. Meanwhile, Ashley Judd and Taylor Swift were prominently highlighted, along with Susan Fowler, Adama Iwu, and Isabel Pascual. The Silence Breakers were named Time magazines Person of the Year in December. (Photo: Time Magazine) The 2018 Golden Globes red carpet provided the perfect platform for activists such as Burke, Monica Ramirez, and Marai Larasi to be not only seen but heard. However, the all-black sartorial protest often overshadowed the mission. The stark picture of these women of color standing next to white women on the red carpet as their guests, barely speaking or only being able to get in a few lines, revealed how the overall purpose had been totally defeated. White. Wealthy. And well known. These women have particular privileges they should use to their advantage to further important causes, not just get a gold star for wearing a ballgown of a certain shade, Bri Kane wrote for Bust. There are much more powerful ways celebrities could protest sexual assault in their industry. Like not going to the awards show altogether; sending an activist in their place; giving an acceptance speech about victims rights; releasing a statement supporting sexual assault survivors; or, even better, diving in to activism creating real, fundamental change within an industry we all want desperately to enjoy again. Activist Tarana Burke and actress Michelle Williams attend the Golden Globe Awards on Jan. 7. (Photo: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic) Laura Dern and Monica Ramirez attend the Golden Globe Awards. (Photo: Getty Images) Activist Marai Larasi, left, and Emma Watson attend the Golden Globe Awards. (Photo: Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic) Perhaps Viola Daviss peers can follow her example. The actress attended the Womens March in Los Angeles on Saturday, and she delivered a formidable speech in support of women of color that enlightened attendees on legislation, such as Jim Crow laws, that has kept these individuals down. And the reason why these Jim Crow laws were in place, have stifled my rights and your rights, is because we fell asleep, she said. We fall asleep when were moving ahead and we dont look to the left and right and see that were not including people because really, at the end of the day, we only move forward when it doesnt cost us anything. But Im here today saying that no one and nothing can be great unless it costs you something. Davis also used her very public platform to shine a spotlight on women like Recy Taylor and Fannie Lou Hamer, who paid dearly to speak out about such injustices. In this May 12, 2011, photo, Recy Taylor stands in Lafayette Park after touring the White House. (Photo: AP/Susan Walsh, File) Womens March co-president Bob Bland urged fellow white women to do more in her speech at the Power to the Polls rally in Las Vegas. We need to bring our voice and our vote, not just for ourselves, not just for the issues that directly impact us and our families. But for the issues of all marginalized communities, she said. We must vote for the Dreamers. We must vote for indigenous women who are missing and murdered in alarming numbers. We must do it for trans women of color. For sex workers. For all of our black and brown communities. Women of all ethnicities, ages, and backgrounds working alongside one another is essential for the progression of any movement. And as Anika Noni Rose notes, It doesnt mean that somebody else cant take the movement and move it forward and maybe even make it bigger due to their platform, but lets not erase the other voices that are there. Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle: Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. (Photo: Ji Sub Jeong/HuffPost Gettyimages) When Heath Ledger died, the headlines blamed prescription drug overdose. It sounded so generic, so anodyne, like something Big Pharma flacks had cooked up to downplay something more ominous in the making. Prescription drug overdose sounded like a simple mishap, as if Ledger had grabbed the wrong bottle out of the medicine cabinet or taken three pills instead of two. The Australian actor was found dead in his bed in Manhattan on Jan. 22, 2008. The cause: acute intoxication due to a combination of prescription drugs, including oxycodone, hydrocodone, diazepam and alprazolam. He was 28 years old. At the time, the whole concept of prescription drug overdose mystified most Americans. Because really, how could a patient overdose on medication prescribed by their doctor? Adding to the confusion was the man himself. Ledger wasnt a track-marked street junkie or a rail-thin rock star. Ledger looked like he was bursting with health and youth. And his career was blossoming The Dark Knight was just months away from opening in theaters. We didnt know what it was, yet, but for many of us, Ledgers death felt like something new. Today is the 10-year anniversary of Ledgers death. You dont hear the phrase prescription drug overdose as often. When the coroner released the results of musician Tom Pettys autopsy last Friday, they called his death an accidental drug overdose. Politicians, medical professionals and the media regularly refer to the opioid epidemic, and theyre beginning to realize theres little difference between oxycodone and heroin. Weve learned a lot in the years since Ledgers passing, in part from bearing witness to the long list of other celebrities who died with legal and illegal drugs in their systems. Some of the bigger names include Michael Jackson (2009, propofol and alprazolam); Whitney Houston (2012, cocaine, alprazolam and muscle relaxers); Glee star Cory Monteith (2013, heroin and alcohol); Philip Seymour Hoffman (2014, a mix of heroin, cocaine, alprazolam and amphetamines); Prince (2016, fentanyl); and Petty (2017, fentanyl, oxycodone and alprazolam). Story continues For close observers, the pharmacopeia of this grim tally contained clues as to the nature and evolution of the opioid epidemic. Most of these celebrity deaths underscored the fact that drug combinations are particularly deadly, especially those involving alcohol or alprazolam (commonly known as Xanax). We learned drug users like Monteith and Hoffman were switching from prescription opioids, such as oxycodone, to street drugs an economic choice driven by both the scarcity of pills due to increased regulation and the availability of cheap heroin. With Princes death in 2016 and the news of Pettys autopsy results, we learned the most lethal overdose threat was fentanyl, an opioid so potent paramedics worry about getting even a trace of it on their fingers. For some experts, Ledgers death served as an alert to an epidemic already underway. Drug overdose deaths in the U.S. rose from fewer than 17,000 in 1999 to more than 36,000 in 2007. According to the International Narcotics Control Board, the U.S. consumed 83 percent of the global supply of oxycodone in 2007 and 99 percent of the worlds hydrocodone. Ledger died with those drugs in his system painkillers that were largely unused or even banned elsewhere in the world. But in many ways, the epidemic was just getting started when Ledger died. Take the American Pain clinic. A week or so after Ledgers death, a couple of young felons opened a cash-only, walk-in pain clinic near Fort Lauderdale. They hired doctors who prescribed massive quantities of opioids to drug addicts, many of whom traveled from Appalachian states to Florida to load up on oxycodone and Xanax. Local police watched helplessly as American Pain became the biggest pain clinic in the country. The king of the pill mills. A place where the doctors wore guns under their white jackets. Where patients in withdrawal regularly went into seizures in the waiting room. Where cash flowed in so fast, the owners ditched their cash registers and stuffed the money into trash cans. I wrote about the rise and fall of American Pain in my eponymous 2015 book. But even the guys whod juiced the opioid epidemic by jump-starting the Florida pill mill industry had no idea what they were getting into. They told me they were blown away by the thousands of addicts and dealers who lined up for doctors appointments. By how far they drove to score drugs. By their desperation. Everyone else seemed astonished and ill-prepared as well, from lawmakers, to doctors, to the Drug Enforcement Administration and to drug users, themselves. The power of this addiction wave caught many by surprise. Even four years after Ledgers death, when I began my research, I felt like Id stumbled into largely undiscovered territory. News coverage of the epidemic was patchy. Few books or major documentaries had tried to explain it. Cops and paramedics and judges and drug counselors were overwhelmed, but nobody seemed to have connected the dots. Now, in 2018, we know. We hear about doctors who overprescribe to patients. About everyday people who are struggling. About how those in genuine need of pain medication now have difficulty getting their prescriptions due to more rigorous prescribing and dispensing practices. Last week, I conducted a LexisNexis search of the terms prescription drug abuse or opioid. In 2007, the year before Ledger died, 741 newspaper stories in the database mentioned one or both search terms. For 2017, the same search returned 42,456 stories. Heath Ledger would have turned 39 years old this April. His and other celebrity deaths have expanded our awareness of this still-growing problem. These days, when we hear about an entertainer or a neighbor, or a colleague, or a loved one dying before his or her time, our minds automatically flash to accidental overdose and opioids. I used to think knowledge alone would automatically subdue this epidemic. That hasnt happened yet. Awareness of prescription drug abuse is rising, but so are overdoses, which killed about 64,000 Americans in 2016, up from 34,450 in 2008. Unfortunately, thats another lesson weve learned in the decade since Ledgers death. Once created, many addictions persist. And theres usually not a Hollywood ending. John Temple is an investigative journalist and author of American Pain. He is a professor of journalism at West Virginia Universitys Reed College of Media. This piece is part of HuffPosts brand-new Opinion section. For more information on how to pitch us an idea, go here. ALSO ON HUFFPOST OPINION The Bitter Truth About Big Sugar's Caribbean Colonialism Anti-Abortion Activists Sing A Dangerous Song Blessed Are The Religious Right, For Theirs Is The Presidency Of Trump Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. (LONDON) Four out of every five dollars of wealth generated in 2017 ended up in the pockets of the richest one percent, while the poorest half of humanity got nothing, a report published by Oxfam found on Monday. As global political and business leaders gather for this weeks World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, the charitys report highlights a global system that rewards the super-rich and neglects the poor. It found that 3.7 billion people who make up the poorest half of the world saw no increase in their wealth in 2017, while 82 percent of the wealth generated last year went to the richest one percent of the global population. (It) reveals how our economies are rewarding wealth rather than the hard work of millions of people, Winnie Byanyima, Oxfams executive director, told Reuters Television. The few at the top get richer and richer and the millions at the bottom are trapped in poverty wages. Byanyima blamed tax dodging as a major cause of global inequality and urged leaders to clamp down on tax havens and plough money into education, healthcare and jobs for young people. In particular, Byanyima criticised U.S. President Donald Trump, who is attending the World Economic Forum, for creating a cabinet of billionaires and implementing tax legislation that she said rewarded the super-rich, not ordinary Americans. The annual report by Oxfam found that the number of billionaires rose at a rate of one every two days between March 2016 and March 2017, while in the United States the three richest people own the same wealth as the poorest half of the population. Oxfam said that women workers were worst hit by global inequality as they consistently earn less than men and usually have lower paid and more insecure forms of work. The World Economic Forum has previously estimated that it would take 217 years before women earn as much as men and have equal representation in the workplace. According to the 2017 Forbes rich list, the five richest people on the planet are all men from Microsofts Bill Gates, to veteran investor Warren Buffett, Amazon boss Jeff Bezos, Inditex founder Amancio Ortega and Facebooks Mark Zuckerberg. The economic model is not working at all, Oxfam report co-author, Inigo Macias Aymar, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation. The way this wealth is being distributed we are really worried, its being concentrated in fewer hands. Oxfam called for all workers to receive a minimum living wage, the elimination of the gender pay gap and tougher rules to crackdown on tax avoidance. Hong Kong (AFP) - Rights campaigners slammed as "appalling" Tuesday the disappearance of dissident publisher Gui Minhai after his daughter revealed he had been snatched again in mainland China, the latest person ensnared in Beijing's crackdown on civil society. Rights have come under increasing pressure since President Xi Jinping took power in 2012, with widespread arrests of lawyers and activists. Gui, a Swedish citizen, was one of five Hong Kong-based booksellers, known for salacious titles about the lives of China's political elite, who went missing in 2015 and resurfaced in detention on the mainland. Chinese authorities said they had released Gui in October, but it was unclear to what extent he was a free man. His daughter Angela Gui told Radio Sweden that since her father's official release from detention, he had been put in a police-managed flat under surveillance. She said that he had then been snatched by plain clothes police on Saturday while on a train to Beijing from the eastern city of Ningbo, where he was living, while accompanied by two Swedish diplomats. Her father had been travelling to Beijing to see a Swedish doctor as he was showing symptoms of the neurological disease ALS -- also known as Lou Gehrig's disease -- she added. "At one of the stops before Beijing there were about 10 men in plain clothes that came in and said they were from the police and just grabbed him and just took him away and after that I have not heard anything," she told Radio Sweden. The New York Times also reported that Gui had been taken in the presence of two Swedish diplomats. The Swedish foreign ministry said it was "fully aware" of what had happened to Gui, without giving further details. Ministry spokesman Patric Nilsson told AFP that "forceful measures have been taken at a high political level". Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom had summoned China's ambassador to a meeting and had been promised information about what had happened to the publisher, Nilsson added. Story continues During a regular press briefing, reporters grilled Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying about the incident, but she declined to directly address the case, saying she was "not aware of the details" and that the issue was out of the agency's "remit." But, she added, "any foreigner must observe Chinese laws and regulations. This is common sense." She also dodged questions about whether China and Sweden had discussed the case. "Communication channels between China and Sweden are smooth and effective. We can exchange opinions on issues of mutual interest." -- 'Wake up call' -- Rights group Amnesty International described the incident as "absolutely appalling" and called for Gui to be released and allowed to seek medical treatment. The fact that he had been snatched in front of diplomats should be a "wake up call" to the international community, said Amnesty's China researcher William Nee. Literary society and activist group PEN Hong Kong expressed "highest concern" over Gui's latest disappearance. "It is now important for foreign governments, particularly the Swedes and the European Union, to respond with strong actions," Human Rights Watch said in a statement to AFP. Chinese authorities were widely criticised after veteran Chinese rights activist and Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo died from liver cancer while on medical parole on the mainland in December last year. Rights groups had pushed for him to be allowed to seek medical treatment abroad. Gui first disappeared in 2015 while on holiday in Thailand and was initially detained at an undisclosed location in China. In February 2016 he appeared on Chinese television, weeping as he confessed to involvement in a fatal car accident years before. In another interview the same year, he also admitted trying to smuggle illegal books into China. Heading into day three of the shutdown, activists on the left had one message for Democrats: hold the line. It was not one they heeded. For months, the partys grassroots base had been urging lawmakers not to support a spending bill unless it included a permanent solution for undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. But as Democrats largely joined with Republicans to pass a short-term spending bill based only on a promise that the Senate would take up legislation to address immigration issues, activists turned to condemnation. The Monday deal to end the shutdown was what activist group MoveOn.orgs Ben Wikler had described as a worst case scenario in an interview on Sunday afternoon and in a tweet on Monday, he called it a kick in the stomach. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee Stephanie Taylor blasted Democrats for folding in a statement that was issued before the final vote was even tallied on Monday. Todays cave by Senate Democrats led by weak-kneed, right-of-center Democrats is why people dont believe the Democratic Party stands for anything, she said. Murshed Zaheed, the political director of the liberal grassroots organization CREDO, had expressed some concern that Democrats would back down on Sunday, hours before a late-night vote to end the shutdown that was ultimately postponed. For him, Democratic Minority Leader Chuck Schumers reported willingness to fund President Donald Trumps long-promised border wall in exchange for Dreamer protections was a red flag. The way you confront a bully is not by giving him what he wants, he said. Giving up the fight without any concessions from Republicans, he warned, would threaten the already precarious relationship the organizing class has with Democratic leaders which he described as transactional. And looking ahead to the upcoming midterm contests, where Democrats are hoping tap into anti-Trump anger and pick up Congressional seats, he predicted that a wave election would be a repudiation of Trump and not necessarily a vote of confidence for the current leadership of the Democratic Party. Story continues Where Democrats were unified heading into the weekend, that began to fray for a host of reasons. Some lawmakers heard from constituents back home especially in states reliant on federal contractors. Others worried that the off-ramp for the shutdown hinged on Republicans caving. (Unlikely, if history were a guide.) For some Democrats, shutting down the government and programs they wanted to protect and expand ran counter to their core beliefs. When the question of DACA-or-funding came up, on Dec. 7, eight members of the Democratic caucus voted against the stopgap. That number climbed to 30 lawmakers who caucus with Democrats by the time the Dec. 21 vote rolled around. Last week, the figure hit 44. Clearly, the momentum was on the side of those putting a premium on DACA. When folks like Montana Sen. Jon Tester, a Democrat from a state Trump carried by a whopping 54 percentage points, hold strong, its a sign the polling is indisputable. Even so, he was one of the few Democrats up in 2018 who didnt switch votes on Mondays procedural question. Still, some in the Democratic caucus asked if they fighting for the right reasons. After all, many in the room had assured Dreamers that they would be taken care of if they signed up for DACA protections. Shutting down the government didnt help them. Failing to negotiate with Trump did them no favors. The human costs were not insignificant. Dreamers like Antonio Jauregui, 20, traveled to Washington ahead of the shutdown as a living example of that human cost. In September, his own DACA protections expired. He applied to renew, but the Fresno, Calif. residents application was rejected because of a postal delay. Ive told lawmakers that I cant wait, but it does not seem to connect, he said in an interview. The deadline is not March 5th. Its not February 8th. Its now. Some Democrats argued that the concessions on Monday allowed the party to look responsible and pave the way for sweeps in the falls midterm elections. A Democratic staffer said members of the caucus were energized by the sense of urgency that the present situation creates in terms for both a broader spending deal and DACA. But as one longtime strategist on immigrant politics said: Even if we win Congress, it will be too late to matter for Dreamers. Too little, too late. Arab lawmakers in Israel's parliament have been tossed out from the house for heckling US Vice President Mike Pence at the start of his speech. The main Arab party in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, warned ahead of time it would boycott Pence over Donald Trump's decision to name Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. Members the Arab Joint List party held up signs reading Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine. The posters were immediately torn from there hands by parliamentary security guards and the MPs were forced out of the chamber. The Knesset, which is accustomed to such high-profile visits, had added a new layer of security, and besides the speaker and other dignitaries, lawmakers did not have direct access to Pence. Ayman Odeh, leader of the Joint Arab List, said it was the party's democratic right to boycott the speech by the U.S. vice president. In a tweet, he said the party will not provide a "silent backdrop" to a man he called a "dangerous racist." Netanyahu called the boycott a disgrace. He and other gave Pence a standing ovation. Crown-of-thorns starfish has been blamed for destroying large swathes of the reef - Alamy Pay Australia has announced a cull of coral-eating starfish that have been destroying the Great Barrier Reef, as part of a 35 million rescue package for the 1,500-mile stretch of delicate coast. Following growing pressure to combat widespread damage to the reef, Malcolm Turnbull, Australias prime minister, unveiled an 18-month plan, which includes funds for diving patrols that have already cleared the reef of more than 300,000 starfish. The reef, off the north-east coast of the state of Queensland, has faced heavy coral damage in recent years from bleaching and warmer water temperatures as well as coastal development, agricultural and industrial pollution, storms and the starfish. Surveys by the Australian Institute of Marine Science found that coral cover declined by about 50 per cent between 1985 and 2012, and that crown-of-thorns starfish were responsible for almost half of this decline. The plan includes 21 million to prevent pollution from entering the reef, particularly from surrounding farms, as well as 6 million for an all-out assault on coral-eating crown-of-thorns starfish and 3.5 million for research into improving the resilience of coral. The Great Barrier Reef off the coast of the Whitsunday Islands, along the central coast of Queensland Credit: AFP/ SARAH LAI The coral-eating starfish are naturally occurring but have proliferated due to pollution and agricultural run-off at the struggling reef. Theres a very strong link between polluted water and outbreaks of the crown-of-thorns starfish, Mr Turnbull said, adding that most of the funding would be going to supporting farmers stopping runoff off their properties. The plan was welcomed by tour operators who have expressed concern about reduced visitors following the heavy coral bleaching in recent years. "Tourists are going to be reluctant to fly long-haul flights out of Europe or the US, if they think they're going to come out here and there's no Great Barrier Reef for them to see," Col McKenzie, from the Association of Marine Park Tourism Operators, told ABC News. Story continues "So I think this helps allay those fears and certainly puts us on a move positive step." Critics of the new package said Mr Turnbull should instead focus on reducing carbon emissions and preventing the proposed construction of one of the worlds biggest coal mines in Queensland. "If Malcolm Turnbull was serious about protecting the Great Barrier Reef he would listen to scientists and transition away from the real reef-killer, the fossil fuel industry," said Andrew Bartlett, a Greens MP. The government has committed to spending 1.1 billion to improve the health of the reef over the next decade. Sydney (AFP) - Dozens of refugees held for years in Australia's remote Pacific detention camps departed for resettlement in the United States on Tuesday, asylum-seeker advocates said. The Sydney-based Refugee Action Coalition said 40 men flew out from Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby under a deal struck by Australia with former US president Barack Obama but bitterly criticised by his successor Donald Trump. "It was a bitter-sweet moment for the refugees -- who on the one hand, are happy to be gaining the freedom that Australia denied them more than four years ago; but on the other, they remain extremely concerned for those that are being left behind," the advocacy group said in a statement. The refugees, from camps on Manus Island, flew to Manila from where they will fly on to the US in different groups in the coming weeks before being resettled across the country, it said. The group released photos showing the refugees lining up before dawn to get on buses for the airport, then waiting at the gate to board their flight to Manila. Another 18 men were due to leave Port Moresby in the coming weeks, it said. Australian and US immigration authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the refugees' movements. Canberra sends asylum-seekers who try to reach Australia by boat to detention camps in Manus and the Pacific island of Nauru under a tough policy designed to choke off the flow of refugees to the country. More than 1,000 still remain in limbo in the remote locations. Canberra has strongly rejected calls to move the refugees to Australia and instead has tried to resettle them in third countries, including the United States. But until now only about 50 refugees have been sent to the US, under an agreement President Trump attacked after taking office as a "dumb deal". The Refugee Action Coalition said a further 130 people on Nauru have been accepted by the US and are expected to depart next month. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has offered to take 150 refugees from Manus or Nauru, but Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said he will only consider the offer once the US agreement had been fulfilled. California parents accused of torturing their 13 children began their abuse by experimenting with different religions and sex acts, a family member said Monday. California couple Louise Anna Turpin and David Allen Turpin allegedly choked, tortured and starved their 13 children. Now, Louise Turpins sister Teresa Robinette says she could no longer speak with her nieces and nephews on Skype around the same time her sister told her that the family had stopped going to church and started experimenting with different religions. She thought it was cool that they had quit going to church, and that they weredidnt trust the church anymoreand they were experimenting with different religions, Robinette said in an interview on NBCs Megyn Kelly Today. Trending: Volcanic Eruption Blasts Frozen Snow and Rock Onto Skiers at Mountain Resort Robinette also said her sister told her the older children were busy taking care of the younger children so the two parents could sow those wild oats, which they werent able to do when they were young. 905723256 Getty Images This allegedly included contacting a man from Alabama on the internet, who would meet the couple to have sex with Louise. Louise allegedly had sex with the man in a hotel room and then returned to the same hotel room a year later to have sex with her husband. Don't miss: ISIS Looted Gold And Jewellery To Recruit New Fighters In The Philippines Louise reportedly shunned alcohol for most of her life but began going to bars and getting drunk for the first time with her husband. Throughout this time, Robinette says, she was not in touch with the children but was worried about their social development because she knew they were home-schooled. Story continues Louise Turpin comes from a background of sexual abuse, Robinette said. Speaking of a male relative, she said, "He abused my mother and sexually abused my mother, and then me, Louise, Elizabeth, and a few of our cousins in the family. Robinette added the sexual abuse was an ongoing secret in her family. The victims, who ranged between ages 2 and 29, were severely malnourished when they were discovered by local police. This article was first written by Newsweek More from Newsweek Ottawa (AFP) - Canada has agreed to sign on to the resurrected Trans Pacific Partnership along with 10 other Asia-Pacific countries, moving forward with the trade pact after the United States pulled out last year. The news comes as negotiators from Canada, the United States and Mexico sit down in Montreal for a sixth round of talks aimed at revamping the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Canada -- the second-largest economy in the TPP -- had initially snubbed the proposed trade deal last year, acting as the main holdout in negotiations after US President Donald Trump decided in early 2017 to go it alone under his "America First" policy. But with Trump also threatening to pull his country out of NAFTA and time running out to reach that deal, Canada is in the hot seat to diversify its trade relationships. A senior government official said Canadian trade envoys met with their counterparts in Tokyo on Monday and Tuesday to discuss a revision of the TPP, moving towards creating one of the world's largest free trade blocs. "We made significant progress on the sticking points that we had identified" on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Vietnam in November, the official said. "And we are looking to sign the deal." A statement from the government of Singapore, which confirmed the deal, said the parties would seek to sign the TPP by early March. - The "right deal" - The agreement would incorporate all commitments from the original TPP, except for a limited number of provisions suspended temporarily, and some remaining issues to be finalised. "At the Tokyo round, senior officials resolved these outstanding issues, finalised the list of suspended provisions, and completed the legal verification of the agreement," according to the statement. The TPP would eliminate tariffs and non-tariff barriers for goods, improve access for service suppliers in a range of sectors, facilitate greater investments and improve access to government procurement contracts. Story continues "The agreement reached in Tokyo today is the right deal," Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said at the World Economic Forum in Davos. He and his trade minister, Francois-Philippe Champagne, noted stronger and more progressive clauses in the TPP on "intellectual property, culture and the automotive sector." The agreement will also be open for others -- such as the United States -- who may wish to join in future. Ottawa had held out to maintain environmental and labour protections linked to freer markets under the TPP deal. Those clauses became much less attractive to countries like Vietnam, Malaysia, Chile and Peru after the US pullout. China is not included in the TPP, as the pact was initially driven by the former US administration as a counterweight to surging Chinese power in Asia. The Tokyo TPP talks were only the second since November, when Trudeau failed to show up at a leaders' gathering on the sidelines of the APEC summit to sign an agreement-in-principle. Crucial for Canada is access to Japan's market, the third-largest in the world. The TPP also includes Australia, Brunei, Chile, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. BEIJING/STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Sweden said on Tuesday it had demanded the immediate release of Swedish citizen and Hong Kong-based bookseller Gui Minhai after he was detained for a second time by Chinese authorities. The Swedish government confirmed media reports that Gui, who has published books on the personal lives of Communist Party leaders, was taken into custody on Saturday while travelling with Swedish diplomats to seek medical treatment in Beijing. "We expect the immediate release of our citizen and that he will be able to meet with diplomatic and medical staff," Sweden's Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "Chinese authorities have repeatedly assured us that Gui Minhai is a free man since being released after having served a sentence for a traffic-related crime, and that we can have any contact we wish with our citizen." China's Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday it had no specific information on Gui Minhai, who according to his daughter Angela was taken off a train by plainclothes police while en route to the capital to get medical attention for a neurological ailment. She said she was concerned for the safety of her father, whose whereabouts remain unclear. Sweden also said it had summoned China's ambassador to Stockholm for an explanation on both Saturday and Monday. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said Sweden and China enjoy good communication and "if there are any problems ..., (we) can conduct timely and effective dialogue, this is no problem at all". China's Ministry of Public Security did not respond to a faxed request for comment. It was not possible to reach the Ministry of State Security, which has no website and does not have a publicly available telephone number. It was "incredible" to think a person could be taken away by Chinese police without reason, said the Global Times, a tabloid published by the People's Daily, the official newspaper of the ruling Communist Party. Gui Minhai was abducted in Thailand while on holiday in 2015, one of five Hong Kong booksellers who went missing that year and later appeared in mainland Chinese custody. The four others have returned to Hong Kong. Chinese authorities said Gui was freed in October last year after serving a two-year sentence for a traffic offence in 2003. (Reporting by Philip Wen, Christian Shepherd, Johan Ahlander and Johan Sennero; Writing by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Mark Heinrich) David Harbour has got those hap-hap-happy feet. The Stranger Things star asked fans to help in his quest to dance with penguins, and they totally came through. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Its likely as a result of good karma for the actor, who plays police chief Jim Hopper in the Netflix sci-fi series. In the last month alone, hes joined a high school student for her senior photographs and promised to officiate at a wedding. Both emanated from cheeky Twitter requests. Harbours possibly tongue-in-cheek mission to tell emperor penguin couples I think they have terrific parenting ideologies and perhaps hone the Hopper dance with the males began with a tweet to Greenpeace on Sunday: This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. The environmental organization replied that if Hopper garnered more than 200,000 retweets, it would ask the Captain if you can join our expedition to the Antarctic. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Harbour put out the appeal to his 780,000 Twitter followers. Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. And, less than five hours later, it was a done deal. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Greenpeace sent this message back: This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. And Harbour now appears to be preparing for the trip: This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Whether Harbour does indeed end up boogying with the penguins remains to be seen. But for the time being, bring on the Hopper Dance down under ... This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Related Coverage Hopper From 'Stranger Things' Wore A Holiday Sweater And Became A Meme David Harbour Hijacks Student's Senior Photos After Twitter Joke Goes Viral David Harbour Just Made Another Amazing Twitter Promise To A Fan Also on HuffPost This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Donald Trump is preparing to deliver a major speech during his first visit to the World Economic Forum (WEF), but has come in for intense criticism over his America First protectionism even before he has arrived in Davos. The US Presidents participation at the event had been in doubt while the federal government was in shutdown. Having signed stop-gap funding legislation, he is now due to join members of his cabinet at the event in Switzerland, where he is expected to speak on Friday. According to White House officials, Mr Trump will tell the gathering in Switzerland that America is open for business and that the President wants the world to invest in America and create jobs for hard-working Americans. Underscoring the populist vision that helped carry him to the White House, Mr Trump on Monday approved tariffs on imported solar-energy components and large washing machines in a bid to help US manufacturers. Indias Narendra Modi said forces of protectionism are raising their heads against globalisation (Getty) While some manufacturers praised Mr Trumps actions ahead of the President leaving for Davos on Wednesday he was criticised by China, Mexico and the Solar Energy Industries Association, which represents installation companies, and which said the tariffs would lead to the loss of billions of dollars and could cost 23,000 US jobs. On Tuesday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi used the Davos events opening address to talk against a new wave of protectionism, saying that trade barriers posed a danger to the world that was equal to climate change and extremist attacks. He did not mention Mr Trump by name. Forces of protectionism are raising their heads against globalisation, Mr Modi said, according to Reuters. It feels like the opposite of globalisation is happening. The leader of a nation that for decades maintained a tightly controlled economy and which still has many regulations in place, added: The negative impact of this kind of mindset cannot be considered less dangerous than climate change or terrorism. Story continues Mr Modi whose accent Mr Trump sometimes imitates, according to a new report urged governments not to turn towards isolationism. He quoted Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi, by saying: I dont want the windows of my house to be closed from all directions. I want the winds of cultures of all countries to enter my house with aplomb and go out also. The speech by Mr Modi, the first Indian prime minister to deliver the events opening address, followed that of Chinese President Xi Jinping last year. Mr Xi portrayed his country as a champion of free trade on the same week Mr Trump was inaugurated president. Mr Xi also urged international leaders to stick with the Paris accord on climate change, something Mr Trump subsequently declined to do, pulling out the US and putting it in a club of just two nations, with the only other country to reject the agreement being Syria. As for Mr Trumps message, White House Economic Adviser Gary Cohn said that Mr Trump was looking to attract investment in the US, as well as holding a small dinner for European business executives on Thursday night ahead of his speech. White House national security adviser HR McMaster added:The President will use his travel to the World Economic Forum to reiterate his commitment to mutually beneficial partnerships and ... to fair and reciprocal international economic systems. Mr Trump is also set to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and other world leaders. As well as investment in the US, Mr Trump will talk with leaders about cooperation on national security issues including the fight against Isis and North Koreas nuclear activities. Desmond Lachman, an economist with the American Enterprise Institute and a former senior official with the International Monetary Fund, told The Independent both the location of Mr Trumps visit and its timing was slightly strange. Yet he said while Mr Trump would likely claim the US has been taken advantage of for too long, he would also take the opportunity to try and take credit for Americas booming stock market. He likes a big stage, he said. This gives him a great opportunity to be rather defiant and stir up his base. Anthony Kim, a scholar at the conservative Heritage Foundation, said he believed the week would see constructive engagement from Mr Trump, even if his world view was different to many of those present. Its far better than him not attending, he said. The Associated Press said attendees at Davos differed on how they saw Mr Trumps presence at the event. I find it quite sad hes coming to the WEF, but I imagine nothing can be done about it, said Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard, a longtime disciple of the Dalai Lama. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. While the Presidents visit may seem out of step, he was reportedly persuaded to attend by French President Emanuel Macron and his own Vice President, Mike Pence. Reports suggest Mr Trump will talk a lot about US business. I think its really good that hes going, said Bill Thomas, chairman of business services KPMG International. The American economy is dependent on global engagement, and I think hes in Davos because he knows that. WEF founder Klaus Schwab said on Monday: Its good to have the President here, if the snow conditions and the situation in Washington allow us. Mr Trumps presence has already triggered protests in Swiss cities. About 20 demonstrators broke through security to reach the Davos Congress Centre, holding banners and shouting Wipe out WEF before they were peacefully disbanded by police, but there were larger demonstrations elsewhere on Tuesday. Police estimated that there were 2,000 demonstrators in Zurich. They carried flags and anti-globalist and environmentalist placards such as No Trump, no coal, no gas, no fossil fuels as they marched towards the citys financial district. Several hundred protesters also marched in public squares in Geneva, Lausanne and Fribourg. Geneva signs read World Economic Fiasco and racist sexist capitalist. Swiss police are deploying more than 4,300 troops around Davos for security, which officials say compares to that on previous years. President Donald Trump may not attend the annual Davos World Economic Forum if the federal government is still shut down. Asked if the President would still make the trip to Switzerland this week, White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders indicated that the prospects were increasingly slim. I dont know that thats very likely. I wouldnt imagine it is, Ms Sanders said. Our priority is making sure that the government reopened and we start having the conversations that need to take place over the next couple of weeks. Mr Trump is slated to speak at the economic forum later this week, and aides have noted that he may still make it over there but the ongoing disagreements over federal funding in Washington could scrap those plans. The American government has seen non-essential services shuttered since Friday night, when Congress failed to reach an agreement. It is the first time that the US government has seen a shutdown since 2013, when far right politicians like Senator Ted Cruz led an effort to try and force Democrats to defund Obamacare and failed 17 days later. This time, Democrats and Republicans have reached a standstill on several issues, including funding to protect the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. That programs future was thrust into uncertainty last year when Mr Trump announced that he would end the program, saying that Congress should act if it wants to maintain those protections for 700,000 young people who have benefited from them. Mr Trumps decision to attend the Davos forum which is known for featuring A-list celebrities, billionaire bankers, and the worlds wealthy elite was something of a surprise to begin with. Mr Trump ran a campaign in 2016 portraying himself as a populist champion wiling to stand up to the worlds wealth elite establishment, promising to help blue collar workers in America to regain financial footing. A worker of the Israeli Antiquity Authority sews fragments of the Dead Sea scrolls which includes biblical verses in a preservation laboratory of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem - Moment Mobile ED Israeli scholars have pieced together and deciphered one of two previously unread manuscripts of the Dead Sea Scrolls more than half a century after their discovery, an Israeli university has said. The more than 60 tiny fragments of parchment bearing encrypted Hebrew writing had previously been thought to come from a variety of different scrolls, a Haifa University spokesman said. But Eshbal Ratson and Jonathan Ben-Dov of the university's Bible studies department found the pieces all fit together after they started examining them just under a year ago, Ilan Yavelberg said. "They put it all together and said it was actually one scroll," he said. A Haifa University statement said that Ratson and Ben-Dov were now working on deciphering the last remaining scroll. A worker of the Israeli Antiquity Authority sews fragments of the Dead Sea scrolls which includes biblical verses in a preservation laboratory of the Israel Museum in Jerusalem Credit: Moment Mobile ED The Dead Sea Scrolls, which include the oldest known manuscripts of the Hebrew Bible, date from the 3rd century BC to the 1st century AD. Numbering around 900, they were discovered between 1947 and 1956 in the Qumran caves above the Dead Sea. The parchment and papyrus scrolls contain Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic writing, and include several of the earliest-known texts from the Bible, including the oldest surviving copy of the Ten Commandments. Many experts believe the manuscripts of the Dead Sea were written by the Essenes, a dissident Jewish sect that had retreated into the Judaean desert around Qumran and its caves. The latest deciphered scroll contains references to the 364-day calendar used by the sect, as opposed to the lunar calendar used in Jewish religious practice today. It also refers to annual wine and olive harvest festivals no longer observed in Judaism. A service dogs trip to Disney World was complete when he got to meet Pluto in real life. Atlas, a service dog from Sarasota, Fla., was overjoyed as he came nose-to-nose with Mickey Mouses canine companion during a weekly trip to Disney World with his owner, 22-year-old Julien Gavino. "We usually go to Disney once a week were annual pass holders but havent gotten around to Atlas meeting Pluto yet, Gavino told InsideEdition.com. We saw him outside so we ran over." Atlas even has a stuffed Pluto at home, which made him more excited to meet the life-sized version over the weekend. I love to see him have fun, Gavino said. Some days, he works long hours, so its important for him to get to do this kind of stuff. Gavino, a college student at USF Sarasota, said he got Atlas in November to help him navigate life with his disability. He was born with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, a rare condition that affects the skin, joints and blood vessel walls. He said he is planning to become an occupational therapist after graduation and hopes to raise awareness for service dogs and people battling chronic illness. RELATED STORIES Service Dog Dropout Now Finds His Niche as an Emotional Support Dog Duchess Kate Middleton Gives Puppy a Royal Welcome as He Becomes a Service Dog Service Puppy Meets Pluto at Disneyland and Can't Believe It Related Articles: Donald Trump reportedly fakes an Indian accent when he repeats comments made to him by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Mr Trump and Mr Modi are said to have a warm relationship, something that has been helped by the Indian leader being invited to the Oval Office on several occasions and the Trump administrations recent criticism of India neighbour, Pakistan. But in a development that could cause tension between the two countries, a new report claims Mr Trump, who earlier this month triggered controversy when it was reported he used the phrase s***hole countries when referring to Haiti and African nations, reportedly imitates the Indian leaders accent. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. The Washington Post reported Mr Trumps behaviour in the context of the USs provision of additional troops to Afghanistan, where it is supposed to have adopted a non-combat role. It said Mr Trump imitated the accent of Mr Modi, who can speak and understand English but prefers to converse in his native Hindi, and claimed that he said to him: Never has a country given so much away for so little in return - as the United States in Afghanistan. Mr Trump claimed the Indian leaders comment was was proof the rest of the world viewed the United States as being taken advantage of in Afghanistan. Both the White House and State Department failed to respond to questions about the claim. Indian officials in Washington also did not immediately respond. If true, it would not be the first time Mr Trump had adopted a fake Indian accent. In the spring of 2016, during the election campaign, Mr Trump used a such a voice to mock a call centre representative in India. The New York billionaire claimed he called up his credit card company to find out whether their customer support is based in the US or overseas. Guess what, youre talking to a person from India. How the hell does that work? he told his supporters in Delaware. So I called up, under the guise Im checking on my card, I said, Where are you from? Story continues We are from India, said Mr Trump, impersonating the response he claimed to have received. Oh great, that's wonderful. India is great place. I am not upset with other leaders. I am upset with our leaders for being so stupid. Mr Modi and Mr Trump may be set for a potentially awkward meeting this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos. The forum will open on Tuesday with a speech by Mr Modi and end on Friday, when Mr Trump is due to address the large auditorium where Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke last year. President Donald Trump is at odds with his chief of staff, calling retired four-star Marine Corps general John Kelly "another nut job," and on the lookout for a replacement, according to a new report. Citing "two prominent Republicans in frequent contact with the White House," Vanity Fair reported that the ouster doesn't look imminent, if only because of the desire for Kelly to outlast his predecessor Reince Priebus' six-month tenure and to avoid another wave of news reports about the administration's high turnover. Priebus, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, was named as Trump's pick for chief of staff shortly after he won election in November 2016. He resigned from his post on July 27. The next day, Kelly, formally Trump's secretary of homeland security, was announced as the replacement. Now, though, that relationship appears to have soured. "Ive got another nut job here who thinks hes running things, Trump lamented to a friend, according to a Republican familiar with the conversation, Vanity Fair reported. Trending: Trump's First Year Is a Big Win for Conservative Judges Kelly's arrival at the White House was widely heralded as a much-needed addition to bring stability and discipline to an administration racked by controversy and palace intrigue. But now, Kelly's role as taskmaster appears to have undermined his standing with the president. "The more Kelly plays up that hes being the adult in the roomthat its basically combat duty and hes serving the countrythat kind of thing drives Trump nuts, Vanity Fair reported, citing "a Republican close to the White House." GettyImages-858029054 MANDEL NGAN/AFP/Getty Images On Wednesday, Kelly told Democratic lawmakers and later Fox News that he had explained to Trump the nuances of building a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border. Kelly said Trump's campaign pledge was "uninformed," that a wall spanning the entire southern border is impossible and that Mexico will not pay for it, according to The Washington Post. Story continues Later to Fox News, Kelly added of Trump: "He has evolved in the way he looks at things." Don't miss: Entire West Coast On Tsunami Watch After Earthquake Rocks Alaska It was not a message that appeared to sit well it the president, who took to Twitter the following day to contradict his chief of staff. "The Wall is the Wall, it has never changed or evolved from the first day I conceived of it," he tweeted early Thursday. "Parts will be, of necessity, see through and it was never intended to be built in areas where there is natural protection such as mountains, wastelands or tough rivers or water. He continued: "The Wall will be paid for, directly or indirectly, or through longer term reimbursement, by Mexico, which has a ridiculous $71 billion dollar trade surplus with the U.S. The $20 billion dollar Wall is peanuts compared to what Mexico makes from the U.S. NAFTA is a bad joke!" This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Trump, who is an avid Fox News viewer, is said by Vanity Fair to have complained about Kelly's recent behavior. "This guy thinks he's running the show," a source with knowledge of a Trump phone call told the magazine. Most popular: Super Bowl 52: 76ers Dream of Patriots-Eagles Tickets Ends With Loss to Grizzlies One of the sources added that Kelly is approaching Attorney General Jeff Sessions territorya man whom Trump has reportedly said he's angrier with than Special Counsel Robert Mueller, who is investigating Russian interference in the 2016 election and potential collusion with the Trump campaign. Trump "This could be like Sessions, one source told the magazine, a reference to Trump's frustration that he can't simply fire his attorney general. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Newsweek, though it denied the account to Vanity Fair, saying, "[Trump has] only ever referred to him as the general, tough, can be rough, and commands respect." Kelly entered the white house amid a maelstrom of chaos. Two days before he started, then-White House Communications Director Anthony Scaramucci had tagged Priebus in a since-deleted tweet about Trump administration leaks, leading many to speculate that Scaramucci suspected Priebus was the source. The New Yorker's Ryan Lizza later confirmed that Scaramucci wanted the FBI to investigate Priebus for leaks. The next day, Priebus was gone. By July 31, so was Scaramuccijust 11 days into his new career. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Trump is said to have privately floated David Urban, a longtime Washington lobbyist and Trump campaign adviser, as Kelly's possible successor. In May 2017, Axios reported that Trump has been consulting Republican lawmakers about potentially selecting Urban for the high-profile role. Now, Trump's daughter and senior White House adviser Ivanka Trump is heading up the search, according to Vanity Fair. "Ivanka is the most worried about it. Shes trying to figure who replaces Kelly, a source who has spoken with her told the outlet. This article was first written by Newsweek More from Newsweek The Duchess of Cambridge is launching a new mental health initiative for children. (Photo: Getty) The Duchess of Cambridge is launching a new website to help children access better mental health support in school. The mental health and wellbeing of children has always been a top priority for the duchess, and on Tuesday she is due to launch a new online portal which aims to provide comprehensive advice and ideas to teachers and staff. Mentally Healthy Schools is the latest initiative from the Heads Together campaign launched by the duchess alongside her husband, Prince William, and Prince Harry which aims to highlight gaps in mental health care. The mental health and wellbeing of children is an issue close to the Duchesss heart. (Photo: Getty) Kate is scheduled to visit Roe Green Junior School, Brent, one of the schools that has been doing a trial of the new website, to officially launch the online resource. Though there are lots of mental health resources available for teachers, Mentally Healthy Schools has been specially created to help them talk to children about issues ranging from bereavement to anxiety and eating disorders. Speaking about the new site, Kensington Palace said: Teachers and staff play a pivotal role in a young persons life, but they currently struggle to find the right resources in order to provide the most effective support for children in their care. Up until now, the array of online resources has been difficult to navigate; it is often unclear whether items are expertly verified, and teachers are often unsure how appropriate the advice is for their particular age-group or issue. The new website is part of the Heads Together Initiative, launched by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry. (Photo: Getty) The duchess who is pregnant with her third child and is the mother of Prince George, 4, and Princess Charlotte, 2 has regularly spoken about the importance of encouraging children to open up about mental health issues. We need to help young people and their parents understand that its not a sign of weakness to ask for help, Kate previously said in a video filmed at Bethlem and Maudsley Hospital School in Beckenham. A childs mental health is just as important as their physical health and deserves the same quality of support. Story continues The news comes as it was revealed that the duchess may be planning a home birth for her third child. Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle: Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. The Boring Company, Elon Musks tunneling enterprise behind SpaceX headquarters in Southern California, is taking its first major step in making a subterranean highway to allow commuters to travel beneath notorious Los Angeles traffic. On Monday at 7 p.m. Pacific, the company will propose plans to build a network of tunnels under LA in a city council meeting hosted in Culver City, an independent city in Los Angeles County. If Musks company is able to secure the city councils approval, it would be able to begin its historical underground operations. A representative or representatives of The Boring Company will be discussing the proposed map of the LA tunnel network in a public hearing where residents will be able to ask questions or voice concerns. This will be held at the Mike Balkman Council Chambers in the City Hall of Culver City. The city council appears to post videos of its meetings after the fact, though theres no indication a live stream will be available for those curious about hearing the Boring Companys pitch live. The citys government has not yet responded to Inverses requests for comment. The Boring Companys initial proof-of-concept tunnel is depicted in red, while the blue lines represent how it could be expanded. Culver Citys website has provided an online forum where residents can voice their opinions remotely. While only a handful of comments have been posted, the general sentiment is positive, but hungry for more information. There is not enough information to make an informed comment, writes Laura Stuart. We need to know the scope of the proposed job, how it will disrupt our lives, our homes (especially property damage to homes that will crack and sink due to boring), what value it has to Culver City, where are the proposed on/off ramps, how much will it cost Culver City in future maintenance and or damage repairs. Elon Musk is a visionary. Just would like to know the reality first. This skepticism is not unwarranted, as the Boring Company has been vague about how construction of these tunnels would affect the lives of residents. A report by The Argonaut, notes that a few city officials have been given a tour of a test tunnel thus far. One of them was Culver City Councilman Jim B. Clarke who seemed enthusiastic at the prospects of this project, but didnt provide a lot of information regarding what he saw. Story continues Until the city council meeting, we only have the map provided by the Boring Company that depicts a 6.5-mile tunnel through Los Angeles and Culver City that the firm would construct as a proof-of-concept. The rest of the map is a potential phase 2, or how the original tunnel could be expanded. As ever, Elon Musks newest project is turning out to be the exact opposite of boring. Photos via The Boring Company Photos via The Boring Company Written by Danny Paez More articles by Danny Follow Danny on Twitter tweetshare More From Inverse By Francesco Guarascio BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union finance ministers agreed on Tuesday to remove eight jurisdictions, including much-criticised Panama, from the bloc's blacklist of tax havens, one month after the list was set up. The decision prompted an outcry from lawmakers and activists. Barbados, Grenada, South Korea, Macao, Mongolia, Tunisia and the United Arab Emirates joined Panama as jurisdictions delisted "following commitments made at a high political level to remedy EU concerns," according to a statement from the ministers. The move is in line with recommendations by EU tax experts in the Code of Conduct Group. The blacklist was only drawn up in December to discourage the most aggressive tax-dodging practices after several disclosures of off-shore schemes. Ministers said the delisting was a sign that the process was working as countries around the world were agreeing to adopt EU standards on tax transparency. "Jurisdictions around the world have worked hard to make commitments to reform their tax policies. Our aim is to promote good tax governance globally," said Vladislav Goranov, finance minister of Bulgaria, which holds the rotating EU presidency. But the move drew strong criticism. The delisting of Panama, which was at the center of one of the largest disclosures, the so-called Panama papers, caused particular concern. "Today's decision is a confession of failure. Crossing Panama, one of the world's most prolific tax havens off the blacklist, is a disastrous sign in the fight against tax avoidance," said Markus Ferber, an EU center-right lawmaker and vice-chair of the European Parliament's economic committee. He said ministers should have instead expanded the list, including EU countries and jurisdictions, such as Malta and Britain's overseas territories. The detailed commitments made by the eight jurisdictions who were removed from the list have not been made public, despite calls to do so by EU tax commissioner Pierre Moscovici. "The EU is rushing to take countries off the blacklist without it being clear what they have actually committed to improve; this is further undermining the process," said Aurore Chardonnet, of the anti-poverty group Oxfam. She urged the EU to make public the commitments, echoing calls from lawmakers from several political groupings in the European Parliament. Goranov said in a news conference after the meeting that commitments could not be disclosed without the green light of the countries who made them. EU officials could ask their counterparts in Panama or Tunisia whether they would agree to publish this information, Goranov said. Countries are usually very reluctant to disclose tax information. Nine jurisdictions remain on the blacklist. They are American Samoa, Bahrain, Guam, the Marshall Islands, Namibia, Palau, Saint Lucia, Samoa, and Trinidad and Tobago. EU ministers avoided discussing possible sanctions for jurisdictions who remain on the blacklist. The eight delisted jurisdictions have been moved to a so-called gray list, which includes other 47 jurisdictions that have committed to changing their tax rules to abide by EU standards on transparency and cooperation. Countries on the gray list can be moved back to the blacklist if they fail to respect their engagements. (Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; editing by Robert-Jan Bartunek/Jeremy Gaunt/William Maclean) Cybersecurity should be top of mind for attendees of the World Economic Forums annual meeting in Davos, according to the Global Risks Report 2018. Cyberattacks are perceived as the global risk of highest concern to business leaders in advanced economies, WEF reported ahead of this weeks annual meeting of global leaders in the Swiss resort town. Cyber is also viewed by the wider risk community as the risk most likely to intensify in 2018, according to the risk perception survey that underpins the Global Risks Report. Addressing those concerns, experts at WEF spent a year compiling a playbook for cyber resilience that identifies 14 policy areas where there needs to be public-private cooperation. Davos will also see the launching of a Global Centre for Cybersecurity to facilitate that cooperation. This comes from trying to come up with a common language both about security policy and the values that underly it so that at least the discussion is transparent and can take place before an emergency situation, Daniel Dobrygowski, Project Lead for Cyber Resilience at WEF, told Yahoo Finance. If were all speaking the same language, then were apt to get more done. Staff talk in the Congress Hall ahead of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting in the Swiss Alps resort of Davos, Switzerland January 22, 2018 REUTERS/Denis Balibouse We need a new model for a global security platform Yahoo Finance sent WEFs cyber playbook to top cybersecurity experts and asked: What is the topic or topics that business and government leaders should be focusing on when it comes to cybersecurity and policy in 2018? We need a new model for a global security platform that combines governmental and private-entity resources to counter the challenges on the emerging threat horizon. Davos, where the worlds biggest stakeholders come together, may be just the place to start the discussion. William J. Bratton, Executive Chairman of Teneo Risk and former Police Commissioner of New York City Something I would like to see is governmental [groups] whether thats overarching bodies like the European Commission or whether thats on a national level, having representatives from governments or civil services of various nations coming together to engage more with the private sector. Rik Ferguson, Vice President of Security Research at Trend Micro Story continues Pinpointing blame for a cyberattack takes a blend of cutting-edge digital forensics, traditional intelligence, ever-better defensive technologies, and more robust public-private cooperation including threat intelligence sharing. Conflict managers in the public sector will be wise to have all available resources collaborate on attribution and response design while deflecting public clamor for quick revenge. Steve Grobman, CTO of McAfee Traditional defense is simply not enough. Companies must do more than monitor and assess threats, they need to be proactive about collecting intelligence and context about bad actors. If they truly want to defend their networks, organizations must complement commercial threat intelligence sources with analysis about all potential vulnerabilities within their network known and unknown. Only then can they get a fuller picture of actual risk. Leo Taddeo, Chief Information Security Officer for Cyxtera and former FBI Special Agent in Charge of the Special Operations/Cyber Division at the New York Office (Check out more detailed analysis from Taddeo.) Cyber-attacks are the third most likely global risk for 2018, according to WEF. Photo: WEF Focus on making companies more secure through automated and integrated solutions: The way into my organization might be through my trusted relationship with your organization; your risk often becomes my risk. Neither of us can sufficiently manage the security problems of speed and scale without adopting the solutions of automation and integration. Philip Quade, CISO at Fortinet and former Special Assistant to the NSA Director for Cyber (Check out more detailed analysis from Quade.) Redefine a win in cyberspace. You will get breached, mitigating the impact of the breach before data is stolen is a win. In 2016 we saw on average a dwell time globally of 99 days before a breach is detected. Thats the time between when a hacker compromises a system and the organization either detects the breach or is notified by an external party of the breach. That dwell time needs to shrink to under 10 minutes if we want to be successful in almost always mitigating the impact of a breach. Think of it like a security system on your house, a burglar breaks in, the alarm sounds, they run out and no one is harmed and nothing is stolen. Everything worked as planned. Tony Cole, VP and Global Government Chief Technology Officer at FireEye Go on the offensive against your own systems. Be the adversary and perform aggressive red teaming that mimics their tradecraft. Patch quickly and ensure all patches are actually effective by thoroughly testing them. Mark Kuhr, CTO and Co-Founder of Synack One of the most pressing areas is how to best secure IoT devices. Malicious botnets incorporating IoT devices are extremely representative of todays evolving threat landscape, and recent IoT threats have challenged our collective defenses. Unfortunately, this trend will continue to accelerate exponentially as more devices come online. Bill Wright, Director of Government Affairs at Symantec Participants use their smart phones and laptops between sessions during the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland January 22, 2016. REUTERS/Ruben Sprich The biggest topics right now from both a business and government perspective are definitely these: cryptocurrency ecosystems, election security, DevSecOps (this may sound dull, but think: IoT, cars, airline computer systems, smart homes, smart cities, Intel chips, Juniper routers, Huawei, the Internet, basically everything digital under the sun), increased regulation, cyber warfare and attribution. Jason Glassberg, co-founder of Casaba Security (Check out more detailed analysis from Glassberg.) Nation State hacking and targeting of Critical Infrastructures since this is an economic forum that may greatly impact any of our countries, should we examine the potential for rules, guidelines, rules of engagement, or even a moratorium on targeting member countries critical infrastructures? Jeff Bardin, CIO of Treadstone 71 Dobrygowski noted that while WEF doesnt recommend policy, the organizations mandate involves expanding the universal tools available for people in leadership positions to make intelligent decisions around these sorts of challenges. He added: We need to get everyone who has a stake in this conversation in the room to help decide what our expectations are around security and the internet. This post will be updated with links to more detailed insights from various experts as the week progresses. Daniel Howley contributed to this report. Follow Yahoo Finance on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn Follow Michael B. Kelley on Twitter @MichaelBKelley READ MORE: Coming to Davos: Power leaders, snow and Trump Very high level of confidence Russia used Kaspersky software for devastating NSA leaks Hillary Clinton: We are totally unprepared for the rise of artificial intelligence Legendary Facebook backer nails the existential issue facing social media Brandon Griesemer was arrested for allegedly to shoot and kill CNN employees (Rex) A man has been arrested for allegedly threatening to shoot and kill fake news CNN employees. Brandon Griesemer is said to have called the television news channel 22 times last week to make the death threats, according to CBS46. According to court documents, the 19-year-old told a CNN operator: Fake news. Im coming to gun you all down. The 19-year-old allegedly phoned CNN headquarters in Atlanta 22 times to make threats (Rex) In another call, he allegedly said: Im smarter than you. More powerful than you. I have more guns than you. More manpower. Your cast is about to get gunned down in a matter of hours. I am coming to Georgia right now to go to the CNN headquarters to f***ing gun every single last one of you. MOST POPULAR ON YAHOO UK TODAY Tsunami alerts for U.S. and Canada downgraded after Alaska earthquake German killer nurse serving life sentence charged with 97 new counts of murder Police searching for missing schoolgirl, 11, find a body in a river in West Yorkshire The flu can be spread just by breathing, new study finds Venice authorities step in after four tourists charged 1,000 for meal The FBI were called in and were able to trace the call and arrested Griesemer over the threats. Griesemer, from Michigan, is also accused of making derogatory and racially motivated comments about black people and Muslims in the calls. CNN said in a statement: We take any threats to CNN employees or workplaces, around the world, extremely seriously. This one is no exception. Donald Trump kicked CNN reporter Jim Acosta (r) out of the Oval Office last week (Rex) We have been in touch with local and federal law enforcement throughout, and have taken all necessary measures to ensure the safety of our people. The alleged threats came on the same week that Donald Trump announced that CNN had won most of his Fake News Awards. The President also kicked CNN reporter Jim Acosta out of the Oval Office after he was asked about immigration to the United States. Darren Osborne is alleged to have used a van to mow down a group of worshippers as they left a mosque in Finsbury Park - SWNS/Geoff Pugh for The Telegraph An unemployed father of four accused of carrying out the Finsbury Park terror attack became "brainwashed" and a "ticking time bomb obsessed with Muslims after watching a BBC drama about the Rochdale grooming scandal, a court has heard. Darren Osborne, 48, from Cardiff became convinced all Muslims were rapists and belonged to paedophile gangs after watching the hard hitting Three Girls drama, which was broadcast on BBC One last May. On June 17 last year - in the wake of the terrorist attacks in Westminster, Manchester and London Bridge - Mr Osborne hired a van from a firm near his home in south Wales. Two days later, at just after midnight, he allegedly ploughed into a group of Muslims who had just left a mosque in Finsbury Park, north London, killing 51-year-old Makram Ali and injuring several others, some of them seriously. At the opening of his trial at Woolwich Crown Court, Jonathan Rees QC, prosecuting said: The evidence establishes that the defendant was trying to kill as many of the group as possible. Shortly after the deadly attack, a note was found in the van, which the court was told documented his extremist views towards members of the Muslim faith and also a number of leading politicians and public figures. Darren Osborne was detained by members of the public in Finsbury Park Credit: Universal News And Sport In the note he referred to Labour leader, Jeremy Corbyn, as a terrorist sympathiser and London Mayor, Sadiq Khan, as a disgrace. Reading from the note, Mr Rees said Mr Osborne had written: Why are there terrorists on our streets today? Weve had three recent terror attacks, our children spattered against the walls of concerts, part and parcel by all accounts, Mr Sadiq Khan, no it isnt how can you let this happen, terrorists marching through our capital city, youre a disgrace, where was the public outrage after 1400 of our white British none Muslim girls? Where were you in Rotherham, Lily Allen, Jeremy Corbyn, nowhere to be seen." Later in the note, he wrote: Story continues "So Mr Sadiq Khan how are you this morning? I'd imagine your (sic) gonna have a hard job keeping your happy go lucky vibrant city in order, Part n parcel of living in a big city, carry on as normal, bk to ya day Jobs, what about you Jez? "Mr terrorist sympathiser, or should I call you Harold, "you dirty old man" put that in ya pipe, & have some sympathy for me, well Folkes gotta go busy day today. Remember peaceful vigils only & please dont look back in anger, God Save the Queen". Emergency services at the scene in Finsbury Park Credit: James Gourley/REX/Shutterstock Mr Rees explained: The underlying theme seems to be that the defendant felt that insufficient was being said or done to counter-terrorism and grooming gangs comprising predominantly Muslim males. Against that background, the defendant decided to take matters into this own hands. He planned to make a public statement by killing Muslims, knowing that this handwritten note would be recovered by the authorities. The court was told that Mr Osbornes former partner, Sarah Andrews, described him as unpredictable, a loner and a functioning alcoholic. Makram Ali was described him as a 'quiet, gentle man' who 'spent his whole life without any enemies' Credit: Metropolitan Police/PA But she said she had never considered him to be a racist and had not heard him making derogatory comments about Muslims, before watching the Three Girls drama. Mr Rees told the jury: Ms Andrews noticed that the defendant became obsessed with the subject matter of the drama. He started researching associated topics on the internet, including material featuring Tommy Robinson, the co-founder and former spokesperson for the English Defence League (EDL). The defendant started making racist comments about all Muslims raping children and being capable of blowing people up. It appeared to her that he was becoming brainwashed. Ms Andrews pleaded with the defendant to stop, telling him that all Muslims did not behave in this manner, but he was not interested in her views. With the benefit of hindsight, she describes him as a ticking time bomb. Finsbury Park van attack - How it unfolded The court heard that Mr Osborne had suffered from anxiety and depression for a number of years and had not worked for around a decade. Mr Rees said he had also twice threatened to take his own life in the weeks before the attack. Analysis of Mr Osbornes media devices showed that in the fortnight leading up to the attack they had connected to web pages which included: the far right Britain First group; Tommy Robinson; a fake video purportedly showing Muslims in London celebrating the Paris terror attacks; Jeremy Corbyn and why people should not vote for him and Sadiq Khans comments that part and parcel of living in a global city was being prepared for terror attacks. Mr Rees said it was clear that by Friday 16 June, Mr Osborne had formulated his plan to drive a vehicle into a group of Muslims, because he had inquired about hiring a Luton van. A police forensic officer examines the van used by Darren Osborne Credit: Carl Court /Getty The barrister told the jury: This was just under three months after Khalid Masood had carried out an attack on Westminster Bridge, driving a car into pedestrians, killing four and injuring many others, before fatally stabbing PC Keith Palmer, who sought to prevent him entering the Palace of Westminster. Mr Osborne hired the van the following day, paying 170, before spending the evening in the Hollybush Public House near his home in Cardiff. Witnesses, who described him as being drunk, later told the police they had heard him saying he wanted to write to Theresa May and Parliament, adding: All Muslims are terrorists. Mr Osborne was also allegedly overheard talking about a Muslim march, which the court was told was thought to be a reference to the Al Quds march, that was taking place in central London the following day. A man prays at the scene of the incident in Finsbury Park Credit: NEIL HALL /Reuters Later that night, he got into a conversation with a serving soldier who took exception to his racist language. Mr Rees said the defendant had said words to the effect: Im going to kill all the Muslims, Muslims are all terrorists. Your families are all going to be Muslim. Im going to take it into my own hands. He also claimed to be a soldier and when asked what regiment, allegedly replied: You will find out tomorrow. Mr Osborne denies one count of murder and one count of attempted murder and the trial continues. The fiancee of George Papadopoulos, a former foreign policy adviser to President Donald Trump who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI last year, said theres a lot the public doesnt know yet. Theres a lot to come, Simona Mangiante told The Washington Post. He was the first one to break a hole on all of this. She didnt give details, but said Papadopoulos would be remembered as the John Dean of the Russia scandal. Dean was White House counsel for President Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal, and ultimately cooperated with prosecutors. Papadopoulos served as a foreign policy adviser to the 2016 Trump campaign. However, after news broke that he was cooperating with special counsel Robert Muellers investigators, Trump dismissed him as a low level volunteer who had proven to be a liar. In addition, former Trump campaign adviser Michael Caputo told CNN that Papadopoulos was just a coffee boy who had nothing to do with the campaign. Mangiante disputed that in her interview with the Post. I know what it means as a young person to do all the efforts you do to build your career and be dismissed as a coffee boy, she said. The newspaper reported that Papadopoulos and Mangiante met online last spring and became engaged in September. In between came Papadopoulos July arrest by the FBI. We went from paradise to hell, Mangiante told the Post. Read the full interview here. Also on HuffPost Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Veteran center fielder Austin Jackson has reportedly signed a two-year deal with the Giants. (AP) The biggest question of the San Francisco Giants offseason has been what theyd do about their outfield. First, they traded for Pittsburgh Pirates star Andrew McCutchen and now theyve added a free agent that looks to be the final piece of the puzzle. The Giants have reportedly signed veteran center fielder Austin Jackson to a two-year deal, according to Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, who says the Giants are giving Jackson $6 million over the course of the contract. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Anybody who has complained about the Giants being too old, well, theyve got more ammo here. Jackson is 30, but to his credit, he hits left-handed pitching quite well. Last season with the Indians, he hit .352/.440/.574 against lefties with four homers and 15 RBIs. As a whole, he hit .318/.387/.482 with seven homers and 35 RBIs in 85 games. He also plays good defense (which is especially important at AT&T Park). The Giants will be hoping they get the 2017 version of Jackson, who was worth 1.8 Wins Above Replacement, according to Fangraphs, not the 2016 version that was worth -0.1 for the Chicago White Sox. If the Giants want to platoon Jackson, that could work. They have 24-year-old Steven Duggar in their farm system, who many have picked as a center fielder of the future. Hes their No. 8 prospect. Pairing Duggar with Jackson in center could work, because Jackson also provides an above-replacement-level player for the Giants at a bargain rate if Duggar struggles in the big leagues. The Giants have previously said they plan to move Hunter Pence to left field and put Andrew McCutchen in right. S.F. also added Evan Longoria in a trade with the Rays to fill their hole at third base. More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports: Mike Oz is the editor of Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at mikeozstew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! James Franco was spotted at the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday his first public appearance in the wake of allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior. Franco, 39, attended the ceremony with his girlfriend Isabel Pakzad. In a red carpet interview with E!, his sister-in-law Alison Brie, nominated for her role in GLOW, defended the Disaster Artist star. I think that above all what weve always said is that it remains vital that anyone that feels victimized should and does have the right to speak out and come forward, she said. I obviously support my family, and not everything thats been reported has been accurate, so I think were waiting to get all the information. But of course now is the time for listening, and thats what we are all trying to do. Five women accused Franco, who is nominated at Sundays ceremony for outstanding performance by a male actor in a leading role for his movie The Disaster Artist, of sexually exploitative behavior earlier this month. Last week, Franco skipped the Critics Choice Awards, where he won the award for best actor in a comedy. Sources have said the actor has been shaken by the allegations: Hes in a really bad place, a source close to the situation told PEOPLE. His close friends are trying to be there for him. During a recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, Franco addressed the allegations made by a number of women on Twitter after he wore a Times Up pin at the Golden Globe Awards. There are people that need to be heard, the actor told Meyers. I have my own side of this story, but I believe in these people that have been underrepresented getting their stories out enough that I will hold back things that I could say, just because I believe in it that much, he said. So if I have to take a knock because Im not going to try and actively refute things, then I will, because I believe in it that much. In an article published in the Los Angeles Times on Jan. 11, five women accused Franco of abusing his power as an acting teacher and mentor in a sexually exploitative manner. Two students claimed the actor would often become angry on set when they would refuse to film topless, while another former acting student at the film school Franco founded said he once removed safety guards while filming an oral sex scene on the set of the 2015 film The Long Home. Story continues Additionally, actress Violet Paley recounted her previous social media claims that Franco exposed himself and tried to pressure her into oral sex. Though she said they had a consensual relationship, Paley said, that time wasnt consensual. She also alleged that he told her friend to meet him in a hotel when the friend was 17. Francos attorney, Michael Plonsker, denied each of the womens allegations and cited Francos comments on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as his formal denial. Look, in my life I pride myself on taking responsibility for things that I have done, Franco told Colbert. I have to do that to maintain my well being. The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate. But I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice because they didnt have a voice for so long. So I dont want to shut them down in any way. The 24th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards are broadcast live from the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on both TNT and TBS starting at 8 p.m. ET. This article originally appeared on People.com. A Republican senator accidentally broke a glass elephant with a toss of a talking stick during government shutdown negotiations, and people on Twitter cant get enough of the symbolism. Sen. Susan Collins (R- Maine) invited around 20 senators from both parties into her Capitol Hill office over the weekend in a bid to end the government shutdown, according to multiple reports. Collins reportedly asked attendees to speak only when they were in possession of a talking stick. But when Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) interrupted Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), Alexander threw the stick to him across the room. It inadvertently crashed into Collins glass elephant ornament, and chipped it. Most senators in attendance saw the funny side, according to CNN. Collins ended up swapping the stick with a rubber ball to prevent further damage. People online couldnt resist poking fun at the incident with some citing the breaking of the elephant (the GOPs symbol is an elephant) as nicely symbolic. Heres a sampling of other responses: This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. 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Related Coverage Jimmy Kimmel Imagines What A Donald Trump Porn Video Would Look Like Kids Deliver Brutal Review Of Donald Trump's First Year In Office For Jimmy Kimmel The People Of Haiti Take Great Delight In Roasting Donald Trump On 'Conan' Also on HuffPost Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Senate Democrats bowed to Republicans and agreed to measures that would fund the government through February 8. There are winners and losers on both sides of the agreement: LOSERS The Democrats Trending: On Wedding Anniversary, Melania Trump Cancels Trip With President to Davos The Democrats essentially shut down the government to fight for young immigrants covered under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals programand then decided to reopen the government three days later without any deal to help said immigrants. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell is now on the record promising a vote to protect the immigrants, known as DREAMers, but promises can easily be broken, especially in McConnell's case. In exchange for her vote on the Republican tax plan, McConnell promised Senator Susan Collins that he would pass legislation to stabilize health insurance premiums before the end of 2017. He did not follow through on that promise. The deal also exposes a growing divide between the center-left and progressive factions of the Democratic party. Even House minority leader Nancy Pelosi is speaking out against the deal, I dont see that theres any reason Im speaking personally and hearing from my members to support what was put forth, she said at a press briefing after the deal was passed. Today's cave by Senate Democrats led by weak-kneed, right-of-center Democrats is why people dont believe the Democratic Party stands for anything, said Stephanie Taylor, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee in a statement. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. President Trump Republicans and Democrats made it clear that President Trump not only hurt government funding negotiations, but was also likely responsible for the shutdown. Don't miss: What is Wrong with Neil Diamond? Legendary Singer Diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease, Will No Longer Tour The presidents muddled views on the Childrens Health Insurance Program and the U.S.-Mexico wall kept both parties on their toes, causing Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer to say that negotiating with the president is like negotiating with Jell-O. Story continues McConnell suggested on Wednesday that the president's mercurial nature was hurting congressional negotiations. I'm looking for something that President Trump supports, and he has not yet indicated what measure he is willing to sign, he said. As soon as we figure out what he is for, then I would be convinced that we were not just spinning our wheels. Senator Lindsey Graham took to the floor Wednesday to deliver a message to the president, What I saw Tuesday was a man that understood what America was all about, he said. What I find today is complete chaos. Also, the president had to skip his big inauguration anniversary celebration at Mar-a-Lago. DREAMers The 800,000 young immigrants protected under the Obama-era DACA program are once again facing an uncertain future, with possible deportation to countrys they have never known. Democrats had said that they would not vote to keep the government open until their protection was guaranteed, but ended up capitulating only with a promise from McConnell that a vote will come within the next three weeks. "Unless Speaker Ryan also agrees to allow a vote in the House, Mitch McConnells hopes and intentions are worthless," Representative Julian Castro tweeted. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. TOO SOON TO TELL 2020 Democratic hopefuls Most popular: Jeff Sessions Almost Caused the New FBI Director to Resign: Report Seventeen Democratic Senators voted against Senate minority leader Chuck Schumers deal to keep the government open; several of them, including Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, Kirsten Gillibrand and Elizabeth Warren, plus Independent Bernie Sanders, have aspirations to run for president in 2020. The Majority Leaders comments fell far short of the ironclad guarantee I needed to support a stopgap spending bill. I refuse to put the lives of nearly 700,000 young people in the hands of someone who has repeatedly gone back on his word, tweeted Harris, staking out turf. WINNERS The Republicans McConnell gets to keep his title as most cunning man in Congress. McConnell told the Senate that it was his intention to bring a DACA bill to the Senate floor and that was enough for Democrats to pass a resolution to keep the government open. Even if McConnell does bring the vote to the floor of the Senate, theres no guarantee it will pass. McConnell appears to have taken the reigns from the president, and was able to negotiate a deal that Trump couldnt. Congressional Republicans appear stable and savvy in this outcome, making them winners. Come 2018 they can now point to this negotiation and say that Democrats caused a shutdown, and they were able to talk them out of it without giving an inch. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Stephen Miller and John Kelly Immigration hardliners and Trump advisers Stephen Miller and John Kelly have made it clear that when it comes to the executive branch, theyre in charge. The two successfully worked to foil Republicans and Democrats from coming together on a plan that would aid immigrants. "Every time we have a proposal it is only yanked back by staff members. As long as Stephen Miller is in charge of negotiating immigration, we're going nowhere," Graham said during negotiations. Not only did they get a deal that benefits their views on immigration, but theyve proven that they have the ear of the president and successfully moved Republicans to the right on the topic. Federal Employees All furloughed federal employees will be back to work tomorrow, and will continue to receive benefits and a full paycheck. Oversight agencies will also be back at full-capacity, keeping American workers safe from potential hazards. This guy A San Francisco writer snapped a picture on Monday of a shuttered entrance to Yosemite National Park. But the gatehouse will soon be open. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This article was first written by Newsweek More from Newsweek And were back! With a rare show of bipartisanship on Monday, the U.S. Senate passed a resolution to fund the government through February 8, temporarily ending the federal government shutdown. Not much has changed since Senate Democrats refused to pass the legislation last Friday; the bill does not include legislation to extend Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, which was the key point of contention between the two parties leading up to the shutdown. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pledged on Sunday night that the Senate would work towards DACA legislation once government funding was restored. So for the Democrats, it became a referendum on McConnells trustworthiness. And after a weekend of negotiations, Democratic senators decided that they could take McConnell at his word. Prior to the vote, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer castigated President Trump for his role leading up the government shutdown, blaming the ordeal on, President Trumps unwillingness to compromise. Schumers indictment of Trump was balanced by praise of Senate bipartisanship, a theme that was echoed by Senate Minority Whip Dick Durbin. Protestors gather outside Trump Tower in New York City after his administration rescinded DACA protections for child immigrants in September. Im incredibly grateful to the bipartisan group that has come together in recent days to renew the immigration debate with a sense of urgency, Schumer said. If some form of agreement on DACA isnt reached in the next 17 days, then we might be having this debate all over again. But Schumer is confident that the Senate will be able to pass a DACA bill with a 60 vote majority. Assuming the House of Representatives passes the temporary funding measure (Speaker of the House Paul Ryan has already said that the house will affirm the bill), the shutdown will end shortly. Things should be returning to normal: federal employees back at work and the White House comment line available once more (hopefully). In a few hours, the government will reopen, Schumer said. We have a lot to do. Story continues Photos via Flickr / NLNY, White House Photos via Flickr / NLNY, White House Written by Kevin Litman-Navarro More articles by Kevin Follow Kevin on Twitter tweetshare More From Inverse Senate Democrats on Monday voted to end the three-day government shutdown. After a standoff over the fate of Dreamers, undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children, Democrats agreed to fund the government for three weeks in exchange for a promise of a future Senate vote on immigration. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer announced earlier on Monday that his party would support the legislation which funds the government through 8 February, while extending for six years a popular health insurance program, Chip, that provides coverage to 9 million children. Democrats yielded after Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell promised to put an immigration bill on the floor in February to address the status of Dreamers, if no bipartisan deal could be reached by then. The bill passed 81-18. Sixteen Democrats and two libertarian-minded Republicans voted against it. Among them were a number of potential Democratic presidential candidates in 2020 including Cory Booker, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren. The bill then went to the House which quickly passed it a vote of 266-150. A total of 45 Democrats voted in favor and six Republicans voted against. It must now be signed by Donald Trump before federal employees can go back to work. Trump said on Monday afternoon that Democrats have come to their senses, and said he was open to an immigration deal only if it was good for our country. Earlier McConnell had offered to consider legislation that would protect Dreamers. This immigration debate will have a level playing field at the outset and an amendment process thats fair to all sides, McConnell said in a speech on the Senate floor on Monday. Story continues Speaking on the floor before the vote, Schumer placed the blame on the shutdown squarely on the White House. He mocked Trump for not engaging in negotiations, saying the great deal-making president sat on the sidelines. However, he said he felt confident that McConnell would abide by the terms of the deal they reached and tried to place the burden on following through on the majority leader. The Republican majority now has 17 days to prevent the Dreamers from being deported, said Schumer. McConnell spoke briefly and took a small victory lap. If we learned anything in this process, the strategy of shutting down of the government over issue of illegal immigration is something the American people didnt understand and would not have understood in the future. When the US Congress fails to pass appropriate funding for government operations and agencies, a shutdown is triggered. Most government services are frozen, barring those that are deemed essential, such as the work of the Department of Homeland Security and FBI. During a shutdown, nearly 40% of the government workforce is placed on unpaid furlough and told not to work. Many, but not all, are non-defense federal employees. Active duty military personnel are not furloughed. Read more. The status of Dreamers was thrown into uncertainty in September, when Trump rescinded an Obama-era program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (Daca), that allowed hundreds of thousands to work and study without fear of deportation. Trump allowed a six-month grace period for Congress to pass a legislative solution. McConnells proposal is to allow debate and a vote on an immigration bill that would pair border security enforcement with a Daca fix if bipartisan agreement does not emerge before federal funding runs out on 8 February. But many Democrats were wary, fearing they would not have the leverage to force an immigration vote if a spending bill was passed. Richard Blumenthal, a Democratic senator from Connecticut, told CNN the offer was an an empty promise, a transparent ploy without any commitment to making dreamers legislation part of a must-pass bill. I dont believe he made any commitment whatsoever, Kamala Harris, a senator from California who opposed the bill, said of McConnell. And I think it would be foolhardy to believe that he made a commitment. Even if the Senate were to take up immigration legislation, there is no guarantee House Republican leadership would take action on a subject that fiercely divides their caucus. When asked Monday he believed a reasonable immigration bill could pass the House, Delaware Democrat Chris Coons snickered. Ha, thats an excellent question, said Coons. Go ask some House members. Coons was nonetheless confident the debate would be defined by the Senate, where he cited substantive talks along bipartisan lines. He said: Look, we cant move forward here if we dont trust each other, and I will trust that Leader McConnell will keep his word. Angus King, an independent who caucuses with Democrats, told reporters: I think the reality is you cant get a commitment from the House. But if the Senate were able to pass an immigration bill, King added, there would be tremendous pressure on Trump and House Republicans to act. Do they really want to start deporting third-grade teachers on March 5? Who are the Dreamers? Dreamers are young immigrants who would qualify for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (Daca) program, enacted under Barack Obama in 2012. Most people in the program entered the US as children and have lived in the US for years undocumented. Daca gave them temporary protection from deportation and work permits. Daca was only available to people younger than 31 on 15 June 2012, who arrived in the US before turning 16 and lived there continuously since June 2007. Most Dreamers are from Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras and the largest numbers live in California, Texas, Florida and New York. Donald Trump cancelled the program in September but has also said repeatedly he wants Congress to develop a program to help the population. What will happen to the Dreamers? Under the Trump administration, new applications under Daca will no longer be accepted. For those currently in the program, their legal status and other Daca-related permits (such as to work and attend college) will begin expiring in March 2018 unless Congress passes legislation allowing a new channel for temporary or permanent legal immigration status and Dreamers will all lose their status by March 2020. Technically, as their statuses lapse they could be deported and sent back to countries many have no familiarity with. It is still unclear whether this would happen. Fear had been rising in the run-up to last weeks announcement. Those with work permits expiring between 5 September 2017 and 5 March 2018 will be allowed to apply for renewal by 5 October. What does the recent ruling by Judge William Alsup mean? In his ruling, Alsup ordered the Trump administration to restart the program, allowing Daca recipients who already qualify for the program to submit applications for renewal. However, he said the federal government did not have to process new applications from people who had not previously received protection under the program. When the Trump administration ended the Daca program, it allowed Daca recipients whose legal status expired on or before 5 March to renew their legal status. Roughly 22,000 recipients failed to successfully renew their legal status for various reasons. Legal experts and immigration advocates are advising Daca recipients not to file for renewal until the administration provides more information about how it intends to comply with the ruling. These next days and weeks are going to create a lot of confusion on the legal front, said Marielena Hincapie, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, which has filed a separate lawsuit against the Trump administrations termination of Daca. Over the weekend, Democrats and Republicans blamed each other for the shutdown. Trump and Republicans attacked Democrats for prioritizing undocumented migrants over Americans. Democrats cited polling that showed the public blame Republicans, who run both houses of Congress and the White House. But on Monday Republican senator Lisa Murkowski, who was a part of the bipartisan negotiations to reopen the government, said: We are in a much, much different space than we were on Friday. This was echoed by Missouri Democrat Claire McCaskill, who told the Guardian shutdowns are never good thing but this really motivated a group of Democrats and Republicans to come together and get things done. Senator Jeff Flake, a leading co-sponsor of legislation to grant legal status to Dreamers, said Trumps lack of engagement had undermined discussions, in part due to a lack of clarity around the presidents position on immigration. We dont know what the president wants, Flake said. Lets put it this way we shouldnt rely on the president to move forward. In an 81-18 vote, the Senate voted Monday to fund the government through February 8. The majority of Democrats joined 49 Republican Senators in voting for the bill after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell promised Democrats a solution for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program before the government shuts down again. "So long as the government remains open, it would be my intention to take up legislation here in the Senate that would address DACA, border security and related issues, as well as disaster relief, defense funding, health care and other important matters," McConnell said on Monday morning. But many prominent Democrats in both the Senate and the House balked at the offer, arguing that the GOP is not to be trusted to follow through with the negotiations. Trending: Jeff Sessions Almost Caused the New FBI Director to Resign: Report Soon after voting no on the bill, Senator Kamala Harris from California said that it "would be foolhardy to believe that [McConnell] made a commitment to protecting DACA. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Representative Luis Gutierrez from Illinois, a prominent voice in the immigrant rights community, also denounced his partys support for the bill, telling reporters on Monday that when it comes to immigrants, Latinos and their families, Democrats are still not willing to go to the mat to allow people in my community to live in our country legally. As a new set of negotiations begin to take place this week to prevent the government from shutting down again in three weeks' time, hardliners on both sides of the aisle are likely to have to make some serious concessions. For Democrats, a path towards citizenship for Dreamers is paramount. Don't miss: Chinese Government Bans Hip-Hop And Tattooed Actors From TV Appearances "Democrats and immigrant advocates are singularly focused on protecting Dreamers," Anu Joshi, immigration policy director at New York Immigration Coalition, a prominent progressive immigrant rights advocacy group, told Newsweek. "122 DACA recipients lose their protected status every day we don't act. Story continues In exchange, Republicans seek a wide-range of border enforcement measures and sharp reductions in legal immigration. "The White House put out a list of requirements earlier this year to make this deal happenmandatory E-verify, border wall funding, an end to chain migration and the visa lottery program, and reigning on sanctuary citiesall of these are necessary for a variety of reasons," Ira Mehlman, spokesman for the Federation for American Immigration Reform, a nativist non-profit group that seeks to reduce immigration to the United States. "All of the border security in the world wouldn't solve the problem unless we secure all of these policies," he concluded. dreamers REUTERS/Stephanie Keith While both Democrats and Republicans in Congress have promised to act in good faith and get a deal done in three weeks, some analysts have cast doubt on whether a bipartisan agreement can be reached at all. It's exceptionally unlikely that there will be any kind of deal in the next few weeks, David Bier, an immigration policy analyst at the Cato Institutes Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity, told Newsweek. It's not a matter of a few minor disagreements; it's a fundamental difference of principle. As evidence, Bier points to Trump allegedly reneging on his support for a deal that included protections for Dreamers together with border wall funding over the weekend. Most popular: 'I Married a Ghost Pirate': The Curious Story of Amanda Teague and Her 300-Year-Old Dead Lover "Republicans will hold the line in no legalization without a reduction in legal immigration. It motivates the White House and the Trump administration more than anything else," Bier said. "Nativist immigration groups in D.C. don't really care about amnesty or legalization, it's about reducing the number of new immigrants coming into the country." Ultimately, Bier believes the gap between hardline Democrats and Republicans is too wide for any comprehensive bill to pass both Houses of Congress and ultimately reach the president to sign. "Hardline conservatives will never support what they see as amnesty for Dreamers and Democrats are probably not going to support any bill that eliminates family reunification policies and doesn't provide a path to citizenship for Dreamers," he said. 01_10_BorderWall Mike Blake/Reuters Since Trump announced an end to DACA on September, Dreamers and immigrant rights' activists have pushed Democrats to secure some form of deportation relief or a path towards citizenship for the nearly 700,000 so-called Dreamersimmigrants brought into the U.S. as minors without proper authorization who obtained two-year renewable school and work permits through the DACA program. Late last week, a bipartisan group of Senators tried to wrangle enough votes for a potential immigration deal that included protections for Dreamers and a slate of security measures favored by conservatives, including billions of dollars to fund a wall along parts of the U.S.-Mexico border. The group ultimately failed in getting their proposal up for a vote due to lack of support from House Republicanswho sought more drastic cuts in legal immigration and stringent conditions for Dreamersand radio silence from the White House. With Democrats refusing to bend, the government shut down Friday at midnight for the first time since 2013. While Congress deliberates what will happen to the Dreamers and American immigration law as a whole, fears of deportation among immigrant communities across the country are widespread. Last week, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen insisted that federal agencies will not prioritize deporting immigrants brought illegally into the United States as children if Congress and the White House don't reach a deal to keep their protected status. But many immigrant rights' groups don't trust promises coming from the Trump administration. Our communities need more than bold gestures and empty promises. We need action right now. Its not enough to say pro-Dreamer things and issue strong statements," Marielena Hincapie, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center, said in a statement released soon after the Senate vote on Monday. "We need a legislative solution that addresses our real needs, without using this crisis as an opportunity to ram through a white nationalist wish list." This article was first written by Newsweek More from Newsweek Hawaiian Gov. David Ige (D) has made the embarrassing admission that his office did not immediately inform the public about the states missile alert false alarm partly because he had forgotten the password to his Twitter account. Hawaiis Emergency Management Agency mistakenly sent an alert to mobile phones in the state at 8:07 a.m. on Jan. 13, reading, BALLISTIC MISSILE THREAT INBOUND TO HAWAII. SEEK IMMEDIATE SHELTER. THIS IS NOT A DRILL. The alert caused widespread panic, but it later emerged that an EMA employee had accidentally sent a real alert while testing the system. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. It took almost 40 minutes for an updated alert to be sent to phones, by which time many people had heard news of the false alarm through news reports or social media updates. It was later revealed that Ige was informed of the false alarm just two minutes after the first alert was sent, but his social media pages were not updated with the information until 8:24 a.m., more than 15 minutes after the alert. Last week, Iges spokeswoman Cindy McMillan told HuffPost the reason the governor didnt immediately broadcast the false alarm was because his staff handles his social media accounts. It took time for the governor to contact us and give us the information before we could post it, she said. On Monday, Ige admitted he did not immediately share the alert update because of password issues. I have to confess that I dont know my Twitter account log-ons and the passwords, so certainly thats one of the changes that Ive made. Ive been putting that on my phone so that we can access the social media directly, he said. I was in the process of making calls to the leadership team both in Hawaii Emergency Management as well as others. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Following the missile incident, Ige tweeted that the state had already taken action to ensure the error was not repeated. On behalf of the State of Hawaii, I deeply apologize for this false alert that created stress, anxiety and fear of a crisis in our residents and guests, he wrote. Story continues I can personally assure each and every resident and visitor that steps have already been taken by the Hawaii Emergency Management Agency to ensure that a situation of this type never happens again. Also on HuffPost Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. The setting Diors surrealist-themed haute couture runway show was set at Musee Rodin in Paris. (Photo: Getty) On Monday, Christian Dior kicked off the first day of Haute Couture Fashion Week in Paris with a surrealist-inspired collection. On the surface, its your typical runway show filled with gorgeous gowns that celebrities will clamor over to wear on the red carpet. But look closer and the clothes actually have a deeper meaning hidden in plain sight. For the show, the French fashion house transformed the Musee Rodin into a Dali fans dream, featuring floors made of large black and white tiles with massive white sculptures of a hand,a torso, an ear, and a nose hanging from the ceiling. Models strutted down the checkered floors wearing masks and dresses mirroring a masquerade party. But, as spotted on models hands contradictoire bal masque, which translates to contradictory masked ball not all is what it seems. Similar statements appeared wrapped around necks, across chests, and down fingers of models from the words of French poet Andre Breton. Breton is credited with having founded the surrealist art movement and penning its first manifesto in 1924. One of Bretons tattoo quotes read, Au depart il ne sagit pas de comprendre mais bien daimer which translates to, Initially, its not about understanding, but about loving. Another read, Limaginaire. Cest ce qui tend a devenir reel, which means, The imagination, this is what tends to become real. A different one featured a repetition of words, Attitudes Spectrales Attitudes Spectrales Attitudes Spectrales, a direct reference to Bretons 1932 poem The Spectral Attitudes. The obvious connection between Breton and the collection is his ties to surrealism. But beneath the surface, Breton was not only a surrealist but actually a misogynist. As Christopher Bailey wrote for the Los Angeles Times, In 1927 Bretons second Surrealist manifesto embodied the general sexism of the day. He extolled women as the muses of men, who were assumed to be the important artists. In fact, Breton also once said, The problem of woman is the most marvelous and disturbing problem in all the world. Story continues Yet contrary to the sexism of the era, there were several notable female surrealist artists who were not merely muses but accomplished artists: Eileen Agar, Leonora Carrington, and Leonor Fini, to name a few. The latter came from Argentina and was known for depicting strong women in her artwork. She is also quoted at the beginning of Diors show notes. So why feature Breton so prominently? Maria Grazia Chiuri, Diors artistic director, is perhaps directly responding to Bretons antiquated views. The representation of female bodies in sexual forms was a continuous theme in surrealist art. The balance many female surrealist artists had to find was how to represent this overt sensuality in a form that was respectful and empowering not demeaning or submissive. Chiuri attempts with her couture collection to relieve this tension, which is still present in todays society a pressure women have between managing in a male-dominated world and finding their place in a culture at large thats strongly advocating for women to rise up and break the glass ceiling even as they are still faced with roadblocks. Take, for example, the recent Harvey Weinstein scandal and the #MeToo movement. Women are looking for ways to assert themselves especially when it comes to ownership of their bodies after years of staying quiet (and being silenced) on sexual assault. Additionally, women are helping change the conversation away from victim shaming and stereotyping based on appearance, especially when it comes to fashion where questions like What were you wearing? were often asked. Dior exuding strong feminist undertones is nothing new in Chiuris era. In 2016, the designer became the first female artistic director in the brands more than 70-year history. She debuted her first collection for the fashion house with her sensational feminist tee, We Should All Be Feminists. Click through the gallery above for the top 15 best looks from the couture collection. Read More from Yahoo Lifestyle: Kylie Jenner hides behind security blanket in Calvin Klein ad and Twitter has theories why Kaia Gerber, 16, wears clip-on earrings in 80s style photo shoot Olivia Munn bought her $13,598 red carpet dress online Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. Paris (AFP) - British model Amena Khan, who had been chosen by L'Oreal to appear in an advertising campaign in Britain, has pulled out over accusations she made anti-Israeli comments in a series of old tweets. The French cosmetics giant last week selected her to be the first woman in a hijab for a mainstream shampoo campaign. Khan's messages, posted on Twitter in 2014, have since been deleted. "I deeply regret the content of the tweets I made in 2014, and sincerely apologise for the upset and hurt that they have caused," she said on Twitter on Monday. "With deep regret, I've decided to step down from this campaign because the current conversations surrounding it detract from the positive and inclusive sentiment that it set out to deliver." L'Oreal group, contacted by AFP, said it "approved" her decision. "We appreciate the fact that Amena has apologised for the content of her tweets and for the reactions they may have aroused," it said. It is not the first time a L'Oreal advertising campaign to promote diversity has foundered because of controversial social media comments by a model. Last summer the group dropped British black transgender model Munroe Bergdorf over Facebook comments she made accusing all whites of racial violence. (DAVOS, Switzerland) Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned Tuesday against a new wave of protectionism, saying that trade barriers pose a danger to the world on par with climate change and extremist attacks. Modi delivered the message in a speech just hours after the U.S. government of President Donald Trump approved tariffs on imported solar-energy components and large washing machines in a bid to help U.S. manufacturers. Forces of protectionism are raising their heads against globalization, he told a crowd of business and government leaders in the opening address at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. It feels like the opposite of globalization is happening. The negative impact of this kind of mindset cannot be considered less dangerous than climate change or terrorism, Modi added, without directly mentioning Trump or the U.S. He urged governments not to turn to isolation, driving home his point by quoting Indian independence leader Mohandas Gandhi: I dont want the windows of my house to be closed from all directions. I want the winds of cultures of all countries to enter my house with aplomb and go out also. Modi, the first Indian prime minister to make Davos opening address, was to be the gatherings highlight until Trump decided to come as well. Trump is due to speak Friday, and the tariffs his administration approved this week will overshadow his arrival to a forum that has long been firmly in favor of free trade. Modi, a longtime Hindu nationalist, was swept to power in 2014 by playing up his economic credentials, pointing to the industrial revival of his home state during his tenure there and promising to transform the countrys economy. While he has done such things as open more of Indias economy to foreign investment, his critics say he has also waded into protectionism, with a Make in India program that backs domestic producers, sometimes through tariffs. His reform of the sales tax system, with a nationwide tax replacing a confusing tangle of state taxes, brought him special praise in Davos from Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post DHL. Story continues It will have positive impact, Appel said. Modi understands the basic concept of economy and thats the reason why he does the right reforms and that will pay back to India in a big way. Modi highlighted Indias strong economic growth during his speech, noting an Indian prime minister was last in Davos in 1997. At the time, Indias GDP was just a little more than $400 billion. Now, two decades later, it is about six times that amount. Modis speech follows on from Chinese President Xi Jinpings address to the Davos elite at last years event. Xi portrayed his country as a champion of free trade on the same week Trump was inaugurated president. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is later due to address the Davos crowd, which is gathering in unusually heavy snowfall. By Phil Stewart and Agustinus Beo Da Costa JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesia said on Tuesday it was pinning its hopes on U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis to help ease American limitations on ties with an elite Indonesian special forces unit, imposed over human rights abuses in the 1990s. The United States announced in 2010 that it had lifted its outright ban on U.S. military contacts with the 6,000-member Indonesian unit, known as Kopassus, which was accused of rights abuses in East Timor as it prepared for independence. But legal restrictions meant to ensure the U.S. military does not become entangled with rights abusers prevented contacts with Kopassus from advancing beyond preliminary levels, U.S. officials say. Mattis, following talks with Indonesian Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu, said he believed Kopassus had reformed enough that more cooperation was warranted under existing law. But he did not say how much cooperation to expect, or how soon. Ryacudu was hopeful that restrictions on Kopassus could be lifted. "For a while there have been sanctions against Kopassus ... (Mattis) will try to remove this," Ryacudu told reporters in Jakarta after the talks with Mattis. "One of the sanctions is clearly that they are not allowed to go to America. They can't do training together, and he will reopen this." The talks about Kopassus came as the United States looks to deepen defense cooperation with Indonesia, the world's third largest democracy and the most populous Muslim-majority nation. That includes things like arms sales, military exercises and educational exchanges. Mattis noted that many of the allegations against Kopassus were some two decades old, and added he would work within existing U.S. law to explore ways to deepen cooperation. "Under our rules there are established procedures for rehabilitating a unit that has been alleged or has committed certain acts," Mattis told a small group of reporters. "And we will go through the established procedures." NORTH NATUNA SEA Mattis' trip came as Indonesia, a vast archipelago of 17,000 islands, appears increasingly ready to assert its sovereignty in the contested South China Sea. Indonesia has clashed with China over fishing rights around the Natuna Islands, detaining Chinese fishermen and expanding its military presence in the area in recent years. In July, Indonesia renamed the northern reaches of its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea as the North Natuna Sea, a move seen as a significant act of resistance to China's territorial ambitions in the South China Sea. Mattis seized upon Indonesia's name for the waterway as he praised the country's strategic maritime reach, calling the country "a maritime fulcrum of the Indo-Pacific area." "It's critical," Mattis said of Indonesia. "We can help maintain maritime domain awareness in the South China Sea, the North Natuna Sea. This is something that we look forward to doing." The United States is one of Indonesia's top arms suppliers, recently delivering Boeing's Apache helicopters and 24 of Lockheed Martin's F-16 fighter jets. But Indonesia also buys arms from U.S. rivals, including Russia. U.S. officials said Indonesia asked for pricing for an additional 48 F-16 aircraft, a deal which could be worth $4.5 billion. But Indonesia played down any imminent purchase and suggested it was still evaluating how many more aircraft it needed. Ryacudu said Indonesia would buy weaponry when it "has the money." "We only just bought F16s and everything. In (the) future there will definitely be (more purchases) because, as the years go by, there are things that must be replaced," he said. (Reporting by Phil Stewart; Editing by Edward Davies and Nick Macfie) ROME (Reuters) - Italy used helicopters on Tuesday to airlift almost 100 tourists and staff from an Alpine hotel near the border with Austria because of a high risk of avalanche, an army spokesman said. Record amounts of snow in recent days had made it impossible to leave the area by road, and the hotel had lost power. Army and finance police helicopters were among those used in the evacuation. A year ago a massive avalanche razed a hotel in central Italy, killing 29. In Switzerland, hosting the World Economic Forum in Davos this week, authorities went on avalanche alert on Monday after fresh snow smothered much of the Alps. The accumulation of snow was the highest since 1999. (Reporting by Steve Scherer; Editing by Alison Williams/William Maclean) Former FBI DirectorJames Comey has been questioned by the special prosecutor probing possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, it has been reported. Mr Comey, who was fired in May 2017 as Donald Trump became increasingly frustrated by the FBIs own investigation into possible links to Moscow, was said to have been questioned about a series of memos he kept in which he detailed interactions with the President that unnerved him. In one such memo, which Mr Comey subsequently testified about on Capitol Hill, he noted that Mr Trump had asked him to drop the FBI investigation into former former national security adviser, Michael Flynn. The fact that investigators led by Special Prosecutor Robert Mueller wanted to talk about those memos and Mr Comeys concerns, will provide fuel who believe or hope the investigation will bring an obstruction of justice finding against Mr Trump. The disclosure by the New York Times about Mr Comey being questioned came just hours ager the US Department of Justice confirmed that Attorney General Jeff Sessions had also been questioned by the team. Mr Sessions was questioned for several hours last week, marking the first known time that a member of President Donald Trumps cabinet has been interviewed as a part of the probe. The interview, followed Mr Sessions decision to recuse himself from matters related to investigations into the 2016 election, including Justice Department investigations into Russias influence something that deeply angered Mr Trump. At one point, it was widely reported Mr Trump was set to replace Mr Sessions as he believed his actions had put in motion Mr Muellers probe. Mr Sessions was one of the first sitting members of Congress to publicly support Mr Trumps run for president, and had served as a high profile surrogate and adviser for the campaign. Despite being an awards season frontrunner, James Franco failed to net a best actor Oscar nomination for The Disaster Artist, after winning a Golden Globe and Critics Choice award for his performance. Tuesdays snub arrives after multiple women came forward to accuse him of sexual harassment. The film was however nominated for the best adapted screenplay Oscar. In an article published in the Los Angeles Times on Jan. 11, five women accused the actor of abusing his power as an acting teacher and mentor in a sexually exploitative manner. In it, two students claimed the actor would often become angry on set when they would refuse to film topless, while another former acting student at the film school Franco founded said he once removed safety guards while filming an oral sex scene on the set of the 2015 film The Long Home. Additionally, actress Violet Paley recounted her previous social media claims that Franco exposed himself and tried to pressure her into oral sex. Though she said they had a consensual relationship, Paley said: that time wasnt consensual. She also alleged that he told her friend to meet him in a hotel when the friend was 17. Francos attorney, Michael Plonsker, denied each of the womens allegations, and cited Francos comments on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert on Tuesday as his formal denial. James has been reaching out to former girlfriends for the past month asking about his behavior, a source told PEOPLE. Hes known this was coming and was trying to get ahead of the story. Following news of the allegations, Franco took a step back from the spotlight even skipping the Critics Choice Awards last week where he won the Best Actor honor for his role in The Disaster Artist. Despite being a no-show, Franco did attend the Screen Actors Guild Awards this past weekend, where he lost best actor to Gary Oldman of The Darkest Hour. During a recent appearance on Late Night with Seth Meyers, the actor addressed the sexual harassment allegations issued by a number of women on Twitter after wearing a Times Up pin at the Golden Globe Awards. There are people that need to be heard, the actor told Meyers. I have my own side of this story, but I believe in these people that have been underrepresented getting their stories out enough that I will hold back things that I could say, just because I believe in it that much, he said. So if I have to take a knock because Im not going to try and actively refute things, then I will, because I believe in it that much. Look, in my life I pride myself on taking responsibility for things that I have done, Franco told Colbert. I have to do that to maintain my well being. The things that I heard that were on Twitter are not accurate. But I completely support people coming out and being able to have a voice because they didnt have a voice for so long. So I dont want to shut them down in any way. Kellyanne Conway has muddled her words once again in a fiery interview with CNNs Chris Cuomo, prompting the presenter to snarkily ask if she was speaking Trumps English. The pair entered into a heated exchange on Monday evenings Cuomo Primetime while discussing the government shutdown, which the administration blamed on Democrats, who in turn are blaming the GOP. As the conversation turned to the fight over the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program (DACA), which has contributed to the shutdown, Conway accused Cuomo of being among the Democrats who are mad tonight. Trending: NOAA Websites Down During Tsunami Warnings Because Of Government Shutdown That Ended Monday Night Im not, Im only mad because youre not letting me ask you the next question, Cuomo responded. Conway replied: No. Youre trying to ask and answer it. So which role is whom? Which role is whom? What is that, Trump English? Cuomo shot back in what appeared to be a reference to the president's often creative use of language, prompting a tirade from Conway, who accused Cuomo of having a joke at the presidents expense. Don't miss: Who is Tony Perkins? Evangelical Christians Don't Care About Stormy Daniels' Trump Claims, He Says Are you making fun of the President of the United States again? Conway asked. The guy is working and living right behind me because he got elected by the people. And part of that was because he insists on making this country more secure, including at its border. He wants this nation to have physical borders, she added. Kellyanne Conway recently purchased a new $7.5 million home in a historic area of Washington D.C. Joshua Roberts/REUTERS/ Most popular: Why Did Facebook Just Invent a New Unit of Time? Virtual Reality Unit Unveils the 'Flick' The tussle between Cuomo and Conway is not the first time the White House counselor has been accused of making muddled statements; previously suggesting that there were microwaves that could turn into cameras to spy on people. Story continues Conway also hit headlines early on in Trumps presidency for suggesting then press secretary Sean Spicers boast of a large crowd at the inauguration was an offering of alternative facts and several weeks later mentioned the now infamous Bowling Green massacre, which did not take place. This article was first written by Newsweek More from Newsweek Washington (AFP) - A teenage gunman opened fire in a Kentucky high school on Tuesday, leaving two students dead and more than a dozen people wounded, the US state's governor said. A 15-year-old student, now in custody, is alleged to have carried out the attack at the Marshall County High School in Benton, a small town in western Kentucky. Two students -- both also aged 15 -- died of gunshot wounds, while 12 other people were shot and five suffered other injuries in the shooting, Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin told a news conference. One of the students died at the scene and the other after being airlifted to a hospital, he said. "The shooter was a student, a 15-year-old male" who was apprehended in a "non-violent" manner, said Bevin. "That student will be charged with both murder and attempted murder." State police said the scene has been "secured," and that a sheriff's deputy had apprehended the shooter. Students ran from the scene after hearing shots, the Marshall County Tribune-Courier newspaper reported on its Facebook page, adding that the school was placed on lockdown as the incident unfolded. Students later were bused to a neighboring school where parents could retrieve them, it said. "This is a tremendous tragedy and speaks to the heartbreak present in our communities," Bevin said in an earlier statement. "It is unbelievable that this would happen in a small, close-knit community like Marshall County." Two teenagers died and more than a dozen were injured after a 15-year-old student opened fire with a handgun at a Kentucky high school. Terrified pupils ran for their lives, ditching their bags and scrambling to get away from Marshall County High School in Benton, Kentucky about 120 miles northwest of Nashville, as ambulances, police cars and officers with assault rifles rushed to the scene. Students were said to have tried breaking down fences and gates in a panic to escape the building as the shooting began. A 15-year-old girl died at the scene, while a 15-year-old boy was pronounced dead at a local hospital. The boy was one of six people flown to hospital in the wake of the gunfire. None of the teens involved in the shooting have been identified. Im distraught from all of it. I couldnt really focus driving home. I was shaking a lot driving back to my house. Im still shaking, 17-year-old Greg Rodgers, a student at the school, told NBC News. Of the 17 injured, 12 were gunshot victims while five suffered injuries trying to escape. Governor Matt Bevin said at a news conference that one girl died at the scene. Kentucky State Police Commissioner Richard Sanders said the shooter walked into the school armed with a handgun and started shooting. The governor said the youth was apprehended at the scene in a non-violent way. The suspect is expected to be charged with murder and attempted murder, according to police.. During the news conference at the county Board of Education, Governor Bevin paused to collect himself as his voice choked with emotion, when talking about the victims and calling on the assembled media to show restraint in their reporting. I beg of you again respect the fact that these children belong to this community and to specific families in this community. And this is a wound that is going take a long time to heal. And for some in this community it will never fully heal, he said. There was no word on a possible motive for the shooting. Theres no good answer for it, Mr Bevin said. Theres 1,000 hypotheses were not going to go into. Story continues Governor Bevin advised the public to not speculate or spread hearsay regarding the incident. Agents from the the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) have joined the investigation. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Mr Bevin later issued a statement via Twitter as well, in which he said it was unbelievable that this would happen in a small, close-knit community like Marshall County and cautioned the public to allow the facts to come out. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. A local business owner Mitchell Garland said that students were crying and screaming while running out of the school in the immediate wake of the shooting. Everyone is just scared. Just terrified for their kids, Mr Garland said. Were a small town and we know a lot of the kids. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. School shootings have taken place in California, Texas, Ohio, Illinois, Washington state and New Mexico already this year, although this is the first fatal school shooting of the year. Marshall County High School is about 30 minutes from Heath High School in Paducah, Kentucky, where in 1997 a 14-year-old boy opened fire on students, killing three and wounding five. Its horrifying that we can no longer call school shootings unimaginable because the reality is they happen with alarming frequency, said former Rep Gabrielle Giffords, who survived being shot in the head in 2011. She called on Congress to strengthen gun laws. Agencies contributed to this report. Larry Nassar, the former Olympic gymnastics doctor, heard hundreds of victim impact statements from the women he abused. (Photo: Getty Images) By the time former Olympic gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar is sentenced on state charges for seven counts of first-degree criminal sexual conduct, nearly 150 of his sexual assault victims will have addressed him in court, giving victim impact statements aimed at helping them heal from their trauma. On Monday, the fifth day of the trial, Emma Ann Miller, 15, told Nassar, I have never wanted to hate someone in my life, but my hate towards you is uncontrollable. Nasser began abusing her when she was 10. You will probably never talk to a woman again, except for one holding a gun, a Taser and a billy club. Which is a good thing, she added. According to CNN, the doctor admitted he was guilty of seven counts of criminal sexual conduct and to sexually abusing girls under the guise of providing medical treatment. He also pleaded guilty to three charges of criminal sexual conduct and has already been sentenced to 60 years in prison on federal child pornography charges. Judge Rosemarie Aquilina, whos presiding over the case in Lansing, Mich., will hear statements from many of the women, given either by the women standing before Nasser or through letters read aloud in court. Over the past week, a number of women have stepped forward, such as Aly Raisman, who earned a round of applause for her 13 minutes of remarks. I didnt think I would be here today, she said in court. I was scared and nervous. It wasnt until I started watching the impact statements from the other brave survivors that I realized I, too, needed to be here. Larry, you do realize now that we, this group of women you so heartlessly abused over such a long period of time, are now a force, and you are nothing. Raisman continued, The tables have turned, Larry. We are here, we have our voices, and we are not going anywhere. And now, Larry, its your turn to listen to me. There is no map that shows you the pathway to healing. Realizing that you are a survivor of sexual abuse is really hard to put into words. I cannot adequately capture the level of disgust I feel when I think about how this happened. Story continues The 23-year-old Olympian added, Larry, you abused the power and trust I and so many others placed in you, and I am not sure I will ever come to terms with how horribly you manipulated and violated me. She also asked the judge to give Nassar the strongest possible sentence, which his actions deserve, for by doing so you will send a message to him and to other abusers that they cannot get away with their horrible crimes. They will be exposed for the evil they are, and they will be punished to the maximum extent of the law. A letter from McKayla Maroney, 22, was also read. She wrote, As it turns out, much to my demise, Dr. Nassar was not a doctor, he in fact is, was, and forever shall be, a child molester, and a monster of a human being. End of story! She added, He abused my trust, he abused my body and he left scars on my psyche that may never go away. Gymnast McKayla Maroneys victim impact statement about abuse by Dr. Larry Nassar was read during the former doctors trial. (Photo: Getty Images) And Kyle Stephens, who is not a gymnast, confronted former family friend Nassar about abuse she says took place when she was 6 years old. I have been coming for you for a long time, said Kyle. Ive told counselors your name in hopes they would report you. Ive told your name to Child Protective Services twice. I gave a testament to get your medical license revoked. You were first arrested on my charges. And now, as the only non-medical victim to come forward, I testify to let the world know you are a repulsive liar. Kyle continued, Perhaps you have figured it out by now, but little girls dont stay little forever. They grow into strong women that return to destroy your world. According to the National Center for Victims of Crime, victim impact statements, allowed in all 50 states, provide the court with a well-rounded account of the crime, including details that may have been omitted in court. Theyre also often the only chance a victim has to face his or her accuser. Kyle Stephens, one of Larry Nassars victims, addressed her abuser in court. (Photo: Getty Images) For some, but not all people, victim impact statements are an opportunity to stand up for themselves, look their accuser in the eye, and reclaim the power thats been taken from them as a result of the crime, Sandra Shullman, a psychologist who specializes in sexual harassment, tells Yahoo Lifestyle. They can also be validating and build a community of support for others who cant step forward. One high-profile example is from June 2016, when a Stanford University freshmen, who had been found unconscious and half-naked by a dumpster after being sexually assaulted by Brock Turner, gutted the internet with her powerful letter at his sentencing. However, victim impact statements have also created controversy due to their ability to create bias, according to a story published in The Atlantic. Research published in the Federal Sentencing Reporter suggested they could lead to irrational decision making by the jurors and, as reported in The Atlantic, can make jurors so eager to punish that they search for evidence to validate their anger and ignore evidence in the defendants favor. Other studies show the statements can cause racial bias, victim stereotyping and, depending on how angry victims appear as they give their statements, can cause judges to lose sympathy for them. Shullman says theres also a valid reason to decline to address ones abuser. It could force victims to relive an experience and be exposed to repeated traumatization, she says. Thats very difficult, especially for people without a support system. These people should never be judged for not speaking up. She adds, For others, theres a symbolism in finding ones voice in a system thats used silence to protect the abusers. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to speak up. If victims are ready to do that, it can be a very good thing. But not for Nassar. He recently begged the judge to stop the victim impact statements from being read in court, writing in a letter, Im very concerned about my ability to be able to face witnesses this next four days mentally. The judge called his request mumbo-jumbo. Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle: Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. Hongyu Zhang, Kevin Wang [timestamp] undefined, Asia A nuclear North Korea is not a threat, but an ideal stabilizer. Why the United States Needs North Korea to Stay Nuclear Many are hopeful that the June 12 summit in Singapore between President Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un will lead to denuclearization and peace on the Korean Peninsula. Others believe the historical record makes clear that such a hope is overly optimistic. But what if allowing North Korea to retain its nuclear arsenal could both lead to peace and benefit Americas long-term security interests in the region? There are two reasons for this. First, possessing nuclear weapons is the best way to pacify North Korea and constrain its aggression. Second, a secure and independent North Korea (without the presence of Chinese or U.S. forces) would also provide a buffer against great power tensions. The long-term primary objective of U.S. strategy in East Asia should be to contain a rising China. To achieve this, the United States must minimize Chinese influence on its neighboring stateswhether they are U.S. allies or not. A limited North Korean nuclear arsenal is the most effective way to make this happen. The United States should, therefore, continue reaching out diplomatically to North Korea and even end some sanctions to seek long-term stability. Contrary to the conventional wisdom, a nuclear North Korea and a balanced peninsula are the best possible outcome for the region and the world. The View From Pyongyang: A Need for Balance During the Cold War, the Soviet Unions backing of North Korea and U.S. backing of South Korea were roughly equal, resulting in a stable power balance on the Korean Peninsula. However, since the Soviet collapse, the balance of power has rapidly shifted against North Korea. The United States continues to lead the Republic of Korea (ROK)-U.S. Combined Forces Command and regularly renews its security commitments in the region. In contrast, Russia abolished its alliance treaty with North Korea in 1994. China also refused to replace the Soviet Union as North Koreas patron when the matter was discussed between Deng Xiaoping and Kim Il-sung in 1991. Story continues Without this balance, the peninsula has been in prolonged instability and frequently came close to military confrontation. As a sovereign state ruled by a totalitarian regime, North Korea has shown its willingness to guarantee its security at any cost. Intensifying military and economic pressure against the North has only made it more defiant and unpredictable. Therefore, any solution to the present crisis must take into account the security of this sovereign nation. Clearly, massive militarization and isolation are not a long-term solution for North Korea. Security guarantees from China are not a solution, either. Until recently, China's North Korea policy has been passive and minimal in commitment. Per the terms of its friendship treaty with North Korea, China is obliged to render military and other assistance by all means at its disposal in the event North Korea comes under armed attack by any state. However, China is not bound by this obligation primarily due to the treaty. Its primary motivation for intervention in North Korea is due to its security concernsnot those of the regime in Pyongyang. Beijing will lose more defensive capabilities if North Korea falls into the hands of an adversary, whoever it may be. Yet, China does not intend to do anything more than is necessary to meet this policy goal. Chinas reluctant relationship with North Korea may help it deter a large-scale invasion by ROK-U.S. forces, but does little to assuage other security threats. The ROK-U.S. combined forces have a rich set of military options with which to threaten the North. These include limited operations for punitive or coercive purposes that target North Koreas vital industrial or nuclear facilities. American and South Korea even have the capacity for decapitation strikes. Furthermore, Chinas options in assisting North Korea to cope with these threats are limited since it must always balance the strategic importance of North Korea with the economic importance of South Korea and its need to avoid overt confrontation with the United States. North Korea itself has a clear understanding of Chinas unenthusiastic role in its security. In a commentary published by Korean Central News Agency during the peak of last years crisis, North Korea made it clear that it holds its nuclear weapons dearer than its friendship with China. In short, the quiet alliance between China and North Korea does not ensure security to the North Korean regime other than preventing a massive military attack. Therefore, not only do nuclear weapons offer a level of security that Chinese assurances do not, but they also are the most cost-effective way for a resource-poor North Korea to achieve sustainable security. A nuclear North Korea is not a threat, but an ideal stabilizer. The balance of power on the Korean peninsula and that between the United States and China are interrelated. China's rise has the potential to shift the regional balance, making confrontation more likely in the future. If a limited nuclear capability guarantees North Korea's existence and independence, it can provide a buffer space to keep Chinese forces in China and U.S. troops stationed in South Korea separate. If U.S. and Chinese forces were to face each other on the Korean peninsula directly, there would be a higher chance for clash and escalation, especially given already tense standoff the United States and China face in the East and South China Seas. Restoring the power balance between the North and South will not only stabilize the peninsula but also help manage the power relationship between the United States and China. Some common concerns about a nuclear North Korea include the damage to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)s authority and the domino effect of proliferation. Other worries also are a politically unstable North Korea losing control of nuclear weapons or a more emboldened and aggressive North Korea. However, the problem on the Korean peninsula relates to long-standing and complicated geopolitical issues, that the NPT was not necessarily designed to address. There is also no evidence to suggest that a rapid wave of proliferation would sweep the region as long as the United States maintains the status quo and strengthens its commitments in the region. There have been four instances of nuclear states facing instability: the French Generals Revolt, the Cultural Revolution in China, the unseating of Bhutto in Pakistan, and the collapse of the Soviet Union. The record shows that no matter which domestic group gains control of the state, all parties show great restraint with regards to the use of nuclear weapons. The stakes are simply too high. As Waltz once put it, obtaining nuclear weapons is a sobering event. States become more aware of the negative attention they receive from the international community after acquiring the bomb and actually act more cautiously, and North Korea will likely do the same going forward. Another concern is that an emboldened North Korea will use these weapons to force reunification under its terms. At the very least it is assumed that they will be more likely to engage in cross-border attacks such as the shelling of islands and the sinking of the South Korean ship Cheonan in 2010. But, these arguments do not account for the evidence suggesting that nuclear weapons are not useful tools of conquest or coercion. The overwhelming U.S. responses with both conventional and nuclear forces are enough to deter North Korea from engaging in any act of nuclear blackmail. Even though Pyongyang's nuclear capability can hit targets in South Korea and Japan, these two countries should not worry too much about this nuclear threat. As explained above, this nuclear force is meant to close a power gap, not to give North Korea an offensive advantage. Research shows that atomic weapons are perfect instruments of deterrence, but poor instruments of coercion. Furthermore, North Korea declared a no-first-use policy in May 2016 and recently renewed this pledge in its Third Plenary Meeting of the Seventh Central Committee of the Workers Party of Korea. More importantly, the threat posed by North Korea can be alleviated if it is brought into a larger block, if even just a tacit one, to balance a rising China. A Broader Benefit: Balancing China Chinas security commitment towards North Korea has historically been minimal since the Korean War. However, recent tensions between Beijing and Washington and interactions between Beijing and Pyongyang suggest that China is no longer able to afford this minimal policy. In the future, it may be China that would seek to project power into a non-nuclear North Korea. Offensive realism would predict that a China more confident in its conventional capabilities may seek to directly balance the U.S.-ROK alliance by subjugating North Korea and basing Chinese forces on the peninsula. Eventually, it would try to expel U.S. forces from the peninsula, implementing its version of the Monroe Doctrine. Were it not for its nuclear deterrent, North Korea would be the most logical space for China to project power into due to its weak conventional military but strategically valuable location. A Chinese military presence in North Korea would not only undermine U.S. interests but regional and global stability as well. It is important for American policymakers to remember that a significant reason for the Sino-Soviet split was the Chinese fear of ever increasing Soviet influence and military presence on Chinese territory. North Korea likely fears China for the same reasons, especially given its history of colonization and foreign occupation. North Korea has not had foreign military forces on its territory since Mao pulled out all Chinese troops in 1958. This was due to North Koreas nationalistic ideology and aversion to Soviet and Chinese influence in the wake of the August incidentwhich Kim Il-Sung believed was a plot to overthrow him. Kim Jong-un may also have perceived a similar threat shortly after taking power. The execution of Kims uncle Jang Song-thaek and the assassination of Kim Jong-nam, Kims half-brother, were likely due to their connections with China. North Koreas fear of Chinese control is one area where North Korean and American interests of containing China actually align. Moreover, North Korea would prefer to have the ability to hedge between two superpowers to get the best deal, which is only possible by reducing Chinas monopoly on economic leverage over North Korea. In the same way that a nuclear China was useful in containing the USSR in the 1970s, North Korea may be helpful in containing China today. A tacit agreement to allow the DPRK to retain a minimal but credible nuclear deterrent is advantageous to U.S. interests in that it maintains a source of friction in Sino-North Korean relations. By possessing nukes, North Korea will be more independent from Chinese influence and can turn away from China. Thus, a nuclear North Korea would be a viable solution to the imbalance of power on the Korean peninsula after the end of the Cold War. Finally, North Korea would also benefit the long-term U.S. strategy of containing Chinese expansionism. This China containment policy can only be successful if the United States is willing to politically and economically engage with North Korea. In a 1967 article in Foreign Affairs, Richard Nixon stated that Taking the long view, we simply cannot afford to leave China forever outside the family of nations, there to nurture its fantasies, cherish its hates and threaten its neighbors. If Nixon, along with Henry Kissingers support, could understand the strategic value of engaging a former adversary with newly acquired nuclear weapons, perhaps policymakers can see the strategic value of doing so with North Korea today. Hongyu Zhang is a Visiting Assistant Professor of Government at the College of William & Mary, and can be reached at hzhang17@wm.edu. His research focuses on nuclear proliferation, East Asian security, and Chinese foreign policy. Kevin Wang is a Research Assistant at the National Defense Universitys College of International Security Affairs (CISA) for Nuclear Security and Nonproliferation Issues. He can be reached at kwang@email.wm.edu. Disclaimer: This article reflects the personal views of the authors. The article does not represent the positions of the institutions in which they work. All errors and oversights remain their own. Image: A man walks past a TV broadcasting a news report on the dismantling of the Punggye-ri nuclear testing site, in Seoul, South Korea, May 24, 2018. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji Read full article WASHINGTON Democrats provided votes to fund the government on Monday in exchange for an assurance from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) that he would put an immigration bill on the floor in the coming weeks. Liberal groups, which are deeply skeptical whether Republicans will keep their word after years of inaction on codifying protections for the undocumented young people often called Dreamers, angrily slammed Democrats and in particular Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) for giving away leverage with no firm promise that an immigration bill would reach President Donald Trumps desk. Its official: Chuck Schumer is the worst negotiator in Washington even worse than Trump. Any plan to protect Dreamers that relies on the word of serial liars like Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan or Donald Trump is doomed to fail, CREDO Political Director Murshed Zaheed said in a statement. CREDO Action, the activist arm of the wireless phone company, advocates for progressive causes, including immigrants rights and the passage of legislation that would give Dreamers a pathway to citizenship. MoveOn.org, one of the most influential progressive organizations in Washington, similarly panned the agreement that 33 Senate Democrats voted to advance to a final vote on Monday. This is a bad, outrageous deal. Trump and Republicans in Congress stood with their anti-immigrant nativist base, and too many Democrats backed down, abandoned Dreamers, and failed to fight for their values, MoveOn.org Political Action Executive Director Ilya Sheyman said in a statement. McConnell said over the weekend that he intends to move to vote on an immigration bill if both parties cant agree to one by Feb. 8, as long as the government is still fully open. The admission left some Senate Democrats encouraged by the prospect of a bipartisan solution even if they have no guarantee from House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) that it will pass in the House. Story continues I believe Sen. McConnell will follow through, independent Sen. Angus King of Maine, who caucuses with the Democrats, told reporters on Monday. I think hes made his commitments so publicly and so unequivocally. Other Democrats, such as Sen. Kamala Harris (Calif.), remained unconvinced that McConnell and the House Republicans would follow through on immigration. I dont believe he made any commitment whatsoever and I think it would be foolhardy to believe that he made a commitment, Harris said. While Senate Democrats did not receive everything they asked for in exchange for voting to reopen the government, they did manage to get the Childrens Health Insurance Program funded for six years. And if McConnell doesnt follow through on immigration, Democrats will still be able to use his promise to vote against the next spending bill on Feb. 8 and pin the blame on Republicans. For now, though, Democrats who voted to reopen the government said that simply pushing the conversation in the right direction was a victory on its own. I dont think I can guarantee a House outcome but I think the stronger the bill, in terms of the strength of the bipartisanship in the bill the odds go up in the House, Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) told HuffPost on Monday. Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Montana will sign contracts only with internet service providers that honour "net neutrality" firms, Governor Steve Bullock said on Monday, the latest effort by a state to undermine a Federal Communications Commission order rolling back rules introduced in 2015. Bullock signed an executive order requiring state contract recipients to adhere to so-called net neutrality, which barred internet service providers from blocking or throttling traffic or offering paid fast lanes, also known as paid prioritisation. The Republican-majority FCC voted in December along party lines to reverse the 2015 rules. The new rules will not take effect for at least three months, the FCC has said. A spokeswoman for the FCC declined to comment on the decision by Bullock, a Democrat. "There has been a lot of talk around the country about how to respond to the recent decision by Federal Communications Commission to repeal net neutrality rules, which keep the internet free and open. It's time to actually do something about it," Bullock said in a statement. "This is a simple step states can take to preserve and protect net neutrality. We can't wait for folks in Washington DC to come to their senses and reinstate these rules." Other states are considering similar efforts. The FCC order in December said it would block state and local rules that "could impose far greater burdens than the federal regulatory regime." Last week, a group of 21 U.S. state attorneys general and the District of Columbia, filed legal papers to challenge the FCC's decision to do away with net neutrality while Democrats said they needed just one more vote in the Senate to repeal the FCC ruling. Republicans control both chambers of Congress, so even if Democrats could win a Senate majority, a repeal would also require winning a vote in the House of Representatives and would then still be subject to a likely veto by President Donald Trump. Trump, a Republican, backed the FCC action and overturning a presidential veto requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers. The FCC vote handed AT&T Inc , Comcast Corp and Verizon Communications Inc power over what content consumers can access on the internet. Companies including Facebook Inc and Alphabet Inc said they would support a legal challenge through an industry group. (Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Grant McCool) The Empire State Building paid homage to the AFC champion New England Patriots and NFC champion Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday night, lighting up the iconic skyscraper with the colors of the two teams that will meet in Super Bowl LII, and lets just say New Yorkers werent all that happy about it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Considering the Patriots and Eagles are the chief division rivals of New Yorks Jets and Giants, respectively a matchup the New York Post described as the Worst. Super Bowl. Ever. whoever runs the Empire State Buildings official Twitter account probably should have seen these negative responses coming when they asked, Who will you be cheering for on February 4th? This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. 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Update your settings here to see it. Speaking of which, there is reportedly a potentially hazardous asteroid larger than any skyscraper yet built headed in the Earths direction at 67,000 miles per hour. It is expected to pass our planet by a scant 2.6 million miles on Super Bowl Sunday, which is tremendous news for everyone except for the possible exception of whoever lit up the Empire State Building in Patriots and Eagles colors. SAADA, Yemen (Reuters) - At least nine civilians, including four children, were killed in a Saudi-led coalition air strike in northern Yemen on Tuesday, residents and medics said, bringing to 30 the number of people killed in military operations in the country in two days. Yemen has been torn apart by nearly three years of conflict, which pits the internationally-recognized government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi against the Iran-aligned Houthis who control most of the populous northern Yemen. Hadi's forces and their allies control vast areas in south and eastern Yemen. Residents said an aircraft struck a vehicle traveling in the Aal Ali region of Razeh district in western Saada province, an area of confrontation between government forces loyal to Hadi and the Houthis. Apart from those killed, three people were wounded, including two who were being treated at a local hospital, medics said. "We take this report very seriously and it will be fully investigated as all reports of this nature are," a spokesman for the coalition said. "Whilst this is ongoing, it would be inappropriate to comment further." Though little territory has changed hands between the two sides since war erupted in 2015, it has caused a major humanitarian crisis in which more than 10,000 have been killed, according to U.N. data. It has pushed Yemen to the brink of famine and led to a cholera epidemic believed to have affected about one million people. On Monday, coalition air strikes destroyed a building near the Saada provincial capital that housed a small clinic, killing seven people, including five children, while two more people died in a separate attack, also near Saada city. The Western-backed coalition has come under criticism from the United Nations and international rights groups over repeated air strikes that hit civilians. The coalition says it directs strikes only at military targets. In southwestern Yemen, rockets fired by the Houthis on Monday at a parade of Yemeni government special security forces killed 12 people, including two journalists. The deputy interior minister, who was attending the parade, escaped unharmed. (Writing by Sami Aboudi; Editing by Richard Balmforth) Updated | An eastern Oklahoma gas well exploded on Monday morning, leaving five people missing. The explosion sparked flames that shot up 50 feet in the air just before 9:00 AM Central time in Pittsburg County, reported KOTV. The fire occurred between the cities of Quinton and Featherston, around 100 miles southeast of Tulsa. Three medical helicopters were on site, according to Kevin Enloe, the county's emergency manager, as reported by KOTV. The Red Cross was on site with the first responders, according to a press briefing on Monday afternoon. Emergency responders found 17 people who were working on the rig but five were still missing. One person was treated on site for minor burns, reported the Associated Press. The burns did not appear major at first, but the survivor was flown to a hospital in Tulsa to be treated for his wounds, the County Sheriff Chris Morris told Newsweek. Morris said, "Most everybody was taken off the site and taken to a secure site here in Quinton," according to the Associated Press. Trending: Jeff Sessions Almost Caused the New FBI Director to Resign: Report A spokeswoman for the Oklahoma medical examiner's office, Amy Elliott, could not confirm whether there were any deaths until the fire is out and investigators arrive on the scene, reported the Associated Press. "I pray there's not, but we just don't know yet," she said. Elliott did not respond to a request from Newsweek before publication. The gas rig was erected a few weeks ago, and is much larger than an oil rig, according to KOTV. The explosion caused the crane-like machinery called a derrick on top of the rig to collapse. Don't miss: Chinese Government Bans Hip-Hop And Tattooed Actors From TV Appearances Oklahoma Citybased Red Mountain Operating, which is part of Red Mountain Energy, was operating the drilling site, according to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission's spokesman Matt Skinner. The company that conducted the drilling itself was Patterson-UTI, which was subcontracted for the work, Skinner told Newsweek. The responsible party in terms of adhering to the commission's rules is Red Mountain Operating. Skinner found no incidents or complaints dating back to 2012 for Red Mountain. Story continues Occupational Safety and Health Administration will ultimately be the lead agency investigating the cause of the incident because the incident was a workplace accident, Skinner said. "Our primary role is environmental," he said. Evaluating for contaminants that could potentially damage drinking water is typically a top concern, but at this site, there are no creeks or drinking water that could be contaminated nearby, according to Skinner. Once the fire is out and the scene is secured, the commission will investigate chloride levels in the soil. The fire continued to burn into midday, and firefighters let it continue in order to prevent hazardous materials from spreading. Crews were searching the woods to see if anyone had fled into the surrounding areas. After 4:00 p.m. Central time, the fire had been extinguished, the County Sheriff Morris told Newsweek. Once the site cools off entirely, crews will be able to search the well site for the five who still remain missing. Until then, there have been difficulties searching within some 100 feet of the well site, said Morris. Most popular: 'I Married a Ghost Pirate': The Curious Story of Amanda Teague and Her 300-Year-Old Dead Lover "It's going to be a long night," Morris said. This article has been updated with additional information. This article was first written by Newsweek More from Newsweek On the eve of the one-year anniversary of President Donald Trump's first year in office and the historic Women's March, the administration once again targeted Planned Parenthood. In a move that was consistent with efforts attacking reproductive rights through Trump's first year, the administration announced Friday that it had rescinded an Obama-era guidance that made it more difficult for states to defund Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers. In 2016, President Obama issued a guidance warning states that withholding Medicaid funding from health providers that offer abortion-care violates federal law. According to the Obama administration, states could only end funding for providers that either failed to perform services covered under Medicaid or that didn't bill for said services. But the Trump administration argued that Obama had an agenda favoring abortion rights, and that's why it had established the guidance. "Reinstating the pre-2016 standards frees up states to once again decide for themselves what reasonable standards they use to protect Medicaid programs and their beneficiaries," said Charmaine Yoest, a former anti-abortion activist and assistant Health and Human Services secretary for public affairs, according to The Hill. "This is part of the Trump administration's effort to roll back regulations the Obama administration put out to radically favor abortion." Defunding Planned Parenthood was one of Trump's main campaign promises. (Even though a majority of Americans oppose withholding federal fund from the organization, about 57% of Trump voters support it.) About 2.4 million people go to Planned Parenthood clinics across the country every year, and more than half of those patients rely on Medicaid. If states follow through with defunding the organization, the move would expressly hurt low-income women and other minorities at risk: Only 3% of the services offered by Planned Parenthood amount to abortion procedures the organization primarily focuses on offering services such as birth control, STI screening and treatment, sex education, breast and cervical cancer screenings, and other healthcare-related needs. The Hyde Amendment bans the use of federal funds to pay for abortion-care, so if states withhold Medicaid reimbursements it would mean cuts to these other crucial services. Story continues "The Trump-Pence administration makes their agenda crystal clear: They are laser-focused on using their power to control womens bodies and lives. Their latest action encourages states to try to block access to care at Planned Parenthood and control where women can go for health care," " Dawn Laguens, executive vice president for Planned Parenthood Action Fund, said in a statement provided to Refinery29. "Without Planned Parenthood, many of our patients would lose access to health care altogether either because there are no other providers in their community or because other clinics cannot serve all of our patients. She continued, "The law is clear: It is illegal to bar women from seeking care at Planned Parenthood. Longstanding protections within Medicaid safeguard every persons right to access care at their qualified provider of choice. " Like what you see? How about some more R29 goodness, right here? Tina Brown Talks Bad Men, Powerful Women & Yes, Donald Trump These Young Protesters Were The Real Stars At The Women's March 24 Brilliant Signs From The Women's March That Put The Trump Presidency In Its Place By Vernell Hackett BENTON, Ky. (Reuters) - A 15-year-old boy opened fire with a handgun just before classes started at his high school in rural western Kentucky on Tuesday, killing two fellow students and wounding a dozen other youths before he was arrested, the state's governor and police said. The shooter, who has not been identified, entered a common area at Marshall County High School in Benton shortly before 8 a.m. CST (1400 GMT), pulled out a pistol and began firing at students, witnesses told local media. "I see this guy draw from his side and he pulls out a pistol. I didnt even know what was going on. And then it registered. About the time it registered, this guy was sitting here pulling the trigger into all of us," student Bryson Conkwright told TV station WKRN. "I can hear the gunshots. He was shooting in our group," said Conkwright, showing where a bullet grazed his hand. Authorities declined to discuss possible motives for the shooting. There was no immediate indication of how well the suspect knew the victims, but officials said he was believed to have acted alone and faces multiple charges of murder and attempted murder. "There's no good answer for it," Governor Matt Bevin said at a news conference. "There's 1,000 hypotheses we're not going to go into." The bloodshed at the school of nearly 1,150 students in a small farming town about 130 miles (210 km) northwest of Nashville, Tennessee, was the latest outbreak of gun violence that has become a regular occurrence at schools and college campuses across the United States over the past several years. After the shooting, signs of chaos in the school were abundant, Marshall County Attorney Jeff Edwards told the Louisville Courier-Journal newspaper. "To walk in, the backpacks laying around, the phones laying around, going off its indescribable, he was quoted as saying. Church vigils were planned for Tuesday evening. Story continues A WOUNDED COMMUNITY Tuesday's rampage occurred just 32 miles (52 km) from Heath High School in West Paducah, Kentucky, where in 1997 a 14-year-old boy opened fire on a group of students, killing three. At Marshall County High, 14 students were hit by gunfire, two of them fatally, officials said. A 15-year-old girl was pronounced dead at the scene, and a 15-year-old boy died at the Vanderbilt University Medical Center's trauma unit in Nashville, Bevin and hospital officials said. Four of the other gunshot patients brought to Vanderbilt were expected to survive, doctors said. Less severely wounded students were taken to other hospitals. Another five students suffered non-gunshot injuries, Bevin said, bringing the total number of injured to 17. Bevin said the youth was apprehended at the school "in a nonviolent" manner, but the governor did not elaborate. Sanders said students followed training they had recently received from state police in how to respond to such incidents. No further details of the circumstances of the shooting were immediately released. The students involved were not identified. Agents from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Federal Bureau of Investigation joined the investigation, officials said at the news conference. The school serves Marshall County, which has population of about 31,000. During the news conference at the county Board of Education, Bevin's voice choked with emotion and he paused to collect himself. He asked the news media to exercise restraint in dealing with victims' families. I beg of you again - respect the fact that these children belong to this community and to specific families in this community. And this is a wound that is going take a long time to heal. And for some in this community it will never fully heal. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said President Donald Trump had been briefed on the shooting. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims and the families there," she said. (Additional reporting by Colleen Jenkins in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Peter Szekely in New York, Suzannah Gonzales and Chris Kenning in Chicago and Ben Klayman in Detroit; Writing by Steve Gorman and Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Jonathan Oatis) By Saad Sayeed ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A Pakistani student shot and killed his school principal on Monday, in a dispute over the student skipping classes to attend rallies supporting the country's strict blasphemy laws, a police official said. Sareer Ahmed, principal of the private Islamia College in the northern town of Charsadda, had an argument with one of his students for missing a number of classes. The student then shot the principal on campus, local police chief Zahoor Afridi told Reuters. He said the unnamed student had attended a sit-in staged by a new ultra-religious political party, Tehreek-e-Labaik, late last year to oppose a small change in wording to an electoral law, which it said amounted to blasphemy. The protest, which brought the capital Islamabad to a standstill, ended in clashes between police and demonstrators that killed seven people and injured over 200. It also led the government to back down and accept the resignation of a minister accused of blasphemy. "Obviously now he is going to say that he (the principal) committed blasphemy. This is a very unfortunate incident," Afridi added. Insulting Islam's prophet is punishable by death under Pakistani law, and blasphemy accusations stir such emotions that they are difficult to defend against. Even a rumor of blasphemy can spark mob violence. Police have taken the student, who appeared in photographs and video to be 16 or 17 years old, into custody and filed a first information report against him. In a video recorded during the arrest, the student can be heard defending his actions in Pashto, a regional language. "I committed this murder and I accepted it. It was ordered by God," he proclaimed. There was widespread outrage across Pakistan last April when student Mashal Khan was beaten to death at his university in Mardan following a dormitory debate about religion. Police arrested 57 people, including students and some faculty members, in connection with the killing. There have been at least 67 murders over unproven allegations of blasphemy since 1990, according to figures from a research center and independent records kept by Reuters. In 2011, a bodyguard assassinated Punjab provincial governor Salman Taseer after he called for the blasphemy laws to be reformed. Taseer's killer, executed last year, has been hailed as a martyr by religious hardliners. (Editing by Catherine Evans) By Jeff Mason JERUSALEM (Reuters) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence began a visit to Israel on Sunday after being praised as a "great friend" by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and shunned by the Palestinians over U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. It is the highest-level U.S. visit to the region since President Donald Trump made his declaration on Dec. 6 and promised to begin the process of moving the American embassy to the city, whose status is at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. With the Palestinians boycotting Pence, the visit provides little obvious opportunity to build bridges toward peace. But it gave Pence, a conservative Christian, and Netanyahu, a right-winger who has hailed U.S. evangelicals for their support of Israel, an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the visit and their own warm relationship for a community that serves as a power base for Trump and his vice president. Before arriving in Israel, Pence held meetings with the leaders of Egypt and Jordan and U.S. officials traveling with him said that he had sought to encourage them to pressure the Palestinians to return to peace talks. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, calling Trump's declaration a "slap in the face', has rejected Washington as an honest broker in any future talks with Israel. Abbas left for an overseas visit before Pence arrived. Pence, who flew into Tel Aviv's Ben-Gurion Airport from Jordan on a U.S. military plane after visiting U.S. troops on the Syrian border, was met by Israel's tourism minister, Yariv Levin. Pence, who traveled to the Middle East despite a U.S. government shutdown, made no statement on arrival in Israel. Netanyahu, addressing his cabinet earlier on Sunday, described Pence as a "great friend of the State of Israel" and said they would discuss U.S. efforts "to halt Iran's aggression, the Iranian nuclear program, and ways to advance peace and security in the region." "Anyone who truly wants to fulfill those goals knows there is no substitute to the United States' leadership," said Netanyahu, who is due to hold talks with Pence on Monday. Trump's shift on Jerusalem overturned decades of U.S. policy that its status should be decided in Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. His declaration drew universal condemnation from Arab leaders and widespread criticism elsewhere. Israel's government regards Jerusalem as the eternal and indivisible capital of the country, although that is not recognized internationally. Palestinians feel equally strongly, saying that East Jerusalem must be the capital of a future Palestinian state. In comments delivered in Egypt, his first stop on the Middle East visit, Pence said Washington would support a two-state solution for Israelis and Palestinians if the two sides agreed to it. "CHALLENGING CIRCUMSTANCES" Visiting Jordan on Sunday before flying to Israel, Pence told its monarch, King Abdullah, that Washington was committed to preserving the status quo of holy sites in Jerusalem, a city sacred to Jews, Muslims and Christians. Pointing to "challenging circumstances", the king said he hoped Washington would "reach out and find the right way to move forward". Pence told reporters he "agreed to disagree" with King Abdullah on the impact of Trump's move. U.S.-sponsored peace talks collapsed in 2014 and Trump has pledged to pursue a "deal of the century" between Israel and the Palestinians, who are seeking a state in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip with East Jerusalem as its capital. Jason Greenblatt, Trump's special envoy to the peace process, remained in Israel for Pence's visit after arriving on Wednesday. After meeting Netanyahu, Pence will address the Israeli parliament, whose Arab members said they would boycott the event. On the second day of his two-day visit on Tuesday, he will attend Judaism's Western Wall in Jerusalem and will lay a wreath at the Yad Vashem Holocaust remembrance center in the city. Pence is thought to have pushed hard for both Jerusalem's recognition as Israel's capital and relocation of the U.S. embassy to the city. It is a decision that was popular with many conservative and evangelical Christians who voted for Trump and Pence. As Pence arrived, a small group of Palestinian protesters outside Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Jesus Christ, burned a poster of the vice president which also bore the words: "Pence go home." (Writing by Jeffrey Heller; Editing by Stephen Farrell, William Maclean and Adrian Croft) Jerusalem (AFP) - US Vice President Mike Pence visited Jerusalem's Western Wall on Tuesday while Palestinians held a general strike after denouncing his fervently pro-Israel speech the previous day as "messianic". The devout Christian's speech to the Israeli parliament on Monday laden with biblical references was praised by Israelis as perhaps the best they could ever hope for from a US administration, but Palestinians saw it as confirming some of their worst fears. Pence proudly reaffirmed US President Donald Trump's December 6 declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and pledged to move the embassy to the disputed city by the end of 2019. "The friendship between our peoples has never been deeper," he said. On Tuesday, as he wrapped up his trip, Pence, who was boycotted by the Palestinians, visited one of the holiest sites in Judaism, the Western Wall. The site lies in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the sector the Palestinians want as the capital of their future state, and many Israelis were likely to interpret it as Pence further backing their claim over the entire city. "Very inspiring," Pence said after the visit during which he was not accompanied by Israeli government officials. Pence followed in the footsteps of Trump, who in May became the first sitting US president to visit the Western Wall. In December, a US senior administration official said: "We cannot envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not part of Israel." Pence also toured Jerusalem's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial accompanied by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday and met President Reuven Rivlin. He said the White House believes the Jerusalem declaration "will set the table for the opportunity to move forward in meaningful negotiations to achieve a lasting peace and end the decades-long conflict". He departed in the late afternoon to return to the United States. Story continues - 'Gift to extremists' - The Palestinians face a dilemma over how to deal with what they see as a blatantly biased US administration as they seek to salvage hope of a two-state solution. A top Palestinian official called Pence's parliament speech "messianic" and a "gift to extremists", reiterating the view that the Trump White House is incapable of being an even-handed mediator in peace talks. Pence issued no criticism of Israel's half-century occupation of the West Bank during his visit. Around a dozen Arab Israeli lawmakers were expelled from the chamber after shouting as Pence began his speech in parliament. On Tuesday, a general strike was observed in the Palestinian territories, but there were expressions of resignation among some. "It's useless, the strike. Nothing will happen," said Adel Humran, a Palestinian in the West Bank town of Ramallah. "Only the shops will be closed. The people won't benefit from it at all." But a spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said the strike was a "message of rejection of the visit and the American position". "Jerusalem is a red line we cannot compromise on," said Nabil Abu Rudeina. A few hundred Palestinians also protested near an Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank, throwing stones at soldiers who occasionally fired back with tear gas, sound grenades and rubber bullets. The Palestinian leadership has sought to look elsewhere for backing, and Abbas met European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday. The 82-year-old urged them to recognise a Palestinian state, but such a move was not forthcoming from the bloc as a whole. Abbas said he was committed to negotiations, but he has sought an internationally-led process. Netanyahu says there is no substitute for US leadership. A senior White House official said on Tuesday that Trump's point men on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict had not spoken to Palestinian leaders since before the December 6 declaration but were open to any approach. "We are here, dedicated and ready to engage whenever they are," he said. The official said there was no timeline for the White House to present its peace plan. "We remain hard at work at it," he said but dismissed the idea of a European alternative. "I don't think anybody believes the US can be replaced in this process," the official said. "Frankly I don't believe the Palestinians believe the US can be replaced in this process." - Deadly unrest - The US move to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital broke with decades of international consensus that the city's status should be settled as part of a two-state peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians. Unrest since the announcement has left 18 Palestinians dead, most of them killed in clashes with Israeli forces. One Israeli has been killed in that time. Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians see the eastern sector as the capital of their future state. In Jerusalem, Pence reiterated Trump's position that the United States would support a two-state solution "if both sides agree". Pence's visit, initially scheduled for December before being postponed after the Jerusalem declaration, was the final leg of a trip that included talks in Egypt and Jordan as well as a stop at a US military base near the Syrian border. Arab outrage over Trump's Jerusalem decision had prompted the cancellation of several meetings planned ahead of the start of Pence's tour. A 15-year-old male student opened fire at a Kentucky high school Tuesday morning, killing two fellow students and wounding 16 other people before he was captured by a sheriffs deputy at the scene, authorities said. Bailey Holt and Preston Cope, both 15, were killed in the shooting at Marshall County High School in Benton, said Kentucky State Police Commissioner Rick Sanders at an evening press conference. Sixteen people were treated for gunshot wounds, including three listed in critical but stable condition at a hospital, Four others suffered non-gunshot-related injuries while trying to escape the violence, according to a statement issued by the Kentucky State Police late Tuesday night. Officials initially reported that 19 people were injured, including 15 with gunshot wounds. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. The teen shooter, armed with a handgun, attacked shortly before 8 a.m. local time, authorities said. Holt died at the scene, and Cope was pronounced dead at a hospital. The gunman, whose identity hasnt been released, will be charged with two counts of murder and several counts of attempted murder, officials said. He was taken into custody by a sheriffs deputy without a struggle at the scene. Sanders said he wouldnt comment on any aspect of the investigation until it was complete, so as not to impair prosecution. He was taken into custody is all I can tell you, Sanders said, responding to a reporters question. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Five of the victims were transferred to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Trauma surgeon Dr. Oscar Guillamondegui said one of them died from a gunshot wound to the head. Two others also suffered gunshot wounds to the head and another two had more minor injuries. Those four are expected to survive. The victims ranged in age from 14 to 18. Its sad times for all of us, Guillamondegui told reporters. The shooting has shaken the community and the first responders, who were at the scene throughout the day, Sanders said at the Tuesday evening news conference. He noted that the investigation would continue at the school for several days. Story continues Speaking of the human toll that something like this takes ... in addition to those family members that have lost loved ones, that have had loved ones injured or hurt or traumatized we pray for those people I also just want to express how difficult this is for first responders, he said. One of our first troopers to arrive on the scene saw the young lady who died and thought it was his daughter. Marshall County High School is located roughly 120 miles northwest of Nashville. The school serves 1,380 students in grades nine through 12, a representative for the county school district told HuffPost. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Taylor Droke, a junior at the high school, told Fox 17 that she was driving into the parking lot at the time of the shooting. She described a scene of mass chaos as students fled the building. Theres a guard shack at the entrance of the parking lot and I had just passed the guard when I see a flood of students run out from under the school bus canopy, Droke told Fox 17. Then one of the guards in the lot yelled, Theres a shooter to everyone. You could see students dropping their bags and just start running, pushing past each other. Everyone in cars started turning around and driving away, she said. Kids were jumping the fence around the school and running through the woods. Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin (R) spoke to the pain of the families. These children belong to this community, and to specific families in this community, Bevin said at a press conference Tuesday afternoon. And this is a wound that is going to take a long time to heal, and for some in this community, will never fully heal. A school district representative declined to comment on whether the high school had metal detectors. A school resource officer was at the high school when the shooting started, officials said at the Tuesday news conference. Kentucky State Police officers have recently been teaching students and faculty in the area how to respond to an active shooter situation. The violence on Tuesday was the second U.S. school shooting in two days. A 16-year-old boy shot a 15-year-old girl at Italy High School in Italy, Texas, on Monday. The wounded girl is recovering at a Dallas hospital. Kentucky politicians, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R), also took note of Tuesdays shooting on social media. Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Sebastian Murdock contributed reporting. This article has been updated with comments from Kentucky officials at a press conference. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Pope Francis arrives to celebrate Mass at the Las Palmas Air Force base in Lima, Peru - AP Pope Francis celebrated an open air Mass for more than 1 million people on Sunday, ending a trip to Chile and Peru marked by tough talk on political corruption but a backlash over what many see as his insufficient resolve to tackle sexual abuse in the Church. In the final hours of his six-day visit to the two nations, Francis warned in improvised remarks that Latin America was in a deep crisis from corruption scandals, with politics in most countries "more sick than well". "Politics is in crisis, very much in crisis in Latin America," he said, pointing to construction company Odebrecht, which has admitted to paying billions in bribes, as an example of greed run amok across the continent of his birth. The Catholic Church's record on sexual abuse loomed large in both countries, but mostly in Chile, where Francis sparked outrage by saying criticism of a bishop he appointed who is accused of protecting a pedophile was "all slander!. Francis told reporters in Chile there was no evidence against the bishop, spurring Cardinal Sean O'Malley of Boston to sympathise with victims who were pained by the pope's comments in an unusually blunt statement. Pope Francis celebrates mass Credit: AFP O'Malley, a top adviser, was celebrating Mass with Francis at Las Palmas Air Base under a biting sun just before the pope was due to leave for Rome. Despite the estimated 1.3 million attendance in Lima, the Church is losing followers in Latin America. Even before the pope's off-the-cuff remarks in Chile, a poll by Santiago-based think tank Latinobarometer showed the number of Chileans calling themselves Catholic had plummeted to 45 percent from 74 percent in 1995. The number of Catholics in Peru, where Francis consistently had a more enthusiastic reception, remains high at around 72 percent, according to a Datum poll, though it has fallen in the past decade. "Francis here there is proof!" read a banner hanging from a Lima apartment with a picture of Luis Figari, the founder of an elite Catholic society who is scheduled to go on trial in Peru this year for sexual abuse of minors. Figari has denied wrongdoing. Story continues Pope Francis is greeted by Peru's President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski before boarding the plane back to Rome Credit: AFP Francis ordered the Vatican to appoint an administrator to run the society, Sodalitium Christianae Vitae, a week before his trip. As the first pope to visit the Amazon in more than 30 years, Francis made a ringing defence of indigenous people and the environment on Friday, saying big business and "consumerist greed" could not be allowed to destroy a natural habitat vital for the entire planet. He extended his condemnation of greed to corruption, saying in an appearance beside embattled Peruvian President Pedro Pablo Kuczynski that all parts of society, including the Church, needed to work to combat it. In Peru alone, one former president has been detained for allegedly receiving bribes from Odebrecht while a warrant is out for another. Kuczynski was nearly impeached in December for not revealing that a company he used to run did business with Odebrecht. He denies wrongdoing. Francis has previously mentioned corruption on trips to Latin America, where he has also visited Brazil, Bolivia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Mexico, Cuba and Colombia but not his native Argentina. A Puerto Rico neighborhood that's been left in the dark since Hurricane Maria raged through last year finally had their lights turned back on. Residents of Rio Piedras Heights in San Juan were elated over the weekend as their neighborhood became energized following months of effort led by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Hurricane Maria wiped out power across the island when it ravaged the region in September as the most powerful storm the area had seen in nearly a century. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a video of the celebrating residents while noting their Task Force Power Restoration continues to work on getting the lights back on for all Puerto Ricans. "USACE will continue working to ensure all people have an adequate quality of life and essential services so that they can take care of their families and businesses. We will continue this partnered effort until the mission is complete and power is restored," the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers wrote on Facebook. A similar scene unfolded in a Puerto Rico school recently when the power finally flipped back on, stirring teachers and students alike to jump for joy. Hurricane Maria took many lives in Puerto Rico, as well. While the official total is in the dozens, CNN and The New York Times have reported the number may be closer to 1,000 if the lives that were lost in weeks following the storm were counted. RELATED STORIES 'Despacito' Singer Daddy Yankee Hand Delivers Boxes of Food in Puerto Rico 8-Month-Old With Heart Condition Gets Life-Saving Trip Out of Puerto Rico After Hurricane Maria Puerto Rico Students Erupt in Cheers When School's Power Comes On After 112 Days Related Articles: Associated Press The only experience that matters to Ryder Cup captain Steve Stricker is how the youngest U.S. team in history prepares for Whistling Straits in a bid to win back that shiny gold chalice. Equipped with the most captain's picks in Ryder Cup history, Stricker added four more rookies to his team on Tuesday to join the six players who earned automatic spots. Among those left out was Patrick Reed. Madrid (AFP) - Former Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont has boarded a flight to Denmark despite a threat by Madrid to issue a warrant for his arrest if he leaves Belgium, where he has been in exile since a failed independence bid, Spanish newspaper El Pais said. The paper published a photo of the secessionist leader, sacked by Madrid after the Catalan parliament declared independence on October 27, at Brussels airport. It said his plane left at 8 am (0700GMT) but did not indicate what time he was scheduled to arrive in Copenhagen. Puigdemont was to take part in a debate on Catalonia at the University of Copenhagen later Monday. The reported trip came a day after Spain's prosecution service said it would "immediately" have a supreme court judge issue a warrant for his arrest if he travels to Denmark, and urge Copenhagen to hand him over. Spanish Supreme Court Judge Pablo Llarena had dropped a European arrest warrant for Puigdemont and four of his deputies who fled to Belgium in early December, saying it would complicate the overall probe into the region's leaders -- but warned they would be arrested if they return. In a major blow to the central government in Madrid, pro-independence parties won an absolute majority in regional elections on December 21. On Monday, the speaker of the Catalan parliament is due to announce his candidate to become the president of the region. Puidgment is the favourite, but wants to govern the region from exile in order to avoid arrest if he returns to Spain. Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy reiterated Saturday that governing Catalonia from abroad would be "illegal". A second man will face prison time in the 2011 abduction and murder of Tennessee nursing student Holly Bobo. John Dylan Adams was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Monday in the death of Bobo, 20, whose remains were found in the woods in 2014 not far from her familys semi-rural Decatur County home, from which she had been taken more than three years earlier as she stepped outside to leave for school on the morning of April 13, 2011. He was one of three men charged in her death. On Monday, Adams accepted a plea agreement charging him with facilitating Bobos murder, a charge that will place him behind bars for 35 years, TV station WKRN reports. The so-called Alford plea arranged by his defense attorneys and prosecutors which does not admit guilt but carries the same weight, and cannot be appealed would assess 15 years for facilitation of first-degree murder, and 35 years for aggravated kidnapping, to be served concurrently, The Jackson Sun reports. Zach Adams, left, and Holly Bobo Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter. The third man facing charges in the case, Jason Autry, has pleaded not guilty, and prosecutors have said they wanted to delay resolution of his case while they dealt with John Dylan Adams, according to TV station WBBJ. Autry was a key witness at the trial of Zach Adams. John Dylan Adams was scheduled to go to trial in May and had faced a sentence of up to 51 years in prison if convicted at trial. Bobo Was Raped and Drugged, Third Suspect Testified During Zach Adams September trial, Autry who has been offered the possibility of reduced charges and federal immunity in exchange for his testimony, according to the Sun described in detail the alleged events leading to the murder and its aftermath. Bobos brother, Clint, had testified that he heard voices outside of the familys house on the morning his sister went missing, and then glimpsed a man dressed in camouflage walking Holly to the edge of the woods. Story continues Autry, who acknowledged his addiction to methamphetamine and morphine, testified that on the day Bobo disappeared, hed called his friend Zach Adams to buy a morphine pill. Autry, who went by the nickname Train, later met up with Adams. He said, I need you to help me bury this body, Autry said. For more compelling true crime coverage, follow our Crime magazine on Flipboard. Autry first thought the body might be that of someone who owed money to Adams and another man from a drug deal. He said, Train, thats Holly Bobo, Autry testified. Autry alleged that Adams eventually told him that he, John Dylan Adams, and a third man all had raped Bobo, who allegedly had been drugged. A pathologist testified at Zach Adams trial that Bobo had been shot in the head, which Autry said occurred during an aborted attempt to throw her listless body into a river after Bobo appeared to stir. Autry testified that two days after that incident, he asked Zach Adams what hed done with the ol girl. We threw her out, Zach Adams allegedly replied, according to Autry. SYDNEY/KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - A U.S.-based company has begun searching for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, Malaysia said on Tuesday, as it tries to solve one of the world's greatest aviation mysteries. Flight MH370 disappeared en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing in March 2014 with 239 people, mostly Chinese, on board. Investigators believe someone may have deliberately switched off MH370's transponder before diverting it over the Indian Ocean. Debris has been collected from Indian Ocean islands and Africa's east coast and at least three pieces have been confirmed as coming from the missing plane. Australia, China and Malaysia ended a fruitless A$200-million ($159.38 million) search of a 120,000 sq km area in January last year, despite investigators urging the search be extended to a 25,000 sq km area further to the north. (Seabed Constructor at MH370 search zone: http://reut.rs/2DrBjFo) Malaysia agreed earlier this month to pay U.S. firm Ocean Infinity up to $70 million if it finds the plane within 90 days. The search vessel, the Seabed Constructor, set off from Durban, South Africa, on Jan. 3. Ocean Infinity's vessel carries eight "autonomous underwater vehicles", or submersible craft, that will scour the seabed with scanning equipment for information to be sent back for analysis. The Seabed Constructor began its search on Monday, Malaysia's Department of Civil Aviation said in a statement. Reuters shipping data shows the vessel reached the search zone on Sunday and on Tuesday was tracking towards a spot that Australia's scientific agency believes with "unprecedented precision and certainty" is the most likely location of the aircraft. The eight submersibles can search a wide area of sea floor much faster than the tethered scanners used in previous searches, Charitha Pattiaratchi, professor of coastal oceanography at the University of Western Australia, told Reuters by phone from Colombo. "If they don't find anything in the 90 days ... I think that would be the end for decades - this is like the final effort, if you like," he said. The Seabed Constructor could complete the search within three or four weeks, covering up to 60,000 sq km in 90 days, or four times faster than earlier efforts, Ocean Infinity Chief Executive Oliver Plunkett told Reuters this month. (Reporting by Tom Westbrook in SYDNEY, A. Ananthalakshmi and Joseph Sipalan in KUALA LUMPUR; Editing by Nick Macfie) In a stunning show of blind trust, Senate Democrats believed Mitch McConnells promise that they could work on an immigration overhaul in the coming weeks if they gave him the votes needed to end a government shutdown Monday. The midday vote ended a government shutdown that began last week when Democrats demanded action on young immigrants, known as Dreamers, who were brought to the country illegally as children. After three days of stasis, the Democrats blinked first and agreed to turn the governments lights back on with only a verbal commitment that they could try to hammer out a deal for Dreamers in the coming weeks. McConnell made this commitment publicly on the floor of the Senate. He was much more specific than he was last night. And I think this is an important opportunity to demonstrate that hell carry though, Sen. Angus King, a Maine independent who caucuses with the Democrats, told reporters outside the Senate floor ahead of the noon vote a vote that had been scheduled earlier, for the unusual 1 a.m. hour. An initial vote on the stopgap plan cleared the Senate, 81-18, seemed ready for an easy clear on a final vote and then a trip to the House for its members sign-off. The backroom drama was all but certain to have deep ripples through the activist base in each party. Democrats yielded on their demands for Dreamers, while Republicans had moved away, at least temporarily, from a hardline policy against anything they branded as amnesty. Both sides seemed headed toward a collision with the activists in their corner. At the same time, both parties nervously refreshed Twitter to see how the President might react to the news, or if he would again wade into the complicated question of immigration without a consistent position or clear goals. These days, you never know who deal with when it comes to the Republicans, said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, who added he hadnt spoken to Trump since Friday as he rose to give support to the end of this crisis. The great deal-making President sat on the sidelines. Story continues But Schumer nodded toward the cleavage he was walking toward with his own party: This procedure will not satisfy everyone on both sides, but it is a way forward. The temporary, three-week measure funds the government in exchange for a pledge that Senate Republicans would allow separate discussions on how to protect the 800,000 young people who are known as Dreamers. Democrats had sought to couple the two issues and through the weekend refused to provide the Republican-led Senate enough votes to keep the governments doors open. The government ground toward a complete shutdown as the clock ticked from Friday into Saturday. The midnight funding lapse prompted the government to curtail services and paychecks to its employees. Several departments and agencies turned to rainy-day funds to cover operations, although those reserves were finite. In any event, both sides spent the weekend attacking rivals for the shutdown and trying to game out the political victories. Most Republicans insisted they would not reopen the government until the Democrats abandoned their promises for the Dreamers. Democrats said there were no reasons to trust Republicans would follow-through on their plans to consider immigration legislation. After all, McConnell made similar promises to his own Republican lawmakers in December to win enough votes on legislation cutting taxes. Yet, without securing any concessions beyond moving a deadline to do this again in three weeks instead of four, Democrats shuffled to the Senate floor to pass essentially the same bill that they voted down Friday night. Now comes the test, the real test, if we can get this done, said Sen. Dick Durbin, the Democrats pointman on immigration negotiations who had held out hope for a Dreamer bill. To all the Dreamers who are watching today, dont give up. I know your lives are hanging in the balance. Progressive groups were not in the mood for a pep talk. Any plan to protect Dreamers that relies on the word of serial liars like Mitch McConnell, Paul Ryan or Donald Trump is doomed to fail, said Murshed Zaheed, political director of liberal CREDO. In the end, though, Democrats decided to set aside their political consideration and picked up the human costs of the policy. Many lawmakers helped the Dreamers sign up for the program on the promises that if they acknowledged their legal status and petitioned the government for leniency, they would not be deported. In effect, these young immigrants created a registry of those in the country illegally, and the Trump Administration announced the program was ending and set a March deadline for its termination. That left hundreds of thousands of immigrants and their families in limbo, along with paychecks for men and women serving in military uniform. These kids or those kids, offered Rep. Seth Moulton, a Massachusetts Democrat and veteran, setting up a choice of which young people would get the attention of Congress. Moulton, a former Marine Captain, said the political posturing left too many young people those born in the United States and those who came here shortly after birth in a grey area for political points. Our children deserve better. The American people deserve better than this utter lack of leadership, he said Monday. Even so, it wasnt clear the Senate-backed version would be popular in the House. It barely passed late last week on the promises that hardliners would get a chance to push their own bill. Talk of compromise in the Senate was unlikely to preserve votes among Republicans, and Democrats in the House werent eager to place their trust in Republicans. After all, a popular bipartisan immigration plan cleared the Senate in 2013 only to die in the House, where Republicans refused to take it up for a vote. Democrats leap of faith was likely to cause reverberations among the liberal base, especially those who spent the weekend marching in the streets to mark Trumps first year in the White House. Many of those women and men hoisted signs demanding protections for Dreamers and the extension of their Obama-era shield, officially called the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. Todays cave by Senate Democrats led by weak-kneed, right-of-center Democrats is why people dont believe the Democratic Party stands for anything, Progressive Change Campaign Committee co-founded Stephanie Taylor said. Some Democrats were similarly dubious that their votes were not in folly. McConnell has proven a shrewd tactician and an unreliable dealmaker. To secure the votes needed to pass the tax cuts late last year, he promised Sen. Susan Collins of Maine a package of fixes to shore up the Obamacare health systems; those have not come to the floor. McConnell told Sen. Jeff Flake he could help shape an immigration plan in exchange for his tax-cutting vote; hes been sidelined in this process and, late Sunday, said hed vote yet again to give McConnell a win. And Democrats still have not gotten over McConnells norm-breaking decision to refuse to consider Barack Obamas nominee for the Supreme Court until there was a new President elected. Schumer gave McConnell a warning against walking away from the deal, especially given Congress will be back at the same deadline in early February. He will have breached the trust of not only Democratic Senators, but members of his own party as well, Schumer said of his Republican counterpart. Yet its not clear that Democrats will have the same leverage in the coming weeks, or that McConnell would heed their threats. A strategy to shutdown the government over illegal immigration is something the American people didnt understand and would not have understood in the future, McConnell said, perhaps ominously warning against trying such a tactic again. At the same time, the McConnell pledge does not bind the House, where immigration hardliners were unlikely to accept anything sent to them from the more moderate Senate. Ryan, who faces a revolt from his right flank, said the House would back the three-week bill, but he was able to get his part of the government funding process through the House only with the promise that he would allow a vote on a far-right immigration bill that is similarly doomed in the Senate. Its not clear how a hardline House version and the more moderate Senate-backed Dreamer proposal can coexist. The tradeoffs seem predicated on promises that everyone has reason to doubt. McConnell is unlikely to give Democrats their win on DACA, especially if it cant guarantee the President signature. Ryan cant deliver protections for Dreamers as his hardliners stand in lockstep against any compromise. House Democrats are not eager to bail out Ryan with a handful of votes to get him over the finish line on major legislation. And the strongest activists in both parties threaten perhaps with primary challenges incumbents who dont hold firm against compromise. Sadly, most in Congress, Republicans and Democrats alike, are ready to standby and drown taxpayers in a river of red ink without making tough choices on spending, said Jason Pye, a vice president at the libertarian FreedomWorks. In short, lawmakers on Monday were ready to jump off a cliff together. What awaits them is unknown, but its almost certainly not the warm embrace of their bases. If anything, they might do well to invest in noise-canceling headphones. After all, the activists in both parties have shown they are loud and ready to confront those who defy orthodoxy at their homes. (Reuters) - A skydiver died after slamming into the roof of a home in southern California on Monday, authorities said, without releasing details as to what may have caused his fatal fall. The male skydiver, found on the roof of a home in Perris, a small city that is a popular spot for skydiving, was pronounced dead at the scene, the Riverside County Sheriff's Office said. His primary parachute was visible inside his backpack, KABC TV reported from the scene, adding his emergency chute was seen on the rooftop. "I was in complete shock," Christina Blanco, who was in the home at the time of impact, told KABC. "I was like, no, this can't be happening." Officials from the Perris Valley Airport did not respond to a request for comment and a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration was not available due to the U.S. government shutdown. Perris, about 70 miles (115 km) east of Los Angeles, is also the small city where law enforcement said this month a California couple kept captive and nearly starved their 13 minor and adult children. (Reporting by Jon Herskovitz in Austin, Texas; Editing by Sandra Maler) By Ju-min Park and Stella Qiu SEOUL/BEIJING (Reuters) - China and South Korea condemned steep import tariffs on washing machines and solar panels imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, with Seoul set to complain to the World Trade Organization (WTO) over the "excessive" move. Europe also said on Tuesday it regretted the U.S. decision and would react "firmly and proportionately" if EU exports were hit by the tariffs, which Asia fears could be the start of greater protectionism and stall a revival in global trade. Trump's actions on trade during his first year had been less alarming than many outside the United States had feared, but Louis Kuijs, head of Asia economics at consultancy Oxford Economics in Hong Kong, said this may now be changing. "This could very well be just one step of many," he said, adding that steel and aluminium were also on Washington's list. Economists still believe the United States will avoid taking measures that could impact U.S. companies global supply chains, particularly for cars and electronics. But the tariffs on washing machines will deal a heavy blow to South Korea's Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics . Together they ship between 2.5 million to 3 million washing machines annually to the United States, with sales of around $1 billion (714.6 million), and they hold a quarter of a U.S. market dominated by Whirlpool (WHR.N) and General Electric Co(GE.N) . "It is clear that the latest safeguard measures would violate the WTO rules," South Korea's trade minister Kim Hyun-chong said in a meeting with industry officials. "We will actively respond to protectionist measures." China, the world's biggest solar panel producer branded the move an "overreaction" and said it would work with other WTO members to protect its interests. "The U.S.'s decision ... is an abuse of trade remedy measures, and China expresses strong dissatisfaction regarding this," Wang Hejun, the head of the commerce ministry's Trade Remedy and Investigation Bureau, said in a statement. Story continues The European Commission said it regretted the measures, had serious doubts that they met WTO conditions and would not hesitate to react if they harmed European Union exports. German Finance Minister Peter Altmaier told reporters in Brussels that the EU opposed protectionism and said that the measures would make products more expensive for Americans. China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said that the outlook for solar firms' expansion overseas was not good because of protectionist sentiment, and that China was encouraging firms to build factories overseas. Other U.S. trading partners were also quick to react, with Mexico saying it would use legal means to ensure Washington met international obligations, pointing to compensation envisaged under the North American Free Trade Agreement. India has recently re-opened a U.S. dispute, alleging Washington has failed to comply with a ruling on solar power, while Vietnam has challenged U.S. anti-dumping measures against exports of fish fillets. "SECURITY AND TRADE LINKED" The decisions in the two "Section 201" safeguard cases for washing machines and solar cells came after the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) found imports were "a substantial cause of serious injury to domestic manufacturers". The tariffs on washing machines exceeded the harshest recommendations from ITC members, while the solar tariffs were lower than domestic producers had hoped for. Trump ignored an ITC recommendation to exclude South Korean-produced washing machines from LG, with Washington set to impose a 20 percent tariff on the first 1.2 million imported large residential washers in the first year, and a 50 percent tariff on additional imports. The tariffs fall to 16 percent, and 40 percent, respectively, in the third year. A 30 percent tariff will be imposed on imported solar cells and modules in the first year, declining to 15 percent by the fourth year. The measure allows 2.5 gigawatts of unassembled solar cells to be imported tariff-free in each year. "Last year, we thought nothing would happen, but now China should not have any illusion about it. If the U.S is using Section 201 to hit you, they will hit hard," said Zhang Yi, chief economist at Capital Securities in Beijing. Some analysts in Seoul believed Trump was stepping up pressure on the Asian ally to rely more on him when dealing with North Korea, while gaining leverage renegotiating a bilateral free trade pact he has previously labelled "horrible". "Security and trade are linked to each other under Trump," said Choi Won-mog, an international trade law expert at Ewha University. A WTO filing published on Jan. 12 showed Seoul had already sought authorisation to impose annual trade sanctions worth at least $711 million on the United States, in response to the dispute over washing machines. South Korea also asked for permission to impose an open-ended amount of trade sanctions if Washington broke the same rules again on other products. Seoul has already demanded compensation because the United States missed a Dec. 26 deadline to comply with a ruling against duties of up to 82 percent it had imposed on appliances made by Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and Daewoo Electronics. Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics expressed concern over the tariffs, saying they would hit U.S. consumers and jobs. (Reporting by Ju-min Park in SEOUL and Stella Qiu in BEIJING; Additional reporting by Hyun Joo Jin and Joyce Lee in SEOUL, Philip Blenkinsop in BRUSSELS; Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Alexander Smith) Syrian troops have retaken the strategic Abu al-Duhur military airport, located deep within the country's final major pocket of rebel territory, which has recently been split in two by the pro-government offensive. After declaring victory over the Islamic State militant group (ISIS) late last year, the Syrian military, backed by Russian warplanes and Iran-backed, Shiite Muslim militias, launched a rapid push into the northwestern province of Idlib, the final bastion of support for rebels that have tried to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad since 2011. The latest win at Abu al-Duhur came after more than 100 villages and towns were secured in the mostly insurgent-held region, giving Assad more leverage as his Russian and Iranian allies sought to negotiate a political solution to the conflict. Related: Will U.S. take a side in war between two of America's allies in Syria? Trending: Government Shutdown 2018: When Might The Government Close Next? "After a series of qualitative operations, units of our armed forces, in cooperation with partnered and allied forces, successfully carried out their military operations and took control of the Abu al-Duhur military airport in the southeastern countryside of Idlib," a spokesman for the Syrian army and armed forces' general command said Sunday in a statement. "The General Command of the Army and Armed Forces affirms its determination and persistence in continuing to execute its national duty of eliminating terrorism, thwarting the schemes of its supporters and sponsors and restoring security and stability to all territory of the Syrian Arab Republic," he added. RTX4HP3M SANA/Handout via REUTERS Story continues Don't miss: Packaged Gluten-Free Foods Are Full of Fat, Sugar and Salt, Study Finds The Abu al-Duhur military airport became the scene of intense fighting early on in the war, and rebel and jihadi fighters besieged the site in 2012. Clashes continued for three years until opposition forces overcame the Syrian military, forcing troops to evacuate in September 2015. Fighters of the Nusra Front, the Syrian branch of Al-Qaeda, executed dozens of Syrian soldiers upon taking control of the base. A month later, Russia intervened at Assad's request in a bid to help the embattled Syrian leader and his armed forces overcome an increasingly Islamist takeover of the country. As Russian warplanes turned the tide for Assad, the U.S. created the Syrian Democratic Forces, a mostly Kurdish coalition that included Arabs and ethnic minorities and took the place of Washington's main ally in Syria after rebel ranks fractured due to infighting and jihadi influence. Since then, rebels and jihadis, including ISIS, have been dislodged from all major cities except for Idlib at the hands of the Russia-backed Syrian military offensive and U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces offensive. Until late last year, Idlib remained the only province of Syria to remain completely outside of government control and was dominated by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the modern successor to Nusra Front. Most popular: Deutsche Bank Taking Legal Action Over Jared Kushner 'Suspicious' Funds Report; Company Slams Crazy Allegations RTX4GPBW Institute for the Study of War/Reuters In the neighboring province of Idlib, another post-ISIS offensive threatened to undermine Washington's mission in Syria, where the government considered U.S. military presence illegal. Turkey, which remained in support of a rebel group known as the Free Syrian Army, has launched a second major incursion into Syria, attacking U.S.-backed Kurdish militias that Ankara considered to be terrorist organizations due to alleged links to an ongoing Kurdish insurgency in Turkey. Both sides have accused each other of supporting ISIS. While the People's Protection Units (YPG) comprised the dominant faction of the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces, the Pentagon has not taken retaliatory measures against Turkey, a fellow member of Western military alliance NATO. On Monday, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Turkey had advised the U.S. before the assault on the Kurd-controlled district of Afrin and he praised both Turkish and Kurdish efforts in defeating ISIS. This article was first written by Newsweek More from Newsweek By Michael Shields and Fedja Grulovic ZURICH/DAVOS (Reuters) - Anti-capitalists marched through Swiss cities on Tuesday to protest a planned visit by U.S. President Donald Trump to the World Economic Forum (WEF) and broke through a security cordon in Davos. Leftists organizers called for the protests under the mottos "Trump Not Welcome" and "Smash WEF!" Trump is due to speak on Friday at the WEF in the Alpine town of Davos, an annual meeting of global business and political leaders where protests have been banned. About 20 demonstrators broke through security to reach the Davos Congress Centre, holding banners and shouting "Wipe out WEF" before they were peacefully disbanded by police. "Trump is just one of the other people we disagree with. We've been protesting every year now against the World Economic Forum and if Trump comes or not we don't care. Trump is just, maybe he's just the best symbol of this world," protester Alex Hedinger told Reuters TV in Davos. More than 4,000 Swiss soldiers have deployed to guard Davos alongside 1,000 police and a no-fly zone is in place. Police estimated that there were 2,000 demonstrators in Zurich. They carried flags and anti-globalist and environmentalist placards such as "No Trump, no coal, no gas, no fossil fuels" as they marched toward Zurich's financial district, where bankers had been warned to stay clear of the approved demonstration. Swiss television RSR showed a sign that read "Who was the shithole?", in reference to reported remarks by Trump about Haiti and African countries, which he has denied. Several hundred protesters also marched in public squares in Geneva, Lausanne and Fribourg. Geneva signs read "World Economic Fiasco", "racist sexist capitalist" and "Don't touch women's rights". Geneva demonstrator organizer Paolo Gilardi told Reuters TV: "While the Swiss Federal Council (Swiss cabinet) is about to welcome and unroll the red carpet for Mister Trump, well we think that the population has something to say." "This policy is unacceptable because the goal ... is to reduce the planet to fire and blood and to assure the powerful people's domination over the rest of the world." Earlier in Geneva, protesters laid a wreath at the entrance of the U.S. diplomatic mission in memory of Heather Heyer, who was killed in Charlottesville, Virginia, amid clashes between white supremacists and counter-protesters last August. After the rally, Trump inflamed tensions by saying there were "very fine people" on both sides, drawing condemnation from some Republican leaders and praise from white supremacists. Earlier this month, demonstrators also protested against Trump's visit in the Swiss capital of Bern. That march was peaceful, unlike violent anti-WEF protests in several Swiss cities in the early 2000s. (Reporting by Michael Shields in Zurich, Fedja Grulovic in Davos and Cecile Mantovani in Geneva; writing by Michael Shields and Stephanie Nebehay; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg) Davos (Switzerland) (AFP) - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau criticised the protectionist policies of US President Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday while fervently defending the virtues of free trade. In a speech alluding to Trump and his threat to pull the United States out of the North American Free Trade Agreement, Trudeau said his administration is "working very hard to make sure that our neighbour to the south recognises how good NAFTA is, and that (NAFTA) has benefited not just our economy, but his economy and the world's economy." Earlier Canada agreed at talks in Tokyo to join 10 other countries in resurrecting the Trans Pacific Partnership, now called the CPTPP. This came on the heels of a free trade deal with Europe and amid difficult negotiations with the United States and Mexico to revamp the 1994 North American Free Trade Agreement. "The agreement reached in Tokyo today is the right deal," Trudeau said, adding that the CPTPP deal marked "a great day for progressive trade around the world." In addition to Canada, the CPTPP includes 10 countries: Australia, Brunei, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. Canada, which is the second-largest economy in the CPTPP, had walked away from a deal on the trade pact last November, holding out to maintain environmental and labour protections linked to freer markets. A Canadian government official said "significant progress on the sticking points" had been made. The agreement, said Trudeau, is now "more progressive and stronger for Canadian workers in the fields of intellectual property, culture and the auto industry". At the same time, the prime minister raised concerns about a growing backlash against globalisation. "We're seeing a lot of trade skepticism around the world in general right now," he said. "People are worried or become increasingly convinced that trade deals benefit the few, not the many, benefit a country's bottom line, benefit multinationals, but don't benefit ordinary workers." A new book about Trump's White House is being published: Getty Images White House aides reportedly say President Donald Trumps surprise actions and tendency to disregard the advice of his advisers is a symptom of Defiance Disorder. The term refers to how Mr Trump has a habit of doing whatever his advisers urge him not to do and then leaves them to clean up the mess, according to excerpts from a new book by longtime Washington reporter Howard Kurtz. As examples, Mr Kurtz points to Mr Trumps decision to announce on Twitter that his administration would bar transgender troops from serving in the military. Mr Trumps chief of staff at the time, Reince Priebus, heard the news just as he was about to attend a meeting on the issue. The White House had recently finished an official policy review on transgender individuals serving in the military, and Mr Priebus and Mr Trump had agreed to meet to discuss four policy options. Oh my God he just tweeted this, Mr Priebus said, according to Mr Kurtz. There was, as the author writes, no longer a need for the meeting. Mr Trumps surprise announcement sparked chaos and received bipartisan criticism. The excerpts of Mr Kurtzs book were published by the Washington Post. The book, titled Media Madness: Donald Trump, The Press, And The War Over The Truth, will be released on January 29. Its release comes on the heels of Michael Wolffs book Fire and Fury - a controversial account of the Trump presidency that roiled Washington. Mr Kurtz hosts Fox Newss Media Buzz and previously wrote for the Washington Post. This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. A 24-year-old appointed to a top position in the White House drug policy office has come under scrutiny in recent days for his scanty resume and lack of qualifications. A new Washington Post report reveals that one of Taylor Weyeneths few previous jobs ended ignominiously. Weyeneth was let go from a New York law firm in 2015 because he didnt show up to work, the paper reports. Weyeneth was appointed last year as deputy chief of staff of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, or ONDCP, which coordinates federal drug-control efforts, and questions have recently been raised about his fitness for the role. Prior to his work for the Trump administration, the only job hed held since graduating from college in 2016 was working on President Donald Trumps presidential campaign, the Post reported earlier this month. As a high schooler, Weyeneth worked for a family firm that processed health products; and as an undergraduate, he had a job as a legal assistant at the New York law firm ODwyer & Bernstien. The Posts new expose over the weekend reported that Weyeneth had fudged details in the resume he submitted to the government, including the length of time hed spent at the law firm and as the vice president of his college fraternity. Weyeneth was discharged from ODwyer & Bernstien for failing to come to work, a partner at the firm, Brian ODwyer, told the paper. He just didnt show, ODwyer said. Weyeneth has been reassigned to administrative work, following questions about his background, the Post reported, although he continues to hold the title of deputy chief of staff. A replacement as the office second-in-command is being sought, the paper said. ONDCP didnt immediately answer HuffPosts request for comment. The reports about Weyeneth have emerged as the opioid epidemic, which Trump declared a public health emergency in October, continues to escalate. Politico reported this month that virtually nothing of consequence has been done by the White House to address the crisis, despite Trumps promises to tackle the scourge of addiction. Story continues In fact, the Trump administration is allegedly planning to slash the ONDCP budget by 95 percent, Politico reported. Last week, 10 Democratic senators signed a letter excoriating Trump for hiring Weyeneth, and for his failure to adequately tackle the opioid crisis. You have claimed that the opioid epidemic is a top priority for your administration, but the personnel you have staffing these key agencies and the lack of nominees to head them is cause for deep concern, said the lawmakers, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Sen. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). This crisis knows no bounds, and we are committed to working across party lines with anyone who is serious about addressing this devastating epidemic. As the Associated Press notes, ONDCP has no permanent director. CORRECTION: A previous version misspelled Sen. Maggie Hassans last name. Also on HuffPost Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Voters arrive at a polling station in Brock, Texas, to cast their ballots in the November 2016 presidential election: Getty Images Donald Trumps controversial voter fraud commission asked for files on every Texan with a Hispanic surname, newly released documents show. The Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity made the request last year while applying to obtain nearly 50 million voter records from the state with the second-largest Hispanic population in the US. On the data request form, policy adviser Ron Williams ticked a box asking for Hispanic surname flag notation to be included in the files. Officials said the data was never supplied because a lawsuit filed by voting rights campaigners blocked the state from sending any information to the commission. The commission, established after Mr Trump claimed millions of people voted illegally in the presidential election, was dissolved earlier this month amid mounting legal challenges and resistance from several states. Documents obtained by Missouri Democrat Senator Claire McCaskill show the commission had paid for voter records from some states that refused to provide them for free. Among the files was an invoice for $3,437.30 to be paid to obtain data on 49.6 million registered voters in Texas, including the details of those with Hispanic surnames. Kris Kobach, the Republican vice-chairman of the voting commission, told the Washington Post that the request was a complete surprise to me. At no time did the commission request any state to flag surnames by ethnicity or race, he said. Told about the Texas invoice, he added: Mr Williams did not ask any member of the commission whether he should check that box or not, so it certainly wasnt a committee decision. Mr Kobach said the data does not, did not advance the commissions inquiry in any way, and this is the first Ive heard [that] the Texas files included that. He added: I dont know what sort of data analysis you would do even remotely relevant to it, but also having just one state [would be] useless. It just doesnt make any sense. Story continues Mr Trumps commission was denounced by civil rights group when it was set up in May, and was feared by some to be an attempt to suppress voting among ethnic minorities. Maine Secretary of State Matt Dunlap, a former member and vocal critic of the commission, said the request for Hispanic data raised grave questions about exactly what the commission hoped to find and what problems it planned on solving. [It] gives room for no small amount of alarm in the very possibility that an American citizen could be suspected of voter misconduct based on their ethnicity, he told CNN. The watchdog group American Oversight has filed a Freedom of Information request for all files related to the application for Hispanic voter data in Texas. Mr Dunlap filed one of several lawsuits that had hobbled Mr Trumps commission before his decision to scrap it. Announcing the disbandment on 3 January, the White House said: Despite substantial evidence of voter fraud, many states have refused to provide the Presidential Advisory Commission on Election Integrity with basic information relevant to its inquiry. Rather than engage in endless legal battles at taxpayer expense, today President Donald J Trump signed an executive order to dissolve the Commission, and he has asked the Department of Homeland Security to review its initial findings and determine next courses of action. Mr Trump launched the commission after claiming, without any evidence, that he only lost the popular vote in the election because millions of people voted illegally for his Democratic rival Hillary Clinton. President Trump is declaring victory for Republicans after signing a bipartisan bill to end the three-day government shutdown and is vowing a return to his role as dealmaker-in-chief. Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown, Trump tweeted Monday night after signing legislation that will fund the government through Feb. 8. Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security. Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table! This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. The White House also declared victory the day before, with press secretary Sarah Sanders claiming that Democrats acquiesed to the deal that President Trump put on the table from the very beginning. But according to multiple reports, Trump was disengaged from the negotiations. (The president was either unwilling or unable to articulate the immigration policy he wanted, the New York Times reported, much less understand the nuances of what it would involve.) Earlier Monday, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that he had struck a deal with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to end the Democratic-led shutdown and reopen the government after McConnell promised to take up legislation to address the expiring Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Last year, the Trump administration said it would rescind the Obama-era program, which shielded nearly 800,000 undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children so-called Dreamers from deportation. Trump has maintained that he would like to sign off on a DACA fix, but White House officials say it would need to be paired with measures to improve border security. Budget director Mick Mulvaney at a White House press briefing on Saturday. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) We want a big deal that solves the reason we have a DACA problem in the first place, White House budget director Mick Mulvaney said on CNNs New Day on Tuesday. If you simply gave amnesty whatever you want to call it to the folks who are here, but dont solve border security, then youre simply delaying another DACA problem 10 or 15 years from now. Story continues When pressed on what the administration plans to do to protect Dreamers, Mulvaney said that it depends on what we get in exchange. What do we get for border security? Mulvaney asked. What do we get for the wall? This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. Mulvaney also defended Trumps relative absence from shutdown discussions over the weekend. Schumer said Monday that he had not spoken to Trump since Friday, before the deadline to keep the government open lapsed. Sometimes not going to the table is one of the best things you can do, Mulvaney said. Schumers agreement to end the shutdown angered some of his Democratic colleagues, who argued that they are no closer to a DACA deal than they were before it began a point Trump underscored on Twitter Tuesday morning. Nobody knows for sure that the Republicans & Democrats will be able to reach a deal on DACA by February 8, but everyone will be trying.with a big additional focus put on Military Strength and Border Security, the president tweeted. The Dems have just learned that a Shutdown is not the answer! This content is not available due to your privacy preferences. Update your settings here to see it. In another tweet, he thanked Crazy Jim Acosta of Fake News CNN for Acostas assertion that the White House was dancing in the end zone over the shutdown deal. The government shutdown forced Trump to cancel a planned weekend trip to Mar-a-Lago, where he was scheduled to attend a dinner commemorating the first anniversary of his inauguration. Of the shutdowns timing, Mulvaney said, There was a political motivation to deprive the president the opportunity. _____ Read more from Yahoo News: On Friday, Jan. 19, President Donald Trump became the first sitting U.S. president to address the pro-life March for Life convention via satellite broadcast. During his remarks to the antiabortion rights group, Trump voiced his support for a federal ban on all abortion after 20 weeks gestational age, actively calling on the Senate to vote on the measure, which has already passed the House, and send it to his desk for signature into law. Sarah Horvath, MD, an ob-gyn and family planning fellow in Pennsylvania who is a fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health, tells Yahoo Lifestyle that banning abortion a procedure made legal in the U.S. 45 years ago today via the Supreme Courts ruling on Roe v. Wade at 20 weeks is a completely arbitrary cutoff. There is nothing about 20 weeks that is special or medically different [when it comes to fetal development], Horvath says. Abortion is safe both before and after that gestation age. And abortion is one of the safest medical procedures performed in this country because it is legal. Twenty-week abortion bans already the rule of law in 17 states in the U.S. end up jeopardizing womens health and safety more than doing anything to protect them, Horvath says. Furthermore, Horvath notes that a preponderance of medical research and evidence shows that a fetus is incapable of feeling pain until at least 24 weeks; prior to then, the fetal brain has not developed enough to have the capacity to detect pain. In a statement this fall when the U.S. House of Representatives voted on the passage of a federal 20-week abortion ban, the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) expressed that they were strongly oppose[d to] political efforts to limit a womans ability to get the care she needs, specifically, attempts to ban abortions through medically unnecessary cutoff points. At that time, ACOG called H.R. 36, the federal 20-week abortion ban bill in the House, unconstitutional and a gross interference in the delivery of care. Story continues A report entitled The State of Womens Health Policy released by the Planned Parenthood Action Fund just last week found that during 2017, Congress had 14 anti-womens health votes including the vote on the federal 20-week abortion ban. The House of Representatives also introduced and held a hearing on legislation that would ban abortion at just six weeks gestational age, a time before many women even know they are pregnant. Horvath says she is concerned about the aggressively anti-reproductive rights agenda being pushed in Congress right now. We know that the reason that abortion in this country is so safe is because it is legal and accessible. So every time we put up a barrier to make it less accessible, it will also become less safe, she says. Read more from Yahoo Lifestyle: Follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter for nonstop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. Mr Sessions had recused himself from the investigation into Russia's meddling in the 2016 election: REUTERS/Joshua Roberts Special counsel Robert Mueller's team has questioned Attorney General Jeff Sessions as a part of its investigation into Russia's meddling in the 2016 election, a Justice Department spokeswoman has confirmed. Mr Sessions was questioned for several hours last week, marking the first known time that a member of President Donald Trump's cabinet has been interviewed as a part of the probe. The interview, confirmed by The Independent and first reported by the New York Times, follows Mr Sessions' decision to recuse himself from matters related to investigations into the 2016 election, including Justice Department investigations into Russia's influence. Mr Sessions was one of the first sitting members of Congress to publicly support Mr Trump's run for president, and had served as a high profile surrogate and adviser for the campaign. News of Mr Sessions' recusal broke in March, and followed after revelations that the attorney general had failed to tell Congress about two meetings he had with former Russian ambassador to the US Sergey Kislyak during the campaign. Mr Trump reportedly tried to convince Mr Sessions not to recuse himself from the 2016 investigations after learning he was considering doing so, and enlisted the help of top White House lawyer Donald F McGahn II to lobby the attorney general against doing so. Since the recusal, and in light of the subsequent firing of former FBI Director James Comey, Mr Trump has said that he may not have tapped Mr Sessions to lead the Justice Department in the first place had he known. But Mr Sessions listened to the advice of career Justice Department prosecutors, and decided to not be involved in the investigation. Mr Trump was reportedly incensed by the recusal, and yelled at his attorney general that he needed to protect him from the investigation. While Mr Sessions is the only cabinet member known to have been interviewed by the Mueller team so far, the investigation has looked at several high profile members of Trump campaign. Story continues The investigation has already led to several indictments, including charges filed against former campaign chairman Paul Manafort and his deputy Rick Gates. Both of those men have pleaded not guilty, and Mr Manafort has counter sued Mr Mueller, saying that the investigation does not have the jurisdiction to prosecute the alleged crimes that were brought up. Former National Security Adviser Michael Flynn, who was forced to resign last year after it was determined that he had misled Vice President Mike Pence about contacts he had had with Mr Kislyak during the presidential transition, was also charged, and pleaded guilty. Former foreign policy adviser George Papadopoulos also pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the investigation. The President has declined to say if he would speak to Mr Mueller: Getty Robert Mueller is reportedly seeking to question Donald Trump about his firing of James Comey and Michael Flynn, apparently intensifying his examination of whether the President was responsible for the possible obstruction of justice. In the latest of a flurry of developments relating to the federal probe into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia, it was reported that Mr Mueller would like to talk to the President in the coming weeks. In particular, he wants to talk to him about the 2017 February firing of Mr Flynn and his ousting of Mr Comey in May 2017. It was the firing of Mr Comey, that led to the appointment of Mr Mueller, himself a former FBI Director, to head an independent federal investigation into Russias alleged meddling in the 2016 US presidential election. Earlier on Tuesday, it was reported Mr Mueller had last week questioned Attorney General Jeff Sessions and that he last year spoke to Mr Comey. Mr Mueller apparently spoke to Mr Comey about a series of memos he kept in which he detailed interactions with the President that unnerved him. In one such memo, which Mr Comey subsequently testified about on Capitol Hill, he noted that Mr Trump had asked him to drop the FBI investigation into Mr Flynn. The Washington Post said Mr Muellers interest in the events that led Mr Trump to get rid of Mr Flynn and Mr Comey may suggest his investigation is increasing its focus on possible efforts by the President, or those close to him, to interfere in such a way that amounted to the obstruction of justice. Within the past two weeks, the Special Counsels office has indicated to the White House that the two central subjects that investigators wish to discuss with the president are the departures of Flynn and Comey and the events surrounding their firings, the Post said. Earlier this month, it was reported that Mr Trumps lawyers were discussing ways in which the President could be interviewed by Mr Muellers team. Story continues Expecting that Mr Mueller will ask to interview Mr Trump, the Presidents legal team has been discussing a range of options for the format of such an interview, such as written responses to questions in lieu of a formal sit-down. Mr Trump has told friends he expects the probe, which he has described as a witch hunt, to clear him in writing. The White House has yet to comment on the latest report and Mr Muellers spokesman declined to comment. Previously, Mr Trump declined to say whether he would grant an interview to Mr Mueller and his team. Well see what happens, Mr Trump said earlier this month when asked directly by reporters. Davos (Switzerland) (AFP) - Instead of a chilly reception from globalisation's defenders, US President Donald Trump may find a warm welcome in the posh ski resort of Davos, from global executives delighted with his controversial tax reform. The annual World Economic Forum in the snow-bound Swiss resort is a bastion of globalisation and expectations were high that Trump's presence, set for Thursday and Friday, would likely be a bad-tempered affair given the tycoon's zeal for protectionism. But last month, Trump's embattled presidency pulled off a rare victory, passing a law through the Republican-led Congress that permanently slashes the corporate tax rate to 21 percent, fulfilling a long-term wish of US CEOs. Opposition in the US has been fierce against the reform, seen as a handout to the wealthy, and even angered governments in Europe who see it as an unfair lure by Washington to bring multinationals back to its shores. But in Davos, Trump's reform was hailed by many as putting the US back in the driver's seat of the world economy. "There are companies all over the world that are saying that (the US) is the place to be in the developed world," gushed billionaire Stephen Schwarzman, chief executive of investment management giant Blackstone, and a Davos regular. "Lower taxes, reverse of regulation, a workforce that is educated... to non-US people (this tax reform) is a very big deal," Schwarzman said on a panel alongside other major heavyweights from the global economy. Brian Moynihan, chairman and chief executive of Bank of America, noted the "enthusiasm I heard just last night from a bunch of people from outside the United States". "They think that the United States is the thing to talk about for the next 12 to 18, 24 months... That will be an interesting dynamic for a while," he said. One of Europe's most high-profile CEO's concurred: "I've learned over time not to bet against the US economy," said Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam, a Franco-Ivorian considered to be close to France's leader Emmanuel Macron. "It's not a winning strategy." Story continues - 'Absolute genius' - It wasn't supposed to be this way. Last year's edition of the Davos gab-fest took place just as Trump was sworn into office, with the forum-goers gobsmacked as they watched the historic scene on televisions. But executives said the fall-out and concerns from the political earthquake never quite materialised, at least for now. "I think they've subsided..." Mark Weinberger, accountancy giant EY's Global Chairman told CNBC in Davos. He underlined the importance of the tax reform, calling it a "landmark change". All this contributed to a warming attitude towards Trump and the US, he said. "Remember, last year, coming in, we had, right off the heels of Brexit, right off the heels of Donald Trump... many elections that people were worried about, in France, in Germany, and Austria. That's all now behind us," Weinberger said. Not all voices were unanimous, however, with Frank Appel, the chief executive of Deutsche Post AG, warning that the tax reform could well be just a "sugar high" that could dangerously swell the US deficit. The IMF's Christine Lagarde included this warning when, speaking from Davos on Monday, she upgraded the US growth forecast for this year to 2.7 percent, thanks to the purely "short-term" effects of tax cut. The head of Oxfam, the British aid group that serves unofficially as capitalism's chief critic at Davos, came down hard on Trump and described what she saw as the real purpose behind his policies. The Trump presidency is "a very good example of ... where the super rich take over the control of government and then use it for their own benefit," Winnie Byanyima, Oxfam Executive Director, told AFP. Amongst the executives, most super wealthy, the effect of the Trump tax cut remained evident. "In a few years, we might say that Trump is an absolute genius," one high-profile attendee said, on condition of anonymity. Washington (AFP) - A powerful 7.9-magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of Alaska early Tuesday, sparking tsunami warnings along the Pacific coasts of the US and Canada that were later called off. The quake struck at 12:31 am (0931 GMT) in the Gulf of Alaska, 280 kilometers (175 miles) southeast of the town of Kodiak, the US Geological Survey said, revising a preliminary estimate of 8.2 magnitude. The epicenter was 10 kilometers under the seabed. The National Tsunami Warning Center did confirm a tsunami, meaning the water levels were slightly above normal. Waves of less than one foot (30 centimeters) were detected in parts of southern Alaska, authorities said. As a precaution, officials in those areas encouraged residents to remain at higher ground. But the monitoring center later canceled warnings and watches for coastal regions in Alaska, Canada's British Columbia and the US West Coast "because additional information and analysis have better defined the threat." Heather Rand, who was 580 kilometers away in Anchorage, told CNN it felt like the longest earthquake she had ever experienced. "It was a very long, slow build up. Creepy, more than anything. Definitely the longest, and I was born here," Rand said, adding the only damage was cracks in the wall. So far, no quake damage or large waves have been reported in Kodiak, which is on an island off the coast, police spokesman Tim Putney told AFP. "We are half an hour beyond the time we were told the first wave might hit. Nothing has happened," he said around 1115 GMT. "We have people with their eyes on the sea, from a safe distance," Putney added. USGS said that the quake occurred "as the result of strike slip faulting," explaining that it was in a location where two plates converged. In the past century, 11 earthquakes of similar magnitudes have struck within 600 kilometers of Tuesday's earthquake, USGS said. By Ece Toksabay, Ellen Francis and Tuvan Gumrukcu ANKARA/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Turkey has killed at least 260 Syrian Kurdish fighters and Islamic State militants in its four-day-old offensive into the Kurdish-dominated Afrin region of northwest Syria, the Turkish military said on Tuesday. U.S. President Donald Trump plans to raise concerns with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in a phone call expected on Wednesday about Ankara's offensive against U.S.-backed Kurdish YPG forces in Afrin, a senior U.S. official said. French President Emmanuel Macron also voiced disquiet, a few hours after Turkey's foreign minister said it wanted to avoid any clash with U.S., Russian or Syrian government forces during its offensive but would do whatever necessary for its security. The air and ground operation has opened a new front in Syria's multi-sided civil war and could threaten U.S. plans to stabilize and rebuild a large area of northeast Syria - beyond President Bashar al-Assad's control - where Washington helped a force dominated by the YPG to drive out Islamic State militants. The United States and Russia both have military forces in Syria backing opposing sides and have called for restraint on the part of Ankara's "Operation Olive Branch" to crush the YPG in the Afrin region near Turkey's southern border. A senior Trump administration official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, said Ankara had sent "conflicting signals" about the scope of the offensive. "We would urge them to limit the incursion as much as possible," the official said, who said the phone call would happen soon. Another official - as well as Turkey's foreign minister - said Erdogan and Trump planned to speak on Wednesday. A statement by Macron's office said: "Taking into account Turkey's security imperatives, the president expressed to his Turkish counterpart his concerns following the military intervention launched on Saturday in Afrin." Erdogan told Macron on Tuesday Turkey was taking all measures to prevent civilian casualties in the Afrin operation, sources at the presidential palace said. The two leaders agreed to stay in close contact on the issue. The Kremlin said President Vladimir Putin had also discussed Turkey's military operation Erdogan by phone and that Syria's territorial integrity and sovereignty had to be respected. A Kremlin statement said both men stressed the importance of continuing their two countries' joint work to try to find a peaceful resolution to Syria's crisis. Russia has been Assad's most powerful ally against rebels and militants in Syria. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu reiterated Ankara's demand that Washington stop supporting the YPG. Ankara has said the operation will be swift, but Erdogan's spokesman signaled an open-ended cross-border campaign, saying it would end only when some 3.5 million Syrian refugees now living in Turkey could safely return home. The United States hopes to use the YPG's control in northern Syria to give it the diplomatic muscle it needs to revive U.N.-led talks in Geneva on a deal that would end Syrias civil war. NEAR BREAKING POINT Ankara has been infuriated by the U.S. support for the YPG, which is one of several issues that have brought ties between Washington and its Muslim NATO ally close to breaking point. "The future of our relations depends on the step the United States will take next," Cavusoglu said. Turkey's military, the second largest in NATO, has conducted air strikes and artillery barrages against targets in Afrin, and its soldiers and allied Syrian rebels tried to thrust into the Kurdish-held district from west, north and eastern flanks. With heavy cloud cover hindering air support in the last 24 hours, advances have been limited and Kurdish militia have retaken some territory. Turkish troops and the Syrian fighters have been trying to take the summit of Bursaya Hill, overlooking the eastern approach to Afrin town. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based war monitor, said 23 civilians had been killed in Turkish shelling and air strikes, and thousands were fleeing the fighting. However, Syrian government forces were preventing people from crossing government-held checkpoints to reach the Kurdish-held districts of nearby Aleppo city, it said. YPG THREAT U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Turkey's offensive distracted from efforts to defeat Islamic State. White House spokeswoman Sarah Sanders said the United States wanted to see Turkey "de-escalate," which Trump would raise in the call with Erdogan. Ankara says the jihadist group is largely finished in Syria and that the greater threat comes from the YPG, which it sees as an extension of a Kurdish group that has waged a decades-long separatist insurgency inside Turkey. Erdogan has said Turkey aims to destroy YPG control not just in the Afrin enclave but also in the mainly Arab town of Manbij to the east. "Terrorists in Manbij are constantly firing provocation shots. If the United States doesn't stop this, we will stop it," Cavusoglu was reported as saying on Tuesday. "Our goal is not to clash with Russians, the Syrian regime or the United States, it is to battle the terrorist organization," broadcaster Haberturk quoted him as saying. "We will not live with fear and threats," Cavusoglu said. He tweeted that a lieutenant had become the second Turkish soldier to be killed in the operation. The Observatory said 43 rebels fighting alongside the Turks had also been killed, as well as 38 on the Kurdish side. Later on Tuesday Cavusoglu discussed the crisis with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson during a conference in Paris. Erdogan's spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, said the military operations would continue until Syrian refugees in Turkey "return home safely and the separatist terror organization has been cleansed from the region". The Kurdish-led administration of northeastern Syria appealed for a mass mobilization in defense of Afrin. "We call on all our people to defend Afrin and its pride, and contribute in all the related activities," it said, without elaborating. A U.N. report, citing local sources, said about 5,000 people in the Afrin district had been displaced as of Monday but that some of the most vulnerable had been unable to flee. It said the United Nations was ready to provide aid to 50,000 in Afrin. (Additional reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu in Ankara, Tom Perry in Beirut, Suleiman al-Khalidi in Amman, Steve Holland in Washington and Michel Rose in Paris; writing by Dominic Evans; editing by Mark Heinrich and Cynthia Osterman) Footage has emerged of the moment the imprisoned Turpin family children escaped from their parents' "house of horrors". Moments before police descended on the suburban home in Perris, California, the children, some of whom were allegedly tortured and shackled, the children can be seen filing out onto the drive. One of them can be seen carrying a younger sibling, while another gets into a van parked outside the house where their parents allegedly held them captive. David Turpin, 56, and his wife Louise Turpin, 49, have been charged with torture, abuse and false imprisonment. They were arrested after one daughter escaped from through a window of the home and alerted authorities. Investigators found a number of the children, who range in age from 2 to 29, shackled to beds with chains and padlocks. They said that some of them were severely malnourished. When the couple appeared in court, Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin said the couple had allegedly punished their children by tying them up. He said the alleged punishments would last weeks or months, and intensified over time. It was also alleged that the children were accustomed to frequent beatings, including strangulation, were only allowed one shower a year and the Turpin parents allowed their children to eat just one meal a day although the parents would sometimes buy food and place it where the children could see it but not eat it. Related: For more news videos visit Yahoo View. Investigators also claimed that the children lack basic knowledge of life and did not know who a police officer was, they had never seen a dentist and had not visited a doctor in over four years. All of the children were home-schooled, except for the eldest, meaning there was no obligation for them to come into contact with any outside parties under Californian law. The Turpins have pleaded not guilty in Riverside County to multiple counts of torture, child abuse, abuse of dependent adults and false imprisonment. Story continues David Turpin, 56, has also been charged with one count of a lewd act on a child by force. If convicted, he and his wife Louise, 49, face up to 94 years to life in prison. They are being held on bail of $12m (8.6m) each and are due back in court on 23 February. By Sarah N. Lynch WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions was questioned last week by the special counsel's office investigating potential collusion between Russia and President Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, the U.S. Justice Department said on Tuesday. The interview marked the first time that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's office is known to have interviewed a member of Trump's Cabinet, and is another milestone in an investigation that has hung over Trump's year-old presidency. Discussions between Trump's personal lawyers and Mueller's team have been under way about the possibility of an interview with Trump and what the scope of it might be, according to a person familiar with the talks. Mueller's office also interviewed former Federal Bureau of Investigation Director James Comey shortly after Trump fired Comey in May 2017, a person familiar with the matter said. Comey's firing led to Mueller's appointment to take over the FBI's Russia investigation. Sessions was the first U.S. senator to endorse Trump's candidacy and served as a campaign adviser before the Republican president appointed him as the top U.S. law enforcement official. Trump has openly criticized Sessions for recusing himself from overseeing the Russia probe last March after media reports that he had failed to disclose 2016 meetings with Moscow's then-ambassador, Sergei Kislyak. Ian Prior, a Justice Department spokesman, confirmed a report in the New York Times that Sessions met for hours with Mueller's team last week. Prior did not provide additional details. An attorney representing Sessions declined to comment. Mueller's team is expected to be interested in meetings between Sessions and Kislyak during the campaign, as well as the attorney general's involvement in Trump's firing of Comey, an episode central to the question of whether Trump may have committed obstruction of justice. Trump shrugged off questions about Sessions' interview at the White House, telling reporters: "I'm not at all concerned." His spokeswoman Sarah Sanders declined comment on specific interviews but said the White House would not stand in the way of the probe. "We're going to be fully cooperative with the special counsel," Sanders told reporters. "We want to see this come to a complete and full conclusion." QUESTIONS FOR TRUMP? U.S. intelligence agencies have concluded that Russia interfered in the 2016 campaign using hacking and propaganda to attempt to tilt the race in favor of Trump. Russia has denied it. Trump has denied any collusion with Russia, and has called the Mueller's investigation a "witch hunt" and "hoax." Mueller wants to question Trump himself in coming weeks about decisions to fire national security adviser Michael Flynn - who had lied about contact with Kislyak - and Comey, the Washington Post said in a report. Trump refused this month to commit to being interviewed by Mueller, saying: "I'll speak to attorneys" about the matter. Trump's personal lawyer John Dowd declined comment on Tuesday. A person familiar with Comey's interview with Muellers team said it was part of the handoff of the investigation into whether Trump sought to obstruct justice by firing Comey, and whether the presidents campaign colluded with Russia. The handoff, the source said, also included Mueller's team collecting all the material Comey had gathered during the initial stages of the investigation. In memos Comey wrote about his meetings with Trump, Comey recounted how the president asked him to end an FBI probe into Flynn, who has since pleaded guilty to a charge brought by Mueller of lying to the FBI. (Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Additional reporting by Ayesha Rascoe and Makini Brice; Editing by Will Dunham and Peter Cooney) (The Guardian) The U.S. Senate took the first steps Monday afternoon to end the three-day shutdown spurred by a disagreement between Democrats and the Republicans over border security and immigration, agreeing on a short-term spending legislation to reopen the government until Feb. 8. The shutdown, which comes in the midst of sensitive NAFTA negotiations with Canada, started after funding for government operations expired Friday at midnight. These kinds of shutdowns tend to be quite short, this one here would be only one full day of business so (the impact) would be marginal, explains Walid Hejazi, associate professor of economic analysis and policy at the University of Torontos Rotman School of Management. But the longer these sorts of shutdowns last, the more likely they are to have unintended consequences. You can imagine how discussions within the NAFTA which are going on this week how the shutdown could influence it, I doubt it would have a direct effect but you never know, says Hejazi. Initially, the Democrats called on Republicans to address protection for the Dreamers, over 800,000 immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children, before approving any short-term funding. The Republicans, on the other hand, held firm, saying they wouldnt negotiate around immigration until they had the votes to reopen the government. Given the brevity, Canadians arent likely to feel any effect at all, but Hejazi says he wouldnt be surprised if the U.S. government sees another shutdown in the near future. This is going to happen again and again and it may become more severe theres no reason to think its not. Small businesses, Canadians paying U.S. taxes in the line of fire The last shutdown happened in 2013 under the Obama administration, lasted 16 days and saw government employees for non-essential services like National parks workers, off work. This time around, Trump opted to keep parks open. We are going to run and are running the shutdown very differently now than the Obama administration ran it in 2013, White House Budget Director Mick Mulvaney told CBS on Sunday. The president has told me, Make sure as many people can go to work on Monday as they can. Make sure you use every tool legally available to you to keep as much of the government open. And thats what well do. Story continues Future shutdowns could see some national museums and parks close in places like Washington, D.C. but Canadians heading south wouldnt see an issue as border services fall under the essential services status. The U.S. postal service is also considered essential so Canadians sending mail to the U.S. or expecting packages wouldnt see an interruption. Visa applications could take longer to process under a shutdown government and any Canadians paying U.S. taxes would have to wait for a restart before getting their refunds or seeing a resolution to any tax rulings they filed before the shutdown. Businesses working with the U.S. and exporters that would be most likely to feel the impact, says Hejazi. Though that impact would only be apparent in the case of a shutdown lasting more than a couple weeks. Canadian exporters applying for new permits from the U.S. government could also experience delays and screening of goods could be backed up as border services would be working with reduced staff. Canadian companies also wouldnt be able to bid on new contracts with the U.S. government while it was shuttered. The fragility of U.S. governance While the government is likely to be up and running Tuesday morning once Congress and President Trump have officially signed off for the short-term deal, Hejazi says that the shutdown also hints at the fragility of the U.S. governance process. In theory, (the process) should work well but the way its actually operating, in practice, is significantly flawed, he says calling it the U.S.s sickness. You never know where this is going to lead but its going to help Trump because the earliest consensus is that Trump won this, the Democrats blinked, says Hejazi. This is helping Trump advance his agenda on immigration, on trade and I think this is a wake-up call for Canada to grow up and stop being so dependent on the U.S. economy and be more globally diversified. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android. President Donald Trump has blamed Democrats for the shutdown: AP With the government shutdown entering its third day, the Republican National Committee has targeted Democrats up for re-election in 2018 over the halt in federal funding as President Donald Trump goes on the attack. The RNCs campaign is targeting Senators Bill Nelson of Florida, Debbie Stabenow of Michigan, Sherrod Brown of Ohio, Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Tammy Baldwin of Wisconsin all of whom represent states that Mr Trump won in the 2016 presidential election. The five senators being attacked voted against a measure that would have funded the government for another four weeks. The bill failed on Friday night, sending the government into a shutdown. Democrats and Republicans are now playing the blame game, with both parties accusing the other of causing the closure as they fight to avoid voters anger ahead of the 2018 midterm elections. Republicans have billed the event Shumers Shutdown, referring to Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer. On Monday, Mr Trump retweeted his own Saturday post in which he also placed the responsibility on Democrats for the situation. Democrats are far more concerned with Illegal Immigrants than they are with our great Military or Safety at our dangerous Southern Border. They could have easily made a deal but decided to play Shutdown politics instead. #WeNeedMoreRepublicansIn18 in order to power through mess! End the Democrats Obstruction! he added on Monday. The RNCs effort included calls to 2.6 million voters in those five battleground states about the shutdown as well as a digital component with paid targeted Facebook posts, according to The Hill. It is infuriating, it is petty, and YOU deserve better from your elected official, a robo call to people in all five states says. Demand that your Senator do their job vote to fund the government, support our military, and provide healthcare for millions of American children. Several Democrats have made it clear that they will not vote for a spending measure unless it includes protections for undocumented migrants brought to the US as children the so-called dreamers. Story continues Over the weekend, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) also launched a digital ad against five Senate Republicans, accusing them of causing the shutdown. Of the five, two of them are up for re-election in 2018: Senators Ted Cruz and Dean Heller of Nevada. Mr Heller is considered to be the most likely Republican to lose his seat this year. The Green Mountain State now has a totally different meaning for Vermont. For the first time, a state legislature in the U.S. legalized adult cannabis use for adults 21 and older. The other states that allow recreational cannabis use Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Alaska, California, Nevada, Massachusetts, and Maine, as well as Washington D.C. got there with ballot measures. SEE ALSO: This weed company just reinvented the bong Vermont Gov. Phil Scott signed the bill on Monday, which will go into effect on July 31, and will allow adults to possess one ounce or less of cannabis flower. Additionally, adults may posses up to two mature marijuana plants and up to four immature plants. The bill does not permit the sale of recreational cannabis, meaning you can not go to your neighborhood pot shop and pick up an ounce of OG Kush. This marks an important opportunity for states that may be considering legal cannabis use in their state, but aren't ready to take the plunge into recreational sales like Colorado, or most recently California. The Vermont legislature is expected to develop a system for sales and taxation in the future. Other state legislatures that could follow in Vermonts footsteps include Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. "I personally believe that what adults do behind closed doors and on private property is their choice, so long as it does not negatively impact the health and safety of others, especially children, Scott said in a statement. While this legislation decriminalizes, for adults 21 and older, personal possession of no more than 1 ounce, and cultivation of two mature plants on their private property, marijuana remains a controlled substance in Vermont and its sale is prohibited. Also, consumption of marijuana in public places is prohibited. Consumption of marijuana by operators and passengers in a motor vehicle is prohibited. Schools, employers, municipalities and landlords are also empowered to adopt policies and ordinances further restricting the cultivation and use, the statement reads. Story continues Scott also directly said he would veto any plan that would implement the sale of commercial cannabis until there is a plan to "develop comprehensive education, prevention and highway safety strategies." To be very direct: There must be comprehensive and convincing plans completed in these areas before I will begin to consider the wisdom of implementing a commercial tax and regulate system for an adult marijuana market," Scott said. "It is important for the General Assembly to know that until we have a workable plan to address each of these concerns I will veto any additional effort along these lines, which manages to reach my desk. Scott previously vetoed a version of the same bill, saying, "We must get this right." In an October Gallup pole, 64 percent of Americans supported legalized marijuana use in the United States, which is an all-time high. While states continue to legalize cannabis use, marijuana remains federally illegal as a Schedule 1 drug on the DEA's classification list, alongside heroin. Additionally, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions vetoed policies put in place by the Obama administration that protects states that legalize cannabis earlier this month, striking fear into the cannabis industry that the Feds may crack down on recreational sales. For the first time, a U.S. state has legalized marijuana with the stroke of a pen, not a vote at the ballot box. Vermont Gov. Phil Scott (R) on Monday signed into law House Bill 511, which legalizes the possession of up to one ounce of cannabis and removes penalties for possession of up to two mature marijuana plants and up to four immature plants. The legislation says nothing about creating a state market for recreational weed, however. The new law will go into effect in July. Today, with mixed emotions, I have signed H. 511, said Scott in a statement addressed to the states General Assembly. I personally believe that what adults do behind closed doors and on private property is their choice, so long as it does not negatively impact the health and safety of others, especially children. With Scotts signature, Vermont will join eight other legal-weed states, as well as Washington, D.C., in a growing movement away from federal law, which still classifies marijuana as a Schedule I substance, alongside heroin and LSD. Vermont legalized medical marijuana in 2004, and is currently among nearly 30 states, plus the territories of Guam and Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia, with such programs in place. Although other states have legalized cannabis through ballot initiatives that have left the decision up to voters, Vermont does not allow for such a process. Over the past few years, lawmakers in the state have instead been working to address marijuana reform through legislation. A similar legalization bill made it to Scotts desk in 2017, but the governor vetoed it, citing concerns with weak language on punishment for the sale of marijuana to minors and its establishment of a commission to study how a regulated cannabis market would work in Vermont. The final version of H. 511 clarified civil penalties for the sale of marijuana to individuals under 21 years old and removed the commission entirely. Scott has instead created his own marijuana task force, which is examining the states involvement in recreational cannabis sales and focusing on developing comprehensive education, prevention and highway safety strategies. Story continues There must be comprehensive and convincing plans completed in these areas before I will begin to consider the wisdom of implementing a commercial tax-and-regulate system for an adult marijuana market, Scott said on Monday. It is important for the General Assembly to know that until we have a workable plan to address each of these concerns I will veto any additional effort along these lines, which manages to reach my desk. Some state officials say the composition of that commission looks to be biased against marijuana, which means recreational weed faces an uncertain future in Vermont. There is frustration that the governors panels appear to be predetermined in opposition [to a tax-and-regulate model for marijuana sales] versus the sentiment of the House and Senate, which was to move forward, said Vermont Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman, a Progressive/Democrat. The governors commission is expected to deliver a final report to lawmakers by the end of the year, which would guide them on future legislation to establish a market for cannabis. Under Vermonts two-step process of legalization, it could be a while before the state sees its first legal marijuana sale, said Matt Simon, the New England political director for the Marijuana Policy Project, a non-profit organization that advocates for cannabis reform around the country. The tone of the commission all along has been, Lets figure out how to do this, regardless of whether we think it should happen or not, he said. Theyre gonna come up with specific policy recommendations. Now whether the legislature decides to take those recommendations or not is a whole different story. Its not yet clear if there would be enough support in the state legislature to pass a tax-and-regulate bill without Scotts support. Vermont requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers to override a gubernatorial veto. With statewide elections upcoming in November, these deliberations seem likely to become a key campaign issue in the coming months, though its not yet clear if lawmakers will be willing to put themselves on the record as strong supporters of legal marijuana sales in Vermont. Some Republicans feel vulnerable if they support this kind of legislation, even though the support for this is majority across all parties, said Zuckerman. The cultural sentiment is still in some of those districts, and they dont feel the support is there yet. Recent surveys have shown strong support for relaxing marijuana laws in Vermont and nationwide. A January HuffPost/YouGov poll showed that 55 percent of Americans favor legalizing marijuana both nationally and in their own states. National support for legalization at the federal level hit a record high 64 percent in a Gallup survey from October 2017, including among a majority of Republicans. Recreational marijuana has already become a substantial revenue source in the states that have legalized it. Legal marijuana sales in the U.S. hit $6 billion in 2016, with tax revenue in Colorado and Washington, the states that have had legal cannabis markets for the longest, now bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars a year, according to an analysis by the Marijuana Policy Project. Another recent study projected that over a nine-year period, legal marijuana nationwide could provide 1 million new jobs and generate more than $132 billion in federal tax revenue, with nearly $52 billion in sales tax alone. Without a system to tax and regulate cannabis sales in Vermont, all commerce involving marijuana would remain underground. Marijuana is widely available, widely used throughout Vermont. Vermonters spend an awful lot of money on marijuana and it all goes to the illicit market, said Simon. Why wouldnt we have a regulated system so that money would instead go to taxed and regulated businesses and the state would have some revenue to deal with any costs or issues that do arise? Despite the clear economic benefits of legal marijuana, the state-federal divide on cannabis laws has gotten deeper over the past month. Lawmakers in the Vermont House of Representatives passed H. 511 just a day after U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions released new Justice Department guidance giving federal prosecutors the go-ahead to crack down on state-legal marijuana operations. Although the announcement led to some anxiety in the fledgling marijuana industry, its practical effect remains to be seen. That Justice Department action alone shows that the political stigma around marijuana reform still hasnt faded completely, said Zuckerman. But he hopes the Vermont legislatures successful move toward legalization could serve as an invitation for lawmakers in other states to pursue reform. This is a significant signal to other legislative bodies around the country that legislatures can act in the interest of the general population without some of the fear that there will be electoral retribution, he said. In the world of making laws, that is often one of the things that lawmakers look at, that potential consequence. For now, lawmakers are discussing how best to incorporate Vermonts progressive principles into any future system of state marijuana sales, Zuckerman said. The very broad sentiment from right to left is that nobody wants Big Cannabis to own Vermont, and whatever we do end up drafting for a tax-and-regulate bill will be oriented toward smaller production facilities and a more broad distribution of the economic benefit throughout the state, as opposed to large out of state corporate version, he said. Clarification: A previous version of this story indicated Vermont Lt. Gov. David Zuckerman governor is a Democrat. Zuckerman won both the Democratic and Progressive primaries for the position, and has been affiliated with both parties. Love HuffPost? Become a founding member of HuffPost Plus today. This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Tokyo (AFP) - A Japanese soldier was killed Tuesday and several other people injured after a volcano erupted near a popular ski resort, sparking an avalanche and leaving scores stranded -- including tourists from Britain and Taiwan. Footage broadcast on Japanese television showed thick black smoke interspersed with falling rocks rolling down the snow-covered side of the volcano towards a ski slope. Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera told reporters that one of eight members of the Self Defence Forces who had been on a training mission on Mt. Kusatsu Shirane, northwest of Tokyo, had died after being hit by volcanic rocks. "His lungs were damaged" because of the impact of the rocks, Onodera said, adding that the other seven soldiers had sustained injuries. The defence ministry had initially said a total of six infantry troops were caught up in the incident. "Black smoke rose from the top of the mountain and we were told to evacuate inside 30 minutes later," a man who was at the ski resort told public broadcaster NHK. Around 80 people were stranded for hours at a gondola station at the top of the mountain after a power outage. Television footage showed military helicopters buzzing overhead as people were airlifted to safety. Yuko Iguchi, an official from nearby Kusatsu town, told AFP: "All the people stranded at the summit were brought down to the safe zone. We have not received any injured people among them." Another local official, Yoichi Takai, told AFP that "15 people from Taiwan and four from Britain were among those who were stranded at the peak." One woman who was trapped at the gondola station but later rescued told Japanese TV: "There was an eruption in front of my eyes. Black and white plumes came towards me. Then the ski slope went completely black." The area had seen heavy snowfall in the hours leading up to the eruption, making the slopes ripe for avalanches. A snowboarder told NHK his gondola had stopped suddenly and he saw that other gondolas around him had broken windows and were covered in ash. Story continues "I realised it was an eruption. Forty to 50 minutes later, all the gondolas moved up to the station on the top of the mountain," he said. - Ring of fire - Japan's Meteorological Agency urged people to stay away after it detected what it said was "slight volcanic activity." Agency official Makoto Saito told reporters the volcano could still spew more rocks and ash, and that there was a risk of further avalanches. A local fire department official told AFP that 10 people had been hurt in the incident. "Five of them were seriously injured. We began sending the injured to a hospital," he said. Among the injured were four people hurt by shattered glass while on a ropeway gondola at the ski resort. The official said an earlier report that one person was missing in the avalanche was not accurate. Japan, with scores of active volcanoes, sits on the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire" where a large proportion of the world's quakes and volcanic eruptions are recorded. On September 27, 2014, Japan suffered its deadliest eruption in almost 90 years when Mt Ontake, in central Nagano prefecture, burst unexpectedly to life. An estimated 63 people were killed in the shock eruption, which occurred as the peak was packed with hikers out to see the region's spectacular autumn colours. According to the Meteorological Agency, this was the first time Mt. Kusatsu Shirane has erupted since 1983. There are currently 111 active volcanoes in Japan, according to agency officials. burs-ric/sah/hg Jake Bright is a writer and author in New York City. He is co-author of The Next Africa. More posts by this contributor President Trumps comments about immigrants coming from shithole countries are continuing to stir up a shitstorm internationally. And while the language itself is bad enough, the president and his advisors need to also reboot their assumptions about the African continent -- not just for the immigration debate but for U.S. foreign policy considerations. Among other sweeping changes, Africa is in the midst of a tech boom thats reshaping the culture, politics and economies of many of its countries. African immigrants are key drivers of this digital movement. And African tech companies are now generating revenue and creating jobs in the USA. Sure, just like any region in the world, the continent has its goods and bads. Many of Africas stereotypical problems conflict, poverty, corruption have not vanished. But nearly two decades of improved stability, economic growth and reform have come together to create some bright spots. Rapid modernization and a growing technology scene are among them. Africa now has more than 316 tech hubs, accelerators and innovation spaces across IT hotspots in Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria and Rwanda. Thousands of African startups are moving into every imaginable sector: from blockchain, logistics and education to healthcare and agriculture. And hundreds of millions of dollars in venture capital is flowing to these startups, with the expectation that some of their solutions for Africas 1.2 billion people will produce significant ROI. The continent minted its first billion-dollar unicorn e-commerce venture Jumia in 2016. And at least one big technology company in Africa, Naspers, regularly makes outward investments in Asia, Europe and the Americas. Story continues Over the last five years, just about every big-name U.S. tech company, including Facebook, Google and Netflix, has expanded in Africa. IBM built a $100 million research initiative based in Kenya to create an African version of Watson, dubbed Lucy. Uber operates in eight African countries and is testing product options on the continent that could end up in its cars in London, New York or DC. Africa is now exporting technology and innovation that has the potential to impact the U.S. The solar-powered BRCK Wi-Fi device, developed in Kenya, helps connect people in internet dead spots on five continents. The Andela coding accelerator is shaping African programmers who work for global Fortune 500 companies. African mobile payments solutions in Kenya and Nigeria are used as digital finance case studies by big banks across the world. In 2016, Africa incubated the first national drone delivery program at scale through a partnership with American robotics startup Zipline and the government of Rwanda, which has been studied by the FAA for application in the U.S. And behind all this technological innovation is a new generation of African tech enthusiast and entrepreneurs. Many of them have stronger ties to the U.S. than any other region in the world. The original founders of the continents big e-commerce startups, Jumia (Tunde Kehinde and Raphael Afaedor) and Konga (Sim Shagaya) went to Harvard Business School and worked in the U.S. BRCK co-founder Juliana Rotich BRCK co-founder Juliana Rotich is a University of Missouri grad and MIT Fellow. Nigerian fintech entrepreneur, Tayo Oviosu, founder of fintech firm Paga, studied at Stanford and worked at Cisco before launching his digital payments company in Lagos. And Nigerian immigrant Chris Folayan founder of e-commerce venture MallforAfrica is using his platform to boost U.S. exports in Africa and profits for American companies. With its proprietary payment and delivery system, the site allows partners such as Macys, Best Buy and Auto Parts Warehouse to sell in Africa. Through MallforAfricas eBay collaboration, American individuals and small businesses are generating revenue in the U.S. through online sales in Africa. And MallforAfrica a tech startup founded by an African immigrant is now employing Americans at its Portland processing center. It plans to expand with a new U.S. location in 2018. So circling back to Shithole-gate, when it comes to Africa and African immigrants, theres a lot more for the president and his administration to consider when it comes to policy and characterizations of the continent. Africas technology sector, IT entrepreneurs and their growing connections to the United States should factor highly. Atta Nasib [timestamp] Security, Middle East Could domestic politicians and the international community work to maintain this peace momentum? It Looks like Afghanistan and the Taliban May Try to End 17 Years of War On June 7, Afghan president Ashraf Ghani made a powerful concession to the Taliban by offering the group a unilateral ceasefire for the annual Eid celebrations. The offer hung in the air the following day with the Taliban quiet and the Afghan people voicing fears that the offer was a concession of defeat. The public and many politicians were caught off-guard. Analysts and former government officials called it a futile exercise. Despite fear and confusion, the deafening silence from the Taliban could only mean they were seriously considering a ceasefirean unprecedented operational pause after nearly two decades of bloodshed. Then, as President Ghani was traveling to China to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Qingdao on the morning of June 9, an aide came with unexpected news. Mr. President, he said, Taliban reciprocated! Ghanis gamble paid off. It was a bold decision to declare a ceasefire and invite one from the Taliban. The timing was ideal. Perhaps the long fasting days of deprivation without a ceasefire, the peace marchers on the way from Helmand, peace tents plotted in all thirty-four provinces, and the vocal young Afghans voicing strength and prosperity in peace were inspirational. American and NATO forces heartily supported and respected Kabuls decision to exercise sovereignty and independence. This served to publically shed the image of the Afghan government as a puppet regime, a primary Taliban accusation and a major stumbling block to their direct negotiations with Kabul. Stereotypes about Taliban fighters and peace needed updating. The fact that Taliban leaders did not make any unreasonable demands before announcing a ceasefire on their side suggest a realization that ultimately the Taliban will need to talk to the Afghan government, unless they are already doing so, and not the United States. What followed was out of the ordinary: armed Taliban fighters performed prayers with Afghan security forces, shared meals, and greeted Afghan forces with roses. These were seen as trust-building gestures that reflected the culture that the two conflicting sides share. But how can domestic politicians and the international community work to maintain this momentum? Story continues Communication is a key component of peace-building. Early signs appear favorable. After all, never in seventeen years have the Taliban been better positioned to negotiate. They control territory, they attract young followers, and their messaging is sophisticated as their military prowess becomes more polished. Unfortunately, over the years, an important challenge has been the multiple independent threads of outreach to the Taliban that complicated the path toward viable negotiations. The Afghan government, the UN agencies, and various embassies have made separate outreaches to the Taliban with uncoordinated and ill-defined messages, creating a critical obstacle to starting a formal process. This lack of coordination fostered distrust. Multiple attempts failed. Domestically, this created teams of rivals in a system of parallel policies for peace. It is unlikely that the United States will be able to single-handedly bring the Taliban to the negotiation table or deliver a peace settlement with the Taliban by itself. Unhelpful regional machinations have further complicated the peace process with China, and Russia is now in bed with Pakistandespite providing token gestures of support to the Afghan government. More importantly, Pakistans strategic aspirations and internal security problems, including the growing strength of local movements like the anti-Taliban-anti-Pakistani military Pashtun Tahafuz Movement and the Baloch separatists, has hobbled its efforts in Afghanistan. Iran has also increased its sabotage activities in Afghanistan, sticking it to the United States largely in retaliation to the recent U.S. policy change in the region, including providing weapons and support to the Taliban. As the Afghan government negotiates peace, nearly everyone realizes military means are ineffective. Key international stakeholders warmly welcomed the initial ceasefire and are hopeful for long lasting peace. The Afghan public was overwhelmingly positive and voiced hope for the future. With initial momentum built, President Ghani responded to popular demand for peace and has extended the ceasefire. The Taliban, however, refused to extend its ceasefire and swiftly went back on a killing spree, prompting strong and vindictive criticism from ceasefire skeptics. The Taliban believes that it can extract more concessions from the Afghan government and the United States. Its sharp rebuke to peace is based on a flawed and misguided synopsis. First, the Talibans own rank and file flocked Afghan cities and villages unarmed to celebrate Eid festivities with their relatives and local civilians, fostering empathy. War-weary Afghans welcomed them with open arms despite years of misery, and government officials extended respect and jubilation. This indicates that Afghans are ready to reintegrate former militants, easing worries that years of acrimony would lead to a bitter and costly reintegration process. For its part, the Taliban leadership ordered to discipline foot soldiers who were caught fraternizing with Afghan officials, appeasing the hardliners, and fearing the images may weaken the insurgents self-declared moral high ground. Second, Ghanis extension throws a wrench in the Talibans return to the battlefield. Afghan security forces were ordered to not fire first for this period. Talibans desire to not extend the ceasefire and resume the fight validates concerns that the group is not a unified and cohesive entity. Despite reports that the Taliban is operated by a strong and centralized chain of command, the ceasefire proved that nefarious regional actors, particularly Pakistan, remains indispensable in exercising a great deal of influence over the Taliban. But the confirmation of Mullah Fazlullahs death in Afghanistan by President Ghani suggests a quid pro quo thaw in Afghan-Pakistan relations, maybe in the offing, and chances are Pakistan may finally put pressure on Taliban for reconciliation. Growing public demand for peace hands President Ghani his trump card to force the Taliban to soften their intransigence over ceasefire. Third, it is imperative to form an alliance of political elites and mujahideen, who are chomping at the bit to be part of any major reconciliation effort. This would also likely help contain the growing risks of empowering the Islamic States Afghan offshoot, which is in a frenzy for territory and runs amok Afghan cities staging spectacular attacks. Kabul must find a way to enable them to unite and to support the legitimacy of the Ghani governments bold and impressive initial steps towards a sustainable peace process. Otherwise, the alternatives are depressing. Finally, the looming Afghan parliamentary and presidential elections present a vital opportunity for peace making. Peace is now at the forefront of the candidates campaign platforms. Clean elections are more important now than they were in the past because with peace comes prosperityif corruption can be contained. Confidence in the electoral system must be legitimately bolstered by holding free and transparent elections. The stakes are high, but despite uncertainty, there is a glimmer of hope rightly observed by Oscar Wilde, We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars. Atta Nasib is a candidate for Parliament from Kabul Province. He tweets at @NasibAtta. Image: An Afghan National Army (ANA) soldier is seen through damaged glass as he keeps watch at the Forward Base in Nari district near the army outpost in Kunar province, February 24, 2014. The Afghan Taliban killed 21 soldiers in the assault on Sunday in the remote mountainous region, the Afghan government said, and six soldiers were missing after the militants' most deadly assault on the security forces in months. The government sent reinforcements to the area where the pre-dawn attack took place, Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman Zahir Azimi said in a statement. REUTERS/Omar Sobhani Read full article Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images WASHINGTON Before the government shutdown standoff came to an end, there was a robotic voice to weigh in on the politics of it: Callers to the main switchboard of the White House heard a recorded message explaining there were no operators on duty owing to the Democratic obstruction. The message was still playing Monday night as the deal to end the shutdown awaited President Trumps signature. One expert told Yahoo News it may violate ethics laws. Thank you for calling the White House, a female voice said in the message. Unfortunately, we cannot answer your call today because congressional Democrats are holding government funding, including funding for our troops and other national security priorities, hostage to an unrelated immigration debate. Due to this obstruction, the government is shut down. The message repeated the argument the White House has been making for days that Democrats were to blame for the shutdown and had endangered the country through their refusal to sign onto budget deals that did not include provisions protecting young undocumented immigrants from deportation. Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer ultimately backed a budget deal after his Republican counterpart, Mitch McConnell, promised to address later on the issue of the Dreamers, or those who immigrated illegally to the U.S. as children. During the shutdown in 2013, which occurred when President Barack Obama was in office, callers to the White House switchboard were greeted with a nonpartisan message. We apologize, but due to the lapse in federal funding, we are unable to take your call, the 2013 message said. Norman Eisen, an attorney who was Obamas ethics czar from 2009 to 2011, told Yahoo News that the Trump administrations shutdown switchboard message appears to violate the spirit of the Hatch Act, a federal law that prohibits executive branch employees apart from the president, vice president and other top officials from engaging in political activity. Story continues But Eisen said the office of the special counsel would be unlikely to take action because no specific candidate is targeted. Richard Painter, who served as the chief White House ethics lawyer from 2005 until 2007, during the administration of President George W. Bush, told Yahoo News he doesnt think the Trump administration should have used the switchboard in this manner because its in bad taste. However, Painter said he doesnt believe the message was a Hatch Act violation. This is the basic rule of the Hatch Act: You can criticize the Republicans or the Democrats on the Hill for the position they take because they, in their official capacity, identify themselves as Republicans and Democrats, Painter explained. Painter noted that Obama would routinely criticize Republicans on Capitol Hill for obstruction at official White House events and said the Bush administration similarly criticized Democrats. This is sort of par for the course, Painter said. Where you cross the line is where you endorse the Democratic Party or attack the Democratic Party as a political organization, or attack a candidate for election, or promote a candidate for election. Deputy White House press secretary Lindsay Walters offered a similar interpretation of the Hatch Act when asked about the message by Yahoo News. This is just another, of many, examples of so-called ethics experts manufacturing artificial controversies for their own political objectives, Walters said. The actual prohibition called for by the Hatch Act is that federal employees may not use official authority to interfere with the results of an election. This is not that. Whether or not the message represented an actionable offense, Eisen, the Democratic former White House ethics lawyer, argued that it broke with tradition. It is certainly a violation of the longstanding norm that the White House staff (and particularly the nonpartisan career members, such as the person who likely recorded this message) is there to serve and work with all Americans, and not just those who voted for the president. For that reason, we were very careful in the Obama administration about this kind of thing. For example, I made one senior staffer remove an autographed Obama campaign sign from his office in case in made those who had not voted for the president uncomfortable. This recorded message for callers would have been inconceivable in any other administration, of either party, Eisen said. Alyssa Mastromonaco, who was deputy chief of staff for operations under Obama from 2011 until 2014 offered a more blunt take when she was asked about the switchboard message on Twitter. Its a f***ing abomination and I cannot believe they made nonpolitical appointee employees [the WH operators] record it, she wrote. Read more from Yahoo News: Los Angeles (AFP) - In a second day of US demonstrations for women's rights and against President Donald Trump, marchers took to streets of Las Vegas on Sunday. The rally aimed to highlight the need for political organization ahead of mid-term congressional elections set for later this year. "We have to march together, we have to organize together, we have to mobilize together and we have to vote together, even when we don't like one another," said Tamika Mallory, co-chairwoman of the national Women's March organization, in Las Vegas. "We have the power to change every policy and make every elected official work for us.... but we must stand up and be loud and be bold." Demonstrators in the desert city marched and chanted "Power to the polls." Some waved signs saying, "You can't fix stupid but you can vote it out," "The president of the US is a racist," and "We're not gonna take it sisters." Still others chanted "Equal work, equal pay." Saturday, demonstrators took to the streets en masse around the United States banging drums and donning pink hats for a second Women's March opposing the president -- a year to the day since Trump's inauguration, when more than three million people turned out nationwide to voice opposition to Trump. Hundreds of thousands of marchers assembled in Los Angeles, New York, Washington, Chicago, Denver, Boston and other cities nationwide. Many donned pink knit "pussy hats" -- a reference to Trump's boast of his license to grope women without repercussions. (LONDON) Thousands of people on two continents picked up the baton from the United States and rallied Sunday in solidarity with women demanding equality, justice and an end to sexual harassment. Demonstrations in London, Paris, Sydney and other European and Australian cities followed much larger womens marches held Saturday across the U.S. to mark the anniversary of President Donald Trumps inauguration, as well as the protests it inspired. In the British capital, demonstrators carried placards reading We Are Powerful and Times Up and chanted outside Prime Minister Theresa Mays office as they raised grievances ranging from workplace inequities to misogynistic abuse on social media. Today is a call for action to bring about change, London protest co-organizer Shola Mos-Shogbamimu said. This is so much more than Trump. The London event drew thousands of people despite sleet and snow. Heavy rain fell on the protesters who gathered near the Eiffel Tower, which could have been a factor in the small number of participants compared to the U.S. marches on Saturday. It doesnt matter if the weather is like this, Maggie Kan, who was one of the more than 100 people who didnt let the rain and cold deter them. Were still coming together, and were going to still fight against Trump and his agenda. Some of the slogans on posters at the Paris rally read Sorry for the inconvenience, we are trying to change the world and Look back, march forward. The international events come at a time of reckoning for many men in Hollywood, the media and other industries as women speak out about sexual misconduct and inequity in general. More are scheduled to take place in the United States on Sunday. They will culminate in a Las Vegas rally that will launch an effort to register 1 million voters and target swing states in the U.S. midterm elections later this year, which could shift control of Congress. I think last year was that watershed moment of President Trumps election, said Melissa Goffin, the march organizer in Melbourne, Australia. Its a new era of feminism. Story continues Those who took part in this years events said they were galvanized by an avalanche of political and gender issues over the past year, as well as the #MeToo movement, which has been credited with countering widespread sexual abuse and misconduct. Many of the marchers not only supported womens rights, but also denounced Trumps views on issues including immigration, abortion and LGBT rights. Demonstrators denounced Trumps views with colorful signs and even saltier language. Trump dismissed the suggestion that his presidency has been bad for women. He tweeted Saturday that it was a perfect day for women to march to celebrate the economic success and wealth creation of his first year in office. Get out there now to celebrate the historic milestones and unprecedented economic success and wealth creation that has taken place over the last 12 months, the Republican wrote. Lowest female unemployment in 18 years! In Palm Beach, Florida, home to Trumps Mar-a-Lago estate, several hundred people marched Saturday carrying anti-Trump signs. A group of women wearing red cloaks and white hats like the characters in the book and television versions of The Handmaids Tale, which imagines a future in which womens rights have been strictly limited, walked in formation with their heads bowed. On Saturday, Oklahoma City protesters chanted, We need a leader, not a creepy tweeter! The march in Washington, D.C., on Saturday took on the feel of a political rally when U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand on New York and Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, both Democrats, urged women to run for office and vote to oppose Trump and the Republicans agenda. We march, we run, we vote, we win, Pelosi said to applause. Cathy Muldoon, a high school librarian from Dallas, Pennsylvania, took her two teenage daughters to the New York rally and said marching gives people hope. She said this years action is set against the backdrop of the Trump presidency, which turned out to be as scary as we thought it would be. Ive not seen any checks and balances, she said. Everything is moving toward the right, and we have a president who seems to have no decency. In Los Angeles, Eva Longoria, Natalie Portman, Viola Davis, Alfre Woodard, Scarlett Johansson, Constance Wu, Adam Scott and Rob Reiner were among the celebrities who addressed a crowd of hundreds of thousands at the womens march there. Longoria, who starred in TVs Desperate Housewives, told marchers their presence mattered, especially when those in power seem to have turned their backs on reason and justice. Woodard urged everyone to register and vote, saying, the 2018 midterms start now. The man behind the brutal rape and murder of an 18-year-old Texas girl abducted while she returned a movie rental on her way to church has been sentenced to life in prison. It took jurors in Dallas County less than seven minutes to sentence Antonio Cochran, 37, on Monday, just days after taking only four days to convict him of the killing of Zoe Hastings, the Dallas Morning News reported. I hope you remember my face, Hastingss father, Jim Hastings, told his daughters murderer, who prosecutors said abducted the teen as she was stopped at a Walgreens to return a Redbox movie on Oct. 11, 2015. Her body was found the next day in her minivan, which had crashed in a Dallas creek, officials said. Her throat had been slashed several times. Cochrans sister asked the jury to be merciful on him, saying their family struggled growing up and noting: Im sure he wanted that father figure attention. But prosecutor Pat Kirlin said Cochran showed no mercy to Hastings. Did he show any mercy for her when he abducted her, a total stranger, from the Redbox? Raped her and then ripped open her throat? Wheres the mercy there? Kirlin asked the jury. Hastings parents searched for their daughter after she failed to return home after church for Sunday dinner. They used an app to track her phone to the dry creek bed, but police had arrived on the scene first. Dont go over there and look at your daughter, an officer told Jim Hastings. You wont be able to forget what you see. Hastingss parents called for Cochran to be sentenced to life. He will be eligible for parole after serving at least 30 years. I believe if he gets out of prison, he's going to do the same thing to somebody else. I'd hate that my daughter died and he goes and does it to somebody else," Jim Hastings told the jury, according to the Dallas Morning News. Story continues Cochran was originally charged with capital murder. He was found guilty of the lesser charge of murder, after the jury reportedly appeared deadlocked on whether prosecutors proved Hastings had been kidnapped, an integral part of finding Cochran guilty of the higher charge. Cochran has a lengthy criminal history and prosecutors said he was full of violent urges, sexual urges. He was arrested in 2014 for raping his ex-girlfriend's 17-year-old daughter, but was found not guilty in that case. Hastings was remembered for her generous and outgoing nature, and was called a light to everybody. "Zoe was vivacious, beautiful, always willing to help, and a ball of energy that was always ready to make you smile," a GoFundMe page created after her death said. RELATED STORIES Missing Teenage Girl Found Murdered Near Her Crashed Minivan in Creek Man Arrested for Abducting, Murdering Teen Who Went Missing On Her Way to Church Blaze Bernstein's Accused Killer Appears in Court on Felony Murder Charge Related Articles: WASHINGTON The US government's aid chief, Mark Green, made an unannounced visit to Raqqa in Syria on Monday, the most senior US civilian official to visit the war-struck city months after American-backed militia retook the area from Islamic State. Green was accompanied by the head of the US Central Command General Joseph Votel, as the United States ramps up efforts to stabilize areas once held by Islamic State to prevent them from falling back into the hands of other militants. "We're at the point where people really do want to go home so this is the moment to seize," Green, Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), said in a phone interview with Reuters after the visit. The IDF released new footage Monday showing off performance of the Artillery Corps's Skylark drone , which recently began operating in a new and improved version. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Between the first half of 2016 and the first half of 2017, the drones saw an uptick of 1,000 operational flight hours. The drone's new version, dubbed Block 3, allows for greater flight time, longer flight ranges, easier operation, more varied communication between forces and higher resolution photography. Forces operating the Sky Rider drone (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) A new command troop, created a few months ago, will also be utilizing the new Skylarks deep behind enemy lines, as a tool for intelligence collection and observation on special ground maneuvering missions far from the Israeli border. Skylark operators during a drill in Cyprus (: ") X The troop had recently participated in a large commando forces drill held in Cyprus , and has also developed a new ability for using the drone to more efficiently direct fire and hone in on targets. The drone, the smallest specimen operated by the IDF, is geared towards observation and opening progress routes for company, battalion and brigade commanders, both during routine security missions in various sectors and ground maneuvering in wartime. (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) Despite their inclusion in the aforementioned group, specialized drone teams are currently being put together to service brigade commanders. The drones put in their service will be larger and weigh up to six times as much as the regular model. As part of rolling out the new version's updates, the entirety of the unit's drone arsenal will be fitted with high definition cameras to assist in supplying soldiers on the ground with three-dimensional aerial photographs. Skylark missions over Syria and Nahal Oz (: ") X Furthermore, the unit has been integrating more and more women into the fighting force, capable of crossing enemy lines in armored personnel carriers at wartime, with reserve female combat soldiers soon to be assigned to the unit as well. (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) The first female company commander will be arriving to the unit this coming fall. The Skylarks unit is currently being commanded by Lt.-Col. Reut Ratig Weiss. "A popular army does what's best considering operational needs," she said. "If it thinks the proper thing is to train more female soldiers, that's what it will do." A Skylark mission over Jenin (: ") X "I have received an opportunity, equal among my peers, and like to believe I'm here because of my abilities. Female soldiers' performance is measured by the same yardstick as their male comrades. There are no breaks to be had and everyone is afforded an equal opportunity," Weiss added. (Photo: IDF Spokesperson's Unit) The unit's commander also elaborated on the drones' capabilities, saying they worked using two disparate cameras andcoupled with their new ability to direct firewill be used to point forces towards targets they wish to hit. Commenting on the drones' rather inglorious track record of averaging one to two crashes per month, usually in enemy territory, the officer said, "The drone is simple and relatively cheap, carries no backups and is intended to carry out missions until it drops. We carry out inquiries into any such drops, learn the requisite lessons and reduce the number of them from year to year." Palestinian Christians say US Vice President Mike Pence's brand of evangelical Christianity, with its fervent embrace of modern-day Israel as fulfilment of biblical prophecy, lacks their faith's compassion and justice. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Pence was in Jerusalem on Monday, expressing his support for Israel in a speech to the Knesset filled with biblical references. During an exuberant welcome, Pence and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly rejoiced in the Trump administration's decision last month to recognize Jerusalem as Israel's capital The policy shift enraged Palestinians, who staged multiple days of rage in the aftermath of Trump's decision and have since rejected US mediation in any future efforts to resolve their long-running conflict with Israel. VP Mike Pence with PM Netanyahu (Photo: Reuters) The Jerusalem declaration and a subsequent Trump decision to curb aid to Palestinian refugees had been top priorities for Pence. Israel has complained that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) perpetuates the refugee crisis by granting a special and unique status to Palestinian refugees not afforded to any other around the world. The vice presidentby his own definition "a Christian, a conservative, a Republican, in that order"has cited his religious beliefs as the source of his unwavering support of Israel. He has been embraced by so-called Christian Zionists who believe the establishment of the state of Israel is proof of God keeping his promises and a step toward the second coming of Christ. In a 2017 speech to Christians United for Israel, or CUFI, an influential organization run by Texas pastor John Hagee, Pence signaled similar views, saying that "though Israel was built by human hands, it is impossible not to sense that just beneath its history lies the hand of heaven." David Parsons, a spokesman for Christian Zionism's International Christian Embassy in Jerusalem, said it's a big tent movement with different views on end-time prophecy. In his CUFI speech, Pence stuck to what the vice president portrayed as biblically mandated support for Israel. Pence has "very solid evangelical credentials," Parsons said. "We consider him to be ... in our camp." Pence at the Knesset (Photo: Yizhak Harari/Knesset ) Palestinian Christians slam the Christian Zionist views as a negation of the teachings of Jesus. "For me, it's a sick ideology," said Munib Younan, the recently retired bishop of the small Evangelical Lutheran Church in Jordan and the Holy Land and former president of the Lutheran World Federation, an umbrella for churches with millions of believers. "When I say Jesus is love, they want my Jesus to be a political Jesus," Younan, 67, a Jerusalem-born Palestinian, said in a recent interview at his church. Younan said he supports a solution to the conflict with Israel, including the establishment of a Palestinian state in the lands Israel captured in the 1967 Six-Day War. Jerusalem, he said, should be shared by Christians, Muslims and Jews, adding that a peace deal would enhance Israel's security. Israel, however, view Jerusalem as the indivisible and eternal capital of the Jewish people. Pence on Monday said the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital as the "only true foundation for a just and lasting peace." He also said that he supports a two-state solution, once a pillar of US, Mideast policy, saying President Donald Trump is in favor "if both sides agree." Pence and Netanyahu during joint rpess conference in Jerusalem (Photo: Avi Ohayon/GPO) Christians make up a small minority of the overwhelmingly Muslim Palestinian population in the West Bank, but relations between the two religious groups are typically cordial and tolerantunlike in conflict-battered Iraq and Syria, where ISIS and other Islamic terror groups and extremists have persecuted Christians. In Gaza, dominated by the Islamic terror group Hamas, a tiny Christian community has been targeted at times. "We are the authentic Christians and we live with our brothers, the Muslims, without any problem," said Bethlehem Christian Nadia Hazboun, 55, standing outside a souvenir shop in Manger Square, where the pealing of church bells often blends with the Muslim call to prayer. Rebecca Littlejohn, a Disciples of Christ pastor from La Mesa, California, said her denomination works with Palestinian Christians and that she belongs to a grass-roots group engaged in peace efforts. She said that while Disciples of Christ emphasizes Christian unity, "I find very little, from what I know of it, in Mike Pence's religion that looks like Christianity to me." "But am I going to say, he is not welcome at the table?" she said. "No, I'm not going to say that because it's not up to me." The former president of The Union of Jewish Students in the UK has warned that some Israeli officials fail to understand that British Jews sometimes pay the price for Israels actions. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Josh Seitler decried comments made last November by Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely, who sparked outrage when she said during an interview that Jews living in the US fail to understand the complexity of the region and live quite convenient lives. On the one hand Netanyahu always presents himself as the prime minister of all the Jewish people. On the other hand, Tzipi Hotoveli tells Jews in the Diaspora not to interfere in whats happening in Israel. So what do you want us to understand from this? Seitler asked. Josh Seitler With a half smile on his face, Seitler raised the question with which many Jews in the diaspora have continuously grappled: Does the project dubbed Israelthe State of the Jewish Peopleapply only to those within the Jewish state or also those outside it? Seitler spent time in Israel over the last few months in the MASA program that brings young Jews from the Diaspora to Israel, and he said he was trying to identify the fundamental differences between Judaism as practiced in the Diaspora and Judaism as practiced inside Israel. In England there are a number of streams, such as the Orthodox obviously, the Masorti movement (traditionalists) and the Reform movement. Unlike Israel, there is a lot more leniency shown by the Orthodox. They are more open, ready for dialogue and as a principle try to avoid conflict among the Jewish community. It was a regrettable reality, Seitler said, that anti-Semitism may be the key factor that unites all the Jewish streams. On university campuses, we sometimes encounter problems of Jewish identity and we try to create a place there in which everyone can feel good with with the Jewish association and with Judaism itself. To what extent is anti-Semitism felt on campus or on the streets? I have seen only a number of anti-Semitic incidents in England. It isnt hard to be a Jew in England and the community is strong enough and close enough to senior officials in the government and to leaders of other communities, he said. Many in the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement automatically identify Jews with Israel and claim, for example, that if you are Jewish then you automatically kill children in Gaza. Recently, a significant rift has developed between US Jewry and the Israeli leadership. How do you see the relationship between Israel and the British Jewish community? I think that we have a different conversation to the one that is taking place in the US. We live in Europe, we remember the Holocaust and we have a strong connection to Israel. Obviously there are moments when we can get annoyed or protest against things that the Israeli government does or statements made by the leaders or others, but I believe that this also works in the opposite direction and in Israel they are not always alright with what is happening in Britain, and that is totally legitimate. What Hotoveli doesnt understand is that we also pay the price for things Israel does and that cant be ignored, even if we dont physically live in Israel. The struggle against BDS on campuses Like in the US, university campuses are a hotbed of anti-Israel activity. The BDS movement is one of the strongest in the battlefield of ideas and is faced by and large by Jewish student groups which are assisted by Israeli representatives. According to Seitler, there are 18,000 Jewish students in the UK but he points out that not all of them identify with Israels struggle, and some have even joined the ranks of the BDS movement. Minister Hotovely (Photo: Gil Yohanan) Expanding on his belief that the BDS is a smart concept, Seitler said that while it is seldom an easy task to ask people to get out onto the streets and actively protests against something, asking people to refrain from purchasing an Israeli product is a far easier and more realistic goal. I think ignoring them is not the solution. As long as we learn more about the conflict and teach others it will be easier to fight against it in effective ways, he reasoned. It is obvious that the moment this slides into anti-Semitism, we are already in a more difficult situation and we need to respond with greater force. 'Sometimes creative thought is missing in the UK' Throughout the years, the number of Jews from England immigrating to Israel has been comparatively low by European standards. Their lifestyle is considered comfortable and their British mentality is enough to convince many to remain in London and other cities with a notable Jewish presence dotted throughout the country. But Seitler is considering staying in Israel. In the last six months, as part of the MASA careers program, I went through a wonderful process and I am really another person. I met a lot of people: Jews from all over the world, religious, secular, Arabs, Palestinians and different leaders. Where else could I do so much at the age of 23? he asked. Theres an open mentality here and creative thinking and these are the things that are missing for us sometimes in Britain, he said. In the program we live in the heart of Tel Aviv and really live their lives, not in some bubble wherever. Where else could I have done an interesting internship at a startup except here? All this experience creates brilliant networking for me and I hope to stay in Israel, he concludes. BEIRUT The Turkish military has announced one soldier was killed in its cross-border operation on a Kurdish held enclave in northern Syria. In a statement late Monday, the military said the "heroic" soldier was killed in clashes with Syrian Kurdish militants and the Islamic State group near Turkey's border province of Kilis. The unnamed soldier is the first to be killed in the military offensive code-named Olive Branch, now ending its third day. Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said he had instructed Army Radio Commander Shimon Elkabetz to cease playing all of Yehonatan Geffen's works on the station's broadcasts. Geffen published a short poem Monday comparing young Palestinian girl Ahed Tamimi with Anne Frank. "The State of Israel will not provide a platform for a man comparing who girl who perished in the Holocaust to Ahed Tamimi, the brat who attacked a soldier," Lieberman said. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Monday launched an unprecedented appeal seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in response to funding cuts by the Trump administration. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Last week the State Department notified the UN Relief and Works Agency that the US is withholding $65 million of a planned $125 million funding installment. It also made clear that additional US donations will be contingent on major changes by UNRWA, which has been heavily criticized by Israel. Today, there are an estimated 5 million Palestinians refugees and their descendants, mostly scattered across the region. UNWRA provides them with education, health and welfare services. Girls at UNRWA Gaza school (Photo: AP) UNRWAs commissioner-general, Pierre Krahenbuhl, on Monday called the decision abrupt and harmful. "The world has to ask itself this question: does the Middle East need more instability? Is it reasonable to think that by reducing amounts to UNRWA one is achieving anything else but greater instability in the region?" he added. Krahenbuhl said the agency will create new funding alliances and get the UN secretary-general involved in high-level ministerial meetings to generate donations from countries. The Dignity is Priceless campaign aims to raise $500 million to ensure that the agencys core services are unaffected. We cannot accept that this investment in education, in health care, and in dignity and respect would be interrupted in any way. Its much too risky for the entire Middle East, Krahenbuhl warned. UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl visits girls' school in Gaza (Photo: AP) Around 525,000 boys and girls in 700 UNRWA schools could be affected by the US fund cut, Krahenbuhl told Reuters while visiting a girls' school in Gaza City. Palestinian access to primary health care could also be impacted. "I can't imagine to come to this school or to any other school in UNRWA in few weeks and say to the students, 'Sadly we failed.' Failing is not an option," Krahenbuhl said. The US is UNWRAs largest donor, supplying nearly 30 percent of its budget. The agency focuses on providing health care, education and social services to Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. An UNRWA girls school in Gaza (Photo: AP) In Gaza, more than 1.3 million residentshalf the populationrely on food and other services provided by the agency. On Monday, Gaza businesses went on a partial strike to protest the economic situation. Notices on the shuttered doors read we want to live and enough of siege, referring to the blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt after the Hamas took over the territory in 2007. Israeli Arabs were of two minds regarding US Vice President Mike Pence's speech before the Knesset plenum Monday and were also split on their opinion of the protest of Joint List MKs that preceded it. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Before Pence could begin his speech, he was interrupted by the Arab members of Knesset, who stormed into the room holding protest signs in Arabic and English saying, "Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine." The Arab parliamentarians, who initially said they would boycott the speech, started booing at Pence, but their jeers were overwhelmed by the other lawmakers, who clapped loudly to mask their protest. Footage of the Arab MKs' protest (: ) X Within seconds, Knesset ushers pounced on the Arab MKs and removed them from the plenum. Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein announced the rebellious lawmakers were banned from attending the remainder of the session. Pence responded to the fracas by saying with a smile, "It is deeply humbling for me to stand before this vibrant democracy." The Arab MKs' protest did not garner acclaim from Israeli Arabs (Photo: EPA) "The vice president's speech showed he was here to send a clear message of support to the racist Israeli government," said Abed Odeh of Qalansawe. "It will not change our opposition to President (Donald) Trump's statement recognizing Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The speech will only embolden us." On the Joint List members' protest, Odeh opined, "I think they should resign from the Knesset because their influence there is nil. Some are there due to their personal interests. Even if they wanted to act for the betterment of Arab society, they'll be hard pressed to do so because of (Israel's) racist government. "That's why the best thing for themand for the Arab citizenswould be to resign, so as to rip the mask off the facade of democracy in this racist country," he said. Qalansawe resident Odeh said the Arab MKs should resign "We saw today that Knesset security guards would not allow them to express their opinion even though it is their right. If the Israeli government intends to deprive them of that right, there's no need for them to be in the Knesset. The state should decideeither we're its citizens or its enemies. Jerusalem is under occupation, and it needs men to liberate it, not papers," Odeh added. Ala Agbaria, a media strategist and consultant from Umm al-Fahm, said, "Pence's speech was predictable and carried a clear agenda. It was a religious, messianic speech. He was here supporting an issue the prime minister has championed throughout his termthe 'Iranian threat.' "This point marks a significant shift in Israelis' perception of (Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's) investigations. He'll use it as a trump card'the US is on our side'to consolidate his first objective of appearing irreplaceable. "Pence mentioned he was proud of Jerusalem, the eternal capital of Israel, more than six times. That's a dangerous move in the Israeli-Palestinian political roadmap." Umm al-Fahm resident Agbaria said Pence's speech was religious and messianic (Photo: Iyad Balbal) Commenting on the Arab MKs' protest, Agbaria said, "The Arab MKs wrote a good script but their direction lacked strategy. Their behavior was highly damaging to the image of Arab and Palestinian society. It's harmful and will not serve their interests, but it will serve the claim that Israel is a democratic country. "The MKs need to realize how to use the political game to their benefit. Their intentions are clear, but they should not have painted themselves into this corner, because we need these external relationships that serve Arab and Palestinian society, for now. They need to start thinking outside the box. The method of screaming and causing a ruckus is no longer helpful. We need to start looking for other ways to engender real discourse." Sheikh Walid Frej of Kafr Qasim voiced his own opinion, saying, "We were hoping the US would remain an impartial mediator and go to any length to jumpstart the peace process. To our great dismay, the vice president announced the death of the peace process and the death of the Palestinian people's dream of a state with east Jerusalem as its capital. Sheikh Frej of Kafr Qasim said the speech marked the death of the peace process "The speech showed the US intends to carry on declaring Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and make its intentions of moving the US Embassy there known. The US has ceased acting as a mediating partner in the peace process. The entire region may devolve into the abyss due to the closure of the route to peace. Much blood will be spilled and many people will suffer, sadly. "The protest measures undertaken by the Arab MKs mirrored all of the Arab countriesand the Muslim world in generaland their opposition to all of the American measures. The MKs voiced to the American leadership the anger of the entire Arab and Muslim world." Mahmoud of east Jerusalem, meanwhile, believed that "The vice president and the Israeli government must understand that we and only we will decide on the Jerusalem issue. Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine. We will take to the streets and continue the struggle to our deaths, no matter the cost, so long as we preserve Jerusalem and the Al Aqsa Mosque. The US is making a fool of itself. "I saw the Arab MKs' protest. It's a good enough step, but it isn't enough. We are still suffering and seeing very serious things on the ground. What we never see is Arab MKs coming to us to see what's been going on. They should stop putting on a show at our expense." Rim Masarwa of Wadi Ara concluded, "I'm proud of the Joint List Arab MKs' stance and disappointed with the Arab MKs of other parties who remained silent. The List spoke on behalf of (Israel's) Arab citizens and the entire Arab world. It's a strong message to the vice president, who's merely putting on airs." The Rwandan government published an official announcement disavowing Israel's claims it had signed an agreement to receive Sudanese and Eritrean asylum seekers. "Regarding rumors disseminated in the media recently, the Rwanda government hereby announces it had never signed a secret agreement with Israel regarding resettlement of African refugees. Rwanda is willing to assist in any manner it can, limited through its means may be, by receiving anyone willingly reaching its borders and needing a home." British model Amena Khan, who had been chosen by L'Oreal to appear in an advertising campaign in Britain, has pulled out over accusations she made anti-Israeli comments in a series of old tweets. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The French cosmetics giant last week selected her to be the first woman in a hijab for a mainstream shampoo campaign. Khan's messages, posted on Twitter in 2014, have since been deleted. Among other things, Khan called Israel an "illegal," "sinister" and "terrorist" state, accused it of "Torture. Murder. Rape. Genocide," and expressed hope Israel would be defeated. She also said Israelis were "child murderers," and that even Orthodox Jews condemn Israel's actions. Amena Khan "I deeply regret the content of the tweets I made in 2014, and sincerely apologize for the upset and hurt that they have caused," she said on Twitter on Monday. "With deep regret, I've decided to step down from this campaign because the current conversations surrounding it detract from the positive and inclusive sentiment that it set out to deliver." L'Oreal group, contacted by AFP, said it "approved" her decision. "We appreciate the fact that Amena has apologized for the content of her tweets and for the reactions they may have aroused," it said. Amena Khan It is not the first time a L'Oreal advertising campaign to promote diversity has foundered because of controversial social media comments by a model. Last summer the group dropped British black transgender model Munroe Bergdorf over Facebook comments she made accusing all whites of racial violence. ANKARA Turkey seeks to avoid any clash with Syrian, Russian or US forces during its operation in northern Syria but will take whatever steps it needs for its security, Turkey's foreign minister was quoted as saying on Tuesday. The United States and Russia have both urged Turkey to show restraint in its military campaign, Operation Olive Branch, to crush Kurdish YPG control over the Afrin district on its southern border. Syria has condemned the incursion. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, who says the YPG is an extension of a Kurdish group waging a decades-long insurgency inside Turkey's borders, has also pledged to drive Kurdish fighters out of the mainly Arab town of Manbij. GENEVA Israel accused the United Nations on Tuesday of continuous discrimination against it over its treatment of Palestinians and called for reforms of its human rights body. The Human Rights Council's regular examination of Israel's record, the first since 2013, comes after President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem last month as the capital of Israel, angering Palestinians, Middle East leaders and world powers. Aviva Raz Shechter, Israel's ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told the Human Rights Council that her country had always stood up for human rights and democratic values. Israel accused the United Nations (UN) on Tuesday of continuous discrimination against it over its treatment of Palestinians and called for reforms of its human rights body. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The Human Rights Council's convened to discuss Israel's record came after President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem last month as the capital of Israel, angering Palestinians, Middle East leaders and world powers. Aviva Raz Shechter, Israel's ambassador to the UN in Geneva, told the Human Rights Council that her country had always stood up for human rights and democratic values. Israel's Ambassador to the UN in Geneva Aviva Raz Shechter said the UN Human Rights Council's 'theatre of the absurd cannot go on forever' (Photo: AFP) "It has done so while facing serious threats to its security, and while needing to integrate diverse communities and religious groups," Shechter told the Geneva forum. The Council has taken a strong position against Israel's presence in territories seized in the 1967 Six Day War, its treatment of Palestinians there, and its building of Jewish settlements Israel withdrew soldiers and settlers from Gaza in 2005. Most countries consider settlementsin areas of the West Bank and Jerusalem the Palestinians see as part of an eventual independent stateto be illegal, but Israel disputes this and continues their expansion. An "unparalleled number of one-sided, biased and political resolutions adopted regularly by the automatic majority of its members testify not only to the unfair treatment of the State of Israel, but also to the deficiencies of the Council itself and its agenda," Schechter said. "This theatre of the absurd cannot go on forever." US Ambassador to the UN Haley previously said the US was reviewing its participation in the international body due to its inherent bias against Israel (Photo: AP) Washington says the Council is stacked with opponents of Israel and US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley told the Council last June that it was reviewing its participation given what it sees as its " chronic anti-Israel bias ". Israel considered its relations with the Palestinians to be "of the highest priority" and it would continue to seek a lasting solution that would enable the two peoples to live side by side in peace and security, she said. Jordan's diplomat Akram Harahsheh, speaking first in the three-hour debate, condemned what he said were "attempts to prejudge the identity of occupied Jerusalem" and called on Israel to withdraw from all territories "occupied since 1967." A Lebanese news agency reported that Turkey extradited to Lebanese security forces a man suspected of being behind the attempted assassination of Hamas activist Mohammad Hamdan last week. The Al Mayadeen network further reported that Lebanese state security has arrested a supposed collaborator with Israel. JERUSALEM Vice President Mike Pence said on Tuesday the timetable for presenting a US plan on Middle East peace depends on when the Palestinians would return to negotiations. "The White House has been working with our partners in the region to see if we can develop a framework for peace," Pence told Reuters in an interview in Jerusalem on the last leg of his Middle East trip. "I think it all just depends now on when the Palestinians are going to come back to the table," Pence said. A Border Policeman neutralized two would-be terrorists armed with knives at the Tapuach Junction Tuesday, thwarting their attack. The policeman was unharmed. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter The two would-be terrorists, aged 15, arrived at the junction from the direction of Nablus and headed towards the bus stations at the junction. A Border Policeman stationed at a nearby post noticed them and alerted the troops stationed at the junction. The scene of the Tapuach attempted stabbing attack (Photo: Keren Perlman/TPS) The soldiers initiated the suspect arrest protocol, first calling on the suspects to stop. When the two youths failed to respond, a Border Policeman fired some shots into the air, which prompted one of the terrorists to draw his knife and move on the soldiers. In response, the soldier then shot at the terrorists' lower bodies, incapacitating them. Border Police said the terrorists were arrested, have received medical attention on site and were taken to receive further treatment. (Photo: Keren Perlman/TPS) The head of the Samaria Regional Council, Yossi Dagan, was notified of the attempted attack by Samaria Brigade Commander Col. Gilad Amit. "We thank the security forces and the Border Police for their resourcefulness, which saved lives today," Dagan told the commander. "We also wish to make it clear to all those who wish us harm, the population here is strong. Terror will not break us. We'll continue building here in Samaria. I ask the government to provide the proper response to this terror by building and strengthening the place and its residents," Dagan said. Tuesday's attack came on the heels of the Havat Gilad shooting attack two weeks ago, which claimed the life of resident Raziel Shevah The knives wielded by the would-be terrorists (Photo: Keren Perlman/TPS) A little over a month prior, 19-year-old Sgt. Ron Kokia, who was waiting for the bus in Arad, was stabbed to death outside the mall in the city. Around a fortnight earlier, a Palestinian stabbed an Israel Border Policeman in the West Bank Square near Ramallah, leaving him moderately wounded before being shot by security forces. The spasmodic instances of violence had already showed signs of once again picking up pace when five days earlier a 46-year-old security guard was stabbed in his upper body and seriously wounded by a terrorist on Jerusalem's Jaffa Street, outside the city's central bus station. The government of Rwanda has denied again signing a secret agreement to take in Sudanese and Eritrean asylum seekers deported from Israel. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Israel announced the agreement with Rwanda in November after the approval of an amendment to the Prevention of Infiltration Law, which determined African illegal immigrants and asylum seekers will either be deported to Rwanda or imprisoned. "In reference to the rumors that have been recently spread in the media, the Government of Rwanda wishes to inform that it has never signed any secret deal with Israel regarding the relocation of African migrants," a statement from the Rwandan government said on Monday, after some 2,000 asylum seekers protested outside its embassy in Israel Asylum seekers protest (Photo: AFP) "In this regard, Rwandas policy vis-a-vis Africans in need of a home, temporary or permanent, within our country's means, remains 'open doors.'" The government of Rwanda further reiterated its "firm determination to contribute, as much as possible, to the issue of men, women and children who find themselves on the treacherous road of exile." "Rwanda is ready to help in whatever limited way it can, by welcoming anyone arriving at its borders in need of a home, voluntarily and without any constraint," the government added. Protest outside Rwandan embassy (Photo: Ido Erez) Three weeks ago, Rwanda's Deputy Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe told The Associated Press his country has never reached any agreement with Israel on hosting asylum seekers. Uganda issued a similar denial. In the wake of the Rwandan government's latest denial, Zionist Union MK Eyal Ben-Reuven told Ynet he intends to submit a request for an urgent Knesset discussion on the topic. "I wonder who's lying here," he said. "Unfortunately, I believe the liars are probably on our side. If that is the case, I will demand to stop the expulsion that severely harms those being expelled and the values of the Israeli society." Joint List MK Dov Khenin charged that "(Prime Minister) Netanyahu's web of lies is being exposed. There really isn't an examination of asylum requests, and there isn't really a safe destination for deportation. There is no real solution to the distress of south Tel Aviv's residents." He lamented the fact that the Israeli government "wants to put in mortal peril people who sought asylum here, even though their requests were not truly examined" and called to "stop this inhumane, amoral and illegal move." The Hotline for Refugees and Migrants and the Aid Organization for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Israel said in response, "We're happy to see that Rwanda is unwilling to cooperate with Israel's strange policy. In light of repeated denials from Rwanda and Uganda, it is time the government provides clear answers and explains where it intends to expel refugees. Israel is the only country sending refugees away by force under covert agreements done in the shadows." The "Stop the Expulsion" movement said that "the statement released by the Rwandan government proves more than anything else that the Israeli government's promises to ensure the well-being of those being expelled are empty. This will lead to the deaths of thousands of people. It's not too late yet for the Israeli government to take back its decision and reexamine the situation." Doctors oppose expulsion The Israeli government's plan to encourage "voluntary departure" by offering African refugees $3,500 to leave and then deport or imprison anyone who fails to comply by April has been met with fierce opposition. Some 400 medical personnelabout 300 of them doctorshave signed a letter addressed to the director of the Population and Immigration Authority, Shlomo Mor-Yosef, in which they protest the expulsion plan. The doctors, including hospital department heads, said the expulsion constitutes "a violation of the Hippocratic Oath." "As doctors, caregivers and health professionals, we cannot stand idly by while the lives, bodies and souls of our patients are at stake. Our silence is tantamount to complicity with ones of the most grievous wounds humanity has ever seen," the doctors wrote. The doctors call on the government to cancel the expulsion and find a humane solution that will allow the asylum seekers their rights to safety and dignity. (Photo: Ido Erez) "Being committed to the commandment: cause no harm, we are horrified by the very thought that instead of serving as a place of refuge to these victims who fled genocide, torture, violence and rape, we are perpetuating the continuation of evil," wrote the doctors. They added: "None of them are afforded protection and there is no obligation to examine the asylum seeker's condition to ensure that he has continued and appropriate treatment in Rwanda." The doctors also note that many of the asylum seekers are being treated in their hospitals and clinics and the expulsion decision impairs their ability to treat them. "We try to treat them to the best of our ability and take note of their difficult life stories. This fact does not allow us to remain silent in the face of the decision to expel them, a decision that has the potential to lay waste to our efforts to heal them," they wrote. Among the signatories are the former Director of the Health Ministry Dr Eitan Chai; Director of Wolfson Medical Center and the former Assistant Director of the Health Ministry Dr Yitzhok Berlovich; Assistant Director of Shiva Medical Center Prof. Rafi Walden; The Director of Oncology at Shiva, Prof. Bela Kaufman; and dozens of other senior medical professionals. Joining them are hundreds of doctors, nurses, medical laboratory and radiology technicians and social workers. Doctors for Human Rights, the initiators of the letter, said: "Since Sunday, when we publicized the letter and called on doctors and medical professionals to join the protest against the expulsion, we have been swamped with inquiries. Many do not suffice with a signature alone but express a desire to participate in additional activities and want to shout in the name of the asylum seekers 'I oppose the expulsion!'" Holocaust survivors against the expulsion (Photo: Ohad Tzvigenberg) Holocaust survivors: We will hide refugees in our homes if needed "We preach morals to the whole world regarding the Holocaust, justifiably, but what about ourselves?" asked Chaim Roet, 85, a Holocaust survivor, economist and social activist who organized a group of Holocaust survivors opposing the expulsion of asylum seekers. "I survived because of people who agreed to shelter me." He says we should be bothered by the fact that "Hundreds of thousands of Jews went to Auschwitz because no country agreed to absorb them." Roet was born in Amsterdam and when he was 10, his family was sent to the ghetto. Of his large family, only a few survived, most perished at Auschwitz. Roet and other Holocaust survivors strongly oppose the government's decision and compare being sent to Rwanda to being sent to Ukraine. Sadly, they say, we are committing the same acts which were committed to us. Roet, sitting, left (Photo: Ohad Tzvigenberg) When asked whether she would hide refugees in her home, Ilana Druker, an 80 year old survivor also from Holland, answered "Yes, but I am upset by the comparison with Anne Frank. (Unlike Frank) I am not facing death or endangering my family if I hide a refugee." Activists petition Supreme Court Nineteen human rights activists submitted a petition to the Supreme Court to freeze the decision the government says it signed with Rwanda, Tuesday. They are asking that the court halt proceedings until the Knesset works out pertinent legislation. The petition, initiated by Sigal Kook Avivi, Yael Agur and Gilaad Lieberman is directed at the Prime Minister, Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, Interior Minister Arye Deri, and Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit. The court ordered the state to respond by Thursday. Pritest against expulsion (Photo: Motti Kimchi) The petition argues that the ministers have no right to formulate such an unprecedented agreement which they see as an irremovable moral blemish and that only the Knesset is authorized to decide such matters. They claim that the monetary payments made to Rwanda mean that every citizen, including those opposing the expulsion, becomes an accomplice to the act and an unwilling supporter to the Rwandan dictatorship, and argue that "if it is indeed true, as the Rwandan government asserts, that there is no agreement in place, then on what legal grounds can the asylum seekers turn to the Rwandan justice system? They will be considered infiltrators over there as they are over here by the government." In response to Rwanda's denial of the agreement, the Refugee Rights Clinic of Tel Aviv University sent a letter to the Prime Minister asking that he halt the implementation of the agreement, or at least, to publicize it. "When Rwanda is officially denying the agreement, there are no grounds to say that their rights will be protected or that the government there will protect them or allow them to work. We demand that the government publicize the agreement or stop the expulsion," said Adv. Tal Steiner of the Legal Center for the Refugees Hotline. The remains of Yemenite Jewish children from 17 families will be exhumed to ascertain possible genetic familial ties with their living relatives, the State Attorney's Office (SAO) has approved Tuesday morning to the Petah Tikva Family Court. Follow Ynetnews on Facebook and Twitter Responding to an appeal by the same 17 families, the SAO said its decision was made while "paying attention to the public importance of learning the truth regarding the deaths and burials of minors from Yemen, the east and the Balkans, whose families were notified of their deaths after Israel was founded." File photo of demonstration calling for Israel to recognize kidnapped Yemenite children affair (: ) The move received prior approval from the Committee on Deceased Persons' Dignity, part of the Council of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel, subject to conditions being in place allowing halachically to exhume the graves and carry out genetic tests on the remains. Considering the circumstances, the SAO has consented to issuing an order to open the graves and take DNA samples from remains entered therein to check for familial ties with the 17 petitioning families. Dvora Sliman of Tel Mond, whose family only recently discovered her sister Rinawho disappeared when she was one year oldwas buried in a Petah Tikva cemetery, said, "We welcome the State Attorney's decision to open the graves. "Perhaps the findings will solve the mystery and bring some calm to my mother, who is still searching for Rina and cannot believe she's buried in that grave," she added. Archival photo of Yemenite children (Photo: David Eldan/GPO) The Achim Vekayamim (Kidnapped Children's Families Forum) non-profit organization said, "The organization welcomes the State Attorney's decision to open the graves and carry out genetic tests, and hopes this entire process will be carried out transparently and in full cooperation with the families. "We do, however, wish to make clear this is but a partial, limited move, and one that is not sufficient. We demand the Israeli government accept responsibility, on behalf of the State of Israel, for the kidnapping of children, and commit to tangible measures to uncover the truth of this horrid affair. Only accepting responsibility and uncovering the truth in full will provide succor to the families, and Israeli society entire." The disappearance of Jewish Yemenite children returned to headlines in 2016 after several NGOs demanded the state uncover archival materials related to the affair. The government authorized the release of such materials, which were originally meant to remain classified until 2070. (Photo: Efer Meir, Avi Hai, Nitzan Dror) As a result of the government's decision, protocols of the various commissions of inquiry dealing with the subject were declassified and published A lobby was simultaneously created in the Knesset to bring closure to the affair, headed by MK Nurit Koren (Likud). The Knesset also decided to create a committee to collect testimony and draft a bill dealing with exhuming graves for genetic testing. Thousands participated in a Jerusalem demonstration demanding Israel recognize the children's disappearance in June of last year. Geneva North Korea said on Tuesday it had a "powerful and reliable" nuclear deterrent to thwart any attack and accused the United States of deploying military assets nearby under the pretext of ensuring the security of the Winter Olympics. "This is dangerous act of throwing a wet blanket over the current positive atmosphere of inter-Korean relations ... which could drive again into an extreme phase of confrontation," Han Tae Song, North Korea's ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, told a Conference on Disarmament. US disarmament ambassador Robert Wood retorted: "The United States will not recognize North Korea as a nuclear weapon state. If the North wishes to return and be in the good graces of the international community, it knows what it has to do, it has to take steps toward denuclearization of the Korean peninsula." DUBAI - A senior leader of al Qaeda's Yemen branch has called for knife and car attacks on Jews in response to US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, the US SITE monitoring group said on Tuesday. Citing a video recording by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula's al-Malahem media foundation, SITE said that Khaled Batarfi, believed to be the number two man in AQAP after Qassim al-Raymi, also warned that no Muslim had the right to cede any part of Jerusalem. "The Muslims inside the occupied land must kill every Jew, by running him over, or stabbing him, or by using against him any weapon, or by burning their homes," Batarfi said in the 18-minute-long recording entitled "Our duty towards our Jerusalem", according to SITE. "Every Muslim must know that the Americans and the disbeliever West, and on top of them Britain and France, are the original reason behind the existence of the Jews in Palestine." CAIRO - The last challenger seen as a potential threat to the re-election of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was detained on Tuesday, and halted his campaign after the army accused him of breaking the law by running for office without permission. Former military chief of staff Lieutenant General Sami Anan, who had announced his candidacy last week, was taken to the Military Prosecutor's office in Cairo, according to his son and one of his lawyers, who were waiting outside the building. An army statement read aloud on state TV said Anan's presidential bid amounted to "a serious breach of the laws of military service", because as a military officer he was required to end his service and seek permission before seeking office. Anan's spokesman denied he had broken any laws. The charges "come from an inaccurate reading of Anan's announcement," Hazem Hosni told Reuters just after the arrest, without elaborating. Nevertheless, the campaign announced Anan was halting his bid. "To be banned by the state to enter the elections... (means) that the state doesn't want to hold an election," Anan's spokesman Hosni said. The Syrian government may still be using chemical weapons after a suspected chlorine attack in the rebel enclave of eastern Ghouta, the United States said on Tuesday, adding that Russia ultimately bore responsibility. "Only yesterday more than 20 civilians, mostly children, were victims of an apparent chlorine gas attack," Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said after a conference on chemical weapons in Paris. "The recent attacks in East Ghouta raise serious concerns that Bashar al-Assad may be continuing to use chemical weapons against hiss own people." Tillerson added that whoever conducted the attacks, "Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in eastern Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons since Russia became involved in Syria". GENEVA - Ethiopian security forces opened fire on protesters who were singing anti-government songs, UN human rights spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said on Tuesday. Authorities said on Monday that at least seven people died in clashes between security forces and worshippers taking part in a religious ceremony marking Epiphany in Amhara region in northern Ethiopia at the weekend, but they had yet to determine the cause of the violence. Shamdasani told a UN briefing in Geneva that the UN human rights office was extremely concerned by the deaths. "The incident, in Woldiya City in Amhara Regional State on 20 January, reportedly took place when the security forces tried to stop people from chanting anti-government songs and allegedly opened fire on them. Protesters reportedly later blocked roads and destroyed a number of properties." Ethiopian government spokesman Negeri Lencho, reacting to Shamdasani's statement, told journalists on Tuesday that demands by the public should be "raised peacefully." Security forces should exercise restraint and avoid actions that could lead to death and injury, he said. WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump will speak by phone soon with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan to raise US concerns about Turkey's offensive against Kurdish forces in northwest Syria, a senior administration official said on Tuesday. The official, who briefed reporters on condition of anonymity, said Turkish officials have sent "conflicting signals" about the scope of the offensive against the US-backed Kurdish YPG in Syria's Afrin region. "We're going to have to see how this develops on the ground. But our message has been unified. We would appreciate it and we would urge them to limit the incursion as much as possible," the official said. The official said the call would take place soon. A separate official said Trump planned to speak with Erodgan on Wednesday. The same cognitive technologies we've come to rely on in our personal lives and across health care organizations can now be put to work in Medicaid, helping agencies to cut costs and improve patient care. Medicaid is ready for a smart revolution The digital revolution is here. Its brought us smartphones, social media, and the sharing economy, and has fundamentally changed the way we live, work, and play. Businesses are aggressively leveraging smart technologies to create products that are making goods and services cheaper and more convenient. Examples include ridesharing apps, crowdsourced GPS navigation that suggests the quickest route given traffic conditions, and targeted advertisements that know what we want to watch, hear, and wear . . . sometimes before we know ourselves. Some sectors that may have the most to gain from smart technology continue to lag behind in adoption. State Medicaid programs are a prime example of government agencies that dont appear to be fully realizing the benefits of these new technologies. Given the size, scope, and cost of the Medicaid program, states and the federal government are constantly looking to improve health outcomes for Medicaid members and achieve greater program efficiencies. Smart technologies could provide that possibility through the application of intelligent programs that can process vast amounts of data to understand patterns and make predictions about a members future health outcomes or health care utilization, use remote patient monitoring (RPM) data to help patients live independently, and improve access to care through geospatial information systems (GIS) that can assess network adequacy in managed care. Why isnt Medicaid further ahead when it comes to smart technology adoption? Part of the answer may lie with the types of technology platforms still used by most state Medicaid programs. These legacy Medicaid management information systems (MMIS) are large, hard-coded, and monolithic. Making small upgrades or adopting new functionality is typically expensive and time-consuming, and often requires an entire system overhaul. As a result, upgrades often go undone. This is changing. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and states are taking significant steps to modernize Medicaid systems. Instead of re-procuring the large monolithic solutions we have seen in the past, theyre requesting and implementing replacement solutions as modules that are interoperable, thus paving the way for more technology vendors to participate, and opening up technical flexibility. (See the sidebar, Understanding modular and interoperable Medicaid platforms.) Moreover, these systems have a common security infrastructure that allows information to be more securely exchanged between Medicaid modules and outside systems. Several states are also moving their platforms to the cloud, allowing agencies to store large volumes of data and use cloud-based applications such as artificial intelligence without having to individually acquire or build those apps. Platforms that harness smart technologies have the potential to transform the way Medicaid agencies work. States that are first to upgrade their Medicaid platforms will likely be the first to implement smart Medicaid systemsand reap the benefits. Understanding modular and interoperable Medicaid platforms A module is a packaged, functional business process or set of processes implemented through software and data capabilities and interoperable interfaces.1 Examples of interoperable modules include financial management, provider management, member eligibility, and fee-for-service. Interoperability refers to the ability of these modules to communicate and share data and functionality with each other and with outside systems such as health information exchanges (HIX), providers electronic health records, managed care organizations (MCOs), and other health and human services (HHS) agencies. (See figure 1 for an example of interoperable modules in a Medicaid system.) It might be helpful to think of a modern Medicaid platform as a smartphone, and the modules as smartphone apps. Just like apps, modules can be added, deleted, or updated as needed without upgrading the entire smartphone. Also like apps, these modules could draw on the latest technologies through a single, robust integration system (like the smartphone) and communicate with one another and with outside systems like electronic health records (EHRs) and social services agencies in real time,the same way that apps communicate with one another or the phones GPS chip to extract data and become more personalized and predictive. A Medicaid system built using current technologies will inherently have numerous technical and functional upgrades and improvements over those systems built 15 or 20 years ago. Technologies are constantly evolving and improving at what feels like the speed of light, particularly those that have increased the processing power and expanded the channels through which we can access and use technology. However, when we refer to modernized Medicaid platforms in this report, we are focused on those that take advantage of two significant architectural evolutions that enable us to move from an incrementally better modern Medicaid platform to a truly smart Medicaid platform: Open application programming interfaces (APIs): An API allows one piece of software to interact with another piece of software. When an API is open, the owner of the software can give secure access to other authorized users. For example, the ability to create an account on an external site or app using ones Facebook credentials is made possible using Facebooks open API. Currently, legacy Medicaid systems dont have the capability to expose APIs, which means it can be time- and cost-intensive to share Medicaid data with external systems because doing so would require establishing a unique point-to-point interface. In contrast, modular and interoperable Medicaid platforms must contain open APIs to communicate with other modules, according to CMS Final Rule (CMS 2392-F).2 With open APIs, Medicaid systems can easily share data with other systems. In this report, well discuss various ways in which Medicaid agencies can use shared data sets to improve service delivery and augment predictive analytics to deliver targeted preventive care. Cloud computing: As Medicaid agencies upgrade to modular and interoperable platforms, some are also moving their systems to the cloud.3 Among other things, migration to the cloud allows states to use inexpensive cloud-based solutions such as machine learning from major public cloud providers such as Google, IBM, and Microsoft. Machine learning can be applied to data stored on premise; however, the cost of these systems in terms of hardware and software is typically out of reach for Medicaid agencies and many do not have the in-house expertise required to design the predictive models. With their systems in the cloud, Medicaid agencies can use these inexpensive, cloud-based, machine learning-enabled applications to deploy chatbots that improve customer service and detect important patterns in member data that can inform patient care.4 Applying smart technologies in Medicaid Technology adoption is not a panacea for the breadth and depth of challenges that Medicaid agencies face, but it can help the program run more efficiently and effectively. And this isnt just theoryas we discuss in this paper, a number of health care organizations (and some Medicaid programs) are already starting to use smart technologies, allowing them to save money and better serve their populations. Smart technologies implemented in silos dont constitute a smart Medicaid systemfor that, they need to be integrated into a cohesive framework to provide a comprehensive set of solutions that can help solve some of the challenges associated with running a program that is as large and complex as Medicaid. Four key areas in which smart technologies can help Medicaid agencies improve (1) Promotion of independent living. Over the years, Medicaid agencies and members have begun to rebalance the delivery of long-term services and supports toward home and community-based services (HCBS) and away from care in institutional settings. In this report, we describe how the IoT can be used to help promote independent living through RPM supported by intelligent agents. (2) Customer service. Medicaid can be a complicated program to navigate. Below, we discuss how technologies such as chatbots, enabled by machine learning, can offer quick answers to routine questions and help facilitate more complex tasks. (3) Targeted interventions. Machine learning and GIS, which draw on multiple data sets in real time, can help program administrators identify patient populations who are at risk of costly or adverse health outcomes, and develop personalized and localized interventions. (4) Program operations. The size, scope, and complexity of the Medicaid program is remarkable. In addition to acting as payers of health care services and prescription drugs, Medicaid agencies also provide important services to eligible members, including transportation to and from their health care providers. In this report, we discuss how GIS can help Medicaid agencies enforce network adequacy to promote better access to care, and how the IoT can integrate ridesharing technology into Medicaid platforms to improve non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) services. In this paper, we describe how the Internet of Things (IoT), machine learning, and GIS can help Medicaid programs in four key areas (see the sidebar, Four key areas in which smart technologies can help Medicaid agencies improve). We then address financing and data security issues that states may want to consider before implementing a smart Medicaid system, and close with practical tips for states on how to get started. The Internet of Things (IoT) What is the IoT? The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the interconnectivity via the Internet of computing devices embedded in everyday objects, enabling them to send and receive data. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) estimates that 50 billion devices will be connected to the Internet by 2020from refrigerators and toasters, to cars, home thermostats, pet monitors, and infusion pumps.5 Most of these devices will likely be connected to a smartphone, tablet, or personal computer and, through open APIs, would allow users to personalize services, use analytics to detect patterns, and send information to remote locations. The IoT is at work all around us, from smart meters that can detect an open parking space to airplanes that relay telematics data. And consumers are already using it on a regular basis, as people control their home thermostats, light bulbs, and slow-cookers from the convenience of their phones. A host of connected devices that modern Medicaid platforms could leverage is already in the market. The most universal of such devices is the smartphone itself, which is used by approximately 70 percent of Medicaid members.6 Below are two ways smartphones and connected devices can be used in Medicaid. Using IoT to promote independent living Remote patient monitoring (RPM). Health care providers, plans, and states are under increased pressure to better manage their populations and reduce preventable and costly health care utilization. However, much of what helps prevent utilization is determined by individual behavior, which often takes place outside a clinical settingoften in homes. Hospitals across the country have begun to experiment with RPM, generally with simple devices that measure weight, glucose levels, and blood pressure, which can then be reviewed by a health care provider. With the advent of IoT technology, RPM can now include motion sensors at homes, which can be analyzed by intelligent agents to detect patterns and respond to member needs. IoT-enabled RPM can play a major role for elderly Medicaid members or those with disabilities who want to continue living independently and without an in-home caregiver while still having access to the help they need, when they need it. A motion sensor can sense where a person is in the home and whether a person is taking their medication, exercising, or has fallen and needs help getting up. The sensor readings can then be collected by a computer network and stored in a database that an intelligent agent can analyze. The Medicaid agencys open API platform would allow the network to access data about the member, including demographic and EHR data, and can combine this with RPM data to detect patterns and trends, and make predictions about a members risks and utilization. The agency or MCO can then take suggested actions, such as contacting the member or members caregiver to see if they need immediate assistance.7 If, for example, data suggests that a members risk of an adverse event or fall reaches a certain threshold, the machine might suggest that the member have an in-home caregiver present all or part of the time. Smart pills: A new frontier for RPM Medication non-adherence is estimated to cause nearly 125,000 deaths a year. It accounts for 10 percent of hospitalizations, and costs the US health care system more than $100 billion annually.8 In order to monitor medication adherence among its patients, Chicagos Rush University Medical Center is inserting a sensor into pills. The sensor is the size of a grain of sand and is made up of trace amounts of minerals that naturally occur in the body. When a patient swallows a pill, the sensor is activated by stomach acid and sends out a signal picked up by a thin, Bluetooth-enabled patch the patient wears on his or her abdomen. If the patch fails to receive the signal, the system sends out a text warning of a missed dose. The sensor can also track average heart rate, sleep, and other health markers, and send reports and alerts via an iPad or smartphone app.9 To the extent that RPM can reduce or delay the need for an in-home caregiver, decrease the number of visits to a health care provider, and keep patients actively involved in their care management in between doctors visits, it has the potential to bend the health care cost curve. Different tools have been proposed to calculate the return on investment (ROI) on RPM,10 and each health care entity would need to customize these tools to reflect the unique elements of their RPM initiative in order to measure ROI. Using IoT to improve program operations Optimize non-emergency medical transportation (NEMT) services. NEMT is a required Medicaid benefit generally available to people who have no other means of transportation to medical services.11 Members are often required to schedule their transportation at least 24 hours in advance, which can be a problem for transportation that cant be anticipated that far in advance, such as hospital discharge or appointments that are booked on the same day. Missed appointments can be costly for the health care system. As a result, states are continually looking for more cost-effective and convenient ways to deliver NEMT.12 Some Medicaid agencies deliver NEMT on a fee-for-service basis where drivers are paid for each trip. Other agencies rely on transportation brokers, managed care plans, or a mixed model that varies by the needs of the beneficiary.13 But most of todays models contain some inefficiencies because they lack the technology to anticipate demand and ensure that drivers pick up patients on time and take them to the right place. Patients often wait too long for their ride and miss appointments, which can lead to adverse health outcomes and higher costs.14 To remedy this issue, some hospitals, MCOs, and transportation brokers have begun partnering directly with ridesharing apps, which leverage GPS and smartphone connectivity, to deliver NEMT.15 Other stakeholders have built the technology directly into their own dispatch platform. Circulation: The first all-in-one, on-demand NEMT platform Circulation launched in 2016 as the nations first NEMT transportation platform with built-in connectivity between hospital information systems and the Uber API. The platform is secure and compliant with the Health Insurance and Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) to protect the privacy and security of patient health information. Through the integrated platform, patient contact and health information is autopopulated into the system. The platform asks patients if they require wheelchair assistance or help getting in/out of the vehicle, and about other needs in order to determine the best vehicle for deployment. Ride reminders and real-time notifications can be sent to patients and their caregivers via phone, text, or email. Billing and payment reconciliation with Uber and health care organizations are seamlessly handled at the back-end of the system. The company boasts of an on-time rate of 95 percent, and cost savings of up to 70 percent on ride costs relative to traditional NEMT.16 Medicaid platforms that are secure and interoperable can plug into a seamlessly integrated platform such as Circulation (see sidebar Circulation: The first all-in-one, on-demand NEMT platform) to deliver on-demand NEMT services to their members with the objective of providing better customer service, reducing late and missed appointments, and lowering costs. The agencys connectivity into the platform would allow it to monitor the performance of NEMT vendors, as well as instances of fraud, waste, and abuse. Machine learning What is machine learning? Machine learning describes the ability of computers to automatically apply complex algorithms to big dataquickly and iterativelyto uncover new insights and make decisions. Subfields of machine learning include deep learning, natural language processing, and computer vision. Deep learning is a function that imitates the workings of a human brain (neural networks) in processing data and creating patterns for use in decision-making, while natural language processing and computer vision allow computers to understand and interpret human language and digital images or videos, respectively. Social media, search engines, and live-stream media sites all continuously collect data on individuals to learn preferences, tastes, and patterns so that they can accurately predict and sometimes even influence future behavior. This type of machine learning is whats at work when Netflix recommends a new series for you or when your Google map app starts calling the place you live home. Nationally, 19 percent of the US population is enrolled in Medicaidranging from a low of 10 percent in Wyoming, to a high of 29 percent in West Virginia.17 That means Medicaid agencies have a large volume of data on various entities, including their members, providers, and managed care plans. Some of the data is quantitative while the rest is unstructured notes and documents. Machine learning is an example of a cognitive technology that can help Medicaid agencies find patterns in structured and unstructured data in order to potentially help agencies automate certain customer service inquiries, help members fill out applications, and anticipate adverse events before they happen. Cognitive technologies that are openly and cheaply available are largely cloud-based, meaning Medicaid data needs to be in the cloud to effectively make use of it. As agencies update their Medicaid platforms and move their data to the cloud, they would be able to access these technologies at a low cost rather than spending additional money to purchase them in-house. Boston-area hospitals are using machine learning to predict hospitalizations A team at Boston Universitys Center for Information and Systems Engineering is applying machine learning techniques to predict which patients will be hospitalized for conditions related to diabetes or heart conditions . . . a year in advance. The team uses an algorithmic approach to analyze as many as 200 factors available through EHRs from Boston-area hospitals. The records are de-identified so that patient privacy is protected. The accuracy rate of these predictions is 82 percentfar surpassing the 56 percent accuracy rate generated from well-accepted 10-year risk-scoring systems that are widely used by hospitals today. With this information, hospitals can reach out to patients at risk for hospitalizations and intervene to manage their conditions and avoid hospitalizations.18 Using machine learning for targeted interventions Anticipate hospital admissions, high emergency room use, and substance use dependence. Medicaid programs already have a lot of data about their members. If Medicaid programs could combine this data with other relevant information systems (such as hospital data from electronic health records (EHR) and data from social services agencies) through interoperable modules stored in the cloud, they could apply machine learning techniques to potentially predict which members are most at risk of being hospitalized, which members are most likely to develop substance dependencies, and which members are likely to use the emergency room frequently. Once these patients are identified, appropriate measures can be taken to provide them with the education, treatment, or services they need to prevent these adverse events. Using machine learning to improve customer service Chatbots can offer answers to routine questions and help with more complex tasks. Chatbots use neural networks that mimic human conversation to respond to a request or help users complete a task. As Medicaid agencies look for places to cut costs, call centers that respond to routine questions about providers, benefits, eligibility, and enrollment may be one of the first places to look. Through cloud computing, Medicaid agencies can access off-the-shelf chatbot programs and integrate them into their systems so that the chatbot can learn Medicaid rules in order to respond to queries about eligibility, benefits, enrollment, and MCOs. A British chatbot to help apply for government housing assistance Joshua Browder, a British undergraduate student at Stanford University, created a chatbot to help homeless people in the United Kingdom apply for government housing. Working with homeless non-profit organizations and lawyers in Britain, he implemented automated tools to complete and file claims for government housing. The chatbot can assess the needs of those who have been evicted by asking a few standard questions, including when they became homeless, whether they are pregnant, and whether they have mental or physical disabilities. If an individual has a physical disability, for example, the bot would rearrange the application to focus on that condition. It could then compile the answers and automatically produce a completed application, which it can then submit on behalf of the applicant.19 Chatbots can also help members with more complex tasks. Through natural language processing, a chatbot could speak to a Medicaid member and process the members response to help them locate and complete the form or forms they need to apply for additional Medicaid benefits. If the member is having trouble understanding a question, the chatbot could explain it to the member in laymans terms and can complete the form to accurately and effectively reflect the members eligibility for that benefit. It can then automatically send the form out to the necessary office on behalf of the member. Unlike the web portals of today, a chatbot avoids data entry by the end user and can reduce challenges to accessing needed services. Geographic information system (GIS) What is GIS? A GIS is an important tool used by organizations all over the world to visualize, analyze, and interpret data to understand geographic relationships, patterns, and trends. Coupled with this data is usually additional information about each of the spatial features, called attribute data. For example, the residence of a Medicaid member is the spatial data, whereas the members demographic characteristics, health care utilization patterns, and health outcomes would make up the attribute data. By layering these kinds of data on a map, GIS can function as an effective problem-solving tool. Public health agencies have used GIS to track the spread of disease. City police forces have used it to understand how crime clusters. Just as other agencies have used GIS to glean insights into the causes of a particular condition or to determine where a certain activity tends to hotspot, so too can Medicaid programs. By geospatially overlaying data sets that contain beneficiary and provider network information, programs can use GIS to more effectively enforce network adequacy among their MCOs and learn more about their populations to deploy services where they are needed most. Here are two examples of how GIS can be used in Medicaid. Using GIS to improve program administration Ensure access to care through network adequacy. One way in which states can ensure access to care for their Medicaid members is by monitoring and enforcing MCO provider networks. An adequate provider network requires an appropriate ratio between providers accepting Medicaid members and the number of members within a given travel time or distance, but it must go much further to ensure that member needs are being met. For example, members that require specific language, or physical/behavioral disability accommodations must be within a certain travel time or distance of a general practitioner and various specialists that can provide that accommodation. But many states currently lack the technology to efficiently and effectively verify these standards. Instead, many rely on direct tests such as secret shopper calls and in-person visits to providers listed in plan directories to see if those directories are accurate. In fact, direct tests were a key recommendation from the Office of the Inspector General in 2014 when it evaluated Medicaid managed care provider network adequacy in 33 states.20 With open APIs and advanced analytics made possible through cloud computing, states would no longer need to rely on these manual tests. Instead, Medicaid agencies could data-mine thousands of claims to assess whether providers really are accepting new Medicaid patients and which services are being rendered. By spatially mapping the areas where members live and where an MCOs providers are located, along with specific attributes about members and providers, states can determine whether an MCOs provider networks are ensuring access to care for their members. If not, states can use GIS to identify providers outside an MCOs network who could help address the gaps. Figure 2 is an example of what such a tool might look like: The criteria is cardiology, and the color spectrum ranges from light blue to dark red, with the light blue areas indicating low rates of network inadequacy, and dark red indicating areas with high rates of network inadequacy. As one drills down into a specific area of the map, one can see whether there are cardiologists in the area that can fill the gap, and exactly where they are located. Using GIS for targeted interventions Five percent of Medicaid enrollees account for nearly 50 percent of the programs costs.21 Medicaid members who are known as super utilizers of the emergency department (ED)22 are more likely than the general Medicaid population to have three or more chronic conditions.23 Among hospital super utilizers with Medicaid,24 mood disorders, schizophrenia and other psychotic disorders, and diabetes were the three most common reasons for hospitalizations.25 If managed correctly, visits to the emergency room for these conditions generally can be avoided or greatly reduced. With GIS, states have the ability to map Medicaid super utilizers by health condition (for example, diabetes), health behavior (for example, smoking), or high health care utilization to try and determine the factors associated with the high utilization of health care services and poor health outcomes. Again, open APIs make it possible for Medicaid systems to exchange data with EHRs, the health information exchange, and other social welfare programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) to add more layers to the map and strengthen the analysis. In trying to determine which factors drive high ED utilization, states can assess whether super utilizers live closer to EDs than to urgent care centers or clinics accepting Medicaid patients, or whether there are other factors at play to develop a tactical response. The University of Florida Family Data Center uses GIS to deploy services in areas with health care disparities. The University of Florida Family Data Center created hotspot density maps with data from a variety of government agencies and community partners to map teen births, low birth weight babies, domestic violence incidents, child maltreatment reports, unexcused school absences, and juvenile justice referrals. Maps were widely shared with community partners, including local elected officials, law enforcement, educators, child welfare agencies, health care providers, and service organizations. The insights gleaned from the density maps resulted in the building of a family resource center in the neighborhood of greatest need, and a mobile clinic staffed by clinicians and volunteers.26 In addition, mental health services can be targeted to areas with high rates of mental health conditions, pre-diabetes interventions can be targeted in areas where diabetes tends to cluster, and Medicaid agencies can work hand-in-hand with schools and clinics to extend the reach of family planning services in areas with high rates of unplanned pregnancies. With the time capabilities available through GIS, program managers can assess the effectiveness of their interventions by comparing and visualizing changes in the target variable over time. Overcoming the barriers Security Any discussion about smart technologies and open APIs in Medicaid would be incomplete without a discussion about data privacy and security. This includes compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), which requires the safeguarding of medical information. A key feature of modular and interoperable MMIS systems is a common security infrastructure that allows data to be safely exchanged between modules and with external entities. But there are actions agencies can take beyond the adoption of a common security infrastructure that can help safeguard member data, including regularly changing passwords, installing firewalls, and encrypting data streams. In addition, patients and caregivers should be educated about the data that is collected through these platforms, how it will be used, and who will have access to it. Limiting access to the fewest number of data elements, and the fewest authorized users, while requiring informed consent from patients can help mitigate privacy risks.27 Financing Financing can be another barrier to the adoption of smart technologies and the underlying MMIS infrastructure that supports them. Fortunately, CMS is committed to supporting states in their effort to develop, upgrade, and maintain MMIS systems through enhanced federal matching funds.28 States should inquire about which specific costs could be offset by federal contributions. How to get started with your smart Medicaid system In this paper, weve covered a number of ways in which smart technologies are transforming a variety of industries, including health care, and how they can be used within Medicaid programs. (See table 1 for a summary of the concepts covered.) For Medicaid agencies looking to get started with a smart Medicaid system, consider the following: Upgrade your Medicaid platform. As weve noted, legacy Medicaid systems lack the open APIs and cloud computing capabilities required to bring smart technologies into Medicaid platforms. Upgrading to a modular and interoperable platform with open APIs and transferring Medicaid data to the cloud could be important first steps for any state looking to develop a smart Medicaid system. Start small. While the ultimate goal of a smart Medicaid system is to have multiple technologies working together in a cohesive framework, it may be wise to adopt one smart technology at a time and select a project that is not overly complex when you are first getting started. Once smart technologies have further matured, and your agency has developed a track record of successful deployments, you can decide to undertake more complex projects. Develop a cohesive framework for your smart technologies. As you adopt additional smart technologies, take the time to create a blueprint for how these technologies would not only perform discreet projects, but also how they would communicate with one another to create a truly smart Medicaid system. (See the sidebar, How individual smart technologies can come together to create a smart Medicaid system.) While doing so, consider working with other health care stakeholders such as providers, plans, and human services agencies to collaborate on data-sharing initiatives that can improve population health and drive efficiencies. Use analytics to monitor outcomes and return on investment (ROI). Going from a traditional Medicaid system to a smart Medicaid system will require upfront investment with a view to future returns. Evaluating outcomes and ROI will require good data and analytics. Establish a process for continually evaluating new technologies. Smart technologies keep improving, with vendors frequently adding new capabilities. Agencies should track these developments in the market regularly to evaluate whether new technologies can further improve Medicaid operations and population health. How individual smart technologies can come together to create a smart Medicaid system Rachel is an elderly Medicaid member who has a number of chronic conditions. She has opted to have IoT sensors installed in her home for RPM so that she can continue living independently and without a home attendant. Rachels Medicaid agency collects data on her and other members who receive RPM services, and uses machine learning to detect patterns and trends, and make predictions about Rachels health trajectory. If the machine suspects that Rachel may be at an increased risk of a fall, needs more exercise, or is likely to be hospitalized within the next year, shell receive targeted outreach that aims to prevent these adverse events. Rachel seeks prior authorization for NEMT benefits because she can no longer drive. A chatbot talks her through the process through an interactive voice system and submits the paper work to the Medicaid agency on her behalf. Once approved, Rachel uses her phone to request an NEMT rideshare to get to her health care provider. A chatbot asks her a series of questions to make sure the visit is eligible for NEMT services and to assess the kind of vehicle she needs for pick-up based on her physical condition. The rideshare app verifies her eligibility, deploys the driver, and bills Medicaid instantaneously. On the way to her home, the rideshare app driver receives another request from another Medicaid member, a man in Rachels building who is going to the same hospital for an appointment that begins 20 minutes after Rachels. The driver picks them both up and drops them both off at the same time. The Medicaid agency is able to track the ride and ensure the members have both arrived at their appointments on time. It also collects quality of service feedback from the patients. With this data, the agency can use analytics to assess the impact of these services on Medicaid costs and patient health. Looking ahead Smart technologies are already making a profound impact on our daily lives. Applied to Medicaid agencies, these technologies can help promote independent living, improve customer service and program administration, and target interventions where they are needed most. It may sound unusual for an entity to enhance quality and reduce costs at the same time, but smart technologies offer that possibility. A smart Medicaid system could help programs make use of the vast amounts of data they are already collecting, and combine forces with other health-related entities to better serve their populations. The decision by the vice president to seek medical leave in the United Kingdom (UK), has left so many Ghanaians angry and frustrated over what they argue to be the poor taste for Ghana's health care system. The government has revealed that the main reason for Bawumia flying out of the country for medical care was due to the peculiarity and urgency of his health hence the need to also have the minister get some time to rest. READ ALSO: Stop giving money to street children - Gender minister orders public YEN.com.gh has reported of how a Ghanaian doctor and the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) slammed the vice president for not believing in the capacity and skills of local doctors here in the country. But the issue of medical tourism (politicians and top officials flying abroad for health care) never started with Bawumia. In fact, the trend started years ago. In this article, we get to explore the top politicians and presidents who have sought healthcare abroad. 1. John Dramani Mahama The former president, John Mahama, received a huge backlash on social media when a picture of him having a check-up in the US surfaced on social media. Unlike his predecessor who took so much time off while battling an illness suspected to be cancer, John Mahama generally stood out as a fit and strong president but cases of medical tourism can't be ruled out. 2. Professor John Evans Atta Mills The first term of the former president, John Evans Atta Mills was never a pleasant one as he remained the only sitting president to have died while serving his country. Professor Mills, until his demise at the 37 Military hospital in Accra, had received earlier medical services in the United States of America and even in South Africa, while he was a presidential candidate for the NDC in 2012. 3. Jake Obetsebi Lamptey The former national chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Jake Obetsebi Lamptey, broke the hearts of Ghanaians and party members after his demise in 2016. Until his passing, Jake Obetsebi Lamptey was seen seeking much medical attention in South Africa for an unknown ailment suspected to be Leukemia. 4. Kojo Baah Wiredu Top NPP official and former finance minister, Kwadwo Baah-Wiredu died in South Africa after seeking medical care for his declining health. 5. Eva Lokko Ghana's first satellite communications engineer and first woman engineer at the GBC, Eva Lokko, died a sad death in 2016 while seeking medical treatment abroad. It is reported that she died in the states while seeking medical attention there. She was the only female Director-General of the GBC, since its inception in 1935 6. Nana Addo Danquah Akufo-Addo President of the republic, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, has also taken some medical leave while as the presidential candidate of the NPP as well as president of Ghana. He is believed to have embarked on some medical tourism in London. READ ALSO: Ghanaian doctor "slams" Bawumia for seeking medical care in UK Meanwhile, minority members of parliament are making the case for parliament to ban the trend of medical tourism in the country. They make the argument that strengthening the local health systems in the country will go a long way to foster growth and confidence in the sector. Your stories and photos are always welcome. Send us a message via our official Facebook page to get it published on YEN.com.gh Source: Yen Mark Wilson/Getty Images(PARIS) -- In the aftermath of another "apparent chlorine gas attack" by the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson blasted the Assad regime for its "crimes against humanity" but also laid some of the blame on Russia. "Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in east Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons since Russia became involved in Syria," Tillerson said in Paris at the launch of a new international group to pressure Assad and Russia. The strong statement comes as the U.S. tries to rally the international community and assert a leadership role in Syria after seven years of war and in the face of an increasingly assertive Assad regime. As ABC News reported Monday, Tillerson highlighted the latest reported chemical weapons attack that affected more than 20 civilians -- most of them children, he said. The attack hit east Ghouta, an enclave of rebel support in the Damascus suburbs, a part of the country that Assad has long dominated. East Ghouta has been under siege by the regime for years now, but despite a cease-fire agreement over the summer, the regime has starved and bombed the area for the past few months. In recent weeks, that bombing campaign escalated, according to monitoring groups. "The recent attacks in east Ghouta are a serious concern that Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime may be continuing its use of chemical weapons against its own people. "Since April 2014, there has been mounting evidence that Syria continues to illicit possess chemical weapons and use them against its own people." But it was Russia that Tillerson took to task, challenging the role the country plays by providing support and troops to Assad -- who, after initial defeats, now controls half of the country's population and territory. "Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution to the overall crisis," Tillerson said. In particular, Tillerson said Russia had failed to live up to its commitments under the 2013 deal with the Obama administration to eliminate all of Syria's chemical weapons and other international legal obligations: "There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments to the United States as a framework guarantor. It has betrayed the Chemical Weapons Convention and U.N. Security Council Resolution 2218," he said. Russia has intervened in Syria on Assad's behalf since 2015, but in August 2013 it helped broker an agreement with President Barack Obama to remove Syria's chemical weapons stockpile. That agreement came on the heels of Obama contemplating airstrikes on Syrian targets after the regime killed at least 1,400 people, including 426 children, in a chemical weapons attack, also in the Damascus suburbs, according to a U.S. government report at the time. Ultimately, Obama punted to Congress, and the U.S. never took any action. The Trump administration challenged Syria's use of chemical weapons once before -- with a series of airstrikes last April on a Syrian air base after the regime killed dozens in a town called Khan Shaykhun. U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley joined Tillerson in his condemnation of Russia, releasing a paper statement that said, "This attack in Syria should weigh heavily" on Russia's "conscience." The U.S. "will pursue all available avenues for accountability," according to Haley's office, including through the U.N. Security Council, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the International Partnership Against Impunity for the Use of Chemical Weapons -- the new international group Tillerson helped launch Tuesday. The 29-nation organization will collect, share and publicize information about chemical attack perpetrators, including details about sanctions. For his part, Tillerson called on Russia to "at a bare minimum ... stop vetoing and at least abstain from future Security Council votes on this issue." Russia has twice vetoed resolutions for an investigative body to examine who is responsible for chemical weapons attacks in Syria, and the Security Council was set to meet again on Syria on Tuesday afternoon. "This initiative puts those who ordered and carried out chemical weapons attacks on notice. You will face a day of reckoning for your crimes against humanity and your victims will see justice done," Tillerson said in conclusion. "The people of east Ghouta are watching, and the rest of the world is watching as well." But in a major policy address on Syria last week, Tillerson sounded a more optimistic tone on Russia and the "meaningful role" it plays in Syria -- and even praised Russia for its cooperation with the U.S. and Jordan on one de-escalation zone south of Damascus, despite ongoing Assad offensives elsewhere. "That's why we're disappointed with the foreign minister's comments," Under Secretary of State Steve Goldstein told ABC News Monday, a reference to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accusing the U.S. of fomenting unrest and instability in Syria and even supporting al Qaeda-linked militants. "The secretary is very unhappy that Russia has not stepped up to the plate as we would expect them to." Still, with offensives against the last rebel stronghold, Idlib province, and the relentless bombing of east Ghouta, Assad and his allies, including Russia and Iran, seem to be marching onward, again and again deploying brutal tactics. "No party in the Syrian conflict is capable of victory or stabilizing the country via military means alone," Tillerson warned. Copyright 2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved. Dirgha Raj Prasai By Dirgha Raj Prasai The Nepal government has declared the martyr's week every year- just Mag 10th to 16th in the memory of the immortal martyrs of Nepal. A strong democratic scholar Sukraraj Shastri was hanged 9th Mag 1997 Bs at Pachali,. Darma Bhakta Mathema was hanged-11th Mag at Siphal and Dasharath Chand and Gangalal were shuted by gun at Bishnumati. The autocratic rule of Rana regime lasted for 104 years. The Rana rulers had kept king Tribhuvan a captive in his palace. The Rana rulers insolently approved of all official edicts in name of the monarch. The King Tribhuvan stealthily met with democratic fighters and their secret papers were passed to the king. The king used to communicate with freedom fighters through such papers secretly. The king had a desire to free himself and also institutionalize democracy in the country. As we read the books written by the kings personal nurse Ms. Erika, Ganeshman Singh, compounder Chandraman, Sidhhicharan Shrestha, Khadgaman Singh as Jailma Bish Barsha (Twenty years in jail), we will have the idea that King Tribhuvan had not actuated the sacrifices of the martyrs would have wasted like pouring water on sand. Leadership is the gift of time. The time searches for leadership. It will be distrusting the history if we disregard the facts that the monarchs have ruled to protect Nepal time and again. In 1950 King Tribhuvan gambled his crown against the Rana regime for sake of democracy. After the execution of four martyrs the king led the fight for democracy. Had he not done so, would the dreams of martyrs like Sukraraj Shastri, Dharma Bhakta Mathema, Dasharath Chand, Gangalal Shrestha have come true? The king and the democratic Nepali people established democracy with a stern challenge to the Rana autocracy. It is a national crime to extinguish the identities that attests to the history of the nation. It had not been an easy task to establish democracy in Nepal. It was certain death to oppose the Rana regime at that vintage of time. How did king Tribhuvan surrender himself by risking his crown for democracy in 1950? It does not suit anyone to harbor prejudice against the late kings statue at Martyrs Gate in the capital. Wouldnt it have taken more blood in name of democracy without the kings support? People are witness to the fact that king Tribhuvans statue was vandalized by four to five people of non Nepali origin in Banepa in the name of uprising in 2006 which was imposed by Congress (I) and its RAW, using the power hungry party leaders of Nepal In Banepas Tribhuvan Chowk is still popular. Similarly, the very attractive big statue in Thankot of King Tribhuwan also vandalized. King Tribhuwan is known the father of democracy and then these statues of king Tribhuwan should be reinstated in Banepa and Thankot as soon as possible. It is the duty of the government to preserve the Dams, Temples, Gumbas, statues and idols of historical and archeological importance. If King Tribhuwan would not have there, the only sacrifice of martyrs would not have significant in establishing democracy. Nepal is a landlocked country of eternal beauty and attraction. It is a scenic paradise and the home of the worlds highest mountains, historic cities and the forested plains where you can find the lordly tigers and the great one- horned rhinoceros. Nepal is one of the pious in the world, a land of colorful cultures, ancient history, charming democratic people, picturesque scenery and some of the best walking on earth. It is globally known the country of Mount Everest, the highest mountain peak of the world, the land of Hindu shrine Pashupatinath and Showambhu, Birth land of Lord Buddha and so have so many Hindus and Buddha's shrines in Nepal. So, let us not define the established democratic and religious values and norms and not distort it carelessly to serve ones interest. The concern of the Nepalese people is complete democracy. So, lets pay tribute to the memorial four martyrs and the king Tribhuwan. Email:dirghrajprasai@gmail.com Guwahati, January 23 : 10 banned outfit groups of North East India have called for boycott the 69th Republic Day celebrations and also called for total shut down on January 26. In a press release sent by Khango Konyak, Chairman of Unted Liberation Front of West South East Asia (UNLFW) an umbrella group of five outfits including United Liberation Front of Assam (Independent), Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland (Khaplang), Kamatapur Liberation Organization (KLO) and National Democratic Front of Boroland (Songbijit) said that, UNLFW has called for boycott the 69th Republic Day celebrations. UNLFW also called 24-hour shut down on January 26 in the region and urging the people to not attend or gather at any governmental offices, public places, Khango Konyak said. UNLFW an umbrella organization of five banned outfits was formed in 2015 under leadership of late SS Khaplang. Apart from the UNLFW, five more banned militant groups of the region also called for boycott the Republic Day celebrations and called 11-hour total shut down on January 26 next. In a joint statement, Chairman of Peoples Democratic Council of Karbilongri (PDCK) J K Lijang, Chairman of Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup(KYKL) N Oken, President of Kangleipak Communist Party (KCP) Ksh Laba Meitei, Pulicity Secretary of Hynniutrep National liberation Council (HNLC) Sainkupar Nongtraw and Organizing Secretary of National Liberation Front Twipra (NLFT) Sengphui Borok said that, the organizations had called for boycott the Republic Day celebrations and also called a total shut down on January 26 from 6 am to 5 pm in the region. We call upon all peoples of this region to fully support this ban considering the urgent need to resist Indian occupation of our land. This call shall go concurrently with bans declared by other fraternal outfits of our WESEA region, said in the joint statement. Meanwhile, security has been beefed up in Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and other states of the region ahead of the Republic Day celebrations. Nagaland, Meghalaya and Tripura of the region are going to hold the assembly polls in next month. Guwahati, January 22 : Assam peasant leader Akhil Gogoi on Monday has lashed out on the BJP-led Assam government into the alleged coal scam in the state and filed an FIR and seeking a probe against several ministers, bureaucrats, police officials into the scam. Akhil Gogoi, who is also the advisor of Assams farmers organization Krishak Mukti Sangram Samiti (KMSS) had filed an FIR at Basistha police station in Guwahati into the alleged scam. The farmer leader alleged that, Assam has lost huge revenue after coal in transportation of coals from neighbouring state Meghalaya. Several ministers, bureaucrats of the state government, police officials, political leaders are allegedly involved in the scam. Every coal-laden truck had carried overloading coals from Meghalaya, but proper tax has not been collected. There are many chances of the state transport department, tax department, police officials being involved in the scam, Akhil Gogoi said. The Assam peasant leader also alleged that, many trucks had carried overloading coals from Meghalaya to Assam without proper challan. Guwahati : In a bid to make the first ever Global Investors Summit to be held at Guwahati on February 3 and 4 successful, Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal asked all the officers and other agencies directly or indirectly associated with organising the summit to gear up and make all possible effort. Chairing a review meeting held at the Brahmaputra State Guest House in the city on Sunday evening, Sonowal asked the officers to identify the critical areas and beautify the city. He also asked GMDA, Tourism Department to deck up the streets of Guwahati with decorating lights. Accordingly, the NH from Jalukbari to Khanapra will be illuminated. Moreover, State PWD Roads inside the city will also be decked up with decorating lights. Sonowal requested the Railways to decorate Saraighat Bridge as well as Guwahati and Kamakhya Station. Moreover, the Tourism Department will also beautify the Kamakhya Temple, Umananda Temple with lights and set up kiosks to help the investors who will be coming to Guwahati during the two days. He asked the PWD to use bamboo as a value addition to beautify the main entry points of the city. Moreover, the department has also been asked to do the landscaping of the important areas of the city. Sonowal also asked the department to involve local contractors for these works. He stressed that all the concerned departments to work in sync to showcase Guwahati as a beautiful city teeming with immense potentials. Moreover, Sonowal also sincerely appealed to everybody to extend all possible help to make the Global Investors Summit a success. Chief Secretary VK Pipersenia, Chief Ministers Media and Legal Adviser HrishikeshGoswami and Shantanu Bharali, Special DGP KuladharSaikia, Chief Ministers Principal Secretary Sanjay Lohiya and several senior officers from civil and police administration were present at the meeting. Guwahati: While many journalists in India opt for not hoisting the National flag with the argument to maintain medias neutrality, an Assam based scribes forum has reiterated its appeal to the people of northeast India in general and media personnel in particular to hoist the National flag as a mark of paying respect to the martyrs of Freedom Struggle. The Journalists Forum Assam (JFA) also denounced the rhetoric diktats of some separatist militants of the region on every Republic Day and Independence Day and called upon the patriotic citizens to celebrate both the auspicious Days. Every patriotic Indian should observe R-Day and I-Day to pay his/her tributes to the martyrs of Freedom Movement for their supreme sacrifices. Without showing respects to the Freedom Fighters, one should not cry demanding various constitutional rights, said a JFA statement. It added that a lot of martyrs from Assam including Kanaklata Barua, Mukunda Kakoti, Kushal Konwar, Tilak Deka, Bhogeswari Phukanani, Nidhanu Rajbangshi, Kamala Miri, Lerela Boro, Madan-Rauta, Hemoram Patar, Gunabhi Bordoloi with many others also laid down their lives for the honour of the Tricolour. We must not maintain the skepticism that the Tricolour belongs to the government machinery alone. Rather the National flag is a priceless property of over one billion Indians. We have to cherish our independence with proper responsibilities, added the statement. The JFA, while appealing for celebration of 69th Republic Day on 26 January next, clarified that journalists should come forward overcoming all kinds of prejudices and confusion over hoisting the Tricolour. It specially appealed to all scribe-bodies of the region, including local press clubs, press guilds, journalist union/associations etc, to pay their homage to all martyrs hoisting the Tricolour. Guwahati: Assam police on Sunday had arrested a college principal for his alleged involvement in fraudulent expenditure of UGC fund. According to the reports, the Dhemaji police had arrested the principal of Sissiborgaon college in connection with the UGC fund misappropriation. A top police official of Dhemaji district said that, a case was registered against Thanuram Bhuyan, principal of Sissiborgaon college. UGC had released several crore of rupees to the college for infrastructure development, but the college had failed to submit utilization certificate (UC). On the other hand, UGC has sent notice to over 20 more colleges in the state and asked to submit UCs immediately. A top official of state higher education department said that, several colleges are yet to submit UCs to UGC. Kathmandu, Nepal: The Commission for Investigation of Abuse of Authority (CIAA) has on Tuesday summoned then Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC) Managing Director (MD) Gopal Prasad Khadka for interrogation on land purchase scam. The CIAA has summoned Khadka as part of interrogation to the high profile authorities at the NOC and the NOC board members. It is said that the CIAA is planning to interrogate NOC board members including then supply minister. Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. The cost of disasters Total suppression costs for the Thomas fire have yet to be tallied, but preliminary estimates show Cal Fire alone spent $174 million fighting it. Direct losses from the fire have not been tallied. No estimates have been made yet for the total economic impact of the Montecito mudslides. However, in its weekly catastrophe report, Aon Benfield, a leading reinsurance intermediary and full-service capital advisor, said damages from the disaster are expected to run at least into the tens of millions of dollars but probably higher. Agricultural export strategies targeted via Soursop Planting Project Social Share A National Soursop Planting Project, which has as its objective the planting of one million soursop trees throughout the length and breath of the country, is into its third month of operation here. The project, which is coordinated by the Ministry of Agriculture, in collaboration with the Richmond Vale Academy and the St Vincent and the Grenadines Preservation Fund, was launched on November 9, 2017 at the Diamond Primary School, where the children of that school were given the privilege to plant the first set of soursop trees on their grounds. In attendance were one of the founders of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Preservation Fund, Louise Mitchell; a representative from the Richmond Vale Academy, Stina Herberg; and Minister of Agriculture, Rural Transformation, Forestry and Fisheries Saboto Caesar. A release from the Ministry of Agriculture says the project plays a vital role in that Ministryas Agri-export Strategy Initiative, which has been developed to increase agricultural exports. Louise Mitchell expressed how grateful she was to be a part of this project, while performing an interactive and educational speech to the children; she also donated a book to the schoolas library, aWild Life in the Caribbean.a Stina Herberg noted how excited she was to play a vital role in the project. Minister Caesar expressed his gratitude to SVG Preservation Fund for contributing funds to the tune of US$20,000 and the Richmond Vale Academy for contributing the first 6,000 soursop trees. The Minister indicated that this project would play a vital role in the diversification strategy of St Vincent and the Grenadines. He informed the students that there would be trees available to students who would be interested in planting their very own soursop tree, but it would be done under the supervision of the forestry officers Alexa Brown and Osa Samuel. He left the children with some encouraging words: aDream, but dream big; think, but think big. Once you dream, you can achieve it.a Conversation with the Church about medicinal marijuana has started PM Social Share The conversation has officially started in relation to this country opening its doors to the production of medicinal marijuana. And, speaking at a recent press conference, Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves said that conversations with interest groups concerning medicinal marijuana have started. He said that he chaired one of these preliminary conversations last week with the leaders of the St Vincent and the Grenadines Christian Council. Among those present at that meeting were Chair of the National Medicinal Cannabis Industry Committee Saboto Caesar, who is also the Minister of Agriculture; Minister of Finance Camillo Gonsalves; chief executive officer of Invest SVG Annette Mark; and the draft person for the medicinal marijuana legislation Petrona Sealey-Browne. a The Prime Minister told reporters that Mark was present because the move into medicinal marijuana is an investment issue. He added that the conversation was auseful,a as the persons present exchanged a wide range of views. aThey (the Christian Council) have an understanding of the road map of the Government in medicinal marijuana and that conversation will continue,a said Gonsalves.(LC) Farrell not fit to plead medical report Social Share Back in court, then back to the Mental Health and Rehabilitation Centre (MHRC), model Yugge Farrell and family reacted in apparent disbelief to this turn of events coming out of the Kingstown Magistrateas Court yesterday. Not a normal day at the Kingstown magistrateas Court, with a new senior magistrate in Rickie Burnett, and a small crowd gathered inside and outside of the courtroom, the hearing of Farrellas case began with presentation of her medical report. This report had been ordered by magistrate Bertie Pompey on January 5, to be presented to the court at the end of a two-week observation at the MHRC. Farrell had been charged with causing a breach of the peace by using abusive language, to wit ayou dirty bi**ha to Karen Duncan, wife of the Minister of Finance, Camillo Gonsalves, at Granby Street, on January 4. Yesterday, the report presented before the court read that Farrell was anot fit to pleada. Before the court could even begin hashing out the legality of the matter, Farrell, who had been escorted to court by a number of police officers, stomped out of her seat, arms askew and began yelling. She returned to her seat, but later had to be escorted to the witness stand by police, with further displays of unusual behaviour. When the name of complainant Karen Duncan was called, Farrell raised her hand in a position above her head, reminiscent of a slapping pose, and started shaking. Duncanas name was called three times, but she did not make an appearance in court. Farrellas lawyer, Grant Connell, in light of the findings presented in the medical report, made two submissions to the court. aToday, the purpose of that report, certainly is not for the purpose of the courta because a plea has already been entered; so, if the report is for the purpose of the court to see if she is fit to plea, to do that which she has already donea,a the lawyer further stating that the gun cannot be jumped by skipping over the alegal injurya. Secondly, the lawyer asked the court not to accept the report. aI had various occasions to visit Yugge Farrell, three or four occassions, at the psychiatric hospitala, and not on any occasion of those four she exhibited any attributes that she exhibited today; none!a said the lawyer. Later in his submissions, Connell stated that contrary to his advice, Farrell was given medication, strong antipsychotic medication, which supposedly affects the chemicals in the brain. aUp until I saw Yugge Farrell on Thursday, she was not behaving this way,a he insisted. The lawyer also took issue with the fact that the doctor who had signed the medical report was, according to him, anot a psychiatrista. He further said that the defence wished to conduct their own psychiatric evaluation. aI humbly submit, given the magnitude and the ramifications of this application on this young lady, with greatest respect to Dr Sona, it will not suffice.a The medical report was signed by psychiatrist Dr Sonasree Jammulapati MBBS MD (Psychiatry), a full-time employee of the Ministry of Health, assigned to the MHRC. The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Colin Williams then responded to the submissions presented. aIf my friend spends some time in reviewing the literature in relation to matters of this nature,a he would be aware that the magistrate is under discretion to send a defendant for mental evaluation in the ainterest of fairness.a He stated that whether or not she had already pleaded was aa non-issuea. aThe Evidence Act of St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) permits the tendering of any document, ANY document, by a registered medical practitioner in the state of St Vincent and the Grenadines,a the DPP stated. aI searched the legislation to see where there was this reference to the particulars about a psychiatrist becausea I see none,a later clarifying, aBut the law provides, that person who are trainedawho have qualifications in psychiatry.a However, the DPP indicated he had no problem with the defence conducting their own evaluation, saying, aif my friend wants to have an independent examination, whether meaning somebody from his side, I donat see it as something that the court would stand in the way of.a Connell countered by saying that just because the legislation is awide open for abusea does not make it right. Connell, citing a previous occasion in February 2017, wherein Farrell was discharged within 48 hours after being given an antipsychotic drug, asked that Farrell be given bail. aShe does not need to go back to that institution,a the lawyer said. Requiring time to consider the submissions and responses, Burnett adjourned the hearing to Monday, January 29. In the interim, Farrell will be taken back to the MHRC, he said. As soon as she heard this, the 23-year-old defendant twice screamed aWhaaaaat?a, the second more prolonged than the first. Farrellas sister, nearly in tears outside the court upon her departure, kept repeating that the outcome was aunfaira. She said that while her sister has amental issuesa, she is not crazy. The sister said what was happening was ahigh class sh**t,a and that her sister had been involved in a relationship with Minister of Finance Camillo Gonsalves. aShe has a lot to say, but a lot is being covered up,a said the sister.(KR) Friday elected to CDU board for 2018 Social Share Leader of the Opposition and president of the New Democratic Party Dr Godwin Friday has been elected vice-chair for Policy and External Affairs on the Caribbean Democrat Union (CDU) Board for 2018. Dr Friday was elected at the annual general meeting of the CDU, which took place in Miami over the weekend. The other elected members of the board include: chair: Allen Chastanet, St Lucia; vice-chair Women and Minorities: Palmavon Webster, Anguilla; vice-chair Organizational Support: Patrick Faber, Belize; treasurer: Pearnel Charles Jr, Jamaica; secretary general/public relations officer: Nick Francis, St Vincent and the Grenadines According to reports from member parties of the CDU, the gathering adopted a framework for greater cooperation, and they signed a declaration affirming the values and principles of the union. aIn light of the recent catastrophic events our brothers and sisters in the neighbouring countries encountered by hurricanes Irma and Maria, the CDU ensured that climate change and environmental issues were high on the agenda. aMember parties of the CDU also developed a work plan for 2018 which included increasing participation of women and youth, policy development, strengthening party structures and capacity building,a a release from the NDP said. Friday, in the release, noted that he was grateful for the opportunity to serve as a vice-chair of the CDU for 2018 and looks forward to a closer working relationship with sister parties in the region going forward. Minister Lee to lead delegation to SVG Social Share The Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan) will pay a two-day visit to St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) next week. David Tawei Lee, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China (Taiwan), along with his wife, Lin Chih, will lead a delegation of five to SVG from February 1 to 2, 2018. The delegation is scheduled to arrive on Thursday, February 1, 2018. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Culture has advised that Sir Louis Straker, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Commerce and Doris Charles, deputy director of Foreign Policy Research, will meet the delegation. In addition, there will a ceremony for the signing of two bilateral projects at the Ministryas conference room, from approximately 3 p.m. on Thursday, February 1. "The 'New' District Court Activism in Criminal Justice Reform" | Main | New FBI crime data on first half of 2017 show encouraging declines in all areas except murder and car thefts The reform advocacy organization Drug Policy Alliance has released today this big new data-dense report titled "From Prohibition to Progress: A Status Report on Marijuana Legalization; What We Know About Marijuana Legalization in Eight States and Washington, D.C." I have already blogged about this report in general terms over at Marijuana Law, Policy & Reform, but I suspect sentencing reform fans might find interesting what this report says about marijuana arrest rates and related criminal justice issues. Particularly interesting for criminal justice fans, especially those interested in or concerned about low-level offense enforcement, are the DPA report's detailed arrest data for every marijuana legalization state in the Appendix. Here is a portion of how the DPA report discusses these data: Arrests in all legal marijuana states and Washington, D.C. for the possession, cultivation and distribution of marijuana have plummeted since voters legalized the adult use of marijuana, saving those jurisdictions hundreds of millions of dollars and preventing the criminalization of thousands of people. Across legal marijuana states and Washington, D.C. the number of arrests for marijuana law violations has declined dramatically (as shown in Chart 2). In Alaska, the number of marijuana arrests for possession and sales/manufacturing declined by 93 percent from 2013 to 2015, from 845 to 60 (see Appendix C). In Colorado, marijuana arrests declined by 49 percent from 2012 to 2013 (12,894 to 6,502). The number of marijuana arrests increased by 7 percent in in 2014 (7,004), yet remained 46 percent lower than in 2012 (see Appendix E). The total number of marijuanarelated court filings in Colorado declined by 81 percent between 2012 and 2015 (10,340 to 1,954), and marijuana possession charges dropped 88 percent (9,130 to 1,068). In Oregon, the number of marijuana arrests declined by 96 percent from 2013 to 2016 (6,996 to 255) (see Appendix H). The total number of low-level marijuana court filings in Washington fell by 98 percent between 2011 and 2015 (6,879 to 120) (see Appendix I). Marijuana possession convictions in Washington decreased by 76 percent from 2011 to 2015 (7,303 to 1,723). In Washington, D.C., marijuana arrests decreased 76 percent from 2013 to 2016 (3,450 to 840), with possession arrests falling by 98.6 percent, from 2,549 in 2013 to 35 in 2016.... It is widely acknowledged that racial disparities exist in the enforcement of marijuana laws in this country Black and Latinx people are more likely to be arrested for marijuana law violations than White people, despite similar rates of use and sales across racial groups. Marijuana legalization has dramatically reduced the number of Black and Latinx people arrested for marijuana-related conduct, yet racial disparities persist. Initial data show that while legalization substantially reduced the total number of Black and Latinx people arrested for marijuana offenses, it did not eliminate the forces that contributed to the disparity in the first place, such as the overpolicing of low-income neighborhoods, racial profiling, and other racially motivated police practices. In Colorado, for example, White people benefitted most from the declines in marijuana arrests, which decreased by 51 percent, compared to 33 percent for Latinx people, and 25 percent for Black people between 2012 and 2014. The marijuana arrest rate for Black people (348 per 100,000) in Colorado was nearly triple that of White people (123 per 100,000) in 2014. The post-legalization arrest rate for Black individuals in Washington is reported to be double the arrest rate for other races and ethnicities. In Alaska, both Black and White people experienced dramatic declines in marijuana arrests between 2013 and 2015, 95 and 92 percent respectively, yet disparities remain (see Chart 17 below). Of the 17 marijuana arrests in Alaska in 2016, 29 percent were of Black people (a racial group that comprises only 4 percent of the states population). Alaskas marijuana arrest rate for Black people (17.7 per 100,000) is ten times greater than that of White people (1.8 per 100,000). A similar pattern has emerged in Washington, D.C.... In several states, marijuana legalization for adult use has had the unintended consequence of reducing historically high numbers of youth (under 18 years of age) and young adults (between 18 and 20 years old) stopped and arrested for marijuana offenses. However, these reductions are inconsistent from state-to-state and, in some circumstances, youth now comprise a growing number of people charged with marijuana offenses. Between 2012 and 2015, marijuana court filings in Colorado fell 86 percent for adults 21 years of age and older, and they declined by 69 percent for youth under 18 years of age and 78 percent for young adults 18-to-20 years old.190 Arrests followed a similar trend in the state between 2012 and 2014 wherein the marijuana offense arrest rate for adults 21 and older decreased by 79 percent and young adults 18-to-20 years old experienced a 34 percent decrease in marijuana arrest rates.191 At the same time, the number of youth under 18 years of age cited for marijuana offenses increased by five percent, which amounts to a one percent increase in the rate per 100,000.192 In Oregon, marijuana arrest rates declined by 92 percent between 2013 and 2015 for adults 18 years of age and older, compared to 80 percent for youth under 18 years of age (See Chart 21). In 2016, the marijuana arrest rate for Oregon youth (19.1 per 100,000) was nearly 7 times the adult rate (2.8 per 100,000).193 Similarly, in Washington, marijuana possession convictions declined by 99.1 percent for adults 18 years of age and older and 56 percent for youth under 18 years of age between 2012 and 2015. In 2015, 98 percent of all marijuana possession convictions in Washington (1,691 of 1,723) were of youth. After the welcoming ceremony, the both sides immediately discussed cooperation ties in the fields of diplomacy, security and defense, as well as annual meetings between ministries, departments and agencies of Vietnam and Mongolia in the previous time.Congress leaders of the two countries said that the nations defense ministries needed to collaborate closely in the international and regional peacekeeping mission in the upcoming time; effectively adopt important documents in the fields of diplomacy, security and defense; strengthen dialogues and exchange of information and experiences; actively cooperate in anti- crime; push up negotiation about extradition treaties and agreement on the protection and exchange of confidential information.Besides that, cooperation of agriculture, culture, education, tourism and people exchange also needed to be developed. The leaders highly appreciated the two countries supported each other in candidacy of the United Nations agencies in previous time.The Mongolian Parliament Speaker strongly affirmed that Mongolia supported Vietnam in the election of non-permanent seats in the UN Security Council in the period 2020- 2021; appreciated the Vietnamese and ASEAN position in the maintenance of peace, security and conflict settlement in the East Sea in accordance with international laws.After the talks, the both sides signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between the National Assembly of Vietnam and the Mongolian Parliament for 2018-2022, and witnessed the signing ceremony of a memorandum of understanding between the People's Council of Hoa Binh province and the People's Council of Tuv province of Mongolia. BY ANH PHUONG- Translated by Huyen Huong Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on January 23, 2018 2018/01/23 Q: The Second Ministerial Meeting of the Forum of China and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) was successfully convened in Santiago, Chile on January 22. Do you have more information about the important outcomes of the meeting ? A: The Second Ministerial Meeting of the Forum of China and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) was successfully convened in Santiago on January 22. President Xi Jinping sent a letter of congratulation to the meeting and Chilean President Michelle Bachelet attended the opening ceremony. Foreign Minister Wang Yi led a delegation to attend the meeting, and he was joined by foreign ministers and high-level representatives from 31 Latin American and Caribbean countries as well as heads of four regional organizations and multilateral institutions, including the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. At the meeting, Foreign Minister Wang Yi briefed on the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping and it was warmly received by countries attending the meeting and the two sides reached political consensus on this initiative. The meeting has also published a special statement on the Belt and Road Initiative. Many Latin American countries said that the Belt and Road Initiative is a great proposal and they are eager to be part of it. The two sides agreed that the joint building of the Belt and Road Initiative will provide new ideas for, inject new impetus into and open up new prospects for the China-CELAC comprehensive cooperative partnership. The two sides are willing to optimize, upgrade, innovate and advance the China-CELAC cooperation in the process of advancing the Belt and Road Initiative, and open up a new dimension in China-CELAC cooperation featuring broader areas,stronger impetus, more optimized structure and better quality. China put forward its proposal on how to deepen the "1+3+6" cooperation framework laid out by President Xi Jinping and showed its readiness to work together to build "grand connectivity" covering both sea and land, cultivate "grand markets" that are open and reciprocal, create "grand industries" featuring advanced and independent technologies, seize great opportunities brought by innovation-driven growth and launch "grand communication" based on equality and mutual trust, which has been positively received by Latin American and Caribbean countries. The meeting adopted the Declaration of Santiago, Joint Action Plan of Cooperation (2019-2021) (Priority Areas) and the Special Statement on the Belt and Road Initiative.They reflect an unequivocal will of the two sides to deepen cooperation and seek common development and also identify concrete measures in cooperation in key areas. We think this meeting is a full success. Just as Foreign Minister Wang Yi told the press after the meeting, it has built up the consensus on solidarity and cooperation, focused on actions for common development and identified a path to win-win cooperation. This is another handshake across the vast ocean in the new era between China and CELAC, opening up a new chapter for China-CELAC cooperation. We are looking forward to scaling the China-CELAC comprehensive cooperative partnership up to new heights. Q: Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expressed a strong will to improve China-Japan relations when addressing the House of Representatives on his policy proposals on January 22, saying that he will try to seek stable and friendly relations with China, exchange visits with Chinese leaders as soon as possible and conduct infrastructure cooperation with China. Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono also said Japan will take the opportunity of the 40th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Peace and Friendship Between Japan and China to promote people-to-people exchange and strengthen economic ties. But he also added that Japan will not accept any attempt to change the status quo in the East China Sea. What is your comment on this? A: We have noted relevant reports. China's position on improving and developing China-Japan relations is consistent. The steady and sound development of China-Japan relations serves the interests of the two peoples and is conducive to regional peace and development. We hope that Japan can, on the basis of the four political documents and four-principled consensus, move in the same direction with China to strengthen communication, build mutual trust, properly manage differences and improve and develop China-Japan relations in the right direction. With the principle of wide consultation, joint contribution and shared benefits, China stands ready to work with Japan and other parties to promote the Belt and Road and achieve common development and prosperity of countries in this region. At the same time, we have also noted Japan's position on the East China Sea issue. We hope the Japanese side will match its words with deeds and translate the positive remarks on improving China-Japan relations into concrete policies and actions. Q: The US administration yesterday slapped steep tariffs on Chinese solar panels following through on promises to take a tougher stance on trade with China. Will China take any measures in response? A: Director-General of the Trade Remedy and Investigation Bureau Wang Hejun of China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) has issued a statement concerning the question you raised. The US has launched another global safeguard investigation into imported solar products and large washing machines and the imposition of high tariffs is an abuse of trade remedy measures. China expresses strong dissatisfaction to this. We have noted that the US investigation this time has not only caused concerns among many trading partners, but also been strongly opposed by many local governments and downstream businesses at home. Regarding the wrongdoing by the US side, China will work along with other WTO members to firmly defend our legitimate rights and interests. Q: According to reports, Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono will visit China recently. Can you confirm that? A: China adopts a positive attitude towards improving and developing China-Japan relations, which serves the common interests of our two countries and peoples and of the entire region. We believe that to maintain close communication is conducive to enhancing mutual trust and properly handling and managing differences between the two countries. We stand ready to keep close communication with the Japanese side in this regard. Q: According to reports, the DPRK Foreign Ministry released information on its website on January 21, saying that its officials discussed with Chinese Ambassador to the DPRK and representatives of international organization in the DPRK the issue of impediment to delivering the UN humanitarian relief supplies to the country. What's your comment? A: China has always comprehensively and strictly implemented the Security Council resolutions. At the same time, we maintain that the UN Security Council sanction measures against the DPRK should not affect the humanitarian assistance for the DPRK. This is also the explicit requirement of the relevant UN Security Council resolutions. In the context of Security Council sanctions and the unilateral sanctions imposed by some countries over the DPRK, there are many reasons for the problems with the DPRK's humanitarian assistance. China attaches importance to the humanitarian aid work conducted by the United Nations and other international agencies in the DPRK and has provided and will continue to provide the necessary support and assistance in this regard. Now underway, award winning photographer Stephen Laxton and New York City's LGBT Community Center have launched "Free to Be Me," a photography and essay exhibit which preserves and celebrates the stories of LGBT immigrants to the United States. The exhibition was put together in conjunction with Immigration Equality, the country's leading LGBT immigrants' rights organization. "Our clients are hands down the bravest people I have ever met. Every day, I feel honored to know and work with them. Through Steven's beautiful photography, the broader public will have a chance to get to know and appreciate them too," said Jackie Yodashkin, Immigration Equality's Public Affairs Director. Indeed, these are brave and hearty souls who share their personal stories. Yodashkin points out that it is unsafe, or even a crime to be LGBT in 80 countries around the world. For many, coming to the United States can mean the difference between life and death. Immigration Equality has secured asylum in the U.S. for more than 1,000 LGBT or HIV positive individuals. One such person, who's story is shared in "Free to Be Me," is Ishalaa, a transgender activist from Mexico. She was the lead spokesperson for an LGBT rights organization in Mexico and organized protests against an anti-LGBT gubernatorial candidate in her state. After receiving death threats, Ishalaa fled for her safety. She spent a month in detention after she presented herself at the U.S. border before she was released on bond. Two and a half years later she was granted asylum. Other stories in the exhibition include that of Alena, a lesbian from Russia, a country that has been rife with anti-LGBT violence. Alena came to the U.S. in 2009 in search of freedom and safety. With Immigration Asylum's help she was granted asylum and has since been granted a green card. She now owns her own jewelry business and has six employees. Last summer Alena became a US citizen. "The day I took my oath, I felt like the heaviest weight was lifted," Alena said. "It felt like freedom." Still another story is that of Victor, a gay man from Columbia. Victor fled Columbia after he was gay bashed and was blamed for his attack by the police. But then he had to return to Columbia to care for his ailing mother. When he tried to re-enter the U.S., he was detained. With the help of Immigration Equality Victor was released. In December 2013 he married his husband Derik. The couple started a catering business and Victor has since been granted his green card. These are but some of the stories on display in "Free to Be Me." Steven Laxton, himself an immigrant, explained why he became involved with the project. "I wanted to celebrate Immigration Equality's inspiring clients," he said. "They have overcome horrific adversity, and truly add so much to our communities. I hope that through my photography more people will be able to learn about and appreciate LGBT immigrants and their contributions to our nation." View the exhibit online at ImmigrationEquality.org/FreeToBeMe. Oprahs performance at the Golden Globes was inspirational and motivational. She proved that there can be coherent billionaires competent enough to hold office. Hollywood is blessed with many articulate and reasonable persons who bring brilliance and life to their roles. Over the decades, we have seen its annual awards shows routinely used by actors and activists to promote political viewpoints and social causes, from opposing blacklists to supporting Native American Indians. Many of these statements, like the ones this week speaking out against sexual harassment, have spurred national debate. Stars attending this years ceremonies, wearing black to drive home the point, were unified in their condemnation of sexual exploitation and couch casting. These stars damn well had a right to be angry at the unconscionable practice, which abused their dignity and demeaned their lives. But do you ever have a right to be angry with them. I am. In fact, I am as angry at them as I am at the accused. Hollywood represents an industry that makes, creates, and distributes films, which illuminate courageous lives. Their very reason for being is to educate and entertain; give meaning and purpose to individuals willing to buck the status quo and break new ground. Their art brings to life the Rosa Parks, Karen Silkwoods and Harvey Milks we would otherwise never know. The revelation that these artists and actors, millionaires all, living lives of leisure and privilege, remained silent in the face of wrong, for decades, is repulsive to me. While portraying lives illuminating the courage of others, they were cowards themselves. The specific blame I lay not on the victims whose silence was understandable given the climate and circumstances they lived in and were exposed to. The anger I have is directed towards the conspiracy and complacency their friends tolerated and allowed. This disgusting and vile sexual exploitation of actors was apparently so transparent and well known in Hollywood Seth Mc Farlane openly joked about it at an Oscar ceremony four years and 45 Harvey Weinstein films ago. How did so many of the well heeled participate in a despicable conspiracy of silence? Its outrageous, offensive, and inexcusable. True friends would have spoken up sooner. True friends would have said this conduct has no place in their homes. Entertainers should have publicly exposed couch casting and its caretakers for years. If you ask how could it be that so many knew so much and said so little, the answer is simple greed. As long as the checks kept coming and the headlines got written, the Hollywood elite looked the other way at abusive behavior and wrongful conduct. They determined it was the price of doing business under Tinseltown rules. As a consequence, victims remained victimized. Like athletes whose home runs were launched by steroids, a host of performers sold their soul to the devil while playing the roles of angels. The industry they praise needed individuals with more integrity. The next movie they need to make is a movie about their own fears and lack of fortitude, exposing and shaming their own hypocrisy. Today, we can celebrate the new day on the horizon Oprah has heralded in. But too many were too silent for too long. As a consequence, good people suffered. AIDS activists learned years ago that silence equals death. Hollywood could and should have done better. Its only remedy today is to tell the truth they failed to tell yesterday, and shine a light on the wrongs that need to be righted, and should never have been tolerated. Too many victims for too long. Times up. All is quiet in Azerbaijan. For a country seeking to raise its profile on the national stage, it remains unclear if Azerbaijan is a welcoming country for LGBT people. Reports of raids targeting LGBT people surfaced in September raising concerns in Washington. In a letter, a bipartisan group of Senators are urging the U.S. State Department to start an investigation to determine if press reports of more than 50 gay and transgender people being detained in Azerbaijans capital city of Baku are credible. We write to share our concerns about press reports that Azerbaijani authorities have detained dozens of gay and transgender persons simply because they are gay or transgender, the letter reads. We urge you to investigate these reports, and, if credible, to publicly condemn these actions in the strongest terms and to push for perpetrators to be held accountable. The letter was led by Senators Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Pat Toomey (R-PA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Susan Collins (R-ME). Indeed, U.S. foreign policy must promote both our values and our interests and any notion that the two are mutually exclusive is a false choice, the Senators wrote. Daniel Baslon is the Advocacy Director for Amnesty Internationals European and Central Asia operations. In a telephone conversion with The Mirror Magazine, Balson revealed he had visited Azerbaijan on multiple occasions. He described the country as a clan based society one that is unwelcoming to LGBT people. Its a very conservative society, Balson said. There is not a lot of support for LGBT individuals. Azerbaijan gained its independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991. Located in the caucuses region on the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan has an estimated population of 9.9 million. It has been in a long dispute with neighboring Armenia over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Balson said Azerbaijan was built on an elaborate cult of personality where authoritarian rulers imprison dissidents and opposition leaders. President Ilham Aliyev has been in power since 2003. Corruption remains a substantial problem in Azerbaijan, Balson said. Fundamental freedoms are not available to all and free expression is curtailed. Oil is the major export in Azerbaijan. Under Aliyevs rule, the country has raised in economic status on the world stage and Baku, Balson, said is an immaculately polished city. Amnesty International, Balson said, has taken no position on reports of mass detentions of gay and transgender people in Azerbaijan. Balson said he does not believe the country is 100 percent against gay and transgender people, but coming out does have consequences. At all levels of society, LGBT people face a substantial issue of living openly, Balson said. Once they express themselves they can be quickly repressed and shunned socially. Photo by John McDonald. Perviz Vahidoglu, a university student, paints a different scene of Azerbaijan than Balson. Vahidoglu, a young man in his late 20s educated in Balikesir, Turkey, said there is no reason gay or transgender travelers should feel uncomfortable in Azerbaijan. Dont worry about that, Vahidoglu said. You can feel safe yourself whenever you come to Azerbaijan. When pressed about expressions, Vahidoglu drew the line at kissing. Yes, they (gays and trans) can hold hands in public except one thing Kissing each other or something like this can be strange for people, Vahidoglu said. Like Vahidoglu, Hasan Sadigli is a native Ajerbaijani. Unlike Vahidoglu, Sadigli is gay. He communicated with the Mirror Magazine through Facebook Messenger for this story. I wish I could be more useful, however, I have been living outside of Azerbaijan for many years and hence will not be objective about the realities there, Sadigli said. There are certainly those unlucky ones who have to endure a pain that is greater than oppression and that of the occasional crackdown. Now living in Spain, Sadigli said nothing will change until Azerbaijani establishment families demonstrate a willingness to embrace a more modern version of the extended family unit. The societal taboo and violence by the traditionalism of families are something that is more enduring than any government crackdown, Sadigli said. The Mirror Magazine reached out for comment from Senator Rubios office, State Department and Harvey Milk Foundation for this piece but did not receive a response to telephone messages or emailed questions. Meanwhile, Amnesty International USA has three demands of the Trump Administration. First, increase the cap for refugees who are genuinely in fear for their lives, Balson said. Second, the State Department must fully staff, support and dispatch the LGBTI special envoy position. In November, the Washington Blade reported Randy Berry had vacated this position. And finally, and perhaps most importantly, begin direct communications with the Aliyev administration. When abuse happens the Trump administration must raise concerns directly with foreign governments, Balson said. The hottest point on a gaseous planet near a distant star isn't where astrophysicists expected it to be - a discovery that challenges scientists' understanding of the many planets of this type found in solar systems outside our own. Unlike our familiar planet Jupiter, so-called hot Jupiters circle astonishingly close to their host star -- so close that it typically takes fewer than three days to complete an orbit. And one hemisphere of these planets always faces its host star, while the other faces permanently out into the dark. Not surprisingly, the "day" side of the planets gets vastly hotter than the night side, and the hottest point of all tends to be the spot closest to the star. Astrophysicists theorize and observe that these planets also experience strong winds blowing eastward near their equators, which can sometimes displace the hot spot toward the east. In the mysterious case of exoplanet CoRoT-2b, however, the hot spot turns out to lie in the opposite direction: west of center. A research team led by astronomers at McGill University's McGill Space Institute (MSI) and the Institute for research on exoplanets (iREx) in Montreal made the discovery using NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope. Their findings are reported Jan. 22 in the journal Nature Astronomy. Wrong-way wind "We've previously studied nine other hot Jupiter, giant planets orbiting super close to their star. In every case, they have had winds blowing to the east, as theory would predict," says McGill astronomer Nicolas Cowan, a co-author on the study and researcher at MSI and iREx. "But now, nature has thrown us a curveball. On this planet, the wind blows the wrong way. Since it's often the exceptions that prove the rule, we are hoping that studying this planet will help us understand what makes hot Jupiters tick." CoRoT-2b, discovered a decade ago by a French-led space observatory mission, is 930 light years from Earth. While many other hot Jupiters have been detected in recent years, CoRoT-2b has continued to intrigue astronomers because of two factors: its inflated size and the puzzling spectrum of light emissions from its surface. "Both of these factors suggest there is something unusual happening in the atmosphere of this hot Jupiter," says Lisa Dang, a McGill PhD student and lead author of the new study. By using Spitzer's Infrared Array Camera to observe the planet while it completed an orbit around its host star, the researchers were able to map the planet's surface brightness for the first time, revealing the westward hot spot. New questions The researchers offer three possible explanations for the unexpected discovery - each of which raises new questions: The planet could be spinning so slowly that one rotation takes longer than a full orbit of its star; this could create winds blowing toward the west rather than the east - but it would also undercut theories about planet-star gravitational interaction in such tight orbits. The planet's atmosphere could be interacting with the planet's magnetic field to modify its wind pattern; this could provide a rare opportunity to study an exoplanet's magnetic field. Large clouds covering the eastern side of the planet could make it appear darker than it would otherwise - but this would undercut current models of atmospheric circulation on such planets. "We'll need better data to shed light on the questions raised by our finding," Dang says. "Fortunately, the James Webb Space Telescope, scheduled to launch next year, should be capable of tackling this problem. Armed with a mirror that has 100 times the collecting power of Spitzer's, it should provide us with exquisite data like never before." ### Scientists from the University of Michigan, the California Institute of Technology, Arizona State University, New York University Abu Dhabi, the University of California, Santa Cruz, and Pennsylvania State University also contributed to the study. "Detection of a westward hotspot offset in the atmosphere of hot gas giant CoRoT-2b," Lisa Dang, Nicolas B. Cowan, Joel C. Schwartz, et al. Nature Astronomy, Jan. 22, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-017-0351-6 Funding for the research was provided in part by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the California Institute of Technology's Infrared Processing and Analysis Center. Please follow SpaceRef on Twitter and Like us on Facebook. We can't seem to find the page you are looking for. You may have typed the address incorrectly or you may have used an outdated link. Europe, youre up! Sprudge has teamed up with Cafe Imports and La Marzocco to host another round of the Legendary Coffee Tour, and this one takes place on the other side of the pond. The three-day tour kicks off Tuesday, February 13th in Warsaw, Poland before heading southwest to the Czech Republic for stops in Brno and Prague. Like with previous iterations of the Legendary Coffee Tour, the stops in Warsaw, Brno, and Prague will all include a cupping of some of the green offerings available from Cafe Imports as well as free drinks afterwards. The dates for the three stops are: Feb 13: Warsaw, Poland Forum Coffee 6:00pm Feb 15: Brno, Czech Republic Industra Coffee 6:00pm Feb 16: Prague, Czech Republic Alf & Bet 5:00pm This is the just first leg of the 2018 Legendary Coffee Tour. Keep a look out for the announcement of more locations and dates in the coming months. For more information about the Legendary Coffee Tour, visit Cafe Imports Facebook events page. Zac Cadwalader is the news editor at Sprudge Media Network and a staff writer based in Dallas. Read more Zac Cadwalader on Sprudge. *all images via Cafe Imports Rosecroft Raceway is preparing for its 2018 winter/spring meet, which will begin one month earlier than the corresponding meet in 2017. The track south of Washington, D.C., will offer 32 nights of racing from February 18 through May 30. Last year the meet began March 18 and concluded May 31. For the most part, racing will be held twice a week: Sundays beginning at 4:40 p.m. and Wednesdays at 6:40 p.m. There will be two Saturday programs May 5 (Kentucky Derby Day) and May 19 (Preakness Stakes Day) with first post at 7 p.m. A special Monday card will be held April 2 (first post 6:40 p.m.) because Easter Sunday is a dark day. For most of last years winter/spring meet, Rosecroft raced three nights a week for a total of 34 programs. Rosecroft in May will host preliminary rounds and finals for all three-year-old divisions of the Maryland Sire Stakes as well as single events for four and five-year-old pacers and trotters. According to the Cloverleaf Standardbred Owners Association, training will be offered, weather permitting, February 3 and February 7 at 11 a.m. at Rosecroft. Qualifiers are scheduled for February 10 and February 14 at 11 a.m. Qualifiers during the meet will be offered each Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. For the race meet, Sunday cards will be drawn Thursdays and Wednesday cards will be drawn Fridays. (Rosecroft Raceway) What Does it Look Like to Really Follow Jesus? Author shows how to follow Christ as a disciple, not just as a fan Contact: Kevin Wandra, 404-788-1276, KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 23, 2018 /Standard Newswire/ -- Discipleship in Jesus' time meant getting as close to the Rabbi as one could, close enough that the dust from the Rabbi's sandals would fall on his disciple. That's how close Jesus wants us to be, writes Dr. Edward Sri in his new book, INTO HIS LIKENESS: BE TRANSFORMED AS A DISCIPLE OF CHRIST. Sri, a founding leader of FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) and professor of theology at the Augustine Institute, addresses what it means to be more than a fan of Jesus in INTO HIS LIKENESS. Discipleship needs to be more than just another Catholic buzz word. When grounded in Scripture, discipleship reminds us that following Jesus involves more than saying prayers and going to Mass and through the motions of the faith. It's about being changed in Christ's likeness "from one degree of glory to another" (2 Cor 3:18). "We must remember two basic truths: First, the truth of our weaknesses, wounds and sins (A). And second, the truth of what we're made for healing and perfection in Christ (B). Living as a disciple is all about the process of getting from A to B," Sri says. But on a practical level, how does one answer that gentle tugging of the Holy Spirit and experience lasting transformation in Christ? Sri structures INTO HIS LIKENESS in three parts: what it means to be a disciple, how to experience the transformation Christ wants to accomplish in our lives and how to deepen our encounter with God throughout our lives. At the end of every chapter, Sri offers reflection questions to help the reader consider the next steps God wants them to take as disciples. INTO HIS LIKENESS demonstrates what a transformative change in life looks like and how the reader can turn their love of Jesus from a fan to a disciple, to walk with Christ and be transformed by Him. "I've heard it said that 'God loves us right where we're at. But He also loves us too much to keep us there.' In his down-to-earth, relatable style, Dr. Sri does just that with this book," said Teresa Tomeo, syndicated Catholic talk show host of "Catholic Connection" and "The Catholic View for Women." "INTO HIS LIKENESS indeed meets us all right where we're at in life while providing a way forward. It's a path of powerful but practical spiritual steps to not only help us follow in the footsteps of Christ and His Church but to become more and more like Him in our everyday lives; something all of us need to continually strive for." For more information, to request a review copy or to schedule an interview with Dr. Edward Sri, please contact Kevin Wandra (404-788-1276 or KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com) of Carmel Communications. Ethiopia's Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn has rejected a call by Egypt for World Bank arbitration in a dispute over a hydroelectric dam Addis Ababa is building along its share of the Nile. The two countries are at odds over the construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam, with Cairo fearing the project would restrict waters flowing down from Ethiopia's highlands and through the deserts of Sudan to its fields and reservoirs. The Horn of Africa country, which aims to become the continent's biggest power exporter, says the $4 billion-dam will have no such impact. With discussions deadlocked for months over the wording of a study on its environmental impact, Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry proposed late last month that the World Bank be allowed to help settle the dispute. "Seeking professional support is one thing, transferring (arbitration) to an institution is another thing. So we told them that this is not acceptable with our side," the state-run Ethiopian News Agency quoted Hailemariam as saying. The agency, which spoke to Hailemariam upon his return from Cairo on Friday, said he rejected the proposal and said: "It is possible to reach agreement ... through cooperation and with the spirit of trust". After his meeting with the Ethiopian leader, Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi pledged not to let differences over a construction of the dam ruin relations with Addis Ababa. Countries that share the river have argued over the use of its waters for decades - and analysts have repeatedly warned that the disputes could eventually boil over into conflict. Among the questions Ethiopia and Egypt disagree about is the speed at which the dam's reservoir would be filled. The Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam - now 60 percent complete - will churn out 6,000 MW upon completion. It is among an array of projects being built. Under a new 2015-2020 development plan, Addis Ababa wants to raise power generation to 17,346 MW from a current capacity of just over 4,300 MW from hydropower, wind and geothermal sources. An Amazing Hindu Temple, and other sights in Trincomalee, Sri LankaIn the morning, we had a leisurely two hour breakfast by the lake.We had not intended to have a two hour breakfast, but service is sometimes slow at our understaffed boutique hotel.But because the breakfast was delicious and gourmet, we did not mind waiting.It is such a scenic spot, and it was lovely dining while being surrounded by the wildlife In the lake.After breakfast we drove over to the seaside town of Trincomalee, on the northeastern shores of Sri Lanka.The drive was beautiful, as we passed by verdant rice fields and natural wildlife reserves.Along the way, we came to a town with many roadside stalls selling Buffalo milk curd (yogurt) in unglazed clay pots.These clay pots are not refrigerated, and yet they can keep the curd fresh, even outdoors in the hot sun, for about two weeks.We stopped to try it.It was served drizzled with coconut honey or Jaggery made from Toddy Palm and coconuts.It was creamy and delicious, with a firm consistency like soft-serve ice cream.Our first stop in Trincomalee was one of the most amazing Hindu temples I have ever seen.It is called Sri Pathra Kali Aman.The outside was decorated with elaborate sculptures of deities and mystical animals, but it was the temple interior that took my breath away.The rendition of Hindu folklore stories in the form of psychedelic sculptures was breathtaking.Everywhere I looked, my mouth dropped with admiration for their creativity.The whole building could have won tons of attention and awards if it were displayed as an extravagant art installation at the Venice Art Biennale.Just as we arrived, a ceremony started, as a drummer and a horn player announced the beginning of the midday service.In the inner shrine, Hindu priests made offerings and blessings to the Goddess Kali.A few people sat on the floor of the temple and chanted, while outside several women cooked coconut milk rice.Outside, a few other women were sitting on the ground, preparing a vegetable curry meal.They were so friendly and simply delighted by the interest we showed in what they were doing.Unlike in many other parts of the world, here many Hindu people we have met take it as a compliment that we take their photos.They view it as if we find them interesting and exotic.Many times they even come to us and pose in front of us saying:You Take! Take!Take what? I ask.Picture, you take my picture, is the inevitable answer, always delivered with a warm smile.There is another Hindu temple in Trincomalee, located inside Fort Fredrick on top of the cliffs, where the ocean waves break onto the rocks below.It is called Koneswaram Kovil.The area of the fort is full of deer roaming around and being adored by the many pilgrims who come to see this temple.The pilgrims walk to the temple on a pedestrian road that is lined with shops selling hats, sweets, fresh juice, souvenirs, photos of Hindu deities in 3D holograms, toys for kids, wood carvings, baskets, flip flops, beads, jewelry and much more.We had to leave our shoes by the entrance and walk a long way to the top of the cliffs where the temple is located.Baskets made of wood sticks and silk ties hung from trees, as blessings and prayers offered by the people.Inside the temple, I saw a few young men, each carrying a whole coconut and circling around the inner shrine a few times.Then they went just outside the temple door, and they smashed their coconuts, one at a time, on a black rock until juice and coconut pieces were splattered everywhere.A group of young women came to ask me to take selfies with them.I posed for many photos and individual selfies with each girl.A man came to me and said,Bless the Lord!You know that you are God?You know?I am small and you are big.You understand what I am saying?I am small and you are big.You understand what I am saying?Yes, I understand your words, but I do not agree.I am big and you are big too.We are both gods, I said.No, you refuse to accept your divinity.You ARE BIG, and I am small!,he said, and with a huff, went to talk to Jules.Sir, good day to you, Bless the Lord!Do you know that you can be really bright?You will shine bright like a light?,He asked Jules, who was struggling with his malfunctioning camera.Yes, I am bright now, said Jules.No sir, you do not understand.Not as a human, but as a god, you have a light.As a human, you do not shine bright,But as a god, you are bright.You understand what I am saying?Jules quickly realizing that unless we want to argue esoteric philosophy in broken English for an hour, he must agree, said:Yes, I completely understand and I agree.Good! said the man, and continued on his walk.Nearby, we visited a small Buddhist temple with a large white Buddha statue standing on the rocks overlooking the shores where the fishermen kept their boats.The name of the temple, Girihandu Seya, roughly translates to Stupa on top of the rock.The small temple is one of Sri Lankas oldest Buddhist temples, created while the Buddha was alive. It is said to commemorate the place where the Buddha arrived in Sri Lanka, when he came on one of his three visits.The beaches were wide, the seas were rough, and fishermen kept their boats on the shore.A few shops along the beach offered boating, diving and water sports.There were also many down-market room rentals along the shore of the town.The better hotels are out of town, on the northern shores.Next to the fresh fish market, there are many shops selling a variety of dried fish.Dried fish is eaten as a salty condiment and is added to curry meals, or cooked in soups and curries.Across the street from those shops, fishermen were drying their catch of small fish on burlap sacks set out by the road.There are very old, natural Hot springs tubs that were used by the Buddhist monks living here, nearly two thousands years ago.The hot springs flow into small stone baths, and people come to bathe here.They do not allow the use of soap or shampoo, nor do they allow nudity.Women in their saris and men in their sarongs, pour buckets of hot water on their heads.Kids do run around in their underwear.There are lots of Toddy tree groves in Trincomalee.The fruit from the Toddy tree is used for making desserts; they eat the white flower and fruit, and they also make alcohol which they call Toddy Arak.The city of Trincomalee, like many other cities in Sri Lanka, is not geared for leisure and comfort.People have very little disposable income, and so cafes in which people sit with their lap tops and a cappuccino, are non existent outside of Colombo.The sidewalks are broken bits of pavement, and the shops that line the roads are auto repair shops, car tire shops, motorcycle garages and shops, a few used electronic shops and mobile phone shops, snack kiosks, cigarette and lottery shops, cheap clothing, kitchenware, and fabric stores, and other similar utilitarian offerings.I found on Google a restaurant that offered more relaxed seating.Even though the food was not fabulous, it was a relaxing break from the busy temples and shrines, although I have to admit that their Banana Roti drizzled with honey, was very yummy.I really enjoyed our day in Trincomalee.The temples were wild and stunning and it was nice to take a break from seeing ancient ruins.With love and light,Tali BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia appeared before the special court on Alia Madrasha premises in the city\'s Bakshibazar on Tuesday on two cases filed by Anti-Corruption Commission. Statement of Hajj Kaylan Parishad Enhance toilet facilities at Ctg Airport demanded In a statement of the Hajj Kaylan Parishad (HJKP), Chittagong demanded desired faculties for the intending Hajj and Omra Hajis at Chittagong Shah Amanat International airport. The statement signed by President and the Secretary General of the Parishad viz. Ahmadul Islam Chowdhury and Principal Dr Abdul Karim respectively. The statement was told that the existing toilets and wash rooms are not enough for the Hajis and most of the times, these toilets, wash rooms remain dirty which hampers for wearing Ehram and its sanctity on way to Saudi Arabia. . The HJKP presently appeal to the authority concerned of the airport to look into the matter of cleanliness of toilets, washroom, bathrooms etc specifically for Hajis and Omra Hajis so that these intending Hajis can easily use the toilets, bath rooms etc before boarding the flight, HJKP sources said. Child murdered after 'gang rape': Chittagong Metropolitan Police recovered dead body of a minor girl who they suspect was gang raped before murder. The body was recovered from the second floor stairwell of a six-storey building in Akbar Shah's 'Bishwa Bank Colony' area on early Monday. The deceased was identified as Fatema Akter Mim, 9, a second grader of a local madrasa and daughter of Md Jamal hailing from Sea World area. Officer-in-Charge of Akbar Shah PS Alamgir Mahamud said the body was sent to Chittagong Medical College Hospital for autopsy. Owner of the building lives in Dhaka while police detained its caretaker for interrogation, he added. Police continued their investigation to arrest the culprits. Mim's residence is half kilometre away from the spot where her body was found, said SI Shafiul Alam Munshi, adding, "Police are also investigating how she got there." Taiwan President does not exclude possibility of China attack China suspects Tsai wants to push for formal independence though she has said she wants to maintain the status quo. Reuters, Taipei : Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen said that she does not exclude the possibility of China attacking the self-ruled island, amid heightened tensions between the two sides including an increasing number of Chinese military drills near Taiwan. Beijing has taken an increasingly hostile stance toward Taiwan, which it considers a breakaway province, since the election two years ago of Tsai of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party. China suspects Tsai wants to push for formal independence, a red line for Communist Party leaders in Beijing, though she has said she wants to maintain the status quo and is committed to ensuring peace. In recent months, China has stepped up military drills around Taiwan, alarming Taipei. China says the exercises are routine, but that it will not tolerate any attempt by the island to declare independence. "No one can exclude this possibility. We will need to see whether their policymakers are reasonable policymakers or not," Tsai said in an interview on Taiwan television broadcast late on Monday, when asked whether China could attack Taiwan. "When you consider it (Taiwan-China relationship) from a regional perspective, any reasonable policymaker will have to very carefully deliberate as to whether launching war is an option," Tsai said. "When our government faces resistance and pressure from China, we will find our method to resist this. This is very important," she added. "In terms of China circulating around Taiwan or carrying out other military activities, our military is carefully following every action and movement in the scope of its monitoring," Tsai said. "Our military is very confident to face these situations." China considers proudly democratic Taiwan to be its sacred territory and has never renounced the use of force to bring it under Chinese control. Taiwan and China have also traded accusations this month about China's opening of new civilian aviation routes close to Taiwan-controlled islands in the Taiwan Strait. Although China has cut off a formal dialogue mechanism with Taiwan, Tsai acknowledged that both sides currently have a method for communications to avoid misunderstanding. Taiwan has been pressing for the United States, its main source of arms, to provide more advanced equipment, but has also been trying to bolster its own weapons programs, to avoid what Tsai termed "certain political difficulties" that come with buying weapons overseas in the teeth of Chinese opposition. Tsai said she believed one day Taiwan would be able to produce its own submarines, an item Taipei has long pressed for to face China's navy. China's Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tsai's remarks. "No one can exclude this possibility. We will need to see whether their policymakers are reasonable policymakers or not," Tsai said in an interview on Taiwan television broadcast late yesterday, when asked whether China could attack Taiwan. "When you consider it (Taiwan-China relationship) from a regional perspective, any reasonable policymaker will have to very carefully deliberate as to whether launching war is an option," Tsai said. Australia sends dozens of refugees from Pacific camps to US Dozens of refugees held for years in Australia's remote Pacific detention camps departed for resettlement in the United States on Tuesday, asylum-seeker advocates said. The Sydney-based Refugee Action Coalition said 40 men flew out from Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby under a deal struck by Australia with former US president Barack Obama but bitterly criticised by his successor Donald Trump. "It was a bitter-sweet moment for the refugees-who on the one hand, are happy to be gaining the freedom that Australia denied them more than four years ago; but on the other, they remain extremely concerned for those that are being left behind," the advocacy group said in a statement. The refugees, from camps on Manus Island, flew to Manila from where they will fly on to the US in different groups in the coming weeks before being resettled across the country, it said. The group released photos showing the refugees lining up before dawn to get on buses for the airport, then waiting at the gate to board their flight to Manila. Another 18 men were due to leave Port Moresby in the coming weeks, it said. Australian and US immigration authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the refugees' movements. Canberra sends asylum-seekers who try to reach Australia by boat to detention camps in Manus and the Pacific island of Nauru under a tough policy designed to choke off the flow of refugees to the country. More than 1,000 still remain in limbo in the remote locations. Canberra has strongly rejected calls to move the refugees to Australia and instead has tried to resettle them in third countries, including the United States. Abbas seeks EU recognition to State of Palestine AFP, Brussels : Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas on Monday urged the EU to "swiftly" grant official recognition to the state of Palestine as he sought support in Brussels amid a bitter row with Washington over the US plan to move its embassy to Jerusalem. Abbas told EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini that the Palestinians were still committed to the stalled Middle East peace process and urged the bloc to take a more "political" role. His mission to meet Mogherini and the 28 EU foreign ministers came as US Vice President Mike Pence told the Israeli parliament that Washington would move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem "by the end" of 2019, a step fiercely opposed by Palestinians. In an interview with AFP on Sunday in Brussels, Palestinian foreign minister Riad al-Malki said the EU recognising the state of Palestine would be "a way to respond" to US President Donald Trump's declaration of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital. "We truly consider the European Union as a true partner and friend, and therefore we call its member states to swiftly recognise the state of Palestine and we confirm that there is no contradiction between recognition and the resumption of negotiations," Abbas told reporters on Monday. The 82-year-old Abbas met Mogherini for one-on-one talks before joining the bloc's foreign ministers for lunch on the sidelines of their monthly meeting, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made a similar trip last month. Abbas said the Palestinians were still "keen on continuing on the way of negotiations" and committed to "fighting terrorism, violence and extremism locally, regionally and internationally". But as expected, recognition for Palestine was not forthcoming and there was also no discussion of an "association agreement" with the bloc-mooted beforehand as a way of giving Abbas something to take away. Mogherini said the focus had been on how the EU could help relaunch direct talks between the Israelis and Palestinians. She added that debate about a possible association agreement would go on within the bloc in the coming weeks. The Italian said the two sides needed "to show more than ever before their engagement with the international community" to work for peace. After Washington froze funding to the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Mogherini told Abbas he could count on the EU to continue its financial backing, but warned it was "not possible to imagine" the bloc could cover the shortfall resulting from Washington's decision. The EU and its member states are collectively the Palestinians' largest donors, Mogherini said, with nearly 359 million euros ($439 million) in support given in 2017. The Palestinian leadership has said it will not accept the Trump administration as a mediator in peace talks with Israel and wants an internationally led process. "The Palestinians are looking to move away from a US-led process to a more a multilateral process and there does appear to be a greater willingness on the EU side to look at such a process," said Hugh Lovatt, Israel Palestine Project Coordinator at the European Council on Foreign Relations. Trump's son-in-law and senior adviser Jared Kushner has been working for months with a small team to develop a new US proposal to revive peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians, but no details or even news of progress have emerged. A senior EU official said Friday the bloc "believes a plan is in the making" but is still in the dark about "the content of this plan or the parameters". Abbas, who came to Brussels in search of European support amid a bitter row with Washington over US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the Israeli capital, said the Palestinians were still committed to the stalled peace process. "We are keen on continuing on the way of negotiations because we believe it is the only way forward to reach a negotiated solution and peace between us and Israel," Abbas said before talks with Mogherini. "Despite the hurdles we can find on our way towards the settlement of this issue we remain committed to fighting terrorism, violence and extremism locally, regionally and internationally." Last week Abbas denounced Trump's peace efforts as the "slap of the century" and accused Israel of ending the Oslo accords that underpin negotiations-which have been effectively frozen since 2014. But on Monday he said his side were still prepared to stick to past agreements. Public and private cooperation for achieving SDGs Harald Nusser : This month marks two years since the launch of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Between now and 2030, the goals will remain the global blueprint for public and private efforts to promote education, employment, social protection, environmental quality, and health. So, this is a good moment for the world to start asking: how are we doing? Last year, the European Council and the member state governments said they represented, "a transformative political framework to eradicate poverty and achieve sustainable development globally [which] balances the economic, social and environmental dimensions of sustainable development." Building on more than a decade of successfully addressing the priority communicable diseases-HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria-and improvements in maternal and child health, we are now making progress towards achieving SDG3, which calls for countries to, "ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages." However, challenges posed by these communicable diseases remain. Adding to that challenge is the fact that today more than 75% of deaths worldwide come from noncommunicable diseases-like diabetes, cancer, respiratory, and cardiovascular illnesses. And NCDs are predicted to make up an even greater share of illness and premature death in the coming years. Better treatments and health systems can help address this but, as the joint statement recognised, the causes of chronic disease also include nutrition, chemical pollution and poor air quality. As a result, they aim to pursue a 'health in all policies' approach in development cooperation. Even while communities are expected to face a greater array of health threats than in the past, key health services will remain out of reach for many. A joint analysis by the World Health Organisation and World Bank shows that 400 million people still lack access to essential health services. So perhaps it's unsurprising: Of the estimated $270 billion annually projected to be needed from UN members and private partners for achieving the SDGs, up to 75% would, according to some projections, go toward health systems. This is a tremendous fiscal burden. To give an idea, EU institutions spent under a billion dollars on global health in 2015. Development aid can only address a fraction of this gap: most must come from governments in lower-income countries deciding to spend more on health, and through innovative models developed with businesses through public-private partnerships. To solve these challenges, we need to dramatically rethink what healthcare systems are designed to do and seek integrated solutions. This is especially true in developing countries, which are largely ill-prepared to manage the dual burden of communicable and noncommunicable disease. Rather than primarily addressing acute diseases, we need to reimagine healthcare systems to support people's lifelong, complex health needs through all stages of life. This means equipping healthcare providers with the knowledge and institutional support to provide quality services along a full continuum of care-including a much greater focus on disease prevention and the promotion of healthy lifestyles. Patients need to be able to conveniently access a full range of affordable, quality health and wellness services, information and support. Fortunately, the benefits of more integrated, people-centred healthcare systems will outweigh the costs. According to a joint analysis by the World Health Organization and the World Economic Forum, the world's poorest countries could deliver a robust package of "best buys" for preventing and treating NCDs for less than $1 per person annually. It's no secret that in low- and middle-income countries today, healthcare systems are highly fragmented, dominated by operations that were built over the last few decades to advance progress against individual diseases. To be sure, these efforts have injected sorely-needed resources and strengthened the capacity of healthcare systems in the poorest countries. In doing so, they have laid the foundation for the healthcare systems of the future. On this foundation, it is now essential to build new models of healthcare systems that proactively nurture the wellness of populations. One of Europe's great gifts to the world were the first large, national universal healthcare systems. If the benefits of these systems are to be reproduced in emerging economies, we need new ways of thinking about them and paying for them. With innovation and partnership, success is possible. During the World Economic Forum, my company, Novartis, Abraaj and Philips, will host a roundtable discussion on new blended financing partnerships to unlock investment in global health. Specific focus will be given to identifying public-private approaches that will stimulate blended investments and establish business models to ensure the availability of sustainable financing and resources. It's crucial that public, private and civil society sectors have the tools and platforms needed to collaborate effectively. Meanwhile, we'll need to increase focus on the world's poorest communities. Of course, it's also crucial to keep up the momentum and unlock new investment to accomplish the mission. The year 2030 is just over a decade away. (Harald Nusser is the head of Novartis Social Business). People demand poison-free fish and food Consumers have long been having imported fishes without laboratory test though many of them contain toxic substances that could cause serious diseases. And interestingly, when Bangladesh Food Safety Authority (BFSA) ordered for the compulsory test, as it found high levels of harmful heavy metal in some imported fishes, the importers stopped unloading the fish containers in the Chittagong Port, creating an unusual situation in the market. According to a report ran in The New Nation, the BFSA has requested the authorities concerned to conduct laboratory tests of imported fishes to ensure poison-free food for the people. It came up with the call after detecting high-level of toxic chemicals in the imported fishes. 'All the fishes imported from abroad are containing deadly chemicals. It poses serious threat to human health. So, imported fish requires mandatory laboratory test before entering local market,' reads a letter of BFSA sent to the concerned ministries and departments. Media reports said about 1,500 tonnes of fish have been lying in the Chittagong Port yard since January 1, hampering the normal operations of the port. Experts assume these toxic substances may come either from preservatives or from the food consumed by the fishes. The consumption of such metals beyond the permissible limit may damage the kidneys of infants and elderly persons and harm their liver cells. It may also cause damage to the eyes and ears in the long run. Testing all edible items after import should be mandatory as such items may contain deadly germ and bacterium of diseases. This is the first time in the country that the FSA have decided to test fish for detecting the presence of such metals. Normally, tests on fishes are done to detect hazardous substances such as formalin, which is also not done in a proper way. Following the directive, eight importers have been showing negative approach in taking the delivery. The fishes, worth about Tk 15 crore, are now being stored in refrigerated containers in the port yard. Under the rules, importers must collect their consignments within 30 days of their arrival. The fishes will be destroyed if hazardous metals beyond permissible limits are found. In that case, the importers will face fine or cancellation of license, if they are found involved in applying harmful preservatives to the fishes. About 90 percent of Bangladesh's imported fish come from Myanmar, the Maldives, and Oman. In the first five months of the current fiscal year, 16,032 tonnes of fish worth Tk 66.36 crore have been imported. For the last four years, the average annual fish imports through Chittagong Port stood at 48,000 tonnes. The food safety watchdog, which began its journey in February 2015, said it was urgent to take quick measures to ensure safe food to attain the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. Currently, lab tests are mandatory for more than 500 types of goods, including chemicals, food items, fruits, seeds, textile goods and scrap for detection of various harmful substances. The people demand poison-free fish and food. The authorities must respond to take necessary action. DB files case against Edn Ministry's two staff, owner of Lakehead School Staff Reporter : The Detective Branch of police have filed a case against two staff members of Ministry of Education and the owner of Lakehead Grammar School for the alleged bribery. Police alleged that they are involved exchanging money as bribe for reopening the English-medium school in Dhaka, according to a case filed by the Detective Branch. The Education Ministry in November ordered the school to close down after allegations that it was harbouring militancy and inspiring extremism. DB Sub-Inspector Monirul Islam Mridha started the case with Banani Police Station on Monday night. Law enforcers arrested the education minister's personal officer Motaleb Hossain in Mohammadpur's Basila on Sunday night. Education ministry staff Nasir Uddin and Lakehead Grammar School owner Khaled Hasan Matin were detained in Gulshan around the same time. All the three reportedly went missing in Dhaka between January 18 and Jan 20. They are now under detention by the Detective Branch. Detective Branch Joint Commissioner Abdul Baten said, Motaleb and Nasir were detained on charges of corruption while Khaled was accused of funding militancy. He said the police found Tk 130,000 in cash with Nasir. Separate general diaries were filed with the police to report that the three went 'missing'. Unidentified people led away Motaleb from his under-construction building in Basila and Khaled from in front of his institution on Saturday, according to the GDs. Motaleb Hossain, a resident of Jhalakathi, was posted to the education minister's office two years back. An Education Ministry official told media that Motaleb and Nasir had been working in favour of the school after getting a 'large amount of money' from the institution's authorities. "They will be penalised if the charges are found to be true in court. The ministry will take action accordingly," Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid said on Monday. New camps being guarded by same military force HRW News, (Bangkok) : Bangladesh's decision on January 22, 2018, to delay the repatriation of Rohingya refugees to Burma should be followed by suspending the bilateral plan, which threatens the refugees' security and well-being, Human Rights Watch said today. On January 16, Burma and Bangladesh announced an agreement that provides additional details on a plan that would repatriate over 770,000 mostly Rohingya Muslim refugees who left Burma's Rakhine State since October 2016. The majority fled a Burmese military campaign of ethnic cleansing that began in late August. Since January 19, hundreds of Rohingya refugees in Bangladeshi camps have protested against plans to begin repatriations. "Rohingya refugees shouldn't be returned to camps guarded by the very same Burmese forces who forced them to flee massacres and gang rapes, and torched villages," said Brad Adams, Asia director. "The repatriation plan appears to be a public relations ploy to hide the fact that Burma has not taken measures to ensure safe and sustainable returns." Burmese authorities have shown no ability to ensure the safe, dignified, and voluntary return of Rohingya refugees as provided by international standards, Human Rights Watch said. The plan, agreed in November 2017, would move returnees from processing centers to a hastily built "transit camp" before possible return to their home areas, where hundreds of villages have been burned to the ground. Internally displaced Rohingya moved in the past to such "temporary" camps have lacked enough aid and have been unable to move freely while being denied other basic rights. On January 22, Abul Kalam, Bangladesh's refugee relief and rehabilitation commissioner, said that repatriation had been postponed because, "The list of people to be sent back is yet to be prepared, their verification and setting up of transit camps is remaining." United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres told reporters on January 16: "The worst would be to move these people from camps in Bangladesh to camps in Myanmar [Burma], keeping an artificial situation for a long time and not allowing for them to regain their normal lives." The plan announced by Burma and Bangladesh would repatriate over 770,000 Rohingya and several hundred Hindu refugees. According to media reports and statements, the plan includes target numbers and timeframes for return, as well as the establishment of processing centers in Bangladesh and Burma. The governments agreed to repatriate at least 300 refugees per day, five days per week. It has been widely reported that the process is expected to run for the next two years. Putting quotas and deadlines on refugee returns reinforces the risk of forced refugee return. Burmese state media reported on January 15 that three camps would be created in Maungdaw Township in Rakhine State to process and house returning refugees. Two camps in Taung Pyo Letwe and Nga Khu Ya would be used to process refugees, while a camp in Hla Po Khaung would accommodate returning refugees. State media reported that: "The 124-acre Hla Po Khaung will accommodate about 30,000 people in its 625 buildings. Forty buildings will be completed by 25 January and 100 by 31 January. [E]ach building can accommodate 80 persons." Burmese state media has published photos of wooden buildings in Hla Po Khaung with high, barbed wire perimeter fences. Congress votes to end shutdown AFP : Congress put the US government back in business Monday by voting to end a three-day shutdown, as President Donald Trump claimed victory in his standoff with Democrats in Washington. The House voted 266 to 150 to extend federal funding, hours after Senate Democrats dropped their opposition to the plan after winning Republican assurances of a vote on immigration in the coming weeks. "I know there's great relief that this episode is coming to an end," House Speaker Paul Ryan told colleagues on the House floor. "But this is not a moment to pat ourselves on the back. Not even close." The stalemate consumed Washington for the better part of a week, as lawmakers and the White House feuded over immigration policy and the nation's two main political parties exchanged bitter barbs before finally reaching a deal. "I am pleased Democrats in Congress have come to their senses," Trump said in a defiant statement, as lawmakers moved to get hundreds of thousands of federal government employees back to work. Trump was expected to sign the measure into law later Monday, with government operations essentially returning to normal on Tuesday. Democrats decided to end the three-day shutdown after making progress with ruling Republicans toward securing the fate of hundreds of thousands of so-called "Dreamers" brought to America as children, many of them illegally. With Democratic support, a bill keeping the government funded until February 8 easily passed the Senate, where different versions of the funding had languished for days. Word of the compromise deal struck in Washington sent US stocks surging to new highs. But the White House appeared in no mood for bipartisanship or magnanimity after a shutdown that overshadowed Trump's first anniversary in office. Trump moved to undercut Democrats, saying he would only accept a comprehensive immigration reform -- one that notably addresses his demands for a border wall with Mexico as well as the fate of the "Dreamers." "We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it is good for our country," he said. Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer earlier announced his party would vote with Republicans to end the shutdown, but in a sign of the poisoned politics of Washington he pilloried Trump in the process. Youth hacked to death in city Staff Reporter : A 23-year old youth was hacked to death by some unidentified miscreants in the Old Dhaka on Tuesday. The victim has been identified as Jewel Mia, son of Mujibur Rahman, resident of East Chunarughat under Chakbazar Police station, police said. Ashraful Islam, Sub-Inspector (SI) of Chakbazar Police Station, said, "Two to three youths hacked Jewel to death with machetes in front of Diner-Alo Jam-e-Masque in the area around 12:50am." The locals rushed him to Dhaka Medical College and Hospital (DMCH) where the on-duty doctors declared him dead around 2:00am, the SI said. 2 Edn Ministry officials suspended for taking bribe Staff Reporter : The Ministry of Education has suspended two of their officials, now in police custody, on the charge of taking bribe over reopening of the controversial Lakehead Grammar School. The ministry took the decision just a day after the Detective Branch filed a case against the ministry officials. "We have suspended the accused officials. We will not tolerate any misdeed in the Education Ministry," Education Minister Nurul Islam Nahid told the media in the Secretariat on Tuesday. The ministry has ordered the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education to execute the decision against Nasir who was working on deputation. Nasir is also the Secretary General of the Secondary and Higher Secondary Government Staff and Officials' Welfare Forum. The suspension order will remain in force until the completion of the trial. Motaleb Hossain, personal officer of Education Minister Nahid, and Md Nasiruddin, an Upper Division Assistant (UDA), disappeared from Dhaka and reappeared in police custody. Police said they were involved in taking bribe in connection with the reopening of Lakehead Grammar School shut down by the district administration over affiliation with militancy and terrorism. A case has been filed against Motaleb Hossain, Nasir Uddin and Lakehead Grammar School owner Khaled Hasan Motin on various charges. Rafiz Uddin Ahmed, Sub-Inspector of Banani Police Station, said that Sub-Inspector Monirul Islam Mridha of Detective Branch of Police of South Division filed the case against them on Monday night on various charges, including payments of bribes. Previously, on Sunday night, Detective Branch (DB) of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP) arrested missing Lakehead Grammar School owner Khaled Hasan Motin, Motaleb Hossain and the Education Ministry staff Nasir Uddin from different areas of the city. Earlier, Motaleb went missing from the capital on Saturday. His brother filed a general diary with Hazaribagh Police Station in this regard. Lakehead Grammar School owner Khaled Hasan Motin also went missing on Saturday. Nasir Uddin, an upper division clerk of Education Ministry, remained traceless since Thursday afternoon. On November 6, 2017, the government suspended the academic functions of Lakehead Grammar School, Dhanmondi branch and two other branches at Gulshan on charges of patronising religious extremism and militancy. According to the Education Ministry, the school was running without approval from the ministry. Narayanganj City Corporation Mayor Selina Hayat Ivy speaking at a press briefing after her release from the Labaid Hospital on Tuesday. A fisherman found Jubal Alexanders headless body May 3, 2016, his right leg propped up against the steering wheel of his black Chevrolet pickup, which was parked near a county boat ramp at Austin Bayou about 10 miles from the INEOS plant where he worked. As I said yesterday, the deadline for the Baker's Dozen "It Must Be Color" feature is Tuesday night at 11:59 p.m. I've already received enough submissions to build the feature. I'm having a bit of a conceptual mindlock about the concept, though. Many people are simply sending in pictures that are of strong colors. I'm not sure that's the same thing as a picture that needs to be in color in order to work. Pictures that are purely of colors or a color are descendants of things like Eggleston's seminal "Red Ceiling," simplistic advertising and photo-magazine cliches, and the American hard edge / color field painter Ellsworth Kelly. Of course they "must be in color," though, because the color is the point and without the color they lose all trace of meaning or attractiveness. So I will include some photographs of that type in the set. But you're unlikely to do it better than people who have committed their creative lives to it, such as Pete Turner or Harald Mante. But consider the difference between Ellsworth Kelly and Mark Rothko: Ellsworth Kelly, Yellow over Dark Blue, 19645 Mark Rothko, Untitled (yellow and blue), 1954 Very similar motifs, but to me, the Rothko painting is art and the Kelly print is just colors. (I've never cared for Kelly. I hope his fans will pardon me.) I'm aware that color affects people differently, and although I'm sensitive to it, I have suspicions of it and misgivings about it. There's something knee-jerk about it, a potential toward some base animal instinctual trigger that I don't trust. Consider what the English composer Benjamin Britten said of Beethoven, in an interview: A certain rot, if that isn't too strong a word, set in with Beethoven. Before Beethoven, music served things greater than itself. For example, the glory of God, the greatest glory of all. Or the glory of the state. Or the composer's social environment. After Beethoven the composer became the center of his own universe. Hence the Romantic school. I think you could say the same thing about Eggleston's "The Red Ceiling." A great deal of reverent verbiage has been piled up at the foot of that photograph, but really, the idea became debased, morphing into the cliche that if you want to be sure of appealing to viewers, "make it big and make it red." And then consider (in light of the Rothko and the Kelly) this photograph by John Crowley of Clonmel, Ireland: Photo by John Crowley Human beings are intensely sensitive to hierarchies of status, and I'm well aware that all Rothkos and most Kellys are "better" or "worth more" than any photograph and you're not supposed to (perhaps not even allowed to) think otherwise. (Ve haff experts.) But I think it's instructive to try to set aside received hierarchies of status and received assumptions about value once in a while, just as a mental exercise; and in that sense I'd say John Crowley's photograph is better and worth more than either the Kelly or the Rothko, as outrageous and contrary as such a claim might be. (At least when all three are democratized to small JPEGsRothkos have real presence in person that almost no photograph can match. You can't make a one-of-a-kind photograph, even if you do.) It's just that there's a certain rot in modern art's addiction to color for its own sake. Yeah, yeah, blue and yellow are opposites, wow, and putting them next to each other strikes a certain emotional chord down in the lizard-brain, the amygdala down by the brain stem. We geddit. The Crowley has blue and yellow too, but does more with it, plays with it more, certainly than that simplistic thought-free Kelly print. It gives you a real sense of place and light, and isn't even less lovely. I've no doubt that most people are going to love the next Baker's Dozen. The submission count is up to 205, approximately. That's going to make it a whole lot easier to edit than the black-and-white set was! Although I don't think I've received one single "bad" photograph yet. Mike P.S. Here's a great photo of Ellsworth Kelly by Sebastian Kim. (Heh.) Original contents copyright 2018 by Michael C. Johnston and/or the bylined author. All Rights Reserved. Links in this post may be to our affiliates; sales through affiliate links may benefit this site. B&H Photo Amazon US Amazon UK Amazon Germany Amazon Canada Adorama (To see all the comments, click on the "Comments" link below.) Featured Comments from: scott kirkpatrick: "That's a powerful Ellsworth Kelly picture. It didn't need color." Ellsworth Kelly, Yellow over Dark Blue, 19645 (original in color) Tex Andrews: "I kinda felt the same way about Kelly (although I loved his drawings), until I saw a works on paper show of his at the National Gallery sometime back in the late '80s or early '90s. It was revelatoryand he was doing it in the '40s, which surprised the heck out of me. I've thought a lot more of him since. That said, I can see why you seem...'suspicious'? But there really is a zen to his work. The challenge to the viewer is sort of seeing beyond that first smack of color." Eolake: "Funny, I had the opposite reaction to the two paintings. I love the Ellsworth Kelly one, it really moves me. But of course art is subjective, and the more abstract it is, the more subjective it is, surely." Mark: "Heres a true story. Husband and wife buy a Rothko painting many years ago and loan it to a museum. I wont identify it precisely as I was an ancillary part of the litigation later surrounding it. Husband takes ill and dies. Widow discovers soon thereafter their liquid cash for living was nowhere near what she thought it was and needed money. Gets the Rothko back from the museum to sell. But being embarrassed about her financial position, does this on the QT. Shes advised auction will bring the best return, but she just cant allow her high society friends to know shes in difficult straits requiring this sale. So she contacts the art dealer they originally bought it from. He finds a buyer who signs a non-disclosure agreement and an agreement not to resell, all of which is probably not worth the paper its printed on, so it turned out. He paid her $9 million for it. Within a year or two he places it up for auction and it sells for $29 million. She then sues the art dealer and the buyer/seller. That was my intro to Rothko, never having heard or seen anything of his before. The photo you display above is much nicer. The fact anyone feels a square or rectangle or two can possibly be worth that kind of dough boggles my simple mind." Mike relies: What happened with the suit? Seems to me like it was her own fault; she could have put it up for auction herself. It was her own desire to keep it quiet that cost her the extra $20 million. If you want the best price for something, you have to make the product available to the greatest number of potential buyers. Or was she just angry that by having it put up for auction, her own financial position was advertised to her social connections, despite her intentions? As for the agreement not to resell, I think it's difficult to a.) control events from beyond the grave, b.) control events past your own ownership. I have an acquaintance, a childhood friend who is very wealthy, who bought a large farm property north of Milwaukee on which to build a house and use as a private estate. The farmer had been having a bitter battle as he wished to keep the land out of the grasp of developers. She apparently made him some assurance that she would not resell the land for some period of timeunder what exact conditions I do not know; or else he just assumed she would not. I don't know the details. She then found a nicer piece of property not far away, bought that, and sold the first. The farmer was apoplectic. My feeling at the time is, if he wanted to control the land, he shouldn't have sold it. Once it belongs to someone else, he and his demands are out of the picture. Robin Dreyer: "Although I love representational art as much as anyone (I'm a photographer, after all), it was a room full of Rothkos at the National Gallery that produced one of the strongest emotional responses I've ever had in the presence of art. No JPEG on a screen or even a well-printed image in a large-format book can reproduce the effect of being in the presence of those paintingsespecially if they are arranged and lit as well as the were in that room." Mike replies: I'll second that. I find Rothko's best work very moving in person, almost ineffably so. William Langford: "To me Art is never a thing hanging on a wall. Art is what happens between the thing and the viewer. As seen in reproductions a Rothko painting is not very interesting. The real thing, seen under the prescribed lighting, with limited seating, and cordoned off for a personal experience...now that is when Art can happen." Mike replies: I agree with that, but for devil's advocacy, there is John Berger's Marxist critique of the "aura" of the original object in his four-part documentary "Ways of Seeing." "If Sister Wendy Beckett is the kindly grandmother who takes you by the hand, and leads you, beatifically, through the wonders of art history," writes Carolina A. Miranda, "John Berger was the hippie-Marxist uncle who gave you the red pill and told you it was all a mirage." ("Art's red pill: An appreciation of critic John Berger," L.A. Times, Jan. 5, 2017.) Glyphs were divine words And these glyphs in the Stela, what makes them so potent? she said. Glyphs were never just a writing s... Paris, TX (75460) Today Rain showers this morning with mostly sunny conditions during the afternoon hours. High 91F. Winds N at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 60%.. Tonight Clear skies. Low near 60F. Winds NNE at 5 to 10 mph. A record number of CEOs are optimistic about the economic environment worldwide, at least in the short term, with over half of them expecting headcount to increase in their companies. Thats some of the key findings of PwCs 21st survey of almost 1,300 CEOs around the world, launched today at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Fifty-seven percent of business leaders say they believe global economic growth will improve in the next 12 months. Its almost twice the level of last year (29 percent) and the largest ever increase since PwC began asking about global growth in 2012. Optimism in global growth has more than doubled in the US (59%) after a period of uncertainty surrounding the election (2017: 24%). Brazil also saw a large increase in the share of CEOs who are optimistic global growth will improve (+38% to 80%). And even among the less optimistic countries such as Japan (2018: 38% vs. 2017: 11%) and the UK (2018: 36% vs. 2017: 17%), optimism in global growth has more than doubled since last year. CEOs optimism in the global economy is driven by the economic indicators being so strong. With the stock markets booming and GDP predicted to grow in most major markets around the world, its no surprise CEOs are so bullish, comments Bob Moritz, Global Chairman, PwC. Confidence in short-term growth This optimism in the economy is feeding into CEOs confidence about their own companies outlook, even if the uptick is not so large. 42% percent of CEOs said they are very confident in their own organisations growth prospects over the next 12 months, up from 38% last year. Looking at the results by country, its a mixed bag. CEOs outlook improved in several key markets including in Australia (up 4% to 46%) and China (up 4% to 40%), where the share of CEOs saying they are very confident in their own organisations 12-month growth prospects rose. In the US, CEOs confidence has recovered. After election nerves last year, the early focus on regulation and tax reform by the new administration has seen confidence in business growth prospects for the year ahead rising significantly from 39% in 2017 to 52% in 2018. And North America is the only region where a majority of CEOs are very confident about their own 12-month prospects. In the UK, with Brexit negotiations only recently reaching a significant milestone, business leaders drop in short-term confidence is unsurprising (2018: 34% vs. 2017: 41%). The top three most confident sectors for their own 12-month prospects this year are Technology (48% very confident), Business Services (46%) and Pharmaceutical and Life Sciences (46%) all exceeding the global very confident level of 42%. Strategies for growth remain largely unchanged on last years survey CEOs will rely on organic growth (79%), cost reduction (62%), strategic alliances (49%) and M&As (42%). There was a small increase in interest in partnering with entrepreneurs and start-ups (33% vs 28% last year). Top countries for growth CEO confidence in the US market extends overseas, with non-US based CEOs once again voting it the top market for growth in the next 12 months. This year, the US reinforces its lead on China (46% US vs 33% China, with the US lead over China up 2% compared with 2017). Germany (20%) remains in third place, followed by the UK (15%) in fourth place, while India bumps Japan as the fifth most attractive market in 2018. Even with high levels of global growth confidence, business leaders want and need safe harbours for investment to secure short-term growth, comments Bob Moritz, Global Chairman, PwC. Access to consumers, skills, finance and a supportive regulatory environment are reinforcing leading markets positions, for business leaders to achieve their short-term growth targets. Jobs and digital skills Confidence in short-term revenue growth is feeding into jobs growth, with 54% of CEOs planning to increase their headcount in 2018 (2017: 52%). Only 18% of CEOs expect to reduce their headcount. Healthcare (71%), Technology (70%), Business Services (67%) Communications (60%) and Hospitality and Leisure (59%) are amongst the sectors with the highest demand for new recruits. On digital skills specifically, over a quarter (28%) of CEOs are extremely concerned about their availability within the country they are based, rising to 49% extremely concerned in South Africa, 51% in China and 59% in Brazil. Overall, 22% of CEOs are extremely concerned about the availability of key digital skills in the workforce, 27% in their industry and 23% at the leadership level. Investments in modern working environments, learning and development programmes and partnering with other providers are the top strategies to help them attract and develop the digital talent they need. Impact of technology While recent research by PwC showed that workers were optimistic about technology improving their job prospects, CEOs admit that helping employees retrain, and increasing transparency on how automation and AI could impact jobs is becoming a more important issue for them. Two thirds of CEOs believe they have a responsibility to retrain employees whose roles are replaced by technology, chiefly amongst the Engineering & Construction (73%), Technology (71%) and Communications (77%) sectors. 61% of CEOs build trust with their workforce by creating transparency, at least to some extent, on how automation and AI impact their employees. Bob Moritz, Global Chairman, PwC, comments: Our education systems need to arm a global workforce with the right skills to succeed. Governments, communities, and businesses need to truly partner to match talent with opportunity, and that means pioneering new approaches to educating students and training workers in the fields that will matter in a technology-enabled job market. It also means encouraging and creating opportunities for the workforce to retrain and learn new skills throughout their careers. As the interest in apprenticeships and internships shows, lifelong training relevant to a business or industry is critical. The digital and automation transition is particularly acute in the Financial Services sector. Almost a quarter (24%) of Banking & Capital Markets and Insurance CEOs plan workforce reductions, with 28% of Banking & Capital Markets jobs likely to be lost to a large extent due to technology and automation. Threats to growth Despite the optimism in the global economy, anxiety is rising on a much broader range of business, social and economic threats. CEOs are extremely concerned about geopolitical uncertainty (40%), cyber threats (40%), terrorism (41%), availability of key skills (38%) and populism (35%). These threats outpace familiar concerns about business growth prospects such as exchange rate volatility (29%) and changing consumer behaviour (26%). Underlining the shift, extreme concern about terrorism doubled (2018: 41% vs 2017: 20%) and terrorism enters the top 10 threats to growth. The threat of over-regulation remains the top concern for CEOs (42% extremely concerned), and over a third (36%) remain concerned about an increasing tax burden. Key skills availability is the top concern for CEOs in China (2018: 64% extremely concerned vs. 2017: 52%). In the US (63%) and the UK (39%), cyber has become the top threat for CEOs displacing over-regulation. And in Germany, cyber jumped from being the fifth threat in 2017 to third place (28%) this year. A year after the Paris Agreement was signed by over 190 nations, which saw countries commit to voluntary action on climate change and low carbon investment, CEOs concern about the threat of climate change and environmental damage to growth prospects has now doubled to 31% of CEOs (2017: 15%). High-profile extreme weather events and the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement have significantly raised the profile of business action on climate risk, regulation and resilience. In China, over half (54%) of business leaders are extremely concerned about climate change and environmental damage as a threat to business growth, equal with their levels of concern about geopolitical uncertainty and protectionism. The higher level of concern is being driven by larger societal and geopolitical shifts rather than the dynamics of business leaders own markets, commented Moritz. Its clear their mid to long-term confidence in revenue growth is tempered by threats the business world is not used to tackling directly itself. - TradeArabia News Service Saudi Arabia has unveiled a first look at the Kingdom's unique data tool for measuring its performance trajectory in relation to other nations at the ongoing World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland. The International Performance Hub (IPH) an interactive platform designed to track over 500 Key Performance Indicators under 12 main pillars that enables comparison for over 200 countries compiles metrics from prominent international bodies, including the World Bank and the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Developed by The National Center for Performance Measurement (Adaa) the International Performance Hub (IPH) is a landmark effort led by Saudi Arabia to encourage countries to use technology and performance data to track their progress as they work to achieve development goals. IPH aims to promote integrity, accountability and transparency in the public sector and beyond. As a demonstration of the commitment with which Saudi Arabia approaches its 2030 goals, IPH also seeks to provide a credible and 'outside-in' perspective on the Kingdom's evolution along key quantifiable indicators across the socio-economic spectrum comparing progress at every stage to other countries and peer-groups around the world. Husameddin AlMadani, director general of the National Center for Performance Measurement said, "Saudi Arabia is undertaking a major multi-year transformation. The ambitious Vision 2030 program touches upon nearly every aspect of the country's performance and looks to make significant progress on the entire socio-economic frontier. As the nation pursues a long list of objectives in its transformation, comparing the country's performance progression against the backdrop of international best practices is crucial." Economist Jacques Attali, president of Positive Planet and the Positive Economy Forum, a data and knowledge partner of the IPH, said: "The International Performance Hub announces a much-needed tool to foster transparent and positive governance through shared knowledge about the impact of public policies. Its launch in Davos is a very promising beginning, and an opportunity to make it a truly global and collaborative ambition." With today's announcement, Adaa officially launches the beta phase of the International Performance Hub (IPH) in Davos. The final launch of the International Performance hub is awaited later in 2018. TradeArabia News Service Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) is in the process of licensing three aviation leasing companies - Airborne Capital Limited, Stellwagen Group and International Airfinance Corporation (IAFC). The addition of these prominent companies to ADGMs aviation finance and leasing sector is another milestone in Abu Dhabis progress to becoming a world class, dynamic aviation hub. Dhaher Bin Dhaher Al Mheiri, CEO of the ADGM Registration Authority, said: We are pleased to welcome Airborne Capital, Stellwagen and IAFC to ADGMs growing family. The interest from the three companies to join ADGM stemmed from the overall platform made available by the three authorities to provide an efficient, business-friendly and successful integration into the region. The aviation ecosystem established by ADGM allows companies to integrate existing operational businesses such as lessors, banks, and law firms with extensive legal structures available that are tailored to aviation financing and underpinned by English Common law Al Mheiri added. Another influencing factor is the distinctive tax savings offered. ADGM has 0% corporate tax and a plethora of double taxation treaties. The taxation treaties were researched and benchmarked against other global hubs by PriceWaterhouseCooper (PWC) and ADGM acquired positive results. David Butler, Group Chief Operations Officer, Stellwagen Group, added: Stellwagen is delighted to be working closely with the ADGM to launch a new leasing company in the near future. We see significant unique opportunities in the Gulf region for further growth. TradeArabia News Service UAE-based Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower) has joined hands with Honeywell, a global technology and manufacturing leader, to explore opportunities to improve energy efficiency in the region. Empower said the two companies will discuss new alternative refrigerants adoption for reducing energy consumption and meeting environmental target in the region. The duo has stressed on supporting the UAEs efforts to become one of the leading smart cities in the world, said Ahmad Bin Shafar, the chief executive of Empower, after a meeting with Honeywell President George Koutsaftes. The meeting between the two companies focused on the latest environment-friendly refrigerant solutions in cooling buildings that could help Empower further conserve energy in its operationsm, he noted. The two leaders exchanged knowledge and shared latest innovations, like the low-global-warming-potential (LGWP) refrigerants focused on energy efficiency. "Energy efficient refrigerants not only help us improve energy efficiency, but also meet environmental targets to reduce greenhouse gas emissions," remarked Bin Shafar. Empower expressed interest to visit the Honeywell Geismar, Louisiana production facility in the US as part of its plans to further explore opportunities in sustainable refrigeration. The GCC countries are the key signatories of the Kigali amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which is focused on phasing down the use of high-global-warming hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). Earlier this year, Empower announced the purchase of 60 advanced, eco-friendly EcoWise chillers, one of the largest trade deals in district cooling, with a total RT of 200,000 which helped the company drive toward its carbon emission reduction goals. Bin Shafar pointed out that there was an increasing awareness among global businesses to address the harmful impacts of greenhouse gases (GHG) in various industries. Empower, he stated, welcomes Honeywells efforts to explore collaboration opportunities regarding eco-friendly alternative refrigerants as well as some of the innovative concepts in managing district cooling that could further enhance UAEs smart city initiatives. "Empower supports all efforts that would push the country towards achieving its global commitment to phase out harmful gases from industries and build a sustainable city," he added. Honeywell is a world leader in the development, manufacture, and supply of refrigerants that are sold worldwide under the Solstice and Genetron brand names for a range of applications, including refrigeration, building and automobile air conditioning. Speaking at the discussion, Koutsaftes said: "Honeywell is committed to developing next-generation technologies that help meet the global goal of conserving energy, as well as eliminating GHG emissions that contribute to global warming." "With annual, average energy usage in the UAE projected to increase to 5 percent through 2020, there is a strong demand for these types of solutions. Together, Empower and Honeywell are working to help customers to meet regional goals of sustainability and energy efficiency," he added.-TradeArabia News Service Honeywell, a global leader in connected buildings, showcased the Command and Control Suite release 200 (CCS R200), which connects building personnel with data analytics to help drive operational improvements and efficiencies, at Intersec, in Dubai, UAE. Intersec, a global leading trade fair for security, safety and fire protection, which opened yesterday (January 21) and will run until January 23, at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. CCS R200 builds on the original Command and Control Suite by offering more user interfaces to bring building performance data to key personnel in the Middle East, when and where they need it from building operators and managers to security incident response teams helping to reduce operational costs, mitigate risk and enhance business continuity, said a statement. Honeywells CCS R200 combines intelligent automation, advanced analytics and data visualisation with the contemporary user experience of consumer home and mobile electronics, bringing simple, intuitive displays to building operations to enhance facility and security management in an easy-to-understand manner for building operators in the region, it added. The latest release brings the holistic integration, map-based visualisation and incident workflows of CCS to the control room workstation, desktop PCs and windows tablets, extending the softwares mobile, touch-optimised experience to more interfaces. This creates a seamless hub of information pulled from IT networks, building control systems and outside sources, which allows for better incident response and operational decision-making, it said. Philipose Jacob, regional general manager, Gulf, Honeywell Building Solutions, said: The value of a buildings data is dependent on how easily the right people can access and understand it. With regional governments introducing strict regulations for the installation of integrated solutions, there is a growing need for operations to become increasingly data-driven in the Middle East. It is now imperative for organisations in the region to ensure theyre taking steps to make this data accessible and actionable to those who need it in order to do their jobs, such as security personnel, building operators and C-suite executives, he added. Thats why our company chooses to develop more interfaces and software mobility functions with CCS. Were providing additional ways for key personnel to tap into building insights so they can keep systems up and running and optimise building operations, he said. Building off the basic components of the original Command and Control Suite, CCS R200 is designed with the same ease of use as the Command Wall, which was designed as a collaboration and team decision-making tool, and features map-based visualization and navigation from a single intuitive touch screen. CCS R200 brings that same ease of use to core operational interfaces, the Command Station and Command Console, extending an organizations ability to turn complex data into easy-to-implement changes to enhance overall building operations. The Command Station is a single window, single monitor interface, designed for a desktop PC, laptop and Windows tablet, and is often ideal for facility technicians, security guards and management as well as for casual use by occupants. It allows even inexperienced users to quickly understand the overall situation at a glance by providing unique insights in a straightforward manner, while allowing expert users the ability to drill down to technical detail and full system control. The Command Console, in contrast, is a premium multi-window, multi-monitor interface designed for engineers, control-room operators, and building mangers and others who need to view insights from multiple systems and areas of a building simultaneously. It seamlessly integrates with Honeywells Digital Video Manager console to access and provide a view of video footage and corresponding data for improved operational decision-making. In addition to new interfaces, CCS R200 includes enhancements to the original systems Incident Workflow feature, which guides users through scripted responses to security incidents and other emergencies. The enhancements include map visualization to clearly locate an incident, such as a fire alarm going off, to quickly identify the exact location. Integrated with the underlying control system, workflows can be initiated by system alarms and procedure steps can include operator-initiated control actions such as announcement, equipment start up, door release and other actions depending on the needs of the incident. Additionally, with CCS R200, organisations can issue multiple Incident Workflows, which can be managed by different people in order to promote efficiency and overall security. CCS R200 integrates with Honeywells flagship building management platform, Enterprise Buildings Integrator (EBI), which helps facilitate the integration of security, comfort, life safety and energy systems among other functions. CCS R200 is available now, it stated. TradeArabia News Service Germany-based Evonik, a global leader in specialty chemicals, and Siemens are planning to use electricity from renewable sources and bacteria to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) into specialty chemicals. The two companies are working on electrolysis and fermentation processes in a joint research project called Rheticus, said a statement. The project was recently launched and is due to run for two years. The first test plant is scheduled to go on stream by 2021 at the Evonik facility in Marl, Germany, which produces chemicals such as butanol and hexanol, both feedstocks for special plastics and food supplements, for example, it said. The next stage could see a plant with a production capacity of up to 20,000 tonnes a year. There is also potential to manufacture other specialty chemicals or fuels. Some 20 scientists from the two companies are involved in the project, it added. Dr Gunter Schmid, technical project responsible of Siemens Corporate Technology, said: We are developing a platform that will allow us to produce chemical products in a much more cost-effective and environmentally-friendly way than we do today. Using our platform, operators will in future be able to scale their plants to suit their needs, he said. The new technology combines multiple benefits. It not only enables chemicals to be produced sustainably, it also serves as an energy store, can respond to power fluctuations and help stabilise the grid. Rheticus is linked to the Kopernikus Initiative for the energy transition in Germany which is seeking new solutions to restructure the energy system. The Rheticus project will receive 2.8 million ($3.42 million) in funding from Germanys Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), said a statement. With the Rheticus platform, we want to demonstrate that artificial photosynthesis is feasible, adds Dr Thomas Haas, who is responsible for the project in Evoniks strategic research department Creavis. Artificial photosynthesis is where CO2 and water are converted into chemicals using a combination of chemical and biological steps, in a process similar to how leaves use chlorophyll and enzymes to synthesise glucose. Siemens and Evonik are each contributing their own core competencies to this research collaboration. Siemens is providing the electrolysis technology, which is used in the first step to convert carbon dioxide and water into hydrogen and carbon monoxide (CO) using electricity. Evonik is contributing the fermentation process, converting gases containing CO into useful products by metabolic processes with the aid of special micro-organisms. In the Rheticus project, these two steps electrolysis and fermentation are scaled up from the laboratory and combined in a technical test facility. Dr Karl Eugen Hutmacher from the BMBF, said: Rheticus brings together the expertise of Evonik and Siemens. This research project shows how we are applying the Power-to-X idea. Using electricity to generate chemicals is an idea from the Power-to-X concept. As one of the four pillars of the Kopernikus Initiative, the idea is to help convert and store renewable, electrical energy efficiently. At the same time, the Rheticus platform also contributes to the reduction of carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere, as it uses CO2 as a raw material. Three tons of carbon dioxide would be needed to produce one tonne of butanol, for example. Evonik and Siemens see great future potential in the Rheticus platform. It will make it simple to scale plants to the desired size the chemical industry will be able to adapt them flexibly to local conditions. In future, they could be installed anywhere where there is a source of CO2 power plant waste gas or biogas for instance. Schmid said: Its modular nature and flexibility in terms of location, raw material sources and products manufactured make the new platform attractive for the specialty chemicals industry in particular. We are confident that other companies will use the platform and integrate it with their own modules to manufacture their chemical products, he added. TradeArabia News Service The UAE and Saudi Arabia are well positioned for the Fourth Industrial Revolution, according to American global management consulting firm A T Kearney. The UAE has the opportunity to take advantage of emerging technologies and changes in production, as it ranks in the top quartile of countries performing well in the areas of technology and innovation, human capital and trade, said the report. Saudi Arabia has also ranked highly and has huge opportunity along with the plans underway to meet Saudi Vision 2030, according to the new Readiness for the Future of Production Report produced by World Economic Forum, in collaboration with global management consultants, A T Kearney. The report, which measures how well-positioned 100 countries and economies, across all geographies and stages of development, are to benefit from the changing nature of production. It reveals that only 25 countries are strongly positioned to benefit, as production systems stand on the brink of exponential change. The UAE, which aims to increase its manufacturing share of gross domestic product (GDP) to 25 per cent by 2025, along with Saudi Arabia, are flagged as high-potential countries and are positioned to leapfrog in the emerging production paradigm. These countries have a relatively small current production base, but have the resources and potentially the right combination of other capabilities to capitalise on opportunities. Johan Aurik, managing partner and chairman of A T Kearney, said: In a changing production landscape, each country will need to differentiate itself, capitalise on competitive advantages and make wise trade-offs in forming its own unique strategy for the future of production. Given the speed and scale of changes occurring in the environment, the new diagnostic and benchmarking tool can help raise awareness and sharpen a countrys response, he said. As the Fourth Industrial Revolution gathers momentum, the report highlights how decision-makers from the public and private sectors are confronted with a new set of uncertainties regarding the future of production. Rapidly emerging technologiessuch as the Internet of Things (IoT), artificial intelligence, wearables, robotics and additive manufacturingare spurring the development of new production techniques, business models, and value chains that will fundamentally transform global production. Mauricio Zuazua, partner, A T Kearney, said: This is just one aspect of a vastly shifting landscape. It is imperative that government and business leaders take a fresh look at how their countries and corporations will contribute to the worlds fast-changing value networks to capitalize on future production opportunities, mitigate risks and challenges, and be resilient and agile in responding to unknown future shocks. This report is a key contribution to the World Economic Forums initiative on Shaping the Future of Production. The initiative brings together global leaders and decision-makers in seeking to address how the transformation of production systems, from R&D to the consumer, can drive innovation, sustainability and employment, to benefit all people, it stated. TradeArabia News Service A tsunami alert has been issued in North America after a 7.9-magnitude earthquake was recorded off the coast of Alaska in the US. The quake hit 280km (173 miles) south-east of Kodiak, at a depth of 25km, at 00:31 (09:31 GMT), a BBC report said quoting the US Geological Survey said. The US National Weather Service says a warning is in effect for the coasts of Alaska and British Columbia, while the US west coast is on tsunami watch. But the tsunami watch for the islands of Hawaii and Guam has been cancelled. Officials in Anchorage warned coastal areas, saying there was "extraordinary threat to life or property". The alert told people to seek refuge on higher ground in affected areas. Residents in several places around the Gulf of Alaska were told to leave. They included Homer, Seward, Kodiak, Sitka and Unalaska, a source at Alaska Public Radio told the BBC. According to Kodiak police, officials had reported water receding from the harbour. The fifth edition of the Internet of Things 2018 will discuss bottom-line impacts, business models and how to monetize data while getting insights on new technologies and opportunities that are brought by IoT. To be held on March 13 in Dubai, UAE the C-level event focuses on making business out of Internet of Things and is designed to help business leaders and Executives enhance initiatives proposed by their organisations, local governments clients and enterprises for digital transformation projects, reported Emirates news agency Wam. Focus will be on groundbreaking IoT technologies and solutions that companies can leverage now to optimize business. The event will provide business cases from C-level executives that are in charge of their companies major transformation initiatives like Lego, Tesla, F5 Networks, Konica Minolta, Kaspersky lab, PWC, McKinsey & Co, Du, Microsoft, IBM and many more. Johan Ehrstrom, CEO of IoT Middle East 2018, said: "The region needs a platform to discuss the business relevance rather than always being technology focused. This event hence blends over 35 speakers, over 400 professional peers and inspiring start-ups with an action packed day filled with hands-on case studies, objective insights, real-world scenarios and excellent networking. A total of 84 teams from 14 Arab countries have qualified to the finals of 11th Edition of MIT Enterprise Forum Arab Startup Competition, which will be held in Oman on April 19. The MITEF Arab start-up competition is being held in partnership with Community Jameel, a social enterprise organization that operates a wide range of initiatives to promote a positive society and economic sustainability. Community Jameel has been a founding partner for 10 consecutive years. Strategic partners this year include Riyada, the competition's governmental backbone, and Omantel, the key contributor and supporter. Regionally, partners also include Zain Group, the competition's digital partner. This year's edition, that was open for applications between September 3 and December 5, 2017, witnessed an impressive participation, with more than 5,300 applications including Saudi Arabia, which runs a parallel competition. The submitted projects came from a variety of sectors, such as internet services, software, education, healthcare and creative industries. The semi-finalists hailed from 14 Arab countries, as follows: Lebanon (20), Egypt (14), the United Arab Emirates (10), Saudi Arabia (9), Jordan (7), Palestine (6), Morocco (4), Tunisia (6), Bahrain (2), Sudan (2), Kuwait (1), Qatar (1), Algeria (1) and Oman (1). As in previous years, the competition includes three tracks - the Ideas track, the Startup track, and the Social Entrepreneurship track, with respectively 26, 34 and 24 semi-finalist projects in each one of them. Each project includes a team of at least three people bringing the number of Arab entrepreneurs coming to Oman in April to over 200. All 84 teams will participate in pre-boot camps in February and March in Jordan, Lebanon, Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates. Nine winning teams from the MIT EF Saudi Competition will be announced in March, and will be part of the list of the Pan Arab semi-finalists. This year's edition is yet another annual competition that celebrates Arab innovators, who see it as a platform to showcase, test and develop their creative ideas and skills. Cash prizes exceeding $160,000 will be distributed among the nine lucky winners, three per track. Beyond the cash prizes, all 84 semi-finalists will benefit from advanced training sessions, personal mentorship and guidance, as well as media visibility, and excellent networking opportunities. Hala Fadel, chair of the board of MIT EF Pan Arab, said: "Every year, our confidence and belief in the importance of this competition grows in its role in supporting and nurturing the culture of entrepreneurship. Developing the ideas and projects of the Arab youth and empowering them to transform these pioneering ideas into success stories couldn't make us prouder." Fady Jameel, president of Community Jameel International, said: "We are happy to give the opportunity for innovation and creativity across the Arab world. We see new promising business models each year, all coming from diverse backgrounds. This reinforces the fact that the Arab world is full of talent and creativity. Community Jameel has offered full support to this successful Arab event for 11 consecutive years now, and remains true to its commitment to see it through. As it has been the case in previous years, our strong belief in this competition continues, as we strive to encourage an environment where new ideas flourish and projects are implemented not only in the Arab region but internationally. The generation of young Arabs deserves our full support to realize their hopes and bring their aspirations to life." The MIT Arab Startup Competition will culminate in a two-day event on April 18 and 19 in Oman, with the announcement of this year's winners, set to take place during the final award ceremony. TradeArabia News Service Bahrains National Oil and Gas Authority is working on the implementation of a number of vital projects that support the development of the oil and gas sector in the kingdom, said Oil Minister Shaikh Mohamed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa. The kingdom this year will complete major projects including the new 350,000-bpd pipeline (A-B) between Bahrain and Saudi Arabia that will replace the existing 230,000 bpd link, the minister said in his inaugural address to the 2nd Middle East Refining Technology Conference. More than 50 per cent of the construction and modernisation of the pipeline has been completed and the pipeline is now being buried in the south of Bahrain. The project is moving steadily according to the plan and budget, he said. The engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning (EPCC) contract for the multi-billion-dollar Bapco Modernisation Programme (BMP) was recently awarded to a consortium led by TechnipFMC. Shaikh Mohamed said the oil sector in the kingdom is currently working out a clear strategy for involving the private sector in the implementation and management of the oil projects, citing the case of the Bahrain LNG Import Terminal, which is being developed in partnership with the private sector (with a consortium of Teekay, GIC and Samsung). He also said the third gas plant, owned by Bahrain National Gas Company (expansion), will start operating by the last quarter of this year. The minister stressed the need for more investments and advanced technology and engineering solutions to the various challenges facing the refining industry. As a result of population growth and increased demand for energy, there was a need for further efforts to strengthen the cooperation between the refining industry and technology companies. This represents a challenge for technology companies to devise creative solutions that will help refining companies to enhance operational efficiency and improve financial returns. It was also vital to take full advantage of technological solutions available to rationalise operational expenditure in this sector, he added. TradeArabia News Service Boeing and Adient have announced the formation of Adient Aerospace, a joint venture that will develop, manufacture and sell a portfolio of seating products to airlines and aircraft leasing companies. The seats will be available for installation on new airplanes and as retrofit configurations for aircraft produced by Boeing and other commercial airplane manufacturers. The joint venture between Boeing, a leading aerospace company, and Adient, a global leader in automotive seating, addresses the aviation industry's needs for more capacity in the seating category, superior quality and reliable on-time performance. Adient Aerospace will benefit from the world-class engineering teams and innovative cultures at both companies, as well as shared expertise in managing complex, global supply chains. "Seats have been a persistent challenge for our customers, the industry and Boeing, and we are taking action to help address constraints in the market. Adient Aerospace will leverage Boeing's industry leadership and deep understanding of customer needs and technical requirements, to provide a superior seating product for airlines and passengers around the world," said Kevin Schemm, senior vice president of Supply Chain Management, Finance & Business Operations and chief financial officer for Boeing Commercial Airplanes. "This joint venture supports Boeing's vertical integration strategy to develop in-house capabilities and depth in key areas to offer better products, grow services and generate higher lifecycle value." "Adient has a strong set of transferable competencies that will offer a unique opportunity to create value for our company and for Boeing, our shareholders and the broader commercial aircraft market," said Adient chairman and CEO Bruce McDonald. "To enhance the customer experience for passengers, airlines and commercial airplane manufacturers, we will apply our unmatched expertise for comfort and craftsmanship along with our reputation for operational excellence." Adient Aerospace's operational headquarters, technology center and initial production plant will be located in Kaiserslautern, Germany, near Frankfurt. The joint venture's initial customer service center will be based in Seattle, Washington. Adient Aerospace aftermarket spare parts distribution will be performed exclusively through Aviall, a wholly owned subsidiary of Boeing. Adient is the majority stakeholder in the new company (50.01 percent share) and expects the joint venture to be included in its consolidated financial statements. Boeing (as 49.99 percent partner) will receive a proportionate share of the earnings and cash flow. Both will have representation on Adient Aerospace's board of directors. Industry analysts forecast the commercial aircraft seating market to grow from approximately $4.5 billion in 2017 to $6 billion by 2026. - TradeArabia News Service Onur Air, a Turkish low-cost airline, has signed a component repair and access (pool) contract with Turkish Technics for its Airbus A330 aircraft. The contract will be effective until 2023. The contract comprises component repair and access on ATA (The Air Transportation Association) Chapter basis. Access to components will be available from Turkish Technic Istanbul main base and worldwide pooling stations. Repair work of the components will be carried out at the Turkish Technic Sabiha Gokcen facilities, the biggest MRO facility in the region. The contract has enhanced the existing strong business partnership between the parties, and will be contributing to the development of the Turkish global aviation industry. Turkish Technic CEO Ahmet Karaman said: Offering its services to the most important A330 operating airline, Turkish Airlines; Turkish Technic is an important trademark providing MRO services to more than 700 aircraft through 3 continents. We have been delivering high-end services for Onur Airs A320 fleet since 2012, and we thank our counterparts for their renewed confidence in choosing Turkish Technic component repair and access services for their A330 fleet. Onur Air CEO Teoman Tosun said: We are pleased to entrust the leading trademark, Turkish Technic, with the maintenance of our aircraft. We put our confidence in the globally recognised services provided by Turkish Technic. He also added that the services to be provided by Turkish Technic were selected for being the ideal solutions for Onur Air Airbus A330 operations. - TradeArabia News Service Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, a leading luxury hospitality company, enters 2018 with a remarkable list of openings planned, including the companys first standalone residential project. Our singular focus is on luxury lifestyle, encompassing Four Seasons hotels and resorts, and increasingly, Four Seasons Private Residences, said J. Allen Smith, president and CEO, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. For decades, Four Seasons has been synonymous with the highest standards of quality and service for luxury travellers, many of whom have now chosen to ultimately live at Four Seasons. We are now committing even greater resources to this priority. Strategic Priority: Four Seasons Residential To support the companys growing residential business, Paul White has been appointed to president, Residential at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts. Reporting to the president of Portfolio Management and Owner Relations, Michael A. Crawford, this newly created global role is focused exclusively on the companys existing residential properties and the more than 30 projects currently in advanced stages of development, including working with owner partners to develop, design and market residential projects. Paul and his team oversee what we project will be $10 billion in Four Seasons residential sales over the next five years, said Crawford. Four Seasons is distinct in the market as we also manage our residential properties, thus ensuring world-class service for our homeowners. We are also the only brand with a dedicated residential team, a team that under Pauls leadership will continue to evolve our offerings and provide owners with a luxury lifestyle experience that can only be found through Four Seasons. Since entering the luxury real estate business in 1985, the companys portfolio of Four Seasons Private Residences, as well as its villa and residence rentals program, has grown to include 38 properties in 17 countries, and is set to double in the next five years. Twenty Grosvenor Square, a Four Seasons Residence in London, opening this year, will be the first standalone Four Seasons residential property, while approximately 80 per cent of current hotel and resort development projects include a residential component. Building on Success: 2017 Growth Highlights Four Seasons opened seven hotels and resorts last year, including a second location in London at Ten Trinity Square, which realised the meticulous restoration of a historic landmark. Additional expansion took place in China, where the company opened its ninth location in this key market, this time in the port city of Tianjin. In Surfside, Florida, architect Richard Meiers and designer Joseph Dirands vision for reviving the historic Surf Club came to life as a Four Seasons hotel and residences, while the companys first hotel in Kuwait is a modern marvel of architecture, art and design. The first Four Seasons in Tunisia also opened on a prime beachfront location just minutes from both urban attractions and major archaeological sites. Late in the year, just one month after announcing plans to convert, Paradise Islands legendary Ocean Club in the Bahamas debuted as a Four Seasons experience. In another Four Seasons first, the company expanded its mountain portfolio to Europe in collaboration with the Rothschild family with an all-new hotel in Megeve. In 2017, the company also announced plans to open Four Seasons hotels, resorts and residences in Korea at Jeju Island; the Chinese port city of Dalian; a second location in Saudi Arabia at Makkah; and a second property in Vietnam in the heart of Hanoi. Looking Ahead at 2018 In addition to Twenty Grosvenor Square, a Four Seasons Residence, there are several anticipated hotel and resort openings in 2018, with most featuring Private Residences, including a new hotel next to the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur. The company will open its second hotel in India along with Private Residences in Bengaluru, one of Indias fastest growing cities, as well as its second resort in Seychelles on the secluded Desroches Island. Four Seasons will return to Philadelphia with a new hotel in what will be the citys tallest building. In partnership with Comcast, the hotel will introduce a new level of enhanced technology for luxury travellers. Four Seasons will also debut in Brazil with a new hotel and residences in Sao Paulo; and in Greece with the conversion of a longstanding favourite on the Athenian Riviera, the Astir Palace. - TradeArabia News Service By Mirza Mosaraf Hossain, TwoCircles.net Over the past few years, the issue of instant Triple Talaq has been discussed, criticised, debated and analysed a lot. One of the cases which brought the issue to the limelight was that of Ishrat Jahan, who was one of the five petitioners of the Triple Talaq case. However, an investigation into the Talaq has revealed that Jahan, who joined the BJP on January 1, was not necessarily a victim of instant talaq. In fact, the investigation conducted by social activist Mohammed Zim Nawaz along with other members of the civil society show that the case of Ishrat Jahan is not actually related to Triple Talaq or Talaq-e biddat, rather its something more personal issues of the said petitioners, and that she used the Islamic custom as a shield to safeguard herself from being socially stigmatised. Support TwoCircles The real story, however, goes back nearly five years into the past and shows that this was not a simple case of a wife who had been dumped unceremoniously by her husband. A troubled marriage, but no Talaq Ishrat Jahan is originally from Pakri Barwa village of Bihars Nawada district where she did her matriculation. Her father is a tailor by profession. She was married to Md. Murtaza Ansari in 2001 who is from Uchitbigha village in Aurangabad district. Murtaza remembers an important moment from their day of marriage. When we were returning home after the marriage, our car got a breakdown in midway and when everyone inside the car got down, Ishrat was saying she was forcibly married by her parents and that she had not agreed to the marriage, he recounts. After three years in his village, Murtaza came to live with his brother, Mustafa Ansari, a school teacher by profession, in a flat in Howrahs Liluah which they had bought jointly. Ishrat, who was pregnant that time, also came with Murtaza. Soon, Murtaza left for Dubai. During her stay at Liluah, Ishrat and her sister-in-law did not get along over household matters. Ishrat eventually moved to the village after a few months. According to Murtaza, the problems between them started to come out in 2013 over her insistence to live in Liluah while Murtaza wanted her to continue living in the village. The reason for his insistence was, in Murtazas words, was this:One day after a quarrel with her, my elder daughter urged that they should stay in the village. when I asked her why she told me Ishrat would leave home for hours and return at around 12 at night. She then told me about one Afrajul, whom her mother instructed to call uncle, and his staying at the Liluah flat three times during my absence at the house. She warned my children with dire consequences if they dare to say anything about this uncle. Apart from this, Ishrat went to Rampurhat, a town in Bengals Birbhum district, to visit with one of the family friends of the Ansari family during the summer vacation of her children in 2013 along with Afrajul as her brother, her daughter told TwoCircles.net. In 2014, Murtaza had another quarrel with her and that turned into a scuffle. Ishrat lodged an F.I.R at Golabari Police Station, Howrah against him on 24.10.2014 (case no is 1085/2014 under IPC 498(A)). After exactly one month, she got Murtaza released on bail and after that, they started to live in the flat with their children. But within two weeks, she disappeared from the house leaving a handwritten letter, a copy of which is available with TwoCircles.net, stating take care of my children, forgive me for I know I am a culprit, marry someone to take care of my children and prepare your divorce paper, I will sign in my convenience, repeating the same request please dont punish my children for my faults. Murtaza lodged a missing diary at the Golabari police station and she returned to him after two days from a relatives home on her own. But within one year, in 2015, she again vanished from the village home after which Murtaza again tried to lodge a missing diary at the local police station. Though the complaint was accepted, it was not furnished with the official seal. So, he lodged a complaint in the Daudnagar Court where he disclosed everything about his wife. Murtaza shared that Ishrat had left home four times and had not visited his village home since February 10, 2015. Only in the beginning of January 2017, she visited the village home and took away the elder daughter and the younger son to the flat in Howrah after spending some days here and there. She continues lives in that flat. His elder daughter, who is now 14 years old, talked to TwoCircles.Net. She said, one Afrajul (Raju), whom mother introduced as our uncle, used to come to our home in our flat in Howrah. He also came to our village three times and during his last visit, he stayed here for five days. On the sixth morning, they left the home leaving us alone. When Murtaza came to know about this, he requested a widow in his village to take care of his four children with remuneration per month. She continued for a year. Following this event, he was compelled to return from Dubai for his children and nurtured them for two months. After that, he agreed to marry another girl on the requests of the relatives and neighbours of his village. Till then, there was no trace of Ishrat. But just before the day of his second marriage, Ishrat appeared in the village in the evening with local police to stop the marriage. When the police came to know that Murtaza was ready to take Ishrat as the wife on the condition that she would be staying at the village, they asked Ishrat to do so. However, she refused and left the place. But next day, she reached the place where he was supposed to get married and revealing herself as Murtazas wife, urged the local Maulanas that he was marrying even after having already one wife. So, the marriage was dismissed by the parents of the would-be bride. Later he married a widow on the condition that she would be rearing his children and will not take any child. In the meantime, Ishrat came back to their residence in Howrah and filed an affidavit in the Judicial Magistrate, 1st Class 5th Criminal Court, Howrah, against her husband, his brother, Mustafa Ansari, Mustafas wife, Jabeena Khatun citing domestic violence and Rs 2 lakh cash as dowry from her parents. The case was filed on 14.10.2015 and the Misc case no was 721/2015. But the said Court dismissed the case on March 18, 2017, due to the absence of the petitioner before the court. Another F.I.R was lodged against Mustafa Ansari in the Golabari police station alleging him of beating her and his attempt to sexual harassment filed on 28.12.2015, F.I.R no-1533, sections-341/323/354/509. In her complaint, she mentioned that Mustafa committed the crimes on December 2 at around 11 am. Interestingly, the persons who were taken as a witness to record their statement with the S.I of Golabari Police Station did not know that they had been made a witness. Also, no police appeared to verify them before preparing the charge sheet and there is no signature of them in the statement that they allegedly gave in favour of Ishrats claim. Jasim Hasim, one of the witnesses according to the complaint, said to TwoCircles.Net, We never knew that my wife (another witness in the complaint) and I were made witnesses of a case against Mustafa Ansari until Mustafa told us. We never made a statement like that and I had left home at 9.00 A.M for my shop at that day. So, the time that is mentioned in the F.I.R and my presence at that time is totally false. TwoCircles.Net also has a copy of the Attendance Registry of Mustafa Ansaris school, which showed that Mustafa had appeared in the school at 10:40 A.M on 2.12.2015. The said police station prepared a final charge sheet (Charge Sheet no- 100/16) on 28.02.2016. This case is under trial in the Howrah Court. Father accused of kidnapping kids On the eve of Eid ul Adha, Murtaza returned from Dubai in September 2017 at his village home and after two days, he came to his Howrah residence. A kidnapping case of her children was filed against Mustafa when Murtaza took them to market for buying some clothes in order to leave for the village. The kidnapping case was filed at the Golabari police station. Police called for Mustafa, who in turn called Murtaza, for the clarification over the kidnapping. The elder daughter and the younger son told the police that they would stay with their father. The Child Welfare Committee at Liluah, Howrah, instructed three daughters to stay with their father as they wished so and advised the minor son to the mother. Dinanath Paswan, the Sarpanch of Murtazas village Panchayat, talked to TwoCircles.Net. He said, I know Murtaza and his brother personally. They are very good gentlemen and their father was also a good man. We tried to negotiate the scuffle between Murtaza and his wife many times, but it was in vain. Speaking to the utterance of Triple Talaq, Murtaza said, I never said anything like this, either over phone or face to face. I was always ready to take her on the condition that she would be staying in the village, even after two years of her disappearance from my house. He alleged that the media had distorted the reality and presented him as the accused. In this regard, he said, when the case came out, all the Media focused on her, there was no one to listen to me. Even some of them listened to me, they refused to publish that. It was unfortunate. If they were divorced, why did she not say so in legal cases? Md Zim Nawaz has revealed important findings in his comparative investigative study of the case. He studied the case minutely from the beginning to the end and concluded that Murtaza never addressed his wife as divorcee anywhere in either in his complaint to the Golabari, Daspura Police Station or in the Daudnagar Court. Rather, he mentioned Ishrat as his legal wife in every document. Besides, Ishrat also never addressed herself as a divorcee of Murtaza in all the cases she filed against him in the said police stations. Nawaz also questioned over the claim of Triple Talaq that Ishrat blamed Murtaza uttered over the phone. He said, Ishrat claimed that Murtaza uttered Talaq Talaq Talaq over the phone in the month of April 2015. If it was so, then why she did lodge a complaint in the Golabari police station against Murtaza, Mustafa and Jabeen Khatun over domestic violence and dowry? He continued, Ishrat never filed a case against his utterance of triple talaq if it is taken for granted. Rather, in each and every document during her complaints she mentioned Murtaza as her legal husband, even in her F.I.R on December 28, 2015, i.e. six months after the so-called utterance of the triple talaq. Nazia Ilahi Khan, the advocate of Ishrat, could not be contacted after several calls. However, this case has made it aptly clear that in case of Ishrat Jahan, there is much more than meets the eye. It is also an example of how in the coming days if the Triple Talaq bill is actually passed and made a law, one can expect several cases of Muslim men falsely accused and punished for an Act which even the Supreme Court said was not punishable and instead sought to nullify it. US Vice President Mike Pence is in Jerusalem meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, meanwhile, Palestinian leaders have refused to meet with Mr Pence because of Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Ever since Mr Trump recognised Jerusalem as Israel's capital riots and clashes between Israeli forces and Palestinian protestors have become a daily occurrence. Mr Netanyahu, however, said during his meeting with Mr Pence that the US-Israeli alliance had never been stronger. Mr Netanyahu criticised his Palestinian opposite number rebuking Mahmoud Abbas for not meeting with Mr Pence. Mr Netanyahu was critical of the Palestinians rejecting the US as an honest broker for peace. Mr Pence meanwhile said it was an honour "to be in the Israeli capital". Mr Abbas in Brussels Mahmoud Abbas will be meeting European Union foreign ministers to get recognition for the state of Palestine, and also hoping to breathe new life into the two-state solution. It is apparent that Mr Abbas will be looking for a counter-weight to use as a bulwark now he feels he cannot trust the US anymore to deliver peace. The European Union it seems has always had close relations with the Palestinians so Mr Abbas will be looking to them to replace the US as an honest broker for peace. Of course, suggesting this is one thing but whether or not this comes into practice is another. It is quite possible you may end up with the EU speaking for the Palestinian side and the US for the Isreali side. As with everything in the Middle East nothing seems to go as planned particularly where Israel and Palestine are concerned. Is the two-state solution dead in the water? Many pundits would say with Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital the peace process is dead - it is not even on life support it is no longer with us. Certainly, the Palestinians and the Israelis have not negotiated with each other in what seems like many years. Obviously, when it comes to security on the West Bank there is co-operation between the Israeli government and Palestinian Authority. There will be some inter-government talks on a low-level basis but as for peace talks a definite no. What clout the European Union has with the Israelis as regards to influencing them to come to peace talks is uncertain. The Israelis will know that the EU appears to be even-handed in any peace talks but seem to be more pro-Palestinian. Same for the Palestinians who feel the US is always more towards Israel in proposed or actual peace talks. Are we being a little hard on Trump though? Could it be he really does have a solution for peace between the two sides? Are the Palestinians jumping out of the frying pan into the fire when they should be staying calm and seeing what develops with Trump? If any President of the US or even the EU could bring everlasting peace between the two sides that indeed would be a miracle. It would be a defining moment in history and no doubt in the career of a US President and also for the EU. Indeed It is a bit like the old joke, how many people does it take to change a light-bulb; How many leaders does it really take to head up one political Party. UKIP Formed in 1991 by anti-Europe sceptic Alan Sked, its one aim was to remove the UK from Europe - 25 years later it has succeeded. By 1994 it had gained 1% of the populist vote, and skirting financial problems by 2004 it had gained 12 seats in the European Parliament - the very institution they were trying to do away with! In 2006 the big-beast took over and Nigel Farage unveiled his policies which broadened the scope away from just Europe to a far more mainstream UK political agenda. By 2009 it had 13 MEP's and pushing hard for a fight with the Conservatives and trying hard to broaden their appeal. Out through the in-door! In September 2009 Farage suddenly resigned as Party Leader, being replaced by Malcolm Pearson who boosted the party's ratings in light of the Westminster expenses scandal and returned a hefty vote (but no seats), in the 2010 general election. Pearson resigned in August of that year and Farage returned, placing the emphasis on ground-roots local support. This paid off handsomely in the 2013 local elections when Ukip gained 147 local seats. In the local and European elections of 2014, they made considerable gains securing their first Parliamentary seat courtesy of Douglas Carswell, a conservative defector. Putting his neck on the line Farage said he would resign if he did not win South Thanet, he was standing for. He did not and so resigned, only to be reinstated three days later. With the 2016 victory of 52% of voters wishing to leave the EU Farage once again resigned: mission accomplished. David James was elected as his successor but resigned after 18 days, being replaced by Paul Nuttall, who stayed long enough to witness the party's political meltdown, resigning the morning after the vote. He was replaced by Steve Crowther, until we come to 29 September 2017, when he was replaced by... Henry Bolton 54-year-old ex-serviceman Henry is a man who has been mired in backbiting, resignations and in-fighting since day one. He has been unable to stop the party turmoil and has been ineffectual in building bridges between the warring factions. He also has a predilection for young women which has brought him to his current impasse. Last week his 25-year-old girlfriend was enmeshed in a historic hate campaign which was fuel for the fire for not only the party but the tabloid press, who besmirched his reputation further. After assuring everyone that his relationship was at an end, he was photographed in various locations in the company of the young lady in question. This prompted an emergency meeting of the National Executive Council which gained a no-confidence motion against Bolton on Sunday. Unfortunately, he refused to go, stating - not unwisely - that another leadership round would probably finish the party off in the eyes of the voter. These words fell on deaf ears with both the deputy leader and the immigration spokesman resigning on Monday stating that until this mess could be cleared up - meaning Bolton outed - the party was in limbo. Whether you agree with it or not UKIP will always be Nigel Farage's baby. Every other leader had paled under his beer drinking shadow, and none of them rightly or wrongly has had his vision of what it should or should not stand for. As of Monday, he has refused to step into the fray yet again, believing that he has achieved his aim of dividing Britain as he has put us at the throats of our European neighbours. With Bolton refusing to go, it is now left to the party members themselves to out him, and make no mistake, in order to see the safety of the monster he helped create, Farage will be hovering in the wings somewhere. The Metro-3 underground corridor will be nearly 33.5-Km long and will connect Colaba in South mumbai to SEEPZ in Andheri. It has been undertaken with a loan from Japan and is expected to reduce the burden on the existing suburban railway and road transport by bus. It will also eliminate greenhouse gas effects and the carbon footprint. Japans International Co-operation Agency (JICA) has extended a sizable loan to cover the cost. Times of India reports that work has already started for the digging of tunnels 100 feet below ground level and men and machines are working round the clock to ensure its completion in time. It is a joint venture between the Centre and the Maharashtra government, and the deadline for the entire stretch to become operational is 2021, according to the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation. It is a green initiative The work on this Metro-3 underground corridor is, right now, a noisy affair with sounds of machines and men engaged in drilling and excavation work. These disturb the peace of the neighborhood, but it is for a good cause because once the Metro begins its operation, travel time will be drastically reduced. It is a part of a project to fight greenhouse gas effect because such a mode of transportation will eliminate pollution. The authorities have taken care to ensure the safety of the citizens, and project-affected families have been shifted elsewhere. The route will pass below many old and heritage structures of Mumbai and necessary precautions are being taken to ensure that these are not damaged due to vibration of the machines. Advantages of the Metro The route of the Metro-3 corridor will connect Colaba to SEEPZ (Santacruz Electronics Export Processing Zone, a special economic zone) in Andheri. It will have 27 halts, out of which 26 will be underground. A section of activists and citizens' representatives have expressed fears of damage to buildings that are in the path of the metro. In their opinion, Mumbai has many old buildings that fall in the category of heritage structures which could be damaged due to vibrations. MMRC has confirmed that such a situation is a hypothetical one because superior technologies are being used in the construction of this mass rapid transit system, and advice of experts are taken when required. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had indicated that Metro-3 will be ready by 2022. It is necessary to cater to the growing needs of the city. The effect of greenhouse gas will also be checked once it takes off which will, in turn, arrest global warming. The MMRC, a joint venture between the Centre and the Maharashtra government, has set the deadline of 2021 for the entire stretch of the route. Incidentally, the Metro has been running successfully in the other portions of the city for the last three years. Donald Trump is set to leave the country later this week, but he will be making the trip without his wife. Once the news broke that First Lady Melania Trump would not be accompanying the president, social media had a field day. Melania and Donald After Donald Trump announced his plan to run for president, many wondered what role Melania Trump would play in the campaign. As time went on, Melania kept a mostly low profile until her speech at the Republican National Convention. After initially receiving rave reviews, it was quickly revealed that Melania had plagiarized parts of a speech given by former First Lady Michelle Obama from a few years earlier. In the months that followed, Melania was relegated to mostly select speeches and interviews until Trump's election win over Hillary Clinton. Since then, the new first lady has done her best to stay out of the headlines, saving that for her controversial husband. Despite this, Melania has been forced to deal with constant rumors of the president's past infidelities, and even a recent allegation from author Michael Wolff that Trump is currently having an affair in the White House. With speculation running rampant, CNN reported on January 22 that Melania would not be joining the commander in chief during his next foreign trip. First lady Melania Trump, in a change of plans, will not be joining President Trump on his trip to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, later this week https://t.co/uBNeiCy30F pic.twitter.com/sHcbzCZNUg CNN (@CNN) January 23, 2018 Later on this week, Donald Trump will head to Davos, Switzerland for the World Economic Forum. While the first couple were getting ready to make the trip together, CNN confirmed the news from East Wing communications director Stephanie Grisham that Melania Trump would be staying behind. The offical reason given by the White House was due to "scheduling and logistical issues," though many suspect that the recent bombshell story that Trump paid off adult porn star Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about their reported affair might have had something to do with the decision. Instant reaction After the news broke, those who oppose Donald Trump wasted no time chiming in. "The weather there is probably too stormy for her liking," one tweet read in a sarcastic reference to Stormy Daniels. If only all that money could buy dignity and integrity... Bob Moyers (@mr_boeb) January 23, 2018 Wow. I do have something in common with her. Hope (@HopeOR) January 23, 2018 Nice one airforcevet43 (@airforcevet43) January 23, 2018 "I don't know how she can stand to be in the same building with him, let alone confined on a plane," another Twitter user added. "Will she go if his lawyer offers to pay her $130,000 for him?" an additional tweet added. She'll probably wait until late 2019 - early 2020. BBfan4life4sure (@BBfan4life4sure) January 23, 2018 Sounds like Stormy weather got in the way of their plans. Good for her. #StandUp John Lewis (@JJFlashGasGas) January 23, 2018 This seems like a stormy development..... #couldntresist Jamie Toole (@JamieToole) January 23, 2018 "Sounds like 'Stormy' weather got in the way of their plans. Good for her," a follow-up tweet read. "Secretly hoping shes going to file for divorce while hes out of the country," a Twitter user wrote. For long Erdogan has dreamed of a return of Turkey as a major world power. Turkey under Erdogan has thus been flexing its muscles to further its interests in areas close to its borders. The latest act, which has come as a rude New Year jolt for the USA, is the Turkish attack with tanks and heavy weaponry on the American backed Syrian Democratic Force (SDF). A report by CNN was used for most of the details in this article. Turkey alleges that the SDF is dominated by the Kurdish militia and the YPG. Turks also claim that the YPG has close ties with the Workers Party, a Kurdish outfit which for long has been battling the government troops in Eastern Turkey for an independent state. CNN has reported that after air bombing of Kurdish regions in Northern Syria, the Turkish Army has entered Syria to destroy the US-backed Syrian Kurdish-YPG militia. US supported force The US has just set up the SDF force of some 30,000 soldiers armed and trained it, in a bid to control the Syria-Turkey border. It is also part of the gratitude for helping the US fight the ISIS. The Turks dont see it this way and despite American calls for restraint have entered the Afrin region of Northern Syria, which is the stronghold of the Kurdish-YPG militia. Operation Olive branch The Turkish state-run Anadolu news agency has reported that the army is aided by the Free Syrian Army. The agency has quoted Erdogan as saying that the operation will soon be over. The incursion into Syria code-named Operation Olive branch," has come after a heavy air bombardment of the entire region. The Turkish forces are now inside Northern Syria and this can only cause alarm for America. The Syrian Democratic Forces general command has condemned the attacks and has said it will have no option but to resist. The attack by the Turkish army, which is a member of NATO, and an ally of the USA, will sour US plans to set up a Kurdish state in northern Syria as a reward for the help they got in fighting the ISIS. Erdogan has made it clear he considers the YPG a terrorist organization and will never accept an independent Kurdish state. Future Russia and France have called for restraint. The Russians will, however, not be unhappy with this Turkish operation, as it will put at risk the US efforts to have an area of influence in North Syria. Iran also has tacitly supported Turkish action. Assad has condemned the move of the Turkish army into Syria, but he will not be perturbed at the destruction of the US-backed SDF. The future looks hazy as the Turks are infuriated at the formation of the Kurdish-YPG militia, supported by the USA. Tensions between the US and Turkey are high and it will be interesting to watch what Trump does to counter Turkey. After nearly three days of a government shutdown, Republicans and Democrats were able to work out a deal. In response, Donald Trump decided to chime in. Trump on shutdown The government shutdown officially started at midnight last Friday for the first time since 2013. Unlike the previous shutdown, which was due to Republican opposition to the Affordable Care Act, this time the issue was based around immigration reform. Democrats have continued to push for an extension of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) to allow illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States as children to remain in the country. Their Republican counterparts responded by insisting that funding be approved for additional border security, including for Donald Trump's border wall. Due to both sides not finding a compromise, the government shutdown began as the clock hit midnight last Friday night. Fast forward to present day and the Senate was able to put together a deal and pass a short-term bill to keep the government open through February 8. In response, Trump decided to speak out on the issue during a January 22 statement. Statement from President Trump on government shutdown: "I am pleased that Democrats in Congress have come to their senses ... We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it is good for our country." pic.twitter.com/chaOp7s3Jx NBC Politics (@NBCPolitics) January 22, 2018 In a statement released to press on Monday afternoon, Donald Trump broke his silence as the government shutdown came to an end. while taking a sarcastic shot at the Democratic Party in the process. "I am pleased that Democrats in Congress have come to their senses," Trump said. "We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it is good for our country," he went on to add. As expected, Trump's reaction didn't go over with many who oppose his administration as critics wasted no time firing back. The Latest: Senate leaders have reached an agreement to reopen U.S. government. https://t.co/afhueiPatj The Associated Press (@AP) January 22, 2018 Twitter reacts In response to Donald Trump's remarks, critics of the president were quick to lash out. "REALLY you stated when campaigning that immigration was one things you'll solve...wall, comprehensive immigration...confused fool," one tweet read. Not sure you know what's good for any country. Tara A. Rae (@TaraARae) January 22, 2018 Trump is out of his mind. Toni M. Barrett (@Toni001635Toni) January 22, 2018 I don't believe him. If the Dems accept the tax bill, we will never hear another word about DACA. He lies every day - why should we believe that he will do anything on immigration except to push them out of the country? What happened to his statement that "if Dems & Reps bring Barbara Silverman (@Barbara37189131) January 22, 2018 "I don't believe him. If the Dems accept the tax bill, we will never hear another word about DACA. He lies every day - why should we believe that he will do anything on immigration except to push them out of the country?" another Twitter user posted. "In other words they are going to renege on their promise to work on DACA by February 8, 2018. Trump is and will always be a liar," yet another tweet stated. Is he really trying to take credit for doing nothing? Rick (@rcookfw1) January 22, 2018 What happened to Trump's "love" for the Dreamers? Oh yeah, white supremacists matter more. #StephenMillerMustGo Cheri Veith (@Cheriveith1) January 22, 2018 "The problem is that @realDonaldTrump doesn't known what's good for the Country," a follow-up tweet read. "Is he really trying to take credit for doing nothing?" a social media user wondered. South Korea. When you think of the East Asian democracy, Kim Jong Un threatening its existence will likely come to mind. But its a good bet that Dennis Oppenheimer wont. The American conceptual artist rated a headline there on Jan. 18 when local authorities ordered one of his outdoor sculptures - a beachside installation erected in 2010 - destroyed, saying that it was ugly and an eyesore. Wheres flower power when you need it? The sculpture, called Chamber, was a larger-than-life metalwork shaped like flower petals that opened to allow the viewer the sensory experience of entering the bloom and moving through it, almost as if they were bumble bees feeding on its nectar. The wreckage that the sculpture became was hauled off to a Waste Dump and without informing Oppenheimers estate, which holds the intellectual property rights. The artist died a year after the installation. Benign neglect is a bad idea Wait, theres more. Given that theres nothing inherently repugnant about the replica of a flower in Oppenheimers original design, what changed? Didnt South Korea readily accept this sculpture eight years ago? Who made it ugly if not the artist? Answer: the caretakers, of course, those in charge of maintenance. Letting a sculpture fall into disrepair, particularly putting the metal parts at risk without protective coating in the sea air, doomed it. Losing its looks is on those who neglected it. Using cubism for the wrong reason If you want to talk about ugly public sculpture, my vote goes to the Chicago Picasso, a 60-foot tall rendition of a woman rendered in the Cubist style. Accordingly, you see a face taken apart, presumably to allow multiple views. But the separations of the face seem wrenching, lending the image a violent air. And she bears a striking resemblance to the artists painting of Dora Maar - his mistress of 10 years - titled Weeping Woman. The portrait was made when she became distraught over his leaving her for Francois Gilot. Marring a womans reputation Famously commenting on his depiction of Maar as Weeping Woman, Picasso said, I could never see her, imagine her doing anything but crying. One wonders how he accounts for all of his paintings of Maar that show her in other states, like Woman Reclining with a Book. Apparently, he also forgot the time she spent urging him on to paint his most celebrated work Guernica and helping him render it. She was an accomplished artist in her own right, after all; although numerous biographies note how Picasso dissuaded her from her own work because he didnt want the competition. Turning the other cheek Chicagoans, repulsed by this sculpture at first, have learned to love it, but I never have. Seeing a woman breaking down in the street and enlarged to 60 feet so you cant miss it, is a sight that defines the word eyesore. If I was to say that the Duggar family are in the news again for all the wrong reasons would you be shocked? The answer to that question is probably a no, but this time I feel that the family did not really do anything wrong. For example, the reason that they are in the news this time is because some fans online are saying that Jill Duggars child Israel Dillard is smothering his Baby Brother Samuel Dillard. However, if you look at the Duggar Instagram picture, then you would clearly know that Israel is in no way smothering his baby brother. What are these Duggar fans saying about the picture? As mentioned above, Jill posted a picture online to her Instagram account of her sons Israel and Samuel Dillard. In the picture, Israel is holding his baby brother as the pair are playing together. Well, some Duggar fans were not very pleased with the way Israel played with Samuel, as they were thinking he was being quite rough. For example, one Duggar fan wrote why is Izzy covering Sam's mouth in the 2nd pic? Good thing the nose wasn't covered too. While another wrote, Something has Sammy scared. I have attached the Instagram post below so you can see what all of the fuss is about. It is worth mentioning that even though there were a couple of fans that seemed to be furious with the Duggar picture, there were some fans that came to the Duggar couples defense. One commenter wrote, You have the cutest little boys. While another wrote, He was just scooting him closer and giving him a kiss! I personally believe that the reason these fans are attacking this couple's parenting skills is because the family is always in the news for all the wrong reasons, which makes them an easy target. What are Jill Duggar and Derick Dillard up to now? Derick Dillard and Jill Duggar seem to be the Duggar couple that get themselves into the most trouble. For instance, Dillard was recently fired from the family Reality Television Show Counting On after he made transphobic remarks towards Jazz Jennings. The TLC network kicked him off the show because they didnt want his views to be associated with their network. Another controversy Dillard got into was when he angered feminists all around the world when he questioned their goals and priorities online. If you want you can catch up with the rest of the Duggar family on their reality television show Counting On and you can also follow them on their social media accounts. It looks like the Duggar family is in the center of controversy yet again. This time it is because Jill Duggar and her husband Derick Dillard have made rather strange remarks about Muslims. Lets be honest, that isnt really much of a surprise, as Dillard has been in the news over the last couple of months for making rather mean comments about all different types of groups. He was even, apparently, kicked off the familys Reality Television Show Counting On after he made some transphobic remarks towards Jazz Jennings. What did this Duggar couple say about Muslims? Well, this all started when Jill Duggar took to her and her husbands blog to talk about how they had the opportunity to meet a bunch of international students over the last few months. The Duggar family member then spoke about how most of these students were Muslim and how she and her husband wish to convert them to Christianity. This is what Jill had to say online about the attempted religious conversion of one Muslim man. We are praying for him, as Derick and others continue to befriend him, that God will save his soul. Things got controversial when Jill decided to promote the blog post on her Instagram page as some commenters were not happy with how they were looking to convert the Muslim man's religion to theirs. For example, one angry Duggar fan wrote "That comment about the Muslim families seems like more of a 'look we are accepting people please donate.' Another Duggar commenter then wrote, Approaching people while they are living their daily lives to try to convert them is deeply wrong. What else has this Duggar couple been up to? As mentioned above Jill Duggar and her husband Derick Dillard are always in the news, and it is usually for all the wrong reasons. For instance, once Dillard was fired from the familys reality television series because he went online to beg for money from the Duggar fans so he could complete his ministry studies. That, however, was not the first time that this man begged for money online as back when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston, Dillard decided to make a fundraising page for himself. This made many people, online, see this as a selfish move. They felt he was taking away money from the victims of the hurricane. Which made the website that hosted the fundraising page shut it down as they too thought it was very selfish. If you want, you can catch up with the rest of the Duggar family on their reality television show Counting On and you can follow them on their social media accounts as well. While Donald Trump Jr. is not a part of his father' administration, he often finds himself making comments that rub many the wrong way. In response, Alec Baldwin decided to hit back at the president's son. Baldwin on Trump Not long after Donald Trump kicked off his campaign for president, members of his family were outspoken in support of their father. While Melania Trump has remained mostly noncontroversial in her role a first lady, Ivanka Trump has found herself inside the White House as a special assistant, with a similar role of adviser going to son-in-law Jared Kushner. On the outside, Trump's sons, Donald Jr. and Eric, have come to the defense of the president on more than one occasion. In recent weeks, Donald Jr. has followed in his father's footsteps in using social media to push out his views, including ripping into Oprah Winfrey following her speech at the Golden Globes, attacking the media over the "Fake News Awards," and claiming his dad's administration helped create the "Year of the Woman." As expected, the younger Trump received backlash from many, with actor Alec Baldwin calling him out during a tweet on January 19. To @DonaldJTrumpJr : What do you know about honor? Your father lies, cheats and steals every chance he gets, even when he does t have to. He f**** every keyhole he can find and pays people to shut them up. Your opinion is worthless. Hes got to go. Hes gonna go. ABFoundation (@ABFalecbaldwin) January 19, 2018 Taking to the offical Twitter account of his AB Foundation on Friday night, Alec Baldwin singled out Donald Trump Jr. and hammered into him his thoughts about the current administration. "To @DonaldJTrumpJr :What do you know about honor?" Baldwin rhetorically asked. "Your father lies, cheats and steals every chance he gets, even when he doesn't have to," Alec Baldwin went on to write. "He f**** every keyhole he can find and pays people to shut them up," the veteran actor added, telling Donald Jr. "Your opinion is worthless." "Hes got to go. Hes gonna go," Baldwin concluded. As of press time, neither Donald Jr, nor any member of the Trump family has responded to Baldwin's tweet, though the president was aggressive in his thoughts about the actor during the election cycle due to his portrayal on "Saturday Night Live." Baldwin's take This isn't the first time that Alec Baldwin has been outspoken in opposition to Donald Trump. In addition to playing a satirical version of the president on "Saturday Night Live," the actor has attended several anti-Trump rallies since the election of 2016, and has used Twitter on occasion to speak out. Baldwin is expected to return to "SNL" to reprise his role of the former host of "The Apprentice" at some point over the next few weeks. Keeping track of the Reagan family on the popular #CBS sitcom "Blue Bloods", the dynamics have changed in #Season 8. Danny Reagan (#Donnie Wahlberg) has had to deal with the loss of his wife Linda (Amy Carlson). Nicky Reagan-Boyle (Sami Gayle) has been preoccupying herself by taking a test to see if he has what it takes to become a cop. Jamie Reagan (Will Estes) appears to have a strengthening relationship with Eddie Janko (Vanessa Ray), and not just as partners in the police force. Not just a hit and run One clever thing "Blue Bloods" does is give their episode titles fitting names. This episode was titled "Erasing History", and the three cases covered in this episode appropriately tie in with the theme of the title. The episode starts off with Henry Reagan (Len Cariou), the former NYPD Commissioner, walking on the streets of New York having only one goal in mind, which was to buy a lottery ticket. Henry soon finds himself in an awkward position as an out of control car speeds right toward him. The problem is a husband and wife couple also happens to be in harm's way. Henry boldly pulls the wife, Whitney Simmons, to safety. However, the husband, Jerry Simmons, isn't as fortunate as he gets hit by the car, which crashes right through the window of a floral shop. Detectives Danny Reagan and Maria Baez (Marissa Ramirez) investigate the crime scene and ask Henry some questions. Henry claims that the driver of the vehicle "jumped out and ran off smiling." The detectives soon find a code grabber, a device that is able to digitally unlock any car as long as it has the correct code. The investigation reveals that Jerry was part of a real estate firm and that he may have been a victim of a money laundering scheme. The professional money launderer in question turns out to be a hot shot businessman named Mario Vangelis, who apparently had it out for Jerry. The middleman of this money laundering scheme turned out to be the driver of the vehicle, named Tim. Danny and Baez attempted to confront Tim when they approached his apartment and kicked down the door. However, they were shocked to see that Tim had supposedly hung himself, engulfed in loud hard rock music. Danny immediately becomes suspicious of this scene, refusing to believe that Tim would commit suicide. Danny states that he knew Tim and that he wouldn't do something like this as he always had a smile on his face whenever he was in town. Looking deep into bank accounts online, the detectives find the proof they were looking for that pins Vangelis and his business to Tim, basically ordering a hit on Jerry through Tim. Feeling that there is no other way to avenge her late husband's death, Whitney contemplates running down Vangelis similar to the way Jerry was run down. However, Danny makes the save and stops Whitney from doing something that she would regret. When Whitney asks if Vangelis will pay for what he did, Danny replies that Vangelis will, and Danny will have a smile on his face. Corruption and Hypocrisy Meanwhile, the team of Jame and Eddie catch a man who was in violation of his parole. The catch here is the man happens to be in a romantic relationship with his girlfriend, a relationship that still exists. However, there was an order for this man, Gabe, to stay away from his girlfriend. Gabe's parole officer was a man named Don Voorhees, a character who is very blunt and has a bad attitude. Gabe continuously states that he has gotten clean from his past and that he's trying to make amends with his girlfriend. Judging from what Gabe claims, both Jamie and Eddie can feel right away that something isn't right about Don Voorhees. Jamie takes his concerns about Don to his sister Erin Reagan (Bridget Moynahan) and brings up the possibility that Don may be forcing those who are on parole to intentionally commit crimes and break their parole. Jamie states that Don may be abusing his power as a parole officer and that something must be done about it. Reluctant to go too deep into this possibility, Erin basically states that it's a tricky situation to be in. The current NYPD Commissioner Frank Reagan (#Tom Selleck) experiences his own challenge as a defiant young woman named Chrissie takes down the NYPD flag and pours red paint on top of it. The red paint was used by Chrissie to symbolize blood. Chrissie happens to be a friend of Nicky's, and this fact alone causes a stir within the Reagan family. This isn't the first time Chrissie has got herself in trouble with the law as she has made demonstrations in the past to voice her opinion on the NYPD. Sitting down with her grandfather to have a discussion about her friend, Nicky urges Frank to understand where Chrissie is coming from, even though Nicky herself doesn't approve of how Chrissie went about voicing her opinion. This conversation gets a little heated and it ends with Frank telling Nicky that it becomes personal when the very same flag that was used to honor a fallen family member, Joe Reagan, is the target of a demonstration. Nicky soon confronts Chrissie about the incident, but it doesn't appear that Chrissie understands the magnitude of what she did. Just before Nicky and Chrissie have their conversation, Chrissie bragged with a few of her friends that she spent twelve hours in jail and that it was "totally worth it". In their conversation, Nicky gets information on what Chrissie plans to do next to the NYPD. However, this proves to be bad information as it was nothing more than a false alarm. This bad information mentioned Chrissie and her friends using smoke bombs and many ball bearings to interrupt police business. Going back to the corrupt parole officer, Jamie and Eddie purposely get Gabe and Leo, another victim of Don Voorhees' meddling, back inside an NYPD jail cell from the Rikers Island prison, and once he sees this, Don immediately starts losing it. Jamie and Eddie confront Don on what he has been doing to ruin the lives of those he had on his watch. It doesn't take long for the evidence to reveal itself in front of Don, including the fact that Gabe and Leo will testify against Don, speaking out on his corruption. In all of these cases, you can clearly see that there were significant amounts of hypocrisy, that actions that may seem acceptable and understandable to some people may not be to others. In the case of Chrissie and the message she was trying to send, that the NYPD is nothing but a corrupt organization, her message fell on deaf ears because she didn't carry herself in the way that an honorable citizen should have. This was a lesson taught to Nicky that you can give a friend a second chance, but if they drop the ball with that second chance there is nothing you can do about it. young and the restless spoilers tease that the battle over Sam may not be over. After Sam was born and Juliet (Laur Allen) passed away, Cane (Daniel Goddard) called her father and revealed he had a grandson. At the time, Juliet's dad wanted nothing to do with Sam, but what if he changes his mind? Lily struggles to connect to Sam Young and the Restless" spoilers suggest that Lily (Christel Khalil) will struggle to connect with the infant. She decided to reconcile with Cane. She realizes that Sam is part of the deal, but she isn't sure whether she can accept the infant. Cane would love to see Lily bond with Sam but so far, that hasn't happened. Lily believes that if she is given a little more time, she will be able to accept the baby and bond with him. She realizes that the baby is innocent and didn't ask to be born, but she still can't shake her negative feelings toward him. At some point, Lily will realize that unless she can embrace Sam as part of the Ashby family, her relationship with Cane will go downhill. Juliet's family comes for Sam According to Soap Central, there have been social media rumors that say that Juliet's dad will come looking for his grandson and could challenge Cane in court to take the newborn back to Japan. Of course, Cane won't allow his son to go anywhere. He has spent months bonding with the boy, fearing that he may not make it. Cane will rage that after he spent months worrying about him in the NICU, Juliet's family wants to take him away. He wants Lily to be in his corner and fight for Sam with him, but will she? Will Lily come around? After fearing Juliet's family may come in and take Sam away, Lily starts to bond with the infant. "Young and the Restless" spoilers indicate that she tells Cane that they will do whatever they need to to keep Sam with them. Cane suggests that Lily adopt Sam and she immediately agrees. In a chat with Abby, she admits she has doubts about Sam, but her children and Cane love the tot, so Lily knows she will in time. The baby playing Canes son Sam is adorable! #YR pic.twitter.com/XdrHmpbq9J Kim Huck (@acejordan23) January 15, 2018 The one thing "Y&R" fans can count on is when things get tough, the Ashby family will come together and fight together. There is no way they will allow Juliet's dad to come in and take Sam from them. They all believe the baby's place is with Cane and will go to court to tell the judge that Sam belongs with them. Despite Lily's reservations regarding taking care of the baby, she believes that Sam's place is with Cane. Do you think Lily will ever accept Sam? Will Cane and Lily make it? Will Juliet's dad come looking for his grandson? "The Young and the Restless" airs weekdays on CBS. The ending of 2017 has led to new findings that prove our planet's temperature is rising and the effects are costly. The evidence is right in front of us which is why it is so hard to believe 40 percent of U.S. citizens are currently #climate change deniers. 2017 produced new and stronger evidence through #natural disasters which have shown that our Earth is in fact dying. The scientific conclusions drawn from the devastation in 2017 alone should be more than enough to change the minds of skeptics everywhere. El Nino's not to blame, it's climate change A common excuse for climate deniers is the infamous ocean-atmosphere climate interaction, El Nino. Every 2-7 years there is a warming period in sea surface temperatures in the Central and East-Central Equatorial Pacific region. This phenomenon typically affects North America in the month of December causing rainy and unusually warm winters. The key to El Nino is that it does not occur every year, but every 2-7 years. With the latest technology in climate sciences. it is possible to know when the planet is experiencing an El Nino. The last El Nino recorded lasted from 2014-2016. 2016's second-hottest year ever recorded rank may have something to do with this natural, recurring event, however, there was no El Nino in 2017 or in 2012; the hottest year ever recorded in the U.S. In fact, years we experience La Nina, episodes of below-average sea temperatures, are now warmer years than that of El Nino years from 30 years ago. Rising temperatures to blame for 2017's costly natural disasters 2017 has been the year of devastating natural disasters from coast-to-coast, becoming the costliest year ever recorded for natural disasters totaling approximately $306 billion in damages. For the first time, recorded three Category 4 hurricanes made landfall in the U.S. (Harvey, Irma, and Maria) all within a little over a single month's time. The strongest of these three was Hurricane Maria which is now classified as the most catastrophic hurricane on record in Dominica and Puerto Rico. As the west coast was set ablaze in the final months of 2017, climate change made itself known again to round off the third consecutive year of California's worst precipitation records. The horrific tropical storms and droughts of 2017 should alert those who haven't been paying close enough attention to trust in the overwhelming evidence toward climate change. Our planet is heating up and unfortunately, this is only the beginning of calamitous years overcome with natural disasters. The storms will grow stronger and increase in number. The infamous California drought will never improve leading to more uncontrollable forest fires. Take action now and see how you can lower your negative effect on the environment personally and in the workplace. With the Trump administration warning of a possible war with North Korea, US allies in Asia are sounding the alarm on another risk: a clash with China in the western Pacific. China has recently accelerated air and naval excursions in sensitive areas near Japan and Taiwan, part of a longstanding quest to expand its military presence further from its shores into the Pacific Ocean. Leaders in Tokyo and Taipei have called on Beijing to back off while strengthening their defences. Business Times reports in its article China's push into western Pacific alarms US allies in Asia that earlier this month, Japan observed for the first time a Chinese submarine entering the contiguous zone (12 nautical miles to 24 nautical miles from shore) around disputed islets in the East China Sea. That came shortly after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen warned that China's increased military patrols around the island threatened to destabilise the region. President Donald Trump's "America First" foreign policy has raised concern in Asia about the reliability of the US in helping to stave off Chinese pressure as it gains greater military and economic strength. China has a long-term goal of reuniting with Taiwan, and territorial disputes with countries ranging from Japan to Vietnam to India. "The unpredictability of the Trump administration encourages Tokyo and Taipei to do more for their own defence," said Ja Ian Chong, an associate professor with the National University of Singapore who specialises in Asia-Pacific relations. "Unless resolved in such a way that all sides feel simultaneously assured, the actions can increase tensions in East Asia and raise the potential for some sort of incident." While Mr Trump's interactions with President Xi Jinping mostly focused on North Korea and trade during his first year in office, China's territorial claims may become more prominent going forward. In a strategy document released last week, the US Defense Department cited China's military modernisation and expansion in the South China Sea as key threats to U.S. power. China has pushed back against that narrative, with its defence ministry over the weekend calling on the US to abandon a "Cold War" mindset. It blamed "other countries" for citing freedom of navigation concerns to undertake military activities in the South China Sea, where China has undertaken massive land reclamation to strengthen its claim to more than 80 per cent of the area. On Saturday, China's foreign ministry said the country will take "necessary measures" to safeguard its sovereignty in the South China Sea after a US warship entered waters near the disputed Huangyan Island, also known as Scarborough Shoal. The Communist Party's official People's Daily on Monday accused the US of destroying stability in the South China Sea, and threatened to "enhance and speed up" its military capacity in the waters in response. China has also dismissed allegations that it is encroaching on Taiwan and Japan. Patrols around Taiwan by Chinese fighter jets, bombers and surveillance aircraft are the "new normal," Chinese Air Force spokesman Shen Jinke said last month. The Chinese submarine spotted near disputed islands in the East China Sea was monitoring the movements of two Japanese vessels, the foreign ministry said. China's navy began sailing through the "First Island Chain" - including Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines - in 2009. The Air Force followed suit with regular patrols in 2015, and the frequency of flights has increased from "four times per year" then to "several times per month" in 2017, according to the official Xinhua News Agency. Last year, Ms Tsai said she would increase Taiwan's defence spending by at least 2 per cent each year. Priorities include new missiles, fighter aircraft and ballistic missile defences. The US continues to sell weapons to Taiwan and is obligated to defend the island under a 1979 law. Japan's cabinet last month approved a record defence budget of about 5.19 trillion yen (S$61.9 billion), the sixth straight annual rise in defence spending under Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. While its missile defense purchases are primarily to deter North Korea, Defense Minister Itsunori Onodera said this month they could be used to stop other weapons. Mr Abe hosted Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull last week at a military base, part of efforts to strengthen a burgeoning four-way security arrangement that also includes the US and India. In an interview with the Australian Financial Review published on Saturday, Mr Abe said the "Quad" grouping wasn't aimed at containing China even as he warned of instability in the region's waterways. "There is an attempt to alter the present status in the East China Sea and the South China Sea," Mr Abe told the publication. "So I think the security situation is becoming tougher these days." China is employing a "cabbage strategy" in which it gradually surrounds a disputed area with multiple layers of security, according to June Teufel Dreyer, a University of Miami political science professor and author of "Middle Kingdom and Empire of the Rising Sun" - a 2016 book on China-Japan ties. "To the extent Taiwan and Japan can be said to have a strategy, it is to raise their deterrence capabilities to a level that keeps the situation stable," Prof Dreyer said. "It's not working." Frans foreign ministry spokesman says the country is concerned about and closely watching Turkeys ongoing attack against the Kurdish city of Afrin that was launched two days ago. The Region reports in its article Iran worried Turkeys Afrin attack could embolden 'Takfiri terrorists' that in the statement released on Sunday, the Iranian Foreign Ministrys Spokesman Bahram Qassemi said the continuation of the crisis in Afrin may reorganize Takfiri terrorist groups in the northern Syrian regions and fan the flames of war in this country, in another reference to FSA groups supported by Turkey. Qassemi went on to say that Tehran strongly stresses the necessity of preserving the territorial integrity of Syria and respecting the countrys sovereignty to prevent intensification of the humanitarian crisis and to save the lives of the innocent people of Syria. Moreover, Iran expects all countries, especially the Turkish government as one of the guarantor states [of the Astana Process], to remain committed to the diplomatic settlement of the Syrian crisis. Especially within the framework of Astana Talks, and to continue to play a constructive role and carry out its responsibility to resolve the crisis in Syria diplomatically, the spokesperson said. Moreover, the Iranian spokesman called on the involved countries to remain committed to peaceful and diplomatic ways to resolve the Syrian crisis through processes like Astana Talks. Turkish officials previously told Turkish media they would coordinate with Russia and Iran on the air operation in Afrin. Both countries have expressed concern over the operation, although the Syrian Kurds blamed Russia for not doing enough to stop the Turkish operation. In Efrin, Turkey is taking revenge of ISIS' defeat from the Syrian Kurds, yet the world is silent. Disgraceful, Redur Xelil, a spokesperson of the Syrian Democratic Forces said on Twitter, who tagged the US president Donald Trump in his Tweet. Turkey has launched the Olive Branch military operation in the Afrin region in the north-west of Syria on January 20. Turkey's General Staff said that Turkish military had opened fire on Syrian Kurds' position in response to provocative shelling by militants of Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party. The operation of Turkey's military aims to create 30-kilometer-deep safe zones by cleaning out terrorists. Washington's decision to build a Syria-Turkey border force has served as an occasion to launch the operation. In fact, it was about providing support to the Kurds who fought in Iraq and Syria on the side of the U.S.-backed international coalition and received Washington's support. Ankara's position was supported by those who faced the problems of separatism. Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry recalled that Turkey was repeatedly subjected to terrorist attacks, which resulted in the death of a large number of innocent people. "As a country that has suffered from terrorism, Azerbaijan strongly condemns all forms and manifestations of terrorism and supports the efforts of the international community in its fight against terrorism. Eliminating terrorist threat is necessary to achieve international and regional peace and security," the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Moscow was concerned to learn of the Turkish operation and now closely monitoring the situation. After defeating the military and political hotbed of international terrorism in the form of ISIS and withdrawing a significant part of Russian troops from Syria, the main goal of the remaining Russian military in this country was to ensure the cessation of hostilities regime in the de-escalation zones. Meanwhile, the Russian Foreign Ministry recalled that Russia has maintained a consistent stance on the Syrian settlement, which is based on maintaining territorial integrity, respecting the sovereignty of this country and seeking a long-term political settlement under UN Security Council Resolution 2254 and the agreements on de-escalation zones reached within the framework of the Astana process. Moscows main goal in cooperation with Turkey and Iran is to ensure full-fledged functioning of the de-escalation zone in Idlib. "I think we can tackle these problems and the de-escalation zones will provide stability to this very important region," Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said. Today, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Ankara has reached an agreement with Moscow over the Olive Branch Operation. Undoubtedly, differences remain between Ankara and Moscow over Syrian settlement, but Russia has also repeatedly been affected by terrorist and separatist acts and knows from its own experience that only military measures are effective against radicals. In addition, Moscow is well aware, and this is confirmed by Lavrov's words, that the solution of the Syrian problem is impossible without Ankara's participation, and therefore cannot but recognize Turkey's right to establish order on its borders. So it seems that supporters of Kurdish militants remain in the minority. Armenia actively opposes Ankara's anti-Kurdish operation, which media is predicting the defeat of Turkish military by Kurds. "The motivation of the Kurds, their number and combat experience is the guarantee of high rate of casualties among Turks," the Armenian media writes. Supporting Kurdish radicalism fits into Armenian politics, but Yerevan's voice is unlikely to be heard. The 48th World Economic Forum kicks off in Davos today. It will be held amid the most impressive global economic growth over the past ten years and a positive outlook. The forum this year will be visited by a record number of political leaders. More than 70 heads of state and governments will arrive, including French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Theresa May, Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Argentina's President Mauricio Macri, Zimbabwe's president Emmerson Mnangagwa and Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi, who will deliver a program speech at the oppening of the forum. US President Donald Trump is expected to grab world attention with his message on the America First policy and the opportunities for European and international partners. This will be the first visit of a US leader to Davos over the past 18 years. Last time, the summit in the Alpine resort was attended by Bill Clinton in 2000. Russias delegation at the Davos forum will be led by Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich. It will also include Economic Development Minister Maxim Oreshkin, head of the Russian Direct Investment Fund Kirill Dmitriev and business representatives. The delegation members will meet with investors and representatives of other states. According to Dmitriev, at the forum Russia may announce several investment projects in the technological sector. The session "Russia: Strategic Vision" will be attended by the head of the Russian Center for Strategic Research (CSR) Alexey Kudrin. The panel session "Russia and the Global Digital Agenda" will be held at the Russia House organized by the Roscongress Foundation with participation of Minister of Communications and Mass Media Nikolay Nikiforov and Vnesheconombank (VEB) CEO Sergey Gorkov. The participants and media representatives have also shown interest in a session devoted to Russias role on the global energy market to be attended by Energy Minister Alexander Novak and also CEOs of Lukoil and Novatek companies. The Davos forum will host 1,900 business leaders and also more than 200 media executives, 50 prominent culture figures and over 30 "technology pioneers." The forum will be held from January 23 until 26 and will have 400 sessions. The advisor on macroeconomics to the CEO of the 'Opening-Broker' brokerage house, economist Sergey Hestanov, speaking with Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that the Russian delegation are pursuing rather political objectives at this Davos forum, than economic ones. "Both Davos and St. Petersburg forums have long turned into a kind of Vanity Fair, and no one really expects that it will have ant fateful consequences: the countries advertise themselves there, and trade agreements signed there are usually of formal nature," he explained. "This year, like the previous one, is specific, because we live under sanctions, which are a significant restriction for many companies. We have current projects, but no one plans new ones, large enough to be discussed at the Davos Forum. This is why the diplomatic rank of most members of our delegation is not very high, due to the fact that no one has any special hopes for this forum. But the formal presence in Davos is still important to show that we are open to cooperation. In general, nothing important, interesting and capable of affecting the lives of Russians is expected at this forum," Sergei Hestanov said. Professor of the RANEPA faculty of Finance, Money Circulation and Credit, Yuri Yudenkov, in turn, also drew attention to the political importance of the Davos forum for Russia. "In conditions of Russia's growing political undesirability, it is necessary to have all possible contacts with the countries at such a high level. Our delegation is represented by the Deputy Prime Minister, which is a sufficient level for establishing and maintaining contacts. As the main task of our delegation, in addition to maintaining contacts, I would stress studying the expert opinion both on the dynamics of Russia's development and on the dynamics of the development of the world economy. It is important for us to catch world economy trends and how Russia fits it them, because Russia's artificial insulation isn't going to last, the sanctions will be lifted, and by this moment we will have to correspond to the world level," he stressed. "It is necessary to know the competitors' level of development, because normal competition still persists. In addition to a pure theory and negotiations, there is still hope that it will be possible to at least negotiate protocols of intentions for major projects. We hope that the Russian delegation will be able to discuss the possible participation of Russia and its cooperation with other countries in this direction," Yury Yudenkov concluded. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev is expected to attend about 30 meetings and panel discussions at the World Economic Forum in Davos, assistant to the Azerbaijani president for foreign policy issues, head of the department, Novruz Mammadov, posted on his Twitter page. Today, Ilham Aliyev already met with OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo. "We highly appreciate Azerbaijan's active leadership role in bringing together OPEC and non-OPEC countries, and in making a historic decision on this front in December 2016," Barkindo said President Aliyev emphasized that as OPEC Secretary General Mohammad Barkindo plays an important role in realizing expectations of business communities and countries. The President expressed his confidence that Azerbaijan will maintain its successful cooperation with OPEC, and invited Mohammad Barkindo to pay a visit to Azerbaijan. OPEC Secretary General accepted the invitation. Azerbaijan's President met earlier with the founder, chairman and CEO of US BlackRock company, Laurence Fink and President of Russian LUKOIL company Vagit Alekperov, member of the Management Committee of Mastercard Timothy Murphy, Executive Vice President at Cisco Kelly Kramer as well as Vice President of Business Development for Chevron Corporation Jay Pryor. A mass brawl has broken out at a German airport in Hannover, sparked by demonstrators protesting about Turkish military action against Kurdish fighters. German police said up to 180 protestors and passengers clashed after sympathizers of the PKK attempted to hold an unauthorized demonstration at the airport, the Daily Sabah reported. Multiple videos posted on social media showed the pro-PKK protestors shouting anti-Turkey slogans and punching Turkish passengers following a verbal exchange. The police had to use pepper spray to separate both sides. At least two people were injured during the brawl. Etihad Airways, the national airline of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), will launch flights to Baku starting from March, the head of the Association of Tourism of Azerbaijan (AzTa), Nahid Bagirov, said. "Etihad Airways is a company which is in Top 3 of leaders among the world's airlines and its activity in Azerbaijan will cause an increase in the tourist flos from Arab countries in the segment of 'above average'," abc.az cited him as saying. Bagirov added that Etihad Airways will also ensure the flow of Arab tourists from countries, which are unable to use the services of another airline Qatar Airways in connection with certain problems in the Arab countries. Azerbaijan's basic market for the country's actively developing non-oil sector exports is Russia: supplies valued at $553 million were exported to the country, which is more than one third of total output of the sector in 2017. The most popular Azerbaijani goods on the Russian market were tomatoes: they had accounted for every tenth dollar of foreign trade participants. Azerbaijan exported a total of $151.6 million in tomatoes to foreign markets, RIA Novosti reported. In total, according to the last year's results, thanks to measures for the improvement of the non-oil sector, the export of Azerbaijani products increased by 24% and amounted to $1.538 billion," the Export Review of the Center for Analysis of Economic Reforms and Communication says. Azerbaijan's non-oil exports are not limited to the Russian market alone: Azerbaijani goods worth $292 million were exported to Turkey, Switzerland ($143 million), Georgia ($138 million) and Italy ($56 million). Political scientist Rovshan Ibragimov, speaking with Vestnik Kavkaza, noted that Russia will continue to maintain leadership in the structure of importers of Azerbaijani goods. "I think that the figures will only increase due to several factors: First, we have been united by the traditional economic ties since the Soviet times, when Azerbaijan was the main exporter of fruits and vegetables to the Russian market. It means that Russian consumers are familiar with Azerbaijani goods - Baku tomatoes, pomegranates, pomegranate juice are recognizable brands. Second, there are all necessary transport communications for the export of goods to Russia, which provides Azerbaijani products easy access to the Russian market," he said in the first place. "Third, Azerbaijan and Russia have a free trade agreement, which simplifies the entrance of Azerbaijani products to the Russian market, which is very important. Especially when compared with a European market, which has too many different requirements, standards and categories. In addition, Europe is a far market with no direct transport exits for Azerbaijan. Fourth, there is a conjuncture factor: Russia's food sanctions against a number of countries have increased the demand for Azerbaijani products. So three structural reasons for Russia's leadership in the structure of Azerbaijan's non-oil export have increased due to sanctions," Rovshan Ibragimov noted. Russian businessman and lawmaker Suleiman Kerimov, under investigation for tax fraud in France, returned to Nice after making a short trip to Russia that was allowed by the French authorities, the Nice prosecutor Jean-Michel Pretre said. Kerimov was meeting with the speaker of the upper house of the Russian parliament, Valentina Matvienko, during his three-day visit to Russia. "He came back on Monday," Reuters cited the prosecutor a saying. Kerimov is ranked by Forbes magazine as Russias 21st wealthiest businessman, with a net worth of $6.3 billion. He was arrested by police at Nice airport in November in connection with a tax evasion case. The future of relations between Ankara and Washington depends on the further steps the US takes, and who supports who in Syria, Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said. The minister noted that US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has expressed doubts that the Syrian Kurds from People's Protection Units (YPG) had shelled Turkish territory. "We do not know where they get the data, but we take into account what we experienced and saw. I told him to check his sources of information, and not to talk to us about their position," Haberturk newspaper cited Cavusoglu as saying. "The future of relations with the US depends on the next steps of the United States. As for me, I am taking the steps that I should, otherwise my country will be in danger," he stressed. The minister expects "from such allies as the US that they will be on the side of Turkey, and not on the side of terrorists." According to Cavusoglu, before starting the operation, Turkey fully informed all interested parties about its military plans. "Our task is not to confront Russia, Syria or the US, but to fight terrorism," the minister noted. Turkeys army has launched the Olive Branch operation in Syria's Afrin on January 20. A batch of counterfeit Georgian wine has been removed from sales in Ukraine and the offender was fined by the Ukrainian Antimonopoly Service, the Georgian National Wine Agency said. "In 2016, the National Wine Agency received information that Ukrainian companies had illegally imitated Georgian wines and used Georgian protected appellation wine names illegally," a press release reads. According to the agency, companies operating in Ukraine create unfair competition conditions for Georgian wine producing companies and thus directly influence the export potential of Georgian wine. With regard to this fact, the National Wine Agency addressed the Ukrainian Antimonopoly Committee, which initiated and launched an investigation against Ukrainian company LLC KAMIANKA GLOBAL WINE. By the end of 2017 the Ukrainian Antimonopoly Committee acknowledged that the actions of the Ukrainian company as a violation of the Ukrainian law on "protection against dishonest competition" and imposed a penalty of about $242,265, Agenda.ge reported. At the same time, KAMIANKA GLOBAL WINE has been banned for implementing similar actions on the imitation of Georgian wine in the future. A working group comprising American and European officials will soon begin to develop a "side agreement" to the Iran nuclear deal aimed at easing US President Donald Trumps complaints about the pact, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said. "We will be discussing that through working groups beginning as early as next week and well see what progress we can make," Tillerson said after the talks with UK Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson. Tillerson and other U.S. and European officials particularly in France, Germany, and the United Kingdom have limited time to come to an agreement before Trump reaches a deadline to renew sanctions on Iran that would violate the pact. The president says he will decline to waive the sanctions, absent a substantial toughening of the American posture towards the nuclear deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). "I think theres a common view among the E3, certainly, that there are some areas of the JCPOA, or some areas of Irans behavior, that should be addressed. And most particularly, their ballistic missile programs and our concerns over the expiry of the JCPOA and the provisions around the expiry," the Washington Examiner cited Tillerson as saying. US Vice President Mike Pence urged Europe to agree to open the Iranian nuclear deal, threatening that Washington will quit the landmark pact if its sunset provisions are not entirely removed. The vice president stressed that the US stands together with Israel against Iran, calling the Islamic Republic the "leading state sponsor of terror." He also commented on US President Donald Trumps decision to announce that the waiver that he would sign on sanctions under the Iran nuclear deal would be the last one. "We are sending a signal to our European allies that the time has come for changes in the Iran nuclear deal that will ensure that the sunset provisions in the deal are completely eliminated. Punitive sanctions will be available for many years to come to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and you have our commitment to work closely with our allies around, the Washington Examiner cited him as saying. Pence noted that the US is committed to work closely with its allies around the world to achieve that. "If our allies will not join us, President Trump has made it clear we will withdraw from the Iran nuclear deal immediately," he said. "But we hope in the months ahead to able to strengthen it, to contribute to the security of the region, Israels security, and the security of American interests as well," Pence said at the meeting with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. HCM CITY Viet Nams cashew industry has targeted 300,000 tonnes of cashew exports at a value of US$3 billion this year, a year-on-year reduction of 50,000 tonnes in volume and $500 million in value, according to the Viet Nam Cashew Association (Vinacas). Explaining why the sector has cut its export target, Nguyen uc Thanh, Vinacas chairman, said: We havent had sufficient domestic material supply, and the prices of imported raw cashews were too high and sometimes of poor quality. The focus this year will shift from quantity to quality by raising the value of cashew nuts with deep processing and promotion of consumption in the domestic market, he said. Cashew output last year was equal to 50 per cent of the output in 2016 because unseasonal rains seriously affected the pollination of trees and at the same time created ideal conditions for diseases to develop on young buds and fruits, affecting productivity and quality, Thanh said. The trees health was seriously affected due to disease and pests last year. Therefore, economic and technical measures are needed to help the trees recover and yield fruits this year, the association said. The association said that localities and agencies should kill pests in cashew plantation areas to prevent disease outbreaks in the next crop. In the long run, the sector needs quality cashew seedlings that can adapt to unfavourable weather. The association also called on businesses and cashew farmers to develop close linkages in production and consumption of clean cashew nuts. Viet Nam achieved its highest-ever cashew exports in a year in 2017 with 353,000 tonnes of cashew kernels exported for a value of $3.52 billion, a year-on- year increase of 1.9 per cent in volume and 23.8 per cent in value, it said. Demand for the nut globally has increased by 10 per cent each year and is forecast to rise in coming years. According to the International Nuts and Dried Fruits Council, cashews accounted for the largest market share in the global dried nut market and are expected to account for 28.91 per cent of the market by 2021, followed by walnuts. With exports last year, Viet Nam retained a market share of over 50 per cent of total global cashew kernel export revenue ($5.5 billion), and maintained its position as one of the worlds largest cashew processors and exporters. Thanh said the association recently signed a memorandum of understanding with the Cambodian Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries to raise cashew output to one million tonnes in the next 10 years. Under the agreement, Vinacas would provide cashew seedlings and technical support and buy the entire output, he said. Cambodia currently has more than 100,000ha under cashew cultivation, with a total output of more than 100,000 tonnes of crude cashew nuts, a majority of which is exported to Viet Nam. In addition, under the sectors development plan until 2020, the Government targets to increase cashew cultivation areas as well as output, Thanh said. These activities would help ensure raw material sources for Vietnamese cashew processors and exporters in the coming years. Currently, domestic raw cashew nuts meet only 20-35 per cent of local demand. VNS HA NOI Viet Nams shrimp industry will become a key economic sector with sustainable development that is environmentally friendly and can withstand the challenges of climate change, if the national action plan for the development of the shrimp industry by 2025 that was approved by the Prime Minister meets its targets. The plan hopes to improve the quality, efficiency of production and competitiveness of Vietnamese shrimp products, in a bid to benefit farmers, businesses and the countrys economy. According to the action plan, the domestic shrimp industry is expected to gain US$5.5 billion in export value and record an annual average growth of 10.79 per cent in 2017-20, including $4.5 billion from brackish water shrimp exports. The total area rearing brackish water shrimp is estimated to reach 710,000ha, with total output of 850,000 tonnes of shrimp during 2017-20, and expand to 750,000ha and 1.1 million tonnes of output in the period from 2020-25. Meanwhile during the period of 2017-20, the industry will have a total area of 30,000ha rearing giant freshwater prawn with total output of 30,000 tonnes and one million cubic metres of cage rearing lobster with total output of 2,500 tonnes. In 2021-25, a hi-tech shrimp industry and large-scale eco-shrimp farming area will be developed. Infrastructure and technical services will be invested in a synchronous, efficient and sustainable manner. The shrimp industry expects to reach $10 billion in export value and an average growth of 12-14 per cent per year. Direction According to the plan, the agriculture must take full advantage of natural conditions, market, processing technology and experts experience to gain efficient and sustainable development for the local shrimp industry. At the same time, the industry will develop large-scale production and use hi-tech and environmentally friendly scientific achievements to increase productivity and quality. The production will be gradually phase out the use of chemicals and antibiotics in processing and circulation of shrimp products. Development of production must follow closely with the demand of the consumption market. The plan aims to build the brands of shrimp products in Viet Nam . The Viet Nam Association of Seafood Exporters and Producers (VASEP) said shrimp exports contributed the most to the total national seafood export value, with a growth rate of 21 per cent to $3.8 billion in export value for 2017. VNS HA NOI The HCM Stock Exchange is switched off for maintenance today following its crash during the At-the-Closing (ATC) period on Monday. The southern stock exchange experienced a technical crash at 2.31pm on Monday afternoon, bringing to a halt all trading activities. In a statement released at 2am on Tuesday, HOSE said it would shut down all trading activities on Tuesday so that the southern bourse could go through technical examination. We are doing our best to fix the error so that the trading bourse can return to normal operations as soon as possible. We are sorry for this accident and expect corresponding cooperation from market members and investors, HOSE said. It has not promised a specific date on which all trading activities could resume. In the letters sent to investors on the latest incident through brokerage firms, HOSE said all trading orders in the system became invalid at 8pm on Monday, and the transactions would be cancelled. I expect HOSE to return to normal operations on Wednesday, said Tran Van Dung, chairman of the State Securities Commission (SSC). It was an unexpected system failure, but investors should be aware that such an incident can happen to any market in the world, Dung said. In the eventuality of any such incident in the market, investor confidence and market sentiment would be the first ones to suffer, he said. The most important thing to do right now is that stock exchanges and market regulators need to deliver instant messages to market members and investors so that they can make the right decisions, Dung said. He expected investors to remain calm and asked them to make careful assessment of the current situation so that the crash would not affect their investment decisions in future. The SSC chairman noted three issues that investors should think of at the moment. First, they must think carefully about the movement of the VN30 future contracts on the Ha Noi Stock Exchanges derivatives market when the VN30 Index and the southern exchange remain shut down. Second, investors should note that the last matching-order prices on Monday will be the reference prices for the southern market when it resumes operations. Third, investors should not worry about the latest crash as the Vietnamese market is on its development stage, supported by good macro-economic conditions and a stable and strong foreign capital inflow. This is the second system crash at HOSE since its first one in May 2008. Back then, investors were suddenly unable to enter their trading orders into the system after the market had opened for one hour. The southern bourse had to close the trading day sooner than expected and had to abort all trading orders that had been imported into the system during the At-the-Opening (ATO) period. The southern market had remained closed for three days. VNS HA NOI National carrier Vietnam Airlines and authorities of the northern province of Quang Ninh signed a strategic co-operation agreement in Ha Long Bay on Monday. Under the agreement, the two sides will help each other develop and promote tourism in Quang Ninh Province and popularise the image, products and services of Vietnam Airlines. The province will set up special support policies for air routes to Van on International Airport to increase the number of visitors to Quang Ninh and introduce the province to Europe, Australia and the northeast Asia region. Meanwhile, Vietnam Airlines will expand its international and domestic air network from and to Van on airport to meet the markets demand. It will also co-ordinate with local authorities to promote investment and tourism, and take part in local and international cultural and tourism events in the province from 2018 to 2021. As a coastal province in the North East of Viet Nam, Quang Ninh owns the worlds natural wonder Ha Long Bay. The provinces Van on International Airport will be operational by 2018 to meet the travel demands of people. Vietnam Airlines and Quang Ninh Peoples Committee have jointly organised social activities to support the poor. In April last year, the carrier grew 50,000 trees in one coalfield of Quang Ninh Province. VNS HA NOI Sixteen international and non-governmental organisations working for wildlife conservation in Viet Nam signed a joint letter urging strict punishment for Nguyen Mau Chien and his accomplies for transnational wildlife trafficking. This was announced by Education for Nature Vietnam (ENV) on Monday. Nguyen Mau Chien is alleged to lead a transnational network involved in trafficking rhino horns as well as in other illegal wildlife trade. On April 27, 2017, Chiens accomplices were caught while transporting 15 pieces of rhino horn from HCM City to Ha Noi under his direction. On May 1, 2017, Chien turned himself in. In the past, he was once arrested and administratively sanctioned in Tanzania in 2007. The trial in the case prosecuting Chien and his partners will open on January 26. They have been charged with violating Article 155.1 of Penal Code 2009 which is punishable by up to five years in jail. The 16 organisations that have signed the letter include Centre of Hands-on Actions and Networking for Growth and Environment, ENV, Endangered Primate Rescue Centre, Four Paws Viet, Freeland, Free the Bears, GreenViet, Humane Society International, Save Vietnams Wildlife, The Asian Turtle Programme of Indo-Myanmar Conservation, TRAFFIC, United Nations Office for Drugs and Crime, WildAct Vietnam, Wildlife Conservation Society Viet Nam, World Animal Protection and WWF Viet Nam. In the joint letter, the organisations express their desire for the law-enforcement agencies to give appropriate punishment to the accused in the upcoming trial at Ha ong District Court. The sentence, they say, should not only serve the admonitory purposes of law, but also reflect the determination of Viet Nam in taking down wildlife trafficking networks. They also pledge their support to Viet Nams efforts in combatting illegal wildlife trafficking and trade. This is the countrys exclusive opportunity to turn commitments into reality in closing down criminal wildlife trafficking networks and strengthen law enforcement efforts in the fight against wildlife crime. The whole world is watching Viet Nams action in this case, deputy director of ENV Bui Thi Ha told the Vietnam News Agency. On November 27 last year, the case file was returned for further investigation, specifically to look into the origin of the confiscated wildlife and inconsistency in the subjects testimonies. The arrest of Chien in 2017 marks a milestone in Viet Nams battle against wildlife traffickers as this is the first time a suspected leader of a wildlife trafficking network has been apprehended and prosecuted. VNS HA NOI National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan and her Mongolian counterpart Miyegombo Enkhbold have agreed to promote bilateral exchanges and cooperation in politics and security-defence, towards further deepening bilateral ties. The top legislators of Viet Nam and Mongolia held talks in Ha Noi on Monday, following a grand welcome ceremony for Miyegombo Enkhbold and a high-level delegation of the Mongolian parliament, who are in Ha Noi for an official visit from January 20-23. The two legislative leaders stressed the need to maintain mutual visits and meetings between the two countries senior leaders, saying that these activities are necessary to define major directions for pushing forward the friendship and cooperation between Viet Nam and Mongolia. The two sides pledged to effectively implement agreements signed in the fields of diplomacy and security-defence; increase dialogues, information and experience sharing at all levels; collaborate in fighting crimes; enhance partnership in defence industry, logistics and military medicine; and accelerate negotiations of agreements on criminal extradition and the transfer of convicted persons. Speaking highly of Mongolias decision to allow Vietnamese officers to participate in the Khaan Quest international peacekeeping exercise, Ngan affirmed Viet Nam was willing to continue sending officers to the exercise while receiving Mongolian officers to Viet Nam to learn the Vietnamese language. She suggested the two sides maintain political consultation meetings between their Ministries of Foreign Affairs in 2018. The two legislators agreed that Viet Nam and Mongolia should bolster their economic and trade connection. They pledged to urge their ministries, sectors and localities to implement agreements and common perceptions reached by the two countries leaders, and outcomes of the 16th session of their inter-governmental committee. The two sides will encourage and make it easier for their enterprises and investors to invest and do business in each others markets. The chairman of the Mongolian parliament said the two sides need to enhance export to each others markets, as well as promoting bonds in education, tourism, health care, and people-to-people exchange. Mongolia wishes to learn from Viet Nams experience in investment attraction policy, export, climate change adaptation, and traditional medicine, he said, adding that the two counties should consider setting up a connection in customs and inspection. NA Chairwoman Ngan affirmed Viet Nam is willing to share experience in building and joining a free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU), and asked the Mongolian side to consider receiving Vietnamese labourers to work in Mongolia. She stated that Viet Nam always attaches importance to developing win-win cooperation with Mongolia, and that the country will continue to support Mongolia becoming a member of the APEC, as well as serving as a bridge to promote connections between Mongolia and other ASEAN member nations. Discussing regional and international issues of common concern, the two parliamentary leaders agreed that the two sides will effectively coordinate at multilateral forums, and work closer to supervise the implementation of agreements signed by the Governments, ministries and sectors of the two countries. The Mongolian guest said Viet Nam is an important partner of his country in Southeast Asia, noting that Mongolia backs Viet Nams candidacy for a non-permanent seat in the UN Security Council in the 2020-21 term. He also said his country supports the settlement of disputes in the East Sea by peaceful means, in line with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in 1982. After the talks, the two parliamentary leaders signed a memorandum of understanding on cooperation between the two legislatures. They also witnessed the signing of an MoU on cooperation between Viet Nams Hoa Binh Province and TUV province of Mongolia. VNS President Tran ai Quang receives visiting Chairman of the Mongolian Parliament Miyegombo Enkhbold in Ha Noi on Monday. VNA/VNS Photo Nhan Sang HA NOI President Tran ai Quang hosted visiting Chairman of the Mongolian Parliament Miyegombo Enkhbold in Ha Noi on Monday. President Quang spoke of the orientations for the growth of Viet Nam-Mongolia relations sketched out by the two parliament leaders, stressing the need to increase the exchange of delegations and cooperation among localities. He asked the two sides to coordinate closely to hold Vietnamese Culture Days in Mongolia and Mongolian Culture Days in Viet Nam, while seeking measures to facilitate trade, tourism and business collaboration. He took the occasion to convey his invitation to Mongolian President Khaltmaagiin Battulga to visit Viet Nam. For his part, Enkhbold congratulated Viet Nam on its successful organisation of the 26th Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum. He affirmed that Viet Nam is an important partner of Mongolia in the Southeast Asian region, adding that his country hopes to expand affiliation with Viet Nam in all fields. Promoting business Enkhbold also met with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on the same day, who spoke highly of the central Asian country for creating favourable conditions for Vietnamese firms to do business there and said that Viet Nam can provide its staples like coffee and seafood for Mongolia. Viet Nam is ready to share experience and cooperate with Mongolia in the fields of customs, education and networking activities among localities of both sides, he said, adding that the country is willing to send high-profile experts and engineers in civil engineering, bridge and road construction and other fields to support Mongolia. The Government leader said that the two countries should channel more efforts to increase bilateral trade to US$70 million by 2020. Due attention has been paid to the exchange of high-ranking delegations in recent years, contributing to developing win-win cooperation, Enkhbold stressed, adding that the Viet Nam-Mongolia Inter-governmental Committee has a crucial role in elevating bilateral ties. The two countries are pushing for the signing of agreements on justice and ratcheting up defence partnership, he noted. In terms of trade and economy, he suggested that the two countries enhance collaboration in the processing of frozen meat. Mongolia boasts huge potential to export mutton and goat meat to Viet Nam and to import chicken and meat from the Southeast Asian nation. Cooperative mechanisms in customs, tax, banking and finance should be set up to promote two-way trade cooperation, he recommended. He wished that Viet Nam would receive more Mongolian students and the two countries localities would launch cooperative activities to make it easier for partnerships between their businesses and people. VNS Bespoke made to order is not a strange term in the luxury world. Saying bespoke is talking about unique products, that offer pride for owners. It can be an exaggerated sophisticated suit, or a watch made for a particular customer. And now the spirit of bespoke is setting a new benchmark in the luxury resort market in Viet Nam. No one knows exactly when the bespoke concept emerged in the global super luxury resort market. The resort market has had to satisfy high requirements of the European nobility since the 14th-15th centuries. Bespoke in luxury resorts is not only uniquely designed spaces, but also made-to-order to bring unique experiences. Eyal Ofer, a luxury property mogul in Monaco, said that the top-class was always hunting for unique experiences, and this trend would never stop. It is not exaggerating when saying that Regent Residences Phu Quoc is the name that guarantees uniqueness. It is not accidental that stars like Michael Jackson, Elvis Presley, John Lennon, Whitney Houston, Elton John, Tom Cruise, Mariah Carey, Lady Gaga and Beyonce chose to stay at Regent Hotels and Resorts property developments. That is certainly not due to only the luxury, but also the devotion and caring, which deeply touched the emotions. Regent has such pride that it exceeds the normal boundaries of resort tourism and set new benchmarks for luxury, which emphasised uniqueness and individual taste, as well as new luxurious experiences. Continuing the luxury story of Regent, Regent Residences Phu Quoc will offer the spirit of uniqueness, to bring unprecedented experiences in a six-star resort in Viet Nam. Located in Phu Quoc Marina, Regent Residences Phu Quoc covers an area of 15 hectares with 76 luxury seaside villas, 42 sky villas and 120 hotel rooms, being developed with the strictest principles that has made up Regents reputation. Its ideal location, elegant architecture and interior design, which remains simple yet luxurious, offers harmony and encompasses local distinctiveness. More. The resort looks like a multi-color opal in the blue ocean, making everyone dream of enjoying luxurious services here. It would be perfect for a luxury cruise to Michelin-starred dinner to bespoke services. Regent Residences Phu Quoc also bring irresistible investment opportunities, with a guaranteed profit of no less than 9 per cent per year in nine years, and revenue sharing of up to 40 per cent. CA MAU A court in the southernmost province of Ca Mau has sentenced Huu Be, 57, from Thoi Binh District to seven years in prison and fined VN13 million (US$600) on Monday for child sex abuse. The 13-year-old girl committed suicide on February 10 of last year and left a suicide note that included information about Huu Be. Province police arrested Huu Be on September 19 last year after months of investigation for committing a lewd act on a 13-year-old girl, according to the polices report. From June to September in 2016, Be, who was a neighbour of the family, lured the young girl to his house and sexually abused her after trying to make phone calls and arrange appointments to meet her via notes and by offering money, according to the investigations report. In the court, Be denied his guilt but a representative of the Peoples Procuracy said there was enough evidence to sentence Huu Be. The Ministry of Public Security dismissed Tran Hong Loc, deputy head, and o Tan at, team leader of the police investigation agency, for lack of responsibility during the investigation of the case. VNS Tien Giang Province plans to invest VN110 billion (US$4.84 million) in 270 traffic projects to further the National Target Programme for New Rural Areas and improve traffic conditions in the ong Thap Muoi area. Photo mt.gov.vn TIEN GIANG Tien Giang Province plans to invest VN110 billion (US$4.84 million) in 270 traffic projects to further the National Target Programme for New Rural Areas and improve traffic conditions in the ong Thap Muoi area. Tran Van Bon, director of the provincial Department of Transport, said the department would work closely with local authorities to raise funds from various sources and oversee the traffic projects, which will cover a total of 200km. Local residents will also be encouraged to contribute their land to traffic projects and irrigation infrastructure. The department is prioritising certain traffic projects to help 22 communes reach the standards set by the National Target Programme for New Rural Areas by the end of the year. The National Target Programme for New Rural Areas is developing rural areas, focusing on areas such as infrastructure, education and health care, and reducing poverty and crime. A number of standards are being used to determine whether a commune, district or city can be classified as new rural areas. In 2017, Tien Giang invested VN120 billion for rural traffic development, which helped 17 communes reach the standards of the programme. VNS HCM CITY The revision to the Law on Higher Education should create more favourable conditions for private institutions in tertiary education, officials have said. Chu Hong Thanh, former director of Ministry of Education and Trainings Legal Department, said the role of private universities had been undervalued socially and legally. The current legal framework has yet to facilitate development and has only highlighted supervision of private universities, Thanh said at a workshop on legal policies for tertiary education held on Monday in HCM City. In recent years, many private universities have achieved breakthroughs and gained a good reputation. However, private universities need favourable legal policies to enable them to reform and develop in a more comprehensive way, he said. Experts said the future Law on Higher Education should not differentiate between public and private universities in issues such as recruitment, curriculum, academic programmes, research, and staff employment. Private institutions need incentive policies in tax, land usage and capital access, they said. The revised law should also emphasise total autonomy of universities. Though the 2012 Law on Higher Education gave total autonomy to universities, there have been inconsistencies with other legal regulations that have hindered universities from full autonomy. Full institutional autonomy is related to independent decisions on issues such as recruitment, curriculum, research, finances and administration, and international cooperation. The Ministry of Education and Training is expected to submit to the National Assembly the draft Law on Higher Education in May. VNS BA RIA-VUNG TAU The Thi Vai International Port officially started operations from Monday after nearly 20 years of its approval. Spanning across an area of more than 42,000sq.m, the port is capable of receiving cargo vessels and container ships weighing up to 50,000DWT and barges weighing up to 5,000DWT. The ports major wharf is 300m in length and 27m in width. Two other barge wharves are 155m and 130m long. The port is also equipped with two cranes that can lift up to 40 tonnes and four crane hooks that are capable of loading 20,000 tonnes of goods in a day. The project was licensed by the Ministry of Planning and Investment in May 1997. But it could not be operational due to several reasons. The project is a joint venture of five investors from Japan and Viet Nam, including Viet Nam Steel Corporation and Vung Tau Shipping and Services Joint Stock Company. Nguyen inh Viet, deputy head of Viet Nam Maritime Administration, told the Vietnam News Agency that with an annual capacity of 3.5 tonnes, the Thi Vai International Port was expected to contribute to ship 101-109 tonnes of goods in total annually through the Vung Tau port area by 2020. Le Tuan Quoc, deputy head of Ba Ria-Vung Tai Province, asked for investors cooperation in effectively exploiting the Thi Vai International Port as well as investing in following phases of the project. VNS HA NOI The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) has proposed to the Ministry of Transport to halt the collection of fee from drivers at airports. In a document sent to the ministry, inh Viet Thang, head of the CAAV, affirmed that the aviation service prices were stipulated in the provisions of the Civil Aviation Law and other relevant guiding documents. Currently, the charge for using the road leading to the airport terminal for cars is part of the non-aviation service fees and is not specified in the ministrys listed price. Previously, the Government Inspectorate announced the conclusion of its inspection on the compliance of policies and legislation on the management and use of capital, assets, equitisation, capital withdrawal and restructuring of Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV) in the period between 2012 and 2015. The conclusion indicated a series of violations, including the fee collection from the drivers of any four-wheel vehicle. From January 1, 2012, to December 31, 2015, 19 of the 21 airports had pocketed some VN551 billion ($24.2 million). These airports did not provide car parking services, but collected between VN7,000 and VN30,000 ($0.3-1.3) per visit or VN600,000 to VN1.6 million ($26.6-$71.1) per month for between three- to five-minute-long halt to pick up and drop passengers. Deputy Prime Minister Truong Hoa Binh has instructed the Ministry of Transport to coordinate with the Ministry of Finance to make a plan to handle the illegal fee collection of VN551 billion. The two ministries must report the results in March. VNS LONDON Former defence secretary Michael Fallon joined calls Monday for more British military spending, as the head of the army said the country may struggle to match Russian battlefield capabilities and another security chief warned a major cyber-attack on the UK is likely by 2020. Fallon, speaking at the Defence and Security Forum in his first speech since resigning from the Cabinet over a sexual harassment scandal in November, argued for a 1 billion ($1.4 billion) increase in defence funding this year, and raising annual GDP spending on it to 2.5 per cent. This would give the military an additional 7.7 billion each year, he said, amid a reported 20 billion black hole in the budget for the next decade. Noting the deficit was falling and spending is on the rise in other priority areas, Fallon said: "So lets release an extra 1 billion to fire up the defence budget this year, and set 2.5 percent of GDP as our new target for the end of the parliament." The suggestion came shortly after Chief of the General Staff Nick Carter said in a rare public speech that Russia poses the "most complex and capable" security challenge since the end of the Cold War, and warned against complacency. Making a high-profile intervention in the growing debate over military spending, he told an audience at the RUSI military think tank in London that "we cannot afford to sit back" in the face of Russian military strength. The army chief detailed Moscows growing military capabilities, which he illustrated with a Russian-language video he described as "information warfare at its best". That stark message was underlined by another warning Monday from the head of Britains National Cyber Security Centre that the country will likely face a major cyber-attack within two years. Ciaran Martin told the Guardian it was inevitable a hostile actor would launch an online attack aimed at crippling Britains critical infrastructure, such as energy supplies, and the country was lucky not to have fallen victim to one already. "I think it is a matter of when, not if and we will be fortunate to come to the end of the decade without having to trigger a category one attack," he told the paper. Budget questions Defence spending in Britain is under intense pressure following years of austerity, and a review launched last year has prompted media reports that further cuts are on the way. Carter believes Russia has now boosted its capabilities to the extent that Britain may struggle to match them, and could initiate hostilities faster than expected, noting it has already demonstrated its use of superior long-range missiles in Syria. "I believe our ability to pre-empt or respond to these threats will be eroded if we dont match up to them now," he said. The army head likened the current situation to the run-up to World War I: "We, I think, should be careful of complacency, the parallels with 1914 are stark." "Our generation has become used to wars of choice since the end of the Cold War. But we may not have a choice about conflict with Russia." Prime Minister Theresa Mays spokesman said Britain was committed to spending two percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on defence, in line with the target set by members of the NATO alliance. "The chief of general staff is saying that we face a range of threats, that we need to make sure we have capabilities required to address them. Thats exactly what were doing as part of the National Security Capability Review" launched last July, he said. "And were doing that from a position of strength, where we have a 36 billion ($50 billion, 40.9 billion euros) defence budget, which will rise to almost 40 billion by 2020-21." Defence minister Gavin Williamson, who took over the role in November, has said the capability review would conclude "shortly". AFP This is a good one and with the exception of a few trolls that messed up the comments with lies, you will find a wonderful witty section of comments http://russia-insider.com/en/official-list-things-you-can-blame-russia/ri19034 Lets add per comments available Swedish parliament are blaming Russia for the wave of crimes perpetuated by migrants. Germans, who said that many rapefugees are sleeper FSB agents. Hacking US elections, protection and safe guard of Crimea, Syria, Iran and China. The fires in Fort McMurray, Canada. Russia offered to aid in extinguishing them, the Canadian Govt refused, so its Russias fault because they are a political enemy of the US so we couldnt accept their help without facing hostility with the US, so it burned for a month, then a few weeks later it flooded with extreme rainfall in the region Lets not forget aiding to the death of terrorists, destabilizing world markets by purchasing gold and paying off debt. Installing the US president, supporting peaceful citizens in Ukraine to defend against the tyranny of the Nazi Regime installed and funded by the World Bank, US govt, Canadian, and English govt, IMF, NATO, CIA and Central Banks. Russia made us do it! Oh and lest we forget the strange weather coming out of the region of Russia spreading all across the globe. ts Russias fault that Capitalism requires constant growth in the market. A market that is overly saturated and needs to take over all global markets to survive for a little longer. Its Russias fault that we are willing to use our military to take over these markets, destroy dispensable nations for our own temporary gain. Its Russias fault we have extreme debt and that any financial stability in the world is a threat because we may be forced to be accountable for our debt if there is someone out there who is financially responsible. Its Russias fault that we have to resort to more and more desperate measures to accomplish our world domination goals because of its unwillingness to be a servant to the all mighty Oz So you see, you need to play by our rules and we will play nice to you if you do.. because we are the just and moral light in the world, or didnt you know that. allowing Americans to have names like billy-bob breaking of the peace treaty in Ukraine breaking of the peace treaty in Syria breaking of the peace treaty in Afghanistan the murder of their own diplomats the drugging of the Philippines President to wake up and see the atrocities the US have done. Japan is now blaming Russia, Malaysia is blaming Russia. Global warming caused by Russia too as they are drilling for oil and gas. And they are the cause of men turning transgender. The destruction of flight MH-17 and the death of nearly 300 civilians. Blame the Russians for hilarious and bad ass YouTube videos. or lets number them 31. Alcoholism 32. WW2 33. WW1 34. Obesity 35. Mental Depression 36. Monobrows 37. Small Penises 38. Oversized Penises 39. Ear-Hair 40. Nose-Hair 41. Cancer 42. French Toilets 43. Road-Deaths 44. Climate Change 45. Malaria 46. ADHD 47. Divorces 48. Chemical Waste 49. Commercial Television 50. John McCain 51. Addictions 52. Israel 53. American Tourists 54. Peadophilic Priests 55. Ingrowing Toenails 56. Smelly Feet 57. Farts 58. Doping 59. Racism 60. My Combi-Oven not working at 800 Watts but at 790.DAMN YOU PUTIN!!!!! some more Allowing American FAT men to wear the high waisted trousers to pretend they are thin the rise of autism in the US the collapse of peoples intelligence in the US the disintegration of the US infrastructure the increased number of the global population that awaits the American collapse Blame Russia for the Ruble. Cant believe you guys forgot President Trump The Russians are Obviously Guilty of Inventing Chocolate flavored condoms. The World shortage of Toilet Rolls. Supplying the Pentagon with a drug based on the Rabies Virus so the Pentagon could bring out, The Zombie Act which would allow them to kill all the American People they infect with it. Supplying the Pentagon and CIA with C4 so they could bring down the Twin Towers and pretend it was Bin Laden. (A question no one ever asked wasWhat was hidden under the Twin Towers. The Pentagon picked the date for the Demolition as a joke. Forget the month and date, what are the numbers? What else is nine one one) The list of calamities attributable to Russia continues : dam bursts in California, secessionist moves on the part of California and Texas , increased legal migrations of gays into San Francisco, climate change in the United States, mind control chemicals in our food and medicine , air pollution in Los Angeles theres more.. They left out Bambis mother dying. Disneys Bambis Mothers Death. and The war in Syria and destruction of Aleppo There is more, many more http://russia-insider.com/en/official-list-things-you-can-blame-russia/ri19034 WtR The second and third round of sanctions were directly inspired by CIA reports that Donald Trump ordered before making decisions. CIA Director Mike Pompeo admitted Tuesday that his office was behind some of the U.S. sanctions adopted against Venezuela's government. In a conversation following a conference at the American Enterprise Institute, the moderator asked Pompeo to enumerate some examples of the CIA reports that have drawn the attention of U.S. President Donald Trump. The CIA official promptly quoted the case of Venezuela, saying that Trump requested additional information especially about Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his relation with Venezuela's Armed Forces. Trump was not satisfied with the description of the situation we had presented, responded Pompeo. He wanted more clarity about some financial matters, about who had economic power. As a result, the CIA produced another round of reports on Venezuela, and the second or third series of sanctions obeyed to our recommendations, he said. On Nov. 9, the United States enforced sanctions against 10 Venezuelan officials "associated with undermining electoral processes, media censorship, or corruption in government-administered food programs in Venezuela." Last week, the U.S. Treasury Department imposed more sanctions on four Venezuelan senior military officers, accusing them of committing "corruption and oppression." Assets that are subject to U.S. jurisdiction are being frozen, and U.S. citizens will be generally prohibited from dealing with the officers, the department said in a statement. In the announcement, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin also called on the international community to stand with Washington on the sanctions, Xinhua reports. The investigation is undergoing and none of the victims nor the suspects have been identified yet. Seven people were killed during a shootout in the small town of Yaruma, department of Antioquia, according to police sources on Monday. According to the first elements of the investigation, four unidentified men crippled with bullets the bar named La Margarita as people were running away. The police are now trying to identify the bodies. The tragedy follows Colombian governments decision to resume the peace talks with the ELN rebel group, as the chief negotiator is on his way back to Ecuador to seek a new ceasefire, after being recalled to Bogota following a surge in guerrilla attacks. The National Liberation Army (ELN) rebel group and the government have started formal peace talks for nearly a year, but the guerrillas launched a new offensive this month, killing security force members, bombing major oil pipelines and kidnapping an oil contractor after the expiration of a 101-day ceasefire. In response to the renewed attacks, Santos recalled Gustavo Bell, the head of the governments team at the Quito talks, to discuss the future of the negotiations. But United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called on the two sides to return to the talks during a visit to Colombia this month, along with several countries and human rights organizations. Gustavo Bell will travel to Quito to explore the possibility of a new ceasefire that will allow a continuation of peace negotiations with the ELN, Santos said on Twitter. Jorge Arreaza said that the sanctions by the European Union are aimed at attacking the Bolivarian Revolution and its democratic institutions. Venezuelan Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza on Monday condemned the unilateral sanctions of the European Union (EU) and called on the bloc to rectify its interventionist position. "It is regrettable that the European Union is put to the tail's end of US imperialism, it is regrettable that the European Union has issued a series of restrictive measures against Venezuelan citizens, officials, but also presidents of public powers, that is, against Venezuela and its democratic institutionality democratic," Arreaza said during the II Forum of Cooperation of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) and China. Arreaza asserted that the EU violates international law by subordinating its foreign policy "to the imperialist, supremacist and racist US policy" "Venezuela calls on the EU to reflect and rectify because our independence is sacred, our institutions legitimate," he said. Arreaza stressed that the EU's arguments to impose sanctions are not to promote dialogue with the opposition, on the contrary "it is about attacking the Bolivarian Revolution, and attacking Venezuelan democratic institutions." He recalled that the undersecretary of State for Political Affairs of the United States, Thomas Shannon, had previously reported that "they instructed the EU with a package of sanctions against Venezuela." The Venezuelan diplomat said that his country will continue in the process of dialogue with the opposition, as well as progress in all areas of society. Naa Peru Surya is Allu Arjuns biggest film to date. The shooting of the film is going on in full swing and the latest we hear is that the makers have decided to prepone the release of their film. The news is that the action drama will hit the screens on the 13th of April instead of April 27th. Initially, this film was supposed to clash with Maheshs Bharath Ane Nenu but the makes have decided to come early and take the summer advantage. The team will reveal this news in an official press meet today. Vakkantam Vamsi directs this film which has Anu Emanuel as the female lead. Naga Babu presents this film and Lagadapati Sreedhar is the producer. Articles that might interest you: Jan 23, 2018 | By Tess Violinist Sean Riley needed a six-string violin to play a particular piece of music. Rather than spend thousands of dollars buying one, the innovative music student at the University of Texas decided to 3D print it. Sean Riley plays his custom 3D printed electric violin Riley, a PhD candidate in Musical Arts at the University of Texas at Austins Butler School of Museum, is a well practiced musician. Playing violin since the age of seven, the talented musician obtained both his bachelors and masters degrees in violin performance from The Juilliard School. When he came across a particular piece of music, The Dharma at Big Sur by composer John Adams, there was nothing that could get in the way of him playing it. Not even his lack of equipment. You see, while most violins have four strings, Adams piece is written for a six-string violin. I have made it a point in my career to keep an eye out for incredible new music, explained Riley, who found the piece while browsing in the UT Austin library. The Dharma at Big Sur is written by a composer named John Adams, one of the greatest composers in the world at the moment It was amazing. I had to play it. Students Sean Riley, Daniel Goodwin, and Rebecca Milton working on the 3D printed violin project Almost serendipitously, as Riley was walking back through the library thinking about how to get his hands on a six-string violin (which are not especially common instruments), he glanced into the Foundry, a makerspace facility located in UT Austins Fine Arts Library. The space, which is accessible to all UT Austin students, is equipped with a range of technologiesincluding 3D printers, laser cutters, textile machines, and computersall aimed at realizing creative projects. Almost immediately, Riley came to the conclusion that if he couldnt buy an expensive six-string violin, he could try to 3D print one for a much lower cost. Of course, the violinist would need some help in designing and manufacturing the one-of-a-kind instrument. 3D printed prototype of the six-string violin stands next to a traditional four-string violin Daniel Goodwin, a mechanical engineering senior and a regular user of the Foundry, was Rileys first collaborator for the project. I was working there at the time, said Goodwin. Sean came in wanting to make this six-string violin. I asked him what his background was. He said, Im a violinist. I said, Youre crazy. Despite the complexity of the proposal, Goodwin was too intrigued by the project to let it pass by. The pair eventually reached out to Rebecca Milton, a student of sculpture and studio arts, to help in the aesthetic design of the instrument. I wanted someone to take this project beyond just a violin, added Riley. The three students used a variety of materials and means to create the six-string electric violin, and the final piece consists of a 3D printed neck and body, and porcelain ribs molded from driftwood, bones, and shells (Milton was inspired by the pieces coastal theme). Rebecca Milton, a sculptor and studio arts major, helped design the 3D printed violin Because the violin is electricand did not require a hollow shapethe students had some freedom in designing the violins minimal frame. The electronics, for their part, were made by a New York firm that specializes in making custom parts. The 3D printed violin, which the students worked on for about a year, is now complete and Riley is enjoying playing it. The violinist says that while playing a six-string violin is taking some getting used to, the sound of the 3D printed instrument is fantastic. I'm most proud of my team, he said. They have been amazing and brilliantly patient with all the shenanigans that a project into such uncharted territory entails. Its hard to describe how amazing it feels to hold the violin in my hands. I can feel that it has been made. I can feel Daniels hard work. I can feel Rebeccas hard work. I feel like Im not even playing a violin any more. Its something different. Rileys first performance with the 3D printed electric violin will take place on February 22 at UT Austins Jessen Auditorium. He will also be dedicating his final Doctor of Musical Arts performance next semester to the innovative instrument. Posted in 3D Printing Application Maybe you also like: Ken M wrote at 1/25/2018 4:03:52 PM:Back in my day we would have to acquire a violin the old fashioned way, by building it from cardboard boxes and rubber bands.Daniel Goodwin wrote at 1/25/2018 1:25:51 AM:Hey! That's me on the violin design. Thanks for the writeup! Follow me @dannthehuman The tradition of the much-hyped restaurant opening plays an undeniably important role in the business, drawing customers into a heavily leveraged dining room at a critical juncture. But a restaurant's debut isn't necessarily a defining eventrather, one of a multitude of events in the circuitous path that constitutes the evolution of a restaurateur. Or in the case of the two-and-a-half-year-old restaurant, Lord Stanley, two restaurateurs. Of equal importance here are three historical facts. 1: When Rupert Blease was 10 years old, his parents emigrated from England to the South of France, exposing their son to a kind of cuisine, and attitudes about food, that he was unlikely to have encountered in Britain in the 1980s and '90s. 2: When Carrie Blease (then Carrie Puffer) was studying at San Francisco State University in the early 2000s, she paid a visit to the California Culinary Academy, and decided her future was in restaurants. 3: In 2004, while learning the ropes of entremets (vegetables and garnish) on the second day of her internship at Raymond Blanc's Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons in Oxford, Carrie Puffer met Rupert Blease, who, at the time was on fish, which, owing to the structure of the brigade de cuisine, works closely with entremets. For Carrie, Le Manoir was something of a baptism by fire. "It was my first restaurant job evera crash course in restaurant work. I learned very fast that it's a you-get-it-quickly-or-you're-not-going-to-make-it kind of thing. It's a big kitchen. If someone was struggling, it was apparent that it was hard for everyone." For Rupert, meanwhile, who moved to Oxford with somewhat more work experienceincluding several stages in southern France; and jobs at L'Amphitryon in Toulouse and at Les Fermes de Marie in Megeve in the French AlpsLe Manoir "was awesomean extremely good kitchen. The food was very, very good, all the techniques were very good, and everything was done properly. It was a game changer, to see how good food could be, and how much I had to put into it." A romance developed as well. "As we spent so many hours working together," Rupert explained, "we got to know each other very quickly." By the end of the following year, said Carrie, "we were obviously going to go somewhere together." Somewhere turned out to be New York, where they married, and quickly found work: she at Blue Hill; he at Per Se. Then to London, where the pair worked side by side at Texture, the Icelandic chef Agnar Sverrisson's restaurant in Marylebone; and at an upscale nightclub among whose appeals was a relatively leisurely schedule that allowed them time to travel, as well as enjoy the city's attractions, including a pub in Camden Town called The Lord Stanley, which became a ritual haunt. In 2010, the two moved to San Francisco. While Carrie worked at Commonwealth, and Rupert at Central Kitchen, they began laying the groundwork for their own venture: something something refined yet casual, based in classical French cuisine, but incorporating elements from other European traditions, as well as an emphasis (inspired by a culinary tour of Japan) on a kind of elemental simplicity. When a decades-old Thai restaurant on the corner of Polk and Broadway ended its lease, they made their move, and in June of 2015, opened Lord Stanley, an ode both to Rupert's late father, and to the couple's favorite London pub. Within months, they earned a Michelin star, which they've retained ever since. On a chilly evening last week, my wife and I found ourselves seated, somewhat appropriately, between a couple from Britain and a French family. With the excitement that sometimes overwhelms a person contemplating an exceptionally enticing buffet, we chose a la carte (which offers four "bites," four starters, four mains and four desserts) rather than the $97 tasting menu, and considered our options while sipping a 2012 Bourgeois-Diaz 3C Cuvee Champagne, an enchanting duet, equal parts lemon and ripening pear. (The restaurant's wine director, Louisa Smith, who merits a story of her own, has won accolades for her work, which focuses on small-production natural wines. Smith is also a winemaker, and bottles under the label Louisa Mary Smith.) Gougeres seem to be a thing nowwhy it took them so long to become a fad is a bit of a mysterybut I've never enjoyed any quite like Lord Stanley's, which were filled with a Gouda mornay and garnished with piccalilli, a British take on Indian pickles, seasoned in this instance with mustard and turmeric. Previously, I wouldn't have thought to try to improve on a gougere's essential perfection, but the tangy, relishy sweetness of the pickly bits, and their soft crunch, unquestionably added a new dimension of deliciousness. This is to say nothing of the shavings of Piave Vecchio, a hard cow's-milk cheese from the Veneto similar to Parmigiano Reggiano, only more subtle in flavor. Lord Stanley sits at the intersection of Polk and Broadway, the nexus of the Marina, Russian Hill and Pacific Heights. (Robin Stein) On the subject of improvements, the Bleases have devised a way to make salt codsomething of an acquired taste, which you will know if you've ever studied the Portuguese bomblet, bolinho de bacalhau, or its Venetian counterpart, baccala frittoappealing to the masses. Their trick: cure the cod in-house, mix it into a Provencale brandade, and serve it in the form of a beignet, fried to a soft crisp in a light sourdough batter. A fan of fungi, I couldn't resist the idea of trumpet mushroomsgreat, meaty representatives of the species, grilled to a T and served with a sweet-nutty-umami squash-and-miso dip, which played nicely off the pleasingly sour notes of a 2015 "La Corte dei Merli," made from the black-skinned Freisa grape, by the Piedmontese producer, Enio Ferretti. Then a scallopbig and tender, with a fine, delicate flavorseared to a golden crust, and garnished with sweet, stickily-chewy slivers of candied parsnip and a softly savory buerre blanc and poultry jus. And grilled Berkshire pork ribsin a scrumptious glaze made from pork stock, apple juice, molasses and honey caramelfinished with a bit of salt and lemon juice, and accompanied by a salt-baked apple which, decorated with a tiny flower and an arugula leaf, resembled a confectioner's marzipan folly. Although we hadn't ordered it, we were more than grateful when the kitchen sent out a dish of cabbage, cooked sous vide with butter and salt, dressed in a sauce of buttermilk (a happy by-product of the restaurant's own cultured butter), and garnished with sea beans (the tender and salty green shoots of the native succulent, Salicornia pacifica), dill, and shavings of cured sea urchin whose flavor somewhat resembled that of dried caramelized onions dipped ever so briefly in the sea. Figuratively, I could have gone on like this forever, but literally, not, and deferred to the powers that be on the matter of dessert: a Pavlovaan understated dollop of meringue filled with mandarin oranges and citrus jellythe thought of which has been haunting me ever since. Whether it will be there on my next visit, I don't know, as every week, a new dish or two comes along, displacing one or two others. Perhaps the Pavlova will circle back some day, like a small planet. Lord Stanley isn't the sole locus of evolution. The Bleases are working on another project, which they were hesitant to describe in more detail than to say that it would be "something more casual." As its debut approaches, it will no doubt be accompanied by the usual flurry of hype, which never excites me particularly, as hype has no flavor. But as soon as their new idea should become a reality, I hope to be among the first through its doors. // 2065 Polk Street (Nob Hill), lordstanleysf.com West Tampa - Google map Mention West Tampa to a friend, especially a younger friend or someone who has lived in Tampa for only a decade or so, and your friend is likely to think you mean somewhere out by Westchase in western Hillsborough County, or maybe the Westshore business district between Westshore Mall and International Plaza.Logical guesses, but wrong.West Tampa may have been on the fringes of Tampa when it first developed a century ago -- in fact, it was a city unto itself for about 30 years -- but now its right in the heart of Tampa.Even people who know where West Tampa is located are likely to think of it too narrowly. West Tampa isnt just that area south of I-275, where the Bryan Glazer Family JCC now occupies the former National Guard Armory and all those cool old brick buildings stand as reflections of the past.The West Tampa neighborhoods official boundaries are the Hillsborough River on the east, Hillsborough Avenue on the north, Dale Mabry Highway on the west and Kennedy Boulevard on the south.So, far from being a neighborhood of shuttered or repurposed cigar factories, West Tampa is an ethnically and commercially diverse and dynamic area that includes the University of Tampa, St. Josephs Hospital , Raymond James Stadium and that stretch of Columbus Drive nicknamed Boliche Boulevard thats home to many of Tampas best Spanish and Cuban restaurants.The population of the neighborhood stands at just over 20,000. It's a little higher during the school year, when about 3,000 University of Tampa students call West Tampa home."The University of Tampa is growing, and its footprint is getting bigger," says Terry Eagan, project manager for the Hillsborough County Planning Commission. UT has been acquiring buildings to use for student housing that are outside the traditional boundaries of the campus.Ethnically, West Tampa is more diverse than outsiders tend to believe. The perception is that it's a Hispanic neighborhood, but that's never been true."If you ask people who have lived here for a long time, they'll say it's Hispanic and Italian," says Dawn Hudson, the immediate past president of the West Tampa Chamber of Commerce . "It's actually about one-third Hispanic, one-third Italian and one-third African-American."The statistics that Eagan of the planning commission sees measure things a little differently, but basically support Hudson's estimates. Of registered voters, 3,291 categorize themselves as white, 3,022 say they're black and 3,001 say they're Hispanic. Another 815 categorize themselves as "other." Those numbers don't include children, or adults who aren't registered to vote, and the categories don't differentiate among nationalities.West Tampa is also home to a growing number of businesses, large and small, that are discovering West Tampas accessibility and (for the moment at least) affordability.Things are booming, says Gray Ellis. And theyre only going to get better.Ellis ran Ellis-VanPelt Furniture before he turned the company over to his sons. Twenty-one years ago, the company bought the historic Antonio Santaella Cigar Factory at 1906 N. Armenia Ave. The company, which sells new and used office furniture, operates out of the first floor and basement, and leases the upper floors to artists and small businesses.The neighborhood was sketchy at the time he moved the company there, Ellis says.It was alright during the day, he says. But it was bad at night.But at the time, prices were irresistible.Its taken a while, but in the past few years other businesses have started to follow the lead of Ellis-VanPelt.Software company Accusoft has offices in several buildings around West Tampa. Several small businesses that specialize in design work -- stone companies, draper companies and the like -- have moved into warehouses north of Kennedy Boulevard around Rome Avenue, creating the seeds of what local business leaders are starting to call a design district. A small gourmet restaurant called Petit Piquant moved in recently.Toward the northern end of West Tampa, in the area anchored by St. Joseph's Hospital, a long-established medical corridor continues to burgeon, with new clinics, doctors offices, labs and research facilities joining the dozens of existing companies.Its reminiscent, some business leaders say, of the beginning of West Tampas first renaissance.This has happened before, about 80 years ago, says Hudson of the West Tampa Chamber of Commerce.Its not just the business climate thats improving.In terms of income levels of residents, West Tampa is changing, according to Eagan of the planning commission. About 1,700 residents of North Boulevard Homes and Presbyterian Village, low-income housing developments, near I-275 and the Hillsborough River, have been relocated in the past year and a half, and buildings demolished.The area will be the site of a new development called West River. McCormack Baron Salazar, a St. Louis-based urban planning firm, has been hired to create a master plan for the area. North Boulevard Homes was built in 1941 and was long considered one of the most dangerous parts of Tampa.Even though that particular part of West Tampa has been especially poverty-stricken, with more than 40 percent of the voting precinct below the poverty level, there are some stable neighborhoods within that section. In fact, just a few years ago, Eagan says, neighborhood residents held a meeting with governmental officials and representatives of the University of Tampa to complain about the behavior of UT students living in university-owned housing on their streets. The complaints ranged from general rowdiness to vomiting and public nudity. UT officials promised to expel students who disrespected the neighborhood.Those couple of blocks were among the city's poorest, Eagan says, but it was a neighborhood that residents cared about and took pride in.And that's not the only neighborhood in which West Tampa is seeing new homes being built. Domain Homes , a Georgia homebuilder that began building in South Tampa years ago, where its offices are still located, has lately turned more of its attention to West Tampa. Domain is building on vacant lots or replacing older homes that are being torn down, offering home buyers the option to select a design resembling Tampa's historic shotgun homes. Domains homes are in the $250,000-$600,000 range.Tim Terpening of Domain says a lot of his companys customers dont start out considering West Tampa. They soon realize they can get much more home for their money in West Tampa.We get calls from people who want to build in South Tampa, he says, but they have a West Tampa budget.Besides being more affordable than Hyde Park, Beach Park, Palma Ceia and many other South Tampa neighborhoods, West Tampas location makes it more convenient for commuting. Interstate-275 makes points east and west easily accessible, but at high-traffic times of day, surface streets allow residents to bypass congestion when they need to get downtown or to the airport. Dale Mabry Highway, North Boulevard and Armenia, Howard and Rome avenues offer easy routes to other parts of Tampa.In addition to location, Terpening says, West Tampa has a level of neighborhood pride that he hasn't seen in some other Tampa neighborhoods.Not long ago, Terpening says as an example, he was talking to some people near the University of Tampa. He casually referred to the area as North Hyde Park. Hyde Park, a couple miles to the south, is one of Tampas premiere neighborhoods, but the reference made a West Tampa man slightly indignant."This isn't Hyde Park," he said. "This is West Tampa."To suggest additional story ideas, email 83 Degrees To subscribe to our free weekly e-magazine, follow this link Entitlement Offer Announcement - $36m Fully Underwritten Perth, Jan 23, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Blackham Resources Ltd ( ASX:BLK ) ( OTCMKTS:BKHRF ) ("Blackham" or "the Company") is pleased to announce that it has today launched a fully underwritten 5 for 2 renounceable entitlements issue to raise approximately $36 million (before costs) ("Entitlements Issue"), which represents the final step in its previously announced recapitalisation strategy.Highlights- Fully underwritten 5 for 2 renounceable Entitlements Issue to raise approximately $36 million (before costs)- Sub-underwriter bookbuild completed by Lead Manager, Hartleys Limited, was heavily oversubscribed, with strong demand from high quality domestic and international institutional and professional investors- The significant level of demand for sub-underwriting resulted in an agreed reduction in the quantum of sub-underwriting by MACA, Orion and PYBAR from $13 million to $4 million (in aggregate)- New shares to be issued at $0.04 per share, together with one free attaching listed $0.08 option (expiring 31 January 2019) for every two new shares issued- Upon completion of the Entitlements Issue Blackham will have a strengthened balance sheet that will underpin a transformational 2018, during which it intends to:o achieve strong cashflow generation from operations;o repay the $23 million project financing facility with Orion ($20.5 million after the Entitlements Issue, to be fully repaid by the end of 2018);o continue exploration drilling targeting an ongoing five-plus year free-milling mine life; ando end the calendar year in a net cash position- Fully underwritten entitlements Issue allows Blackham shares to recommence trading on the ASXFollowing the Entitlements Issue, Blackham will have a strengthened balance sheet to underpin a transformational 2018, during which it intends to:o achieve strong cashflow generation from operations;o repay its $23 million project financing facility with Orion ($20.5 million after Entitlements Issue, to be fully repaid by the end of 2018);o continue exploration drilling targeting an ongoing five-plus year free-milling mine life; ando end the calendar year in a net cash position.Significantly, the Company will maintain a sound cash position once the Entitlements Issue is complete and all relevant payments have been made, with cash expected to remain above $15 million during 2018.Hartleys Limited ("Hartleys") is Lead Manager and arranger of the underwriting and received strong demand from its domestic and international institutional and professional investor network to participate in subunderwriting the Entitlements Issue.Blackham's Executive Chairman, Milan Jerkovic, said:"It is very pleasing to see the level of interest in the Entitlements Issue that was received during the subunderwriting process as well as the high quality of investors that have entered into sub-underwriting agreements. With the Entitlements Issue fully underwritten, we can now move forward with the final stage of our recapitalisation strategy.Blackham will be well funded with a strong balance sheet to enable us to focus initially on a simple free milling mine plan at the Matilda-Wiluna Gold Operation and enjoy a period of stable gold production having recently accessed high grade ore zones. The Company is at an exciting stage, with 2018 expected to be a transformational year of strong operational performance that is likely to generate significant cash flow and value for Blackham and its shareholders."Details of the Entitlements IssueThe fully underwritten renounceable pro-rata Entitlements Issue is for up to 897,670,820 new shares on the basis of five new shares for every two existing shares held by eligible shareholders at the record date (5:00pm (WST) on Monday, 29 January 2018), at an issue price of $0.04 per new share, together with one free attaching listed $0.08 option (expiring 31 January 2019) for every two new shares issued, to raise approximately $36 million (before costs). Eligible shareholders are also invited to apply for new shares and new options in excess of their entitlement.Eligible shareholders are those with a registered address in Australia and New Zealand on the record date.Entitlements Issue is Fully UnderwrittenThe Entitlements Issue is fully underwritten. As previously announced on 15 January 2018, each of MACA Limited ("MACA"), Orion Fund JV Limited ("Orion") and PYBAR Mining Services Pty Limited ("PYBAR") provided sub-underwriting pre-commitments of up to $8 million, $2.5 million and $2.5 million respectively. Due to the significant level of sub-underwriting interest from a number of high quality domestic and international institutional and professional investors, there has been an agreed reduction in the amount of sub-underwriting undertaken by MACA, Orion and PYBAR, with their sub-underwriting commitments now being for up to $2 million, $1 million and $1 million respectively, for a total of $4 million.Each of MACA, Orion and PYBAR had the opportunity to further reduce their sub-underwriting commitments, but each elected to maintain their participation in the entitlements issue at these levels, further demonstrating their ongoing support for Blackham and its Matilda-Wiluna Gold Operation.To the extent that the number of shortfall shares ultimately allocated to each of MACA, Orion and PYBAR is less than each of their original sub-underwriting pre-commitments, the reduction will be paid out of Entitlements Issue proceeds, such that the amount owed by Blackham to each of MACA, Orion and Pybar will still reduce by $8.0 million, $2.5 million and $2.5 million respectively upon completion of the Entitlements Issue.As previously announced, Blackham Executive Chairman, Mr Milan Jerkovic has committed to personally subunderwrite up to $500,000 of the Entitlements Issue.Further details in relation to the Entitlements Issue can be found in the prospectus released by the Company today.TimetableThe proposed indicative timetable for the Entitlements Issue is shown below:Event: Prospectus lodged with ASIC and ASXEntitlements Issue announcement lodged with ASXLodgement of Appendix 3BDate: Post market close on Monday, 22 January 2018Event: "Ex" date (being the date that shares start trading without the entitlements to participate in the Entitlements Issue)Date: Thursday, 25 January 2018Event: Rights trading starts on a deferred settlement basisDate: Thursday, 25 January 2018Event: Record Date to determine EntitlementsDate: 5:00pm (WST) on Monday, 29 January 2018Event: Opening date of Entitlements IssueDespatch of the prospectus and entitlement and acceptance Form to eligible shareholdersDate: Tuesday, 30 January 2018Event: Rights trading endsDate: Monday, 5 February 2018Event: Shares quoted on a deferred settlement basisDate: Tuesday, 6 February 2018Event: Closing date for acceptances under the Entitlements IssueDate: 5:00pm (WST) on Monday, 12 February 2018Event: ASX Announcement update on applications receivedDate: Tuesday, 13 February 2018Event: ASX notified of under subscriptions under the Entitlements IssueDate: Thursday, 15 February 2018Event: Settlement Date for sub-underwritingIssue Date of New Shares and deferred settlement trading of New Shares endsDate: Monday, 19 February 2018Event: Trading of New Shares expected to commenceDate: Tuesday, 20 February 2018Event: Holding statements despatchedDate: Tuesday, 20 February 2018Event: Last day by which the Securities (if any) under the Shortfall Offer may be issuedDate: Friday, 11 May 2018 (being 3 months after the Closing Date)The above dates are indicative only and subject to change. The Company reserves the right, subject to the Corporations Act and the Listing Rules, to extend these dates without prior notice including extending the last date for receipt of the Entitlement and Acceptance Form, or to delay or withdraw the Entitlement Offer at any time without prior notice.Corporate MattersIn connection with a Share Purchase Agreement announced on 31 August 2017 between the Company and The Australian Special Opportunity Fund, LP ("Agreement"), the Company has terminated the Agreement in full and final settlement for the 3,250,000 Collateral Shares that were previously issued under the Agreement.Forward Plan SummaryFollowing the completion of the Entitlements Issue, Blackham will be well funded as it enters a significantly lower risk period of production, which will initially focus on free milling gold production with an expected stripping ratio of less than half of recent levels (7:1 vs 16.5:1) for the current free milling mine plan, providing a significant step change in project economics. This, in conjunction with continued access to high grade ore zones that are supported by extensive grade control drilling, will provide ongoing mill supply and continued growth in high grade stockpiles and is expected to deliver a period of strong operational cash flows.Due to available carried forward tax losses, Blackham does not expect to pay income tax during the current free milling mine plan. This cash flow will ensure there is a significant level of exploration drilling going forward, focussed on identifying additional free milling mineralisation as well as increasing the 1.2Moz of gold reserves (currently 15Mt @ 2.5g/t) by converting more of the Company's very large resource base (65Mt @ 3.1g/t for 6.5Moz) to reserves.EnquiriesThe prospectus and associated ASX releases will be made available shortly on the Company's website at http://www.blackhamresources.com.au Copies of the prospectus and entitlement forms will be mailed to all eligible shareholders in accordance with the timetable set out above. For enquiries in regard to individual shareholdings please contact Link Market Services on 1300 730 659.This announcement, together with the release of the Entitlements Issue prospectus will lift the suspension in trading of Blackham shares.To view the release, please visit:To view the Prospectus, please visit:To view the letter to Shareholders, please visit:To view the letter to Option holders, please visit:About Wiluna Mining Corporation Ltd Wiluna Mining Corporation (ASX:WMC) (OTCMKTS:WMXCF) is a Perth based, ASX listed gold mining company that controls over 1,600 square kilometres of the Yilgarn Craton in the Northern Goldfields of WA. The Yilgarn Craton has a historic and current gold endowment of over 380 million ounces, making it one of most prolific gold regions in the world. The Company owns 100% of the Wiluna Gold Operation which has a defined resource of 8.04M oz at 1.67 g/t au. In May 2019, a new highly skilled management team took control of the Company with a clear plan to leverage the Wiluna Gold Operation's multi-million-ounce potential. Mobile App Acquisition Activates Pillar 3 of BIG Business Model Completion of Technology Acquisition - Tipsly Stage One Sydney, Jan 23, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Big Un Limited ( ASX:BIG ) ( OTCMKTS:BGGNF ) (or 'the Company') is pleased to announce the completion of stage one of the acquisition of the Tipsly consumer mobile app developed for the US drink and hospitality vertical.The acquisition of the sophisticated, state-of-the-art proprietary mobile application technology suite was negotiated in May 2017 and settlement of 3m shares has occurred. The founders of Tipsly have joined the Company's tech team in the US and will continue to work with BIG. The shares are subject to an agreed sale restriction and the Tipsly founders have indicated their ongoing commitment to the Company.The mobile application code is being integrated into the Big Review TV consumer video review platform and mobile app, and final preparations are now underway for launch of V1 this quarter.The acquisition provides both B2B and B2C applications and importantly, speed to market of a vastly superior video review app with features that include:- Geo Fencing and Geo Targeting- Consumer Concierge Service- In-app Purchase- In-app Messaging- Geo Location- Dashboards- Consumer Review and Reward System- Targeted Brand Offers/Advertising- In-app Access to Uber- Product Scanning- Consumer Data & AnalyticsAll of the above features now form part of the Big Review TV intellectual property. The Company plans to introduce these features in several controlled and measured stages.OutlookBIG's CTO Jason Short commented "We are now "tech'd up" and ready to go. Our new suite of technology is extremely comprehensive and will enable us to deliver a unique and unparalleled B2B2C video review app. V1 incorporates features that are simple to use and will appeal to both SME's and consumers".The Company plans to utilise its recent partnership with Zeta Global to help market the app to millions of consumers along with rolling out experiential marketing to SME's and social media marketing campaigns during 2018. Further details will be available in the coming weeks.Stage two of the Tipsly acquisition relates to the Tipsly hospitality database and advertising revenue and is still subject to due diligence.Richard Evertz CEO says: "We are very excited to have completed the acquisition of the Tipsly app. The technology completes the infrastructure of our three pillar business model and consolidates our first mover advantage. This technology will enhance BIG's global revenue opportunities whilst providing the company with a deeper relationship with both SME's and consumers. We are very fortunate to be working with the original founders of Tipsly and I believe that this technology will allow BIG to dominate the video review space that we have created".To view figures, please visit:About Big Un Ltd Big Un Ltd (ASX:BIG) is the parent company of Big Review TV Ltd. Big Review TV are innovative disruptors in the online video space delivering subscription based video technology products and services. The Company has operations across Australia and in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States, Hong Kong, Singapore and Vancouver and was listed on the ASX in December 2014. Cleansing Prospectus Timetable and important dates* --------------------------------------------------------------------- Action Date --------------------------------------------------------------------- Lodgement of Prospectus with ASIC and ASX 23 January 2018 Opening Date 24 January 2018 Closing Date 25 January 2018 Expected Date of Official Quotation 4 February 2018 --------------------------------------------------------------------- Sydney, Jan 24, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - YPB Group Ltd ( ASX:YPB ) provides the Prospectus for the conditional offer of up to 222,222 Shares at an issue price of $0.045 per Share to raise approximately $10,000 (before expenses).This Prospectus has been prepared primarily for the purpose of Section 708A(11) of the Corporations Act to remove any trading restrictions on the sale of Shares issued by the Company prior to the Closing Date.The Offer is not underwritten.* The above dates are indicative only and may be subject to change. The Directors reserve the right to vary these dates, including the Closing Date, without prior notice but subject to any applicable requirements of the Corporations Act or the ASX Listing Rules. This may include extending the Offer or accepting late acceptances, either generally or in particular cases.To view the full Prospectus, please visit:About YPB Group Ltd DEACTIVATED Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called out Russia on Tuesday for its failure to hold the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad accountable for using chemical weapons against his people. "Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution to the overall crisis," said Tillerson, who called on Russia to stop using its veto power to block United Nations Security Council actions related to the Assad regime's use of such weapons. "Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution to the overall crisis," said Tillerson Tillerson was addressing a meeting of high-ranking diplomats in Paris Tillerson was addressing a meeting of high-ranking diplomats in Paris as part of a new international effort to address the use of chemical weapons. Most recently, Tillerson said more than 20 civilians, most of them children "were victims of an apparent chlorine gas attack" on Monday in the Eastern Ghouta suburb of Damascus, Syria. "Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in East Ghouta, and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons since Russia became involved in Syria." "The recent attacks in East Ghouta raise serious concerns that Bashar al-Assad's Syrian regime may be continuing its use of chemical weapons against its own people," he said. To those who deploy chemical weapons, Tillerson had this message: "You will face a day of reckoning for your crimes against humanity, and your victims will see justice done." As Tillerson was speaking in Paris, US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley put out a statement directly tying the Eastern Ghouta attacks to the Assad regime, calling them, "yet another demonstration of (the regime's) blatant disregard for international law and cruel indifference for the lives of its own people." Last week, Tillerson gave a speech at Stanford University, in which he outlined the central tenets of the Trump administration's policy in Syria. In those remarks, he reiterated US support for a UN-led political process the Trump administration believes will ultimately result in Assad's removal from power. Nevertheless, Tillerson and others have made clear that defeating ISIS is the administration's primary goal in Syria, and the continued US troop presence in the country was tied to that effort, and not to Assad's removal. Still, the US is hoping it can persuade the Russian government -- Syria's most important ally -- to bring the long-beleaguered but still-determined Assad to the negotiating table. Assad has waged a nearly seven-year-long civil war against Syrian opposition groups, which has decimated large parts of the country and created a humanitarian catastrophe of historic proportions. While the US has long criticized the Assad regime for its brutal tactics, including the alleged use of chemical weapons against civilians, it has only taken limited action against his government. Most notably, the Trump administration launched Tomahawk cruise missiles at a Syrian airbase last April over reports of a chemical weapons attack in northwestern Syria. In 2013, then-President Barack Obama said the regime had crossed a "red line" with its use of such weapons, including sarin gas. But his administration ultimately opted not to intervene militarily after Russia stepped in to arbitrate an international agreement aimed at removing all chemical weapons from the country. But in the intervening years, the Syrian government has been accused of additional chemical weapons attacks, including with chlorine gas. "There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments its agreements to the United States as a framework guarantor," Tillerson said Tuesday. "It has betrayed the chemical weapons convention and UN Security Council resolution (2118)." A session court in Pune rejected the anticipatory bail plea of right-winged leader Milind Ekbote, one of the accused of Bhima-Koregaon violence on New Years Day that claimed one life. Ekbote has been on the run since the complaint was registered against him. So far, a total of 51 people have been arrested, including three minors, in connection with caste violence that erupted in Punes Bhima-Koregaon village and engulfed Maharashtra state. On January 1, a youth was killed in a clash between two groups during an event to mark 200 years of Bhima-Koregaon battle that took place near Pune. The incident led to violent protests across the state, including Mumbai. Taking cognisance of the matter, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had earlier ordered a Crime Investigation Department (CID) probe into the death and also announced a compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the kin of the deceased. The governments move to stage out subsidies for the annual Haj pilgrimage is a decision in the right direction. It is a fact that the Haj is a journey Muslims are enjoined to make at least once in their lifetimes to the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca, which is considered sacred in Islam. Our country spends billions of rupees every year in air-fare subsidies for Indian Muslims to fly on Air India to Saudi Arabia for the annual Haj pilgrimage to the Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina. The original argument for the subsidy was that Muslims, who constitute about 15 per cent of the Indian population and among the poorest members of society, needed assistance because many could not afford the journey otherwise. One agrees that the subsidy should not be done away with as it has helped impoverished Muslims fulfil an important religious obligation and wish of a lifetime but on the other hand governments argument is also true that the money spent for Haj subsidy would be channelised for the welfare of minority students is a farce. It is a part of the Modi governments efforts to empower minorities with dignity and without appeasement. All Muslims from the nation wholeheartedly welcome this move. Haj is obligatory, only once in a lifetime and only for those Muslims who are both physically capable of undertaking the journey and have the adequate financial capacity but it is not obligatory for others. Haj is the fifth pillar of Islam. Even in the past, all the Muslim MPs had asked the government that the money diverted for the Haj subsidy must be used in funding the education of Muslim girls. They want girls from their community to be no longer confined to the madrasas, but to receive a modern education. The apex courts order has been obeyed about four years ahead of the date prescribed by it. A sum of Rs 700 crore, which was given to Indian Muslim pilgrim going to Mecca, will now be used to empower girls from minorities in matters of education, providing job opportunities. As far as upliftment of girls is concerned both majorities and minorities should be treated alike in any matter, including empowerment. The court has also rightly mentioned the Quran saying that the Haj pilgrimage was mandatory only for those who could afford the expenses for travelling, food and accommodation. Even the tenets of Islam state that the merits of Haj are earned when it is performed with ones own earnings. Muslims do not need governments money to do pilgrimage. Actually it was not a subsidiary for Muslim pilgrims instead it was subsidiary for Air India which was the lone airline authorised to carry pilgrims. Subsidy in such events does not encourage the purpose of Haj the holiest visit known in Islam. In the beginning it seemed like helping middle class old citizens to complete their dreams. Later this subsidy slowly reduced the real value and holiness of Haj as lot of influential people used Haj subsidy as a tourist subsidy. Performing of Haj is not an obligation for those believers who could not afford the expenses involved in the process. On the whole, it is a sensible move, which seems to aim at replacing tokenism with more meaningful investment in the welfare of minorities and at putting the distance required between a secular government and religious practices. (The views expressed by the author in the article are his/her own.) Karni Senas Navi Mumbai unit president Bhagvat Singh Rathod was among eleven activists arrested in connection with the Monday nights protest on Sion-Panvel highway against the forthcoming release of the controversial Bollywood film Padmaavat. Around 25 members of the Karni Sena had placed seven burning tyres on the highway between the Vashi toll plaza and Vashi village at around 8 PM, briefly disrupting the vehicular traffic towards Pune. A police official said the activists carrying sticks and stones, besides kerosene cans, had gathered near the toll plaza and started raising slogans against the January 25 release of the film. They fled after placing the burning tyres on road, he said. The Vashi police, who had registered a case under various sections of the IPC, traced the activists through CCTV footage and technical evidence and picked them up. The arrested persons included Karni Senas Navi Mumbai unit chief Bhagvat Singh Rathod alias Rajveer Singh (50), he added. All the accused were produced before a local court which remanded them in police custody till January 26. Padmaavat, starring Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh, is based on the saga of the 13th Century battle between Maharaja Ratan Singh of Mewar and Sultan Alauddin Khilji of Delhi. Rajput groups are stridently opposing the release of the film claiming that its director Sanjay Leela Bhansali distorted the history and showed Rajput queen Padmavati in bad light. The filmmakers had denied the allegations. All India Majlis-e-Ittehad-ul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi claimed that the justice in the name of Triple Talaq is a medium to target Shariat. While addressing a public meeting at Aurangabad, Maharashtra, Owaisi said, Justice for women is an excuse; the target is Shariat. Owaisi further took a potshot at Prime Minister Narendra Modi by saying, if not 15 lakh, at least 15 thousand should be given to the victims of triple talaq. Money should be allocated in the budget to give Rs 15 thousand per month to women who have been given triple talaq. (15 lakh nahi to 15 hazar hi dedo mitron), said Owaisi. The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 that seeks to criminalise instant divorce, triple talaq was passed in the Lok Sabha with most of the leading parties in the Opposition, including the Congress, voting in favour, but with caveats. However, the Bill was stalled in the Rajya Sabha, where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allies are in a minority. The bill, if enacted, will make triple talaq a criminal offence. It proposes a three-year jail term for a Muslim man who divorces his wife in any form of spoken, written or by electronic means such as email, SMS, and WhatsApp. One can make out the frustration of Shiv Sena, Uddhav was looking fragile and tired, I actually thought, after Balasahebs demise, its Uddhav who will look after the party affairs and next in the chair of Supremo. but never mind, its Sanjay Raut who is much smarter and smoothly managing the party, by making Uddhav a puppet in his hands. This party was BJPs first-born ally, but now Shiv Sena, will contest the national elections and Maharashtra assembly elections in 2019 alone. The Sena is, however, not yet pulling out of the BJP-led governments at the centre or in the state. If it does, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis government in Maharashtra will be in a minority. There is a tug of war but no one is daring to part its way. Political parties typically align with anyone that allows them to remain in power or retain power. When they align with opposition they give excuse of common minimum program or saving the trouble for citizens from casting another vote. Many a times archrivals become fellow party workers, politics knows no morals. They just aim to retain power by all means. The regional parties are always seen hopping at one to another. One very evident example is Shiv Sena, who is openly supporting Congress and Rahul Gandhi. Post an assembly election to Maharashtra, Uddhav was approached by Congress to form government while NCP was kept in dark. NCP denied supporting such coalition and very conveniently supported BJP. In the meantime, Shiv Sena faced internal revolt due to which Uddhav had no option except to join the BJP government while the demand for Dy. CM by Sena was summarily rejected. Uddhav is at crossroads with two options. It is true that Shiv Sena is openly supporting Congress whom they were alleging as following appeasement of minorities and is against Hindus. Since 2014, Uddhav and Sanjay Raut developed a blind hate for BJP with whom they are napping for more than 25 years. Surprisingly, neither BJP prod them away or Shiv Sena pulling its support. Both continue to remain in coalition but behave like sworn enemies. They just bark but have no guts to move out of NDA. The BJP victory in Gujarat has been dismissed entirely by its fractious ally, which has issued fulsome praise for the performance of the Congress and its chief Rahul Gandhi. The drop in the BJP figures, Sena said, was an indication of Gujarats disappointment with the BJP and its development model. The nail-biting counting session eventually saw the BJP win 99 seats in the 182-member assembly 16 less than their figure in 2012. The Congress gained 19 seats to reach 80. Sena has made its change of stance on Rahul Gandhi clear. It had said that the Gujarat campaign saw him emerge as a leader in his own right and criticised the BJP for failing to acknowledge it. The Gujarat results happened none of the dreams BJP showed the state and the country had realised. The Sena, which had been at odds with the BJP since forging afresh alliance after the Maharashtra assembly elections of 2014, has recently spoken of pulling out. Elections will have to be held within a year, Aaditya Thackeray, the son of the party chief Uddhav Thackeray has said. The Sena bosss meetings with NCP chief and Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee have already triggered speculations of a political realignment. There are chances of Mahagathbandhan (mega coalition) like Bihar. Now for their jealousy that BJP has grown more powerful than their own party, Sena is ready to sacrifice its ideology and what it stood for, to align with its sworn enemy Congress in its hatred towards BJP. This clearly exposes their discrepancies in their policies. It also reveals that their only aim is victory, not serving the people. By aligning with Congress the entire Hindutva, votes will shift to BJP. Shiv Sena will be a great loser. Just like Communists, SP, and DMK, who lost by aligning with Congress, Shiv Sena also going to lose its credibility. Shiv Sena, formed in 1966, was the first to pick up the cause of Hindutva. The BJP born 23 years after Shiv Sena, too picked up the same agenda and took it to Hindi belt of northern India to expand. Both partners participated in Babri demolition. The connubial was perfect till 2014. Shiv Sena didnt like BJP shaking hands with PDP in Kashmir. It looks like the party is convinced that the Hindutva model of theirs, hijacked and monopolised by BJP is failing. For them, let the BJP sink with skeletons while they start afresh. The Shiv Sena has condemned BJP who calls Rahul Gandhi as Pappu and also has come down heavily on BJP for not, since three years, continuing practice of honouring Gandhi family including Indira Gandhi. What binds NCP and Shiv Sena is Marathas and Shivaji. NCP will follow Sena since they have dropped Hindutva . Three of them may put up formidable alliance against BJP in days to come. Though Uddhav want to break up with BJP, most of his MLAs dont want it. In next election all four will fight separately helping each other at the local level but secretly. SS, INC, NCP will try their best to see that no one will get majority that will open doors for treading. BJP-SS government will continue till next election, but in 2019 polls they may walk their ways. (Any suggestions, comments or dispute with regards to this article send us on [email protected]) Schiphol Cargo reported an increase of 5.4% on yearly tonnage in 2017 with strong demand in the Far East for European goods boosting total figures to 1.75m tonnes. Europes third largest air cargo hub experienced an uptick in cargo throughput of 7.4% year-on-year between January and October 2017, with total figures for January to December 2017 reaching 1.75m tonnes. Imports to Schiphol from the Far East in 2017 increased by 3.1% to 299,386 tonnes, with exports to the region growing by 8.8% year-on-year to 316,097 tonnes. Asia remains Schiphols largest market, with Shanghai, China, the busiest destination. European exports grew 19.1% to 123,950 tonnes in 2017, with imports up 18.2% to 124,992 tonnes. We have continued to build on initiatives in 2016 and 2017 with the aim of enhancing the experience of our pharmaceutical, e-commerce, and perishables customers, and our continued commitment to quality is having positive results, said Jonas van Stekelenburg, head of cargo, Amsterdam Airport Schiphol. The upswing in e-commerce shipments, both inbound and outbound, was a large contributor to the cargo volumes for this market. A number of flights transit Europe en-route to Asia, and we can attribute a proportion of the growth in our European figures to the developing Asian market. Flights to Asia transiting European destinations including Baku, Azerbaijan, and Moscow, Russia, continue to contribute to an increase in outbound figures to the Far East. Latin America inbound cargo was up by 21.5% in 2017 to 123,524 tonnes due to a number of additional full freighter flights on the route. Outbound cargo grew by 1.8% to 76,498 tonnes. Import volumes from Africa decreased by 6.6% to 109,751 tonnes due to temporary aeronautical restrictions that have been in place since June 2017. Imposed by the Kenyan Authorities, the restrictions mean that fewer direct freighter flights are coming from Nairobi, Kenya. Exports to Africa were down 5.4% on 2016 to 51,743 tonnes. Imports from the Middle East increased by 3.4% to 97,789 tonnes in 2017, with export tonnage increasing by 2.1% year-on-year to 122,617 tonnes. Imports from North America were down by 5.6% to 141,714 tonnes year-on-year reflecting changes in regional strategy by some airline partners, whilst North America export volumes were up by 4.4% to 164,509 tonnes. A total of 496,748 ATMs flew in 2017, an increase of 3.7% on 2016. A maximum number of 500,000 Air Traffic Movements (ATM) until 2020 has been agreed between Schiphol Group, the local community, airlines, and the Dutch Government. This is no reason to hold back on our quality initiatives; we need to stay alert, prepare for what is coming, and seek the necessary innovations, said van Stekelenburg. This year (2018) began on a positive note at Schiphol, with an increase in load factors as well as a slight growth in ATMs as a consequence of unused slots. It is very positive that in this current 2017/2018 winter season, all requested, full freighter slots were granted, and many freighters were able to continue their business at Schiphol with ad-hoc slots, van Stekelenburg continued. It is Schiphols objective to aim for sustainable growth at the airport after 2020 and airfreight is an important part of that. On the belly side we expect Schiphol to grow in 2018 both in terms of volume and capacity. The outlook for 2018 as, globally, we see even more air traffic growth is a challenging one. The slot scarcity has been a challenge for us as a cargo community, and in some cases, cargo stakeholders were under-represented in the various sections of the airport community. In 2018 we will act on this, together with all freighter airlines, handlers, and other logistic service providers. Trust, increased cooperation, and improved agreements between all stakeholders are essential in this respect, concluded van Stekelenburg. Close collaboration with our Cargo Community remains vital and is a strong focus for 2018. Together we will continue to pursue our ambitions of better digital information exchange, and further quality improvements in the supply chain, particularly for pharma, e-commerce, and perishables. Read more Cargo Airport News Share this story Dutch MPs are set to discuss the Amsterdam Schiphol Airport slot crisis later this week, raising air cargo industry hopes of a swift solution. The Netherlands Parliament will on Thursday discuss the revised local rule proposal from Dutch carrier KLM which attempts to resolve the slot allocation problem that has seen some freighter operators switch flights from Schiphol to rival European hubs. Mid-December 2017 saw Schiphol Airports key cargo stakeholders agree the proposed local rule that would ease the slot constraints on freighter flights at Europes third largest freight hub. The local rule would allow the independent slot coordinator to take charge of allocation of slots to carriers and so mitigate the effect of the recent shortage that has led to some cargo operators withdrawing or curtailing their services at Schiphol. An update from Airport Coordination Netherlands on Monday said: "On December 14, 2017, a majority (weighted) of the members present at the Coordination Committee Netherlands voted for a concept local rule as proposed by KLM-group. "Now Article 8, 5 of EU Council Regulation 95/93 as amended, has to be applied, meaning that this local rule now has to be approved by the Member State, provided that the proposed rule does not affect the independent status of the coordinator, complies with Community law and aims at improving the efficient use of airport capacity." It continued: "The Coordination Committee Netherlands met on January 17 2018 to finalise the details of the concept. The status of the concept has not changed. Hence the situation for W17 and S18 remains unchanged." An official at Dutch shippers group EVO said of the meeting last week: "That discussion was held in January with a positive outcome. The fine tuned proposal should now be tested by slot coordination to see if it is workable and the government should need to take steps for swift implementation. "On Thursday there is a debate on aviation in parliament, which will also focus on the local rule. We will probably know by then the exact timeline and actions to be taken." An official at industry body Air Cargo Netherlands confirmed the timing of the Parliamentary debate and said of the local rule proposal: "We hope that our minister will approve it shortly after that [debate]." Schiphol airport has now confirmed that it saw an increase of 5.4% on yearly tonnage in 2017 with strong demand in the Far East for European goods boosting total figures to 1,752,498 tonnes. Read more Cargo Airport News Share this story Alabamians made $16.3 million through Airbnb in 2017, the popular homesharing app announced. The business, which allows property owners and lodging seekers to book short-term rentals online, announced its yearly totals, compiled from 114,000 guest arrivals. Will Burns, Airbnb in Alabama's public policy director, said the company expects the new year to see even more growth. "Home sharing through Airbnb continues to be a unique and flexible way for Alabama families to make more money, pay their bills, and support their communities," Burns said. Airbnb said about 2,100 Alabama families hosted at least one Airbnb guest. Of those, 57 percent of hosts in state were women. The typical host shared a home 24 nights during the year and earned $6,100 in additional income. Of the top 15 destinations, six were along Alabama's Gulf Coast. Gulf Shores was the top stop, with hosts earning $4.9 million from 27,700 guest arrivals. Birmingham was the second most sought after destination, with 14,400 hosts earning $1.5 million. Orange Beach was third. Last fall, Airbnb announced that homes in the Tuscaloosa and Auburn areas earn more than $1.1 million over the past two seasons through Airbnb during college football season. Approaching its three-year anniversary, Opelika's Red Clay Brewery is getting ready to take its product to the Southeast. Two varieties of product will be selling in 12 oz. cans in Alabama and Georgia, starting this week. And the brewery has plans for another to appear later this spring. They will be available in restaurants, bars, markets and grocery stores over the next few weeks. "It's pretty huge," said Kerry McGinnis, one of the co-owners. "I didn't expect it to be as big to me. I just thought it was the next step. But the first time I saw our beer on the shelf at Kroger, I had to sit there and stare at it for a minute." John Corbin, Stephen Harle and Kerry McGinnis formed Red Clay Brewery after years of homebrewing. McGinnis and his partners, brother-in-law John Corbin and lifelong friend Stephen Harle, had been homebrewing for 10 years before they opened their brick and mortar Red Clay Brewery on North Railroad Avenue in Opelika. "We cut the concrete, we did everything the law would allow us to do to get the place up and running," he said. But marketing its own beer beyond the brewery was always part of the plan. The first two flavors hitting stores are the Half-Time Hefeweizen Ale and Southern Renegade. Half-Time is described as a traditional German wheat beer, while Southern Renegade is an Old English ale. Later this spring, Red Clay will market 53, a Kolsch that is its biggest taproom seller. The brand, which takes six weeks to produce, is named for the number of miles Alabama has along the Gulf. "With 7,000 breweries out there, it's getting harder to come up with names," McGinnis said of the beer's minimalist moniker. "It's a great beer to take to the beach, as close to a true Kolsch as we could make it. We can barely make enough for our taproom." And about that third anniversary - Red Clay Brewery is still planning its birthday bash. McGinnis said several bands are being lined up to take part, and a date will be announced soon. "It's a big thank you to everyone," he said. The quote of the week around rural Alabama, circulating as a hint of criticism towards the "Me Too Movement," seems to be, "If you don't want people touching your critters, don't make your barn look like a petting zoo." It's funny, right? I just hope those who are sharing it don't agree with it on some level because...it is also wrong. Whoever came up with it was maybe a closed-minded woman, or a perverted man, but...I doubt it came from a farmer. Critters are private property. And if someone wants to put up a privacy fence, they certainly have that prerogative. But...take the beach. Critters will be peeping out everywhere. It is one of the main reasons people even go to the beach. It is what has helped keep it a lucrative summer pastime for generations. It is also the reason you can see dumbasses with binoculars. They likely aren't watching for dolphins. They are watching women, waves, and buoyancy. And even with women walking slowly by slathered in oil, nobody gets to go around petting the critters. That is not how a polite society works. Even with that silly comment making its rounds, I think critters used to be more popular than they are now. Back in the 70's, there were 8-track tapes, lava lamps, and critters. There were no cell phones to fondle. And while critters have been weapons of mass distraction since forever, interests must be shifting. The young people of today are apparently more curious about what Tide Pods taste like. Another example of when the barn may come across as a petting zoo is when someone is wearing a trusty old hospital gown. With all of the modern improvements, technological advancements, and changes in fashion throughout the decades, the hospital gown remains the same. The print of the fabric hasn't even changed all that much. The gowns, fancy as they are, were designed with a single purpose in mind, to put the critters and the rest of the farm on full display for easy access. Yet - nobody gets to haul-off and start impulsively grabbing critters in the hallway of hospitals just because they had a sighting. See? So if a girl isn't the most modest person at the table, and she has invested a fair amount of income in herself, did a lot of sit-ups and salads, and feels like drawing the eye towards her critters while dressing on her own time - that's her business. That's fine. Feel free to judge her or pray for her or gawk, but she is not in the wrong. What's wrong is the fool that believes they have the right to reach out and grab a critter just because they noticed it was in the room with them. I like to think men have evolved just slightly past that point. Women too for that matter. Amanda Walker is a contributor with AL.com, The Thomasville Times, West Alabama Watchman, Alabama Gazette and Wilcox Progressive Era. Contact her at Walkerworld77@msn.com or at https://www.facebook.com/AmandaWalker.Columnist. A federal grand jury has indicted two former Tuskegee police lieutenants for their role in the beating of an arrestee and subsequent cover-up attempt. The Justice Department on Tuesday announced the indictments against Alex Huntley, 54, and Darian Locure, 44, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office - Middle District of Alabama. The five-count indictment charges that on or about Dec. 24, 2014, Huntley physically assaulted an arrestee, while Locure willfully failed to intervene to stop Huntley's assault. The assault caused the arrestee to suffer bodily injuries. Huntley and Locure are also charged with directing and encouraging other Tuskegee Police Department officers and recruits who witnessed the assault to keep it a secret. Finally, the indictment charges that Huntley gave false testimony under oath about the assault in a state court proceeding regarding criminal charges against the arrestee. This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The Alabama State Bureau of Investigation has also assisted the investigation. The matter is being prosecuted by Trial Attorney Samantha Trepel of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and Assistant United States Attorney Denise Simpson of the United States Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Alabama. No further details about the incident were released. Three people died in a fiery head-on collision on U.S. 11 just north of Woodstock early Sunday morning, according to the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency. Troopers said the crash happened when a vehicle collided head-on with a 2007 BMW 329i driven by Jamarcus Earl Templeton, 25, of Woodstock, troopers said. The other vehicle caught fire, causing fatal injuries to the driver and passenger. The crash happened around 3:30 a.m. Sunday on U.S. 11 near mile marker 108, less than one mile north of Woodstock. Templeton was pronounced dead at the scene. The identities of the other deceased victims is being withheld until the Alabama Department of Forensic Sciences identifies them, troopers said. No further information was immediately available. A Hoover High school teacher was placed on administrative leave with pay on Monday for using a racial slur when asking students to turn down music they were playing in class last Friday, school system officials today confirmed. The teacher admitted to using the slur, Hoover school superintendent Dr. Kathy Murphy confirmed. Shenita Morrow, who is African-American, said her daughter, a senior at Hoover High school, was playing the song "Dear Mama" by Tupac while working on a project in teacher Teddie Butcher's food and nutrition class last Friday. Morrow said students are typically allowed to play music during class. According to multiple accounts of the incident, when Butcher, who is white, returned to the classroom, she said, "Turn the n****** tunes off." After Monday night's Hoover Board of Education meeting, Murphy said she was told there was foul language in the song Morrow's daughter was playing, but Morrow disputes that, saying the lyrics contain no profanity. Morrow said she knows Butcher was referring to the song when she used the racial slur, but the real problem is the "comfort level" Butcher had in saying that word in a group of students. School officials confirmed that Butcher apologized to the class on Monday. Romel Williams' daughter told her about the incident Friday afternoon. Her daughter saw a video of the incident on Snapchat, Williams said, and also is a friend of Morrow's daughter. Williams' daughters both said an assistant principal made students delete the video on Monday. Murphy said she was unaware if that was the case and is still looking into the incident. Murphy said Hoover High School Principal Don Hulin told her what happened Friday evening. Morrow and her daughter met with Butcher and an assistant principal at Hoover High Monday afternoon. Morrow said during the meeting that Butcher claimed bad language was used in the song, but Morrow disputes that assertion, saying she reviewed the lyrics and there is no profanity. Morrow said her daughter talked directly with Butcher during the meeting to let her know how hurt she was by Butcher's use of the slur. Morrow said she knows school officials must follow a process, but, "After meeting with [Butcher], it's just baffling to me how someone does not understand the severity of the weight of that word." Butcher has not returned AL.com's request for comment. Hulin is continuing his investigation into the incident, Murphy said, talking with students and parents as well as with the teacher. Murphy said she and Hulin plan to meet with the teacher some time on Tuesday. When asked if the Hoover Board of Education has a policy to handle an incident like this, Murphy said: "You certainly have the professionalism, the expectations of faculties and staff and all school personnel to conduct themselves in appropriate, professional, and respectful ways. "As we are addressing this matter, we will be looking at our board's policy and obviously taking a look at the state Teacher Code about expectations and we'll be putting her conduct and behavior up against what we know is professional conduct of one's self." Hoover High School is the largest high school in the state, with nearly 2,900 students in the current school year. The student body is diverse: 28 percent of students are African-American, 7 percent are Hispanic, 6 percent are Asian and 55 percent are white. "We obviously respect and appreciate the diversity that we have," Murphy said. "It is my expectation as a superintendent that we'll treat all students with significant respect, that we'll conduct ourselves as professionals, and the things that come out of our mouths are to be respectful and professional," Murphy said. When we fail to do that, it's certainly not acceptable." Murphy said she was not sure what the final course of action would be taken until she sees the results of Hulin's full investigation. Hoover City Councilman Derrick Murphy (no relation to the superintendent) said he first learned of the incident on Monday morning through social media. He told AL.com, "There should be no tolerance for this behavior in our city or schools." Councilman Murphy, who served on the district's board of education from 2011 until 2016, said he has since forwarded his concerns to district administration and has full confidence that the superintendent and her team will handle this appropriately. Williams said she was aware of Butcher's apology to the class, but if a student had used a racial slur against the teacher, an apology from the student would not suffice, Williams said. "I don't think she belongs at Hoover High school anymore." Williams said her daughter was upset by the incident and she wants her children to feel safe at school. "That would set the record straight that this behavior isn't acceptable," Williams added. Morrow's daughter, Mahogheny, a junior at Hoover, said she hopes administrators address the incident with the entire school. She said when students have used derogatory language toward African-American students at the school in the past, teachers try and cover it up. Morrow said she feels administrators are now taking the incident more seriously. She hopes more students and parents will be encouraged to speak up when incidents like this occur. "It's okay to speak for yourself if you think you've been wronged," Morrow said. Williams said she hopes teachers really listen to how this incident makes students feel. "Maybe they can understand the impact of using those types of words in their classroom," she said, "and how it affects their students and how it affects the climate and atmosphere of the school after something like this happens." This article was updated at 10:30 p.m. to include Morrow's and her daughter's comments. A Hoover teen has been indicted on murder in the September death of his girlfriend's toddler daughter. A Jefferson County grand jury issued the two-count indictment against 19-year-old Dlonata Khalil Melton on Jan. 12, according to court records made public Tuesday. He is indicted on charges of murder and aggravated child abuse in the death of 2-year-old Levi Ellise Pointer. Levi died on Sept. 21 at the family's apartment at The Retreat at Rocky Ridge. Hoover police responded at 3:49 p.m. that afternoon to a 911 call, said Capt. Gregg Rector. The call was placed by Melton, describing an unknown medical issue involving Levi. Firefighters arrived on the scene within four minutes, and found Levi in severe distress, Rector said. Hoover police detectives immediately responded to the hospital and launched their investigation. Melton, who was the sole caregiver of Levi that day, could not provide any explanation as to what may have caused the child to be in distress. She was rushed to Children's of Alabama where she was pronounced dead six hours later, at 9:45 p.m. The Jefferson County Coroner's Office, Rector said, determined that Levi suffered a significant skull fracture. According to the murder indictment, Melton caused the death of Levi by blunt force injury to the head and then withholding medical care. On the aggravated child abuse charge, the indictment says Melton "did willfully torture, willfully abuse, cruelly beat" Levi with blunt force injury to the head. "From the very beginning we were determined to find the truth for Levi and her mother,'' said Hoover Police Chief Nick Derzis said at the time of Melton's initial arrest. "We also wanted to make certain that we got this case right because we have a victim who can no longer speak for herself." "This child will never get the opportunity to grow up,'' the chief said, "and we have an obligation to her family to do everything we can to give them some small measure of justice and closure." A trial date has not yet been set. When young women applied to be a part of a new initiative from The Women's Fund of Greater Birmingham, they weren't asked for the list of clubs they are involved in or their grade point average. They were asked what issues in their school and in their community trouble them, and what solutions they have for addressing them. The responses were "pretty uncomfortable," said The Women's Fund of Greater Birmingham President and CEO Jeanne Jackson. The Women's Fund of Greater Birmingham on Monday unveiled its new young women's initiative, which includes a 14-member Young Women's Advisory Council made up of young women ages 14 to 24. Jackson said Birmingham is working in collaboration with eight women's foundations across the country on the initiative designed to give young women of color a collective voice. She said the initiative is an extension of The Women's Fund's focus of providing education to single mothers and childcare for their children. "Based on the research and focus groups we conducted last year and our extensive work with single mothers over the past four years, we know there is a need to address the economic barriers common for low income women at an earlier age," Jackson said. Young women of color in Jefferson County are twice as likely to be in poverty than her white male counterpart, she said. The members of the Young Women's Advisory Council were selected to apply based on- recommendations and referrals from professionals working with young women. Between 50 to 60 young women applied and were interviewed. "We are putting young women at the forefront," said Rebecca Harkless, who works at the YWCA of Central Alabama and is serving as coordinator of the Young Women's Advisory Council. "We are asking women what they need, and letting them make those decisions." She said the council gives the young women a forum to talk about what will make their lives and their communities better. The community can change if we elevate these women's voices, Harkless said. Over the course of eight months, the women will also be charged with coming up with solutions to those problems and working with The Women's Fund to secure grant funding. "What we know is there are enormous disparities in education, economic outcomes, poverty and wellbeing for young women of color," said Carla Crowder, director of programs and policy at The Women's Fund of Greater Birmingham. "This gives those young women the chance to learn about those issues, to learn about advocacy and to bring their ideas and their experiences to solving their own problems." The women will learn storytelling, advocacy, grassroots organizing, she said, and they will partner with community leaders and government officials for mentoring." TaKaiya Cooper, 16, a junior at Ramsay High School, said she applied for the council because she wants to provide resources and counseling in the community for victims of sex trafficking. As a freshman in high school, Cooper said she saw a documentary where victims of sex trafficking told their stories. "It just kind of got to me," she said. "I just felt the need to do something about it." Ashleigh Richardson, 16, a junior at Ramsay High School, said she wants to help stop sexual harassment. She wants to create an anonymous online tool where victims of sexual harassment can report what happened to them. "A lot of people think (sexual harassment) is a joke," she said. "It is honestly not a joke. I think it is very serious, and I wish more people would speak up about it." Cooper said she was a victim of sexual harassment on her school bus last year. She said she reported the incident but nothing was done about it. Here are the members of the Young Women's Advisory Council: Desi Hall, 20, junior at Birmingham-Southern College Myranda Bell, 16, junior at Ramsay High School Kyra Bell, 15, freshman at Cornerstone Schools of Alabama Jamese Dotson, 18, freshman at Lawson State Community College Jalyn Plump, 14, freshman at Ramsay High School Noble Rasheed, 17, junior at Shades Valley High School Zaharia Anderson, 20, sophomore at University of Alabama at Birmingham Tanisha Hudgins, 16, junior at Helena High School TaKaiya Cooper, 16, junior at Ramsay High School Himani Modi, 18, freshman at UAB Ashleigh Richardson, 16, junior at Ramsay High School Cynitria Jones, 20, sophomore at Lawson State Community College Amauri Pettaway, 18, senior at Parker High School Diamond Smith, 16, junior at Ramsay High School The initiative began in the spring of 2017 with a series of focus groups where The Women's Fund listened to 35 young women about their goals and struggles. In the summer of 2017, the Women's Fund, commission research from UAB on the status of young women in areas like economics, education, health and safety. A stakeholder committee was formed to help guide the process. It is comprised of a cross-sector of professionals who work closely with young women, including members representing: Girls Inc., of Central Alabama, Carver High School, Jefferson Co. Family Court, UAB Adolescent Medicine, Children's Aid Society of Alabama, YWCA Central Alabama, Young Women's Empowerment Conference, Urban Ministries, Girls Spring, Hope with Grace. A Trussville veterinarian is behind bars in Shelby County after lawmen say he bought nearly 36,000 fatal doses of fentanyl with Bitcoin on the dark web David Ray Wallace, 46, of Alabaster, and Dana Marie Leslie, of Pelham, were taken into custody Monday. The Shelby County Drug Enforcement Task Force assisted narcotics investigators and SWAT with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, as well as U.S. Postal Inspector investigators. Task Force Commander Lt. Clay Hammac said the Alabama portion of the probe began when law enforcement officers in the state of New York contacted ALEA to let them know a package of fentanyl intended for delivery in Shelby County had been intercepted at JFK Airport. ALEA, postal inspectors, and Shelby County task force investigators identified the intended recipients of the package and launched a search for addresses associated with them. During the investigation, Hammac said, they learned Wallace, who is a practicing veterinarian in Trussville, had bought the fentanyl from the dark web using Bitcoin. The drug were shipped to the U.S. in a stuffed teddy bear. Both Wallace and Leslie were then arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit a controlled substance crime. On Tuesday, both remained held without bond in the Shelby County Jail. Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid used for relief and management of severe and continued pain. It is frequently prescribed to cancer patients and patients recovering from accidents and operations. The euphoric effects, experts say, are indistinguishable from morphine and heroin. Fentanyl is estimated to be up to 200 times more potent than morphine, and about 50 times stronger than heroin. In Jefferson County alone in 2016, there were 105 fentanyl deaths, which is more than double 2015's 49, said Chief Deputy Coroner Bill Yates. Of the 205 combined heroin and fentanyl deaths, 40 of the victims died from a combination of both. Authorities have not released 2017's numbers. Hammac said the case is an excellent illustration of multiple agencies working together to safeguard area communities from the deadly drug. Lt. Paul Hayes, commander of ALEA's Narcotics Task agreed. "The key to successful narcotics operations such as this is communication and intelligence sharing," Hayes said. "We are counting on our community to stand with us in this fight against drug abuse and addiction." About 18 grams of Fentanyl were seized in the bust. "It takes less than 2 mg of fentanyl to deliver a fatal dose; that equates to nearly 36,000 fatal doses of fentanyl taken off the streets," Hammac said. "We must continue to be diligent and aggressive in our fight against drug trafficking and distribution." Hammac, who often speaks to groups about the dangers of opioids and all drugs, said this was a significant bust. "This is a huge one for the good guys,'' he said. Friends and family of a 28-year-old father killed one week ago inside his Birmingham home will hold a vigil in his memory. Eric Cotton, the father of three children under the age of 10, was fatally shot Jan. 15. One of his closest friends, 24-year-old Luther Gray, has been charged with murder in his death. The vigil will be held at 4 p.m. Thursday at Cotton's home at 3633 45th Avenue North. A GoFundMe has also been established to help the family pay for his funeral. "This is a tough cookie to swallow. Please uplift his parents, siblings, and family in prayer,'' wrote his cousin, Tiffany Means Warren. "Although we lost our Incredible love one to a senseless crime, we are going to celebrate his life of 28 years that we were blessed to have in his presence." North Precinct officers at 2:48 a.m. that Monday were dispatched to 3633 45th Avenue North after receiving one call of a person down, and another call that someone had been shot, said Sgt. Bryan Shelton. Officers entered the home and found Cotton dead. He had been shot in the back. Shelton said officers had previously been alerted that the shooter may still be in the area. Moments later, they were told by dispatchers that an unknown black male - now known to be the suspect - had broken into a home in the 3500 block of 42nd Avenue North and was holding people against their will. Earlier, Capt. Sean Edwards said Cotton, the suspect and a woman were inside the home hanging out and drinking when the 24-year-old suspect began acting erratic and bizarre. He pulled out two guns, Edwards said, and just started firing. The female ran out of the house and hid in some bushes. Edwards said the suspect went looking for her and then broke into the other home, where there were two children and their grandparents. The suspect then fired shots in that home, but no one was injured. Nearby police officers rushed to the scene when they heard the shots fired, Edwards said. As they were closing in on the suspect, he jumped out of a back window, got down on the ground and was taken into custody. The suspect was taken to UAB Hospital for treatment. Cotton and the shooter, police said, were best friends. He is being held in the Jefferson County Jail on $160,000 bond. Cotton's aunt, Dorothy Lee, said the family is devastated by the loss and thankful for an arrest. "He killed someone that was a friend to him, but he never was a friend to Eric,'' Lee said. "Eric gave him a place to lay his head when his mother wouldn't. Gave him food to eat when he didn't have money or nothing to eat." Cotton leaves behind a 9-year-old son, a 5-year-old daughter and another son who just turned 3 on Tuesday. "This has really hurt our family knowing that someone our loved one looked at as a friend would take his life,'' Lee said. "All we want is justice." On the GoFundMe, Warren wrote this: "No parent ever wants to receive the call stating that your child or love one has been shot. No parent ever wants to get to their child's house to find out that their son or love one has been shot and did not survive. No parent wants to have to tell their family that their son has died. No parent ever wants to have to write this article, and plead with the public to make donations so that they can lay their son to rest." A Madison County woman was killed Monday when her car left a road and hit a tree. Brittney Tenecha Scott, a 29-year-old from Meridianville, was dead at the scene on Holt Road in Limestone County, according to a state trooper spokesman. Scott was driving a Suzuki Forenza when the crash happened around 12:45 p.m., said Senior Trooper Chuck Daniel in a news release Tuesday morning. The crash happened about eight miles north of Athens. Further information wasn't immediately available. Troopers are investigating a single vehicle crash on Holt Rd in limestone co with one confirmed fatality. #alastatetrooper. Alabama Law Enforcement Agency (@ALEAprotects) January 22, 2018 Troopers are continuing their investigation, Daniel said. Redstone Arsenal is getting a visit from its boss this week when Secretary of the Army Dr. Mark Esper tours the base in Huntsville, Ala. on Wednesday. Esper, a Senate-confirmed official, is responsible for the organization, training and equipping of the 1.4 million active duty soldiers, National Guard and Reserve soldiers plus Department of the Army civilians. Redstone is one of the Army's top bases on American soil. It houses several top commands and organizations including the U.S. Army Aviation and Missile Command, the U.S. Army Materiel Command, the Missile Defense Agency, the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command and the Aviation & Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center. The Army base is also home to NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center. More than 35,000 federal and contractor employees report to work there each day. With a three-day government shutdown ending Monday after the House and Senate agreed on a temporary spending plan to fund the government through Feb. 8 that did not include a deal on legalizing illegal immigrants known as Dreamers, Republican members of Alabama's congressional delegation said the Democrats' attempt of extracting concessions from the GOP was futile and blamed Democrats for the shutdown. Meanwhile, the two members of the state's congressional delegation -- Sen. Doug Jones and Rep. Terri Sewell -- said there was still unfinished business that the shutdown did not address and that the compromise was less than "perfect." Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Haleyville, dean of the Alabama House delegation, said Republicans will not tie future plans to fund the government with legalizing Dreamers, or illegal immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. The Dreamer issue had been one of the sticking points that prevented Democrats from immediately agreeing to a deal with Republicans on funding the government. "By voting to end their shutdown and allowing the government to reopen, the Senate Democrats folded on what the rest of America knew to be a losing position. I am proud that Speaker [Paul] Ryan and Leader [Kevin] McCarthy stood firm on our conservative principles and did not reward legislative hostage-taking," Aderholt said in a statement. "Let me be clear, House Members do not feel bound to resolve the differences in DACA and immigration enforcement before the next funding deadline. House leadership has been consistent in their belief that these are two separate issues that will be resolved on two separate legislative tracks." On Monday, Democrats agreed to a six-year extension to the Children's Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, which had run out of funding, as part of the deal to end the shutdown. Jones, who had been among a handful of Democratic senators who voted with Republicans on Friday to avert a shutdown, said he voted with the GOP majority because of his campaign priority to restore CHIP funding, which gives healthcare access to some 83,000 Alabama children. Yet Jones said Monday that the compromise reached Monday left some issues unresolved. "Make no mistake: there's still plenty of work to be done. This bill is not a perfect solution," he said. "It fails to provide a lifeline for health care access in rural communities, does not fully address the opioid epidemic or the looming crisis with pensions, does not protect DREAMers, and does not fully fund our military. I voted yes with the belief that my colleagues will act in good faith and immediately take steps to pass a bipartisan, long-term funding plan that is devoted to resolving these critical issues. I will continue to work to find common ground with my fellow Senators, setting aside the partisan politics that only serve to divide us." Rep. Bradley Byrne, R-Fairhope, blamed Democrats in the Senate for forcing the shutdown after a vote in the upper chamber Friday fell short. "This shutdown was meaningless and petty. Senate Democrats shut down the federal government over illegal immigration, but thankfully they caved after realizing the blame was squarely on their shoulders," he said, echoing Aderholt's view that there was no deal on addressing the Dreamer issue. "To make clear, there was no agreement made in the House about any issues relating to illegal immigration. This #SchumerShutdown accomplished absolutely nothing. I hate that this whole ordeal even occurred, but I am glad the federal government can now return to business." Rep. Martha Roby, R-Montgomery, also accused Democrats of holding the government hostage with its demands: Pleased that Senate Democrats finally decided to end the #SchumerShutdown. The House just passed a bill to reopen the govt. I'm glad it's over, but it never should've happened. Senate Democrats held funding for our military & #CHIP hostage over an unrelated immigration issue. Rep. Martha Roby (@RepMarthaRoby) January 22, 2018 Sewell, who voted against the spending plan on Friday but voted to end the shutdown on Monday, accused Republicans of being stubborn and placed blame on the GOP for the shutdown. "I am disappointed that it took as long as it did for Republicans to work with Democrats, but I am hopeful that today's deal lays the groundwork for both parties to address some of our nation's biggest challenges, from healthcare to immigration to care for our veterans. For Alabama families who depend on ALL Kids, for the men and women in the Armed Forces, for federal health researchers, for Alabama's hospitals, and for all of my constituents, this legislation is a step towards future cooperation," she said. "Today's agreement is far from perfect. Congress must pass a budget with long-term funding that gives our federal agencies the certainty they need. A permanent extension of CHIP, rather than six years of funding, would have been more cost efficient and protected healthcare for children into the future. And today's bill does not fund expired Medicare programs, reauthorize Community Health Centers, provide a solution for DREAMers, or address many of our nation's other top priorities. With the additional time that today's legislation buys, I will hold Republicans to their promise to work with Democrats on solutions to address these issues." In a tweet, Sen. Richard Shelby, R-Ala., said he was looking forward to addressing "unfinished business": Two state lawmakers introduced legislation Tuesday to curb the wide use of civil asset forfeiture in Alabama. The legislation, which is co-sponsored by state Sen. Arthur Orr (R-Decatur) and Rep. Arnold Mooney (R-Birmingham), would abolish civil asset forfeiture in Alabama in the absence of a criminal conviction. "I thought we had always required a criminal conviction before seizing someone's property. I wasn't aware that wasn't the case until two years ago, and that's the reason I filed a bill last year and why I intend to do so again this year," Orr told AL.com Thursday. "My bill will first require a criminal conviction, and that's extremely important to have." The legislation would also ensure that there is a clear, efficient mechanism for innocent property owners to challenge civil asset forfeiture, and would require agencies to report all seizures and release information about how forfeited proceeds are spent. Two other states have already passed similar laws in recent years. The introduction of the bill coincided with the release of a new study by the Southern Poverty Law Center and Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice outlining the extent of civil asset forfeiture's impacts in Alabama. The review of court records in 1,100 cases involving civil asset forfeiture in 14 Alabama counties in 2015 found that in a quarter of the cases, the person whose property was seized was never charged with a crime in connection with the civil forfeiture action. The property owner lost 84 percent of those cases against people who were not charged with related crimes, yielding more than $676,000 for law enforcement agencies. The study goes on to tell the story of Clanton 39-year-old Robert Bradford, who told AL.com Friday that he believes his step-father, Royce Anthony Williams, would likely still be alive if such a law was in place a decade ago. Williams killed himself on May 26, 2009, in an attempt to keep law enforcement from seizing the home he shared with Bradford's mother in connection with an investigation stemming from a July 2007 raid during which they found marijuana plants that Williams said he grew for personal use. Prosecutors did not buy that explanation and law enforcement officers seized thousands of dollars, two Harley-Davidson motorcycles and other property from Williams, alleging that the marijuana was tied to drug dealing by Williams. They also went after the house where he would eventually take his own life. In the end, the family kept the home and Bradford lives there today. But Williams died and Bradford said the financial impacts of the investigation and seizure of other assets continue to plague him. "Royce would probably still be alive and monetarily I probably would be fine. I'm not hungry but I'm in a situation where if I was out of work for two weeks I would be in trouble," Bradford said Friday. "It's pretty bad. It was really hard on my mom because she basically was dying of cancer alone after he died." Bradford believes that protections should be put in place to ensure that law enforcement agencies in Alabama can no longer seize assets from people who have not been convicted of a crime. "[The legislation] would remove civil forfeiture but leave criminal forfeiture in its place," Frank Knaack, executive director of Alabama Appleseed, said Monday. "What that would do is ensure that people who have committed a crime cannot profit off that crime but innocent property owners who have not committed a crime have a way to get that property back." Bradford said he thinks that the practice destroys lives and has lasting negative impacts on folks who should never have been in trouble with the law in the first place. "People's stuff can be taken and them not even be found guilty, the charges get dropped or they are found not guilty, but their car and their house or whatever is still gone. So whether they're good cops or bad cops, that tool shouldn't be available," Bradford said. The SPLC/Appleseed study found that in half of the civil asset forfeiture cases it looked at statewide, the amount of cash seized by law enforcement was less than $1,372, which belies the oft-repeated argument that civil asset forfeiture is mainly used as a tool to go after cartels and major criminals, according to Knaack. "In Alabama, we have a process where the government can seize and take your property without even charging you with a crime," he said. "The way it was sold was as a way to go after drug kingpins ... But the report shows that it's not just being used to go after drug kingpins, it's actually being used to go after ordinary Alabamians." The study also explored the disproportionate impact that Alabama's civil asset forfeiture practice has on black residents and people who were never charged with anything other than marijuana-related crimes. In 64 percent of the civil asset forfeiture cases the researchers looked at the defendant was African-American, despite the fact that only 27 percent of the state's population is black. And in 55 percent of the asset forfeiture cases in which criminal charges were filed, the defendants were charged with marijuana crimes. In 18 percent of those cases, the charge was simple marijuana and/or paraphernalia possession. "When you put all this together, civil asset forfeiture has been a tool that has harmed lower-income Alabamians and people of color in Alabama," Knaack said. Alabama Senator Doug Jones and West Virginia's Joe Manchin - both considered party centrists - met with President Donald Trump to discuss immigration just as the Senate was voting to re-open the government, according to multiple media reports. The two Democrats, both of whom voted with Republicans in earlier efforts to end the Senate stalemate, met with the president at the White House. White House spokesperson Sarah Huckabee Sanders confirmed the discussions to The Hill but would not provide details. In a tweet, Machin referenced the coalition of Senators - part of Maine Senator Susan Collins' Common Sense Coalition - that hammered out the agreement. Jones is pictured with the Senators in a press conference discussing the deal. Today, we saw the power of the center in the U.S. Senate. @Sen_JoeManchin and I worked very hard in leading the effort of the Common Sense Coalitiona group of 25 Republicans, Democrats, and an Independentwho proposed the compromise that ended the government shutdown. pic.twitter.com/sSq7YWHKn1 Sen. Susan Collins (@SenatorCollins) January 22, 2018 In a statement after the Senate vote, Jones, who took office a month ago, credited "moderates' in the Senate for passing the measure and ending the three-day shutdown. "I am hopeful that the relationships and trust we have built together in recent days will translate to more progress in the future," he said. Trump also met with a group of key Republicans, including Sen. Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, Sen. James Lankford, R-Okla., Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., and Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., to discuss immigration, according to the Hill. Senate Democrats had held up voting over a funding measure over a lack of protections for Dreamers, the name given to people brought to the U.S. illegally as children. As part of the agreement, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., pledged to bring up immigration before the next funding deadline. A bill to eliminate marriage licenses and end the requirement for a marriage ceremony in Alabama is on the move in the state Legislature. Sen. Greg Albritton, R-Range, has introduced the legislation several times since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage in 2015 in the case Obergefell v. Hodges. Albritton's bill, which has changed some from the initial version, has passed the Senate previously. Last week, senators made it one of the first bills they passed this session when they approved it on a 19-1 vote. The House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to consider it on Wednesday, which could set it up for a final vote in the House next week. Instead of applying for a marriage license, a couple would submit a form to the probate judge swearing that they are of legal age, are entering the marriage willingly, are not already married and are not related by blood or adoption. The probate judge would record the form as the official marriage document. Current Alabama law says probate judges "may" issue marriage licenses but does not say they are required to. Some probate judges in Alabama stopped issuing marriage licenses altogether after the Obergefell decision because they did not want to issue licenses to same-sex couples. Albritton said he opposed the decision in the Obergefell case. But the senator said the bill is intended to bring the state into compliance with it and eliminate the discretion by probate judges on whether to issue a license. "It requires that the form that's presented to be recorded must be accepted," Albritton said. Washington County Probate Judge Nick Williams stopped issuing marriage licenses after the Obergefell decision. Williams said he does not believe the Supreme Court had the authority to "redefine" marriage because he said God created marriage. If Albritton's bill becomes law, Williams said he would abide by it and record marriages, including those of same-sex couples. Williams said there's a difference between simply recording a document and placing his signature on a license. Williams said he doesn't believe probate judges should have ever been asked to issue marriage licenses because he said they are licenses of the state, not the counties. The Alabama Probate Judges Association is not taking a position on Albritton's bill, Williams said. Williams is co-chairman of the association's legislative committee. State Rep. Patricia Todd, D-Birmingham, said she would vote for Albritton's bill because she doesn't think the state should be in the position of deciding who can marry and should have changed the law years ago. But Todd said it bothers her that the catalyst for making it happen was the decision by some probate judges to stop issuing licenses because of their opposition to same-sex marriage. Todd said she does not begrudge probate judges who decline to perform marriage ceremonies for same-sex couples because of their beliefs. She said that discretion should not extend to denying marriage licenses. "When you get elected to office or take a job you have certain responsibilities," Todd said. Under current law, a couple that has received a marriage license must also have a ceremony to "solemnize" the union. State law 30-1-7 broadly defines who can perform a marriage ceremony, including "any licensed minister of the gospel," "the pastor of any religious society," and active and retired judges and probate judges. The person conducting the ceremony is responsible for certifying the marriage to the probate court. Albritton said the language about "licensed minister" is ambiguous and the requirement for a ceremony entangles the state unnecessarily in what should be a private affair. His bill abolishes the requirement for a ceremony. The cost of having a marriage document recorded would be the same as applying for a license. "It doesn't change the fees, it changes very little of the process," Albritton said. "But it does allow and kind of takes a libertarian view of getting the state out of it as much as possible and leaving the individuals to do as they choose and making the government recognize those marriages that are entered into." Joe Godfrey, executive director of the Alabama Citizens Action Program, which lobbies the Legislature on behalf of churches, said ALCAP has not taken an official position on Albritton's bill. But Godfrey said he's telling legislators that they support the bill because he considers it the best option for taking probate judges out of the position of issuing licenses that conflict with their religious convictions. Albritton was asked if his opposition to the Obergefell decision was a factor in bringing the bill. "We have to bring a bill because of the decision," Albritton said. "I can't change the decision. That decision is the law of the land. The only thing I can do is try to make it easier and try to find some kind of middle ground that we in Alabama can live under that law." The Senate convenes at 2 p.m. on Tuesday and the House convenes at 3. An Athens man was arrested this past weekend on warrants for having child pornography on his cellphone, authorities said. Jeremy Cameron (Limestone County Jail photo) Jeremy Roy Cameron, a 29-year-old from Athens, was arrested at his Nick Davis Road home Saturday, according to the Limestone County Sheriff's Office. Cameron's cellphone was confiscated in November when sheriff's investigators served a search warrant, said public information officer Stephen Young. An investigator found the pornographic images on Cameron's phone, which was examined by a forensic expert, authorities said. Investigators seized a computer, gaming devices and more cellphones when they arrested him over the weekend, Young said. Cameron additionally was charged with possession of drug paraphernalia when investigators found those items at his house, records show. Cameron was released from the Limestone County Jail on $11,000 bail. Federal workers will receive pay for the time they were off the job during the short-lived government shutdown. The continuing resolution passed by Congress includes a measure that will grant back pay for federal workers who were furloughed at the start of the government shutdown at midnight on Saturday. Uniformed military personnel and federal workers deemed critical to ongoing functions were guaranteed back pay once the government opened. Workers who are furloughed, however, have no such guarantee and it takes Congressional action for them to be paid. The bill also contains a pay guarantee for any other possible shutdowns in 2018, a provision that could be important with the current funding deal set to expire on Feb. 8. Many federal workers arrived at work on Monday only to be sent home before Congress reached a spending agreement by late afternoon. In 2013, some 800,000 federal workers were furloughed - some as long as 16 days - during a shutdown. Back pay was granted in that case as well. Honey and cookies laced with marijuana were seized along with a bottle of whiskey when police arrested a Fort Payne DUI suspect Monday evening. Michael Leftwich (Photo courtesy of Fort Payne police) Michael Jacob Leftwich, a 32-year-old from Mentone, was taken into custody after leading officers on a chase through DeKalb County, according to police. Fort Payne policeman Nick Hill tried pulling over Leftwich when he saw the suspect run a red light on Gault Avenue in a Ford station wagon after 8 p.m., officers said. Leftwich continued driving north on Gault in Fort Payne and traveled through the Valley Head town limits, said Police Chief Randy Bynum. Leftwich was captured after turning onto Palmer Road in DeKalb County, where his vehicle left the road and skidded into a tree, Bynum said. Police smelled alcohol on Leftwich when they were pulling him from the car, the chief said. Inside the car, officers said they found an open bottle of Jack Daniels Gentleman Jack Whiskey, plus marijuana-laced honey, THC-laced cookies and a marijuana pipe. A Glock 43 9mm pistol also was recovered from the car, the chief said. "He just didn't want to be caught," Bynum told AL.com "Looking at his record, he's a convicted felon." Leftwich is charged with felony possession of marijuana, as well as misdemeanors driving under the influence and attempting to elude police. Officers also gave Leftwich multiple traffic tickets, the chief said. David and Louise Turpin, a California couple accused of abusing their children in horrid conditions, once came to Alabama for the wife to have sex with another man, a relative said Monday. Teresa Robinette, the sister of Louise Turpin, spoke with NBC's Megyn Kelly, about the abuse her 13 nieces and nephews have suffered. Their parents are accused of chaining the children to their beds, as well as starving and beating them, according to authorities. The children's ages range from 2 to 29. They lived with their parents in Perris, a city in Riverside County, California. Robinette told Kelly about abuse she and her sister suffered as children. She said their mother and some of their cousins were sexually abused by another relative. Robinette said she's had little communication during the past several years with her nieces and nephews. She described a change in her sister's behavior, saying the woman and her husband never drank alcohol but suddenly quit attending their church and started going to bars. Robinette recalled getting a strange call from her sister in 2009 or 2010. "...She told me that her and David had met a man online from Huntsville, Alabama, and that they were on their way there to meet him and that she was going to sleep with him and that David was OK with that," Robinette said. Robinette told Kelly her brother-in-law dropped her sister off at the motel. She said she told her sister sleeping with the other man was a mistake, but she did it anyway. "What makes it even worse and even weirder, is that exactly one year to the date of the anniversary that she did that, she called me and thought it was funny that David was taking her back to the exact same hotel room, the exact same hotel, everything, the exact same bed she slept with this man in, so that David could sleep with her in the same bed," Robinette continued. The Turpins previously lived in Forth Worth, Texas, then moved to California. Both are charged with 12 counts of torture, seven counts of abuse of a dependent adult, six counts of child abuse or neglect and 12 counts of false imprisonment for crimes dating back to 2010. They were arrested a week ago after their 17-year-old daughter escaped through a window and called 911 with a cellphone she found, according to authorities. "David and Louise are dead to me now," Robinette said to Kelly. The story of Africatown is not the story of the Clotilda. But the possible rediscovery of the slave ship's wreckage is a reminder that while the ship had no future after its fateful 1860 voyage, those imprisoned aboard it did. "Even though it's a terrible story, it's uplifting," historian Sylviane Diouf said in a 2007 Press-Register interview about her groundbreaking book on the subject. "It's not about what was done to them. It's about what they did. They came as children, maintained their traditions, their language. If they could do that, we can do anything." Accounts generally agree that the Clotilda brought 110 to 120 Africans to Mobile in 1860 and that they initially were split into several large groups in slavery. The end of the Civil War found one of these groups left to its own devices in an area about three miles north of downtown Mobile. The area is generally known as Plateau or Magazine Point, a peninsula where Three Mile Creek and Chickasabogue creek converge on the Mobile River. Still strangers in a strange land, the Africans formed a self-reliant community where they could maintain their language and customs. Some of the other former Clotilda slaves found their way back to the group. The city of Mobile's Africatown Neighborhood Plan, a blueprint for revitalization and preservation prepared in 2015 and 2016, offers a quick summary of what came next for the community initially known as "African Town." Working in local shipyards and mills, they saved money to buy land including some from their former owners. African Town originally included a 50-acre community in the Plateau area and a smaller one, Lewis Quarters, which consisted of seven acres over a mile to the west of the larger settlement. Lewis Quarters was named after one of its founders, Charlie Lewis. The settlers appointed Peter Lee as their chief and established a governmental system based on African law. The residents of African Town built the first school in the area. In 1872 they built Old Landmark Baptist Church, which is now Union Missionary Baptist Church. While the community retained much of their West African culture, construction of the church signaled the conversion to Christianity of many of the Africans. They were a tight-knit community known for sharing and helping one another but reportedly had tense relations with both whites and African Americans and so largely kept to themselves. For her book "Dreams of Africa in Alabama: The Slave Ship Clotilda and the Last Africans Brought to America," Diouf dug deep into the experience of life in African Town. Her sources included texts based on first-person interviews with former Clotilda slave Cudjo "Kazoola" Lewis conducted by white Mobile schoolteacher Emma Langdon Roche and black author Zora Neale Hurston. (Lewis, who died in 1935 at an estimated age of 94, is a legendary figure in his own right as an embodiment of Africatown heritage.) A Press-Register reviewer wrote of Diouf's findings: "The old interviews make abundantly clear that Lewis and his comrades were terrified and traumatized by their kidnapping and trans-Atlantic voyage. Their life in Alabama was very difficult, first for a few years as slaves and then in freedom. Not only did they have to contend with prejudice from whites, but their black neighbors considered them to be oddities who were crude, fierce and inscrutable." Wrote Diouf: "Their town was unique; it was the first time that a group of Africans - besides the maroons who had hid their camps in swamps and woods since the seventeenth century - had built their very own town on their own land in the United States." Africatown maintained a sense of apartness from Mobile well into the 20th century: Mobile was a small city and Plateau was an outlying area amid marshy and undeveloped terrain. But World War II fueled rapid growth, and Mobile industry sprawled northward along the river. Like any ethnic group in America, the residents of Africatown were subject to a natural process of assimilation. Now the community faced additional pressure from industrial encroachment, with related concerns such as pollution. In recent decades, the fate of Africatown has been a struggle. The area has had its champions, and has found some sympathetic ears in local government. But has been beset by pervasive blight. According to the city development plan, the 2010 U.S. Census showed 1,881 residents in the area. But the same report found "virtually no non-industrial businesses," vacant commercial buildings, and many severely dilapidated homes. There have been some positive developments: Africatown was added to the Natioal Register of Historic Places in 2012. It's also a part of the Dora Franklin Finley African-American Heritage Trail, which guides interested visitors to sites of interest in and around Mobile. In 2016 the Mobile City Council voted to give Bay Bridge Road the honorary designation "Africatown Boulevard." Efforts have been made to bridge the gap between the community and the industry surrounding it. The city's development plan represents an attempt to sum up Africatown's assets and challenges and map out a way to develop the former while remediating the latter. But its proposals - which include building an Africatown history center and park, developing affordable housing and clearing blighted or abandoned properties - will require heavy public and private investment and a cooperative effort that could last decades. Despite the challenges, Africatown's story is too special to be lost. In fact, it recently was catapulted back to national attention via an unexpected connection on the PBS geneology show "Finding Your Roots." In one episode the influential musician and author Amir "Questlove" Thompson learns that his personal family heritage includes an ancestor, Charles Lewis, who was taken aboard the Clotilda and became one of Africatown's founders. As a thunderstruck Questlove processes what host Henry Louis Gates is telling him, Gates spells out just how rare the Africatown legacy is: "You know, every African American that we know wants to know where in Africa they came from, and then, how they came here," Gates says. "You are the only African American I've ever met who can name the ship." This story draws on prior reporting from a number of current and past reporters for AL.com and The Press-Register, notably Roy Hoffman and John Sledge. It was updated at 5:05 p.m. Tuesday to fix an incorrect date. Relying on historical records and accounts from old timers, AL.com may have located the long-lost wreck of the Clotilda, the last slave ship to bring human cargo to the United States. What's left of the ship lies partially buried in mud alongside an island in the lower Mobile-Tensaw Delta, a few miles north of the city of Mobile. The hull is tipped to the port side, which appears almost completely buried in mud. The entire length of the starboard side, however, is almost fully exposed. The wreck, which is normally underwater, was exposed during extreme low tides brought on by the same weather system that brought the "Bomb Cyclone" to the Eastern Seaboard. Low tide around Mobile was about two and a half feet below normal thanks to north winds that blew for days. "I'm quaking with excitement. This would be a story of world historical significance, if this is the Clotilda," said John Sledge, a senior historian with Mobile Historical Commission, and author of The Mobile River, an exhaustive history of the river. "It's certainly in the right vicinity... We always knew it should be right around there." This reporter, Ben Raines, used the abnormally low tides to search for the ship after researching possible locations. The remote spot where the ship was found, deep in the swampy Mobile-Tensaw Delta, is accessible only by boat. During my first trips after discovering the wreck, I documented it with photographs and aerials shot with a drone. Over the next week, I ferried a shipwright expert in the construction techniques used on old wooden vessels and a team of archaeologists from the University of West Florida to the site. All concluded that the wreck dated to the mid 1800s (the Clotilda was built in 1855), and featured construction techniques typical of Gulf Coast schooners used to haul lumber and other heavy cargo, as the Clotilda was designed to do. The vessel also bore telltale signs of being burned, as the Clotilda reportedly was. In later years, the slavers bragged of burning the ship at the conclusion of their voyage in July of 1860 in an effort to hide proof of their human trafficking. Evidence of a fire on the wreck included a distinctive patina on wrought iron chain plates used to hold the masts and bowsprit in place, and charred beams and timbers in the ship's interior. "These ships were the 18-wheelers of their day. They were designed to haul a huge amount of cargo in relatively shallow water," said Winthrop Turner, a shipwright specializing in wooden vessels. "That's why you see the exceptional number of big iron drifts used to hold the planking together. That's also why the sides of the ship are so stout. They are almost two feet thick. The construction techniques here, no threaded bolts, iron drifts, butt jointed planking, these all confirm a ship built between 1850 and 1880." The team of University of West Florida archaeologists, led by Greg Cook and John Bratten, agreed. The men have made a career of exploring shipwrecks, including Spanish galleons sunk in Pensacola Bay in 1559 and slave ships sunk off the coast of Africa. They were contacted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration several years ago about searching for the Clotilda, but nothing ever came of the plan. After examining the aerials, images and historical documents I had assembled, the archaeologists visited the wreck on a chilly morning, temperatures just above freezing. Finding the Clotilda 44 Gallery: Finding the Clotilda "You can definitely say maybe, and maybe even a little bit stronger, because the location is right, the construction seems to be right, from the proper time period, it appears to be burnt. So I'd say very compelling, for sure," said Cook. "There is nothing here to say this isn't the Clotilda, and several things that say it might be," Bratten concurred, adding that several bits of evidence assembled by AL.com make a strong case for further exploration. So far, the investigation is only visual, with no attempts made to dig up the hull or remove artifacts. Alabama laws governing ship wrecks carry stiff penalties, including the confiscation of boats and other equipment, for disturbing shipwrecks or military battlefields without permits. One of the key elements that suggests this may be the Clotilda comes from the location where it was found. The ship lies essentially where its captain, William Foster, said he burned and sank it in 1860. Even so, the archaeologists stressed, a conclusive determination can only be made by documenting any artifacts that remain in the hold, if such a determination can even be made. So far, the scientists have only examined the parts of the ship that can be seen above the mud that encases most of the hull. Turner, the shipwright, estimated that the bottom of the ship may be as deep as ten feet down in the mud, based on certain parts of the ship that are visible above the mud. Digging into the past will require both federal and state permits, and a lot of money. A crime and a mystery The Clotilda is the last ship known to have brought slaves into the country. The hunt for the ship has inspired numerous searchers over the years, but the Clotilda has long escaped discovery, until perhaps now. A small clarification for those familiar with the tale, the ship's name is the Clotilda, not the Clotilde. Newspaper accounts beginning in 1860 misspelled the name, and over the years it stuck. But the ship's license and the captain's journal make clear that Clotilda is correct. A couple of details in the historical record may have helped keep the ship hidden for so long, mainly by sending would-be explorers looking in the wrong place, or leading them to disregard this wreck as a possible candidate. Those items will be discussed in greater detail below. From the start, the fate of the Clotilda was designed to remain a mystery, with the slavers attempting to destroy the ship after delivering 110 captives from "the Kingdom of Dahomey," which is modern day Benin, Africa, in 1860. Though slavery was still legal in the U.S. at the time, it had been illegal to import slaves into the country for 52 years, since Thomas Jefferson signed an 1808 law forbidding the practice. With the nation edging closer to civil war over the slavery issue, Alabama steamboat captain and plantation owner Timothy Meaher made an infamous bet that he could sneak slaves into the country, right under the noses of federal troops at the twin forts that guarded the mouth of Mobile Bay. Historian Sylvianne Diouf traced the evolution of the wicked scheme and the resulting journey in her excellent book, Dreams of Africa in Alabama, published in 2007. Attempts to contact Diouf were unsuccessful. This is Cudjo Lewis, known in his native land as Kazoola. He was the last survivor of the Clotilda incident. He lived in Africatown until 1935, when he died at age 94. The book primarily focuses on the story of the captives, who were freed just five years after they were enslaved, thanks to the end of the Civil War. The group, 110 strong, originally asked their captor, Meaher, to pay for passage back to Africa. After he refused, they appealed to the U.S. government, again to no avail. Ultimately, some members of the group bought a small piece of land north of Mobile from Meaher and created a community called Africatown, where some of the descendants of the original slaves still live. They spoke their native tongue, farmed using traditional African methods, and ran their own school. Descendants of those brought to this country aboard the Clotilda are believed to be the only group of slave descendants who know precisely where their ancestors came from, when they arrived, and what vessel brought them here. Africatown was added to the national historic register in 2012. The last of those brought from Africa, Cudjo Lewis, died in 1935, but not before experiencing a small bit of celebrity. Diouf's book relies in part on interviews with Cudjo made before his death. Several -- but not all -- of the clues needed to find the ship were in the book. In the end, this ship was found where the Clotilda's captain, William Foster, stated that he set it on fire in his journal. Neither Foster or Meaher were ever convicted of the crime of slaving, though Meaher was arrested at one point for his role, and Foster was forced to pay a $1,000 fine for failing to register in port after an international trip. The disruption of the Civil War meant that the case against the men was abandoned. The Journey Thirty years later, Meaher was quoted extensively in a newspaper article in 1890 bragging about how they had smuggled their captives into the country. A state park on the edge of the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, about eight miles from where the ship was found, is named for Meaher's family, which donated the land and remains prominent in Mobile. In fact, I left from a boat ramp in Meaher State Park on my trips to find and explore the wreck of the ship the park's namesake may have sent to win his wretched bet. Meaher, the mastermind behind the scheme, was already a rich man, with a plantation and a steamboat that he captained up and down the Alabama River. He set out to bring slaves in for no reason other than to prove that he could do it. He purchased the Clotilda, a two-masted schooner, for $35,000 and hired Captain William Foster to sail to Africa, purchase 100 slaves with about $9,000 in gold, and bring them back to Alabama. The ship's true mission was disguised by stops in Caribbean ports. The supplies needed to feed the captives on the return journey were carefully hidden beneath piles of lumber, to avoid discovery should the Clotilda be boarded by British, Dutch, or Portugese military vessels during the crossing. That lumber would later be used to build pens to house the captives. Here is a page from Capt. Foster's journal, where he writes of burning the Clotilda at journey's end. Foster's journal and insurance documents from the 1800s, maintained in the Mobile Public Library, provide a detailed account of the voyage beginning with a list of how many casks of rice, rum, molasses, beef, water, and other supplies were laid on to feed 110 captives on a return voyage. Written in the flowery language of the Victorian era, Foster's account has him "sallying forth" to meet with African slave traders. During the four-month journey, the Clotilda survived a collision with a Portuguese Man-O-War ship that had given chase, mutiny by the crew, and a storm that ripped a mast from the ship. The tale ends with the arrival back in Alabama waters, the tricks used to smuggle the prisoners past port officials in Mobile, and finally the burning of the ship after the captives were hidden in a swamp. Even as the men plotted the sinister voyage, they understood that the chances of discovery were high, and the price of being caught violating the federal slaving law could be death. They arranged to bring the ship to shore far from Mobile, at Point Aux Pins, a desolate stretch of shoreline along the Mississippi Sound. Upon successful completion of the voyage, Foster was to send word to Meaher, who would dispatch a steam tug from Mobile to tow the large sailing ship upriver to offload the slaves at Meaher's plantation. But by the time the ship returned to Alabama, Meaher knew the scheme had been found out and worried federal officials might be lying in wait. The original plan had been for Foster to unload the slaves and then sail to Mexico, where the ship would be cleaned, and then disguised with new rigging, license papers and a new name. Instead, with the crew threatening another mutiny, Foster and Meaher agreed to burn the ship. It was, they decided, the only way to hide the telltale signs of human trafficking visible in the hold. Diouf, relying on historical accounts, imagines the scene this way, "He knew - and Meaher did too - that they might have been spotted, so they had decided to destroy the evidence, the telling signs of a slaving voyage: the partitions, the platforms, the empty casks of food and water, the big pots, the tubs, the blood, the vomit, the spit, the mucus, the urine, and the feces that soiled the planks, the awful smell that always floated around slave ships." Location, Location, Location One of the most definitive pieces of evidence that this wreck might be the Clotilda is its location, adjacent to the island where the captives were reportedly transferred to another boat. The details I used to pinpoint the wreck come from three men -- their lives separated by more than 100 years -- one of whom I interviewed. Russell Ladd has been travelling the Delta rivers since he was a boy. His family is one of Mobile's oldest, specializing in insurance for shippers. A large stadium in Mobile is named after Ladd's ancestors. Ladd still maintains the family's remote camp on Chuckfee Bay, accessible only by boat. His grandfather, born in 1881, bought the land. The camp is located in the interior of the Delta, less than a mile from where the ship was found. I called Ladd in October to tell him I was hunting for the Clotilda and asked if he might have an idea where the wreck might be. "I think I do," Ladd said, before describing a fairly precise location to me. He described a spot I've been by many times, in an area where I often fish but have never noticed a wreck. When I asked why he thought it was there, he said, "Well, when I was a boy, we used to go up the Mobile River to fish various places. On low tide, we'd see this burned out ship and my father and his friends would say, 'There's the Clotilda.'" Ladd said the boat house where the family's boat was kept was on Bayou Sara, which flows into the Mobile River alongside 12 Mile Island, "so we traversed 12 Mile Island quite a bit. The whole delta was full of old gravel barges, wooden barges, that were in various states of deterioration. They used to just abandon those everywhere. But those were rectangular. I don't know of any other ships like this one, where it comes to a point. I always questioned Daddy about it." Ladd's father, born in 1907, and his grandfather, born in 1881, both fished and duck hunted in the Delta. While Ladd offered the location where the ship was found in our initial interview, he later said he was never sure if his father really knew or was just telling an inquisitive kid what he wanted to hear. At the dawn of the 20th century, the location of the wreck appeared to be an open secret locally, although records I've reviewed from others who hunted the ship reveal there were more than a half dozen wrecks people insisted were the Clotilda. Photos of some of those wrecks from the early 1900s make clear they could not be the Clotilda for various reasons. And none of the wrecks in those records were located where this ship was found. (Similarly, none of the other wrecks are located where the captain said he burned the ship, as this wreck is.) In her book, Diouf writes "A man was posted near the burning vessel to make sure pieces of the wreckage did not float down the river, a definite sign that something shady had been going on. But it was a futile exercise because her hull remained visible at low tide for three quarters of a century." The survival of a significant portion of the hull is not unusual, as ships will only burn down to the waterline. Over time, the portion of the ship that had been visible on a normal low tide, particularly the ribs, surely rotted away, due to exposure to the elements. However, sections that remain continually underwater, or better still, buried beneath a layer of mud, could be expected to survive centuries, especially with the old growth longleaf pine used to construct the Clotilda and other ships built in Mobile in the 1800s. Ladd said it had been many years since he had been able to see the wreck. But Diouf's 75-year span where the burned husk was regularly visible dovetails nicely with Ladd's recollection of seeing the ship when he was a boy. The second part of the location evidence comes from the accounts of Capt. Foster and Timothy Meaher. In his journal, hand-written in a tight and slanted cursive, Foster describes towing the Clotilda into the Delta under cover of night by way of the Spanish River, so as to avoid detection in the port of Mobile. The Delta is a vast wetland, about 13 miles wide, and divided by dozens of rivers, creeks, bayous and islands. Using Spanish River meant the Clotilda traveled up the east side of two islands, Pinto and Blakeley, and allowed Foster to bypass the downtown waterfront, which was already heavily populated in the 1850s. "I towed the Clotilda into Mobile Bay and up to 12 Mile Island and transferred the (captives) to a river steamboat the Czar and then I burned her and sunk her in 20 feet of water," reads Foster's testimony, suggesting he burned the ship next to 12 Mile Island, which is precisely where I found it. For his part, Meaher, in a newspaper interview 30 years later, added the detail that the ship was towed into "Bayou Connor" and burned. For several reasons, I don't think this was true, though I think Meaher might have believed it was. It's also possible this was another effort by Meaher to hide the location of the ship. You can see the big iron drift pins well in this shot, which held the boat together. The side of the ship are two feet thick. On the far right of the frame, you can see the keel line The reference confused me at first because I didn't recognize the bayou's name. I earn part of my living as a nature guide, taking sightseers and fishermen into the Mobile-Tensaw Delta aboard my boat. I know the rivers and bayous well, but had never encountered a "Bayou Connor." It was only when I began searching through old maps that it made sense. There, on a map made in 1889, is Bayou Connor, branching off from Bayou Canot, just across from the tip of 12-Mile Island. Today, the whole area is known as Bayou Canot. The confluence of Bayou Canot and the Mobile River occurs directly above the northern tip of 12 Mile Island. The geography of the rivers coming together makes a big X on the map, with the apparent continuation of Bayou Canot wrapping around the east side of 12 Mile Island while the main channel of the Mobile River wraps around the west side. It is possible that Meaher meant this lower section around 12 Mile Island, though technically, both sides of 12 Mile Island are considered to be the Mobile River, and Bayou Canot (then called Bayou Connor) meets its end at the confluence with the river just above the island, all things a steamboat captain such as Meaher would have known. I think a more likely scenario is that Meaher told Foster to move the ship off the main river into Bayou Canot and burn it, but then left aboard his brother's steamboat with all of the Clotilda's crew before the fire was lit. I suspect Foster, left behind with all the evidence of their crime, might have decided to burn the ship right then and there, in what was already a pretty secluded spot, rather than spend another hour taking the ship deeper into the swamp. The three primary documents for investigating this affair are Foster's 13-page description of the entire journey, the newspaper article about Meaher written 30 years later, and a handwritten document that may be the reporter's notes for the Meaher article. Those sources differ on the critical detail of where the ship was burned, though they agree that it was Foster who did the burning. We also know Meaher most likely wasn't around when the ship was burned thanks to his braggadocio in the 1890 newspaper article. There, he spins the story of how he crafted an alibi for his whereabouts during the days long affair of retrieving the Clotilda and transferring the slaves to his brother's steamboat. The breathless newspaper article begins by crediting Meaher's "desperate but successful undertaking" with creating the "only full-blood African colony in America," referring to Africatown, which had been established decades prior. The tale comes from "the venerable captain, from whose lips was learned the story of the importation of the last cargo of slaves in the South." It describes Meaher's alibi plot this way: "His brother, the late Capt. Burns Meaher, who at that time commanded the steamboat the Czar, was instructed to fire up and proceed to the mouth of the Spanish River, which debouches into Mobile Bay about four or five miles east of this city, and there await the Clotilda's arrival. Capt. Meaher also issued orders that supper must not be served on the packet Roger B. Taney on her trip to Montgomery the following Tuesday night, until he boarded the boat at some point up the Alabama River." Meaher was the captain of the Roger B. Taney. He ordered the ship to leave Mobile without him for its weekly run upriver, planning to sneak aboard after the slave transfer had taken place, which he did. Getting back to the Taney quickly was key to making his alibi work. The newspaper article continues: "Under cover of night, Capt. Meaher and the Clotilda's crew were transferred to the Taney. The crew of the slaver were stowed away in an upper portion of the boat, locked in, and supplied with cards and whisky. It was 9:30 before supper was announced on the Taney that night, and when the captain took his seat at the head of the table his face wore a most nonchalant appearance, and gave forth not the slightest intimation that he had been engaged in other than the legitimate performance of his duties." Based apparently on the newspaper article and the handwritten notes mentioned above, a Mobile area man named Jack Friend spent thousands of dollars searching for the Clotilda in Bayou Canot in the late 1990s. Though Friend is now dead, I spent a day reviewing his extensive collection of papers related to the Clotilda and other shipwrecks in the History Museum of Mobile with historian John Sledge. Employing a salvage company, side scan sonar, magnetometers, and divers, the team searched the length of Bayou Canot and came up empty. They did not, however, search the area where I found this wreck, though it was just a mile downstream from the area they did search. This old map, from 1889, shows the lay of the land in the middle delta. It was this map that may have helped me unravel the fate of the Clotilda. This same area was left off of an extensive study of Mobile Bay ship wrecks conducted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1983. That study included the lower Delta, but stopped about four miles south of the area where the wreck I found lies. Combining it all together, we have Ladd's reminiscence, which led me to the wreck of a large burned ship from the mid-1800s. That wreck, in turn, is located next to the island where Foster recounts unloading the slaves and scuttling the ship, and across the river from the bayou where Meaher says the ship was torched. "Even if the ship was actually burned in Bayou Canot, it wouldn't surprise me that her rope had parted during the fire and she drifted out into the main channel and washed up where you found it," said Sledge, the Mobile historian. "It is not very far, and it is downstream." Ship length While there are no pictures of the Clotilda, we do have measurements for its length and width. The ship was listed as 86 feet long, with a beam (or width) of 23 feet. With the keel line visible in the mud around the wreck, we were able to get a good measurement of the beam of the ship. It fit perfectly, at 23 feet and identical to the beam of the Clotilda. But the length was dramatically different. In fact, in my initial visit, I measured the wreck at 124 feet, including a section of the stern visible in the water. I suspect this measurement may have encouraged other people hunting for the Clotilda to disregard this wreck as a possible suspect if they encountered it. Initially, it dissuaded me, as it appeared far too long to be the Clotilda. But as I sat on the bow of the ship staring toward the stern, I couldn't imagine how a vessel any smaller could have carried 110 captives and a crew of 14, plus supplies, on a four-month journey across the Atlantic Ocean. A schooner-style vessel that was 40 feet shorter than the wreck I was looking at simply would have been too small. So, I began researching how ships were measured in the 1800s. As it turns out, there were three critical measurements for sailing ships. There is the overall length, which is the first thing most people think of today when talking about the size of a boat. But the overall length is actually irrelevant when calculating how much cargo a given ship could hold, as only the portion of the ship sitting in the water supports the weight of the cargo. For old sailing ships, there were often two other measurements given: The length along the waterline, and something called "the Length Between Perpendiculars." These latter two measurements are designed to account for the fact that old sailing ships often had raked bows and sterns, meaning the ends of the vessel were slanted, with a portion of the front and back of the ship hanging over the water. These numbers were the most important to shippers in the 1800s, not the overall length. This is the Amistad. The size and layout are similar to what the Clotilda would have looked like. Both ships are two masted schooners, and both carried slaves. The Length Between Perpendiculars, was a measurement from the front edge of the rudder forward to the base of the ship's stem in the bow. This measurement, as opposed to the overall length, gave people in the shipping industry a good estimate of how much cargo a given vessel could carry. Armed with that knowledge, I began looking up the "Length Between Perpendiculars" for various two-masted schooners from the mid 1800s. I found numerous examples of vessels with a Length Between Perpendiculars - or sometimes a waterline measurement - of 80 to 90 feet, and an overall length of 120 to 140 feet. Perhaps the most famous example would be the reconstruction of the slave ship Amistad, subject of a movie about slaves taking over a ship starring Morgan Freeman. The Amistad was 23 feet wide, exactly the beam of the Clotilda. The Amistad's overall length was 129 feet, while it's waterline measurement was 78 feet. These numbers match quite closely with the Clotilda, if we assume the 86-foot length was actually a waterline or Length Between Perpendiculars measurement. I found records for about a dozen schooners with measurements closely matching the Amistad and the Clotilda. Next steps "With the evidence in the stem, we can get an idea of preservation. With those chain plates, we can get some indication of mast placement. It appears to be a schooner," said Cook, the archaeologist. "If it turns out to be the last slaver, it is going to be a very powerful site for many reasons. The structure of the vessel itself is not as important as its history, and the impact it is going to have on many, many people." Cook said the first step is to gather input from the Alabama Historical Commission, state officials, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Then, he said, preliminary excavations and other tests by archaeological teams would be appropriate. Ultimately, the goal would be to identify the wreck, and then perhaps put the contents on display. My friend, outdoors writer Jeff Dute, first suggested we look for the ship, knowing many others had tried. He visited the wreck with me the day Turner, the shipwright, explored it. Dute said that once he had seen the ship, his overall feeling was a profound sadness. "Just imagine what this trip meant for those people. Ripped from their homes, their country, then months in the hold of this ship, right here," Dute said. "That last voyage of the Clotilda is a horrible thing to contemplate. I just keep imagining, crossing the ocean, then getting dumped out here in this swamp while the ship that brought you here went up in a giant conflagration. How terrified they must have been." For my part, I think finding the Clotilda would be a fitting capstone for both Mobile's slaving history and the war that finally ended the practice. Mobile was a big port, even in the 1800s, with a big slave trade. A historical marker on a downtown street marks the site of the old slave market. And just a few miles away, on the east side of the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, lies the site of the Battle of Blakeley, the last battle of the Civil War, fought five years after the Clotilda was burned. It is easy, standing in the wintertime gloom of these Alabama swamps, to imagine that old ghosts haunt these bayous. Maybe this could help put some of them to rest. "I can't help but think this would be a stunning find. Mauvila and the Clotilda are the crown jewels of Alabama archaeology. In maritime history, this is major. This is an internationally significant discovery, if it is the Clotilda," said Sledge, the Mobile historian. "My main concerns are protecting the wreck from people picking over it. The fact that it is already exposed like that clearly shows it is getting a lot of wear and tear. And, of course, proving that it is actually the right ship. If it is, it will be a beautiful thing to behold. This whole thing is pretty, pretty amazing." Ben Raines specializes in investigations and natural wonders. You can follow him or book tours with him via Facebook, Twitter at BenHRaines, and on Instagram. You can reach him via email at braines@al.com. You can watch Ben's most recent documentary, The Underwater Forest, here on Youtube. Tabitha Isner has never run for elected office before. She's a 36-year-old ordained minister whose spent most of her career in policy work, focusing on early childhood education. But after learning the ropes of preparing for an election, Isner now says the timing seems perfect to take a shot at Congress. "If not me, then who?" Isner said Saturday, before delivering a speech to conclude the South Alabama Women's March Anniversary Event in Mobile. "We've frankly had enough of marching," said Isner, who is one of two women running as Democrats for the U.S. House seat occupied by Republican Martha Roby. The throng of women marching in cities in Alabama and throughout the U.S. this past weekend underscored a rising interest among progressive women to get involved in politics this year. Alabama has been notable in this movement, as Democratic women have felt encouraged to run in states or districts considered Republican after Democrat Doug Jones won the Dec. 12 special Senate election over Roy Moore. But some political observers and GOP strategists believe the women may be getting up false hopes. In deep red Alabama, the odds are still stacked against Democrats: The GOP holds six of seven congressional seats, all statewide executive offices and supermajority status in the Legislature. "There is a move toward those who see the Doug Jones victory and that they should ride that wave into office," Angi Horn Stalnaker, a GOP political strategist based in Montgomery. "It's unfortunate because these liberal women are being used as sacrificial lambs by national liberals who do not respect or understand women in Alabama." 'Build the bench' Female candidates - many unfamiliar to the electorate, at least for now -- are expected to emerge at all levels of government leading to the June 5 party primaries. This follows a trend of first-time female candidates pursing office one year after tens of thousands of women descended on Washington, D.C., upset by the inauguration of President Donald Trump. A Time Magazine article, last week, highlighted some eye-popping statistics by utilizing data from the Center for American Women and Politics (CAWP) at Rutgers University. The magazine reported that at least 79 women are exploring runs for governor in 2018 - including Alabama - potentially doubling the number of female candidates in 1994. More startling was the number of Democratic women likely challenging incumbents in the U.S. House, up nearly 350 percent from 41 in 2016. "Women not only have an innate ability to not only work together, but they have the ability to see the issues as they affect people," said state Rep. Barbara Drummond, D-Mobile, who was the only elected official to speak at the Mobile march. "Women are getting empowered because they are saying 'enough is enough. I have a brain and I have an ability and I can make the community better.' It's why you are seeing more becoming involved." Training is under way in Alabama to get more progressive women involved. The group, Emerge Alabama, was formed last year for that very purpose. This year's goal is to train 26 women during a six-month intensive program. "Most women have never run before," said Stacie Propst, executive director of Emerge Alabama, based in Birmingham but with local chapters spread statewide. "Most women have never helped anyone to run. We do everything and cover all the bases for them to run." Isner and Propst participated in training last year, but they had to do it elsewhere. At the time, Alabama had not yet started its own Emerge chapter. The Alabama group formed last fall, and Propst was named its director. Alabama is the 20th state to join Emerge's American network. The group's goal is straightforward: Train Democratic women to run for political office, and provide them the tools to win. Overall in 2017, 152 of the 207 Emerge alumnae that appeared on a general election ballot won their races - a 73 percent success rate. Propst said the Alabama division is hopeful to add to the successes. At present, nine women in Alabama are running for Congress or statewide executive office - five Republicans and four Democrats. Three are incumbents: Republican Gov. Kay Ivey, Democratic U.S. Rep. Terri Sewell and Roby. 'Ground breaking' Stalnaker, the Republican strategist, said Alabama - more than other states in the U.S., including those that shade blue - "is ahead of the curve in electing women to office." She cited Ivey and Alabama State Supreme Court Chief Justice Lyn Stuart, both Republicans, as examples. Democrat Sue Bell Cobb, who is running for governor this year, once served as chief justice. Ivey was more recently lieutenant governor, and other women have held higher office before. "We have a long history of electing women," said Stalnaker. "The difference here is that this women's march doesn't want women in office, the want liberal women in office. They tend to ignore the successes of conservative women." Indeed, the women's march in Mobile on Saturday was heavily Democratic though its organizers billed it as non-partisan. Most of the women and men attending expressed displeasure toward Trump or lamented over the lack of women serving in higher office. "Any movement that claims to be for women should champion the successes of women who have paved the way for women who are in office," said Stalnaker. "Women being on the ballot in Alabama is not ground-breaking. We have long since elected strong women to office." Propst, though, believes Alabama has a long way to go. She said the state Legislature is overwhelmingly white and male. "That does not represent our adult voter population," Propst said. "If we start to gather our power collectively, then women are 52 percent of adults in Alabama. White men ... they are a minority." Propst and others say the women in Alabama are emboldened over Jones's victory during the Dec. 12 special Senate election. It was the first time a Democrat had won a statewide election in Alabama in a decade, and women are taking credit. "Women got him elected," Propst said. Exit polling show that women backed Jones over Moore by a 57-41 percent margin, fueled by the 98 percent support he got from black women. White women, conversely, backed Moore by 63-34 percent. William Stewart, a professor emeritus of political science at the University of Alabama and a longtime observer of state politics, said he believes the large number of women who rejected Moore's candidacy had more to do with the allegations against the candidate than anything else. Moore was accused in November of inappropriate sexual behavior with teenage girls decades ago when he was a 31-year-old attorney in Gadsden. "Many religiously conservative women still voted for Moore," said Stewart. "Alabama tends to go its own way. Thus, I don't believe Alabama women's behavior at the polls in recent months was an integral part of the national #MeToo movement." 'Picking off races' How the women fare in this year's elections remains to be seen, of course. Isner and Audri Scott Williams are the only two Democrats registered to run so far. Deadline to file is Feb. 9. But no matter who might win the primary, Roby or the Republican nominee will be considered the favorite in the general election. Roby has over $400,000 campaign cash on hand, while Isner and Williams are just getting started. Isner could be banking on the GOP electorate to split during the primary. Roby will be challenged by several well-known names such as state Rep. Barry Moore and Rich Hobson, who ran Roy Moore's Senate campaign. "I think we are facing a new day where people are beginning to realize the Republican Party isn't what it used to be," Isner said. Alabama's 2nd Congressional District has shaded blue before. Before Roby won the seat in 2010, the 2nd District was held briefly by a Democrat: Bobby Bright was the district's congressman from 2009-2011. Roby won a tighter-than-expected race for re-election in 2016 against Democrat Nathan Mathis after she openly criticized Trump following a Access Hollywood video surfaced showing Trump bragging about inappropriately touching women. But even if the Democratic women can't give GOP primary winner tough race, their mere presence on the ballot could add to the number so-called safe Republicans needing to raise money for their own races. Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, said the effect could tighten the flexibility of donors to spread campaign cash into races outside of the conservative South. Fierce battles are expected in swing states ahead of a midterm general election that will determine majority status in Congress. "Even if (a safe Alabama incumbent) is not significantly challenged, there might be someone in Pennsylvania who might not get as much money," said Jillson. "And the more incumbent Republicans who Democrats challenge, the better chance they stand in picking off a few in the swing districts." resigned his position today, according to a resignation letter posted on Facebook. In the letter, Jarod Hunter expressed remorse and asked for forgiveness for his actions. "There are no words to express how remorseful I am about my actions. I am sincerely sorry, and the choice I made to drive while intoxicated is inexcusable," Hunter said in the letter. Lt. Teena Richardson said Tuscaloosa Police on Sunday responded to a head-on collision involving two people suffering minor injuries in the 1300 block of Hackberry Lane. Officers "smelled a moderate odor of an alcoholic beverage" on one of the drivers, according to Richardson. "Upon further investigation, officer observed other behaviors indicative of a person driving impaired. Officers administer standardize field sobriety test in which the driver, Jared Hunter performed poorly. Hunter was transported to Tuscaloosa County Jail." At the jail, Hunter's blood-alcohol content was found to be .16 percent, the statement continued. The legal limit in Alabama is .08. According to the jail database, Hunter was held on a $1,000 secured bond. The database did not list him as a current inmate Monday afternoon. Hunter said everyone involved in the accident is safe, but said his actions risked his own life and the life of others. "There is no way to justify drunk driving as there were infinite ways to put people's lives in danger when you choose to get behind the wheel while intoxicated," he said. "I am heartbroken to have disappointed so many, but in order to promote ethical behavior, this is the action that must be taken," he said after announcing his resignation in the letter. The SGA Office of the Attorney General accepted his resignation. The resignation was effective at 2:30 p.m., according to a statement from Attorney General Lance Bryant McCaskey. Executive Vice President Casey Nelson will take the Presidential Oath and assume the Office of the President "as soon as possible," according to McCaskey's statement. "This choice is not who I am and is not a reflection of the man I was raised to be. Again, I am truly sorry for what I have done. The guilt I feel is insurmountable, and I will take every step necessary to rectify my wrong doings," Hunter said. "I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me for what I have done despite how I have let you down." Hunter made history last year when he become the first African-American candidate to gain the backing of the Machine, a coalition of fraternities and sororities that has influence on campus elections. Hunter was the third African-American elected to the post. More than 10 million people in central Democratic Republic of Congos Kasai region will need aid in 2018, NGOs warn, in the largest funding appeal in countrys history. Kasai, Democratic Republic of Congo Almost $1.7bn thats how much aid workers in the Democratic Republic of Congo are appealing for to help 10.5 million people in distress in 2018. It is the largest funding appeal in the history of the country. Were talking about a complex humanitarian situation brought about by decades of conflict, compounded by new rebellions and political tensions after the countrys electoral commission failed to organise a presidential poll for two years after the term of President Joseph Kabila ended in 2016. The statistics are staggering and the picture grim. Last year was difficult for millions of Congolese they dealt with violence, disease, malnutrition and other losses to their already meagre livelihoods. It was a period that the country topped the world with the number of newly internally displaced people in a single year 1.7 million most of them from Grand Kasai region. Its a vast area divided into five provinces, rich in diamonds and although it has always been plagued by territorial and political tensions over competing mineral interests, locals had never experienced the kind of violence that started in August 2016. Both the army and local militia have been accused of rights abuses [Catherine Wambua/Al Jazeera] Hundreds of thousands fled their homes many sought refuge in the thick of the forest, while others ran into neighbouring Angola. People are now coming back to their homes. Some are sick, starving and carry horrific tales. Thats what took us to Kasai after months of trying and failing to get government access. When we visited a UNICEF clinic in Tshikashi on the outskirts of Kasai Centrals capital Kananga we met 30-year-old Mubaka Tshimbula and her two-year-old son Kabongo Tumba. They had just arrived at the treatment centre having been referred from another hospital. Both were clearly frail and unwell. Mubaka told us she fled from her village with her four children and spent two months in hiding with little to eat or drink. The Kamuina Nsapu rebellion in Kasai escalated when a traditional chief, critical of Kabila, was killed by security forces. His death precipitated a conflict with devastating consequences. The Catholic Church estimates that more than 3,000 people have been killed since. The United Nations discovered dozens of mass graves. The rebels, government forces and a state-linked militia called Bana Mura, which shares a name with the hill in the east where presidential guards train, are all accused of human rights abuses. As we moved further away from the capital to more remote villages, we came across burned government buildings. In Tshimbulu, we were shown a destroyed house that belonged to a local police commander who was burned alive inside by armed men believed to be Kamuina Nsapu fighters. It is in some of these villages where dozens of mass graves have been found. The UN investigators who travelled to Bukonde in March 2017, to investigate mass killings, were beheaded. Investigations into what exactly happened are still ongoing but both the military and Kamuina Nsapu have traded accusations. Our visit to the countryside was highly restricted. We were accompanied by military minders and they were hesitant to allow us to film around mass graves. However, everyone with whom we managed to have a conversation painted the same picture extreme violence meted out on them by both the militia group and government forces and of some of their loved ones buried in those graves. Aid workers in the Kasai region said funding for efforts were low [Catherine Wambua] [Al Jazeera] In one of the villages we found, people were getting food aid from World Vision. Aid workers said funding is low. In 2017, only half of the $812m appealed for was received. A fragile peace process is now in place and many people are praying for the best they are also realistically preparing for whatever eventuality. One woman a trader whose husband was killed by security forces and her son by militia fighters told us that she has never in all her life in Kasai seen the kind of violence she has witnessed. I hope you wont have to come back to tell this same story, she said at the end of our interview. World Economic Forum provides a chance for Zimbabwes new leader to re-engage with international investors. Harare, Zimbabwe A lot of attention will focus on US President Donald Trump at the World Economic Forum under way in Davos. But from Africa, all eyes are on Zimbabwes new President Emmerson Mnangagwa. He deposed longtime ruler Robert Mugabe, who was the worlds oldest leader until the military intervened in November last year. Mnangagwa says hes in Switzerland to hear from world leaders and potential investors about what they want Zimbabwe to do to convince them the country is ready to re-engage with the international community. Back in Zimbabwe, there are mixed feelings about Mnangagwas first trip abroad. Hope and optimism After nearly 20 years of economic stagnation, company closures and job losses, Zimbabwe is now one of the worlds worst-performing economies. There is a shortage of foreign currency, rising food prices, and high unemployment. We went to Glenview a low-income neighbourhood in Harare. Many say they used to have jobs in factories before the stagnant economy shut those down. They try to eke out a living making furniture. Carpenter Brighton Dingembira wants the international community to end Zimbabwes international isolation. Robert Mugabe has gone. They should give Mnangagwa a chance, he says. There is no way we can survive without the relationship with the international community. Scepticism But Mnangagwa has baggage. He stood by Mugabes side during the seizure of land from white farmers, alleged human rights abuses, and the collapse of a once-vibrant economy. {articleGUID} He is known as the Crocodile. Critics say he is shrewd and calculating. An opposition supporter said, Its still the same ruling Zanu-PF party. The driver has changed, but its still the same bus. Mnangagwa is trying to cleanse his image both at home and abroad. But sceptics and investors want guarantees their investments will be safe. Conditions some are insisting on include compensating white farmers whose land was seized during the land reform programme, and the holding of internationally acceptable elections. Mugabe ruins The state-owned railway company is one example of how dire Zimbabwes economy is. The trains are old and some of the infrastructure is dilapidated. Over the years, many workers have been laid off. {articleGUID} After 37 years of Mugabes rule, public hospitals have run out of basic drugs. Sometimes there is no running water. Several public schools lack resources to provide a proper education. Economists predict it could take at least three years before there are real signs Zimbabwes economy is on the mend. Zimbabweans know, for now at least, Mnangagwa has the international good will. If the new president manages to charm world leaders in Davos this week not only could he bring much-needed investment he might be able to rebrand himself as the total opposite of Mugabe, who is blamed for ruining what was once called the land of milk and honey. Elections are in a few months. Opposition parties are currently in disarray. If Mnangagwa returns from Davos with realistic timeframes for economic recovery, some analysts say it could improve his chances in those polls. Sexual abuse survivors say Pope Francis failed them on his latest visit to Chile, as he defended a bishop accused of paedophilia. Pope Francis has returned to Rome after a trip to South America that he may well wish he never made. The pope began his trip to Chile by asking for forgiveness for clerical sex abuses, saying he felt pain and shame for the damage done to victims. But when he followed up by allowing a bishop accused of covering up these abuses to attend all of his masses, consternation was accompanied by troubling questions about the popes sincerity . And that was just the beginning. Asked about the controversial Bishop of Osorno, he said: The day they bring me proof against Bishop [Juan] Barros, Ill speak up. There is not one shred of proof against him. Its all slander. Is that clear? His words, shortly before leaving for Peru, sparked outrage in and out of Chile. Should we have taken a selfie or a photo when Barros watched us being abused by Fernando Karadima? said Juan Carlos Cruz, a victim of one of Chiles most notorious paedophile priests. The popes remark even drew unprecedented criticism from Bostons Archbishop Cardinal Sean OMalley, the Catholic leaders adviser on clerical sex abuse. It is understandable that Pope Francis statements were a source of great pain for survivors of sexual abuse by clergy or any other perpetrator. Words that convey the message if you cannot prove your claims then you will not be believed abandon those who have suffered reprehensible criminal violations of their human dignity and relegate survivors to discredited exile, OMalley said in a statement published Saturday . Sharply-worded editorials in newspapers such as the Boston Globe and New York Times followed. Finally, speaking to journalists on his flight back to Rome on Monday, Pope Francis apologised for using the word proof rather than evidence, and said he had not wanted to offend survivors of clerical abuses. But he continued to defend Bishop Barros, saying he believes he is innocent. His words have only added more fuel to the controversy. Will he continue treating victims whom the Chilean courts and the Vatican have deemed truthful as slanderous? What incentive will abuse victims have to come forward if in the end, to the pope, they will just be liars? said Juan Carlos Claret, who represents parishoners demanding Bishop Barros resignation. Pope Francis latest trip to Latin America: 1. Didnt meet with Fujimori victims who asked him for meeting; 2. Failed to speak up on abuses by Maduro regime in Venezuela; 3. Defended a Chilean bishop accused of covering up pedophilia. Impressive! pic.twitter.com/Sq877UWSIW Jose Miguel Vivanco (@JMVivancoHRW) January 22, 2018 Jose Miguel Vivanco, director of Human Rights Watchs Americas division, added his voice to the growing list of critics. In a widely shared tweet, he wrote: Pope Francis latest trip to Latin America: 1. Didnt meet with Fujimori victims who asked him for meeting; 2. Failed to speak up on abuses by Maduro regime in Venezuela; 3. Defended a Chilean bishop accused of covering up pedophilia. Impressive! This is the same pope who in the early days of his papacy charmed much of the world and even made the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. A demonstrator holds up a rosary in front of the Cathedral of Santiago during a protest against the popes visit to Chile [File: Cristobal Saavedra Vogel/Reuters] Millions who had lost trust in the Catholic Church applauded his promises to reform a monarchical and outdated institution stained by scandals, from sex abuse to corruption. But now as Pope Francis enters his fifth year at the Vatican, there are nagging doubts. His failure to speak out forcefully against the persecution of the Rohingya when he went to Myanmar late last year raised eyebrows. The pope is still protecting the institution instead of the victims. Peter Saunders, British sexual abuse survivor And two sex abuse survivors, who had been invited to join the Vaticans much publicised advisory board on ways to prevent abuse against minors, have resigned. The pope is still protecting the institution instead of the victims, says Peter Saunders, a British abuse survivor who says he was suspended from the commission for his outspoken views. He resigned last month. The website bishopaccountability.org has now accused the pope of turning back the clock to the darkest days of this crisis. And the backlash continues. Latin America is still the Catholic Churchs main reservoir of faithful, although it is less than half as full as it once was 30 years ago. The Argentine-born pope had hoped this trip might help restore faith and unity in the western worlds oldest but increasingly discredited institution. But despite a moving visit to a womens prison and meetings with young people where his charisma shone, it seems to have backfired. As one Chilean newspaper headline summed it up: The tendency now among Catholics is to believe, but no longer belong. Mohamed Ben Sassi has been restoring ancient books for 40 years. He is now believed to be the last one in the Medina of Tunisias capital, Tunis. Tunis, Tunisia Mohamed Ben Sassi gingerly lifts the gold-trimmed leather cover and the book cracks open down the middle, pulled down by the weight of hundreds of beige pages inside. They are discoloured and chipped along the edges, but the black, Arabic script printed on each page is clear. Two hundred and fifty years, Ben Sassi says, as he turns the sheets over, one at a time. It took him nearly three months of meticulous work to restore this ancient Quran, the Islamic holy book. Its like a rebirth, says Ben Sassi, a bookbinder in the Old City of Tunis. I take this book and I [work] carefully, until the end. Im giving it a second life. Ben Sassi took nearly three months to restore this ancient Quran [Jillian Kestler-DAmours/Al Jazeera] Ben Sassi is dressed in a white lab coat in his two-room workshop at the end of Rue de lAgha, a narrow, cobblestoned street in the Medina of the Tunisian capital. Books are stacked high all around him, filling the space between work desks, book presses and other specialised equipment, while multicolour scraps of leather sit precariously atop a bookshelf. The grey-haired 62-year-old pulls out small rolls of 22-karat gold paper and a large collection of metal stamps and rollers he uses to affix letters, lines and other symbols on to book covers. At least four other Tunisian bookbinders toiled over tomes in the Medina of Tunis several decades ago, he recalls. But today, he says, he is the last one left. Its not a good feeling, he says, lamenting the extinction of his beloved profession. Decades of work An area that dates back to 698 CE, the Medina is home to about 700 historic monuments, including palaces, mosques and squares, according to UNESCO. This is where Ben Sassi has been binding books of all kinds since 1974. Ben Sassi uses stamps to adorn the books with gold lettering [Jillian Kestler-DAmours/Al Jazeera] He graduated from a specialised high school programme for bookbinding in Tunis and completed apprenticeships in France and Greece, before joining the National Library of Tunisia. He worked half days at the library, until his retirement in 2015, and spent the rest of his time in his workshop. Im not one of those people who lives in cafes. I didnt know how to play cards, he tells Al Jazeera with a laugh. My passion is my work. In the past, Ben Sassi would restore manuscripts by filling in each ripped point individually. He now uses what is known as Japan paper, a natural, hand-made parchment composed of long fibres and affixed to the front and back of pages in need of repair. He also heats pieces of metal to stamp lines onto the book covers [Jillian Kestler-DAmours/Al Jazeera] Ben Sassi explains that Japan paper maintains the page and really replaces it. Once glued on, the paper is then rubbed onto the page and dyed to match its colour. He chooses the type and colour of each leather covering based on the style most common at the time the book was originally published. Most of his money is made by binding textbooks used by university faculties law, engineering, and others. A time-consuming process, bookbinding requires a lot of patience, he says. Passing down skills Today, Ben Sassi is hoping to pass his skills down to a new generation. He is currently teaching the craft to three young people in partnership with Dar El-Harka, a co-working space in the Medina. Last year, he taught four others. His 24-year-old son helps out in the workshop, too. Ben Sassi says he also wants to organise an exposition of restored manuscripts and bookbinding in Tunis to bring the art to a wider audience. Ben Sassi has been binding and restoring books since 1974 [Jillian Kestler-DAmours/Al Jazeera] Despite the advent of technology, including iPads and tablets to read on, he is convinced there is still a need for bookbinding and restoration. The book is still surviving, even with computers, he says. Interest in the trade is diminishing a bit, but there are still people who want to do bookbinding, who want to work with books, he continues. When you read a book and you like it, you need to put a new suit [on it] Its something that lasts for life. Assam state police chief says he will take action against those found guilty after victims say they were waterboarded. Guwahati, India On the night of January 9, a police team headed by officer Ranjit Hazarika raided the home of one Hasen Ali of No 2 Atakata village in Mangaldoi district of the State of Assam in Indias northeast. Suspecting him of possessing illegal arms, the police barged into his home at midnight and searched for the weapons but couldnt find any. Hasen, who had been a migrant worker in the southern state of Karnataka, had recently come back home with his wife and three children, including an infant. The 40-year-old was the sole breadwinner for the family. {articleGUID} Hasens wife Jamiran Nessa told Al Jazeera that her husband was dragged out of the home and at least four policemen pinned him down in the courtyard and kicked him indiscriminately. Police covered his face with a cloth and poured cold water on his face. He vomited and fainted after a while, Nessa, 35, said. Police brought him to Mangaldoi Civil Hospital around 12km from his home, where a doctor declared him brought dead. Next morning when news of Hasens death spread, a large number of villagers gathered to protest against police atrocities and demand justice. At least one person died when police opened fire on the agitated crowd of about 5,000 people. Torture technique Ainuddin Ahmed, a student activist from Darrang district, claims that waterboarding is a widely practised torture technique used by the Assam police as part of their notorious third degree, or torture practices, in police custody to extract information from detainees. Police covered his face with a cloth and poured cold water on his face. He vomited and fainted within a while Jamiran Nessa Ainuddins organisation, the All Assam Minority Students Union (AAMSU), works for the victims of police atrocities and persecution of minorities. Tens of thousands of genuine Indian Muslims of Assam have been harassed on the pretext of being illegal immigrant from Bangladesh, and more than 2,000 of them are put up in detention camps across the state, Ainuddin, general secretary of AAMSU, said. Ainuddin Ahmed campaigns against police atrocities [Photo courtesy: AAMSU] Aman Wadud, a lawyer based in the state capital Guwahati who provides pro-bono legal aid to the victims of state persecution and targeted violence, says police actions against Muslims are often harsh. Police have always been uncharitable towards Muslims of Assam; it has a different and very harsh parameter to deal with Muslims. Whenever Muslims protest for their rights, the police forces hardly hesitate to open firing, he told Al Jazeera. Guilty will be punished Assam police chief announced that those guilty of Hasens death would be punished. He has died in police custody, already a case has been registered, the person (police officer) has been arrested and sent to judicial custody, and the investigation is on, Mukesh Sahay, the director general of police in Assam, told Al Jazeera. The investigation will find out what the cause of death was. If his guilt is established he will be punished as per law. {articleGUID} Sahay admitted there was a need for training and sensitisation of the police force and strict enforcement of law. If anybody violates the law he will be punished under the same law, simple. Our principle is zero tolerance, [if] anybody violates, take action, he said. But security forces in the state have not always followed the rule book. Two days after the custodial death of Hasen, a journalist from a local satellite television channel, Swarupjyoti Chetia, was picked up by security forces in a midnight raid at his residence in the Dibrugarh district of Assam. Chetia was accused of passing crucial information about an air force station and other government installations in the area to the banned rebel outfit United Liberation Front of Assam (ULFA). The news channel alleged that Chetia was subjected to torture during detention, including pouring cold water on his body in the middle of the winter night. Security forces, however, released him next day owing to huge protest and road blockade by the villagers against the arbitrary detention and torture. My life has been destroyed Police officer Hazarika has been accused of using waterboarding before to get confession from detainees. Last September Hazarika picked up Ambas Ali of Borbari Sonowa village from a tea-stall under the Dhula police station in Darrang district. If Mukesh anybody violates, take action] Ambas, who lost his land to river erosion, now supports his family by purchasing goats and cattle from nearby villages and selling them in the local market. He says the police first took him to the police station and then to another location where they planted a pistol under his belt before he was photographed. Ambas says he was then brought back to the police station where he was blindfolded, pinned down and held tightly by several policemen, some of them sat on his chest and belly. They then placed a cloth on his face and poured water over it. Hardly half a minute to one minute, I could survive but then lost my senses. When I regained my senses, they did the same thing again and asked me to confess that the pistol was mine, Ambas told Al Jazeera. I cant explain what I suffered. I thought, I wouldnt survive. My life has been destroyed.. Huge public outcry waterboarding, or simulated drowning, only became widely known after it was revealed that the CIA had been subjecting suspects to it in the wake of 9/11. However, the torture technique to extract information from detainees dates back hundreds of years. In modern times, there was a huge public outcry in the US after it came to light that US soldiers were using water for a form of torture infamously known as the water cure, used against Filipinos in the Philippine-American War (1899-1902). And in the late 1950s, French military used waterboarding against the Algerians suspected to be members of FLN (National Liberation Front). Most recently, the CIA employed waterboarding as one of their Enhanced Interrogation Techniques in Guantanamo Bay prison camp to extract information from detainees. According to a recent study published by the National Law University, Delhi, 82.6 percent prisoners were tortured in police custody However, a US Senate Intelligence Committee report highlighted the ineffectiveness of torture as a tool of interrogation. Between 1994 and 2008, India recorded 16,836 custodial deaths or more than 1,203 persons per year but successive governments have been denying torture as a cause of custodial death. According to a recent study published by the National Law University, Delhi, 82.6 percent of prisoners were tortured in police custody. The spot where Hasen Ali died due to torture [Photo courtesy: AAMSU] The National Human Rights Commissions annual report 2013-14 says that it had received indications of 1,719 cases of custodial death during the review period. Assam police chief Sahay claims that in recent times the higher number of custodial deaths is due to some other technical causes like mob violence and lynching, not police torture. However, studies tell a different story; a report released by Human Rights Watch said that more than 590 detainees died in police custody between 2010 and 2015 in India. And no police officers were convicted during that period. The report documented individual cases of custodial torture, death and impunity, including the practice of waterboarding. UN Convention against Torture According to Kirity Roy of Banglar Manabadhikar Suraksha Mancha (MASUM), an organisation working against torture and extra-judicial killing, India has signed but not yet ratified the 1997 UN Convention against Torture. The South Asian nation is one of only nine countries worldwide that have yet to ratify the treaty and enact a law against torture. Roy has faced arrest for working against torture and atrocities meted out by the armed forces in Assam. He said that waterboarding is just one of several torture techniques used by police in the northeastern state. The draft Torture Bill has many strong features the presumption of torture when there is injury while in custody, recognising both physical and psychological torture, and deterrent punishment Harsh Mandar, human rights activist In 2010, the then government introduced the Prevention of Torture Bill, which grossly overlooked torture techniques such as waterboarding. Article 1 of the UN Convention defines torture as an act of severe pain or suffering, whether physical or mental but the Indian bill defined torture as grievous hurt or danger to life, limb or health. It declined to recognise some of the brutal and inhuman torture techniques, which do not leave physical marks and therefore were considered to not be a punishable crime. {articleGUID} Torture techniques, such as waterboarding and sleep deprivation, are known as clean torture, as they dont leave physical marks but are brutal and inhumane. Last year, the Supreme Court described torture as an instrument of human degradation used by the state. In October, the Law Commission of India, the highest recommendatory body on law prepared the draft Prevention of Torture Bill, 2017, widening the definition of torture to cover clean torture, including waterboarding, and making provisions for stringent punishment including life in prison, compensation, and burden of proof on the accused in cases of custodial death. Activists and academics welcomed the draft bill as progressive. The draft Torture Bill has many strong features the presumption of torture when there is injury while in custody, recognising both physical and psychological torture, and deterrent punishment, Harsh Mander, author and special monitor to the National Human Rights Commission, said. We would still need to build systems to be able to protect a victim as he seeks justice against an all-powerful official system. Sanjay Barbora, who heads the school of Social Sciences and Humanity at Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Guwahati, also welcomed the new Prevention of Torture Bill but shared his concerns about laws such as Armed Forces Special Power Act (AFSPA), which grant immunity to security forces. In the last six decades, the culture of impunity enjoyed by the armed forces has infected the state police forces as well, who normally dont have protection under AFSPA, said Sanjoy Hazarika, director of the Common Wealth Human Rights Initiative. Growing US-Kurdish ties and a possible change in Turkeys position on Assad may be behind Moscows tacit support. Turkey launched its air and ground operation against Kurdish fighters in the Syrian enclave of Afrin on Saturday, with Moscow turning a blind eye on the military offensive. Russian forces were withdrawn from the area just before the operation began and Turkish jets were allowed to use the Afrin airspace, controlled by the Syrian government and Russia. The development comes at a time when relations between Turkey and Russia have been gradually getting closer in the context of the Syria conflict, whereas tensions have been rising between Ankara and Washington, which backs the Kurdish fighters in northern Syria. Moscow has traditionally been a staunch supporter of the Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD) and its armed Peoples Protection Units (YPG) that have come to control large swaths of northern Syria, including Afrin. The YPG was at the forefront of the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group, which had captured large parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq in 2014. The PYD has a political representation office in the Russian capital since 2016 and received a high level of Russian political support in the international arena in the past. Russian observers in and around Afrin had been cooperating with the YPG forces to prevent conflicts among different armed groups until the Turkish incursion started. Russians have been in contact with PYD officials over the Syria issue, including ministerial level discussions on post-crisis Syria. As recently as December, a Russian general and YPG officials met in the government-held eastern city of Deir Az Zor in talks that, according to Moscow, evaluated the steps to be taken after the removal of ISIL from the region. However, other reports suggested that military cooperation in certain regions was also discussed in those talks, which angered Ankara. {articleGUID} Turkey considers the PYD and YPG terrorist groups with ties to the banned Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has waged a decades-long armed rebellion in Turkey, first for independence, then more autonomy and finally to achieve, what they call, a fully democratic Turkey. More than 40,000 people in Turkey have been killed since the 1980s when the PKK launched its rebellion in the southeastern part of the country. The PKK is blacklisted as a terrorist organisation by the US and the EU, but not by Russia. But none of the three considers PYD and YPG as terrorist groups. Russia has betrayed us The PYD is furious at Russia for allowing the Afrin offensive. In a statement published on its website on Saturday, the PYD openly blamed Russia for the operation. We know that, without the permission of global forces and mainly Russia, whose troops are located in Afrin, Turkey cannot attack civilians using Afrin airspace, the statement said. Therefore, we hold Russia as responsible as Turkey and stress that Russia is the crime partner of Turkey in massacring the civilians in the region. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a US-backed umbrella group of fighters led by the YPG that was formed to fight ISIL, echoed the PYDs reaction by calling Russias act immoral and a betrayal. {articleGUID} We agreed with Russia to observe Afrin on the peaceful principles, but it now allows Turkish warplanes to attack Afrin. It means Russia has betrayed us, SDF spokesman Keno Gabriel said on Monday. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has blamed the US of trying to take control of the whole of Syrian-Turkish and Iraqi-Turkish borders by creating alternative authorities in Syria, pointing fingers at the SDF. Washington carries out open, and discreet delivery of arms to Syria for transfer to those groups that cooperate with them, especially to the SDF, he said on Monday. On the same day, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that Turkey had an agreement with Russia regarding its military operation that would be extended to Manbij, another Kurdish-held town. According to Mensur Akgun, a Turkish international relations professor, Russias move was understandable in light of Turkeys firm stance on the PYD and YPG, and Moscows annoyance with the groups close cooperation with the US. They are getting great support from the US. Washington is using the group, particularly in the east of the Euphrates [river], as a balancing force against the other powers there. They are using the group in order to increase the US presence and activities in this region, he told Al Jazeera. I think this has become obvious with the announcement of the new border force planned to be set up there. Moscow, in my opinion, showed green light to Turkeys operation to decrease the US influence in the region. Sergei Markov, a political analyst and a former MP from President Vladimir Putins United Russia Party, believes it was Moscows way of increasing tensions between Washington and Ankara. Russia does not publicly support such a military operation, but it opened the gate for this operation because it basically starts a proxy war between Turkey and the US [through YPG], he told Al Jazeera. He added that if the US, Kurds and Turkey fight each other, that would be regarded as a very positive trend by the Syrian government, which is backed by Russia and opposes all of those sides. Reports on new force anger Ankara The announcement by the Turkish government over the launch of the Afrin operation was prompted by reports, quoting US military officials, which said that Washington planned to create a new 30,000-strong border army predominantly made up of YPG members. US Secretary of State Rex Tillersons denial that his country had any such plans was not enough to convince Ankara to back down on the military operation. {articleGUID} Erdogan had said that the operation in Afrin would be followed by a push into the northern town of Manbij, which US-backed Kurdish forces had captured from ISIL in 2016. Ahmet Berat Conkar, a ruling party MP and head of the Turkish delegation to the NATO parliamentary assembly, said that Ankaras cooperation with Russia in the region was far more functional than Ankaras NATO ally. Russia understands the sensitivities of Turkey, whereas Washington supports and delivers weapons to the terrorist group PYD/YPG, he told Al Jazeera. Russia respects Turkeys request not to have this group at the negotiation table in the Astana process. Russia and Iran, which support Syrian President Bashar al-Assads regime, and Turkey, which backs the moderate opposition, have been in close cooperation through the so-called Astana talks that aim at finding a solution to the Syrian conflict. Various so-called de-escalation zones were agreed among the three guarantor powers in Syria as a result of multiple rounds of talks in the Kazakh capital. The PYD is not a party to the talks mainly due to opposition from Turkey. The SDF and YPG played a prominent role in the defeat of ISIL [File: Goran Tomasevic/Reuters] Washington decided to arm SDF fighters in May 2017, despite Turkeys objections and a direct appeal from Erdogan at a White House meeting later in the same month. They also have been training thousands of SDF fighters in northeastern Syria. The US arms shipments began even before the launch of months-long offensive to remove ISIL from the Syrian city of Raqqa. The SDF and YPG played a prominent role in the eventual defeat of the group later in 2017. Tensions between the US and Turkey remain high, despite Trump saying last November that Washington would no longer supply weapons to the YPG. Professor Akgun told Al Jazeera that Moscow wanted to get Assad included in a resolution to the Syrian conflict, at least in the transitional period after the war and allowing the Afrin operation might influence Turkey to change its stance on the issue. Letting Turkey carry out the Afrin operation is a way to convince Ankara to be perhaps more flexible in certain issues regarding Syria in the course of Astana talks, such as Assads situation in a transitional government in Syria, he said. Fuad Shahbazov, an independent expert on Russia and Middle East affairs, said that Turkish side seemed to have made certain promises to Russia over Assad in order to get the green light for the offensive. I dont think that Turkey will radically change its strict position over Assad remaining not in power, he told Al Jazeera. The Turkish side could have made promises such as refraining from sharp criticism of the Assad regime or unofficially launching dialogue with the Syrian president. Follow Umut Uras on Twitter @Um_Uras and Tamila Varshalomidze @tamila87v After relentless Saudi-led air raids near their home in northwest Yemen, the Ruzaiq family packed up their belongings and fled to the relative safety of Hudaida port on the Red Sea. But with no money or relatives to shelter them, the 18-member family joined a growing number of displaced Yemenis living on or next to the rubbish dump of the Houthi-controlled city. Despite the health risks, the dump has become a source of food for hundreds of impoverished Yemenis and given young men a chance to earn an income. We eat and drink the food that is thrown away, said Ayoub Mohammed Ruzaiq, 11. We collect fish, meat, potatoes, onions and flour to make our own food. The United Nations estimates more than two million people have been displaced by the war, which intensified in 2015 when an Arab coalition led by Saudi Arabia intervened to try to restore President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to power after Houthi rebels forced him into exile. The war has killed more than 10,000 people, crippled the economy, caused a cholera epidemic that has killed nearly 2,000 people and pushed the country to the verge of famine. The Saudi-led coalition denies accusations that it targets civilians or civilian property in its military operations. Riyadh sees the Houthis as a proxy militia linked to regional rival Iran. Both Iran and the Houthis deny any military cooperation. Family patriarch Mohammed Ruzaiq, 67, said Yemenis were not asking for any aid from outside, just a goodwill effort to end the war. All we want is for them to stop this war and this calamity and God Almighty will provide for us, he said. The richest one percent took 82 percent of the wealth generated in 2017, while the poorest half of humanity got nothing. For the past five years, I have carried Oxfams call to tackle global inequality to the rich and powerful people attending the World Economic Forum in Davos. I dont sing alone there any more. Im worried my message is almost mainstream, that I sound like Im part of the choir. I bet nearly every politician and industry leader I meet in Davos this week will talk the talk about the evils of inequality and be very eloquent and believable, too. I mean, how could they not? The evidence is overwhelming. Surely, no stable genius attending Davos could possibly try to deny, minimise or justify 2018 levels of global inequality? Now that would be a controversial sideshow! Oxfams report this year is as much about peoples stories as it is about inequalitys staggering statistics. These are the people around the world losing their lands and livelihoods as fast as ever. People forced to work for peanuts in ever-more exploitative and abusive jobs, like the women in US factory lines who have to wear nappies because arent allowed toilet breaks. Millions of children still denied schooling and poor people denied affordable healthcare. Stories of discrimination and exploitation, of activists and unions silenced, and of profits flowing as rivers of money into off-shore tax havens. All this and more to prop up a man-made system where another billionaire is created every other day because the top 1 percent are pocketing more than 80 percent of the wealth our world creates. The bottom half of humanity gets none of this new wealth at all. The unspoken contract between the elites and the 99 percent that unfettered market globalisation and liberalisation should benefit us all is broken. Todays economy is designed near-perfectly to reward wealth ahead of work. This is Oxfams story at Davos. And were not even seriously attacked any more for saying it. Its as if inequality apologists can barely be bothered because and this does worry me they dont feel their cosy system is threatened enough that they need to. So this year, more than ever, I am wondering who really holds the answers here. Are some of us waiting for science to come up with some new technology that will magically solve the problem, as I suspect many people are anxiously hoping for a discovery that will stop climate change? Are we waiting for the enfranchised masses to vote for change, for the next radical option presented to them? For a revolution? Or do we think that corporate and political leaders will finally be moved towards enlightened collective interest all of a sudden? Im afraid the answer to the last one is that, beyond some notable exceptions, there is no appeal for capitalist elites to be nice. Business ethics are either imposed by regulation or else they exist off-balance-sheet, maybe on a voluntary basis something that companies can pick up and pay lip service to when necessary. Instead, we need to look to the business trailblazers like those leading innovative models based upon equity worker-owned companies such as the multibillion-dollar Mondragon in Spain and Amul in India, for example. Or those willing to consider a visionary idea. We are putting the case to business leaders that they should not pay a penny in shareholder dividends and executive bonuses until all their workers are getting a living wage and their producers a fair price. We do not have the patience to wait or hope. We need to look to the law. And new laws must be pushed into existence by the collective power of people. We will only close the gap between men and womens pay by legislating it closed. At the speed were going now, it will take 217 years. Iceland has caught on. We need to throw the book at irresponsible corporate tax behaviour which alone costs poor countries $100bn a year. That book needs to hit the corporate lobbyists while were at it. We need to be less worried about disruptive new technologies, but more proactive in understanding and harnessing them properly. The utility of every invention depends on how it is owned and controlled for the public good. Law has the power to ensure that nobody should work on a level of pay that they cannot live a decent life. This means governments getting back into the driving seat. In days gone by, governments would value the masses because they needed them for their factories and armies, and so they would feed, educate and keep them healthy. Thats changed today. Then we were sold the idea that trade-fuelled growth would spread around the world, carried by democracy, on a rising tide that would lift up all boats. Thats failed, too. The unspoken contract between the elites and the 99 percent that unfettered market globalisation and liberalisation should benefit us all is broken. Globalisation has lifted many people out of the most abject poverty and we celebrate that. But it has been even more successful in boosting an elite few into superyachts stuffed with stupendous wealth, while dumping hundreds of millions of people onto the flotsam and jetsam at the bottom. We are beginning to be left to trust that those at the top will rescue those below. But the worst-case scenario is they wont. There will be no value in it. The masses will be left adrift to fend for themselves. Its up to us all to make sure that doesnt come to pass. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance. If our strategy failed and our political manoeuvres hit a dead-end, is it not the time we change direction? A month after the United States administrations announcement on the shift in policy on the status of Jerusalem, also described as the end of the US mediation charade, many Palestinians continue to wonder why the Palestinian Authority (PA) has not yet made a major declaration about shifting its own strategy on seeking statehood and justice for Palestinians. The Palestinian leaderships lack of vision for an alternative strategy is one reason it is insisting on continuing in the same direction. But more importantly, there is also a strong desire by those in power to maintain the status quo. This is because the status quo not only serves Israel as the occupying power, but it is also in the interest of a small privileged class of Palestinians who benefit from the current system of power and economic monopoly in the occupied territories. {articleGUID} The PA is securing political support among the population by offering access to resources for economic survival rather than encouraging programmes that serve the national interest. This class of privileged Palestinians benefit directly from the PAs redistribution of public resources along factional lines and constituent loyalties. This, in turn, helps the ruling elite preserve the status quo and maintain its dominance of political and economic assets. Hence, the PA and the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) is desperately trying to save the endless two-state negotiations. It refuses to recognise the fact that the two-state solution died even before US President Donald Trump issued his declaration recognising Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. The Israelis do not show any interest in any type of peace process. Israeli society in general does not even consider settlements in the Jordan Valley or major blocks such as Maale Adumim and Ariel, as territories they are willing to abandon for the sake of future establishment of an independent Palestinian state. Settlers continue to build their settlements undeterred; evictions and land grabs have not slowed down. So the facts on the ground are such that a contiguous Palestinian state with occupied East Jerusalem as its capital has become impossible. Yet like a drowning man clutching at a straw, the PLO tried to make the two-state solution relevant again by starting talk about suspending the recognition of Israel. It has continued to hope that the European Union would come to its aid and recognise a Palestinian state. But Brussels does not seem willing to provide such vital support to the lifeless two-state solution. There is no reason why the PAs continued support for the current peace process strategy also because the territory which is still under its control could be officially annexed by the Israeli government very soon under a number of laws the Israeli Knesset recently passed. If international support is evidently not within grasp and continuing the negotiations is futile, then the PA should acknowledge its own strategic failure. In fact, there is a desperate need for the Palestinian leadership to clean in front of its people. Yes, we have failed, is the phrase many Palestinians want to hear. The obsolete leadership needs to step aside in order to allow for that to happen; stubbornness and self-righteousness at this moment is not acceptable. Israel has been creating facts on the ground for decades, while the Palestinian leadership seems to have totally exhausted their tools of negotiation during that same period, most notably compromise. At this critical stage in our history, full honesty from the Palestinian leadership could provide us with a small beacon of hope; it would help us unite as a people in moving forward to find solutions and devise an inclusive strategy. As Palestinians, we need to voice our need for a sudden and dramatic change in strategy. We need to involve our people in such decision-making, perhaps through the revival of a council that represents the entire Palestinian population at home and abroad. In an article he wrote in 1998, Edward Said lamented: We cannot fight for our rights and our history as well as future until we are armed with weapons of criticism and dedicated consciousness. The situation in Palestine is becoming unbearable for many of us Palestinians living under occupation. But we will not be able to work against the occupation with our full potential until we go through critical introspection and be honest with ourselves. Only then can we start building a new strategy to resist and defeat the occupation. The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance. Oil in Our Creeks explores how a Nigerian community was left reeling after a Shell oil pipeline spill. Lessi Phillips was only 16 when a Shell oil pipeline burst near her village, in Nigerias resource-rich Niger Delta in 2008. In the 77 days that followed, vast quantities of oil seeped into mangrove swamps near Bodo City, devastating the diverse ecosystem and destroying once-vibrant local fisheries and farms. Ten years later, Al Jazeeras virtual reality unit, Contrast VR, caught up with Phillips as she explored how the environmental disaster impacted her community, and the ways in which local youth are bringing hope back to the area. We wanted to find a new way to retell this important story, said Zahra Rasool, director of the 360 documentary Oil in Our Creeks, released on Monday in partnership with Amnesty International. We immersed audiences deeper in the story so they could powerfully experience the scale of devastation in the community. In 2015, Shell announced a payout of $83.2m to compensate residents for the oil spill. Anyone affected could receive about 600,000 naira ($3,000) each. But a promised clean-up effort was slow to get underway. Oil in Our Creeks includes live-action footage of how the oil spill damaged the swamp, as well as animations showcasing how Lessi remembers her village looking before the disaster. For decades, Shell and other multinational corporations have directly contributed to the devastation of the land and livelihoods of the people who live in the Niger Delta, said Osai Ojigho, director of Amnesty International Nigeria. Oil in Our Creeks allows viewers to grasp the havoc wrought by oil spills on Niger Delta communities. I urge the companies executives to watch this film to better understand the communitys plight. Watch the full-length documentary here. 50 years since North Korea attacked a US spy ship Can the US use the same tactics to address North Koreas nuclear programme today as it did to negotiate the release of 82 US sailors in 1968? Sami Anan has suspended his campaign for president of Egypt only hours after he was arrested by the army. The former head of Egypts armed forces, Sami Anan, has suspended his run for the countrys presidency, a campaign spokesperson has confirmed. The decision comes only hours after the Supreme Committee of the Armed Forces (SCAF) in Egypt arrested Anan on accusations he had committed violations that warrant official investigation. Anans candidacy for the March presidential elections will be suspended until further notice, his campaign said in a statement on Tuesday. In a statement released earlier in the day, SCAF said that the 69-year-old, who announced his candidacy on Sunday, had forged official documents to end his military service and had not obtained the armys approval to run. The Armed Forces do not condone the blatant breach of the rules and regulations of military service that the accused has committed, such as committing the crime of forgery represented in the termination of his service in the armed forces, which led to his inclusion in the electoral roster, the statement said. The statement also said that Anan was seeking to divide the armed forces and citizens. Anan had announced his intention to run, two hours after current President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi declared his plan to seek a second term. In a speech posted on his Facebook page, Anan called on the countrys civil and military institutions to be neutral in the presidential race. He said he was running because the plight of the Egyptian people was worsening with the militarys overbearing control of the administration. This, he said, did not enable the private sector to play its role in running the affairs of the state. Earlier, Egyptian authorities stormed the homes of Anans presidential campaigners and arrested a number of them. Anans campaign announced the suspension of work on their Facebook page out of fear for their employees safety. Omar Ashour, a professor at the Institute of Arab and Islamic Studies at the University of Exeter, told Al Jazeera he believed the Sisi regime would allow a candidate into the race who is not as threatening to Sisis re-election as Anan was. Now well have to wait and see who will come up, Ashour said. Probably somebody who does not have that much support on the ground and does not have any support in the military establishment. President Rodrigo Duterte warns another war could break out in Mindanao if legislation on Muslim autonomy collapses. The Philippine Congress has vowed to fast-track a long-delayed bill establishing self-rule for Muslims in the southern island of Mindanao, in response to President Rodrigo Dutertes warning that another war could break out if the legislation collapses. Three House of Representatives sub-committees are consolidating their reports on Muslim autonomy, and public consultations in seven communities have been scheduled before the bills expected passage in mid-March, according to Ruby Sahali, House member from the southern province of Tawi-Tawi. I cannot stress enough the urgency to pass this bill, Sahali, chairman of the House Committee on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity that is overseeing the bill, told Al Jazeera on Tuesday. The government must deliver on its promises in the peace deal signed with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), she said. Sahali expects the Senate will pass the bill soon after the House version is approved. The MILF is the largest political and armed group fighting for autonomy on behalf of the minority Muslims in Mindanao. After decades of fighting and 17 years of negotiations, the group signed a comprehensive peace deal with Dutertes predecessor, President Benigno Aquino, in 2014. In exchange for a promised autonomy under the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), the group agreed to lay down its arms. However, the push for Muslim autonomy was stalled following a botched operation in 2015, which left dozens of police commandos dead, souring public opinion in the predominantly Catholic country. Hopes were revived when Duterte took over in 2016. But less than a year into his presidency, armed Muslim fighters who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) attacked the southern city of Marawi. Over 1,000 fighters, soldiers and civilians were killed, and an estimated 250,000 were displaced, during the five-month-long siege. The violence set back the discussion of BBL a few more months. The siege had also prompted Duterte to declare martial law in Mindanao. That order, which has been questioned by civil rights activists, has been extended until the end of 2018. A five-month long siege in Marawi in 2017 further delayed discussion of Muslim self-rule in Mindanao [Anadolu] Warlordism, corruption Sahali said the Marawi siege serves as a wake-up call to quickly pass the BBL legislation. Extremism emanates from the frustration and loss of hope of the Muslim population towards the government, the House member said. The fear is that what happened in Marawi could happen elsewhere in Mindanao, not only in the Muslim areas. Last week, Duterte had urged passage of the bill, saying, Its about time the historical injustices committed against them are corrected. If nothing happens to the BBL, there will be war in Mindanao, he said. The passage of the bill would be a major achievement for Duterte, who is from Mindanao, and who pledged a peace deal during the 2016 campaign. Previous presidents have tried and failed to deliver peace in the resource-rich, southern island. Mikee Pantaran Maruhom, a student leader with family roots from Marawi, said that while BBL could help stop another version of the Marawi siege, the proposed autonomy would not hold for long if the same style of leadership will continue in their communities. I think the BBL can placate a huge number of secessionists including the MILF, he said. But it could turn out to be another ARMM in the making if warlordism and corruption will continue, Maruhom said, referring to the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, an existing government framework, which grants limited autonomy to a number of southern Muslim-majority provinces. What brought this need for autonomy, aside from asserting our right to freely live with our beliefs, are the social injustices that we experienced misgovernance, displacement and even lack of opportunity, Maruhom told Al Jazeera. He urged that BBL should be free from corruption and self-interest. Maruhom also said many in his community are worried that the passage of the BBL might be just for the sake of campaign promise and compliance, and that the ongoing push to change the constitution might sideline the real concerns of Muslim minorities. The nearly 50 years of Muslim conflict in Mindanao has killed at least 120,000 people and displaced more than two million. DR Congo conflict leaves 400,000 children malnourished Some aid is reaching the malnourished in Kasai, but aid workers say it is not nearly enough and more displaced people are returning to the region. Anger after Democrats failed to protect future of undocumented immigrants during US government shutdown negotiations. Advocates were counting on Democrats to force Republicans to guarantee a protected future for undocumented immigrants brought to the United States as children during negotiations surrounding the US government shutdown. But the American government was open on Tuesday morning after a three-day closure without any concrete protections for those often called Dreamers. The closure began Friday at midnight after Republicans and Democrats couldnt come to an agreement on the Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals programme (DACA), the Obama-era policy that protected Dreamers from deportation. President Donald Trump ended DACA in September, saying he would reinstate protections in exchange for funding for a wall on the US-Mexico border and increased militarisation of immigration enforcement authorities two election campaign promises. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, agreed to pass a short-term funding bill to keep the government open until February 8 after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell promised to discuss continued protections for DACA recipients. We are furious to see that Democrats were the first ones to cave. We thought they had finally grown a backbone, Paul Quinonez, a Dreamer and activists from Washington state, told Al Jazeera. Instead, we saw them deliver a victory to the Republican Party in exchange for vague promises. Short shutdown Many expected Democrats to remain firm until Republicans made concessions on DACA. The last US government shutdown occurred in 2013 when Republicans used it as a means to garner concessions on US debt and funding for former President Barack Obamas landmark healthcare legislation, popularly called Obamacare. That shutdown lasted for two weeks as Republicans stuck to their guns, even though a majority of the US population held a negative opinion of the move. Democrats lost control of both houses of the US Congress and the presidency in 2016, but saw surprise victories in historically Republican parts of the country in special elections in 2017, thanks to anti-Trump campaigns. {articleGUID} A major aspect has been to position themselves as defenders of immigrants and refugees, groups the Trump administration has targeted. Trump and some Republicans have called the shutdown a failure for Democrats. It seems Trump and some Dreamers agree. Democrats reopening the government with nothing more than promises from Republican leaders will cost them in upcoming midterm elections, Quinonez said. The three-day negotiation period was a missed opportunity, wherein Democrats let a historic moment go to waste in exchange for more time, he added. Two-party solution Juan Belman, an activist and organiser in Austin, Texas, a city that has seen increased raids by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency since Trump assumed office last year, told Al Jazeera many of his friends have expressed their anger towards Democrats. Immigrant support especially from Latin Americans for Democrats has been strong in recent elections. Belman explained this strategy should be reconsidered. Seeing how easily the Democrats were swayed clearly shows that we cannot rely on one single party to protect the immigrant community, Belman said. Some Republicans have shown a willingness to pass a version of the DREAM Act. In September, shortly after Trump rescinded DACA, three Senators introduced the Succeed Act, a version more friendly to Republicans. The Succeed Act offered a 15-year path to citizenship and featured provisions similar to those of DACA. Other provisions blocked beneficiaries from sponsoring relatives to come to the US, which the Trump administration calls chain migration and the president is firmly against. Still, immigrant advocates still see a possibility for a version of the DREAM Act in the near future. Were obviously disappointed that the negotiations didnt produce a permanent fix for Dreamers but remain optimistic, Robert Painter of American Gateways, an immigrant and refugee support organisation based in central Texas, told Al Jazeera. Painter said American Gateways strongly opposes any bill that funds a border wall or blocks family-based migration, but hopes to see a DREAM Act passed in the coming weeks. {articleGUID} Its still possible for these protections to be renewed for the roughly 800,000 DACA recipients at least once more under a December court decision to block the end of the programme until pending cases play out in court. The Trump administration is already appealing the decision. American Gateways is focused on making sure that every client we have who is eligible to renew does so. The left-leaning Center for American Progress estimates about 17,000 Dreamers have already lost protections since Trump announced the end of DACA in September, mostly because of confusion over how to renew. Quinonez estimated a further 2,000 Dreamers will lose protection in the coming weeks, regardless of the court decision. Without DACA protections, he expects deportations to begin soon. All Senators who voted to reopen the government without protections for Dreamers effectively voted to fund our deportations, Quinonez said. Praise for Indias commitment to democracy and diversity draws attention to treatment of minorities by his government. Delivering the opening speech at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Indian leader Narendra Modi has warned that globalisation is under threat. Modi told delegates at the Swiss resort on Tuesday that forces of protectionism are raising their heads against international trade and commerce. Bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations have come to a kind of standstill, he said. Modi, the first Indian prime minister to visit a WEF summit in more than two decades, called for reform of international institutions, continued commitment to a rules-based world order and greater focus on inclusivity in the global economy during his address. The focus of this years edition of the annual Davos meeting is on Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World, according to the Geneva-based foundations website. Modi praised India, home to some 1.2 billion people, for its commitment to democracy and diversity. For a society with diverse religions, cultures, languages, attires and cuisines, democracy is not just a political system but a way of living, he said, adding that inclusion is the main principle of his government. Modis record has come under scrutiny for his ruling Hindu-nationalist BJPs treatment of Indias religious minorities. Indias Muslim and the Christian communities accuse BJP supporters of targeting them since Modi led the party to victory in the 2014 parliamentary elections and formed the central government. Kenneth Roth, executive director of international rights group Human Rights Watch, has accused Modi of failing to address the growing populist intolerance and exclusion occurring in a number of countries worldwide, including India. PM Modi says India believes in linking people, not dividing them, treating them as one family. Thats the opposite of the Hindu nationalists who support him and whom he tolerates. #WEF2018 pic.twitter.com/F8X7MjfQdc Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) January 23, 2018 PM Modi says India believes in linking people, not dividing them, treating them as one family. Thats the opposite of the Hindu nationalists who support him and whom he tolerates, Roth said in a post on Twitter during Modis speech. Other attendees suggested that Modi was serving up Davos speak, shorthand for words that do not necessarily translate into any action. Critics of the Davos summits suggest the annual WEF meeting serves as little more than a talking shop for the global elite. He may be new to Davos but he's certainly fluent in Davos-speak. #Modi Katie Martin (@katie_martin_fx) January 23, 2018 Max Lawson, Oxfam Internationals head of inequality policy, told Al Jazeera the meetings represent a manifest failure of imagination. WEF attendees have had many years now of handwringing about the growing gap between rich and poor, and very little to show for it This is clearly because business as usual is good business for those at the top, Lawson said on Monday. A report by Oxfam, published in advance of the Davos summit, has revealed that half of the worlds population received no share of all wealth created globally in 2017. Instead, billionaires increased their wealth by $762bn last year, enough to end global extreme poverty seven times over, the UK-based charitys annual inequality report said. Geneva, Switzerland UN member states have criticised Israel for failing to abide by human rights laws and UN resolutions during a heated Human Rights Council (HRC) session; some labelled it an apartheid state. The scolding in the Swiss city on Tuesday came as Israel was undergoing its third Universal Periodic Review (UPR), a UN-led process meant to assess the human rights record of each state and make recommendations for improvement. Israel is the only state in the world that can be called an apartheid state, the South African delegate told the Israeli delegation and UN members convened at the Palais des Nations. We remain deeply concerned at the denial of the right of self-determination to the Palestinian people, in the absence of which no other human right can be exercised or enjoyed. The delegate was echoing the recommendations of several member states that called, above all, for an end of the 50-year-long occupation of Palestinian territory. A number of UN member states expressed concern over what they saw as the deteriorating human rights situation in the occupied territories and Israels blatant violations of UN resolutions. We call upon Israel to comply with international laws by immediately ending its 50-year colonial occupation and apartheid policies against the Palestinian people and dismantle the illegal wall and the related infrastructures located inside the OPT and compensate Palestinians for all of the losses incurred due to their presence, the Palestinian delegate said, adding that Palestinian will not be discouraged. Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, Iran, Russia, Malaysia and other countries called on Israel to halt the occupation and annexation of Palestinian land, the construction and expansion of Israeli settlements, the forcible transfer of Palestinians and the demolition of Palestinian homes and structures. For their part, the UK, Finland and Austria among other countries expressed concern over the arbitrary detention of children. Israeli arguments In her opening remarks, Aviva Raz Shechter, Israeli ambassador to the UN in Geneva, laid out bluntly how Israel was going to receive the recommendations of fellow members. The continuous discrimination against Israel in the HRC and the unparalleled number of one-sided biased and political resolutions adopted regularly by the automatic majority of its members testify not only to the unfair treatment of Israel but also to the deficiencies of the council itself and its agenda, she said. Shechter said Israel would submit to the review process despite what she called the HRCs bias, and demanded its overhaul. Today, more and more countries are joining Israel in realising that this theatre of the absurd cannot go on forever and that reform is necessary, she said. Shechter listed what she claimed were some areas of improvement in human rights in Israel compared with the last review, which was in 2013. These, she said, included new initiatives and measures taken by Israel to uphold the rights of people with disabilities, minorities, the LGBT community and women. However, Shechters minimal references to the situation of Palestinians in the occupied territories left many delegates unimpressed. Our relations with the Palestinians will continue to be of the highest priority, and despite the known setback in the peace process, we will continue to seek a lasting solution that will enable our two peoples to live side by side, she said. Emi Palmor, the director-general of the Israeli ministry of justice, stayed on the defensive before highlighting what she called the improvements in the judiciary, from the introduction of some prisoners rights and safeguards for juvenile detainees to taking over investigations of complaints against the Israel Security Agency, better known as Shin Bet. A large part will not listen to what I am saying this council has not acquired its reputation for equality or impartiality, she said. Deteriorating rights situation Palmor contended that Israel had made progress with regards to the detention of minors by establishing a dedicated juvenile court, improving its system by which families are notified, as well as authorising courts to appoint attorneys for the minors if they wished so. Still, delegates from Belgium, Bolivia, Canada, Madagascar and other UN member states called upon Israel to allow civil society and independent human rights organisations on its territory to work freely. Some called on Israel to allow human rights bodies to conduct fact-finding missions to investigate allegations of war crimes and crimes against humanity. They expressed concern over the perceived targeting of human-rights defenders and independent nongovernmental organisations in the context of Israels NGO Transparency Law and Anti-Boycott Law. The recommendations and concerns were rejected by Palmor, who claimed that Israel places no legal restrictions on human rights associations. Malaysia, Qatar and others called for an end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip. Some delegates called upon Israel to ratify the optional protocol to the Convention against Torture and to uphold the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons in Time of War, which prohibits individual or mass forcible transfers and deportations of protected persons from occupied territory. Germany was one of the countries with concerns in this regard. Iranian concerns The Iranian delegate said it was disturbing that the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory would continue in clear violation of international human rights law and called for the UN to take a collective action against the Israeli regime. An Israeli delegate, sitting a few chairs away from his Iranian counterpart, retorted: Given Irans dismal record, Israel wont take lessons in human rights from Iran. The tit-for-tat exchange went on until the HRC chair had to call on members to use appropriate language and a constructive attitude during the session. Shechter, the Israeli ambassador, said it was deplorable that UN representatives would use the UPR session as what she called a platform to politicise the human rights discourse. It is a cynical and hypocritical attitude meant to distort the reality, she said, adding however that Israel would continue to cooperate with the HRC and take seriously the recommendations made at Tuesdays session. Hundreds march in Nairobi demanding action on allegations of rape and sexual assault at Kenyas largest public hospital. Hundreds of people have taken to the streets of Kenyas capital, Nairobi, demanding action on allegations of rape and sexual assault at the countrys largest public hospital. The protest on Tuesday came after anonymous claims on social media on January 19 alleged that male staff at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) abused several women, including new mothers heading from the maternity ward to the newborns nursery to breastfeed their babies. The hospitals management promptly denied the allegations, calling the online posts untrue and authored in bad faith. However, the accusations prompted a social media outcry over the weekend, with many Kenyans using the #EndKNHRot hashtag to voice their concern. On Monday, police said it had dispatched a special unit to probe the allegations, while the Ministry of Health also ordered KNHs management to investigate the issue. Speaking to Al Jazeera on Tuesday, Simon Ithai, a spokesman for the hospital, said a report had been submitted to President Uhuru Kenyattas cabinet after the completion of the inquiry. Ithai did not comment on the probes findings, but said: These were allegations that appeared on social media. We have never received any complaints of rape, assault or harassment of patients. Nairobi demonstration However, protesters in Nairobi on Tuesday demanded a public inquiry and called for the resignation of the hospitals managers. After the allegations came online, the hospital managements first response was to deny them outright and label the survivors liars, Wanjeri Nderu, a rights activist, told Al Jazeera by phone. That is not how you react to a situation where your hospital has been accused of gross negligence, of sexual abuse and mishandling of patients. That is why we decided we need to make a statement. She added: Instead of getting to the bottom of such allegations, they (the government) denies them, and later the story is forgotten. Activists carried placards that read, Rape is a crime. Lets not normalise it, and We are patients, not prey, and Clean up the mess at KNH, photos posted on Twitter showed. Dozens of hospital workers also staged a counterprotest at the hospital to deny claims of abuse. The hospital has hired more private security guards and is planning to relocate breastfeeding mothers closer to the newborn unit, according to local media. Morocco has approved a motion allowing women in the country to become public notary officials, an occupation that has traditionally only been held by men. King Mohammed VI on Monday endorsed the decision through a royal decree, which would amend an existing law. The move authorises women across the country to perform a number of duties in accordance with Islamic law, including documenting marriages on behalf of the government. As Islamic public notary officials a profession locally known as the adoul women can now also manage inheritance cases, administer real estate transactions, and document witness testimonies required for trials. According to local media reports, the Ministry of Justice opened up about 700 adoul positions for women to fill. Separately on Monday, King Mohammed appointed five new ministers, according to a government statement. In October, several officials were sacked for failing to improve the economy, as a five-year development plan was under way. In the past few years, several legal amendments have been made to grant women more rights in the country, including amending the nationality law to allow Moroccan women married to foreigners to pass on citizenship to their children. Women in recent years have also taken up other positions that have commonly been dominated by men, such as police officers, in an attempt to increase their role in the public sector. Several initiatives with the objective of empowering women in the country have also enabled Moroccan women to become active investors and entrepreneurs. NAFTA talks resume amid fears of US withdrawal Negotiations are taking place as the US puts pressure on Canada and Mexico to alter the trade pact in favour of American interests. North Korea, Eritrea, Vietnam and DRC some of worlds least reported humanitarian crises, says Swiss-based NGO. North Korea is home to the worlds least reported humanitarian crisis, according to the Switzerland-based NGO Care International. In its Suffering in Silence report published on Monday, the organisation said journalists have concentrated on rising political tensions in the Korean Peninsula instead of North Koreas ongoing food shortage. While much media focus has been on nuclear brinkmanship, the humanitarian situation has been overlooked, the group said. Some 18 million North Koreans, around 70 percent of the countrys population, do not have sufficient access to nutritious food, according to the UN. The worst drought to hit the country since 2001 worsened food shortages in 2017, as crop production including rice and potatoes fell, according to the UNs Food and Agriculture Organisation. Care documented 51 reports during 2017 on humanitarian issues in North Korea. By comparison, 7,017 reports were published regarding widespread flooding in Peru, the tenth most under-reported crisis, according to Care. The media inadequately covered crises in Eritrea, Vietnam and the Democratic Republic of Congo, the group said. In 2017, more than 700,000 people lacked access to enough food and water in Eritrea. In Vietnam, 11,000 hectares of farmland was destroyed by a typhoon. More than 5,500 people were forced to flee their homes in Congo due to violence. Laurie Lee, Cares interim secretary-general, told Al Jazeera more than 70 million people are affected by the crises highlighted in the report. Without media coverage of those crises, it is hard to receive public donations, and push for political change, he said. Media heavily influences decision-making processes to change policies, and also decides on aid budgets six of the 10 most under-reported crises this year also appear in the UNs list of most underfunded emergencies in 2017. Care has called for the media to investigate the causes of crises. Dwindling funds leave fewer journalists available to cover disasters, particularly those in war-torn countries that are extremely difficult to access, yet telling the world about people who are facing their darkest hours is more important than ever, Lee said. At least 81 reporters were killed while on assignment in 2017, according to the International Federation of Journalists. Although the number of deaths was down from a total of 93 in 2016, the IFJ cautioned that an unprecedented number of journalists were jailed last year, with more than 250 still in prison as of December 31, 2017. South Africa care deaths: Disgraced official apologises The deaths of 143 mentally disabled patients, many from neglect, has shocked South Africa and families of the victims say they will not rest until those responsible are behind bars. Anger erupts as rubbish washes ashore in stark reminder of the rubbish crisis the country has endured for years. Large amounts of rubbish have washed ashore on beaches north of the Lebanese capital as a result of a heavy storm, reigniting debate about the rubbish crisis that has for years plagued the country. According to local media, the rubbish had been collecting near the town of Jiyyeh, but large waves a result of the storm that hit Lebanon last weekend carried the rotting refuse out to sea. The tide brought it back to shore, littering Zouq Mosbeh beach north of Beirut with large amounts of rubbish, including everything from plastic waste to used sanitary napkins, one news report said. A cleanup was ordered by Prime Minister Saad Hariri who demanded workers move quickly to address the problem. Teams were told to clean the beach completely, returning it to its former state, Hariri said in a statement. However, photos of the polluted beach on social media raised the ire of the Lebanese public and some politicians. A man gestures as he walks along a shore covered with garbage [Hussein Malla/AP] Sami Gemayel, an opposition member of parliament, said officials responsible for the stinky mess should be held to account. Whoever defended and allowed the establishment of landfills along the coastline is to be held responsible for this disaster, he said. This is the result of the incompetence of our leaders and of corruption, Gemayel was quoted as saying by The Daily Star newspaper on Tuesday. Environment Minister Tarek Khatib accused Gemayel of leading a misinformation campaign after he demanded that Khatib resign, the report said. The beach incident was a stark reminder of the garbage crisis that has roiled Lebanon for years. In 2015 protests erupted after Beiruts main landfill was closed because of overcapacity, according to the government. After its closure, the main waste management company, Sukleen, stopped collecting rubbish, saying it had no place to dispose of it. {articleGUID} As a result, garbage started piling up on the streets of Beirut, eventually leading to mass protests under the banner You Stink over the governments failure to find a solution. In a bid to end the crisis, the Lebanese government announced a series of measures, including the reopening of two closed landfills and the establishment of waste-treatment facilities. But most of those promises have not been met, and rubbish piles started to rise again leading to renewed problems with garbage collection and people burning their trash. Troops take control of 11 Kurdish positions in Syrias northwestern region of Afrin, according to Turkish media. Turkish troops have taken control of 11 Syrian Kurdish force positions and created safe zones in neighbouring Syrias northwestern region of Afrin, according to Turkish media. Reports on Tuesday said the Turkish army, aided by Free Syria Army rebels, is pushing towards the southern part of the Syrian region with fronts on the west and the east. The Turkish army, which launched the Afrin operation on Saturday, captured the villages of Shankal, Qorne, Bali and Adah Manli, as well as the rural areas of Kita, Kordo and Bibno and four other hills in Afrin, Turkish daily Hurriyet reported. State-run Anadolu news agency said that the forces launched a second front towards Afrin from Syrias Azaz on Monday to squeeze the Peoples Protection Units (YPG) a Syrian Kurdish force from both west and east in order to advance on southern Afrin. Turkey sees the YPG as a terrorist group that acts as the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), which has waged a bloody three-decade fight against the Turkish state. Reported casualties Turkeys military announced its first fatality of the campaign after a soldier was killed in clashes with the YPG southeast of the border town of Gulbaba. The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a total of 22 Syrian civilians have been killed by Turkish attacks and two more by Kurdish fire during the operation. {articleGUID} It said 54 Syrian fighters were killed, including 19 Ankara-backed rebels, 26 Kurdish fighters and nine unidentified figures. Ankara has denied inflicting civilian casualties, with Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu accusing the YPG of sending out nonsense propaganda and baseless lies. Turkey launched the Afrin military operation on Saturday [Anadolu] The UN Security Council discussed Turkeys offensive and the worsening humanitarian crisis in Syria on Monday but did not condemn or demand an end to the Turkish operation. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, while visiting London, said he was concerned about the offensive, and EU diplomatic chief Federica Mogherini said she would discuss the situation with Turkish officials. But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan expressed impatience with US demands to set a clear timetable, saying the campaign would be over when the target is achieved. How long have you been in Afghanistan? Is that over in Iraq? he said, referring to long-running US military presence in those countries. Erdogan has previously indicated that once control is imposed in Afrin, Turkey wants to head east to defeat the YPG in the town of Manbij. Meanwhile, Russia and Iran who have a military presence in Syria and are working with Turkey on a peace process have also expressed concern. Erdogan insisted Turkey had discussed the operation in advance with Russia, and Moscow was in agreement. Emirati military official also told reporters UAE military aircraft would fly other routes to avoid interception. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) military forces have been instructed not to escalate an ongoing diplomatic crisis with neighbouring Qatar, an Emirati military official has said. Speaking to reporters at a news conference in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, Helal Saad al-Qubaisi, an air force brigadier general, said UAE military aircraft would fly other routes over Saudi Arabia to steer clear of a potential interception by Qatari fighter jets. Abiding by the international laws is vital regarding these things. Interception is a dangerous matter, al-Qubaisi said. Our national carriers and other carriers will be committed to rules of the Civil Aviation Authority for the sake of the safety of all passengers, regardless of their nationalities, he added. We lodged a complaint with the International Civil Aviation Organization to investigate these unprecedented incidents. We are now examining the emergency procedures and other related matters. On January 15, Qatar denied claims by the UAE that its fighter jets intercepted two Emirati passenger planes en route to Bahrain. The allegations against Qatar came after Doha filed two complaints at the United Nations over alleged violations of its airspace by Emirati military aircraft, incidents that took place on December 21 and January 3. The UAE, along with Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt, have severed diplomatic ties with Qatar in June 2017, accusing it of harbouring terrorism. The quartet closed their airspace to Qatar-owned flights, closed the Saudi-Qatari border and cut off most trade links. Doha has rejected the allegations and accused the Saudi-led group of attempting to infringe on its sovereignty. About the show A weekly programme that examines and dissects the worlds media, how they operate and the stories they cover. Watch The Listening Post every Saturday at 0830GMT After 27 years spread out in five suites inside a medical center, Comprehensive Womens Health will build its own 24,000-square-foot facility to keep up with increased demand. Currently, the private practice offers gynecologic, obstetric and midwife services in the Womens Center of the North Florida Regional Medical Center, said Janet Davies, a practice administrator. On Friday afternoon, the practice held a groundbreaking ceremony for two buildings, located at 724 NW 43rd St. One building will hold 24 rooms for exams and offices, and the second will be home to a birth center. We are currently housed on the fifth floor of the Womens Center at North Florida Regional Medical Center, Davies said. We are separated into five different suites, and we are out of space to expand our services. The practice will foot the $11 million estimated cost for the project, according to Dr. Eduardo Marichal, an OB-GYN doctor and managing partner at the practice. The buildings are expected to be completed by November. To provide more services to the community, we have to expand, he said. The buildings will allow the centers doctors and staff to work side-by-side instead of working in different suites in the hospital, Davies said. It will also include a community classroom, where classes and seminars on topics such as pregnancy yoga, acupuncture and massages will be offered. At the groundbreaking ceremony, Paul Richardson, who lives in Gainesville, said he was happy to see womens health services offered close by for his fiancee to take advantage of. Im excited that youre going to have midwife accessibility right next door, the 29-year-old said. They have a really good reputation theyre very well-known. Correction: This story has been updated to reflect that the OB-GYN doctor and managing partner at the practice is Dr. Eduardo Marichal, not Marichals. Pictured is a rendering of the new Comprehensive Women's Health facility. Their new building and birth center is scheduled to open November 2018 on Northwest 43rd Street. Enjoy what you're reading? Get content from The Alligator delivered to your inbox Subscribe Now Maybe the #SchumerShutdown is Trump's decisive battle, and maybe it isn't. At any rate, as President Lincoln said about Gen. Grant, "I can't spare this man: he fights." That is why we normals voted for Donald Trump. We wanted a president who could go up against the liberals without fear and fight them. In the very German study of war and strategery, there is the concept of the "decisive battle." It means, more or less, the confrontation after which the losing side just loses the will to continue. As we all know, the problem with conservatism over the past fifty years is that when it came to the crunch, the conservative leaders would always cringe. And some of the most notable cringes have been "government shutdowns," in which the Democrats and their bribed apologists in the mainstream media managed to blame the Republicans. Obviously, we are not going to have our wicked way, policy-wise, unless we can win one of these shutdowns. It is not enough to have the best ideas; we normals and conservatives have to be able to win the street battles in the public square. Otherwise, we may as well go home and let the SJWs harass us with their Codes of Conduct and let Democrats continue to cow Americans with the vile accusation of racism. Actually, you can't blame the Democrats for trying the shutdown option in order to push their immigration agenda. The American people don't like unlimited immigration. They don't like illegal aliens; they don't like Muslim extremism. They don't like the stagnant wages of the last forty years. And they don't like the rusting of the Rust Belt. So the Democrats are not going to win on immigration in a fair fight, with an honest discussion of the issues and a proper analysis of policy recommendations. They have to cheat, and hey, why not go to another "government shutdown" and tell President Trump to prove he is not a racist by agreeing to their DACA bill? As I said, we elected Trump to put a stop to this kind of shenanigans, and you may have noticed that the result ain't pretty. A lot of people on the right think the male Culture of Insult Trump epitomizes is so recherche, darling. No, wait! The right word is de trop, darling. Well, whatever the word is on the Upper East Side, we know what they think on the Upper West Side: raaacist! Sexist! Homophobe! Xenophobe! It's amazing what a bit of education will do for you. And now we have Peggy Noonan writing that "America Needs More Gentlemen." No doubt, but first we have to win, and not just win the decisive battle of the shutdown, or the midterms, or the 2020 election. We have to demolish liberals every day before breakfast like Jordan B. Peterson demolished Surrey Girl Cathy Newman last week in a decisive battle on BBC Channel 4. But how? Perhaps the answer is a critical theory that critiques the left's Critical Theory. That's what Uri Harris proposed in his piece on the Cathy Newman demolition job. [The left's] Critical Theory draws heavily on Karl Marx's notion of ideology. Because the bourgeoisie controlled the means of production, Marx suggested, they controlled the culture. Therefore, the bourgeoisie controlled everything else. Critical Theory was necessary to show the self-serving assumptions behind the bourgeoisie's bland assertions of "universal truths and values." Well, the bourgeois culture may have been self-serving, but it also increased per capita income by 3,000 percent in 200 years. It also celebrated the code of the gentleman. What we have to critique is the educated ruling class and its willing accomplices like Cathy Newman, that today acts as if equality and liberation are "universal truths and values" and brook no dissent. And so the question becomes: are the values and beliefs of critical theory itself universal, or are they also partial to particular interests? Well, I don't know if the left's agenda of equality and liberation is "unquestionable and universal." But I do know this: the left's culture of equality and liberation has failed every time it was tried. Hello, Soviet Union; hello, Venezuela. Hello, Veterans Administration; hello, the Peoples Cultural Revolution. Think about it. The left's Critical Theory was criticizing a system of truths and values that raised humans from indigence to fabulous wealth in 200 years. No wonder the left wants to "no-platform" and silence all voices raised against it. I say let's up and at 'em. Let's critique the left and everything it stands for back to the bare walls. And then, just for fun, let's give another try to the awful patriarchal culture of the Code of the Gentleman, as long as it doesn't turn into The Code of the Woosters. Christopher Chantrill (@chrischantrill) runs the go-to site on U.S. government finances, usgovernmentspending.com. Also get his American Manifesto and his Road to the Middle Class. Conservatism and Chronological Isolation Like other political movements, American conservatism offers predictable explanations as to where bad ideas arise. During the Cold War, the explanation for this problem that one would have found with some regularity in conservative publications would have been communism, socialism, the welfare state, or "totalitarianism." More recently, socialism has alternated with "fascism," or "Islamofascism." For today's conservative media, moreover, these "isms" are mostly interchangeable designations. If Islamicists are against our "values," then they must be "fascists"; "Marxists"; or, perhaps even worse, Democrats. And lest I forget, Democrats used to be "fascists" and are now "socialists," according to Glenn Beck, Dinesh D'Souza, and Dennis Prager. Making the identification of an enemy even more problematic is that the conservative movement is steadily undergoing change. Thinking historically, it seems to me that what movement conservatives now profess is far less conservative than what they used to believe when I was in college and graduate school back in the 1960s. Civil rights icon Martin Luther King had not yet become a "conservative" or "conservative Christian theologian," but was still a radical leftist. National Review and its contributors denounced him as such, and from the perspective of our mainstream politics in the 1960s and where the conservative movement then stood, this judgment was probably defensible. I also don't recall National Review or even the New York Times in the 1960s defending attempts at marriage between two men as a "family value" or featuring self-identified gays as proud conservatives. On at least some question of social morality, the founders of the Frankfurt School may have been as "conservative" as the people who are now denouncing them supposedly from the right. I would also ask why all groups that offend self-described conservatives should be treated as an interchangeable enemy. Islamists undoubtedly represent a danger to civil order and human safety, but the fact that they are murderous doesn't necessarily make them "fascists." If we compare Islamic extremists to the Italian fascist movement of the 1920s, it's hard to see what ISIS and its supporters have in common with Mussolini and his followers. Latin fascists claimed they were defending a distinctly Western classical heritage and viewed themselves as successors of the ancient Romans. How similar is this to what Islamists believe as the sworn adversaries of the West and its Judeo-Christian classical inheritance (which is what Western democracies are now running away from)? Perhaps "Muslim extremists" are a bit more like the German Nazis in their totalitarian design and use of anti-Semitic propaganda. But this too isn't a good fit, because unlike the Nazis, Islamists are multiracial and hardly sympathetic to Nazi neo-paganism. Neoconservatives charge that like the fascists, Muslim extremists don't practice "human rights." But this helps us even less in defining them. "Human rights" are a modern Western invention that are constantly expanding in accordance with journalistic and ideological fashions. The French jurist Michel Villey has demonstrated that there is no solid evidence that European jurists or philosophers thought about individual rights before the early modern period. Attempts to trace individual rights back to Greco-Roman law and medieval philosophy, according to Villey, have come from historians who are hoping to find current thinking in older sources. But these efforts have ended in misrepresentation. The ancients and medieval scholastics spoke about moral obligations owed to specific people and about duties that devolve on those holding positions in relation to others. But this had nothing to do with assigning "rights" to individuals with whom we have no personal dealings and to whom we distribute our preferred rights in terms of what our present culture values. Yes, I am aware that there is a reference to natural right, which can be traced back to John Locke, in the Declaration of Independence and lists of individual, supposedly natural rights that were embedded in state constitutions afterward. But these rights were seen as belonging to a particular people who had fought and won their independence, and most of the rights affirmed went back to the English political legacy of the newly formed nation. They were typically included in the Petition of Right conceded by Charles I to his Parliament in 1628 and were intended to protect subjects or citizens against the arbitrary use of centralized power. These rights, such as habeas corpus, were not being extended to the entire human race, and the rights listed were limited and specific. This invocation of natural right was only a first baby step, toward our own proliferating rights industry. Reading our newspapers and watching TV news, I would think that recently invented rights came down from Heaven and should include the liberty to hold a gay pride parade in any city on the planet. This raises questions about our own provincialism. Before fairly recently in historic time, no one thought about political rights in the way that is now common to our "liberals" and "conservatives." I doubt that these time-bound pundits could even begin to understand the inhabitants of an earlier age, who did not celebrate diversity and who had not yet undergone a feminist revolution. Were our predecessors benighted aliens from a different planet? Perhaps they were just people living in a different age in different circumstances. Please pardon this hateful thought! By the way, making these concessions to time and place does not make me a moral relativist. Like Villey and Aristotle, I most definitely believe in universal morals and have risked notoriety by stating that I don't consider all civilizations equally admirable or equally creative. But one of the West's many achievements is teaching us to think historically, and this should prevent us from imagining that we're expressing eternal truth when we defend the opinions we've just picked up from talk radio. Starting on April 1, 2018, illegal aliens in California who have recently obtained state driver's licenses legally, or obtained them previously by lying about their immigration status, will automatically be registered to vote. Since January 2015, according to the California DMV , A.B. 60, a law passed by the California Assembly, "allows illegal immigrants to the United States to apply for a California driver's license with the CA Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)" [emphasis original]. As of December 2016, more than 800,000 California driver's licenses were issued to illegal aliens under the A.B. 60 law. Additional thousands of illegals may have been granted licenses prior to 2015 because they lied on their driver's license application forms and claimed they were in the country legally. (No proof of legal residence has been required by the California DMV in recent years.) According to the [s]ecretary of [s]tate's website, in order to vote in California one must be at least 18 years old, a United States citizen[,] and a resident of California. But a court settlement Jan. 10 in response to a suit filed by the League of Women Voters [and several other groups including The National Council of La Raza] may have pushed open the door to rampant voter fraud in this state. That's because under the settlement, starting in April the Department of Motor Vehicles will automatically register to vote all those who renew their driver's licenses unless they opt out. California Political Review and Courthouse News first broke the story of illegals being allowed to vote starting this spring on January 18 in an article titled "Alert: Starting April 1 California DMV Will AUTOMATICALLY Register Illegal Aliens to Vote by COURT ORDER": The program is part of [A.B.] 1461, dubbed the California New Motor Voter Act. Signed into law in October 2015, the new statute requires the DMV to forward records for all eligible applicants to the Secretary of State's Office for registration unless those applicants elect not to register to vote. As of this writing, WND, claiming an "exclusive," is the only major publication to have highlighted this development in a brief story on January 21, "California to register illegal aliens to vote automatically." On October 11, 2015, the day after California governor Jerry Brown signed A.B. 1461 into law, the Washington Times, in an article titled "California motor-voter law will flood rolls with noncitizens, critics predict," indeed predicted what is now coming to pass two and a half years later: A bill signed Saturday by California [g]ov. Jerry Brown aimed at improving voter turnout has critics predicting that it will ramp up voter fraud by making it easier for noncitizens to cast ballots. The New Motor Voter Act automatically registers to vote all eligible voters when they obtain or renew their driver's licenses at the Department of Motor Vehicles instead of requiring them to fill out a form. Those eligible may opt out of voter registration. The goal is to ease barriers to voting, but election-integrity advocates warn that the measure could inadvertently add millions of illegal voters to the rolls given that California allows undocumented [i.e., illegal] aliens to obtain driver's licenses. The move to legalize non-citizen including "undocumented" residents' voting is slowly spreading nationwide. In 2016, immigrant activists in New York City endorsed a legislative proposal to allow immigrants residing in the city legal or not the right to vote in local elections. In reporting the story, the New York Post estimated that 500,000 illegal aliens reside in New York City. This change has not yet been formally approved, however. Meanwhile, according to Newsweek (September 13, 2017), "Immigrants Are Getting the Right to Vote in Cities Across America." The occasion for Newsweek's article was the decision last year by the Washington, D.C. suburb of College Park, Maryland to allow non-citizens, including illegals, to vote. Several other cities in Maryland already allow noncitizens to vote locally. Chicago and San Francisco also offer limited noncitizen voting. The trend runs counter to the anti-immigration sentiment in many areas of the country, but supporters say residents of cities and towns should have a say in how their government operates, whether they are citizens or not. The success of left-wing groups supporting the expansion of illegal alien "rights" to include voting has also been reflected in the government shutdown of recent days. According to an analysis of "this stunning display of political leverage" by illegal alien "DREAMers" by the Washington Times on January 21: Democrats called it the Trump shutdown. Republicans labeled it the Schumer shutdown. But in reality, it was the [DREAM]er shutdown. The recipe for the current congressional gridlock is complex, but at the top of the list of ingredients are the illegal [alien] [DREAM]ers who pushed Democrats to launch the filibuster that sent the government careening into a partial shutdown. The political muscle demonstrated by illegals reflected in the national political debate is being increasingly taken note of. The complementary impact of millions of them potentially voting legally in U.S. elections in the near term is less apparent, but it deserves our serious attention for what it portends. Peter Barry Chowka is a veteran reporter and analyst of news on national politics, media, and popular culture. In addition to his writing, Peter has appeared as a guest commentator on NBC; PBS; the CBC; and, on January 4, 2018, the BBC. For announcements and links to a wide selection of Peter's published work, follow him on Twitter at @pchowka. International NGOs back Haiti's Undermining of Dominican Sovereignty There is a historic sentiment in Haiti that the island it shares with the Dominican Republic should be one and indivisible not only geographically, but also politically, economically, and in virtually every other regard. Such sentiment, if analyzed objectively, is to be interpreted as a Haitian drive to undermine the Dominican Republic's sovereignty as an independent country with all the rights, privileges, and responsibilities thereto appertaining. Before the magnitude of such a threat, any responsible government should take the necessary steps to deter those who seek to subvert its sovereign laws from transgressing them. Yet, when attempting to do so, the Dominican government has been highly criticized by a multitude of NGOs like the Clinton Foundation and threatened by powerful people of the likes of billionaire George Soros and New York mayor Bill de Blasio. While elites from OECD countries argue that the Dominican Republic's concerns over sovereignty do not hold water. We see Haitian social activists such as Julio Rubain Bastien saying that "the only solution to solving Haitian mass migration to the Dominican territory is opening the border and allowing for the free movement of people between the two countries." Moreover, as he stated in an interview that made it to the cover of the Dominican Republic's most prominent newspaper, "in Haiti there is a movement to raise awareness of the need for the island to be one." Rubain, who is a self-proclaimed pastor of a local church in the Haitian community of Juana Mendez, also said his congregation is praying for "God to help bring about the unification of the two countries into one as soon as possible." Statements like this would not be a matter of concern for the Dominican government if Rubain and many others like him did not have the backing of well endowed international NGOs with on-site operations in both Haiti and the Dominican Republic. These NGOs and their leaders are basically blackmailing the Dominican government by threatening to impose economic sanctions on the country. That's right: they are threatening to penalize a democratically elected government for operating lawfully to protect and strengthen its country's sovereignty. Few NGOs would pose threats of that nature against the United States for taking steps to secure its border with Mexico. As a matter of fact, any threat made on that basis against the USA would amount to a mere "all bark, no bite" publicity stunt. Unfortunately, when it comes to small countries like the Dominican Republic, such threats carry weight and can put the neediest of the needy under a lot of financial stress. Hence, on the surface, it looks as though international NGOs want to help Haitians in distress. But what they are really trying to do is compel Dominicans to solve the Haitian predicament and, in doing so, rid rich countries of the need to take on that heavy burden. Academics like Professor Daniel Rodriguez from Mercy College of New York make the idea of unifying Haiti and the Dominican Republic seem innocuous by saying it would be "like the reunification of East Germany and West Germany." The comparison could not be more inappropriate. East and West Germany at least had a common language and were unified on equal and peaceful grounds in the past. The case with Haiti and the Dominican Republic is extremely different. Beyond the striking level of cultural, linguistic, and religious heterogeneity between one country and the other, one must consider the conditions under which Haiti and the Dominican Republic were unified once upon a time. So here's a bird's-eye view. Haiti gained its independence from France in 1804. At the time, the whole island of Hispaniola was under French rule. After removing the French from their side of the island in a bloody war, Haitians, with the aid of British forces, pressed on and drove the French out of the city of Santo Domingo. Thus, Haiti began making inroads eastward. The occupation of the other side of the island of Hispaniola became official in 1822, when Haiti sent members of its army to police the eastern territory, and they did so until Dominicans declared their independence in February of 1844. During the Haitian occupation of the Dominican Republic, whites could not own land; people were forbidden from speaking Spanish, their native tongue; and Santo Domingo's Autonomous University, the first institution of higher learning founded in the Americas, was shut down. Moreover, the Haitian government levied heavy taxes on Dominicans, and the occupying military personnel seized food and other goods from the population as the Haitian government did not provide for their sustenance. The grievances perpetrated in that period are water under the bridge. But if Haitians nowadays continue to invoke, promote, and act upon the seditious ideas that emanate from that moment in history, the Dominican government must take the matter seriously especially when Haiti's naked ambitions to bring the Dominican Republic's sovereignty under submission are backed by people with billions and influence that can significantly disturb the Dominicans' economic and political existence. D'Oleo is a management consultant, author, and speaker. He holds a Master's of Science in public policy from University College London and a double-major in economics and politics from Brandeis University. Twitter: @JonathanJDOleo. Trump's first year as president may have been the most extraordinary since the 1840s. While Trump has disrupted almost all presidential governance and communication norms, his tenure so far has produced capital market gains of some $7 trillion, spreading investment wealth to millions of regular Joes and Marys, while tax cuts have already distributed $3 billion in bonuses and wage hikes to over 2 million workers and counting. President Donald Trump's occasional unfiltered coarse cloudbursts belie a man who is enormously joyful, having an abundance of entertaining good humor easily expressed, fairly shared. Trump is having a ball, for good reasons. The Trump-inspired American economic revival, accompanied by a cultural earthquake in newfound respect, self-esteem, and optimism for working-class citizens, rural and urban ignored and maligned since the industrial heartland was eviscerated in the 1980s matches the economic and territorial expansions under presidents John Tyler and James Polk. Westward expansion, Manifest Destiny, abetted by industrial innovation from the telegraph to steam engines to sewing machines, ushered in the longest economic growth period in American history 1841 to 1859. The 1840s also propelled the American Renaissance in literature and art. The fabulous Hudson River School of landscape painting, originating around 1825, spawned two major shifts in the 1840s: landscapes capturing Easterners' imagination about the West and illustrations of people in everyday scenes with the Americana backdrops. Perhaps the best practitioner of the new genre was George Caleb Bingham, portrait painter and politician, who lived most of his life in Missouri. Bingham captured the heart of the American spirit a mix of personal liberty and economic fortunes in his iconic 1846 painting, "The Jolly Flatboatmen," now owned by and usually on display at the National Gallery of Art. NGA director Rusty Powell says The Jolly Flatboatmen is " the most important genre painting in American history." No one knows whether Bingham's boatmen, dancing and luxuriating on the deck of a river flatboat barge loaded with furs, bolts of cloth, and other premium cargo, are floating downstream on the upper Missouri or Mississippi. The exact topography doesn't matter; the image conveying understated exuberance is infectious. The solitary fiddler, the frying pan-tambourine man, and the other boatmen could have been figures drawn by Caravaggio, inviting the viewer to join in the moment, to take a seat on the hand-hewn oar or on top of the chicken coop no more, no less. Bingham's clarity of purpose matches his clarity of brushstrokes. The viewer's angle could be from a small river skiff, such as a Mackinaw boat. The closest boatman bemused at our attention seems contented enough, despite his toes sticking out from the welt of his shoe. The slightly impish man in the Quaker wide-awake hat, alongside the steering-oarsman, looks self-satisfied, confident, and prosperous enough. Franklin Kelly, curator at the NGA, said this about "The Jolly Flatboatmen": It's very democratic. These are working people; they're wearing their ordinary clothes tattered but they're having a good time. It's that notion of a democratic art in a democratic society. Donald Trump, the NYC luxury high rise-builder, should be the most unlikely populist egalitarian. Yet Trump would be at home with the jolly flatboatmen. These are the people who built the nation, unmolested by a suffocating federal government. By 1846, only Missouri and Iowa among the Missouri River territories had been admitted to the Union. People of the frontier, anyplace west of the Appalachians, in the 1840s were tamers of the wilderness. Life could be nasty, brutish, and short, as wrote Hobbes in another century. Yet endurance, calculated risk-taking, commercial cleverness, and even desperation produced American pragmatism, and exeptionalism. These are Hillary Clinton's deplorables. These are the Walmart shoppers. These are the truck-drivers, machine tool-operators, steamfitters, and grocery aisle shelf-stockers. These are the diverse line-up of Trump voters in Youngstown, Ohio, who stunned CNN about a week ago with their full-throated approval of Trump's first year. Bingham, the painter, was no stranger to the imperfect, messy features of frontier and small-town democracy. He dabbled in politics as a Missouri state senator and Missouri treasurer, among other statewide offices. In his "The County Election" (St. Louis Museum of Art), Bingham displays both porcelain and pockmarks on the faces of a remarkable collection of backgrounds and temperaments, where each vote is equal, the outcome accepted. There are four sweeping themes occupying American socio-economic history: westward expansion, slavery, immigration, and industrialization. These themes have a common narrative: labor and natural resources. The narrative about labor invokes contradictory notions about liberty and submission. Moreover, the history of the American people is a complex saga of bloodshed for freedom from authoritarian tyranny, repudiation of an aristocracy to assure equality of opportunity, and the yearning for self-sufficiency and dignity. The delivery of socio-economic justice, ameliorating the worst excesses within the labor narrative, has always been through the gifts of fertile land, "the fruited plain," an abundance of natural resources. The "peoples' history," expropriated by deconstructive historians using disingenuous storylines of labor oppression and subjugation, is really about rivers, harbors, timber, cotton, corn, wheat, coal, oil, and iron ore. Ships, sails, barges, mills, machines, furnaces, coke and coal, iron, steel, rails and roads, steam engines, trucks, tractors, and airplanes this is the stuff of nation-building, prosperity, and empire and ultimate redemption. Donald Trump gets it. There are no Democrats remaining who get it. No one should underestimate Trump's legion of Jolly Flatboatmen who freely voted for their self-interest and can now dance to their own tune, all because of Donald Trump. All this after enduring years in the wilderness as "the stupid party." Piling victory on top of victory, the Republicans have good reason to dance around a little with the Democrats' agreement to end the government shutdown . It comes on the back of the stunning tax reform package passed last month that has poured Miracle-Gro onto the economy and portends more victories to come, to be topped off by possible gains in the Congress by November's midterms. It also indirectly affirms the GOP position that succoring DREAMers is not the most critical issue out there in the minds of the voters. The Democrats' intransigent stance had to have been polling badly. But it's too soon to celebrate. What we have here is a sugar high that could lead to a sugar crash if the next steps aren't played just right. Celebrating now actually makes winning in the longer term quite a bit harder. On Twitter, all sorts of Republicans we adore are having a good time about this. Here's a favorite, expressing the sentiment: I know the @realDonaldTrump and the GOP caucus need to be gracious and polite in their victory. But I don't. Democrats, you just got Trumped, and I'm laughing at you. We're all laughing at you. Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) January 22, 2018 Even our president joined in: Even Crazy Jim Acosta of Fake News CNN agrees: Trump World and WH sources dancing in end zone: Trump wins again...Schumer and Dems caved...gambled and lost. Thank you for your honesty Jim! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 23, 2018 The problem with this is that the victory of the continuing resolution to fund the government is going to last all of three weeks. Sweet as it is, the happiness here is a sugar high. A bigger, more permanent budget is still out there to be passed on Feb. 8, and it will require Democrats' cooperation. If you know anything about what's going on on the always overreacting left side, you're aware that they're boiling with rage at their leaders. Elizabeth Warren and her minions are threatening to organize a new movement. Out on Twitter, the left is furious at Democratic Senate minority leader Chuck Schumer's "cave-in" on the DREAMers, calling for his head. They're yelling for a primary challenge and bellowing to each other that he's the worst leader ever. It's easy to dismiss this bunch as the sore losers they are, but what it means is that the Democratic base is energized. They are now even more determined not to let Schumer cave in again. The BBC has a choice summary: On Twitter, "Democrats CAVED" was trending on Monday evening. Democrats voiced s[k]epticism of Mr[.] McConnell's promise and some liberal groups are infuriated by the agreement to reopen the government. Possible Democratic 2020 presidential candidates in the Senate Elizabeth Warren, Kirsten Gillibrand, Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders[,] and Kamala Harris all voted against Monday's bill. Senator Harris, of California, said it would be "foolhardy" to trust Mr[.] McConnell's promise to take up an immigration bill in the coming weeks. Another California senator, Dianne Feinstein, told The Hill, a political news outlet, she was "very disappointed" in the deal because there's no guarantee that Republicans would help [DREAM]ers. Democratic congressman Luis Guti[e]rrez slammed his own party's senators after the vote saying: "They caved. They blinked. That's what they do." Stephanie Taylor, of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee, said: "Today's cave by Senate Democrats led by weak-kneed, right-of-cent[er] Democrats is why people don't believe [that] the Democratic Party stands for anything." This means that Schumer will be even more intransigent and unreasonable come the next vote-down on Feb. 8. He doesn't like the beating he is getting from his fellow Democrats, and he likely wants their praise. Working out a deal with the GOP won't get him that, so it's likely there will be more trouble down the line, especially if he sees the GOP laughing at him as he played ball with them. That may be why House speaker Paul Ryan, who knows more than anyone how Congress works, warned that it isn't party time just yet. According to the BBC: "I know there's great relief that this episode is coming to an end," said Speaker Paul Ryan. "But this is not a moment to pat ourselves on the back. Not even close." And the reality is, the GOP has been there before, when it attempted to shut down the government over the nightmare of Obamacare. The bid didn't work, and as the out-of-power party, the GOP got blamed. Congressional Republicans know they can't be too proud. President Trump seemed to be aware of this in one of his other tweets, offering Democrats the olive branch of shared victory (a big win for everyone, as he puts it) if Democrats don't act up again. He got the tone just right in the delicate political matter: Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown. Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security. Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table! Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) January 23, 2018 It's pretty much the leadership that's needed. In this tweet, it's clear he's not falling for the sugar highs. Many on the right have been bashing Democratic senator Cory Booker for his harangue of Department of Homeland Security secretary Kirstjen Nielsen last Wednesday. Nielsen said she did not remember the president referring to third-world nations as shitholes. That would not do for the indignant Booker, who saw complicity with President Trump's so-called racism and bigotry in Nielsen's alleged "amnesia." Picture it. A male Republican senator spends his entire 10 minutes "mansplaining" the female DHS secretary about immigration policy, throws around the term "conscientious stupidity," yells at her the only time she tries to speak, and concludes his diatribe without even asking her to respond. There'd be so many triggered Democrats that there'd be a hashtag within minutes, campus protests across the country, and the topic[] du[] jour for celebrities at Hollywood's next award show. The statement is not unreasonable. Imagine, say, Republican representative Trey Gowdy unleashing his well known ferocity on Democratic representative Maxine Waters. The left would surely accuse him of sexism and perhaps of racism, too. Now, Booker, one may well argue, was highly inappropriate not only in his language and tone, but in uncharitably assuming and asserting that Nielsen was "guilty" along with President Trump. Booker made it seem impossible that Nielsen had simply forgotten whether the controversial words, which the president has denied, were actually spoken. Suppose Booker had castigated Gowdy. In this case, of course, there would be no talk of "mansplaining." Nor would anybody on the right accuse the left of hypocrisy regarding the treatment of women. But the gender difference calls forth our natural expectation still strong even in 2018 that a man should not be as harsh toward a woman as he would be toward a man. It is partly this, perhaps mostly unconsciously, that lies behind the right's outrage. Again, we may believe that Booker behaved badly for several reasons. Yet the fact remains: Nielsen being a woman makes his conduct seem a lot worse. And yet Booker's response to CNN's Jake Tapper is fair. "It's a little insulting to say that I should be treating Cabinet secretaries one way or another depending upon their gender." For Booker spoke to Nielsen as if she were a man, and though most people would take issue with how he did so, it remains true that certain situations require aggressive and highly unpleasant language. There is a time and place for harshness, and if women want to be the equals of men, they must accept combative language, which is unavoidable in some contexts. As Camille Paglia often stresses, there is more to equality than mere equal opportunity: you must also be tough when circumstances require it. Like Paglia herself, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders is a wonderful example of that. To be sure, this need for women to be tough like men is not easy to understand (let alone to practice). Our common conditioning still reflects the sexes' instinctive differences: women being less disagreeable, on average, than men, just as they are more indirect and less straightforward. Still, women wanted equality; they got it; and it's important to know that, like life itself, equality can be a lot of hard work. Nor should the right opportunistically make this a gender issue, as if Booker were wrong because Nielsen is a woman. It is one thing to find fault with how Booker acted. It is another to imply that women require or deserve special treatment when it comes to language. Christopher DeGroot is a contributing editor of New English Review and a columnist at Taki's Magazine. Follow him at @CEGrotius. Beneficiaries of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program and their allies temporarily blocked a vehicle entrance to Disneyland on Monday, just as the Senate reached an agreement to end the government shutdown brought on in part by a stalemate over the young immigrants' [sic; should be "aliens'" ed.] future. Illegal aliens staged a protest at the entrance Disneyland , demanding amnesty for illegal aliens. But their attempts to block traffic were foiled when the protesters were deported from Disney property. The DACA recipients, commonly called [DREAM]ers, stood in a crosswalk at South Harbor Boulevard around 10 a.m. and blocked buses from entering the Anaheim theme park. The 15 protesters were quickly removed by law enforcement officers[.] ... Barbara Hernandez, a 26-year-old DACA recipient from Santa Ana, said protesting in front of Disneyland was symbolic. "It's where dreams come true," she said. "But we're not on vacation anymore. We're still waiting for our dreams to come true." Hernandez said she knew blocking the street could make traffic worse or cause an inconvenience for people. But disruption, she said, is something the [DREAM]ers have become accustomed to. Despite its welcoming reputation, Disneyland actually looks like it has a lot of protection against illegal immigrants. It has a sturdy fence or wall around its perimeter. The Sleeping Beauty Castle has a formidable moat and tall walls. Tom Sawyer's Island is patrolled by a ferryboat full of cast members who might be on the lookout for illegals. I am not 100% sure, but maybe Tomorrowland has advanced sensors that can detect illegal alien DNA and automatically transport intruders across the border. And it looks like Disney "Nemo" submarines are constantly on the prowl for submerged boats containing illegals and narcotics. Border guards can perform patrols in monorails along the perimeter to catch illegal border crossings. Cast members dressed as Goofy and Donald Duck surreptitiously check the immigration status of visitors as they pose for photos. Despite that, some illegals can be found in the shadows of the Haunted House and the 7-11 on Main Street, USA. What do you think? Should undocumented visitors be kept out of Disneyland? Or should the ticket prices for everyone else be raised so they can come to Disneyland free and go the head of the line for rides? Ed Straker is the senior writer at Newsmachete.com. The government protects its own. The rest of us can be fired, demoted, and penalized when we screw up, but the worst that seems to happen to a senior bureaucrat like Lois Lerner is a cushy six-figure retirement. Many Americans are disgusted with the lack of accountability for government bureaucrats. The spectacle of Hawaii convulsed with a phony warning of a missile attack sending over a million people into a life-changing panic, saying goodbye to their loved ones, and hiding their children in sewers with nobody held accountable and the miscreant's identity kept secret, is only the latest example of immunity conferred on government officials. With one exception: the United States Military. The United States Navy is now starting a ruthlessly unforgiving lesson to all on accountability. Geoff Ziezulewicz and Mark D. Faram report in the Navy Times: The Navy's decision to level criminal charges against the commanding officers of the destroyers Fitzgerald and John S. McCain is forcing the surface warfare world into a grim reckoning on how it operates, and the consequences of sailors dying on a leader's watch. The Navy announced on Jan. 16 that negligent homicide charges will be sought against Fitz [C.O.] Cmdr. Bryce Benson, and McCain [C.O.] Cmdr. Alfredo Sanchez, for their roles in the deaths of 17 sailors in the Pacific last summer. The unprecedented move sets in motion a military justice proceeding that will begin with a preliminary hearing known as an Article 32, which will evaluate the evidence and determine whether to send the officers to court-martial. Cmdr. Bryce Benson, left, and Cmdr. Alfredo J. Sanchez, right, face criminal charges for their roles in the fatal collisions of their respective destroyers. (Navy.) I do not think it is coincidental that the United States Military enjoys far higher levels of trust and respect than the rest of the federal government. Those are qualities that must be earned and then ruthlessly guarded. Ed Timperlake commented to me in an email that the lessons of accountability start right away when a civilian enters the service: As a Plebe at Annapolis, one of the very first responses we learned when challenged with doing something wrong "No excuse, Sir." We could use a healthy dose of that throughout the federal government. President Trump might wish to consider appointing a federal commission to study means of ensuring accountability in the non-military branches of the federal government, with healthy representation of the military on it. So where are we a year after President Trump said goodbye to Paris? About nine months ago, President Trump pulled the US out of the Paris Climate Accord. It was the right thing to do, because President Obama never submitted the "accord" to the U.S. Senate as a treaty, and it was just a lot of hot air disguised as a climate document. According to IBD, the "global warming" team has a few credibility issues: A new study published in the prestigious journal Nature finds that all those global warming doomsday scenarios aren't credible. Not that you would ever know based on how little coverage this study is getting. The study, published on Thursday, finds that if CO2 in the atmosphere doubled, global temperatures would climb at most by 3.4 degrees Celsius. That's far below what the [U.N.] has been saying for decades[ ] namely[,] that temperatures would rise as much as 4.5 degrees, and possibly up to 6 degrees. Basically, the scientists involved in the Nature study found that the planet is less sensitive to changes in CO2 levels than had been previously believed. That means [that] projected temperature increases are too high. Of course this is just one study, but it supports the contention climate skeptics have been making for years that the computer models used to predict future warming were exaggerating the impact of CO2, evidenced in part by the fact that the planet hasn't been warming as much as those models say it should. Why is this important? Because all those horror stories told over the past decades are based on predictions of temperature increases that are much higher than 3.4 degrees. And that's the problem. There is nothing settled about this science. Like most people, I want clean air to breathe, pure water to drink, and a nice lake to go camping at. I love the environment as much as the most devout environmentalist. At the same time, I also love prosperity and the vacation time it gives us to appreciate the wonders of nature. My advice to the climate change, or global warming, fanatics, is to get real and stop telling us horror stories about the polar bears. I am open to hear any reasonable point about protecting the climate, but that's not what we are getting from the climatistas. PS: You can listen to my show (Canto Talk) and follow me on Twitter. President Obama, Jay-Z, and 's-holes' It is likely that many readers of the American Thinker are not conversant with the lyrics of rapper Jay-Z. I certainly was not. But being curious about the outrage Senator Dick "Dicky" Durban expressed about the alleged use of the word "s-hole" by President Trump, I checked it out. Did President Obama tolerate the use of "s-hole"? President Obama personally inducted Jay-Z into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the first rapper to receive such recognition. Here is a sample of what President Obama added to our "culture": a song called "Ignorant S---, ft. Beanie Sigel - Russian Gangster Jay-Z." Definitely not safe for work! When will Senator Durbin denounce former President Obama and Jay-Z, a major Democrat donor, for using the s-word? The Department wants to bring to your attention that the FBI's technical system for retaining text messages sent and received on FBI mobile devices failed to preserve text messages for Mr. Strzok and Ms. Page[.] A computer glitch supposedly destroyed five months of text messages of anti-Trumpers at the FBI. Sure, it did. The FBI's adulterous version of Romeo and Juliet reportedly exchanged 50,000 text messages, apparently documenting every thought that came into their heads as they manipulated the nation's national security apparatus for political purposes. What a coincidence! And not the first time the feds have gotten rid of embarrassing data. The NSA, too, "accidentally destroyed" evidence. The National Security Agency destroyed surveillance data it pledged to preserve in connection with pending lawsuits and apparently never took some of the steps it told a federal court it had taken to make sure the information wasn't destroyed, according to recent court filings. Originally reported as a glitch, the State Department said several minutes of tape disappeared. Does anyone believe that the State Department, which tells us it can analyze everything in the world, somehow can't figure out who deleted or who ordered the deletion? The State Department acknowledged Wednesday that someone in its public affairs bureau made a "deliberate" request that several minutes of tape be cut from the video of a 2013 press briefing in which a reporter asked if the administration had lied about secret talks with Iran. The embarrassing admission by State Department spokesman John Kirby came three weeks after another spokesperson insisted that a "glitch" had caused the gap, discovered only last month by the reporter whose questioning had mysteriously disappeared. Somehow, IRS computers mysteriously crashed and especially those that were related to targeting of conservative groups. Does anyone believe that the Justice Department did a serious investigation of the IRS, or was it just a "matter" like Hillary's emails? The Internal Revenue Service is missing e-mails from five more employees whose records could shed light on the agency's targeting scandal, but there are no signs that its personnel have intentionally destroyed evidence, according to an IRS review. I am sure that only personal emails were wiped from Hillary's computer. We can trust her. One part of the story that remains unknown, CNN's Brianna Keilar says, is when exactly Clinton wiped her email server clean. I'm sure nothing destroyed would have been of any interest to investigators or the public. "Yes they did, Brooke." Perez responded. "As he mentioned, there were 13 mobile devices and 5 iPads that the FBI said that in some way were used with her private email server, and they did in some cases just destroy them with hammers when they were done using them." The FBI gave Hillary's aides a deal when they agreed to destroy the laptops. Immunity deals for two top Hillary Clinton aides included a side arrangement obliging the FBI to destroy their laptops after reviewing the devices, House Judiciary Committee sources told Fox News on Monday. Sources said the arrangement with former Clinton chief of staff Cheryl Mills and ex-campaign staffer Heather Samuelson also limited the search to no later than Jan. 31, 2015. This meant investigators could not review documents for the period after the email server became public in turn preventing the bureau from discovering if there was any evidence of obstruction of justice, sources said. Neither the FBI nor any intelligence agency actually analyzed DNC computers, but somehow they are sure the Russians did it. Trusting a third party's report when the DNC hired the third party would be like Al Capone hiring accountants to analyze his tax records and the Justice Department trusting the analysis. Instead, whether because they were denied access or simply never asked for it, the FBI instead used the analysis of the DNC breach conducted by security firm CrowdStrike as the basis for its investigation. Regardless of who is telling the truth about what really happened, perhaps the most astonishing thing about this probe is that a private firm's investigation and attribution was deemed sufficient by both the DNC and the FBI. Somehow the Justice Department was able to find records that it claimed never existed regarding the "non-planned" meeting between Lynch and Bill Clinton. After claiming there were no official records related to the infamous summer 2016 meeting between former [p]resident Bill Clinton and Attorney General Loretta Lynch on her private plan[e] in Phoenix, the FBI is now admitting [that] documents do exist and there are dozens of them. It has been clear for a long time that the Russian collusion story was essentially made up, that the Russian dossier paid for by the Democrats was a fraud, that the Obama administration illegally spied on Trump and his people, that the Hillary email investigation was always a sham, and that people at the FBI and throughout the Obama administration repeatedly targeted Trump and the media still show little interest. Instead, they target Trump every day. Will the media care about the new four-page report that probably shows the Obama administration, Hillary Clinton, and the Justice Department colluding to destroy and spy on Trump, or will they try to keep it secret, as Adam Schiff (who says he wants transparency and leaks like a sieve) wants? Since the Justice Department essentially cooked the books to allow powerful people to get off if they support it, does anyone think the people at Justice won't cook the books to get non-connected people or powerful people they don't support like Donald Trump? Since the government loses and destroys so many records that would hang powerful people, why should we believe that these meddlers won't destroy documents that would exonerate people they want to hang? Journalists should stop pretending they believe in equal justice for all, since they are so willing to look the other way for people they support. I bet they essentially ignore the second Robert Menendez corruption trial as they did the first. One last point: Why have journalists, Democrats, and the Justice Department never cared who murdered DNC staff member Seth Rich? The measure is aimed directly at China, who has been dumping cheap, subsidized solar panels on the U.S. for a decade. The U.S. had imposed anti-dumping tariffs, but China got around them by opening subsidized factories in Vietnam, Malaysia, and other Asian countries. The $28-billion U.S. solar industry is up in arms over the new tariffs, since about 80% of parts come from overseas. But the goal here is to jump-start the expansion of U.S. manufacturing of solar panels. Bloomberg: "We are inclined to view it as posing greater trade risk for all types of energy, particularly if other nations establish new trade barriers against U.S. products," Washington-based research firm ClearView Energy Partners LLC said Monday. U.S. panel[-]maker First Solar Inc. jumped as much as 9 percent to $75.20 in after-hours trading in New York. The Tempe, Arizona-based manufacturer stands to gain as costs for competing, foreign panels rise. Just the threat of tariffs shook solar developers in recent months, with some hoarding panels and others stalling projects in anticipation of higher costs. The Solar Energy Industries Association projected 23,000 job losses this year in a sector that employed 260,000. Trump approved four years of tariffs that start at 30 percent in the first year and gradually drop to 15 percent. The first 2.5 gigawatts of imported solar cells are exempt for each year. The duties are lower than the 35 percent rate the U.S. International Trade Commission recommended in October after finding that imported panels were harming American manufacturers. The idea behind the tariffs is to raise the costs of cheap imports, particularly from Asia, and level the playing field for those who manufacture the parts domestically. "This is not a goodbye for renewable energy in the U.S.," Fatih Birol, executive director of the International Energy Agency, said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "I don't believe [that] this decision will reverse the solar expansion in the U.S. The global solar industry will adjust. The penetration of solar in the U.S. will continue." First Solar is the largest of a handful of panel[-]makers left in the U.S. after most of the industry migrated to China in the past decade. That means [that] the major impact of the duties will be on panel[-]installers, which get most of their supplies from Chinese companies. More than half of U.S. solar imports come from China (8%), Vietnam (9%), and Malaysia (36%). Those who oppose the tariffs don't dispute that subsidized imports are hurting U.S. solar manufacturers, but it harms the goal of vastly expanding renewable sources of energy. In short, we should go green even if it means the loss of tens of thousands of jobs. The folly of that thinking is that Chinese dumping has already largely destroyed the solar industry in America. Tariffs will help level the playing field for the survivors and will probably spur the creation of new solar ventures. China is by far the largest manufacturer in the world of solar equipment. Why not, when the government heavily subsidizes the companies making it? The question is, should U.S. or any other solar manufacturers in the world be forced to compete with companies located in China or owned by the Chinese government that can afford to sell the equipment below cost because of the massive loans given them by Chinese banks? In a word, it's unfair. And the tariffs, which may hurt some American companies in the short term, will present opportunities for other companies to get in the solar game. Creative destruction, anyone? Haven't we always been warned of the nightmare of nuclear codes falling into the hands of ignorant third-world boobs? Somehow, that calls to mind the recent incident in Hawaii of a false nuclear alarm and the governor who delayed advising the public because he...couldn't find his Twitter password. We've met the galoot and he's here. Gov. David Ige told reporters today that part of the delay in notifying the public that the Jan. 13 ballistic missile alert was a false alarm was that he did not know his Twitter account password. The Hawaii Emergency Management Agency issued the false alarm at 8:07 a.m., and Ige was told [that] the missile alert was a false alarm two minutes after the alert was sent to cell phones across the state. However, Ige's office did not get out a cancellation message until 17 minutes after the alert. Ige was asked about that delay when he met with reporters after his State of the State address today, and he said that "I was in the process of making calls to the leadership team both in Hawaii Emergency Management as well as others." Ige added that "I have to confess that I don't know my Twitter account log-ons and the passwords, so certainly that's one of the changes that I've made. I've been putting that on my phone so that we can access the social media directly." The left-wing Hawaiian Democrat ended up causing tremendous distress in his state for that little omission. Maybe not everyone is Twitter-savvy, and that's OK, but to have an account and then not know how to access it is inexcusable in a top official in a time of crisis. If Twitter is the means by which a sizable percentage of the population gets its news, it's a blunder to allow it to go unaddressed. Even a staff member can take care of it which is what Ige's Twitter account now says. Caught unawares, the whole thing is a comedy of error piled up upon error, starting with the initial launch warning, done by a low-level worker, and ricocheting to the governor's office, where the poor dork was searching for his sign-in and password. Pretty pathetic to see this in a Democrat, given their claims to being the party of "progress." Hillary Clinton was another such example from that party. The whole thing points to poor contingency planning for emergencies in the vulnerable Pacific state and raises questions about the rest of Hawaii's contingency planning. With a governor that deep in the dark during a supposed nuclear attack, one wonders what else he has no idea about. Why isn't Chelsea Manning back in jail? Chelsea Manning is thumbing his nose at the law again. Laws, it seems, are for little people, not publicity hogs who get their name in the news. Or perhaps, as Obama's pardon taught him, it's quite possible to get away with anything. In filing to run for the Senate in Maryland, as Manning did a couple of weeks ago, he violated Pentagon regulations prohibiting political activity while on active duty. Manning, who is appealing his conviction for mishandling hundreds of thousands of government documents, falls into that category even while on unpaid leave, according to military lawyers cited by the Daily Caller: Chelsea Manning has filed to run for Senate as a Democratic candidate in Maryland, but such a run subjects Manning to prosecution for violating Pentagon regulations on political activities, according to former military lawyers. Manning, the transgender [sic] soldier who spent seven years in prison for leaking more than 700,000 sensitive documents to WikiLeaks, recently filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission and is seeking the Democratic Party's nomination for the Senate seat in Maryland currently occupied by Democratic Sen. Ben Cardin, a two-term senator. Now, far be it for those of us on the right to want someone like Manning to drop his primary challenge against Democratic Senator Ben Cardin, who will have to spend money to defend his position ahead of the general election. And far be it from most of us to object to Manning as the face of the Democratic Party if he were to beat Cardin. Manning's nutbag positions using the f-word to curse the cops, calling for the shutdown of prisons and opening the borders should probably preclude his being elected even in liberal Maryland, meaning another Republican pickup in the Senate. It's also reality, if not formally so, that Manning is out of the Army and will never be welcome within a mile of its bases, given his odiously treasonous behavior. But there's something distinctly disturbing about how this guy thumbs his nose at anything he ever agrees to, such as following Pentagon regulations, which he had to consent to for the position he got that enabled him to abuse that trust. Such rules, in his fevered mind, are for normal people, not him. The fact that he keeps breaking the law and getting away with it pretty well reinforces that he will just go on doing it and, in the end, diminishing the country. He's got to learn limits if there is to be any rule of law at all. Posted on: January 23, 2018 4:21 PM The church must examine its history and come to a fuller understanding of how it has handled or mishandled cases of sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse through the years, the Presiding Bishop of the US-based Episcopal Church, Michael Curry has said. In a letter to the Church, co-signed by the Revd Gay Clark Jennings, the president of the provinces House of Deputies, Bishop Curry said that recent high profile events have forced societies into fresh recognition that women in all walks of life have suffered unspoken trauma at the hands of male aggressors and harassers. In their letter, the church leaders say that they have become convinced that the Episcopal Church must work even harder to create a church that is not simply safe, but holy, humane and decent. The letter begins with a reference to the compelling testimony from women who have been sexually harassed and assaulted by powerful men; and said that this has turned their minds to a particularly difficult passage of holy scripture: the story of the rape of King Davids daughter Tamar by her half-brother Amnon in 2 Samuel 13: 1-22. It is a passage in which a conspiracy of men plots the exploitation and rape of a young woman. She is stripped of the power to speak or act, her father ignores the crime, and the fate of the rapist, not the victim, is mourned. It is a Bible story devoid of justice. They point to the manual published by the Tamar Campaign which, for more than 20 years, has helped African women from marginalised communities study the passage to explore and speak about the trauma of sexual assault in their own lives, leading them to ask: What can the Church do to break the silence against gender-based violence? Curry and Jennings say that the Church must commit to treating every person as a child of God, deserving of dignity and respect. We must also commit to ending the systemic sexism, misogyny and misuse of power that plague the church just as they corrupt our culture, institutions and governments. Like our African siblings in faith, we must create contexts in which women can speak of their unspoken trauma, whether suffered within the church or elsewhere. And we must do more. Our church must examine its history and come to a fuller understanding of how it has handled or mishandled cases of sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse through the years. When facts dictate, we must confess and repent of those times when the church, its ministers or its members have been antagonistic or unresponsive to people women, children and men who have been sexually exploited or abused. And we must acknowledge that in our church and in our culture, the sexual exploitation of women is part of the same unjust system that also causes gender gaps in pay, promotion, health and empowerment. They call for collective repentance and says that each of us has a role to play, adding: And so, today, we invite you to join us in an Ash Wednesday Day of Prayer on February 14 devoted to meditating on the ways in which we in the church have failed to stand with women and other victims of abuse and harassment and to consider, as part of our Lenten disciplines, how we can redouble our work to be communities of safety that stand against the spiritual and physical violence of sexual exploitation and abuse. Neither of us professes to have all of the wisdom necessary to change the culture of our church and the society in which it ministers, and at this summers General Convention, we want to hear the voice of the wider church as we determine how to proceed in both atoning for the churchs past and shaping a more just future. May we find in our deliberations opportunities to listen to one another, to be honest about our own failings and brokenness, and to discern prayerfully the ways that God is calling us to stand with Tamar in all of the places we find her both inside the church and beyond our doors, which we have too often used to shut her out. Posted on: January 23, 2018 12:25 PM The House of Bishops of the Church of Nigeria has criticised the countrys government for failing to act against Fulani herdsmen who have carried out a series of fatal attacks. The anti-persecution charity International Christian Concern says that 80 people in Benue state have been killed in attacks by Fulani militants this year. At the heart of the conflict is the challenge to the herdsmens nomadic way of life caused by expansion of established farms and villages. According to the Global Observatory, farmer-herder violence in the country has killed thousands of people and displaced tens of thousands more since the current state of Nigeria was founded in 1999. In a communique issued after a meeting of the House of Bishops, the Church of Nigeria expressed sympathy with the families of those killed and injured in attacks by Fulani herdsmen, and went on to say that: The bishops observed that as a result of the continuous inaction of the Government, people are beginning to suspect that there is complicity of the Federal Government in these despicable acts. We therefore call on the Federal Government, as a matter of urgency to address these ugly trends and ensure that the culprits are brought to justice. They continued: However, the bishops strongly believe that the permanent solution to the killings by herdsmen lies in the establishment of ranches in line with world best practices and not grazing colonies. Besides, the young herdsmen deserve a better opportunity for education and advancement in life. The bishops believe that it is unkind to design a life of perpetual wandering for these class of youth. The Nigerian President, Muhammadu Buhari, said yesterday (Monday) that the rising attacks by herdsmen would soon be brought under control by security forces deployed to the vulnerable areas across the country, the Daily Trust reports. His spokesman, Femi Adesina, said that the unfortunate incident of attacks, which had resulted in loss of lives and properties, had already brought sorrow and hardship on many Nigerians, with the government deeply affected. Yesterday, Nigerians gathered in the British capital for a march from Londons Trafalgar Square to 10 Downing Street, the home of Britains Prime Minister, and the Nigerian High Commission, where petitions were handed in calling for action to end the violence. Protestors gather outside the Nigerian High Commission in London. Photo: Adetutu Balogun / Twitter / @Tutsy22 The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, also called for an end to the attacks. In a Tweet, he said: Im deeply saddened by the killings and displacements in #Nigeria. President @MBuhari and authorities are exhorted to act now to end this violence and begin mediated dialogue. I mourn with this great country and stand with them in prayer. Posted on: January 23, 2018 4:43 PM Two staff members are being recruited to help organise the 2020 Lambeth Conference of Anglican bishops from around the world. More than 1,000 bishops and spouses from around the world are expected to attend the event at the University of Kent in Canterbury and at Canterbury Cathedral. Now, as momentum towards the historic gathering builds, the company tasked with organising it are looking for a manager and an administrator. The Lambeth Conference Manager and the Lambeth Conference Administrator will be key players in a small team helping deliver a hugely important conference, the advert for the vacancies say.The central team will ensure the conference runs smoothly and efficiently. The conference manager will deputise for the CEO and work closely with the many outsourced suppliers, stakeholders and help manage the complex plans that are needed to bring over a thousand Bishops & spouses from 165 countries to this 12 day event in Canterbury and for it to be a great success. The administrator will help create the necessary processes, implement detailed plans, work with volunteers and various stakeholders to ensure the success of the event. Both new positions will report to the chief executive of the Lambeth Conference Company, Phil George, who began his work last September. I am really excited about these appointments, he told the Anglican Communion News Service. They are both very significant posts as we look forward to making the Lambeth conference in 2020 a huge success and a significant blessing to the Anglican and Episcopalian churches around the world. The conference may be more than two years away, but there is much to be done. Getting the right people into these posts will help us step up the momentum as we build towards 2020. The post-holders will be based at the Anglican Communion Office, St Andrews House, in west London. Cathy Newman repeatedly tells Jordan Peterson what hes saying in horrendous interview If you cannot understand what your interviewee is saying, you can always couch it in terms you do understand. When Channel 4 journalist Cathy Newman interviewed University of Toronto psychology professor Jordan Peterson, she did just that, opting to bypass Petersons actual words and debate points Peterson didnt say. Her preferred method was to tell Peterson over and over What youre saying is The upshot is that anyone tuning in will fancy reading Petersons book 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos. Camille Paglia calls him the most important Canadian thinker since Marshall McLuhan. You might not agree with him, but it helps to listen: Peterson debates the interview: She fabricated on the fly the villain she hoped Id be. And on his right to offend, he nails it: All you have as a journalist is the right to offend people and hurt their feelings. His video the psychological significance of biblical stories is worth watching. Paul Sorene Posted: 23rd, January 2018 | In: News, TV & Radio Comments (2) | TrackBack | Permalink BEIRUT - Qatar on Tuesday expressed full support for Turkey's offensive in the Kurdish enclave of Afrin in Syria, stating that it is part of ''Ankara's efforts to safeguard its national security''. Turkey has a military base in Qatar and has politically and economically supported Doha, also by providing food, after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt imposed a diplomatic and commercial blockade on the emirate, accusing it of supporting extremist groups and terrorists and of having warm relations with Iran. Qatari foreign ministry spokeswoman, Lolwah al Khater, told national news agency Qna that the 'Olive Branch' operation launched last Saturday by the Turkish army was motivated by ''legitimate concerns'' and the need to ''secure its borders, as well as protect the territorial integrity of Syria from separatist dangers''. Turkey, the spokesperson added, ''has always been a stabilizing factor in the region and Qatar has confidence in its work to preserve the security of civilians and territorial integrity of Syria''. Serbia: Abu Dhabi-funded projects to continue in 2018 (ANSAmed) - BELGRADE, JANUARY 23 - The development of irrigation systems in Serbia, financed by the Development Fund of Abu Dhabi, will continue in 2018. A total of 14 projects were kick started through the Abu Dhabi Fund in the field of irrigation systems, including 11 in Vojvodina (northern Serbia) and three in central Serbia. New projects sponsored by the Fund are also under being prepared to improve agricultural production, the eKapija website reported. The projects are worth 11 million euros. (ANSAmed) Environment: Balearia launches first LNG ferries Built in Italy, active in 2019 with 30% less CO2 emissions (ANSAmed) - NAPLES, JANUARY 23 - Balearia, one of the leading ferry companies in Spain, has announced that it will deploy as of 2019 the first two LNG ferries. The company, which connects Spain to the Balearic Islands and Morocco, explained that the two ships are being built by shipyards Visentini and the first will be dedicated to the connection with the Balearic islands as of the beginning of next year. ''Our dedication to the protection of the environment - explained the company's president Adolfo Utor during the Fitur fair in Madrid - is part of the company's strategy based on the use of liquefied natural gas and other clean energy, as well as the fleet's eco-efficiency''. Utor stressed that LNG enabled to reduce CO2 emissions by 30% and nitric oxide emissions by 85%. Blearia is investing 200 million euros in the two ships, which will be able to carry 810 passengers each, 2,180 linear meters of goods and 150 vehicles. (ANSAmed) ATHENS - The director of the controversial Vial refugee and migrant camp on the island of Chios has resigned, Greece's Migration Policy Ministry said on Tuesday, amid mounting pressure from locals to close it down. Theofilos Tsingalakis, the man tasked with running the hugely overcrowded Vial camp where living conditions have been heavily criticized by human rights groups, cited mounting pressure from "local proponents" as his reason for quitting, without elaborating further. Vial has been the subject of a blockade by local residents who oppose to the government's efforts to expand the facility in order to cope with the continuing influx of refugees and migrants on boats from Turkey. There have been protests, led by local residents, to close the camp down, but Greece's Migration Minister Yiannis Mouzalas has insisted that this cannot and will not happen until the number of people staying there are reduced significantly. Chios, along with Lesvos and Samos, has borne the brunt of the ongoing refugee crisis and locals are angry with big delays in the transfer of thousands of the migrant population staying at Vial to Athens, and only lifted their week-long blockade on Monday. According to the latest figures, there are just over 1,600 migrants living at the state-run camp, which was built to hold a capacity of just 800. Many people, including families and vulnerable groups such as unaccompanied minors and women, are forced to sleep outside in tents due to a lack of space. Human rights watchdog Human Rights Watch have heavily criticized the Greek authorities in its annual review for 2018, for what they describe as "failure to properly identify vulnerable asylum seekers for transfer to the mainland," while also claiming that Greece has "impeded their access to proper care and services." HRW also stated that the EU-Turkey agreement made in March 2016 to try and stem the flow of migrants into Greece and the EU in general has simply lead to "thousands being trapped in Greece in overcrowded and abysmal conditions, while denying most access to adequate asylum procedures or refugee protection." Over 50,000 refugees and migrants remain stranded in Greece, with delays in asylum applications causing a huge backlog due to the sheer number of people that the authorities have to register and process. First Turkish soldier killed in anti-Kurdish offensive 'Died in clashes with YPG and ISIS on the border' (ANSAmed) - Istanbul, January 23 - A Turkish soldier has been killed in fighting with Kurdish rebels of Ypg and alleged ISIS militants in the Turkish border town of Gulbaba, military sources said on Tuesday. The soldier is the first victim among the Turkish troops engaged in the operation 'Olive branch' against the Kurdish-Syrian enclave of Afrin, now in its fourth day. Dozens of Kurds and Syrian rebels coopted by Turkey and at least 24 civilians have already been killed in the offensive, according to the Syrian observatory for human rights. Holocaust survivors protest against migrant expulsions Anne FrankHome SanctuaryMovement ready to take them in (ANSAmed) - Tel Aviv, January 23 - On Monday Holocaust survivors in Israel staged a protest outside the residence of the head of state Reuven Rivlin against the forced expulsion of thousands of African migrants from the country. The protesters also said they were prepared to "hide refugees in their homes" to prevent them from being arrested and deported. "They are not migrants seeking work; the majority are refugees fleeing genocide," said Yehuda Bauer, one of the world's leading historians of the Holocaust. Meanwhile Susan Silverman is using Facebook to organise what she has called the Anne FrankHome SanctuaryMovement, which aims to offer a refuge to those who risk being "removed from Israel" in the coming weeks. Catholic Church leaders, writers, intellectuals and El AL airline pilots have also spoken out against the government decision. (ANSAmed). Egypt: NGO denounces unprecedented human rights violations EuroMed Rights says EU must ask for respect obligations (ANSAmed) - BRUSSELS, JANUARY 23 - The NGO EuroMed Rights on Tuesday called on the EU and member states to ask Egypt to respect their international obligations and guarantee free and fair elections. The organization ''strongly condemned the regime's drift towards authoritarianism'', stressing that ''unprecedented human rights violations as well as attacks against human rights defenders are occurring on a daily basis''. The NGO cited ''harassment of human rights organizations'' and the ''surge in the numbers of enforced disappearances, extra judicial killings and torture cases''. ''The EU cannot afford strengthening relations with a regime that suppresses its own civil society'', the organization also said, expressing concern over the fact that a state of emergency that has recently been extended sacrifices fundamental human rights in the name of security. The NGO said this was leading the country into a situation that is ''worse than before'', when citizens took to the streets asking for ''bread and dignity''. Strike in West Bank against Pence visit Public offices closed. US VP to visit Western Wall (ANSAmed) - Tel Aviv, January 23 - A general strike was underway in the main cities in the West Bank on Tuesday in protest at US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and against the visit to the country by vice president Mike Pence. Pence told the Knesset that the US embassy will be transferred from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem before the end of 2019. Local sources report that many public offices have remained closed on the urging of Fatah and that young people have set fire to tyres on some roads. So far there have been no reports of clashes with Israeli soldiers. On Tuesday Pence is due to visit the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem, but he will not travel to the West Bank. (ANSAmed) ISTANBUL - The spokesman of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Tuesday said in a statement that Turkey's operation against the Kurdish enclave of Afrin ''will continue until the separatist, terrorist organization won't be totally expelled from the region and some 3.5 million Syrians currently staying in Turkey will be able to return safely to their homeland''. The statement was issued after a military summit on operation 'Olive Branch' chaired by Erdogan in Ankara. The offensive is taking place ''successfully, as planned''. A phone call between Erdogan and US President Donald Trump on the military operation is scheduled on Wednesday, Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu announced after a meeting with US counterpart Rex Tillerson in Paris on the sidelines of an international summit against the use of chemical arms. Washington's support to Kurds is at the center of a clash with Ankara since the Obama administration. Tension escalated again on the eve of Turkey's offensive with Washington's announcement of a Kurdish-led border guard corps to be set up with 30,000 men in Syria. (ANSAmed) - BEIRUT, JANUARY 23 - Qatar on Tuesday expressed full support for Turkey's offensive in the Kurdish enclave of Afrin in Syria, stating that it is part of ''Ankara's efforts to safeguard its national security''. Turkey has a military base in Qatar and has politically and economically supported Doha, also by providing food, after Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt imposed a diplomatic and commercial blockade on the emirate, accusing it of supporting extremist groups and terrorists and of having warm relations with Iran. Qatari foreign ministry spokeswoman, Lolwah al Khater, told national news agency Qna that the 'Olive Branch' operation launched last Saturday by the Turkish army was motivated by ''legitimate concerns'' and the need to ''secure its borders, as well as protect the territorial integrity of Syria from separatist dangers''. Turkey, the spokesperson added, ''has always been a stabilizing factor in the region and Qatar has confidence in its work to preserve the security of civilians and territorial integrity of Syria''. (ANSAmed). The Aircraft Interiors Middle East and MRO Middle East events opened today in Dubai. The key players and decision makers from the airline industry will be in Dubai World Trade Centre later this week, when Aircraft Interiors Middle East and MRO Middle East, produced by Aviation Week Network and Tarsus F&E LLC Middle East, take place 23-24 January. With 320 exhibitors expected, the event is set to be the largest yet, spanning all sectors within both the aircraft interior and maintenance, repair and overhaul industries. With around 5000 attendees expected to attend the co-located shows across the two days, AIME and MRO Middle East have become a must attend date in the industrys calendar. With airlines in the region leading the way in terms of both innovation in passenger experience and expansion, the resulting demand attracts exhibitors from as far afield as the USA and Taiwan, in addition to Europe and the Middle East. Many of the exhibitors at AIME are new for 2018, reflecting the growing importance of the show internationally, coupled with returning exhibitors who find true commercial value in their presence at the event. Among those exhibiting for the first time will be Dress Best and AirFi, while those returning include Beadlight and Madelec Aero. We are looking forward to seeing the innovations that will be on display during AIME 2018, said Caryn McConnachie, Aerospace Director of AIME organisers Tarsus F&E LLC Middle East. Between the returning exhibitors and those coming to the show for the first time, there will be lots of opportunities for visitors to learn more about the latest trends and developments in aircraft interiors. MRO Middle East will see industry leading MRO suppliers with a specific focus on commercial aircraft MRO. There are also a large number of first time exhibitors including 3D Systems ME and Foremost International who will be sharing the hall with returning industry stalwarts such as Etihad Airways Engineering. MRO Middle East has gone from strength to strength and remains the Gulf region's leading trade show for commercial aircraft maintenance, said Lydia Janow, Managing Director/Events & Tradeshows, Aviation Week Network. She continues, With the regions airlines investing in planes and expanding routes, the complementary demand for support services continues to grow too. MRO Middle East is the ideal place for them to seek and interact with new suppliers and find out more about the technologies available. Gulf Air has been independently ranked by UK aviation analysts OAG the third most punctual airline in 2017, amongst Middle East and African airlines, with an average on-time performance (OTP) of 80.22%. Gulf Air Chief Executive Officer Kresimir Kucko said: Punctuality is a critical element for travelers and we are delighted to be recognised yet again as a leading global player in OTP. Gulf Air is committed to delivering on its promise to get passengers to their destinations in a timely manner. We are gearing up to welcome our incoming fleet of 39 new Boeing and Airbus aircraft of which a total of 5 Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners and 2 Airbus A320Neos will have entered Gulf Airs fleet by end-2018. With this development, passengers can soon enjoy not only Gulf Airs punctuality and trademark Arabian hospitality, but also remarkable product and service enhancements alongside network growth. Jazeera Airways has added flights into Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport, Ahmedabad. Ahmedabad is the second of three new routes currently planned in to India, following the launch of flights to Hyderabad in November 2017. The first direct flight to Kochi also commenced today at 12:45pm from Kuwait and arrived at 20:10 pm. The CEO of Jazeera Airways, Rohit Ramachandran said: We are delighted to continue our expansion into India with flights into Ahmedabad, an important economic and industrial hub, bringing more choice to Indian travelers, connecting them to Kuwait and across the Middle East to Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar. This new service will address the increased travel demands for travel between India and Kuwait providing direct connections for those visiting friends and relatives as well as business travellers. The Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) has inducted the first of its newly acquired Eurofighter Typhoon swing-role fighters and BAE Hawk Advanced Jet Trainers, ushering in a new era for one of the UKs oldest and closest regional allies. Jon Lake reports. The Sultanate of Oman signed a 2.5 billion ($4.06 billion) contract for the purchase of 12 Typhoons and eight Hawk Mk 166 Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) aircraft, along with in-service support, in December 2012, with deliveries scheduled to begin in 2017. Oman thereby became the seventh customer for the Typhoon (of which 624 have now been delivered or are on order). The Hawk has been delivered to 18 nations and remains in service in 14, and the total number of Hawk aircraft sold, or on order, has now reached 1,020. The RAFO already operates 23 Block 50 Lockheed Martin F-16C/D Fighting Falcons (of 24 originally ordered), and the order for the second batch of these aircraft was interpreted in some quarters as indicating that Omans long-standing plan to acquire the Typhoon had been abandoned. In the event, though, the Typhoons will replace the RAFO SEPECAT Jaguars that were withdrawn from use in late 2014. The new Hawk Mk 166 trainers will probably replace some or all of the RAFOs fleet of about four legacy Hawk 103s and 12 single-seat, radar-equipped Hawk 203s, delivered in the mid-1990s. The order strengthened the long standing relationship between the UK Government, BAE Systems and the Sultanate of Oman, which dates back more than 50 years, and which has seen the supply (through BAE Systems predecessor companies) of Scottish Aviation Pioneers, Percival Provosts, BAC Strikemasters, Hawker Hunters, BAC One Elevens, and SEPECAT Jaguars, as well as older variants of the BAE Systems Hawk. On February 18 2016, BAE Systems announced that final assembly of the first Eurofighter Typhoon for the RAFO (the programmes seventh customer air force) had entered final assembly at its Warton factory in Lancashire, with the start of the marry-up of the fuselage, wings and undercarriage. The aircraft was identified as being one of three two-seat trainers in the order. This first Omani Typhoon made its maiden flight on November 15 2016. The first Omani Hawk Mk 166 jet trainer (ZB123/161) completed its maiden flight from BAE Systems Warton factory airfield on May 6 2017. The first Eurofighter Typhoon and Hawk advanced jet trainer aircraft for the RAFO were formally rolled out and presented to the customer in a ceremony at Warton on May 15 2017, in front of an invited audience of more than 100 dignitaries. The guests included the RAFO commander, Air Vice-Marshal Mattar bin Ali bin Mattar Al Obaidani, and His Excellency Sayyid Badr bin Saud al Busaidi, Omans minister responsible for defence affairs. A fly-past by a RAFO Eurofighter Typhoon aircraft concluded the ceremony. The Omani Typhoon was painted in an overall air superiority grey colour scheme, similar to that used on RAF Eurofighters, but the Hawk wore a three-tone sand, stone and olive drab colour scheme, similar to that applied to the Jaguars at the end of their service in Oman. The first pair of Typhoons for Oman (both two-seaters) departed Warton on their delivery flight at 0910hrs on June 19 this year. The two aircraft arrived at the RAFOs new Adam Air Base on June 21, where the force commander greeted them. Oman is expected to receive four additional Typhoons three single-seaters and a dual-seater by the end of 2017. The first pair of Hawk Mk 166 advanced jet trainer aircraft were delivered to Masirah Air Base on July 29, and four of the eight are now in service. Britains defence relationship with Oman continues to strengthen. During a recent visit to the Sultanate, Defence Minister Michael Fallon praised its role, under the leadership of His Majesty Sultan Qaboos bin Said, in reducing tension in the region. During his visit, Fallon signed a memorandum of understanding covering the use of some facilities at Duqm Port, and to finalise the supply of a number of vessels to the Royal Navy of Oman. He also announced a major exercise between the two countries and confirmed that the Red Arrows, the Royal Air Force aerobatic team, would perform a formation display over Muscat on October 3 2017 as part of its Middle East Tour, which will also take in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE and is intended to be a visible demonstration of UK engagement in the region. The BAE Hawk and Eurofighter Typhoon have been particularly successful in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) market. All six nations operate the Hawk, while Saudi Arabia, Oman, Kuwait and Qatar are also current (or future) operators of the Typhoon. Saudi Arabia is the largest Typhoon export customer, having received 72 aircraft one aircraft was lost on September 13 2017, with its pilot, during a close air support mission against Houthi fighters in Yemen and the Saudis are reportedly in talks with the UK Government for another batch of 48 Typhoons. The final 24 Saudi Typhoons were built to tranche 3 standards, and these are fully capable of swing-role operations, including long-range strike with stand-off weapons. The weapons package being procured with the Typhoons has not been detailed, but is likely to include ASRAAM rather than IRIS-T short range air-to-air missiles, and may include the new MBDA Meteor beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM), as well as Paveway IV dual-mode bombs initially, probably followed by Brimstone and Storm Shadow. British innovation is the focus for multi-award-winning perimeter protection systems group Zaun, as it unveils two brand new products at the 20th staging of Intersec, which takes place from 21 to 23 January at the Dubai International Convention and Exhibition Centre. Above: CorruSec Premier SR4 undergoes assault prior to formal accreditation testing. Zaun will announce CorruSec SR3 and CorruSec Premier SR4, two new high-security fence systems that resist, for more than 5 and 10 minutes respectively, sustained attack with designated specialist power tools. Zauns stand will feature its full suite of SR-rated products, installations of its unique raking ArmaWeave fencing system and government-rated PIDs & PulseSecure electric pulse fencing from electronic and electrified perimeter security systems business Harper Chalice. Zaun co-founder and director Alastair Henman has made no secret of his intentions to refocus Zaun on its manufacturing strengths and set it apart with pioneering innovation and bold investment. To that he has added strengthened relationships with core contractor customers and architects, strategic acquisitions and renewed energy on collaboration and partnering. He said before Intersec: It all contributes to a massively exciting future we are building at Zaun. We are confidently ready to forge into the future and approach 2018 with record consolidated turnover and profit. Over the past two decades, Intersec's influence has spread not only across the Middle East, Africa and the Indian subcontinent but has gone well beyond, offering thousands of influential trade buyers the latest security and safety solutions from the worlds premier manufacturers. Last year, almost 33,000 delegates from all over the world visited more than 1,300 exhibitors from 58 countries. Indian economy grew 7.5 cent in the first three years of Narandra Modi government. New York: India has the potential to achieve10 per cent growth rate, but it needs major reforms in areas in labour laws and land acquisition, former Niti Aayog vice chairman Arvind Panagariya has said. He said Indian economy grew 7.5 cent in the first three years of the Narandra Modi government, but two major reforms - demonetisation and goods and services tax - brought the growth rate down a little. In the current fiscal, he said, India will end up at 6.5 per cent, which is also a pretty good growth rate. "By all accounts, I have no doubt that (India) will get back to eight per cent plus (growth rate). India really today is probably the only game in the town," the professor of economics at the prestigious Columbia University said while addressing the inaugural "New India" lecture series, launched by the Consulate General of India here. The "New India" lecture series is inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of a new India by 2022. It is an initiative of Indian Consul General Sandeep Chakrabarty. He said that although China is probably growing at 6-7 per cent but its rate us likely to decline to five in the years to come. Panagariya said that India will sustain its high growth rate for the next two decades at least with the current trajectory of reforms, unless it starts making mistakes again. He also said that India is headed to become the world's fifth largest economy and there was no doubt that the country has got the potential to do 10 per cent. "Certainly, there is no doubt that we have got the potential to do 10 per cent. "For India to achieve the double-digit growth, the country needs major reforms in labour and land acquisition laws. It also needs significant privatisation and a major reform of civil service, which is quite not sufficient to handle the large economy that India is now," Panagariya said. To a question on next budget, the former Niti Aayog Vice Chairman said that the next budget is unlikely to be different from the previous budgets. "It would be reform-oriented budget in my view. I think there is a lot of talk about reaching the fiscal consolidation plan. Expecting that the budget will give clear indication of reforms," he said, adding that the agriculture sector could see more emphasis in the upcoming budget. Refuted the notion that there was a large-scale unemployment in India, Panagariya said "Unemployment in India is not very high. Jobs are being created, but as the way policies were being adopted in India, in the end it gives very little incentive to employers to employ people in the formal sector." "This is a long standing problem in India." Panagariya said he enjoyed his three-year term in India as the Vice Chairman of Niti Aayog, and he would have stayed longer, if he did not have a permanent job at the Columbia University or the varsity would have given him a longer leave. He described as "scandalous" a number of loans being given without any collaterals. "It is scandalous. What kind of culture are we promoting absolutely unforgivable If one looks at the banks situation, default by the farmers are relatively small. "The problems are all coming from large industrialists, but this government is not letting them go. This government is very tough...The Prime Minister is very tough on the corruption issue," he said. Shah Rukh Khan has said he feels honoured to receive the 24th Crystal Award along side Elton John and Cate Blanchett. Mumbai: Superstar Shah Rukh Khan has said he feels honoured to receive the 24th Crystal Award along side Elton John and Cate Blanchett. The Annual Crystal Awards ceremony, which opens the World Economic Forum summit in the Swiss ski resort, celebrates the achievements of outstanding artists who have shown exemplary commitment to improving the state of the world. "Honoured to receive the World Economic Forum's 24th Crystal Award, together with Elton John and Cate Blanchett. My fan moment," Shah Rukh tweeted after receiving the honour. Honoured to receive the @wefs 24th Crystal Award, together with @eltonofficial and Cate Blanchett. My fan moment!! Watch the #crystalawards via https://t.co/rILPgHRgtL at the #wef18 meeting in Davos. Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) January 22, 2018 During his acceptance speech, Shah Rukh thanked the women in his life especially sister Shehnaz Lalarukh Khan, wife Gauri Khan and daughter Suhana Khan for helping him see the world in a different way. Shah Rukh said, Actors are renowned narcissists. No matter how much we pretend to not to believe in external beauty, we tend to be obsessed by it, one way or another. Perhaps being surrounded by this obsession of beauty, a few years ago I came across a lady who had been brutalized by an acid attack and it kind of changed my life, or the perspective of it at least. To disfigure a woman by throwing acid on her face, to me, is one of the crudest acts of subjugation imaginable. Shah Rukh also spoke about his interactions with the victims of acid attack and said that he had learnt how courage can catalyse victimhood into heroism, how solidarity rather than charity enables the human will to overcome, how equality is not a concept, but a truth that encompasses all living beings and how the service of others is not a choice anymore for any of us. It is a duty that all of us must fulfill, from them. He also mentioned his youngest son AbRam in the speech and gave an analogy about the need to reverse power. He also added, I want to thank my sister, my wife and my little daughter for bringing me up well and teaching me the value of requesting, sometimes imploring and begging a yes from a woman, instead of forcing it upon her. SRK received the award for "his leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India," the World Economic Forum (WEF) said. The past awardees from India include Amitabh Bachchan, Mallika Sarabhai, A R Rahman, Shabana Azmi, Ravi Shankar and Amjad Ali Khan. In the National Executive meet Shiv Sena passed a resolution not to align with BJP in 2019 Lok Sabha, Maharashtra polls. The resolution was passed unanimously in the Shiv Sena's National Executive meet in Mumbai. (Photo: ANI) Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Tuesday passed a resolution not to align with the BJP and go solo in the 2019 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly polls. The resolution was moved by Shiva Sena MP Sanjay Raut, who said the BJP had been demoralising the party for the last three years. The resolution was passed unanimously in the party's National Executive meet in Mumbai. "I moved the resolution for the Shiv Sena to fight the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls on its own in 2019," Raut said. He said the party will win at least 25 Lok Sabha seats (out of a total 48 in Maharashtra) and 125 Assembly seats (out of a total 288) in the state. "The BJP allied with the Sena in the name of Hindutva and the Sena kept patience for Hindutva. However, the BJP in the last three years has been demoralising the Sena and using power to do so," Raut said. Senior Sena leaders backed Raut's resolution. The Shiv Sena is holding internal polls to elect its party president and other functionaries on Tuesday, the birth anniversary of its founder Bal Thackeray. Sena president Uddhav Thackeray is set to be re-elected as there is no other nomination for the post, party sources earlier said. A meeting of senior Sena leaders was held at Thackeray's 'Matoshree' bungalow in suburban Bandra on Monday to discuss the internal polls. 'I am happy to be in Davos to address the WEF; the Summit finds solutions to problems the world faces,' Modi said. Narendra Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister to attend the WEF in Davos since Deve Gowda in 1997. (Photo: Twitter | ANI) Davos/ Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said, in 1997 when former prime minister of India visited Davos, India's GDP was 400 billion dollars, but after two decades now it is more than six times. Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister to attend the WEF in Davos since Deve Gowda in 1997. Delivering a keynote address at the plenary session of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meet in Davos, Modi said, "I am happy to be in Davos to address the World Economic Forum. This Summit seems to find solutions to the various problems the world faces. I thank the people and Government of Switzerland for the warm welcome here." The Prime Minister said in 1997, Amazon was just a forest and tweet was just about a bird. He said WEF is creating a shared community in a fractured world. Modi said, "Technology is assuming immense importance in this era. We have mountains of data now." He also said, data is a big asset today and is posing a big challenge. Modi further added, "There is lack of consensus between us, but there is a feeling of solidarity between us." The Prime Minister said India has always believed in values of integration and unity, 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' which means the entire world is one family. He added that it is relevant to bridge distances. Modi said the world is facing constant challenges and there are three main challenges in front of the world. Climate change The Prime Minister said the glaciers are receding, the Arctic ice is melting, islands are going under water or are about to. He added: "Heat and cold, excessive rain and drought - effects of extreme weather are seen everywhere. Even here, we are seeing the highest snowfall in 20 years." Modi said concerted action is required to tackle climate change. Care towards the environment is part of Indian culture. "We should have shed our divisions and united to tackle the challenge, but we must ask honestly if we have done so. Everyone says climate emissions must be reduced, But how many developed countries reach out to developing nations with the technology required to do so?" Modi asked. He further added, "Thousands of years ago, our sacred texts, read that we humans are the children of mother Earth. But then why do we see a war between humans and environment?" Recalling the father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi, Modi said, "Mahatma Gandhi always endorsed utilisation based on need, and opposed greed. But we have wandered far from that thought and exploited nature. We must ask ourselves, is this development or is this deterioration?" He said to preserve climate, India has set an ambitious target of 175 GW power from renewable energy and we have already achieved 33 per cent of that target. Terrorism The Prime Minister said the second biggest challenge is terrorism. He said, "Terrorism is a big threat to humanity. We all are aware about the threats of terrorism." Modi said the big threat ahead of our world is artificial creation of good and bad terrorists. It is painful to see some youngsters getting radicalised, he further added. Increased self-centredness Modi said the third challenge is increased self-centredness around the world. He said, Globalisation around the world is shrinking. Every one talks of an inter-connected world but the shine of globalisation is reducing. We must see if the global organisations created after World War II reflects the new dynamics of the world today. Some world powers don't just want to shun globalisation but they want to stall it. An example of this is new tariff barriers. Modi further said that Mahatma Gandhi had said he didnt want the walls and windows of his world be closed from all sides. He said he wanted the air of the world to come in freely but that shouldn't uproot his home. The Prime Minister said India follows the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. He said: We Indians understand the value of diversity. We understand the importance of freedom and democracy. Modi further added that in 2014, India's 600 crore voters, for the first time gave a complete majority to one party. He said: We have always strived for 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' (Development for all). And this forms the bedrock of all policies of my government. Be it opening bank accounts for all Indians to ensure financial inclusion, or digital inclusion, or gender justice. Progress is only real when it helps everyone and everyone joins us in the journey. Modi stated the path of Indias progress is reform, perform and transform. He said: This is why investing in India, travelling to India, manufacturing in India has become much easier than before. We have pledged to end license raj, we are removing red tape and laying out the red carpet. New doors for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) are being opened. 1,400 laws that were hurdles to progress have been scrapped. Goods and Services Tax (GST) has been implemented, technology is being used to increase transparency. Democracy, demography and dynamism are shaping our destiny today. Modi said the world's economic and security organisations need reforms, and the world's economic progress must be faster. He said, India has always cooperated with the world to tackle challenges. India has been the largest contributor in the UN peacekeeping force in terms of troops. India has always been the first responder to crises in neighbouring and friendly nations. A predictable, stable, transparent and progressive India will continue to be the good news in an uncertain world. Modi added, India will always be a unifying and harmonising force. Rabindranath Tagore had written of a heaven of freedom where the world is not divided by narrow walls. Lets make that a reality. Inviting the CEOs to India the Prime Minister said, I invite you all to come to India - If you want wellness with wealth, come to India; If you want wholeness with health, come to India; If you want peace with prosperity, come to India. Remember, that you will always be welcome in India. Modi said in 3.5 years (after he was voted to power), India has seen massive changes that accept the aspirations of 1.25 billion Indians. The Prime Minister said, Innovation and entrepreneurship are making young Indians job givers, not job seekers. For a shared prosperity, we have to work together, shedding our differences. The top annual global business is being attended by 70 head of states. 38 heads of major international organisations such as the WTO, the IMF and the World Bank, and nearly 2,000 CEOs including over 100 from India are present at the summit. Other neighbouring countries like Nepal, Bangladesh & Lanka also doing far better in ranking than India. New Delhi: Hours before Prime Minister Narendra Modi showcases India before the global investors community at Davos, Switzerland, the nation was ranked at 62nd place among the emerging economies on an Inclusive Development Index, a World Economic Forum (WEF) report said. India ranks much below Chinas 26th position and even Pakistans 47th. India had been ranked 60th among 79 developing economies last year. Norway remains the worlds most inclusive advanced economy, while Lithuania again tops the list of emerging economies, the World Economic Forum said while releasing the annual index. Mr Modi, who is the first Indian Prime Minister in over 20 years to attend the WEF annual event, will meet over 120 CEOs of top multinational corporations at Davos. The PM will deliver the keynote speech at the WEFs plenary session on Tuesday. Of the three pillars that make up the index, India ranks 72nd for inclusion, 66th for growth and development and 44th for inter-generational equity. The neighbouring countries ranked above India include Sri Lanka (40), Bangladesh (34) and Nepal (22). The countries ranked better than India also include Mali, Uganda, Rwa-nda, Burundi, Ghana, Ukra-ine, Serbia, Philippines, Indo-nesia, Iran, Macedonia, Mex-ico, Thailand and Malaysia. Although China ranks first among emerging economies in GDP per capita growth (6.8 per cent) and labour productivity growth (6.7 per cent) since 2012, its overall score is brought down by lacklustre performance on inclusion, the WEF said. The index takes into account the living standards, environmental sustainability and protection of future generations from further indebtedness, the WEF said. It urged the leaders to urgently move to a new model of inclusive growth and development, saying reliance on GDP as a measure of economic achievement is fuelling short-termism and inequality. The 2018 index, which measures progress of 103 econom-ies on three individual pillars growth and development; inclusion; and inter-generational equity has been divided into two parts. The first part covers 29 advanced economies and the second 74 emerging economies. The index has also classified the countries into five sub-categories in terms of the five-year trend of their overall Inclusive Development Growth score receding, slowly receding, stable, slowly advancing and advancing. Despite its low overall score, India is among the 10 emerging economies with advancing trend. Only two advanced economies have shown such an advancing trend. Excessive reliance by economists and policymakers on Gross Domestic Product as the primary metric of national economic performance is part of the problem, the WEF said. The GDP measures current production of goods and services rather than the extent to which it contributes to broad socio-economic prog-ress as manifested in median household income, employment opportunity, economic security and quality of life, it added. The WEF also said that rich and poor countries alike are struggling to protect future generations, as it cautioned political and business leaders against expecting higher growth to be a panacea for social frustrations, including those of younger generations who have shaken the politics of many countries in recent years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies'. Davos/New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday told top CEOs in Davos that India means business and presents exciting opportunity for the global businesses. Addressing a roundtable before a dinner meet, Modi narrated India's growth story. The Prime Minister was accompanied by top government officials including Vijay Gokhale, Jai Shankar and Ramesh Abhishek. Under the tagline of "India means business", the roundtable was attended by 40 CEOs of global companies and 20 from India. After the meeting, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted about Modi narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global business in India in Davos. The spokesperson also tweeted that the Prime Minister "hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies". Modi, who arrived in Davos on Monday evening, will deliver opening keynote address on Tuesday morning at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting. Besides, he will also interact with the members of international business community of the WEF. On Monday, India also hosted the welcome reception at the WEF annual gathering with ministers, business leaders and celebrities in attendance. More than 130 participants from India attended the meeting of the rich and the powerful where the official sessions began with the opening plenary address by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, industrialist Mukesh Ambani, cine star Shah Rukh Khan and film maker Karan Johar, among others, were present at the reception. After reaching this Alpine town, Modi held a meeting with Swiss President Alain Berset and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties on the sidelines of the summit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Swiss President Alain Berset in Davos and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties on the sidelines of the WEF annual summit. Berset said the discussions marked the meeting of the biggest and the oldest democracies in the world. Thanking Modi, the Swiss President said he would continue to strengthen "our relations" with India. Modi is also the first Indian Prime Minister to attend the WEF meet in two decades. Over 3,000 world leaders from business, politics, art, academia and civil society would be attending the meeting whose theme is 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World'. In a first at the WEF summit, India would also host yoga training sessions for the entire duration of the meeting, while also showcasing Indian heritage and culture. Shah Rukh Khan was presented the award for 'his leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India'. After thanking the World Economic Forum for the award, Shah Rukh Khan finished his speech with 'namaskar' and 'Jai Hind'. (Photo: AP) Davos/ Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan received the Crystal award at the World Economic Forum summit in Davos, Switzerland along with Hollywood actress Cate Blanchett and legendary musician Elton John. Shah Rukh expressed his gratitude saying, "Extremely charged that I've had this amazing opportunity, this award, being recognised like this for minuscule work that I did, I'd like to do it with even more fervour. What is even more pleasant is that India is here in full power." The superstar was at his wittiest best in Davos when he asked actress Cate Blanchett for a selfie publicly and immediately quipped that it may leave his children embarrassed, sending the audience into peals of laughter. On receiving the award, Shah Rukh applauded Blanchett -- who was honoured with the award just before him -- for being the queen of billions of hearts, including his own. He then talked extensively about his social initiative, which he has named after his father, and the reason for the same. Shah Rukh Khan with British musician Elton John, Australian actress Cate Blanchett, Hilde Schwab, Chairwoman and Co-Founder of the World Economic Forum's World Arts Forum, and WEF founder Klaus Schwab, from left, wait for the ceremony for the Crystal Awards on the eve of annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. (Photo: AP) The cine star also thanked his late mother, wife and his daughter for inspiring him. After thanking the WEF for the award, Shah Rukh Khan finished his speech with "namaskar" and "Jai Hind". He was presented the award for "his leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India". Earlier on Monday, he also posed in his signature open arm style right after reaching Davos. Click here to listen to Shah Rukh Khan's speech at the WEF. It was pointed out that the Central board of Film Certification while granting the certificate did not go into the aspect of law and order. New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear on Tuesday petitions filed by the states of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh seeking review of the order revoking ban and allowing the release of Hindi film Padmaavat on January 25 A three judge bench comprising the Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A.M. Khanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud directed listing of the petitions on a mention made by counsel for urgent hearing. Opposing the order allowing screening of the movie in threatres across the country, the two states claimed that section 6 of the Cinematograph Act empowers them to stop exhibition of any controversial movie on the grounds of possible violation of law and order. It was pointed out that the Central board of Film Certification while granting the certificate did not go into the aspect of law and order. They said allowing the exhibition of the film would result in serious consequences in the two States and there would be loss of lives and property. Senior advocate Harish Salve, appearing for Viacom 18 the producers of the Deepika Padukone-starrer, opposed urgent hearing on any such interim applications. The court, however, agreed to hear the applications on Tuesday. Karni Sena, which is opposing the release, has also sought review of the January 18 order and its plea will also be heard on Tuesday. On a petition from the producers, the Supreme Court had on January 18, while staying the ban on the films release, had said that it is the duty of the states to provide protection to persons who are involved in the film and the audience watching it. At the same time, he asked the Muslim community to socially boycott those who take the instant triple talaq route to divorce. Owaisi claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was doing nothing for the nation but was always ahead to take credit for the good work done by others. (Photo: PTI/File) Aurangabad: The triple talaq bill is a conspiracy against Muslims and a move to punish men from the community, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi has alleged. A committee was constituted to look into the row over the film "Padmaavat" but no such step was taken on the triple talaq issue, said the Lok Sabha member from Hyderabad as he launched a scathing attack against the Centre. "The triple talaq bill is a conspiracy against the Muslim community. It is a tactic to bring out the women of the community on roads and send the men to prison," the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader said at a public meeting Monday night. At the same time, he asked the Muslim community to socially boycott those who take the instant triple talaq route to divorce. He said Rs 2,000 crore should be allocated for Muslim women in the budget. The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 was passed by the Lok Sabha in the recently concluded winter session, but could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha with the opposition demanding that it be sent to a Select Committee for a detailed scrutiny. According to the draft law, instant triple talaq will attract a jail term of three years for the husband. Owaisi claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was doing nothing for the nation but was always ahead to take credit for the good work done by others. "The BJP wants a Muslim-free India and this would not happen," he said and urged the people from his community and the Dalits to wake up and raise their voice against injustice. Owaisi alleged that the Union government was trying to forcefully implement the ideology of VD Savarkar. "The ideology of MS Golwalkar, KB Hedgewar and Sawarkar was Hinduism and we are not going to accept it," he added. He also sought to know why Sambhaji Bhide of the Shiv Pratishthan Hindustan and Milind Ekbote of the Hindu Ekta Aghadi were not arrested in connection with the violence on January 1 during an event to commemorate the bicentenary of the Koregaon Bhima battle in Pune. These ISI officers, intelligence sources said, directed Qureshi to revive IM operations in India and target important cities. Qureshi is one of the founders of IM and the mastermind of 2008 serial blasts in Gujarat. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: Investigations into the arrest of a top Indian Mujahideen militant Abdul Subhan Qureshi have revealed that he had made several trips to Nepal during which he met senior operatives of Pakistans Inter Services Intelligence (ISI). These ISI officers, intelligence sources said, directed Qureshi to revive IM operations in India and target important cities. For his stay in Nepal, Qureshi had also forged some documents. It is suspected that these meetings between Qureshi and ISI officials were facilitated by some staff members of the Pakistan embassy in Kathmandu and their role was being investigated. Qureshi was arrested by Delhi polices Special Cell, with assistance from intelligence agencies on Monday while he was in the process of reviving the terror outfit by recruiting more operatives. The ISI, sources claimed, assured all possible help to Qureshi including financial resources to carryout subversive activities within the country. Activities of IM, which was responsible for series of explosions, across the country in 2006-07 but its activities were severely hampered following the Batla House encounter in Delhis Jamia Nagar area in 2008 in which virtually its entire top leadership was eliminated. Senior intelligence officials claimed Qureshis arrest has confirmed what they were suspecting till now that ISI had been making desperate attempts to revive IM, which mainly comprised of local youth, for terror operations in the country. The arrest has also confirms that ISI continues to use Kathmandu and some other areas in Nepal as their base to rope in terror operatives to target India. Though there is increased co-operation between India and Nepal on sharing intelligence on terrorism and organised crime the ISI remains active in some parts of the neighbouring country, a senior intelligence official said. Efforts are being made to get more details from Qureshi to ascertain the identity of ISI and other Pak embassy officials in Kathmandu whom he had met during the visits. A joint team of Special Cell and senior intelligence officials is subjecting Qureshi to custodial interrogation to get more details on his future terror plans. Qureshi is one of the founders of IM and the mastermind of 2008 serial blasts in Gujarat. Qureshi is said to be expert in assembling Improvised Explosive Devices. It is alleged that they entered into a criminal conspiracy to cheat the Government by importing coal of Indonesian origin. The action has been initiated on the basis of the outcome of an internal investigation carried out by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence. (Photo: PTI) New Delhi: The CBI has initiated its probe into a Rs 487 crore scam related to the alleged over valuation of inferior quality of coal imported from Indonesia, which was passed on to NTPC and other power generation companies in collusion with government officials. According to sources, the action has been initiated on the basis of the outcome of an internal investigation carried out by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), which had shown over invoicing in the imports between 2011-12 and 2014-15. The CBI FIR is against Ahmed A.R. Buhari, promoter of Coastal Energy Private Limited, Channi and unidentified officials of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC), Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation, Aravali Power Company Pvt Ltd. The agency has booked them under the charges of criminal conspiracy cheating and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act, they added. It is alleged that they entered into a criminal conspiracy to cheat the Government by importing coal of Indonesian origin. Modi speaks of ending division, fractures in Davos address. Davos: Narendra Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister to address the World Economic Forum (WEF) here on Tuesday during which he talked about serious challenges and grave concerns facing the world, including terrorism and climate change. He also sent out a strong message against protectionism and inward-focused economic policies being practiced by some countries, which Mr Modi said could be as dangerous as terrorism and climate change. Mr Modi also warned against the artificial distinction made between good terrorist and bad terrorist. Speaking at the plenary of the WEF annual summit, Modi also said it is painful to see some youngsters getting radicalised, adding that Indias position on the menace of terrorism is well known and he would not like to elaborate on that. Let us create a heaven of freedom, where there is cooperation and not division, fractures, Mr Modi told the gathering. He also emphasised that a predictable, stable, transparent and progressive India is good news in an otherwise uncertain global environment. The Prime Minister, who arrived here on Monday, said issues of peace, security and stability have emerged as serious global challenges. He urged leaders to come together to help the world get rid of its fractures.There are many questions before us that require answers for generations to come. Is the existing international system promoting fractures and rift in this world? Can we remove these rifts and distances to make a good shared future? the prime minister said. Mr Modi is the first Indian prime minister in two decades to attend the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meet, whose theme this year is Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World. In what was seen as an apparent reference to policies like America First, especially since US President Donald Trump will be coming to Davos later this week, Mr Modi said, Many countries are becoming inward focused and globalisation is shrinking and such tendencies cant be considered lesser risk than terrorism or climate change. Referring to this years summit theme, Mr Modi said it was relevant for him as Indians have always believed in uniting and not dividing people.We always talk about Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (world is one family), the prime minister said, adding that the problem today is lack of consensus to tackle the problems. Even in families there are differences but there is always a feeling to tackle it collectively whenever there is a common threat, he noted. In an interconnected world, globalisation is losing its lustre. Do global organisations created after the Second World War really reflect the aspirations and dreams of mankind today? With respect to the developing countries there is a very big gap, he said. Further, the prime minister noted that science and technology and economic growth parameters are also creating some fractures. Many changes are creating those walls that have made peace very difficult, he added. According to Mr Modi, everyone talks about an interconnected world but it needs to be admitted that globalisation is losing its sheen and there is a big gap between the developed and developing world. Mahatma Gandhi had said I dont want doors and windows of my house to be closed and I want winds of cultures of all countries to come inside but I wont accept it if that uproots my own culture, Mr Modi said. Hard selling India as an investment destination at the WEF, Mr Modi said the government is following the principle of reform, perform and transform. We have made it so easier to invest in India, manufacture in India and work in India. We have decided to uproot licence and permit Raj. We are replacing red tape with red carpet, he added. Stating that hundreds of reforms have been carried out by the central and state governments, the prime minister said 1,400 archaic laws that were becoming roadblocks in Indias growth have been removed and the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has been implemented, among others.Inclusive development is key to all government programmes, whether it is Jan Dhan Yojana, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao or Direct Benefit Transfer through digital infrastructure, he said. Mr Modi also said those wanting wealth with wellness and peace with prosperity should come to India. Addressing the threat of climate change he said, Glaciers are receding, islands are sinking or are about to sink and extreme weather conditions are increasing day by day, adding that India does not damage the natural resources of any country. We need to think what can be done to tackle this issue together. Everyone says we need to do something but how many countries are there in the developed world who talk about helping smaller countries on this issue? MR Modi said as he quoted Sanskrit shlokas to assert that we are children of mother earth. According to emergency room doctor Kenny Banh, the incident which happened two months ago while he was working in emergency room in Fresno. The patient reported that he had abdominal pain and bloody diarrhea before seeing part of the worm hanging out of his body while on the toilet. (Photo: Pixabay) A California man who regularly used to eat salmon sashimi now swears to lay off raw fish after pulling a tapeworm out of his body that was nearly as long as he was tall. According to emergency room doctor Kenny Banh, the incident which happened two months ago while he was working in an emergency room in Fresno. A young man came in, saying he had bloody diarrhea and wanted to be treated for worms. The doctor was initially somewhat skeptical that the man actually had worms, but his curiosity was piqued when he saw a small plastic bag next to the patient. On asking the patient what it was he said it was the worm The story, which originally appeared in The HuffPost, saw Banh saying, I open it up and I take out a toilet paper roll ... and wrapped around it is of course this giant, long, what looks like a flat tapeworm. The patient reported that he had abdominal pain and bloody diarrhea before seeing part of the worm hanging out of his body while on the toilet, Banh said. He started pulling on the long, stringy item until it was all the way out. The patient was actually relieved that it was a tapeworm and not his organs spilling out of his body. But he was understandably curious about where the worm came from. The doctor went on to question the man about possible risk factors and the man said he loved sushi and consumed raw salmon almost everyday. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the most common tapeworm to infect humans is Diphyllobothrium latum. People become infected after eating certain types of raw or undercooked fish, including salmon. Properly cooking the fish or, in the case of sushi, flash-freezing it at a low enough temperature kills these worms. The CDC notes that most cases are asymptomatic, though infection can cause symptoms like abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting and even vitamin B12 deficiency and anemia. According to Banh, the worm had most likely been growing inside the mans body for about six months. According to Banh the ordeal made the patient swear off sushi for good. Pictures released by police showed the animal sitting in the dark, in a shallow muddy pool. The crocodile "has lived here since 2005," a neighbour told local television. "He was little at the time." (Photo: Pixabay) Russian police searching a suspect's home for a weapons stash in the northwestern city of Saint Petersburg were surprised to encounter a large crocodile living in the basement, city police said Friday. Officers were inspecting a property owned by a man suspected in a case of illegal arms possession and trafficking in Petergof, a suburb of Saint Petersburg famous for its tsarist palace. "In the basement of the house, the officers uncovered a crocodile," the police statement said. "No incidents involving the reptile occurred during the search" police said, adding that a veterinary service is now looking for a new home for the animal. Pictures released by police showed the animal sitting in the dark, in a shallow muddy pool. Daytime temperatures in Saint Petersburg hovered around minus seven degrees Celsius (19 Fahrenheit), far below the preferred climate for the species. The crocodile "has lived here since 2005," a neighbour told local television. "He was little at the time." Fontanka local news site reported the animal was a two-metre-long Nile crocodile and said it belonged to a military reenactment enthusiast who ran a youth club in the building. 10 personnel to be posted at each multiplex on Jan. 25. Mumbai:The Mumbai police will deploy its personnel in adequate numbers outside multiplexes and single-screen theatres on January 25, when the controversial film Padmaavat is set for release, to ensure that it is screened without any disruption. The police has also sought help from the theatres to ensure that their staff stays vigilant against troublemakers by conducting in-house screening of patrons, said police sources. The police will deploy up to 10 security personnel outside multiplexes. The police will also provide protection to the movies production team and actors. We are in touch with associations representing the citys multiplex and single-screen movie theatres to ensure the screening happens without any disturbance in view of threats from some outfits to disrupt the release, said a source. He added, We will deploy adequate police force around the multiplexes and single-screen theatres to thwart any violence or force by disruptive elements. There are provisions in the law to deal with these threats, but I should not spell that out as it will alert potential mischief-makers. Speaking about security arrangements related to the movies release, Mumbai police commissioner Dattatray Padsalgikar said, We will undertake adequate security protocols to ensure the law is not broken by anybody. Deepak Devraj, the Mumbai police spokesperson, said We will provide security to all cinema halls and multiplexes in Mumbai that are screening the movie. All strategies to maintain law and order are in place and we will execute them on the day. The police has also kept under the scanner over 100 supporters of organisations that were detained on January 12 for protesting outside the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) office and Haji Ali against the clearance given to the film, which was earlier titled Padmavati. The outfit had demanded a ban on the film. The Rajput Karni Sena has been appealing the public to observe a janta curfew on the day the film releases. Meanwhile, multiplex owners stated that they have already given applications to the local police asking for security arrangements and they have been assured the same. According to the Cinema Owners & Exhibitors Association of India, the movie is going to release in at least 70 per cent of single screen theatres. Pad Man has the cleared the deck for Padmaavat by postponing its release. A lot of money is at stake for Padmaavat including that of distributors. Also, we do not have any other movie to screen than Padmaavat, said Deepak Kundale, President of the umbrella body. Security cover The state had been issuing permits to vehicles with less than 12+1 seating capacity. The court asked the state to submit the list of vehicles that were being used as school buses. Mumbai: The Bombay high court has directed the state to enumerate the steps taken by it to implement safety measures in school buses and whether it has created awareness among School Bus owners about the latest safety guidelines. The court also asked the state to submit the list of vehicles that were being used as school buses without following safety guidelines and whether school bus committees were formed in all schools in two weeks. A division bench of justices Naresh Patil and Nitin Sambre was hearing a public interest litigation filed by the PTA United Forum seeking directions to the state government to ensure proper implementation of the school bus safety norms as laid down by the centre in the Motor Vehicles Act of 2012. Advocate Rama Subramanium appearing for the forum informed the court that despite rules and guidelines being formulated and a school bus being defined by the Act, the state had been issuing permits to vehicles with less than 12+1 seating capacity. She further said that such vehicles flouted all safety norms thus endangering the lives of school children and the state had failed to take any action. She also said that the Common Standard Agreement (CSA) to be signed between the school and bus owners was also not done in schools nor steps were taken to create awareness about setting up of school bus committees in schools that use contracted and uncontracted vehicles. However, government pleader Abhinandan Vagyani submitted that the state had been following its own set of guidelines for school bus safety. Doklam and the Sino-Indian frontier are irritants and eyesores to Chinese leaders. Once again, things are falling apart (or should one say falling into place?). On the expected lines, in a manner that has almost become the hallmark of Chinas international behaviour. This includes needless defiance, avoidable stubbornness, unnecessary obstinacy and mimicking of the archaic 19th century gunboat diplomacy of the British and other Western imperial powers that ruined the economy of the Orient and other Third World countries which had mineral and mining wealth bestowed by nature. What makes China, the inheritor of a glorious ancient civilisation, behave the way it consistently does these days? There are no straight answers available to the outside world except perhaps to a few strategic policy decisionmakers in the top echelons of the Chinese political hierarchy. From the overall behaviour pattern of contemporary Chinese in the global arena, one can suggest a few thoughts based on facts and figures derived from open source material. First, its now clear China wants to play a dominant role as a prelude to becoming, as it hopes, the sole superpower, playing the primary role of friend, philosopher and guide to most nations, if not all. Why? Because, it says, for far too long China has been the (sole) sick man of the Far East suppressed by the West despite being the most populous nation with the fourth largest land mass (959,7000 sq km) after Russia, Canada and the United States. Further, the psyche of the Chinese leadership evolved and concretised after the Second World War. China saw a tiny nation, Japan, growing into a superpower from 1895 and remaining so till 1945, with a huge swathe of land of conquered Asian nations (supplying raw material), develop an invincible navy, an aggressive leadership and overlording it (over China) for close to two decades. Moreover, in the faraway Occident, emerged another Japan-like power in the 1930s Germany. With little access to the sea, a few overseas colonies (compared to the British or French), following the 1919 Versailles Treaty, a shattered Germany rose from the ashes to become a superpower which could simultaneously take on the whole of Europe, so much so that even the mighty United States became wary of its prowess, preferring to remain in splendid isolation as long as possible. All these superpowers were, however, like pygmies before the Chinese as hardly any could boast of a 5,000-year-old civilisation of high quality philosophy, commerce, economics, administration and knowledge. Yet, while China remained down; Berlin and Tokyo rose again, thanks to the diligence of its people, coupled with foreign funds. So what did China do? It undertook an arduous and long-term internal reconstruction (for nearly 30 years) before opening up to the external world in the beginning of the 21st century. Unfortunately, the benign China of ancient tradition and civilisation turned into the belittling China, thereby implying that whoever came in the way of Chinas plan of action, thoughts and belief on terrain, topography, geography, mountains, oceans, rivers, hills or the likes of any immovable asset which Beijing had once read in the book of history, mythology, epic or novel as belonging to Beijing, would be belittled. Seen in this background, the latest claim by Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lu Kang that Doklam construction is legitimate simply falls in line. In one stroke, China has conceded that Doklam construction is taking place and that it will go on uninterrupted, despite its proximity to Indias Chickens Neck, and its legitimate concerns. Why then do some Indians criticise Army Chief Gen. Bipin Rawat when he pointed this out in a matter-of-fact way? Was the Army Chief wrong? One certainly doesnt think so. Diplomats are a privileged lot; they speak from the high table, but the general has to report the reality from the hot terrain. Therefore, there cannot be any disconnect between the defence terrain and diplomatic-table as the aims and objectives of both are the same. But I think the real reason behind such behaviour by the Chinese is its basic potential (internal) nightmare food and water. Chinas population is 1.4 billion, and feeding this vast number first and foremost duty of the Chinese State, as no nation can aspire to be a superpower with imported foodstuff. Hence, agricultural land and water (for both drinking and irrigation) are sine qua non. Unfortunately, for China, here comes the real problem vis-a-vis India sustained, impressive industrial and economic growth notwithstanding. While India has the fourth most fertile land, with 53.7 per cent of the total land area (after Bangladeshs 61.11 per cent, Moldovas 56.22 per cent and Ukraines 56.01 per cent), China, despite being the largest agricultural output nation, has just 15 per cent land which is cultivable. Add to this the massive urbanisation, resulting in a substantial loss of agricultural land, posing a threat to its future food security. To make matters worse, it now transpires that water too constitutes a serious internal problem which could disrupt Chinas ambitious planning both internal and external. In fact, earlier too, water was a major problem, something that led Mao Zedong to quip in 1952: The countrys south has lots of water. The north has less, if it were possible, it could borrow a little. Thus was opened on November 15, 2013 Chinas central water route between Zhengzhou-Shijiazhuang and Beijing, followed by the eastern water route between Shanghai and Tianjin on December 12, 2014. As China is in the process of developing western water route, its focus is now focused on the Himalayas the ultimate inexhaustible source of water from where originate the mega rivers of South Asia. From the Brahmaputra in the east to the Sindhu (Indus) in the west stands the water reservoir, an area where also falls the Sino-Indian frontier still a matter of dispute as control of its high watershed points are of supreme importance for food, agriculture and water for the two largest demographies of the world. Chinas inflexible attitude and unbending posture on Arunachal Pradesh, Doklam, Bhutan, Sikkim, Nepal, Ladakh, Karakoram Pass, Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir and the route along Sindhu (Indus) river ending at Gwadar (including the BRI, OBOR, CPEC) constitute the pre-emptive action of the possible internal imbroglio of Beijing, on its external affairs chessboard. The Chinese plan emanates from the basics first, agriculture, arable land, food and water; second, seafood, fuel, gas from the ocean; third, indigenous industrial production; fourth consumer markets like India; fifth, land connectivity of the vast Euro-Asia landmass to avoid the turbulent sea; and sixth, technology from West. Doklam and the Sino-Indian frontier are irritants and eyesores to Chinese leaders. Its a festering issue that cant be wished away anytime soon. The White House did not immediately respond to a question on the Post's assertion that Trump has been imitating Modi in Indian accent. Narendra Modi told Trump in an Oval Office meeting in June, 2017, 'Never has a country given so much away for so little in return' as the United States in Afghanistan, The Washington Post quoted sources as saying. (Photo: File | PTI) Washington: US President Donald Trump has reportedly used an Indian accent to imitate Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his conversations about US policy in Afghanistan, according to a report in a leading American daily on Tuesday. Modi, during his visit to the US in 2017, held talks with Trump on a number of issues including the situation in war-torn Afghanistan. Modi told Trump in an Oval Office meeting in June, 2017, "Never has a country given so much away for so little in return" as the United States in Afghanistan, The Washington Post quoted sources as saying. To Trump, Modi's statement was proof that the rest of the world viewed the United States as being duped and taken advantage of in Afghanistan, the Post said. "Senior administration officials said that the president has been known to affect an Indian accent and imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," the Post reported. The White House did not immediately respond to a question on the Post's assertion that Trump has been imitating Modi in Indian accent. Democratic Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi condemned Trump's reported habit of affecting an Indian accent to imitate Modi. "I was appalled to read that President Trump reportedly affected an Indian accent to imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said. "In the wake of the President's recent comments disparaging entire regions of the world while we still face such division at home, behaviour that belittles our allies and 'otherises' entire communities of Americans is one of the last things we need. Americans are not defined by their accents, but by their commitment to this nations values and ideals," Krishnamoorthi said. Multiple times in the past, the White House has denied such reporting from the Post including his alleged "shithole" remarks during a meeting with lawmakers early in January. Trump has quite often accused the Post of circulating "fake news". According to the daily, Trump has made it clear to senior Pentagon officials that he wants to see a quick return on the increased US investment in troops and money in Afghanistan. Pentagon officials are also under pressure to keep troop numbers from growing significantly, it said, adding that up to 1,000 more US troops could be headed to Afghanistan this spring. Arti Dhir had been arrested in 2017, after an Interpol alert over the murder of the 12-year-old boy in February same year. Dhir, who worked at Heathrow Airport, allegedly met Mund and Raizada while they were students in London and had plotted the murder by hiring contract killers since 2015. (Photo: Facebook) London: A London-based Indian-origin woman faces extradition to India for her involvement in the murder of a 12-year-old orphan from Gujarat. Arti Dhir had been arrested in 2017, after an Interpol alert over the murder of the 12-year-old boy in February same year. The 52-year-old appeared before Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Tuesday for a hearing on her bail application, which remains pending as her family members put together nearly 50,000 pounds as security. "This should be sorted out in a week," Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot told Dhir, who remains in custody until the security is deposited with the court. An investigation by the Gujarat Police has claimed that Dhir and two other accused - Nitish Mund and Kanwaljit Raizada - had hatched a plot to adopt the 12-year-old and then insure him for around Rs 1.3 crores before staging his kidnapping and murder in India to split the life insurance payout three ways. Dhir, who worked at Heathrow Airport, allegedly met Mund and Raizada while they were students in London and had plotted the murder by hiring contract killers since 2015. The 12-year-old and his brother-in-law, Harsukh Patel, were stabbed to death on a road outside Rajkot in February 2017. Interpol issued a "red notice" for Dhir in April 2017, and she was arrested by Scotland Yard in June 2017. Dhir's extradition hearing is scheduled at Westminster Magistrates' Court for April 30. The French cosmetics giant last week selected her to be the first woman in a hijab for a mainstream shampoo campaign. It is not the first time L'Oreal advertising campaign to promote diversity has foundered because of controversial social media comments by a model. (Photo: Instagram | amenaofficial) Paris: British model Amena Khan, who had been chosen by L'Oreal to appear in an advertising campaign in Britain, has pulled out over accusations she made anti-Israeli comments in a series of old tweets. The French cosmetics giant last week selected her to be the first woman in a hijab for a mainstream shampoo campaign. Khan's messages, posted on Twitter in 2014, have since been deleted. "I deeply regret the content of the tweets I made in 2014, and sincerely apologise for the upset and hurt that they have caused," she said on Twitter on Monday. "With deep regret, I've decided to step down from this campaign because the current conversations surrounding it detract from the positive and inclusive sentiment that it set out to deliver." L'Oreal group, contacted by AFP, said it "approved" her decision. "We appreciate the fact that Amena has apologised for the content of her tweets and for the reactions they may have aroused," it said. It is not the first time L'Oreal advertising campaign to promote diversity has foundered because of controversial social media comments by a model. Last summer the group dropped British black transgender model Munroe Bergdorf over Facebook comments she made accusing all whites of racial violence. N Korea is developing missile and nuclear technology amid regular threats to destroy the US and Japan and in defiance of UNSC resolutions. Han, addressing the UN-sponsored Conference on Disarmament, said nuclear tests in 2017 had allowed his country to 'perfect a national nuclear force' in a transparent manner. (Photo: AP | Representational) Geneva: North Korea said on Tuesday it had a "powerful and reliable" nuclear deterrent to thwart any attack and accused the United States of deploying military assets nearby under the pretext of ensuring security at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics. "This is a dangerous act of throwing a wet blanket over the current positive atmosphere of inter-Korean relations ... which could drive again into an extreme phase of confrontation," Han Tae Song, North Korea's Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, said. South Korean President Moon Jae-in said on Monday a thaw in relations between the two Koreas ahead of next month's Winter Olympics presented a "precious chance" for the United States and North Korea to discuss the North's weapons programmes. North Korea is developing missile and nuclear technology amid regular threats to destroy the United States and Japan and in defiance of UN Security Council resolutions. Han, addressing the UN-sponsored Conference on Disarmament, said nuclear tests in 2017 had allowed his country to "perfect a national nuclear force" in a transparent manner. "Thus DPRK (North Korea) at last came to possess a powerful and reliable war deterrent," he told the Geneva forum. "I am proudly saying that DPRK's nuclear force is capable of frustrating and countering any nuclear threats from the US and it constitutes a powerful deterrent that prevents the US from starting an adventurous war." Han said as a "responsible nuclear power" North Korea could not resort to using the weapons unless hostile forces violate its sovereignty or interests. US disarmament ambassador Robert Wood said: "The United States will not recognise North Korea as a nuclear weapon state. "If the North wishes to return and be in the good graces of the international community, it knows what it has to do, it has to take steps toward denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula." In an earlier speech on Tuesday, United Nations disarmament official Izumi Nakamitsu welcomed an easing of tensions between North and South Korea but called for further steps towards removing nuclear weapons from the divided peninsula. Police sources confirmed suspect Imran Ali had confessed to his crime before an investigation team. On January 5, the girl had gone missing while going to a religious tuition centre near her house in Kasur city, some 50km from Lahore. (Photo: AFP) Lahore: A 23-year-old neighbour has been arrested in the brutal rape and murder case of 7-year-old Zainab in Kasur city in Pakistan's Punjab province, days after the heinous crime sparked a national outrage. Police sources confirmed suspect Imran Ali had confessed to his crime before an investigation team. Ali was known to the girl's family and would also frequent her house, police sources said. They said Ali had been taken into custody over two weeks ago but was let go on the victim family's plea that 'he could not be a culprit'. Punjab government spokesman Malik Ahmad told PTI that Ali had confessed to his crime but it would be confirmed whether he is the culprit or not after a DNA test. "Imran Ali's DNA test is underway and hopefully we will have the report later in the day," Ahmad said, adding the suspect has been arrested from Pakpatan district of Punjab. On January 5, the girl had gone missing while going to a religious tuition centre near her house in Kasur city, some 50km from Lahore. Her parents had been in Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah and she had been living with her maternal aunt. After her abduction, a CCTV footage showed her walking with a stranger near Peerowala Road. On January 9, her body was recovered from a heap of trash near the Shahbaz Khan Road. Autopsy report had confirmed rape. Police have carried out DNA test of more than 1,000 suspects. The Pakistan Supreme Court on last Sunday gave a 72-hour deadline to Inspector General of Police to arrest the culprit. Violent protests gripped the Kasur city following the girl's murder that claimed two lives. The incident also stirred a national outcry demanding justice for her. Last year, 4,139 incidents of child abuse took place in the province where 43 per cent of them were acquainted with perpetrators. Mohamed Nasheed lives in exile in London. Beijing leased at least 16 atolls to build ports and infrastructure for its New Silk Road. The opposition leader also warns that Muslim extremists are a threat to the country. Male (AsiaNews/Agencies) The Maldives first democratically-elected president has accused China of a land grab. Mohamed Nasheed, 50, leader of the Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP), was forced into exile in London by a coup. During a visit to Colombo, Sri Lanka, where many of his partys activists are based, he attacked Chinas strategy of leasing some of his countrys islands, which he deems a threat to its national sovereignty. He also warned against the growth of Islamic extremism, which could lead to a parallel state in the tropical tourist paradise located in the Indian Ocean. Nasheed noted that Chinese interests have leased at least 16 of the atoll nations 1,192 coral islands. The Maldives are part of Beijings New Silk Road, which includes the construction of ports and infrastructure on leased land. For the former president, "This is colonialism, and we must not allow it. We want other countries (in the region) to join us and speak the same language (against Chinese expansion). We are not against any country, not against direct foreign investment, but we are against relinquishing our sovereignty." In 2008 The MDP leader became the Maldives' first democratically-elected president but was ousted in a coup backed by religious extremists in February 2012. In 2015 he was jailed on terrorism charges which he says were politically motivated. In Colombo he announced that if he was re-elected in the Maldives next year, a predominantly Muslim country of 340,000, he would reopen the deals signed with China. With respect to Islamic extremism, Nasheed noted that at least 300 Maldivians joined the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq and that many are coming home. He added that key branches of the government were being infiltrated by Salafists, an ultra-conservative branch of Sunni Islam. "It's not an exaggeration to say that there is now a parallel state in the Maldives. A state within the state. A network of religious radicals have infiltrated strategic institutions, the government and the street gangs." by Nirmala Carvalho The Sehal Christ Church attacked on January 16. Hindu fanatics wanted to "avenge" the alleged murder of a woman "forcibly converted ". Sajan K George: "In the Indian state, Christians are between the anvil and the hammer of nationalists and Muslims". Mumbai (AsiaNews) - A crowd of 300 Hindu radicals assaulted and burned a Pentecostal church and several Christian-owned shops in Jammu and Kashmir. It was reportedly a "revenge" attack for the alleged murder of a woman by her husband. The lady, who converted from Hinduism two years ago, died of complications of a disease contracted years earlier. But the family, which had never accepted her conversion to Christianity, spread rumours of murder and forced conversion, which triggered the violent reaction of the extremists. Sajan K George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), tells AsiaNews that in the Indian state "Pentecostal Christians suffer the worst persecution. They are accused of forced conversions, and instead people attend prayer meetings and embrace the Lord as their Savior who frees them ". The Christian leader explains that in Jammu and Kashmir "the tiny Christian minority is held between the anvil and the hammer. From 2014 the territory is governed by a coalition between BJP [Bharatiya Janata Party, Hindu nationalist party - ed] and the Peoples' Democratic Party. Christians are persecuted by both: on the one hand, radicals on the extreme right; on the other, Muslim extremists ". The assault on the Sehal Christ Church, affiliated to the Friends Missionary Prayer Band, and located in a village near Nowshera, took place on January 16. The Hindus of the Bajran Dal [youth faction associated with the BJP, ed] a group of 300 assailants broke into the church and interrupted the prayer. The faithful present were beaten up and at least 12 were seriously injured. Two police officers arrived on the scene to quell the violence, but the crowd then moved on to nearby Christian shops, damaging property for thousands of rupees. The Hindus were incited by the alleged murder of Seema Devi, wife of Rinkhu Kumar, who also converted to Christianity. The two were married two years ago and shortly after the wedding the womans health problems emerged, which at the time had been treated in hospital. Recently, the new worsening of the illness had prompted Rinkhu to take his wife to Jalandhar, to the church where they had married, to pray for her recovery. On January 11, the woman's condition seemed to improve, until the sudden death occurred on the 15th. After hearing the news of her daughter's death, the family released the news that Seema had been forcibly converted. One uncle declared "that she would never agree to voluntarily renounce his Hindu faith". What most shocked the local Christian community is that after the church attack, the body of Seema was burnt on a pyre, as the Hindu funeral tradition wants. Meanwhile, Christians fled to the forest to escape aggression. At least seven of them have been arrested, including Rinkhu. On the contrary, none of the Hindu assailants have been apprehended. Now local witnesses warn that Christians present on January 16 during the prayer are forced to return to the Hindu religion, under penalty of persecution. Furthermore, the local pastor is untraceable. Sajan K George denounces the climate of violence and states that "the Pentecostals find peace, inclusion and equality in the gatherings of adoration, which leads them in a voluntary way to embrace Jesus and the Church. Hindu fanatics are opposed to all this. In this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, the GCIC prays for the Pentecostal Churches to be accepted like the main Churches as evangelizers of Jesus and of the Gospel". It is located near a ski resort, 150 km from Tokyo. A hail of ash ad an avalanche. No volcanic activity had been recorded before the eruption. Tokyo (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The Kusatsu-Shirane volcano erupted near a ski resort 150 km from Tokyo, killing a member of the Japanese defense force and injuring at least 14 people, some of them seriously. The explosion occurred at 9:59 local time, spewing ash for over a mile which hurt some people in the fall, including passengers of a cable car. The eruption could also be the cause of an avalanche that has trapped several skiers on the slopes. According to the Land Defense Self-Defense Forces, some soldiers were overwhelmed: one was killed, while others were wounded to varying degrees. Two would be in serious condition. The agency for the management of fires and disasters warns about the risk of other ash showers for a radius that can reach two kilometers. Mount Kusatsu-Shirane, 2,171 meters high, has not erupted since 1983. At the moment, the weather agency has raised the volcanic alert status to 3, restricting access to the mountain and alerting the presence of ash in the air. No volcanic activity had been recorded before the eruption. Japan, one of the worlds most seismic territories, closely follows its volcanoes. In a message to the Davos Forum, Francis asks actors to try to achieve a just and inclusive society. " Even the most recent technologies are transforming economic models and the globalized world itself, which, conditioned by private interests and an ambition for profit at all costs, seem to favour further fragmentation and individualism, rather than to facilitate approaches that are more inclusive" . Vatican City (AsiaNews) - The human person and his rights must be at the center of the economy and also of robotics to achieve a just and inclusive society. This is the warning that Pope Francis addressed to world leaders gathered in Davos, Switzerland, for the annual meeting on the world economy. In a message to the president of the World Economic Forum, Klaus Schwab, the Pope writes that the theme chosen this year, "Creating a shared future in a fragmented world", is very timely. "I trust he writes - that it will assist in guiding your deliberations as you seek better foundations for building inclusive, just and supportive societies, capable of restoring dignity to those who live with great uncertainty and who are unable to dream of a better world". "At the level of global governance, we are increasingly aware that there is a growing fragmentation between States and Institutions. New actors are emerging, as well as new economic competition and regional trade agreements. Even the most recent technologies are transforming economic models and the globalized world itself, which, conditioned by private interests and an ambition for profit at all costs, seem to favour further fragmentation and individualism, rather than to facilitate approaches that are more inclusive". And " The recurring financial instabilities have brought new problems and serious challenges that governments must confront, such as the growth of unemployment, the increase in various forms of poverty, the widening of the socio-economic gap and new forms of slavery, often rooted in situations of conflict, migration and various social problems. Together with this, we encounter certain rather selfish lifestyles, marked by an opulence which is no longer sustainable and frequently indifferent to the world around us, and especially to the poorest of the poor. To our dismay we see technical and economic questions dominating political debate, to the detriment of genuine concern for human beings". "In this context, it is vital to safeguard the dignity of the human person, in particular by offering to all people real opportunities for integral human development and by implementing economic policies that favour the family". "Only through a firm resolve shared by all economic actors may we hope to give a new direction to the destiny of our world. So too artificial intelligence, robotics and other technological innovations must be so employed that they contribute to the service of humanity and to the protection of our common home, rather than to the contrary, as some assessments unfortunately foresee". The Pope then affirms that we can not remain silent in the face of the suffering of millions of people " whose dignity is wounded" and that it is "It is a moral imperative, a responsibility that involves everyone, to create the right conditions to allow each person to live in a dignified manner. By rejecting a throwaway culture and a mentality of indifference, the entrepreneurial world has enormous potential to effect substantial change by increasing the quality of productivity, creating new jobs, respecting labour laws, fighting against public and private corruption and promoting social justice, together with the fair and equitable sharing of profits". There is a grave responsibility to exercise wise discernment, for the decisions made will be decisive for shaping the world of tomorrow and that of future generations. Thus, if we want a more secure future, one that encourages the prosperity of all, then it is necessary to keep the compass continually oriented towards true North, represented by authentic values. Now is the time to take courageous and bold steps for our beloved planet. This is the right moment to put into action our responsibility to contribute to the development of humanity ". by Vladimir Rozanskij Throughout the Christian East, the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, celebrated on January 19, is even more important than Christmas. This year there was the "consecration of the oceans": the Arctic polar ocean at Tiksi; the Atlantic in Reykjavik; the Pacific in Thailand and Primorje on the Sea of Japan; the Indian Ocean in the United Arab Emirates. The "extreme orthodoxy" of the holy bath of Vladimir Putin and of the journalist Ksenja Sobchak. Moscow (AsiaNews) - The Christmas festivities have just concluded with the great celebration of Baptism (the Epiphany), which according to the ancient calendar is celebrated on January 19th. Throughout the Christian East, this feast is even more important than the nativity of Christ, which was originally associated with the pagan festival of the Sun on December 25th; the event that is celebrated on January 6/19 is that of the Baptism of Jesus in the Jordan, his first Messianic manifestation. In Russia this festival takes on a particularly emphatic and popular tone, being the traditional date of the most intense winter cold, the so-called "baptism freezes". The association between the lustral bath and the icy surface of the waters is thus particularly emphasized, inserting at the peak of the liturgical celebration a dip into an opening in the form of a cross, cut into the ice sheets that cover rivers and lakes. Compared to the dozens of degrees below zero oabove the surface, the water under the ice is relatively warm, a sign of the uncontaminated purity made accessible by the presence of the Savior. Blessed waters and oceans From next week on, Russians will go to church to receive the containers of holy water, bottles and whole barrels, to protect the house and property from the assaults of the evil one. In these days, attendance in Orthodox churches takes on proportions similar to those of the Easter celebrations, when the faithful bring eggs and traditional sweets to be blessed by the priests. This year almost two million people took part in the prayers on ice, a cause of no small concern for security organs: the temperatures did not reach the classic -20 / -30 degrees everywhere, and the ice was thinner than usual. Over 30 thousand agents organized the processions in about 4000 places of sacred immersion, in over 300 cities in Russia; it all took place without incident. Only a priest in Ufa, in Bashkiria, slipped into the icy water with all his vestments, but was promptly rescued by the security. The Patriarchate of Moscow also organized a spectacular "consecration of the oceans" this year, counting on the now widespread presence of Russian chaplains in every part of the globe. The Arctic Ocean was blessed in the village of Tiksi, the northernmost town, on the shores of the Laptev Sea. The Russian parish priest of Reykjavik, Fr. Timofej Zolotuskij, blessed the Atlantic, while the Pacific was consecrated on the beach of the Gulf of Siam in Thailand, Primorje on the Sea of Japan and Gertner, a Russian town of the Magadan province on the sea of Ochotsk. Finally, the Indian Ocean received a blessing in the Persian Gulf, in the United Arab Emirates, where the parish is led by Archimandrite Aleksandr (Zarkeshev). In this way, the Russian Church wanted to extend the purifying power of prayer for all regions of the world. The sacred bath of the VIPs Bathing in icy waters is not an obligation, and only a part of the faithful have the courage to make such a gesture of "extreme orthodoxy". Usually the parishioners are more robust, starting with the priests, but there are plenty of intrepid women eager to communicate with the sanctity of the icy waters. Often the most prominent personalities - administrators, politicians and showmen - set a good example by opening the row of ascetics-baptizers. As in previous years, President Vladimir Putin did not miss this opportunity, moreover he is an habitue in demonstrations of virility associated with devotion. Putin visited the hermitage of Saint Nilus at Lake Seliger, just north of Moscow, at a temperature that was almost spring-like at just 7 degrees below zero. On the social networks, the Russians exalted the presidential bath, noting also that Putin made the sign of the cross in the opposite direction, "in the manner of the Catholics". The icy dip of another presidential candidate has also caused a sensation: the very popular journalist Ksenja Sobchak, who was in the Siberian city of Tomsk for a meeting. Sobchak immediately posted a clip to followers on Instagram, revealing that she had tried it for the first time, to "test her ability to resist" the -40 degrees of the river Malaja Ushajka: "It's a feeling that stays with you for a lifetime, and I love life! There were many Siberians with me, then we all warmed up together, "said the candidate, expressing her closeness to popular traditions. Sobchak did not fail to involve her fans, who see her as a glamorous icon: "For those looking for the cost of my costume on catalogs, know that I bought it in a Tomsk shop at 1760 rubles" (around 30 euros). The Home Affairs Department in Australia is asking for submissions on what kind of people are needed to work in the country from overseas as part of its aim to make immigration stronger and more relevant.It is asking for opinions particularly relating to immigration in regional areas which have different needs from the big cities.A report from the department points out that every year since 2006 migration has contributed more to population growth than occurred through natural increases and as Australia's population continues to age, migration settings increasingly focus on young skilled people to make up shortfalls in the labour force.The current migration programme is set at 190,000 places for 2017/2018 with two thirds of visas to skilled migrants and their family members, some 128,550 places, and this includes employer sponsored, skilled independent, state/territory and regional nominated, business innovation and investment and distinguished talent places.'To achieve the maximum benefit from migration, Australia must strive to attract and retain the best and brightest migrants. Migration settings must be targeted towards highly skilled people who have the most to contribute to Australia,' says the report.It also points out that migrants, along with the broader Australian population, are concentrated in large cities. Immigrants are more likely to reside in urban areas than people born in Australia. Indeed, only 13% of immigrants live in regional areas and 1% in remote areas, compared with 33% and 3% respectively of the Australian born population.'Metropolitan and regional areas have diverse needs and face different challenges. A number of programs exist that aim to spread the migrant intake more evenly across the country, and Government currently works to help ensure regional areas have sufficient infrastructure, labour market and other facilities to attract migrants. Like Australians, migrants will go to places where there are jobs and opportunities,' the report also points out.The department is seeking opinions on what factors are important to consider in planning the migration programme over the next five years and whether migration is currently being planned with a sufficient view of Australia's long term needs.It also wants to know how the permanent migration programme could be more responsive to global migration trends, including the rise of temporary migration.Another area where information is being sought is where independent unsponsored migrants fit into the migration programme and how it could be strengthened.Submissions are being asked for by email by the close of business on 02 February 2018 to [email protected] Hi, I'm need advice on behalf of a friend whose on a carer visa and his family. He was made a carer of his sister's disabled children. For nearly a year, he had been going twice a week for two hours each to take care of the children. After almost two years now he's decided to stop going and has since found another job. His fear is that his sister has reported him to immigration. What are the chances that his and his family's visa would be cancelled because his sister is very upset? Can they stay permanently in OZ even if he stopped fulfilling his duties? Also, would he and family qualify for citizenship down the track despite his circumstances? Thanks to anyone who can shed light on this. Australian Paper has told its striking workers to return to the factory floor of its envelope manufacturing plant in order for negotiations to continue, but the 90 employees are refusing, and instead have told the company to negotiate first. The staff are currently still picketing outside the Japanese-owned companys envelope and stationery manufacturing plant in Preston, after starting the protest last Tuesday. The site at Preston manufactures a significant percentage of the countrys envelopes, two billion last year, and is the biggest domestic manufacturer, it sells into the volume market. Melbourne and Sydney have other envelope manufacturers but they are operating on a much smaller scale. Candida Envelopes late last year week announced it was closing its Sydney envelope manufacturing site and switching production to its Adelaide operation. Craig Dunn, senior marketing manager with Australian Paper says, The situation is unchanged from the companys perspective. Dean Griffiths, union organiser with the AMWU says, We had an email exchange with the company. They said they were willing to negotiate as long as we stop corporate action. We know what that means, they will take us into the office, give us the same terms and we will get nothing. So we are going to keep going and everyone is still determined. Around 90 workers stopped work and formed a picket line after nine months of failed negotiations for a new enterprise agreement. The factory staff have requested a 2.5 per cent annual wage increase over three years and the company in response is offering a 6.5 per cent pay increase over four years, with a pay rise freeze for the first year, followed by 2 per cent, 2 per cent, and 2.5 per cent increases over the next three years. Those picketing say they only want the same rise that was given to the warehouse workers, which was 2.5 per cent. Other issues in the dispute include the reduction of the staffs rostered days off from 16 to 12 and a reclassification of the workplace structure which would define pay for roles as lower than what some workers currently receive, potentially meaning that it could take years for some workers to see a pay rise. The Australian Paper factory is one of the companys two plants, the other being its paper mill in the Victorian town of Maryvale. The company has 1300 staff overall. Comment below to have your say on this story. If you have a news story or tip-off, get in touch at [email protected] Sign up to the Sprinter newsletter LeasePlan Corp. has committed to achieving net zero emissions from its total fleet by 2030, in support of the implementation of the Paris Agreement and climate-related Sustainable Development Goals. The fleet management company has joined the World Business Council for Sustainable Development in an effort to achieve its commitment, LeasePlan announced. The companys objective is to create healthier environments by promoting cleaner, low-emission vehicles, and the infrastructure required to make these cars a viable option. Logo: LeasePlan Key elements in LeasePlans sustainability strategy include educating customers on making the switch to low-emission vehicles, facilitating the uptake of low-emission vehicles, and transitioning LeasePlans own employee fleet to an electric vehicle fleet by 2021. Our ambition is to achieve net zero emissions from our total fleet by 2030. We are confident that this can be achieved, but we cant do this on our own: we need to work together with stakeholders from all sectors. Were therefore delighted to join the WBCSD and look forward to exploring innovative sustainable development solutions together with our partners in the WBCSD network, said LeasePlan CEO Tex Gunning. Image courtesy of TravelSupermarket TravelSupermarket, a travel deal comparison website, published research showing that the Republic of Cyprus offered the lowest rate for car rentals of any global destination, at about $11.48 per day. New Zealand and the United Arab Emirates followed Cyprus with rates of $11.65 and $12.41, respectively. Greece fell on the opposite end of the price range, at about $39.57 per day. TravelSupermarket found rental rate disparities between cities as well. The United Kingdom was the 13th most expensive country to rent a car in, with an average cost of about $16.67 per day. Birmingham came in under the average rate at a little less than $12.26 per day, with Londonderry occupying the most expensive position at $19.76. TravelSupermarket advises that international travelers book their vehicle rentals by researching ahead of time to have the most options at the lowest possible cost. Wherever you plan to hire a car, it is always worth planning ahead and booking your vehicle in advance of your departure," said TravelSupermarket Spokesperson Emma Grimster. "Not only will you get a better price than on arrival in the vast majority of cases, you will also have peace of mind that your car type of choice is confirmed and available. Unfortunately, our website is currently unavailable in your country. We are engaged on the issue and committed to looking at options that support our full range of digital offerings to your market. We continue to identify technical compliance solutions that will provide all readers with our award-winning journalism. Lakeland police are looking for leads in the murder of a 55-year-old man. Roderick Childs found dead inside home Police recover his truck, look for more clues Family, neighbors described him as giving person Roderick Childs was found shot to death Monday by a worker inside his home at the Lakeland Manor Apartments. Childs' family and neighbors all describe him as a friendly, kind and giving person. That includes his daughter, Asia Childs. She stopped by his locked apartment Tuesday to pay her respects. "He was a very kind-hearted man," she said. "He made a lot of sacrifices to make sure that the people in the community were somehow being taken care of." Neighbor Mattie Baker said something similar. "On more than one occasion, for different restaurants here in the local community, he would buy food and just take it outside and give it to somebody who was either begging for change or walking down the street," Baker said. Childs owned Victory Bedding on George Jenkins Boulevard. His brother who works there, Terry Childs, as well as other workers all said Childs made less money than he could have at the store because he was always trying to help people in need by giving discounts. So far, police say they dont have a suspect in the case. They have recovered Childs' pickup truck that was found somewhere in Lakeland. Anyone with information is asked to call the Lakeland Police Department at 863-834-2357. Tsunami sirens were going off in Alaska Tuesday morning as the entire coast of Alaska and parts of the coast of Canada were under a tsunami warning after a 7.9 earthquake struck 175 miles southeast of Kodiak. However, the warning has now been canceled. Local police warn people to go to higher ground Quake was initially reported to be 8.2 by USGS Warning has been canceled Tsunami.gov is listing the earthquake as 7.9 and has stated that the warning and the advisory have been canceled. Initially, the USGS said the earthquake was a magnitude 8.2. That prompted the tsunami warning for coastal Alaska and Canadas British Columbia, while the remainder of the U.S. West Coast was under a watch. At about 6:30 a.m. EST, the Kodiak Police Department said harbor police were reporting water rescinding, which is typically not a good sign in a tsunami warning. Lt. Tim Putney of the Kodiak Police Department told people to hold fast at evacuation centers until further notice. He said the town has several shelters above the 100-foot mark, and they were still encouraging people below that level to evacuate.   The Kodiak Police Department posted that harbor officers are reporting that water is receding.   People are evacuating to higher ground in Kodiak. The people in the above tweet did find their dog. People reported on social media that the quake was felt hundreds of miles away, in Anchorage. Larry LeDoux, superintendent of the Kodiak Island Borough School District, says schools were open as shelters and estimated there were about 500 people at the high school. He described the atmosphere inside as calm, with people waiting for any updates. He said sirens go off in the community every week, as a test to make sure they are working. He said the sirens were sounded for the early Tuesday tsunami warning. An advisory remained in effect for a small part of the state. Watches were canceled for Washington, Oregon, California and Hawaii. Officials in Japan also said there was no tsunami threat there. Check back for updates. The Associated Press has contributed to this story. The search for five missing workers resumed near the site of a the fiery explosion of a drilling rig in eastern Oklahoma. Three of missing workers were employed by the rig's owner, the Houston contract driller Patterson-UTI Energy. The explosion cut through the Patterson-UTI rig just before 9 a.m. Monday, according to Oklahoma authorities. More than 20 people were working at the well site when the explosion occurred west of Quinton, about 100 miles southeast of Tulsa, authorities said. Authorities said 16 people escaped the explosion without major injuries. One person was airlifted to a hospital. The fire was extinguished Monday night, authorities said. The cause of the blast is still unknown. "At this moment, no one knows with certainty what happened and it would be unwise to speculate," Andy Hendricks, Patterson-UTI's chief executive, said in a statement. "Well control experts and emergency responders are on site and we will conduct a thorough investigation when the incident is fully contained. " Hendricks said the company was providing support to the families of the missing, whose names have not been released. "There is nothing more important to us than the safety of our employees and others we partner with in the field, "Hendricks said. "Tonight, our thoughts and prayers go out to all those affected and their loved ones." The intense fire prevented investigators from getting to the scene to confirm any fatalities, said a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma medical examiner's office. Authorities earlier searched the surrounding woods to see if anyone had fled into the area Aerial footage showed several fires were still burning by midday on the rig and much of the equipment had collapsed to the ground, the Associated Press reported. "Pretty much everything that is on location is on fire," said Pittsburg County Emergency Management Director Kevin Enloe during an afternoon news conference. Patterson-UTI has grown in recent years into one of the nation's largest onshore drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, companies. Patterson-UTI has about 25 drilling rigs active in Oklahoma, second only to Texas, where it has nearly 60 rigs in operation. The incident occurred at the site of one of Patterson-UTI's more modern APEX 1500 rigs, described as a "light, safe, and efficient rapid deployment rig." Confirmation of any fatalities won't be possible until the fire is extinguished and investigators can get to the scene of the explosion, said Amy Elliott, a spokeswoman for the Oklahoma medical examiner's office. Authorities said they are still searching the surrounding woods to see if anyone had fled into the area The drilling site was operated by Red Mountain Operating Oklahoma City-based, said Matt Skinner, a spokesman for the Oklahoma Corporation Commission, which regulates oil and gas operators in the state. Red Mountain did not immediately comment. Skinner said the company has not had any incidents or complaints in the last five years. Jordan Blum of the Houston Chronicle and the Associated Press contributed to this report. Almost 30 years ago, an English playwright on a bus trip across the southern United States saw three small billboards along westbound Interstate 10 outside Beaumont. They were seared into his brain, and after he became a movie director, supplied inspiration for a major film. "Vidor Police Botched Up the Case." "Waiting For Confession." "This Could Happen To You!" The billboards were erected by James Fulton, father of Katherine Fulton Page, who was frustrated at the Vidor Police Department's inability to solve his daughter's 1991 murder. > > BACKGROUND: What happened to Kathy Page? While Fulton seethed and suffered, his message of grief and anger percolated in Martin McDonagh's memory. Years later, it drove McDonagh to create the movie "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," which won a Golden Globe Award for best picture earlier this month and was nominated for an Academy Award on Tuesday. The three billboards in the movie are provocatively similar: "Raped While Dying." "How Come, Chief Willoughby?" "Still No Arrests." The billboards project a mother's anguish at the local police for failing to solve her daughter's murder. > > RELATED: Unsolved homicides in Texas In an interview with a British publication, The Express, McDonagh recalled how the real billboards stunned him. "It was this raging, painful message calling out the cops about a crime," he said. "The title came from the concept and the concept came from that image, which stayed in my mind for years," McDonagh said. "What kind of pain would lead someone to do that? It takes a lot of guts - and anger." According to The Express, McDonagh no longer remembers where he spied the billboards, but Kathy Page's sister, Sherry Valentine, 58, said, "I'd never seen anyone post billboards like that before and ours were the first. It's clear that they inspired this film, and if the movie helps us finally get justice for Kathy, that would be great." If anything, Fulton's real-life pain surpasses that of the mother in the movie, played by Academy Award-winner Frances McDormand. > > MOVIE REVIEW: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri "I want people to know it's a sorry city and a sorry police department," Fulton said Tuesday in a telephone interview. He hasn't seen the movie and likely won't, he said. But Fulton, 86, intends to maintain the last billboard as long as he can. "I won't last too much longer," he said. The roadside vigil is a persistent and public reminder of his daughter - and the case's open status. Fulton said that in the past 25 years, he has spent more than $200,000 on the billboard and on a federal court case. Grand juries since the murder on May 14, 1991 have declined to indict the main suspect, identified by authorities as Steve Page, Kathy Page's ex-husband. In 2000, a civil jury found Steve Page liable in a wrongful death suit and awarded her family $150,000. The verdict was upheld on appeal. Steve Page was also convicted, fined and sentenced to probation after he was seen on a videotape desecrating Kathy Page's grave. Page left Southeast Texas in 1995 with his two daughters from his marriage to Kathy Page. One daughter took her own life several years ago. Fulton said the other daughter refuses all contact with him. Vidor Police Chief Rod Carroll, observing his first work anniversary as chief, said one of the first things he did after starting was read the investigative file in the Page murder. "The investigation never closed," Carroll said. "There has always been a person of interest. We need evidence for probable cause. Sometime, someone will grow a conscience and come forward. It's the human psyche." Carroll said Fulton is mistaken that Vidor PD does not want to solve the case. "I think every crime is solvable," Carroll said. That doesn't shake Fulton's belief that Vidor PD "screwed up and did it on purpose." Fulton said perhaps the movie will renew interest in his daughter's case and bring the suspect to justice. "I hope it brings in outside people," he said. Dan Wallach is a freelance writer. The City of Port Arthur is facing its fourth lawsuit related to officers involved in a 2015 investigation of a missing person's disappearance. Carol Gauthier, whose husband Joseph disappeared in April 2015, sued the city and two police officers last week, alleging that they intentionally inflicted emotional distress and that the department's policies and practices deprived her of her rights. Joseph Gauthier's truck was found on the Rainbow Bridge. His body was never located. In the suit, Gauthier accuses Officers Scott Gaspard and Mickey Sterling of mishandling the investigation, bullying her, having an inappropriate relationship with a psychic involved in the case and illegally searching her cell phone. Attorney Chip Ferguson argued in the petition that there was a lack of training and culture of corruption in the department, allowing for the violation of Gauthier's rights and causing her distress. The suit addresses the same investigation described in an affidavit that led to an internal investigation in the department. Det. Elie Van Horn accused Gaspard, Sterling and three other officers of offenses including obstruction, retaliation, failure to report a felony, misuse of official information and official oppression in an affidavit sent to state authorities in February 2017. Van Horn claimed Gaspard and Sterling planned to "silence the victim (Gauthier) by illegal means." An unknown number of officers were put on leave amid an "administrative investigation" in February and March that Chief Patrick Melvin confirmed was related to the document. Gaspard resigned from PAPD before Van Horn submitted the affidavit. Sterling was fired on June 7, the city said. Deputy Chief Raymond Clark, who resigned the day before the internal investigation was announced, sued the city in August, claiming he was forced out of the department in retaliation for reporting wrongdoing to the Jefferson County District Attorney. Sgt. Kristopher Boneau and Deputy Chief John Owens, who were also put on leave during the investigation, returned to work in March. Boneau sued the department in December, accusing Chief Patrick Melvin of defamation. His and Clark's suits are ongoing in Jefferson County court, while Van Horn's was moved to federal court. For Immediate Release, January 22, 2018 Contact: Howard Crystal, (202) 809-6926, hcrystal@biologicaldiversity.org Trump's Solar Imports Decision Endangers Climate, American Jobs WASHINGTON President Trump moved today to impose tariffs on solar panel imports to help two solar manufacturers that claimed imports are making their products uncompetitive. The decision follows recommendations to levy tariffs on solar technology imported from China made by the International Trade Commission in late November 2017. The recommendations faced overwhelming opposition from the rest of the solar industry. Trumps 30 percent tariff will drastically hamper American solar markets. This reckless decision will threaten tens of thousands of American jobs and hurt our climate, said Howard Crystal, a senior attorney with the Center for Biological Diversity. If Trump really wants to put America first, he should reduce our reliance on polluting energy sources that fuel climate change. Instead, this profoundly political move will make solar power more expensive for everyday Americans while propping up two failing, foreign-owned companies. The Center submitted formal comments in the case explaining that tariffs pose tremendous risk not only to the growth of the domestic solar industry, which employs more than twice as many Americans as the coal industry, but also to the vital transition to a clean and just energy economy. This shift is needed to avoid the worst impacts of climate change. The climate crisis is here, ripping apart communities and threatening wildlife with devastating storms, wildfires and floods, said Crystal. With Americans in Puerto Rico and Houston still struggling to recover from climate disasters, Trump should be supporting renewable energy rather than making it more costly. Abstract Background Whether morbidity from the 191819 influenza pandemic discriminated by socioeconomic status has remained a subject of debate for 100 years. In lack of data to study this issue recent literature have hypothesized that morbidity was socially neutral. Objectives To study the associations between Influenza like illness (ILI) and socioeconomic status (SES), gender and wave during the 191819 influenza pandemic. Methods Availability of incidence data on the 191819 pandemic is scarce, in particular for waves other than the fall wave OctoberDecember 1918. Here, an overlooked survey from Bergen, Norway (n=10,633), is used to study differences in probabilities of ILI and ILI probability ratios by apartment size as a measure of SES and gender for three waves including the waves prior to and after the fall wave. Results SES was negatively associated with ILI in the first wave, but positively associated in the second wave. At all SES levels, men had the highest ILI in the summer, while women had the highest ILI in the fall. There were no SES or gender differences in ILI in the winter of 1919. Conclusions For the first time it is documented a crossover in the role of socioeconomic status in 1918 pandemic morbidity. The poor came down with influenza first, while the rich with less exposure in the first wave had the highest morbidity in the second wave. The study suggest that socioeconomically disadvantaged should be prioritized if vaccines are of limited availability in a future pandemic. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. The UK's International Development Secretary, Penny Mordaunt has pointed to the "incredible power of technology" to provide relief across Africa and help tackle Africa's greatest challenges and build a modern economy for the future. John Wollwerth via 123RF Launched the second phase of Trade Mark East Africa. The landmark UK aid programme helps enterprise and creates jobs by breaking down barriers to trade. In Nairobi Mordaunt saw how the first phase of the programme has cut customs clearance times from an average of nine to two days and reduced the cost of trading across the region with new cargo-tracking technologies and improved infrastructure. Mordaunt heard from British business about how this technology has helped them enter the Kenyan market. She also announced the launch of a partnership programme, to support the Government of Kenya on urban economic planning and investment. Set out further UK aid support to the Hunger Safety Net Programme an innovative cash-transfer scheme bringing together biometric technology and mobile money. This is helping more vulnerable households and supporting the Government of Kenya to own, manage and ultimately fund the programme. Mordaunt also met some of the 100,000 households benefiting from the programme, and saw how cash transfers get aid to those who need it when they need it, achieving value for money by cutting excessive bureaucracy, avoiding duplication by aid agencies and reducing waste. Saw how UK aid-supported research is helping to power low-cost insurance for livestock herders in drought-prone parts of Kenya. The research makes use of already existing satellite technology by NASA to provide images of vegetation cover. This ensures timely insurance pay-outs are made correctly and quickly if cover levels drop. DFID both backs the research and supports private sector insurers to provide it to local herders. Further investment in resources We need new ideas to future-proof against Africas biggest challenges, Mordaunt said on her first official visit to Kenya.During her visit, Mordaunt saw how UK aid is supporting vulnerable communities in the north of the country devastated by East Africas drought. In Kenyas capital Nairobi, Mordaunt also heard how UK support for innovative programmes is helping to create jobs for a rising population.Mordaunt was also in the country to hear from British businesses about how new technology has helped them tap into the Kenyan market. The UK is the fifth largest exporter of goods to Kenya and trade between the two countries is worth over 1 billion annually.Innovative technology, supported by DFID, is helping Kenya build resilience to climate challenges, including drought, and to build a modern economy for the future.Mordaunts visit to Kenya comes ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, taking place in London in April this year. The summit will bring together heads of government to discuss reforming and revitalising the Commonwealth, and establishing it as a modern organisation that is responsive to the global challenges faced today and in the future.During her visit the International Development Secretary:Mordaunt commented: I have seen how, in the face of East Africas devastating drought, UK aid works and is saving lives.But 2018 will bring more desperate weather conditions to the region. This is a stark reminder that we need to back new ideas to future-proof against the biggest challenges in Africa.Here in Kenya, technology is delivering UK aid in new ways, from innovative cash transfers using biometrics, through to trade technologies that support economic growth, jobs and investment. It is in all our interests that we harness the best of British innovation with African entrepreneurialism to create jobs, defeat poverty, and support our future trading partners, as we work towards a shared prosperous future.The UK is significantly scaling up its support to trade and regional integration across East Africa, now providing a total of 211 million to the second phase of TMEA. This will increase sustainable and shared prosperity in East Africa.The 60 million Sustainable Urban Economic Development partnership programme will run until 2022, supporting up to 10 rapidly urbanising towns in Kenya with urban economic planning, investment climate reforms and attracting private sector investment.The UK has also invested 8 million through the World Bank to assist the Government of Kenya in the development of more Special Economic Zones, private-public partnerships and select counties on doing business reforms.This programme will also support urban planning in response to the new Government of Kenyas focus on improving access to affordable housing. Important creative industry trends and debates will be under discussion, such as the increasing research that supports the argument that the creative and cultural industries are adding significantly to GDP growth, employment and social cohesion both nationally and around the world, as well as the questions and challenges relating to the future and sustainability of the creative economy.Looking beyond our current experiences and conceptions of the creative economy the conference hopes to re-envision what the future of the creative and cultural industries will mean for practitioners, professionals, policy makers, researchers and anyone involved in creative economic pursuits, SACO chief executive Prof Richard Haines said.Exploring the theme Beyond the creative economy? Trends and Issues in National and Regional Economies, the conference will provide a platform to discuss global and local research in the cultural and creative industries and arts, culture and heritage sectors and explore some of the creative economy trends we are expecting to see in the next few years and beyond.We have had an overwhelming response so far and look forward to receiving final abstracts before the deadline at the end of the month, Haines added.The deadline for paper abstract submissions, presentations and panel discussions is Wednesday, 31 January at 5pm.Potential speakers can submit their abstracts and motivations online. The standard rate for the conference is R750 and R500 for students with early bird fees for those registering before 31 January. South African film Five Fingers for Marseilles has been receiving rave reviews at festivals around the world. A new style of film After premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), the modern-day South African western, which is set in the rugged badlands of the Eastern Cape, film review site Screen Anarchy commented: Director Michael Matthews and screenwriter Sean Drummond know the language of the western genre well enough to give it due place: wide angle shot of a beautiful, empty landscape, which speaks to both the wildness of this end of the line place, and the people who cling to it, even if the future seems less than hopeful for change.Since then, the film has been receiving rave reviews at festivals around the world. After it screened at Fantastic Fest in Austin, Texas, in late September, a festival review spoke of the world of the film as a gorgeous, complex world, callingone of the most striking debuts of recent years, and naming it part of a wave that will completely redefine the international perception of what African cinema can be. represents a new style of film production for South Africa and we are excited by the very positive reception it has had from different audiences. In Toronto, it was described as one of the best westerns of the year and one of 2017's most compelling debut features, says Drummond.The film portrays the reality of South Africa in a Western-style setting, highlighting issues of racism in a post-apartheid society, using the conventions of the Western genre, such as the wilderness, trains, outlaws, and life endangering fights. It stars Vuyo Dabula, Kenneth Nkosi and Jerry Mofokeng.It tells the story of Tau, a troubled young outlaw one of the Five Fingers gang who returns to the town he fled as a youth and is forced to confront his past (and the town's difficult future), while also finding a chance for redemption. Filmed in Sesotho, the story takes place in Marseilles, a town in the rugged Eastern Cape.The Five Fingers are a fictional group of young fighters that fought against police brutality in the small rural town of Marseille more than 20 years ago. When Tau returns to Marseilles seeking a quiet pastoral life, he finds that the town is once again under threat, and is need of heroes once more.In October, the film headed to the Busan Film Festival in South Korea where it caused a buzz. Busan is the most prestigious film festival in Asia and was presided over by Oliver Stone this year.Next stop for the film was the BFI London Film Festival, where reviewer Keith Shiri described it as a deftly-constructed, Western-inspired drama, whose thrilling and intensely raw tone is made more breathtaking by the stunning backdrop it unfolds against. Shiri added: With its excellent cast, led by a superb central performance from Vuyo Dabula,is a tension-driven drama, building inexorably towards a climactic,-style showdown.Hollywood has given the film a nod, withsaying, "The film commands attention with a deliberately paced and well-observed story that focuses on, among other things, the inescapable influence of the past and the unavoidable corruption spawned by ambition." The magazine added: turns out to be an impressively effective and engrossing cross-cultural hybrid that has a great deal more than novelty value going for it."On RottenTomatoes, it has a 100% rating.Five Fingers for Marseilles The World Health Organisation (WHO) has donated 853 motorcycles to the Nigerian government to improve disease surveillance in the country. Samples of the motorcycles donated by WHO. Image: Ayodamola Owoseye. Source: Premium Times Making the work of DSNOs easier Surveillance critical to public health The vehicles and other items were handed over to the Minister of Health, Isaac Adewole, by the WHO Country Director, Wondimagegnehu Alemu, on Monday in Abuja.At the ceremony, Alemu said WHO was making the donation to help increase disease surveillance across the country, because surveillance is key in diseases control and eradication. He said the motorcycles are to make the work of Disease Surveillance and Notification officers, DSNOs, easier as the officers play a major role in surveillance at the field level through visits to communities and health facilities."They also facilitate timely investigation and responses to the outbreak of diseases where they occur. It is with this recognition of their role in disease control in the rural communities that WHO in partnership with other donor partners have provided the motorcycles to enhance surveillance system in Nigeria," he saidAlemu, while urging for proper maintenance of the motorcycles and their use for the stated purpose, said the DSNOs deserve to be provided with the most appropriate logistics to enhance their mobility across the country, including to the remotest parts.The motorcycles will be distributed among the 36 states and the FCT.In his remark, Adewole thanked WHO and the country director for the gesture. He said disease surveillance was critical to public health maintenance and the donation signified that 2018 would be a good year for Nigerians.Adewole said what is important for Nigeria is to get to know when and where there is a disease because when there is no prompt information, diseases spread. "When we are able to detect and respond appropriately, we would be able to curtail the spread of diseases and maintain good health across the nation. We will be able to send officers there, we will be able to investigate and make appropriate diagnosis and be able to respond," said the Minister.He also assured that the DSNOs would use the motorcycles appropriately to help detect the outbreak of diseases.Amanda Pam, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT Secretary, Health and Human Services, who represented the minister of Federal Capital Territory, Muhammad Bello, said the motorcycles given to the FCT would be distributed to the eight area councils. This, he said would go a long way in checking diseases and bringing health care delivery to the doorsteps of residents of the FCT. A recent episode of Special Assignment looked into how unsafe imported chicken ends up in consumers' pots. "South African consumers face serious health risks from imported chicken, and are misled by retailers who stock incorrectly labelled imports which may also have been thawed, re-worked and refrozen before it reaches the shelves, leading to dangerously high bacterial levels," says antidumping advocacy group FairPlay. Sergey Ryzhov via 123RF Bacterial counts Exploiting the poor This comes as concern intensifies over South Africas largest ever outbreak of listeriosis, which can be contracted via frozen food that has been thawed, re-worked and refrozen, and which has claimed 67 lives so far. FairPlay has been campaigning for Government to apply the same strict safety measures to chicken imports as those that South African producers conform to, but so far to no avail. This independent investigation into imported chicken from Brazil proves how important it is to defuse this time bomb, says FairPlay founder Francois Baird.Local chicken producers are inspected all the way from farm to fork by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) and the Department of Health, and safety tests carried out by theteam proved the benefit. A sample of local chicken was compared to a sample labelled as coming from Brazil and the results are indisputable bacterial counts in the Brazilian chicken were higher by tens of thousands of percent, at levels so high that it was not fit for human consumption. In a meeting with representatives from the European Union late last year, FairPlay also presented them with a package of frozen imported chicken meat where it was impossible to identify the country of origin in Europe.It is irresponsible to accept at face value the food-safety credentials from abattoirs thousands of kilometres away; and to blindly trust that cold-chain integrity is maintained, given the shipment over vast distances, says Baird. When last did DAFF visit the source abattoirs in the EU and Brazil? If we skimp on these initial checks, and then add to it that bulk frozen portions are then thawed, re-processed, re-packed or merely sold as loose serve, all at a significant number of points all over South Africa, how will we ever guarantee food safety?Added to the food safety and labelling concerns, theinvestigation also highlighted that the perceived cost-saving of cheaper imports is not passed onto the consumer. Says Baird, This is a multibillion-dollar business that not only operates without proper mechanisms in place to ensure product safety and quality controls, but it makes some people rich at the expense of the very poor, who don't have a choice about the protein that they consume it has to be the cheapest or they can't afford it at all.Meanwhile, South Africas meat importers have taken government to court over overly strict imported meat-testing protocols. The Association of Meat Importers and Exporters (AMIE) are objecting to DAFFs insistence on testing all consignments of frozen raw meat entering Durbans port for bacteriological contamination. AMIE complains that it is taking 'too long' to get all imports cleared, which impacts on their business, says Baird. But can any shortcuts be allowed when consumers safety is clearly at issue? Image taken from www.hm.com/za on 17 January 2018. Lack of diversity, critical thinking Whats the remedy? H&M was immediately apologetic saying they believe racism in any shape or form deliberate or accidental is unacceptable. They attempted to quash the vehement criticism directed at them, subsequently withdrawing the ad from its UK website and removing the item from its stores. But it may have been too little too late in our global village fuelled by social media.On 17 January, I noticed that it was business as usual with normal adverts for the companys products being featured and no sign of an apology on the home page. However, on the same day, the South African site carried a grey block across the front with its apology: we have got this wrong and we are deeply sorry. Clearly, the company sees the incident only really as a problem for their brand in South Africa.When I read the companys published statement, I hear the lyrics of Demi Lovatos song in my head. One has to wonder how in 2018, a massive brand such as H&M, which was ranked the 23rd best-known company worldwide in 2017 by Interbrand, can make such an appalling error. Perhaps the better question to ask is in light of the extreme offensiveness of this message, is sorry good enough? And, what will be the true cost of the damage to H&Ms reputation? Will they get away with this racial insult so easily?There is no defence for H&M on this matter, which is why theyve taken a mea culpa approach. It has exposed their business in the most unflattering light. Before the scandal, in December 2017, H&M group announced a 4% drop in fourth-quarter sales from the previous year, to 5.0 billion ($6.22 billion). It will be interesting to follow how this debacle is reflected in the Groups financial performance in the next few months.I find it hard to believe that there is such a lack of staff diversity and of critical thinking in the H&M global conglomerate, which directly employs over 161,000 people worldwide in more than 4,500 stores in 69 markets. How is the company testing its messages before they are deployed to markets? Despite the product behind the insult not being available in South Africa, the company appears to have failed to understand the global nature of its consumers and the power of social media on their reputation.This gaffe is either pointing to very poor processes and lack of corporate accountability in H&M or worse a culture of systemic racism supported by a lack of diversity and critical thinkers within the company and its advertising agencies.While the price tag of this offence is still being calculated for H&M, it now joins the ranks of infamous companies who have recently offended our common sense and values. Bell Pottinger, the UK-based reputation firm, saw its own reputational demise in 2017 as a direct consequence of its loss of good standing. Consumer product giants Dove and Nivea also put their foot in it late in 2017 with poorly crafted and offensive adverts that saw them accused of racial insensitivity.But where are the consequences for H&M? Talk is cheap. When pockets are deep, an apology from a global multinational is an easy, consequence-free escape route. Consider for a moment, the impact of this scandal on customers and staff in local markets, far away from the origin of the offence. Your bank of reputational goodwill with customers in London or Stockholm is not necessarily transferrable to other markets where offence is taken. Continue to insult your customers through arrogance or ignorance about diversity and customer needs, and youll find extreme shortages of goodwill and forgiveness when you do make a faux pas and it may cost you your business or a substantial chunk of your market share.Reputation management in todays highly complex world of business is not linear or simple. Reputation cannot be managed in isolation of other critical components that include: Sales and marketing Ethical business practices Transparency Business performance Attractiveness as an employer Social responsibility Management quality and culture Quality of products and services InnovationStrategic consideration of these nine dimensions of reputation management, as defined by the textbooks, with a specific risk-management lens, will help executives and reputation managers make better decisions.Its my view that it is not only the brand owners responsibility to act in a more integrated and considered manner when conceptualising campaigns. Advertising agencies who are engine rooms of idea generation should be held to account for advising their clients in a morally and ethically responsible manner. They should be deeply cognisant of and sensitive to market subtleties, and subsequently act responsibly with regards to what they put in front of their clients. Supported by robust testing, review and approval processes, advertising agencies - together with brand and reputation owners - need to rally around the clients reputation management with a more holistic mindset to achieve the best outcome for the brand.Furthermore, knowledge of the local market and customer base, and a deep appreciation for the diversity of customers in different geographies, should help with increasingly improved critical thinking and more impactful and appropriate messaging to customers that builds, rather than destroys, reputation. Brand owners need to demonstrate more authentic engagement and understanding of their customers and markets, not only to avoid misunderstanding but also to meet the expectations of stakeholders and build their bank of reputational goodwill in target markets. The 2018 Women In Energy Conference, an interactive side event of the African Energy Indaba (AEI), aims to provide a platform for advancing and promoting talented women within the energy sector on 19 February 2018 at the Sandton Convention Centre, Johannesburg, South Africa. The 4th annual Women in Energy Conference is designed to aid an increase in leadership and the development of women involved in the African energy space. Women in Energy: A global perspective of women in Energy Key future trends, and the way forward for women in the Africa Energy sector According to the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI), there is a gender gap in leadership as women make up only 5% of board executives across the global power and utilities sector. Womens leadership is essential for the task of building a sustainable energy future, and by not honing the essential skills of women worldwide, the energy sector is profoundly lacking in essential perspectives and innovation. The Women in Power and Utilities Index (2016) tracked the number of women in the boardrooms of the worlds largest utilities in revenue, and it was established that there are 16% women on Power and Utilities boards, with progress at an extremely slow increase of only 1% over three years.An ROE analysis on the top 200 utilities in the world indicated that the top 20 gender-diverse utilities substantially outperformed the bottom 20, endorsing an obvious connection between gender diversity and financial performance. Energy remains an evolving industry constantly trying to accommodate the growing demand and supply of power to homes, businesses and infrastructure. These numerous challenges call for innovative approaches, and this is why diversity is so significant. Numerous studies have indicated that the more diverse a group, the quicker and easier itll be to identify and solve problems and create a competitive advantage by encouraging businesses to consider new methods and practices. A group of men all of similar ages and outlook will in all likelihood maintain familiar structures, however a diverse group of different genders, ages and backgrounds will change the status quo, and increase the possibility of creative thinking.Overall the energy industry is experiencing an era of transition and transformation, with new fuels, technologies and innovation motivating opportunities. A resilient, reliable and secure energy future is essential for the stability of the global economy. This trend is keenly felt on the African continent where the development of renewable energy and energy efficiency schemes will create business opportunities, provide employment, and enhance economic development enabling women to participate in the development of sustainable projects.The AEI 2018 Women In Energy Conference facilitates an interactive hub that enables leading women within the energy sector on the continent and beyond, the opportunity to network, share knowledge and achievements and encourage the further advancement of women across all sectors of the energy industry. The industry is buoyant with opportunities for multiple skillsets, and these include for example, Project Mangers, Electrical Engineers, Mechanical Engineers, Technicians, Developers, Distribution Engineers and Project Coordinators. Increasing numbers of women have started crossing the bridge from Technology companies into the Power and Utilities industry. Hence, those women aiming to develop a career in the energy sector in Africa, women energy entrepreneurs, high-potential women looking to enhance and advance their careers, need to attend this invaluable hive of information and knowledge-sharing.Drawing women into this historically male-dominated sector remains a continuous challenge for many companies. Companies with diversity and inclusion agendas must be willing to provide training and support where necessary as diversity is no longer a gender issue; it has morphed into a business-critical issue.The Africa Energy Indaba also aims to provide a working space for both men and women in leadership C-Suite roles the opportunity to create a forward thinking and visionary workplace of the future. Therefore, industry professionals responsible for hiring, developing and advancing an unbiased workforce need to avail themselves of this opportunity to connect with some of the brightest minds and dynamic thinkers the industry has to offer to help diversify the power workforce and take the energy industry forward.Gender parity in leadership needs to be addressed, and shining a spotlight on this critical area and making it part of an organisations agenda could alter the approach towards a pro-active gender inclusive leadership in energy in the future. A mothers experience I was able to bring my baby along with someone to take care of her, so I had peace of mind to effectively participate in the programme while checking on my baby during breaks. This was a special experience for me and I wish that such arrangements were always made to accommodate women researchers needs to support their career progression. A worthwhile investment Women may often leave the workforce entirely once their child is born. The cost of childcare may outweigh the financial benefit of working, or women simply want to spend most of their time with their child. Inflexible jobs that dont accommodate the realities of parenting are another issue. Some women will stop working temporarily, but the return to work is not always smooth.Women may find that they miss out on potentially life-changing career opportunities because of their maternal obligations. That in turn deepens the gender gap.In the case of science in Africa, the World Health Organisation and UNESCO have done a great deal of work to close this gap. But not much attention has been given to how mothers who want to attend workshops, conferences and similar networking opportunities are supported. This simple intervention can boost the presence of women in science.The Africa Science Leadership Programme set about finding out how the demands and realities of motherhood are affecting women scientists on the continent. We conducted a survey of 118 African women researchers from a range of institutions to find out about their career goals and barriers to success.Many talked about how hard it was to balance family life and career. A number said their obligations as mothers kept them from attending workshops or similarly useful meetings.The survey responses, along with the experiences of a new mother whod been selected as a programme fellow, have offered new insights into how organisations and institutions can create supportive spaces for women researchers.Dr Dalia Saad is a Sudanese researcher who focuses on environmental chemistry. She was selected as a fellow for 2017, the third year of the Africa Science Leadership Programme. But she had just given birth.The programme aims to grow mid-career African academics. Part of the fellowship involves a week-long meeting, a valuable opportunity for networking and career development.Dr Saad said she wanted to take up the fellowship, but would need to travel to South Africa with her mother and would require a baby cot and extra space in her room. This turned out to be easy to arrange, and meant that an excellent scientist did not have to miss out. Reflecting on the experience, she said:Dr Saad suggests that institutions and organisations should consider in-house creches, flexible working hours and more flexible funding time frames to support new mothers who want to continue pursuing their scientific careers. This is borne out by womens experiences elsewhere in the world.There are some organisations in the US, London and Canada which offer such support, among them the Society for Molecular Biology and Evolution , the London Mathematical Society and the American Academy of Religion . The Consortium for Advanced Research Training in Africa fully supports women who are pregnant or breast feeding to ensure they can take advantage of opportunities within that programme.This shows that the challenges for new mothers attending workshops are starting to be recognised on the continent. But spreading this support more widely could potentially help to close the gender gap.Our interaction with Dr Saad and feedback from the survey have presented an opportunity for the Africa Science Leadership Programme to restructure its support systems. Were committed to allocating resources towards supporting women who would like to attend our workshops with a newborn and a caregiver. This support will be explicitly announced in all future calls, and on our online and social media pages, so that women know its available.We believe this is an approach that other organisations, institutions and fellowship programmes should consider adopting to encourage more women scientists to stay the course despite the demands of motherhood.The cost implications involved with these suggestions may worry some, since different organisations work with different budget constraints. In our experience, we were able to arrange a cot and a double room for Dr Saad at no extra cost. This suggests it is worth negotiating requirements like room space, baby facilities or even a local, trusted caretaker some hotels or venues may offer childcare facilities at little or no extra cost.But, wed argue that any cost is a small investment with a potentially high output: institutions and organisations will be able to offer truly inclusive programmes for young mothers and an opportunity for more women to remain in science in Africa. Dramatic disclosures in court papers filed by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) place the Guptas at the heart of a conspiracy to "swindle" R220m from the Free State meant for emerging black dairy farmers. The NPA's Asset Forfeiture Unit (AFU) approached the High Court in Bloemfontein for a preservation order to seize the farm and government grants worth R220m funnelled to Gupta-linked companies. tpsdave via pixabay Monitoring Gupta-linked assets Dairy farm's grant money winds up in Gupta-controlled bank Agriculture department officials had "deliberately and fraudulently" disregarded supply chain rules The unit argues that these should be deemed the proceeds of crime.The grants were meant to support a dairy project championed by Mineral Resources Minister Mosebenzi Zwane, who was the Free State MEC for agriculture at the time.AFU investigators confirmed reports that a large portion of the funds was immediately syphoned off to Gupta front companies in Dubai. The court filings also show R10m was paid directly to Atul Gupta and R14.5m to the Guptas' Oakbay Investments.Sources told Business Day that authorities in Dubai were cooperating with investigators to ensure the Guptas and their associates did not dispose of properties or dissipate funds held in Emirati bank accounts. One source said cooperation at this stage took the form of "monitoring" Gupta-linked assets with a view to preparing preservation orders.The Gupta e-mails confirmed that the family bought a palatial 10-bedroom mansion for R330m in the upmarket Dubai suburb of Emirates Hills and which has been linked to President Jacob Zuma. Duduzane Zuma also bought an R18m apartment in the Burj Khalifa, where close Gupta business associate Salim Essa also owns property.Another source close to the authorities in Dubai said cash belonging to the Guptas had been identified in a bonded warehouse in the adjacent Emirate of Sharjah and other amounts, totalling more than R1bn, were transferred from the Reserve Bank in SA to three separate accounts with City Bank, the Islamic Bank of Sharjah and the Bank of Baroda.AmaBhungane Centre for Investigative Journalism reported last year that part of the dairy farm's grant money landed up in a Gupta-controlled Standard Chartered Bank account in Dubai and that R30m of this was used to fund their lavish wedding in Sun City in 2013 after being laundered through United Arab Emirates fronts.In an affidavit filed in court, the AFU's Knorx Molelle said agriculture department officials had "deliberately and fraudulently" disregarded supply chain rules to fund the project, which Kamal Vasram ran. Vasram and his company, Estina, had no farming track record and no proper research was done before the decision was taken to fund the project.Estina's account held just R9,690 before grant payments started flowing. By the time the firm went into voluntary liquidation in March 2017, its total assets were worth R10,000, with liabilities of R34,200. Of the R220.2m the department paid the project, only R2.4m was used for farming.Although the funds were meant for emerging black farmers, the department started looking for beneficiaries only a year after appointing Estina.The AFU found R40.7m had been transferred to Gupta-linked company Gateway Pty Ltd in Dubai and R43.4m to a Free State-registered company called Vargafield, whose sole director, Sanjay Grover, is an Indian national with a residential address in Dubai. The Gupta leaks revealed that Grover was involved in hosting Public Enterprises Minister Lynne Brown's personal assistant Kim Davids and ANC secretary-general Ace Magahule's son Thato in Dubai.Another payment of R6m was made to Westdawn Investments, a Gupta mining company that bought their Bombardier Global 6000 jet ZS-OAK. The current drought crisis facing the agricultural sector in the western parts of South Africa grows with each passing day. As the threat of our water sources running dry begins to materialise, panic is beginning to set in. Cool heads and steady leadership are needed during times such as these. AlMireles via pixabay Unfolding crisis Surprising ally? How organised agriculture responds in mobilising and supporting its members and the public during this unfolding disaster will define our role in South Africa. Amid a province in crisis, Agri SA finds a surprising ally.The current drought gripping the south-western parts of South Africa started as far back as the end of the 2015/16 summer, and the expected rains for the 2016/17 winter seasons also never arrived. This situation has been exacerbated by the fact that at the same time, the demand for water in the Western Cape Province increased because of rapid economic and population growth.Together with the effects of climate change, the provinces water resources are under significant pressure, and a very real possibility exists that urban as well as rural communities will run out of water by March 2018, if not sooner.As the largest user of water (incidentally not only in South Africa but also globally), the agricultural sector is an obvious and easy target for those taking part in the blame game. Forgotten is the fact that the Western Cape is probably South Africas most important export province in terms of agricultural products, or that the food-processing sector represents some 25% of the overall manufacturing sector output of South Africa.Also forgotten is that agriculture and agro-processing are responsible for 18% of employment opportunities in the province and that agri-tourism in the Western Cape is a significant generator of foreign and locally derived revenue.As the current drought crisis worsens, panic begins to set in and an already fractured and polarised society (the unfortunate hallmarks of South Africa and the Western Cape region) goes to war with itself. Accusations begin to fly, and fingers get pointed somebody needs to be blamed and somebody needs to pay. Half-truths and blatant lies are peddled in the press and on social media as if. Political infighting and opportunism are the order of the day.It is feared that the worst is yet to come for the Western Cape province. Late summer is normally blisteringly hot and windy, and a very real threat exists of veld fires sweeping the province and compounding the existing drought crisis. All the warning signs indicate imminent disaster.In this time, cool heads are needed to avert a catastrophe in the Western Cape.As the first order of business for 2018, Agri SA was invited to a bilateral meeting with the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Nomvula Mokonyane, to discuss the drought crisis in the Western Cape.All preconceptions that may have existed before the meeting were swept aside when the minister acknowledged the fundamental importance of the agricultural sector in South Africa and affirmed her view that Agri SA and government were allies in dealing with the prevailing drought crisis in the Western Cape.Certain hard realities had to be addressed, including the need for improved water use management and the fact that, in certain identified areas, farmers are undeniably known to be abstracting and using water unlawfully, which is to the detriment of their neighbours and the province. Severe compliance and enforcement action against perpetrators are to be expected fair warning has been issued!While the discussions were led by well-prepared and informed presentations by the delegation of high-level officials from the department, what impressed most was the calm and purposeful way in which the minister conveyed her appreciation for the severity of the impending drought crisis in the Western Cape, and her willingness to listen and reach out to Agri SA and the agricultural sector at this time.The situation in the Western Cape is heading into a critical phase, and conditions are feared to deteriorate even further as the late summer heat is set to persist. While the sense of panic and desperation deepens as the realities of this present drought are felt by farmers and city dwellers alike, Agri SA has (while setting aside all other differences for the time being) found in Minister Mokonyane and her officials capable and cool-headed leaders to support and to be emulated by others.Agri SA looks forward to working with the Department of Water and Sanitation and, in particular, Minister Mokonyane, in dealing with the effects of the persistent drought ravaging the Western Cape and adjacent areas.Agri SA has consistently maintained its view that where farmers use water unlawfully, they do so at the expense of the agricultural community. As an organisation, Agri SA will not defend the indefensible and strongly condemns the unlawful abstraction, storage and use of water by all people. Following the heavy rainfalls that have affected the local vegetable production since the beginning of January 2018, Mauritius will inevitably resort to importing from South Africa, India and Egypt. jackmac34 via pixabay The Minister of Agro-Industry and Food Security, Mahen Kumar Seeruttun, made this statement on 19 January 2018 during a press conference, following a meeting with officers from the Food and Agricultural Research and Extension Institute and the Small Farmers Welfare Fund. As a first step, 170 tonnes of carrot, 50 tonnes of cabbage, 15 tonnes of cauliflower, and 30 tonnes of beans will be imported over several weeks so as to prevent shortage on the local market.Minister Seeruttun highlighted that the meeting aimed at preparing a plan to help planters whose fields have been damaged. The final plan will be presented at a special cabinet meeting for approval. He pointed out that some 75 % of the local vegetable production was affected by the heavy rains and that it will take about three months for the situation to return to normal.With regards to some 6,000 planters who have incurred net losses, it has been suggested that the Development Bank of Mauritius provides them with loans so that they can rehabilitate their fields and acquire quality seeds to restart the production of vegetables and promote the local agriculture, the minister underscored. This financing plan, as announced in Budget speech 2017-2018, is in the process of being finalised, he added.Seeruttun also underlined that his ministry is working on a new insurance plan which will be more attractive and will encourage more planters to benefit from it. Former Nelson Mandela Bay municipal spokesman Roland Williams was so indebted to controversial tow truck company owner Raven Rungan that they hatched a fraudulent plan to damage his luxury car to claim more than R96,000 from his insurance company. Williams - who falsely claimed and received the payout for an accident that never happened - pleaded guilty to fraud in the Port Elizabeth Specialised Commercial Crimes Court yesterday, 22 January 2018.He said later he was ashamed and embarrassed about what he had done.Williams, along with co-accused company Mango Moon Trading - trading as V&R Auto and represented by Renika Rungan - told the court they pleaded guilty to the charge of insurance fraud against them.The court found that Williams along with Renika's husband, Raven - who was fatally wounded in a shooting a year later - defrauded Santam Limited through a combined insurance claim worth more than R115,000 in 2014.Rungan was the sole owner of V&R Auto before his death in October 2015, about two weeks after he was shot four times while on his way to work, in an alleged hit.In his plea statement read out by his attorney Kuban Chetty, Williams admitted to his actions which he said were "wrongful, unlawful and intentional".Williams's statement detailed how he and Rungan deliberately caused extensive damage to his BMW to put in a claim to defraud Santam after Williams experienced engine problems with his car."He [Rungan] further intimated that he could 'make a plan' with my vehicle by having it damaged at his premises and I could then lodge a claim with my insurers," Williams said.He admitted further that he owed Rungan R50,000 "as a result of various loans made".The two then concocted a plan to damage the BMW and lodge a claim with his insurance company, claiming that he had an accident on the Motherwell-Addo road on 18 August 2014.Williams's insurance claim stated he had tried to swerve out for a cow in the road and had rolled the car, after which V&R Auto towed it to their premises.The following month R96,400 was paid into Williams's bank account and R19,404 was paid to V&R Auto for services rendered.Addressing the court through his legal representative, Williams admitted the car was not damaged in an accident and was not towed to V&R Auto's premises in Walmer."I was not entitled to claim from Santam Limited in respect of the damages caused to my motor vehicle nor for the salvaging costs, which include the towing, security, administration and storage, which was raised by [V&R Auto]," he said.Asked by magistrate Lionel Lindoor if he agreed with the contents of the statement submitted in court, a forlorn-looking Williams, dressed in a black suit, replied: "Yes."State prosecutor Theuns Goosen submitted police records which showed Williams had two previous convictions for driving under the influence of alcohol dating back to 1993 and 1997.Chetty said Williams would apply for a correctional supervision report to deviate from the minimum sentence after Lindoor found the pair guilty as charged.Goosen said it was fair for the court to consider the correctional supervision report for Williams.Speaking through Chetty later, Williams said he was "extremely remorseful, deeply ashamed and embarrassed" about what he had done."Irrespective of how I may have been influenced, I have done a very bad thing."I feel for my wife, children, family and all who have been in any way affected by my wrongful actions."Also in court yesterday, Rungan's widow and sole member of his close corporation, Renika, said through her legal representative, advocate Richard Crompton, that the company pleaded guilty to the charge of fraud but that she had no personal knowledge of the matter.A resolution handed to court on behalf of Renika and the close corporation she represented said she was entitled to plead guilty on behalf of the company.Renika, on behalf of V&R Auto, received a fine of R120,000, wholly suspended for five years.Part of the conditions of the sentence are that V&R Auto has until 9 February to pay back the R19,404 to Santam and that the company not be convicted of fraud during the suspended sentence period.Williams will be sentenced on 5 March. After years of pedestrian economic growth in sub-Saharan Africa, we're starting to see some improvements in many of the continent's major economies, with the World Bank projecting growth rising to 3.2% in 2018 - almost three times the economic growth the region saw in 2016. Oz Desai, GM Corporate Traveller South Africa Breaking the barriers to travel The more open the visa regime, the better for business Africa cant afford to wait five decades for the same benefits that a frontier-free Europe enjoys. Enabling business travel An uptick in mining output, recovery in the agricultural sector and improving global conditions are helping to stimulate business across the continent. The growth is not meteoric, but it is stable.Some would say its a prime time to consolidate and prepare for opportunities so that these can be pursued as soon as they arise.While many parts of the world grapple with conversations around closing borders, there are murmurs of the opposite in Africa, a region renowned for its lack of visa openness and one that could see prosperity and growth if the barriers to travel were consciously broken down.According to the African Development Bank, the free movement of people is a cornerstone of regional integration. When business people move more easily across the continent, because of liberal visa policies, they bring higher levels of investment, fresh skills and they expand the range of goods and services on offer.In the past year, over a third of African countries have more liberal visa policies than they had in 2015, and four countries have even moved up into the top 20 most open visa countries.Just this month, we saw the Central African Economic and Monetary Community (CEMAC) reach a key milestone agreement making travel within the six-member regional block, comprising Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Central African Republic, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon and Chad, visa-free and integration of central Africa a reality.The African Unions introduction of a single African passport was a further step in the right direction and, for South Africans, the news that Nigeria would start issuing visas on arrival for all Africans was equally good news, considering the business interests of and related travel conducted by South Africans in that West African state.It is certainly becoming easier to travel within the continent, but it should be even easier. The more open the visa regime in Africa, the easier it would be to do business more quickly and affordably from promoting entrepreneurship, diversifying economies and adding value to services, to attracting investment and even introducing much-needed skills.The World Bank estimates that intra-African trade is more expensive than trade in any other region. Not only is it often easier for citizens from other regions to travel through Africa than Africans themselves, but goods originating within Africa also attract crippling import tariffs and permits.According to the African Development Banks Visa Openness Index, some 54% of Africans still need visas to travel to other African countries, 24% can get visas on arrival and only 22% do not need visas at all. Only 13 out of 55 African states offer e-Visas although this number was only nine in 2015 and only 10 offer liberal access (visa-free or visa on arrival) to all Africans.Countries like Angola, Ethiopia and the DRC score among the lowest in Africa in terms of visa openness, with Seychelles, Uganda and Ghana being the most visa open. Ghana, in particular, has made significant strides in visa openness, announcing last year that it would provide visas on arrival for citizens of every AU member state.In addition to the albeit slow progress in terms of visa openness across the continent, it is encouraging to see that other enablers to business travel are improving. New airline routes, the introduction of low-cost carrier flights and improve airport infrastructure is making it easier than ever before to access Africa.As a frequent business traveller, I wait in anticipation to see the Yamoussoukro Accord bring about open skies in Africa and for the African Unions dream of a continent of seamless borders to become a reality. The unambitious 2063 deadline extended by the AU, however, is an awfully long way away. Africa cant afford to wait five decades for the same benefits that a frontier-free Europe enjoys.As we improve our transport infrastructure across the continent, we should be pursuing relaxed visa regimes so that when the opportunity arises, Africans can be the first in line to contribute to the continents growth. PARIS, France: Google has announced that it will open a research centre in Paris devoted to artificial intelligence, following a meeting between the tech giant's boss and French President Emmanuel Macron. "The different achievements in this country, including in science, art and the academic field make it an ideal place for the creation of a centre of theoretical research in artificial intelligence," Google chief executive Sundar Pichai said in a statement.The announcement came as Macron welcomed 140 multinational business leaders to Versailles in Paris on Monday night, ahead of the opening of the World Economic Forum in Davos on Tuesday.Google said it will extend it's headquarters in the capital to accommodate the centre - the third to open worldwide, after California and Switzerland.The number of staff in Paris is set to increase from 700 to 1,000.Facebook earlier announced its intention to double the number of researchers at its own AI centre, opened in Paris in 2015, from 30 to 60.The social media giant will also invest 10 million euros by 2022 to "accelerate artificial intelligence" in France.The announcements "signal the competitiveness of France" in the growing sector, the Elysee Palace said in a statement.Both companies intend to open programmes in France to help train tens of thousands of people in digital skills.Source: AFP Emirates Airlines struck a $16 billion deal to buy 36 Airbus A380 superjumbos just days after the European manufacturer said it would have to halt production without new orders. The deal with Emirates will give Airbus "at least 10 years of visibility", the European manufacturer's CEO Tom Enders said in an interview recently.The deal is "excellent news" and "a sign of confidence on the part of a company that has built its strategy on growth around the plane", Enders told France's Journal du Dimanche newspaper.Emirates said it had placed firm orders for 20 of the double-decker aircraft with options for a further 16. Deliveries are scheduled to start in 2020.The airline is already the world's biggest customer for the A380 with 101 in its fleet and 41 more firm orders previously placed.Airbus hopes that by continuing the programme for the next 10 years or even beyond, potential customers of the A380 will decide to order the aircraft, especially in China.The group's decision in 2007 to pursue the A380, capable of packing in 853 seats, was diametrically opposed to rival Boeing's bet on the Dreamliner, marketed as a more efficient plane that could be used for both medium and long-distance flights.But the economics of the four-engine A380 have proved daunting, with airlines having to operate every flight at full capacity in order to make a profit.Airbus sales director John Leahy had said on Monday that the company would have to halt the A380 programme unless Emirates placed another order.Enders, 59, told the Airbus board of directors last month that he would not seek reappointment as CEO when his current term ends in April. Ten years ago, conventional wisdom told us that email and SMS as marketing channels were going to die due to the rise of social media, mobile advertising, and instant messaging. Yet today email and SMS channels are still growing worldwide and in some cases faster than the other more modern channels. Email marketing volumes have almost doubled in the past two years worldwide, while SMS marketing has grown 142% in two years, second only to video advertising, according to a report by Salesforce.com.At Everlytic we have seen similar trends in South Africa, with the volumes we send for our customers going from two billion emails in 2016 to around 3.5 billion emails in 2017. The volume of new customers has not grown at the same rate, so the majority of this growth is for existing customers, meaning everyone is sending more. SMS has been growing at about the same rate.But it isn't just the volumes growing, engagement and clicks have grown too. According to our latest Email Marketing Benchmarks Report , average open rates for emails has reached nearly 26%, and click-through-rates almost 3.5%. Compared to social media ads which hover around a 1% click-through-rate, email shines and gives much higher ROI.This isn't to say that social media ads don't work, even though they have lower engagement, they have a much larger reach, and can target prospective customers via paid media, where email is limited to who you have on your list. Email and SMS are typically used more for lead nurturing, cross-selling, and customer loyalty, rather than new business acquisition.The one advantage that email and SMS have is that you own the data, and if you can augment this data with other information you know about your customer, you can create hype-personalised messages that are well-timed and highly relevant. Brands need to move away from your traditional "Dear John" personalisation, and start leveraging their organization's data to dynamically serve relevant content that is personalized, such as product promotions based on buying behaviour, or thought leadership pieces based on subscriber interests.Email and SMS become even more powerful when you build it into your entire customer journey, sending real time, contextual messages to engage and guide your customer through their current engagement with your organisation. If these messages are triggered automatically, and dynamically composed with real-time information, you create a whole new level of customer service which promotes loyalty and ultimately a bigger share of your customers wallet.This type of real-time communication is fast becoming a hygiene factor in customer experience and is something that brands simply must do to create sticky and rich journeys for their customers. As a consumer I want to be reminded and prompted, I want to be treated like an individual, and I want you to talk to me about things that I am really interested in. Don't shout at me about irrelevant products or services, but guide me through buying or engaging with your organization to make my experience seamless and rewarding. Email and SMS do this brilliantly.So, while your social media content and paid media efforts are essential in the modern marketing mix, don't forget about the trusted old-school channels of email and SMS. By integrating email and SMS into your larger marketing strategy you can turn your fans and followers into subscribers and drive better marketing ROI for your digital spend.These are some of the topics we will be covering in our talk about the Email and SMS marketing Juggernaut at the IMC in February 2018. We will explore why these channels are still growing like wildfire and where they stand in the new online order. We will also take a look at some of the biggest trends happening around these channels and what to look out for in the coming years.Location-based emails that float to the top of your inbox when your customer enters a geo-fence?Emails that are populated with contextual real-time data at the time of opening?Monetisation of email newsletters?This and more coming to you in February at the IMC Conference. Twelve months ago, it looked as though 2017 was going to be a tough year for print and publishing company Novus. As it happened, the year was a lot tougher than expected. The competition authorities forced Media24 to reduce its holding in Novus from just under 66% to 19% and the JSE forced it to reverse a January announcement relating to the crucial print contracts with Media 24 amid criticisms of unsound governance.In 2017, Novus wasn't just having trouble with the regulators. As the year progressed, the company seemed to edge closer to the possibility of losing its valuable contract with Media24. Possibly more disturbing for its relatively new shareholders were the disappointing results from its tissue business and the lessthan-exciting growth prospects for its label business.Analysts say the breadth of problems points to weaknesses at top management level. They say the group has not recovered from the controversial loss of key members of its top executive during 2016. That was the same year nonexecutive director and former CEO Lambert Retief was forced to take medical leave. The 2015 JSE listing and the battle with Caxton before the competition authorities meant the new leadership had to deal with a dramatically different environment. It could no longer look to Media24 and Naspers for shelter.Just weeks into 2018 and there's no sign that life is going to get any easier. In mid-December 2017, the company advised shareholders that negotiations with Media24 were expected to be concluded during February 2018 and new printing arrangements were expected to become effective from April 1. In December, Novus warned investors that the new printing terms and conditions being negotiated could have a "substantial adverse impact" on its earnings for the 2018 financial year.In early January came reports that Media24 was in advanced discussions with long-term rival Caxton to take over large chunks of the printing. The reports took most by surprise, given the long history of tension between Caxton and Media24, highlighted most recently by Caxton's interventions before the competition authorities. These determined interventions eventually forced Media24 to offload its controlling stake in Novus.As the end-March deadline approaches, most analysts believe Novus will hold onto much of the contract, but that Media24 will have used its negotiations with Caxton to force better rates from Novus. Some industry players estimate Media24 could save as much as R200m a year on the contract. The corollary is that Novus stands to lose R200m.Chris Wood at Prudential Investment Managers, which has built up a stake of just under 15% in the past few months, says that however much of the contract Novus holds on to it will not be on as attractive terms as previously."Whatever they retain will be at lower rates and that will be bad for earnings."But of greater concern to Wood is the disappointing performance of Novus's tissue business. Although Novus, like Caxton, was a dominant player in printing, Wood says the longterm prospects for the industry are in decline.Much more exciting for Woods are the growth prospects for Novus's tissue and label businesses. "The tissue business hasn't met with the original guidance provided at the time of the 2015 listing when we initially took up some shares," says Wood, adding that the label business has not taken off as strongly as hoped. Novus has secured a large contract to supply labels to South African Breweries but so far there has been little sign of the additional consumer products business that was hoped for.As if all that were not enough to be contending with on Monday, the Constitutional Court began hearing Caxton's claim that the tender for the schoolbook printing contract awarded to Novus should be declared invalid and set aside. GreenCape's CEO Mike Mulcahy at The Circulars 2018 awards ceremony in Davos. Adapted from UK ISP model Identifying mutually beneficial synergies Cape Town-based WISP makes its contribution by connecting companies so that under-utilised or discarded resources of one company can be used by another. Over the last four years, WISP has diverted more than 27,200 tonnes of waste from landfill, generated R41.6m in direct cash benefits for its members and created 140 jobs in the local economy. The programme has reduced greenhouse gas emissions by the equivalent of 44,000 trees planted or nine 2.2MW wind turbines installed.The City of Cape Town is a proud WISP supporter and funder. The programme is an amazing celebration of innovation, resilience and creativity by local firms in Cape Town. The city embraces the challenge to think creatively about waste streams and WISP encourages us to see opportunity in resources that would otherwise be sent to landfill, says Executive Mayor Patricia De Lille.WISP was nominated as one of only two African finalists for The Circulars 2018. Vincent Biruta, Rwanda's minister of environment was a finalist in the Leadership category for his efforts to support government institutions and private sector alignment for the circular economy in Rwanda.WISP is the first industrial symbiosis programme (ISP) established in Africa with funding from the Western Cape Government and the British High Commission. It adapted a successful UK-facilitated ISP model to the South African context. Its success has catalysed the development of other ISPs in other South African provinces such as Gauteng (GISP), KwaZulu-Natal (KISP) and demonstration activities in the Eastern Cape. As a result of WISPs experience being shared across the continent, ISPs are being established in other African countries such as Ghana and Mauritius.The benefits of ISPs for the provinces and countries with such programmes can be significant. "WISP fills a niche in the City of Cape Town's waste strategy, which creates notable social, economic and environmental benefits," says Mike Mulcahy, CEO of GreenCape, the NPO which is delivering the programme. The team unlocks cost savings and creates new business opportunities for the manufacturing members who participate, creating a truly circular economy programme.Gisela Kaiser, executive director of informal settlements, water and waste for the City of Cape Town shares the sentiment: In a city of four million people, opportunities like WISP that divert waste from landfill, reduce fossil greenhouse gas emissions, create jobs and extract a tremendous amount of economic value, are a superb outcome for the city and businesses located in Cape Town. To receive global recognition from the WEF for this work should be a proud moment for South Africans and those small and large businesses that are members of WISP.WISPs success lies in its extensive network of manufacturing companies and its expert facilitators. WISP facilitators engage members to gather information on under-utilised resources and rapidly identify mutually beneficial synergies between members. WISP provides what its members lack capacity and technical expertise to implement solutions that will make them more sustainable and the ability to collectively address major environmental issues affecting the manufacturing sector.When we saw the success of the ISPs in the UK and elsewhere, we knew that a similar programme had the potential to transform our provincial economy. For that reason, we have supported WISP since its establishment in 2013, says minister of economic opportunities Alan Winde of the Western Cape Government. We hope that this distinguished award will help WISP and other IS programmes around the country grow their already substantial database of companies who are willing to share and sell their waste rather than send it to landfill. SAN FRANCISCO - Facebook announced it will ask its two billion users to rank their trust in news sources, in its latest attempt to combat the spread of misinformation on the social network. (c) Marcel de Grijs - 123RF.com The change comes as the online giant seeks to address charges that it has failed -- along with Google and Twitter -- to prevent the spread of bogus news, most strikingly ahead of the 2016 US presidential election.In a Facebook post, co-founder and chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said the network would seek to "prioritize news that is trustworthy, informative, and local.""There's too much sensationalism, misinformation and polarization in the world today," Zuckerberg said. "Social media enables people to spread information faster than ever before, and if we don't specifically tackle these problems, then we end up amplifying them."The new "trusted sources" ranking, which starts next week, would aim to "make sure the news you see is high quality" and "helps build a sense of common ground" rather than sow division, Zuckerberg said.To do so, he said, Facebook decided to rely on member surveys as the most "objective" way to rank trust in news sources."We could try to make that decision ourselves, but that's not something we're comfortable with," Zuckerberg said. "We considered asking outside experts, which would take the decision out of our hands but would likely not solve the objectivity problem."The new ranking system, he said, would hopefully separate news organizations that are only trusted by their readers or watchers, from ones that are broadly trusted across society."This update will not change the amount of news you see on Facebook," he said. "It will only shift the balance of news you see towards sources that are determined to be trusted by the community."The latest move comes a week after Facebook announced a major update to its user feed that highlights what friends and family share on the network, over advertisements, celebrity and media posts.The company cast the change as part of a refocus on "community" -- prioritizing social interactions and relationships -- while acknowledging it would likely result in people spending less time on the platform."For some time, we have argued that Facebook should give priority to news from trusted sources," David Chavern, head of industry group News Media Alliance, said in a statement."This would be positive for consumers, as well as help to address 'fake news' issues."The group will watch how the Facebook ranking changes are implemented and whether they deliver on the social network's stated goals, according to Chavern."My hope is that this update about trusted news and last week's update about meaningful interactions will help make time on Facebook time well spent," Zuckerberg said.Known for annual personal goals ranging from killing his own food to learning Chinese, Zuckerberg's stated mission for this year is to "fix" the social network.He plans to target abuse and hate, and interference by nation states.Meanwhile, British lawmakers probing possible Russian interference in the Brexit referendum revealed this week that Facebook agreed to broaden its own investigation into fake news around the vote, after the social media platform's initial efforts drew criticism.The House of Commons' Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee said Simon Milner, the tech titan's head of policy in Britain, had vowed the company would now search for "clusters engaged in coordinated activity around the Brexit referendum" that appeared to have originated in Russia.Milner said it may take several weeks to produce results.The commitment follows demands from MPs for Facebook and Twitter to provide further information on alleged Russian social media meddling in the run-up to the June 2016 referendum.Executives from the platforms, as well as from Google, are due to give evidence to the parliamentary inquiry in February, when MPs will visit America for the occasion. PARIS - British model Amena Khan, who had been chosen by L'Oreal to appear in an advertising campaign in Britain, has pulled out over accusations she made anti-Israeli comments in a series of old tweets. The French cosmetics giant last week selected her to be the first woman in a hijab for a mainstream shampoo campaign.Khan's messages, posted on Twitter in 2014, have since been deleted."I deeply regret the content of the tweets I made in 2014, and sincerely apologise for the upset and hurt that they have caused," she said on Twitter on Monday."With deep regret, I've decided to step down from this campaign because the current conversations surrounding it detract from the positive and inclusive sentiment that it set out to deliver."L'Oreal group, contacted by AFP, said it "approved" her decision."We appreciate the fact that Amena has apologised for the content of her tweets and for the reactions they may have aroused," it said.It is not the first time a L'Oreal advertising campaign to promote diversity has foundered because of controversial social media comments by a model.Last summer the group dropped British black transgender model Munroe Bergdorf over Facebook comments she made accusing all whites of racial violence. by Helen Leggatt Virgin has never been a company to shrink from new ideas. But it was an old idea - testing - that really brought Virgin Holidays UK's marketing into the realms of AI. When Customer Lifecycle Lead at Virgin Holidays, Saul Lopes, joined the company in 2015 he says there was no culture of testing. The reasons for this are, he said, "We didn't have the time, resources or technology to really optimize our customer experience". With big plans to overhaul its online user-experience, and grow digital sales to 50% of revenue by 2020, the Virgin Holidays UK team looked to industry experts to help build and execute on a grand scale. Virgin Holidays UK sought out new, innovative technology, such as AI marketing solutions, for investments across several of its digital channels. Lopes engaged with Phrasee, a London-based marketing software company that employs AI to boost email response rates, along with others such as Adobe and Moveable Ink, to begin the journey. That was three years ago. Virgin Holidays UK are now reaping the rewards. "Over the past 3 years Phrasee has increased Virgin Holidays email open rates by 2% points," writes Phrasee in their blog,"and that 2% points of incremental open uplift has generated several million pounds in revenue from their email marketing channel." So, how does Phrasee work? In a nutshell, Phrasee uses AI to generate marketing language that out-performs humans in a much, much shorter time than had briefs and copywriters been involved. Advanced technologies, such as natural language processing and generation, Markov Chain Monte Carlo simulations, and Bayesian Inference, are used to quantify, generate and optimize email subject lines that increase opens, clicks and conversions. Furthermore, the more Phrasee is used, the more it learns about a brand's audience. And it's not just email subject lines that Phrasee can be used for. Also listed among its talents are body copy, calls to action, and triggers. Other marketing tasks are also being automated thanks to AI systems including running and evolving paid ad campaigns (Albert), or SEO (BrightEdge Insights). What does this mean for those in marketing roles? Will AI muscle in on their profession? According to Mike Kaput, director of the Marketing AI Institute, marketing jobs as a whole won't disappear overnight but "AI will certainly automate, and already is automating, lower-level marketing tasks like scheduling social shares, optimizing posts, and testing subject lines. If your job consists of a lot of repetitive marketing tasks like these, then you may want to consider how to evolve your role and skill set, as it will become more cost-effective and productive to have AI handle these types of activities." Tags: artificial intelligence, copywriting, email marketing, marketing, technology, trends Founder of NuDay Syria to keynote 'DEIS Impact Photo/courtesy, NuDay Syria Nadia Alawa. Nadia Alawa, who started an aid organization for Syria out of her New Hampshire home, will tell her story and discuss the humanitarian needs of Syria in the keynote address at this years seventh annual DEIS Impact, a weeklong festival of social justice. Not long after civil war broke out in Syria, she began collecting medical supplies, food and clothes to be shipped to Syria. These efforts eventually became NuDay Syria, a multimillion-dollar non-profit organization that focuses on bringing housing and food to displaced families with single mothers or wounded family members in Syria. In October, Brandeis students volunteered with NuDay Syria, packing a shipping container of donations to go to Syria as part of Waltham Group's community service day. Alawas address, "One Person at a Time, One Humanity Closer: Tackling the Syrian Crisis from New Hampshire will be held Tuesday, Feb. 6, at 7 p.m., Shapiro Campus Center Theater. The event is free and open to the public with no tickets required. 'DEIS Impact is a collaboration of the Brandeis Undergraduate Student Union and the International Center for Ethics, Justice and Public Life, with support provided by the Louis D. Brandeis Legacy Fund for Social Justice and the Massachusetts Cultural Council. This years festival features five open classes related to social justice taught by Brandeis faculty as part of 'DEIS Impact College, along with dozens of events sponsored by student clubs, faculty members and academic departments. Programming includes: Social Justice Case Challenge : The Waltham Group and Hiatt Career Center partner with UNICEF USA and City Year to host a case challenge for students. Students will be presented with real challenges faced by our employer-partners. On the day of the event, students will be divided into small teams to work collaboratively to propose solutions to a designated challenge. Student teams will present their recommendations. Modern Day Slavery and Trafficking : A Survivors Story: 15,000-17,000 men, women and children are trafficked into the United States every year. They are brought into the country seeking a better life and instead are faced with a living nightmare. From physical to emotional abuse, stripped of identities and no compensation, survivors of slavery and trafficking have incredibly moving stories to tell. Hear from a survivor of modern-day slavery and human trafficking, see for yourself how slavery still exists in the U.S. and the world, and find out what you can do to help stop it. Modern 3D Printing Meets Disabilities: How are emerging technologies enabling the future of social justice? Come explore the world of 3D printed prosthetics and learn how 3D printing is helping children and their families who cannot afford constant replacements of their prosthetics as they grow. Become part of a global community that is using technology to help thousands of children around the world with affordable 3D printed limbs. Have some snacks, learn about the 3D printing movement, and help build 3D printed prosthetic hands! No experience with 3D printing required. DEIS Impact College courses include: Conquests, Resistance, and Cultural Transformation in Mexico and Central America, an open session of the anthropology course ANTH 119a with Charles Golden International Environmental Conflict & Collaboration, an open session of the environmental studies course ENVS 118b with Charles Chester Slavery in the Roman World, with its modern implications, an open session of the classical studies course CLAS 192B with Bernadette Brooten Sustainable Economic Development Strategies, an open session of the graduate level Heller School course HS 289F with Nader Habibi and Can Erbil Conservative Political Thought, an open session of the politics course POL 187B with Bernard Yack. A complete schedule and additional information about events can be found on the DEIS Impact website. Watch Nadia Alawa's TedxTalk: "How a New Hampshire mom created change in Syria:" This years Davos gathering could rival the US version of TV reality show The Apprentice, which helped propel Donald Trump into the White House, for ratings-boosting excitement because its risky and because the stakes are much higher. The theatrical tension became apparent as soon as the White House announced that President Trump would make an appearance, the first by an Oval Office occupant since Bill Clinton in 2000. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the president was excited to promote his policies to strengthen American businesses, American industries, and American workers. That puts his America First agenda on a collision course with the internationally co-operative spirit that, at least rhetorically, has guided Davos. Further adding to the drama, theres a chance President Trump may pull out, as the budget standoff that has shut down the US government may yet force him to cancel. The clash of visions has also guaranteed in reality TV fashion to create a competitive dynamic like never before among the weeks headliners. President Trumps pitch will come after Prime Minister Narendra Modi today delivers a keynote on Indias charms to the business community. An armed security personnel stands on the rooftop of a hotel, near the Congress Centre ahead of the opening of the 2018 WEF annual summit in Davos, eastern Switzerland. Invest India, the government group advocating for financial support, has taken out a towering billboard of Mr Modis likeness in central Davos touting the countrys improved rankings in the World Banks Doing Business report. French president Emmanuel Macron is similarly expected to advance his Choose France initiative when he takes the stage tomorrow evening. He already preempted the Davos rush by inviting 140 leaders from companies including Facebook and JPMorgan to the Palace of Versailles on their way to Switzerland. On Thursday, British prime minister Theresa Mays gets the chance to face the camera, and like one of the candidates vying to take the prize at the end of an Apprentice series, set out her vision for a British exit from the EU. Look for her to enumerate the many benefits a newly-divorced Britain will have for British businesses, which are rightly spooked by the uncertainties of Brexit, and for the same multinationals President Macron is trying to lure to France. At the end of it all, as if to maximise the suspense, President Trumps stage appearance was scheduled for Friday afternoon, usually the lightest day of the confab, when many participants head home or carve a few turns on the slopes. Having President Trump effectively close the festivities extends the life of the forum another trick from the reality TV playbook. Reuters BitFlyer, the worlds largest Bitcoin exchange, has been given the green light for a European launch. The Tokyo-based firm has been awarded a payment institution (PI) licence for the European Union, building on its regulatory approval in the US and Japan. BitFlyer handles about a quarter of the globes Bitcoin exchange volumes, with more than $250 billion worth of Bitcoin being traded on its platform last year. Despite the hysteria surrounding the virtual currency, Bitcoin has endured a choppy ride since the end of 2017. It has fallen from December highs of nearly $20,000 to $10,624.42 on January 22, according to Coindesk data. Yuzo Kano, founder and chief executive of bitFlyer, said: "When I set up bitFlyer in 2014, I did so with global ambitions and the belief that approved regulatory status is fundamental to the long-term future of Bitcoin and the virtual currency industry. "I am proud that we are now the most compliant virtual currency exchange in the world; this coveted regulatory status gives our customers, our company and the virtual currency industry as a whole a very positive future outlook." BitFlyer is the only exchange licensed in Europe that can give traders access to the globes biggest Bitcoin trading market in Japan. It is estimated that around 10 billion of Bitcoin is traded worldwide per month, making the euro the third largest Bitcoin market after the Japanese Yen and the US dollar. The exchange received its European PI licence from Luxembourg regulator Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier. Germanys Bundesbank has called for global regulation of Bitcoin, while Frances finance minister wants tougher rules for cryptocurrencies. Meanwhile, US billionaire Warren Buffett has also ruled out a foray into cryptocurrencies, warning that the Bitcoin boom will "come to a bad ending". The chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway has joined the chorus of voices criticising the digital currency, which endured a rollercoaster ride at the tail end of 2017. However, JP Morgan chief executive Jamie Dimon said he now regrets calling Bitcoin a "fraud". - PA At this stage, its well-known that RTE Twos First Dates Ireland is an awkward watch. So much so, pillows and tea-making breaks are a necessity - especially during tonights date between Amy Maria and Phil. Phil, who is known for appearing on Irish show Tallafornia, meets Louth mum-of-one Amy Maria and it isnt long before talk turns to appearances with the pair discussing everything from wearing makeup to penis enlargements. Ahead of tonights screening, the duo came face to face once again on The Nicky Byrne Show with Jenny Greene to chat about their date - which is safe to say, didnt exactly go swimmingly. Amy Maria revealed to the radio hosts that she wasnt impressed when Phil turned up hungover having been out the night before then proceeded to be what she felt was derogatory towards women. He not my type she said. I was an idiot, I regret saying some things. I apologise Phil said. Forget the date, this may be the most awkward radio interview, ever. We'll let their body language do the talking By Ann O'Loughlin The Criminal Assets Bureau has secured orders that 875,000 held in bank accounts controlled by a man whom it claims is involved in money-laundering are the proceeds of crime. CAB sought the orders in respect of monies held in respect of accounts held in several accounts belonging to Mr Adam Shina Muhammed, aged in his early 40s, with an address at Cherry Orchard Green, Ballyfermot, Dublin. In her decision, Ms Justice Carmel Stewart said she was satisfied the monies in the accounts, held at different Irish-based financial institutions, are the proceeds of crime. The accounts had previously been frozen following an application by CAB, represented by Jim Benson Bl, to the court. Mr Muhammed did not formally oppose CAB's application, but in earlier proceedings where he sought and was refused legal aid, he had denied being involved in money-laundering. He claimed the monies were loans for his business called Eirclean. In her ruling, the Judge said there was no evidence before the court to support Mr Muhammed's claim. The Judge noted evidence tendered by CAB including that large sums of money had been lodged into various accounts controlled by Mr Muhammed between May 2014 and November 2015. The monies were transferred to the Irish based accounts from locations including Hong Kong, China, the USA and Nigeria. CAB officers said a total of approximately 1.5m in several six figure sums was lodged in the Irish accounts. Some of the monies were dissipated from the accounts. By the time the freezing orders were obtained some 875,000 remained in the accounts. The Judge said CAB officers had searched for details about Mr Muhammed's company in Ireland and abroad. It could find no records to show the company had been trading. CAB said the firm had no business premises, no employee records and no returns with revenue. Searches abroad also failed to produce any records about the company Eirclean, the judge added. In all the circumstances the Judge said she was satisfied to make an order under Section 3 of the 1996 Proceeds of Crime Act. The Judge also appointed a receiver over the monies. Update 4pm: Taoiseach Leo Varadkar says the government has no plans to link social media accounts to the Public Services Card. Junior Minister Jim Daly had floated the idea in a bid to confirm online identities. He also suggested having to use your PPS number to sign in to the likes of Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Mr Varadkar dismissed the suggestion, however. "To link the Public Services Card to internet usage, which I agree would be a restriction on privacy and on people's freedom... I've no doubt that Minister Daly's thoughts and proposals are well-intentioned, but it's certainly not something the Government is proposing to do." Earlier: Calls to force social media companies to demand PPS numbers to ensure users are not underage Cork Fine Gael TD Jim Daly has called for social media companies to demand PPS numbers from users to ensure they are not underage. It is after a Dublin man was found guilty of using apps like Instagram and Snapchat to coerce young girls into sending him pornographic images. But CEO of Cyber Safe Ireland, Alex Cooney, does not think we should hand over more personal details. She said: "It is your personal data and I think we need to think about how much data we are giving away, we give an awful lot away without thinking about it. "We also have to think is this going to be the thing that solves the problem, no, I think what we need to be doing is educating children." - Digital Desk By Ann OLoughlin A bank appointed receiver has secured a temporary High Court order preventing a Limerick property owner from evicting four college students. The court heard the students, through no fault of their own, are caught in the middle of a dispute over the validity of the appointment of Mr Karl ONeill of KPMG as receiver over a house at 23 Lifford Park, South Circular Road, Limerick and the owner Mrs Sinead OConnor. The receivers counsel John Kennedy Bl told the High Court today that Mrs OConnor told the four tenants, three females and one male, they had to pay her rent and sign a document stating they would not have any dealings in relation to the house with anyone other than her. The students had agreed to pay rent to an agent of the receiver, who had allowed them remain in the house till the end of the academic year. The students said they were prepared to pay her rent, but were not comfortable with signing the document, Counsel said. Mrs OConnor said paying rent was "not enough" and she wanted them out "immediately." She informed the students the locks would be changed. Counsel said Mrs OConnor remained in the house on Monday night. Counsel said three men, who arrived with Mrs O Connor with sleeping bags, remained downstairs in the property until 12.30am. On Tuesday morning the students said a male and female joined Mrs OConnor. The students were informed by them that other persons would be arriving at the house and they were "working out a rota" for the next few weeks, Counsel said. Counsel said the students are distressed and scared and their parents had contacted the receiver about these developments. Counsel said Mr ONeill, who disputes any claim by Mrs OConnor from Tullig, Castleisland, Co Kerry that he is not validly appointed, was appointed receiver over the properties by AIB in 2016. Last April financial fund Beltany Property Finance acquired the loans and security in respect of the property. Counsel said Ms OConnor does not consent to the AIB selling that loan which they claim is unlawful. Counsel said the students were caught in the middle of a dispute between his client and the owner. Such a dispute should be aired before an appropriate forum such as the court, and that the students should not be subjected to threat of immediate eviction, counsel said. What had made the matter urgent Counsel said was Mrs OConnor was not acting alone and possibly some other group of persons had become involved. Ms Justice Caroline Costello granted the receiver an interim injunction requiring Ms OConnor to give over possession of the property to the receiver. The injunction, which was granted on an ex-parte basis, also applies to anyone else who has notice of the orders. The judge, acknowledging the urgency of the situation said the students in the house do require immediate protection. The case will come back before the court on Thursday. By Tom Tuite A teenager avoided getting detained for a car theft after his father made an impassioned plea and told a court that his own years of drug addiction were to blame for his sons offending. The 17-year-old boy had pleaded guilty earlier to motor theft and criminal damage of the car in Dublin last April. At the resumed hearing today, Judge John OConnor was furnished with a negative probation report on the youth who has no prior criminal convictions and cannot be named because he is a minor. He had been warned that he was facing a six-month term today. Judge OConnor noted the teenager had been aggressive during one of his meetings with his probation officer. Afterwards the boy stopped attending further meetings and the judge warned him he could expect strict regime in the Oberstown detention centre. The judge said the boy had been given a lot of chances by the court and his parents had been supportive; on Oct. 10 last he gave him a warning that he faced a six month sentence if the next probation report was not positive. The defence solicitor said the teen was now more positive about working with a new probation officer which was not accepted by the judge. There were also issues about the youth taking part in a training course. The boys father then addressed the court and described how his own years of being an addict had affected his son. Im not justifying what he has done, Ive been to the (educational) project and it is brilliant and they say they would love to work with him. I was on heroin and crack for 20 years, you know what goes on with that, prison time and he was brought up in a home with no structure, no ethics, he said, adding that he and the teens mother split up. If he was under my roof he would be going to the programme, but Ive no control over where he goes due to the fact he lives with his mother, the father told the court. He said his son, finds abiding by rules hard, getting out of bed hard, Id ask the court to give him an ultimatum and I appreciate youve done very good for him. I feel Ive some contribution to how he is today, the man said. Judge OConnor told the father that his comments were helpful and moving and he took on board his point about the teens lack of a structured life. He referred to a support programme which works in conjunction with the court to help youths abide by their bail terms and ensure they attend appointments set up for them with agencies trying help divert them from re-offending. The judge said the teenager needed to comply with that and he did not want to send him to Oberstown where he would mix with others who have committed serious crimes. He told the father, Whatever you have done in the past you have certainly turned it around and are now a very good role model for your son. He then spoke to the youth who had remained silent as his father had opened up about how their family life had suffered through his addiction. We need to know you can do it, Judge OConnor said to the boy who quietly replied, will do. Judge OConnor adjourned sentencing and put the case back for four weeks. In addition to asking for an updated probation report he sought one from the Extern social justice charity which operate the bail support scheme. I think the penny has dropped regarding engaging with people, the teens father said. Judge OConnor explained to the boy that in addition to having regard for his interests he had to take the victim into account. However, he told the boy he would find the Extern people helpful but it was down to him to engage. You dont want to be getting up in Oberstown told you are going to school and a strict regime; six months would be a very hard sentence for you, he warned the teen. By Gordon Deegan Former Clare Labour TD, Michael McNamara told a court yesterday that he was utterly and completely shocked when pepper sprayed by a garda outside his home in December 2016. In evidence at Ennis District Court, Mr McNamara (43) said that my eyes were burning out of my head after Garda Darren McLoughlin pepper-sprayed him just after 2.10am on December 10th 2016. In the case, Garda McLoughlin had pursued Mr McNamara in his patrol car to his home at Tobernagath, Scarriff in east Clare on suspicion that Mr McNamara had consumed an intoxicant due to the manner of his driving. Mr McNamara passed a breath test for alcohol at Killaloe Garda Station later that night when found to be substantially under the limit but was yesterday banned for two years and fined 400 after Judge John King convicted him of dangerous driving on the night. Judge King said that there was evidence that Mr McNamara was driving at excessive speed in a dark, narrow, undulating road and taking the centre of the road. He said: IF there was a pedestrian on that road? If there was a cyclist? Counsel for Mr McNamara, Martin Dully BL said that a driving ban for Mr McNamara will be exceptionally disastrous for this man. Mr Dully said that there was evidence that Mr McNamara was driving 20km in excess of the speed limit and "what you have here is not dangerous driving, it couldnt possibly be. Mr Dully said Mr McNamara is a man "of exemplary character" and has no previous convictions. Judge King dismissed a second charge against Mr McNamara that he had obstructed a Garda in the course of his duties. Judge King said that it would "unfair and unsafe" to convict Mr McNamara of the obstruction charge as Garda McLoughlin had not specifically advised Mr McNamara that he was invoking Section 7 of the Road Traffic Act concerning a Garda entering the curtilage of a persons dwelling without a warrant. In evidence, Mr McNamara told the court that he was temporarily blinded by the use of the pepper spray by Garda McLoughlin to his eyes, mouth and nose outside his home. Mr Dully said that Garda McLoughlin emptied the entire contents of the pepper spray can inches away from Mr McNamaras face. Mr McNamara told the court: I will never forget it as long as I live - in my own yard, pepper sprayed, hand-cuffed and thrown into the back of a car. Mr McNamara said that he was not abusive during any stage of the night. Mr McNamara denied evidence from Garda McLoughlin that he made three separate attempts to dash into his home on the night and that Garda McLoughlin applied the pepper spray on Mr McNamaras third attempt when trying to restrain him. Mr McNamara told the court that he believes that his arrest on the night was unlawful. Mr McNamara said that he told Garda McLoughlin in the yard outside his home: I have done nothing wrong. This is crazy and I would like you to leave now. I want to go to bed. Mr McNamara said that he had a couple of drinks earlier that night at McNamaras pub in Scarriff with the cast of a local production of Oliver. Mr McNamara said that he had a small part in the production. Mr Dully said that Garda McLouglins actions towards Mr McNamara were over the top and utterly unreasonable. In reply, Garda McLoughlin said: I would say it was quite the opposite...I never encountered such a situation that night." The court heard from Garda McLoughlin that during the incident, Mr McNamara twice escaped from a Garda patrol car outside his home and made a third dash for his front door from a bench in the yard. Mr McNamara denied this course of events. Garda McLoughlin said that Mr McNamara had earlier ignored his patrol cars blue lights and sirens as he pursued Mr McNamara on a 1.8km stretch between Scarriff post office and Mr McNamaras home. Garda McLoughlin said that Mr McNamara was driving at a speed of 100km in a 80km zone and that Mr McNamara was taking bends on the country road in the middle of the road during the pursuit. The Garda said that he followed Mr McNamara to a house and he saw Mr McNamara get out of his car and walked briskly towards the house. This was denied by Mr McNamara who told the court that he had a conversation with Garda McLoughlin while he was sitting is his car. Garda McLoughlin said that he prevented Mr McNamara from gaining access to his home and he handcuffed Mr McNamara from the front. He said: "I did this as he had failed to stop driving, had failed to stop walking towards the door and for my own safety." Garda McLoughlin said that he didnt know Mr McNamara was at the time and he didnt recognise him. Ten years in the force, Garda McLoughlin said that he had never used pepper spray before and much of the spray went over his own hands. Garda McLoughlin said that his hands were burning until 5pm the same day. Mr McNamara lost his Clare seat in the February 2016 General Election to GP, Dr Michael Harty after the east Clare man polled 4,472 first preference votes. Mr McNamara was first elected to the Dail in 2011. Mr McNamara crossed the political divide during the lifetime of the last Dail when he married Sarah-Jane Hillery, a fellow barrister and granddaughter of former president and Fianna Fail Minister, Patrick Hillery. Judge King fixed recognisance in the event of an appeal against the dangerous driving conviction. Update 2.11pm: The INTO says pay inequality is the real reason for teacher shortages, not career breaks. It is after reports that schools will be told to clamp down on leave to solve the problem. Teachers are entitled to a career break once they are made permanent, with their job secured for when they return. President of the INTO John Boyle says many people need breaks for personal reasons and curbing them is not the solution. He said: "The career break scheme is not only used for people going abroad. "I do accept that more teachers at the moment are going abroad but because of this issue with pay and equality and not being able to get the deposit for a house but that is something that can easily be solved. Earlier: Schools are set to limit career breaks for teachers to tackle staff shortages. This year, over 1,700 primary teachers and 557 secondary teachers are on leave. According to the Irish Independent, the Government is considering a range of measures to deal with the problem. President of the Irish National Teachers Organisation (INTO) John Boyle says a lot of teachers leave because of pay inequality. He said: "A lot of young teachers lost in the region of 50,000 deposit for a house. "So in that situation, it is much easier to go abroad when you go abroad get tax free salaries and return after a few years. "We have also had a continuation of the baby boom, it is actually only peaking now." - Digital Desk Update 3.43pm: Minister Shane Ross has been accused of 'Del Boy' politics over the re-opening of Stepaside Garda Station. It's after the Public Accounts Committee said it was a political decision rather than one based on policing needs. Fianna Fail TD Shane Cassells said that the decision needs to be revisited. "We've got a Minister, on one hand, shaking the poster at a roundabout, saying: 'I got ye're Garda station back', and we've got an assistant commissioner, on the other hand, talking very clear language that people can understand, saying that it's not a policing priority," he said. "People out there are extremely intelligent, and they will make their adjudication and their own mind up whether this was Del Boy politics or not." Earlier: Stepaside Garda station in Dublin may never re-open according to the head of PAC Update 10.25am: Stepaside Garda station in Dublin may never re-open according to the head of the Public Accounts Committee. Sean Fleming claims Gardai still do not know how much it will cost and would prefer to build a new station in Cherrywood instead. The PAC is due to issue a report later criticising the decision to re-open the station in the Transport Minister's constituency shut during cost-cutting in 2012. PAC Chair Sean Fleming. Chair Sean Fleming says The Public Accounts Committee would be of the view that the leasing priority should be the key reason in relation to re-opening any garda stations. He said: "It is driven politically without consideration of the tax payer and policing priority and that is not a good thing." Earlier: The pending reopening of Stepaside Garda station will be strongly criticised by the Dails spending watchdog, despite two Cabinet ministers demanding its return, writes Daniel McConnell. Culture Minister Josepha Madigan and Transport Minister Shane Ross have strongly backed the reopening of Stepaside Garda station, but the Public Accounts Committee is today set to criticise the decision on a value for money basis. Last month, the Government revealed that Stepaside would be one of six stations reopened. This announcement followed extensive demands by Mr Ross and Ms Madigan, who both represent the Dublin Rathdown constituency in which Stepaside lies. Before Christmas, senior Garda management said that if they had to decide on where resources would be spent, they told the committee reopening Stepaside would not be a priority. The PAC report, due for publication today, is set to strongly endorse the views of Assistant Commissioner Pat Leahy who said he would prefer to send extra gardai to Ballyfermot, Ronanstown, and the north and south inner city before Stepaside. We will be asking the question is it a good financial venture or whether taxpayers money is likely to be wasted in the 2018 estimates process, said one PAC member. We are warning there is a risk of a waste of money here. Given the strong objections, doubts have arisen as to whether the station will ever reopen given the costs involved. Requests for a response from Mr Ross were not forthcoming last night. It is understood that the PAC will also recommend that staff left without monies following the scandal at the Console charity should be paid a once-off ex-gratia payment, in lieu of monies lost. The PAC will also for the first time refuse to sign off on the accounts of one of the bodies it examines. The committee is less than happy with the co-operation it received from Transport Infrastructure Ireland during it examinations of Public-Private Partnerships. According to committee sources, the report will reflect that unhappiness as well as the PACs refusal to endorse the accounts. This was on the basis that they did not make available information relating to the PPPs which would show us whether value for money was achieved or not, the source said. Meanwhile, the Government is set to approve measures today which will see 42,000 people hit by bonkers pension reductions addressed, the Irish Examiner can reveal. Social Protection Minister Regina Doherty had guaranteed to fix the pension anomaly, which has seen women and men who took time out of their careers hit with reduced pensions of up to 1,500 a year, because of a 2012 rule change. This story first appeared in the Irish Examiner. People in Northern Ireland should be afforded the same rights as citizens of the Republic of Ireland and the rest of the UK, the Taoiseach has said. Leo Varadkar said people living in the Republic, Northern Ireland and the UK should all be able to enjoy the same rights. The Taoiseach was referring to rights-based disputes that are standing in the way of a return to devolved government at Stormont. A stand-off between the DUP and Sinn Fein over the republican partys demands for legislative protections for Irish language speakers and an end to the regions ongoing ban on same sex marriage lie at the heart of the powersharing crisis. "People in Ireland and in Britain can marry their same sex partner, I dont see why Northern Ireland should be exceptional in that regard," Mr Varadkar told the Dail. "The same thing apples to issues such as language legislation and language rights. "If these apply in Ireland, Scotland and Wales I think they should also apply in Northern Ireland." The comments came on the eve of a new talks process aimed at saving the devolved institutions at Stormont. The exchanges, which are due to get underway in Belfast, will be the fifth round of formal talks between political parties since the collapse of powersharing just over one year ago. Tanaiste and foreign affairs minister Simon Coveney will participate in the negotiations at Stormont. Speaking in the Dail, the Taoiseach re-stated the governments commitment to restoring powersharing and said he would be discussing the matter with British Prime Minister Theresa May this week. Responding to a question put by Sinn Feins Gerry Adams, Mr Varadkar stood by previous comments that he made in relation to Brexit that he would not leave Irish people in Northern Ireland behind. "Its something I meant and it is something I will follow up on by meeting non-political people, leaders from civic society in Northern Ireland in the weeks and months ahead," he said. He added that getting the Assembly and the Executive back up and running was something people wanted to see happen. The talks have been initiated by UK Secretary of State Karen Bradley. Ms Bradley, who was recently appointed, has said there was an urgency about the talks and they should take weeks and not months. She is due to update the UK House of Commons on progress on February 7 but today she insisted that date was not a deadline, more a "milestone". - Press Association A pilot project is underway on Irish trains to encourage people to give up their seat for pregnant women. It sees the women wear a baby on board badge so that others do not have to guess if they need a rest. An intellectually disabled young man detained in hospital since November due to concerns about the serious effects of his persistent failure to take necessary medication is to be discharged into the community with supports, writes Ann OLoughlin. The detention was ordered following an emergency application by the hospital to have the man made a ward of court when he went there in November in what the President of the High Court, Mr Justice Peter Kelly, described as a "wretched" condition, seriously underweight, incontinent and at risk of sepsis". He has had multiple earlier admissions, including emergency ones, due mainly to not taking medication for a serious physical condition or taking care of his personal health. Having been deemed not to have the capacity to make decisions affecting his health, the orders were continued a number of times and the case came for further review on Tuesday. The mans father and a disability services manager with the HSE both appealed to the judge not to continue his detention in a small room in the hospital where, due to his challenging behaviour, he is watched by security staff. Both also said the man should not be detained in a psychiatric facility when several reports stated he is not psychiatrically ill. Three private residential secure facilities considered as possible options had all refused to take the man, the judge also heard. The father said various events over several years, including his mothers death, appeared to have put his son on a "downward spiral" but he believed his son could benefit from a range of disability supports in the community. While the hospital detention has lead to considerable improvement in his physical condition, his confinement in a small room was contributing to his challenging behaviour, including assaulting a nurse, for which he apologised. His son is "being talked at, not talked to" and needs a purpose in life, his father added. The HSE manager said she knows the man for years and believes he could do very well living in the community with supports, including an independent advocate. Being kept in a small room was very restrictive on him and while his behaviour cannot be excused, it underlined he "wants to be somewhere else". She appreciated the challenges facing the services but the issue was his best interests now and into the future. Like everyone else, he was entitled to an opportunity to live in the community and make choices, good and bad, and containment was not in his best interests. "The higher you build the wall, the more some people climb over it." A medical social worker said she considered detention in a psychiatric facility the best option for ensuring the man takes his medication and to safeguard his health. Otherwise, she feared further admissions. In his ruling, Mr Justice Kelly said he could not justifiably order the mans further detention either in a hospital or a psychiatric facility because he is medically fit for discharge, not psychiatrically ill and the impact of his behaviour on staff and patients. The whole point of detention was to ensure the man looks after himself but that was not a realistic or justifiable basis for it, he said. He also took into consideration the views of the mans father and evidence of the HSE manager, who said the young man's voice has not been heard. The judge said he would discharge the man into the community and hoped the disability services would provide necessary supports. While that carried a risk the man would return to his old habits, there was only so much the hospital and court could do, he said. He had no doubt the mans father would do his best to ensure the man behaved sensibly but there are limits to what even a parent can do, he added. The Philippines most active volcano spewed fountains of red-hot lava and massive ash plumes in a dazzling but dangerous new eruption on Tuesday that sent 56,000 villagers fleeing to evacuation centres. Lava fountains gushed up 2,300ft (700m) above Mount Mayons crater and ash plumes rose up to 1.9 miles (3km), according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology. An explosive eruption at noon local time on Monday was the most powerful since the volcano started acting up more than a week ago. "We couldnt sleep last night because of the loud rumblings. It sounded like an airplane thats about to land," 59-year-old farmer Quintin Velardo, 59, told the Associated Press at an evacuation centre in Legazpi city, where he took his wife, children and grandchildren. Despite the danger, he said he needed to return to his village, about 5 miles (8km) from the erupting volcano, to take his livestock to safety. A few minutes later, the volcano belched a massive column of greyish ash. PhilippinesVolcano23Jan18a_large.jpg Authorities warned that a violent eruption may occur in hours or days, characterised by more rumblings and pyroclastic flows - superheated gas and volcanic debris that race down the slopes at high speeds, vaporising everything in their path. After Mondays explosion, officials raised Mayons alert level to four on a scale of five, and the danger zone was expanded to 5 miles (8km) from the crater, requiring thousands more residents to be evacuated, including at least 12,000 who returned to their homes last week as Mayons rumblings temporarily eased and then scrambled back to the emergency shelters this week. At least 56,217 people were taking shelter in 46 evacuation camps on Tuesday and army troops and police were helping move more villagers from their homes, officials said. Authorities struggled to prevent villagers from sneaking back to check on their homes and farms and to watch a popular cockfight in Albays Santo Domingo town despite the risks and police patrols and checkpoints, said Cedric Daep, a provincial disaster response official. PhilippinesVolcano23Jan18b_large.jpg He has recommended electricity and water supplies be cut in communities within the no-go zones to discourage residents from returning. The daytime eruptions have plunged nearby villages into darkness and sent lava, rocks and debris cascading down Mayons slopes toward the no-entry danger zone. There have been no reports of deaths or injuries. Aircraft have been ordered to stay away from the crater and ash-laden winds, and several domestic flights have been cancelled. Volcanic ash fell in more than a dozen towns in coconut-growing Albay and nearby Camarines Sur province on Monday, with visibility heavily obscured in a few towns because of the thick grey ash, Jukes Nunez, another Albay provincial disaster response officer, said. "It was like night time at noon, there was zero visibility in some areas because the ash fall was so thick," he said. More than 30,000 ash masks and about 5,000 sacks of rice, along with medicine, water and other supplies, were being sent to evacuation centres, the Office of Civil Defence regional director Claudio Yucot said. PhilippinesVolcano23Jan18c_large.jpg Food packs, water, medicine and other relief goods remain adequate but may run out by mid-February if the eruption continues and new supplies fail to come on time, officials said. With its near-perfect cone, Mayon has long been popular with climbers and tourists but has erupted about 50 times in the last 500 years, sometimes violently. The 8,070ft (2,460m) volcano has generated tourism revenues and jobs in Albay, about 210 miles (340km) south-east of Manila. In 2013, an ash eruption killed five climbers who had ventured near the summit despite warnings. Its most destructive eruption, in 1814, killed more than 1,200 people and buried the town of Cagsawa in volcanic mud. The belfry of Cagsawas stone church still juts from the ground in an eerie reminder of Mayons fury. The Philippines, which has about 22 active volcanoes, lies in the "Ring of Fire," a line of seismic faults surrounding the Pacific Ocean where earthquakes and volcanic activity are common. Plans for a statue of Margaret Thatcher to be erected opposite the British Parliament have been rejected. A meeting of Westminster Councils planning committee unanimously rejected the statue, which was to be placed in Parliament Square. The UK Government is to create a new unit to counter fake news and disinformation by foreign powers, Downing Street has said. The move to set up a dedicated national security communications unit was agreed at a meeting of the National Security Council. US vice president Mike Pence has told Israels parliament that the US embassy will move to Jerusalem by the end of 2019, receiving a rousing ovation as he pledged to forge ahead with a plan that has set off weeks of unrest and thrown peace efforts into disarray. The plan to accelerate the move of the embassy, announced in the first-ever address of a sitting American vice president to the Knesset, marked the highlight of Mr Pences three-day visit to Israel celebrating President Donald Trumps decision last month to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital. "The United States has chosen fact over fiction, and fact is the only true foundation for a just and lasting peace," Mr Pence said. "Jerusalem is Israels capital and as such President Trump has directed the State Department to immediately begin preparations to move the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem," he said adding the embassy "will open before the end of next year". The speech drew an angry denunciation from the Palestinians, with chief negotiator Saeb Erekat saying it "has proven that the U.S. administration is part of the problem rather than the solution". Yet Mr Pence, in an interview after the speech, said he remained hopeful that the Palestinians would re-enter negotiations. "Our message to President Abbas and the Palestinian Authority is the doors open. The doors open. President Trump is absolutely committed to doing everything the United States can to achieve a peace agreement that brings an end to decades of conflict." The vice president said the US was "exploring a range of options" on the exact location of the embassy but that Mr Trump had been "very clear. He wants the American embassy to be open in Jerusalem before the end of next year". Mr Pence said the State Department would be providing more details in the "next several weeks". Mr Pence was preceded on the dais by Israels prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who lavished his guest with praise and gratitude. It was all part of an exceptionally warm welcome for Mr Pence in Israel, which has been overjoyed by Mr Trumps policy change on Jerusalem. But the move has infuriated the Palestinians, with whom Mr Pence is not meeting, and upset Americas Arab allies as well. Israeli Arab members are escorted by security out as U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks in Israels parliament in Jerusalem. A group of Arab politicians voiced their displeasure at the administrations perceived pro-Israel bias by raising banners reading "Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine" and heckling Pence at the beginning of his address. They were then forcibly removed from the plenum. The main Arab party in the Israeli parliament warned that it would boycott Mr Pence. Its leader, Ayman Odeh, vowed they would not provide a "silent backdrop" to a man he called a "dangerous racist". Mr Pence responded to the row by saying he was humbled to speak before such a "vibrant democracy," before delving into his prepared remarks about the two countries unbreakable bond. "I am here to convey one simple message: America stands with Israel. We stand with Israel because your cause is our cause, your values are our values and your fight is our fight," he said. "We stand with Israel because we believe in right over wrong, good over evil and liberty over tyranny." Mr Pence said the American administration urged the Palestinians to return to negotiations. "Peace can only come through dialogue," he said. Mr Pence said the U.S. would support a two-state solution but only if both sides support it. Mr Netanyahus hard-line government is dominated by opponents to Palestinian statehood, making such a scenario unlikely. - PA Graham Plumbers Merchants latest competition the Graham College Refresh Scheme, which will see the merchant give a 10,000 prize. The impressive prize will be given to one lucky college to spend on updating and improving its heating and plumbing workshops. The winning college can spend its 10,000 prize solely on refreshing its plumbing and / or training heating area by putting the money towards materials, labour and any other project costs associated with the refresh. Products will be supplied by Graham Plumbers Merchant and Worcester Bosch at a special discounted rate so the prize money can go even further. Whats more, Worcester Bosch will also offer expert technical advice and support, giving all students an unrivalled opportunity to develop their knowledge and skills throughout their studies. Ian Kenny, Marketing Director at Graham, said: One of the most rewarding elements of working for Graham is seeing how much of an impact we make on the future plumbers of the industry. Its so important to us to always go that extra mile to help students reach their full potential. The completion will have a significant impact on the winning college and knowing that we can really help make a difference to its students learning environment is paramount. Martyn Bridges, Director of Technical Communication and Product Management at Worcester, Bosch Group, said: Helping to advance the knowledge and skills of the next generation of plumbing and heating engineers is so important, and can make all the difference when it comes to growing the confidence of those just starting out in the industry. Were keen to work with as many apprentice installers as a result, and look forward to visiting the winning college. The Graham College Refresh Competition is simple to enter and can be entered multiple times giving colleges an opportunity to have a greater chance of winning. Colleges have until the 28th of February to enter. Marley Alutec has further developed its team with the appointment of two new employees based at its Bedford headquarters. The company is delighted to welcome Phil Whomes and Tom Elwell to commercial manager and estimator roles, respectively. Phil Whomes has been appointed as commercial manager at Marley Alutec. Phil brings more than 25 years sales and marketing experience to the new role and will oversee the companys internal sales, marketing and estimating departments. Tom Elwell brings 10 years of experience as technical advisor at Celotex Insulation. In this role he gained an in-depth understanding of building types and methods, as well as specification calculations. In his new role, Tom is now responsible for producing pricing estimates on incoming customer enquiries, assessing architectural drawings to define the products required and performing rainwater drainage calculations to understand the suitability of gutters and pipes. Jungheinrich UK has announced the appointment of Luuk Snijders as Managing Director, effective January 2018. Luuk is succeeding Jan Lorenz and transfers from his role as Managing Director, Jungheinrich Russia, with Jan Lorenz returning to a senior management position at Jungheinrich Group headquarters in Hamburg, Germany. Luuk Snijders first joined the Jungheinrich Group in 2004 and has since held senior roles across the business, including five years as Head of Sales in Rental & Used Equipment (UE), two years as Rental/UE Director in Spain and two years as Sales Director in Russia, before his appointment to Managing Director, Jungheinrich Russia, in 2014. Jungheinrich UK has experienced much growth and innovation over the past four years headed up by Lorenz, with annual turnover seeing double digit growth. A candid chat on the reality of setting up your own With the surge of cafe openings and the specialty coffee scene blowing up on our tiny island, running your own show could seem like the wise thing to do. After all, all you need is a decent capital, reliable suppliers, and cool hipster branding, no? Unfortunately, while that might be enough to get things up and running for a while, it doesn't neccessarily entail a successful, long-term business. So what do you need for your cafe venture to pay off in today's competitive climate? Here to weigh in on the million-dollar question are two cafe owners Mr Liu, one of the founders of The Glasshouse and Yozo Otsuki, founder of Kurasu. Below, we discuss the importance of concepts, ballpark figures to work towards, and the makings of a cafe that will outlast the rest. AUDIO EXCLUSIVE: Listen to our full conversation with Josh Liew (Co-founder, The Glasshouse) and Yoko Otsuki (Founder, Kurasu). The audio file should play automatically on a desktop. Turn up your volume. For mobile users, click on the 'Listen in browser' button. Audio files aren't playing automatically? Click on the play button (desktop) or 'Listen in browser' button (mobile) below. Also check your internet connection. What do you think of the cafe scene in Singapore? Mr Liu (ML): The cafe scene in Singapore is pretty interesting. I feel that as a whole, there is more supply than demand. Singaporeans feel that cafe food is more of a treat and a luxury and is something we indulge in on the weekends, whereas in Melbourne, they go to cafes daily as its very affordable for them. I do feel that theres this challenge where theres not enough demand and that can be a struggle for cafes in Singapore. Yozo Otsuki (YO): Compared to where Im from in Japan [Kyoto], theres a limited amount of people in the specialty coffee space. I find that its amazing that everyone is really close and shares information with each other. Also, I find that Singapore's cafe scene (as compared to other Southeast Asian countries) is quite mature. There are a lot of people who come over from Malaysia, Indonesia, or Thailand to see what the scene is like, and to learn and incorporate that into their culture as well. I see Singapore as a hub for Southeast Asia which is great for me and my business. What are some major considerations when it comes to setting up a cafe here? YO: We started off building a brand online and not in a physical space. That, to me, is quite unique because its really easy to start something with very little capital and see how its bred and if it actually connects with people. I always had a vision to maybe start a cafe but I wasnt sure if it was going to be successful. So I approached it with a small capital to see if it connected with the people that I wanted to connect. It ended up taking three years and we actually built an audience. Then, I finally got into building a physical cafe. I approached it a little differently from other people but I feel how I did it could be something that people could consider as well. ML: One of the first questions that I always ask aspiring cafe owners that come to me is, What's your concept? The concept is more of the vision for the place; what you envision this place to be. How long do you want to see the place going for? So, I feel that having a concept or a brand story behind it is really important and you need to do some homework around it. Another important thing to consider is the location. If I want to set up a cafe in Tiong Bahru that can sit 40 to 50 people, serves a mean brunch and good coffee, whats a ballpark figure I should set aside to be safe? ML: To be safe, you're looking at anything from $150,000 and it can go all the way up to $500,000 depending on what scale you want it. Id say a very big sum of that goes into things like renovation, equipment, and furniture. What do you think defines a successful cafe? ML: It has to have great quality products be it the coffee or your food, great service is something that people look out for, as well as a strong bonded team. A team really makes or breaks a place. While the crowd or social media can be good indicators, that shouldnt be the main focus as they are just by-products. YO: I totally agree. I think a lot of people get lost in having what they want and what they emotionally feel is right. Money is important numbers and metrics are very important and I definitely learnt that throughout the years. On top of everything Josh mentioned, a success in my cafe is being able to have that flexibility for the cafe to run well without me being physically present. What are some challenges people can expect to face along the way in a climate like Singapore's? YO: Capital. You have to consider that. While we do quite good business (both in Kyoto and Singapore) in terms of getting great customers, rent is high. A rough estimate? 60 percent is for employees salary and the cost of supplies, 20 percent is for rent, 10 to 15 percent are for small factors like emergencies, so theres five percent left or none. Try to underestimate what you can in terms of the revenue that comes in and if it still runs, then thats sort of a good gauge for me. ML: One big challenge across all cafes in Singapore is labour. The market doesnt pay very well and therefore people dont feel rewarded; good staff find it hard to be practical or to raise a family with such a low wage. Whats your last word of advice to encourage our readers to start a cafe in Singapore? What makes you happy at the end of the day? YO: Being able to connect with people that are super creative and super passionate about what theyre doing, to be able to visit different countries and seeing the cafe scene and coffee culture across the world all that is very satisfying. There are a lot of different factors but its the people that top it for me. The people that work for me are just amazing and Im really thankful for all of them, for what they do, and the passion they have for the company. Im super happy with where I am right now and I wouldnt go back [to the finance industry] for a second. ML: For me, this journey came with a lot of big mistakes but what really encouraged me along the way are the micro victories like having your customers remember your name, greet you in the morning, or coming back to say that that was a great cup of coffee. Im excited for whats to come. Visit The Glasshouse and Kurasu Singapore for more information on their offerings. Read more stories in our Career Special. Dear Reader, Business Standard has always strived hard to provide up-to-date information and commentary on developments that are of interest to you and have wider political and economic implications for the country and the world. 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Digital Editor in their meeting with regulator Trai on Tuesday raised multiple pain points, including app-based calling, rationalisation of taxes and infrastructure expansion woes, that are adversely impacting their business. "We had very fruitful discussion with players. They were unanimous on some of the issues that Trai should deal with in this year like OTT (over-the-top) consultation, one country one licence, infrastructure related issues, rationalisation of taxes under GST ... There were six to seven issues that they want the regulator to look into," Trai Chairman R S Sharma told reporters after the meeting. also called for a spectrum policy to make the aware in advance about the auction of frequency bands, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Trai) chairman said. "They will give us details of the issues in a couple of days after which Trai will be able to share specific roadmap," Sharma said. The Trai chairman said that also asked for consultation around mobile number portability and unsolicited commercial calls. Talking about call drop report, Sharma said, "We will publish their performance report by the end of this month." The reports may have come under the new quality of service norms and the regulator will compile the performance reports based on that data. Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Satyapal Singh is not sold on Darwin's theory of evolution, and while, thankfully, he has not proposed an alternative, unlike the proponents of 'Intelligent Design', he is sticking to his guns. The crux of Singh's argument is that no one ever saw an "ape turning into a man", and he decided to put it forth, along with his foot in his mouth, on Friday when he told assembled reporters that the theory of evolution was "scientifically wrong" and that it needed to be struck off from the text ... Google researchers in Silicon Valley were trying to figure out why so many smartphones were freezing up half a world away. One in three smartphone users in India run out of space on their phones daily. The answer? Two words. Good Morning! The glitch, Google discovered, was an overabundance of sun-dappled flowers, adorable toddlers, birds and sunsets sent along with a cheery message. Millions of Indians are getting online for the first timeand they are filling up the internet. Many like nothing better than to begin the day by sending greetings from their ... Congress president Rahul Gandhi today asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to tell people in Davos why one per cent of India's population has 73 percent of its wealth. Gandhi, who put out a tweet addressing the prime minister, also tagged a news report quoting an Oxfam survey that the richest 1 per cent cornered 73 per cent of wealth generated in India in 2017. "Dear PM, Welcome to Switzerland! Please tell DAVOS why 1% of Indias population gets 73% of its wealth? I'm attaching a report for your ready reference," he tweeted. Dear PM, Welcome to Switzerland! Please tell DAVOS why 1% of Indias population gets 73% of its wealth? Im attaching a report for your ready reference. https://t.co/lLSNOig5pE Office of RG (@OfficeOfRG) January 23, 2018 Gandhi has been critical of the prime minister -- who is in Davos for the World Economic Forum -- for his foreign visits and attacked his government for allegedly working for the rich and waiving their loans. Prime Minister Narendra Modi mounted a defence of globalisation at the World Economic Forum on Tuesday, urging joint action on climate change and economic cooperation, in a speech some delegates took as a swipe at US President Donald Trump's America First agenda. . Modi, making the forum's first speech by an Indian head of government in more than two decades, did not mention Trump by name but he criticised the rise of protectionism in remarks delivered three days before the US President addresses the summit. Instead of globalisation, the power of protectionism is putting its head up, Modi said, speaking in Hindi. Their wish is not only to save themselves from globalisation, but to change the natural flow of globalisation. Speaking at the plenary of the WEF annual summit, the PM also said climate change and terrorism were grave concerns before the world. While terrorism was dangerous, he said, equally dangerous was the artificial distinction made between a good terrorist and a bad terrorist. He said it was painful to see some youngsters getting radicalised. Modi is leading a big government and business delegation to the summit in the Swiss ski resort of Davos, aiming to showcase India as a fast-growing economic power and a potential driver of global growth. His opening address was a moment of personal triumph for the leader and the occasion also recognised India's growth as an economic and geopolitical power. ALSO READ: India to be a $5-trillion economy by 2025: Full text of Modi's WEF speech Modi's speech echoed some of the points made by Chinese President Xi Jinping at last year's Davos summit, but he failed to generate the same enthusiasm. A year ago, Xi, speaking days before Trump was inaugurated, staked out China's position as the world's economic powerhouse, promising a greater openness to globalisation. However, Xi, who is not attending this year, is not seen to have delivered on the broad promises made at Davos over the past year, but his speech was seen as a key moment in China's attempt to fill a void created by a more inward-looking United States. In his speech, Modi laid out three big challenges facing the world: climate change, terrorism and growing protectionism. The result of this is that we are seeing new types of tariff and non-tariff-based barriers being imposed. Bilateral and multilateral trade negotiations appear to have come to a halt, he said. He said the world must come together to solve these issues and India could show it the way, referring frequently to ancient Indian thought and scriptures that call for harmony between humans and nature and refer to the world as family. Modi said climate change was a major threat to the world, yet the world had failed to come together to tackle it. He said everyone wanted carbon emissions to be cut, but the rich world was not ready to help developing economies with new technology. India, one of the world's fastest-growing major economies and a growing contributor to pollution, has said it is keen to honour its commitment to clean up the environment despite Trump pulling out of the Paris accord on cutting carbon emissions. ALSO READ: India replacing red tape with red carpet, says Modi at WEF: Key highlights Modi also highlighted reforms and policies his administration had undertaken to make India more open. He said his government had abolished some 1,400 archaic laws. We are removing red tape and laying the red carpet, Modi said, adding Come to India If you want wellness along with wealth, wholeness along with health and peace with prosperity. The PM said India was poised to become a $5-trillion economy by 2025, recalling that the last time an Indian Prime Minister attended the WEF was 21 years ago. He said, India's GDP in 1997, when the last PM came to Davos, was a little over $400 billion. It has grown six times since. He quoted poet Rabindranath Tagore, saying he had written of "a haven of freedom where the world is not divided by narrow walls" and called for turning that into reality, stating that "India will always be a unifying and harmonising force." Some business leaders said India still had a lot of work to do to attract more investment, including taming bureaucracy, tackling corruption and cleaning up pollution. ALSO READ: Message from Davos: PM Modi's signals should be transformed into action Arun Kumar, chairman and CEO of accounting firm KPMG in India, said: He laid out where India stands in terms of his preference for a multi-polar and multicultural world." Under his America First agenda, Trump has threatened to withdraw from the North American free-trade agreement, disavowed the global climate change accord and criticised global institutions including the United Nations and NATO. US President Donald Trump has been known to affect an Indian accent and imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a leading US daily has reported. Prime Minister Modi, during his visit to the US last year, held talks with President Trump on a number of issues, including the situation in war-torn Afghanistan. Modi told Trump in an Oval Office meeting in June: "Never has a country given so much away for so little in return" as the United States in Afghanistan, The Washington Post quoted sources as saying. To Trump, Modi's statement was proof that the rest of the world viewed the United States as being duped and taken advantage of in Afghanistan, the Post said. "Senior administration officials said that the President has been known to affect an Indian accent and imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," the Post reported. The White House did not immediately respond to a question on the Post's assertion that Trump has been imitating Modi in Indian ascent. Democratic Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi condemned Trump's reported habit of affecting an Indian accent to imitate Modi. "I was appalled to read that President Trump reportedly affected an Indian accent to imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said. "In the wake of the President's recent comments disparaging entire regions of the world while we still face such division at home, behavior that belittles our allies and 'otherizes' entire communities of Americans is one of the last things we need. "Americans are not defined by their accents, but by their commitment to this nations values and ideals," Krishnamoorthi said. Multiple times in the past, the White House has denied such reporting from the Post, including his alleged "shithole" remarks during a meeting with lawmakers early this month. Trump has quite often accused the Post of being a "fake news". According to the daily, Trump has made it clear to senior Pentagon officials that he wants to see a quick return on the increased US investment in troops and money in Afghanistan. Pentagon officials are also under pressure to keep troop numbers from growing significantly, it said, adding that up to 1,000 more US troops could be headed to Afghanistan this spring. Violence and arson erupted in parts of BJP-ruled Madhya Pradesh and Haryana ahead of Thursday's release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's controversial period drama "Padmaavat" as the Karni Sena, an extremist Rajput group, on Monday warned of "enormous outburst of people" if the movie was released. Protests and acts of vandalism were reported from various parts of Madhya Pradesh, including in Indore, Ujjain and Jhabua on Monday. Activists of Karni Sena, which is at the forefront of the anti-"Padmaavat" protests because they claim the movie shows medieval Rajput queen Padmavati in not so honorable light -- held demonstration in Ujjain to demand state-wide ban on the movie. They also staged blockades by burning tyres on roads connecting Ujjain to Nagda, Dewas to Maksi and Agar to Kota. The highway to Ujjain was blocked for hours, while police said that Karni Sena activists tried to hijack a truck and set it on fire in Indore. Deputy Inspector General Hari Narayan Chari Mishra told IANS that protesters were forcibly removed from many places. In Bhopal, members of the Rajput group, held demonstration outside Jyoti Talkies and warned of consequences if the film was released. Meanwhile, a group of women, representing the Rajput community, left Ratlam for Rajasthan's Chittorgarh where they will stage a protest. Violence was also reported from Haryana where some miscreants vandalised Kessel Mall in Kurukshetra late on Sunday. Abhishek Garg, Superintendent of Police, Kutukshetra, said that a case was registered against "unknown persons for rioting" after a group of people vandalised the mall. He said it was not known if they were protesting against the movie but "there is a possibility" that the vandalism was against the release of film. In Rajasthan, Rajput Karni Sena chief Lokendra Singh Kalvi on Monday said he would not allow the movie be released "at any cost" and warned that if cinema halls went ahead with the release it would lead to an "enormous outburst of people". He also urged other state governments that want a ban to come together to approach the Supreme Court. "We will not allow the film to be released at any cost. The Supreme Court has directed the state governments to ensure release of the film, but not to us," Kalvai told IANS. "Padmaavat" is scheduled to release nationwide on Thursday. The Karni Sena and some other groups claim the film distorts history. Meanwhile, the Karni Sena in its reply to Bhansali's invite to watch "Padmaavat" asked the noted producer if the "objectionable scenes" of the film will be cut on its suggestions. Sources confirmed that the Karni Sena, in the letter, also wanted to know if they ask for postponing of the film's scheduled January 25 release, would Bhansali agree. The Rajput group also asked why the film was not shown to all nine veterans who were earlier chosen by the CBFC and why it was shown only to three of them. Despite sending them an invite and being shown the film, why were their suggestions ignored and not paid heed to, the letter asks. The Haryana and Madhya Pradesh governments have decided not to allow the screening of the film in the states even as the Supreme Court will hear on Tuesday a plea by Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan seeking to block the release of the controversial movie. The counsels for the two states on Monday mentioned the matter for urgent hearing seeking modification/clarification of the court's January 18 order that stayed notification/orders of Gujarat, Rajasthan and Haryana government banning the release of the film in the three states. The court by the said order had directed that no state government would issue order that might come in the way of the release of Bhansali directorial "Padmaavat" on January 25. An advocate of the Karni Sena will also be represented in the top court on Tuesday. Following his speech at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau in Davos. Yesterday, the Canadian Prime Minister announced that he will travel to India for a state visit from February 17 to 23. This visit will build on these shared commitments as well as on recent meetings held between Prime Ministers Trudeau and Modi, and ministers from both countries. This visit, which includes stops in Agra, Amritsar, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, and New Delhi, will provide an opportunity for Prime Minister Trudeau to connect with Indian leaders in government and business, promote the empowerment of women and girls, and strengthen Canada and India's close economic ties. During the visit, the prime ministers will reaffirm the close friendship between the two countries, and discuss ways to further deepen bilateral cooperation. Prime Minister Trudeau will also participate in several business roundtables to promote further trade and investment between Canada and India, as Canada works closely with Indian leaders to advance economic opportunities in both countries. While in India, Prime Minister Trudeau will engage with youth, and visit several landmarks, including the Taj Mahal, Sri Harmandir Sahib (also known as the Golden Temple), the Jama Masjid, and Swaminarayan Akshardham. India will play host to all ten ASEAN heads of state as chief guests at the Republic Day parade in New Delhi. India has had old, civilizational ties with Southeast Asia but the present Act East policy of the Indian government follows in the footsteps of the Look East policy of the early 1990s. In this Business Standard Special, Rohan Mukherjee takes a look at the challenges India faces as China asserts itself more strongly in Asia and beyond. In the spring of 1947, as India prepared for independence, the interim government hosted an unprecedented gathering in New Delhi: the ... Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal. They do not reflect the view/s of Business Standard. Next time you drive on a national highway, do not be surprised if you see a robot redirecting vehicles off a construction patch. Some road construction companies have started using robots as flagmen, and if the road ministry has its way, the trend may soon catch up with the rest. The robotic flagman is an automated human skeleton structure made up of plastic mounted over a stand area supported with steel frame, sometimes supported with wheels. This, road construction companies and the road ministry are hopeful, will help cut down on both labour costs and loss of human lives. At least, two ... Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held a roundtable meeting with the CEOs of top global companies ahead of this year's World Economic Forum. Addressing a roundtable before a dinner meet, Modi narrated India's growth story. He was accompanied by top government officials including Vijay Gokhale, Jai Shankar and Ramesh Abhishek. Under the tagline of "India means business", the roundtable was attended by 40 CEOs of global companies and 20 from India. Narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global business in India at #Davos, PM @narendramodi hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies. #IndiaMeansBusiness pic.twitter.com/R16QooOPUK Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) January 22, 2018 "Narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global business in India at #Davos, PM @narendramodi hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies," Ministry of External Affairs said in a tweet. "Narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global business in India at #Davos, PM @narendramodi hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies," Ministry of External Affairs said in a tweet. The Indian Prime Minister will also interact with CEOs of Indian companies separately. Several Indian corporate chiefs including Tata Group chairman N Chandrashekhar, ICICI Bank's Chanda Kochhar and Wipro's Azim Premji, Reliance Group chairman Mukesh Ambani are a part of the Indian contingent which is estimated to have crossed the century mark. Earlier in the day, Modi held a bilateral meeting with Swiss President Alain Berset who greeted the prime minister with a warm handshake in this town in the Swiss Alps before leading the Indian leader to the meeting. This is Modi's second visit to Switzerland in nearly two years after his visit in June 2016. Modi is the first Prime Minister from India to participate in a forum meeting in two decades after the then Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda in 1997.The main event in Davos will be the keynote speech of Modi at the plenary session on Tuesday. Modi will interact with 120 members of the International Business Council, which is a part of the WEF. Modi, in the course of his 24-hour visit to Davos, is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with Sweden Prime Minister Stefan Lofven on Tuesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday held a roundtable meeting with the CEOs of top global companies before his keynote address at the plenary session of the World Economic Forum (WEF) on Tuesday morning. India also got a thumbs up from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Monday, which reaffirmed that India's economy is projected to grow by 7.4 per cent in the next fiscal year. "Narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global business in India at #Davos, PM @narendramodi hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies," Ministry of External Affairs said in a tweet. Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra, who had also participated at the meet, tweeted: "Let me add my compliments to you all. You did us proud with your world-beating organizational skills. Every global CEO was floored by the personal touches in your hospitality. I am proud to be on the board of Invest India." "In addition to listening to PM keynote address at the plenary session, participating and speaking in several sessions I look forward to joining the Yoga classes on the Alps early morning ! India's soft power is on full display at World Economic Forum," Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog tweeted. The IMF reaffirmed that India's economy is projected to grow by 7.4 per cent in the next fiscal year, regaining the rank of the world's fastest-growing large economy as China slows down. Like India's improving economic performance, the global economy was also on the uptick, estimated to have grown by 3.7 per cent last year and forecast to grow this year and the next by 3.9 per cent, according to the Fund's World Economic Outlook Update. At the release of the Update in Davos, IMF head Christine Lagarde said that for the world economy, "all signs point to a further strengthening both this year and next," but cautioned that "complacency would be a mistake." Earlier on Monday, Modi held a bilateral meeting with Swiss President Alain Berset who greeted the prime minister with a warm handshake in this town in the Swiss Alps before leading the Indian leader to the meeting. "On reaching Davos, held talks with the President of the Swiss Confederation, Alain Berset. We reviewed the scope of our bilateral cooperation and discussed ways to deepen it even further," Modi tweeted. This is Modi's second visit to Switzerland in nearly two years after his visit in June 2016. Modi is the first Prime Minister from India to participate in a forum meeting in two decades after the then Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda in 1997. He will interact with 120 members of the International Business Council, which is a part of the WEF. Modi, in the course of his 24-hour visit to Davos, is also scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting with Sweden Prime Minister Stefan Lofven on Tuesday. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Indian delegation which was in the UK for the Education World Forum 2018 was among hundreds evacuated from their hotel here after a gas leak early Tuesday. The 10-member delegation, which includes Uttar Pradesh deputy chief minister Dinesh Sharma, was among who were rushed out in their night clothes from Amba Hotel in Charing Cross area of London at around 2 am local time. "They have been found alternate accommodation," a senior official from the Indian High Commission in London said. The Education Forum, dubbed as the worlds largest gathering of education and skills ministers, was opened on Monday by UK education minister Damian Hinds and is set to conclude tomorrow. The programme, which includes speakers from around the world, went ahead as planned on Tuesday. The London Fire Brigade said that a ruptured gas main was responsible for the evacuation of the area, which affected around 1,450 people. "We are assisting police on the Strand after a ruptured gas main was discovered using detection equipment and high levels of natural gas were detected in the atmosphere. As a precaution, approximately 1,450 people have been evacuated. They are from a hotel and a nightclub," a spokesperson said. "We do not know the cause of the gas leak at this stage. It is ongoing and engineers are down at the scene trying to isolate the leak. There are still high readings of natural gas in the area. We are working to sort it out as quickly as possible," the spokesperson noted. Scotland Yard said it is working with the fire service and partner agencies to deal with the leak. "A cordon and road closures are in place as a precaution and members of the public/motorists are advised to avoid the area at this time," the Metropolitan Police said. Two fire engines, 20 fire rescue units and 20 firefighters were sent to the scene. Roads in the area were sealed off and a 150-metre cordon put in place while engineers from the National Grid engineers worked on fixing the leak. Gas company Cadent said that while it has repaired the leak, it is now doing essential safety checks on the surrounding buildings. Residents who were evacuated were sent to a respite centre at Royal Horseguards Hotel in Whitehall Court, Westminster Council said. Congress voted on Monday to end a three-day US government shutdown, approving another short-term funding bill as Democrats accepted promises from Republicans for a broad debate later on the future of young illegal immigrants. The fourth temporary funding bill since October easily passed the Senate and the House of Representatives. That sent it to the White House, which said President Donald Trump was expected to sign the bill, a product chiefly of negotiations among Senate leaders. Enactment by Trump of the bill will allow the government to reopen fully on Tuesday and keep ... A 15-year-old student opened fire in Kentucky's Marshall County High School, killing two of his classmates and injuring 17 more, in yet another case of a school shooting in the country. The incident occurred when the student entered the school at 8 am local time with a handgun and then started firing indiscriminately, leading to casualties. According to Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin, the suspect, who was not identified, was taken into the juvenile custody in a "nonviolent apprehension", as reported by the New York Times. The Ellis County district attorney's office has charged the student with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. His two classmates, a boy and girl, both 15 years, succumbed to their injuries later in the hospital. The injured students are being treated and is said to be out of danger. "These children belong to this community, and to specific families in this community. And this is a wound that is going to take a long time to heal, and for some in this community, will never fully heal," said Bevin. This was the second school shooting incident this week. On Monday, a 15-year-old Italian girl was hospitalised after her 16-year-old classmate shot her in Texas, according to local news reports. That suspect was taken into police custody by the Ellis County Sheriff's Department. The girl is recovering according to the local authorities. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least three Islamic State (IS) members have been killed in the airstrikes conducted by the Afghan military in eastern Nangarhar province of Afghanistan. According to the Khaama Press, the 201st Silab Corps of the country's military on Tuesday said that the airstrikes were carried out in the vicinity of Achin district. The airstrikes were targetted at the IS hideouts, in which at least one terrorist was reportedly wounded. Civilians did not suffer any casualties, the Silab Corps said. The terrorist group has not commented on the airstrikes so far. Earlier this week, at least five senior leaders of Al-Qaeda were killed in an operation by the Afghan security forces in the same province. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Tuesday approached Delhi High Court seeking to quash the disqualification of 20 party MLAs accused of holding the 'office of profit'. Earlier, President Ram Nath Kovind approved the disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs accused of holding the 'office of profit'. The Election Commission of India (ECI) on January 19 had recommended to the President that 20 AAP MLAs should be disqualified from the assembly. Following this, the MLAs accused of holding the office of profit were disqualified from the Delhi Assembly on January 21 after President Kovind approved the ECI's recommendation in the matter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Andhra Pradesh Information and Technology (IT) Minister Nara Lokesh on Tuesday participated in the "Industrial Corridors in India" session along with global CEOs held by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) here in Davos. Lokesh spoke about measures being taken up for the industrial development of Andhra Pradesh. "We are strategically utilising Vizag - Chennai and Chennai - Bangalore industrial corridors for industrial development of Andhra Pradesh. We are implementing clusters model. In order to create fulfledged eco system in electronics manufacturing, we are forming exclusive electronic manufacturing clusters. Already one cluster is operational in Tirupati with companies like Celkon, Carbon, Dixon," he said. He also spoke about improving water facilities in the Rayalaseema region. "There has been no industrial development in Rayalaseema region due to lack of water facility. Now we 've changed the situation. Water vows of Rayalaseema region are being resolved with interlinking of rivers," Lokesh said. "River interlinking is making Rayalaseema districts drought free. We are taking measures to setup industrial corridors on large scale, and cluster model is being developed," he added. On a related note, the minister also met PayPal Vice President Richard Nash during his visit to Davos. Lokesh told Nash that the Government of Andhra Pradesh has been utilising technology on a large scale to overcome post-bifurcation problems. As a startup state, the Andhra Pradesh government is taking several measures for development of IT and fintech. The PayPal vice president praised the Andhra Pradesh government's efforts to serve the public. He expressed interest in working with the government round-the-clock. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada and 10 other countries would form a new Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) agreement, which would work towards creating a revised trade agreement. However, the revised trade agreement does not include the United States, who had withdrawn in January last year, The Hill reported. In a statement, Trudeau said, "Strengthening Canada's economic relationship with countries in the large and economically fast-growing Asia-Pacific region, to support prosperity and create jobs for our middle class is a priority for Canada." "To that end, Canada has been working very hard on the new CPTPP, from spearheading the first meetings of officials in May 2017 to proposing several suspensions and changes to secure better terms for Canadians throughout this burgeoning region," he added in the statement. Trudeau said that the country had shown that it "can and will work hard to set the terms of trade so that the middle class can compete and win on the stage." For better trading relations and to reduce dependence on Chinese trade, the CPTPP was signed on February 4, last year along with the United States. After US' withdrawal, it now includes Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. US President Donald Trump had signed an executive order to withdraw his country from the trade agreement because he said that "it was not good for the American workers and manufacturing. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Customs officials at Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport arrested a Chinese with 15 gold bars, worth more than Rs. 52 lakhs. "On the basis of suspicion, the Officers of Air Customs Preventive IGI Airport, New Delhi intercepted one Chinese national, who had arrived from Dubai on January 20", read an official statement. The gold bars that weigh 1749.5 grams were concealed in socks and special cavity made inside the waistline of the jeans worn by the passenger, it added. The gold bars have been seized under section 110 of Customs Act, 1962 and the passenger has been arrested under the provisions of Section 104 of the Customs Act 1962. An investigation is underway on the matter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said today data is the real wealth. The Prime Minister was delivering a keynote address at the opening session of the Economic Forum's annual meeting in the Swiss mountain resort of Davos. "Today, data is a real wealth and it is being said that whoever acquires and controls the data will have hegemony in the future. The global flow of data is creating big opportunities as well as challenges," Prime Minister Modi said. He added that technology-driven transformation has been deeply affecting people's way of thinking, working, international groups, politics, and economy. He made this remark while underlining the importance of technology in today's era. Talking about social media, Prime Minister Modi said, "The example of breaking, addition, and twisting of technology is being seen in the form of social media." He also made a comparison between Economic Forum meeting in 1997 and 2018. "In 1997, India's Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda attended the WEF meeting in Davos. That forum's vision was about building of network society. Then there was no Euro; very few people knew about Osama bin Laden; Google was not invented, if someone would search Amazon on Internet then search results would throw information about rivers and forests. Tweeting was the work of birds," Prime Minister Modi said. He added that the theme of this year's WEF is 'Creating a Shared Future in a Shared World', which means "creating shared future in a fractured world". "The balance of economic strength and political power is changing due to new changes and new powers," Prime Minister Modi added. Earlier, the Prime Minister got a standing ovation as he arrived at the venue. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted a round-table meeting with the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of top global companies in Davos, ahead of the Economic Forum (WEF) on Monday. He chaired the meeting of around 120 members of the International Business Forum (IBF). The Prime Minister will host a dinner for global industry bosses from 18 countries later on. Prime Minister Modi arrived in Zurich earlier in the day and met President of Swiss Confederation Alain Berset before proceeding to Davos for the forum. Thereafter, he will be addressing the plenary session of the forum on Tuesday. The first Indian minister to attend the WEF in more than two decades, Prime Minister Modi is being accompanied by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu, among others. The last visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the forum was former Prime Minister H. Deve Gowda back in 1997. The theme of this year's forum is- "Creating a shared future in a Fractured World". The forum aims to set an agenda to address political, economic and social challenges of recent times. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United States President Donald Trump on Monday welcomed the end of the three-day government shutdown and took a jibe at the Democrats, saying that they had 'come to their senses'. "I am pleased that Dems in Congress have come to their senses," Trump said in a statement. The US President added that he was ready to make a deal with the Democrats on immigration only if it was "good" for the country. He maintained that his priority now was to solve the problem of illegal immigration, the Hill reported. Earlier, the Senate voted on Monday noon to reopen the Government, ending a three-day standoff that left federal agencies and thousands of people affected. The Democrats and Republicans earlier agreed to pass a short-term spending bill of at least three weeks to allow the funding of the government until February 8. The final vote stood at 81-18. The three-week funding bill still needs to pass on a final up-or-down vote, but it is now a formality. The House is expected to approve the bill soon. Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell promised to allow a new immigration bill to be passed by next month. For the unversed, earlier, the Democrats and the Republicans reached on a deal to take up an immigration bill that would protect an estimated 8,00,000 people from deportation. McConnell attempted to schedule the vote late on Sunday night that would end the shutdown, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer objected to it since the Republicans and Democrats were yet to reach an agreement. McConnell said that the Congress must stop victimising the American people and get back to work soon. The House and Senate lawmakers met throughout the day on Sunday to end the government shutdown with both chambers hoping to strike a deal on spending and immigration that would reopen federal agencies soon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Father of terrorist Abdul Subhan Qureshi, who was arrested by Special Cell of Delhi Police on Monday, said his son was not involved in any terror activities. "He was never involved in any terror activities, the authorities can continue to say what they want," Qureshi's father said. The Delhi Police on Monday arrested Qureshi, the co-founder of Indian Mujahideen (IM) and ideologue of Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). Qureshi, one of the 'most wanted' fugitives of the Investigation Agency (NIA), carried a reward of Rs. 4 lakh on his head. He is the alleged mastermind of 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts, which claimed 56 lives. Interpol had issued a red notice against him for his role as the main conspirator in the serial blasts. He is also a suspect in the 2006 Mumbai train blasts. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Minister of Railways and Coal Piyush Goyal ahead of the first day of the World Economic Forum (WEF), hailed the Goods and Services Tax (GST) initiative by the Modi-led government and said that India is the first country to successfully embark on a tax reform of this scale. "Most people in India are quite excited about the GST story. They are seeing the benefits of simpler taxation. The GST council has continuously evolved into a simpler system, and to my mind, the way things are panning out, probably India would be the world's largest country to have embarked on such a successful tax reform of this scale and magnitude," Goyal exclusively told ANI in Davos. NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant also praised the GST initiative by the Government and said that India has maintained growth, along with structural reforms. "We maintained our growth along with structural reforms. We worked for financial inclusion, along with financial growth," Kant told ANI. "These kind of structural reforms like GST, the digital push, the fact that we are one country with a billion biometric, a billion bank accounts; no other country has it. These are things which need to be told," he added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the plenary session of the World Economic Forum on Tuesday. He is the first Indian Prime Minister to attend the summit in more than two decades. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership after the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected India as the fastest growing country among emerging economies. The IMF on Monday projected India's growth at 7.4 percent for 2018, against China's 6.8 percent, making it the fastest growing country among emerging economies. Speaking to ANI, BJP leader Sambit Patra said that the IMF's projection is the outcome of "Prime Minister Modi's mantra of reform, perform and transform." "It shows that India is the heaven destination for investment by the foreign companies. It also confirms that Narendra Modi's robust leadership is strengthening Indian economy. The economy of the country is growing due to structural reforms. In 2013, Indian economy was counted in Fragile Five economy. It is the result of the Modi Mantra of reform, perform and transform that the International Monetary Fund is calling us a bright spot," Patra said. Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said that India's image has become optimistic because of the Prime Minister's zeal and passion in the last three and a half years. "All the economists of the world are saying one thing that India is the strongest emerging economy. So this means that India will going to get ahead as far as progress is concerned. And a large credit goes to Prime Minister Modi. In its latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) update, the IMF has also projected a 7.8 percent growth rate for India in 2019. The IMF said that China, during the same period is expected to grow at 6.6 percent and 6.4 percent respectively. Emerging and developing Asia will grow at around 6.5 percent over 2018-19, broadly the same pace as in 2017, IMF said, adding that the region continues to account for over half of the growth in the world. "Growth is expected to moderate gradually in China, though with a slight upward revision to the forecast for 2018 and 2019 relative to the fall forecasts, reflecting stronger external demand, pick up in India, and remain broadly stable in the ASEAN-5 region," the IMF said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Film-maker Karan Johar on Tuesday said that he is excited to hear Prime Minister Narendra Modi speak at the World Economic Forum. "I am excited to hear Prime Minister Narendra Modi speak about the possibilities of India being open to business. We have the largest contingent this year, and this is such a proud feeling," he exclusively told ANI in Davos. The Dharma Productions head honcho also said that he hopes the Indian film industry is given more opportunities on a global platform. "I am a small representative of my industry and I do hope that the film-industry is given the platform at World Economic Forum like this," he added. Earlier, Shah Rukh Khan received the 24th Crystal Award for "his leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India". The 52-year-old received the award for showing an exemplary commitment to uphold human dignity through his non-profitable Meer Foundation. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) American LGBT activist Laverne Cox has become the first transgender model to feature on the cover of Cosmpolitan magazine. The Emmy-winning actress, producer and LGBTQ rights advocate made history as the first transgender woman ever to appear on a Cosmo cover, appearing atop Cosmopolitan South Africa's February issue The Valentine Day themed #SayYesToLove issue s focused on LGBTQ issues and features a rainbow themed mast-head for the occasion. The actor shared the news on her Instagram account by writing, "I am so honored and proud to cover the February issue of @cosmopolitansa." This isn't the first time Cox, 45, has pushed boundaries for the trans community. In 2014, she became the first openly transgender Emmy nominee for her performance in 'Orange is the new Black', and was the first transgender person to cover Time magazine. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Andhra Pradesh Information Technology (IT) Minister Nara Lokesh met with Paypal vice-president Richard Nash during his visit to Davos on Tuesday. Paypal is a top-notch service provider in Fintech (financial technology), in which Andhra Pradesh is also focusing on. Lokesh told Nash that the Government of Andhra Pradesh had been utilising technology at a large scale to overcome post-bifurcation problems. He added that as a startup state, Andhra Pradesh could achieve considerable development within 3.5 years. "The Government of Andhra Pradesh is taking many measures for development of IT and Fintech. Many policies have been formulated and subsidies are given. Technologies like Blockchain, Fintech are specially focused. Technology usage is being given special focus," Lokesh said. Lokesh continued saying that the state had started using blockchain technology for land records, which enable those to become tamper-proof and people could avail loans in a very short time. He was optimistic that he was ready to work with PayPal in any project. "In Visakhapatnam, we are availing visa card services to bring less cash transactions. All government departments services are being brought under less cash ambit. We are already working with PayPal as part of the smart village project. Even now, we are ready to help them in any pilot project," Lokesh added. Lokesh concluded that fiber grid and digital economy were the new mantras for the state government to ensure smart development across Andhra Pradesh. Nash lauded the Andhra Pradesh Government in using technology to serve the public and expressed interest in working with the government round-the-clock. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The first lady of the United States of America, Melania Trump, will not be joining President Donald Trump on his trip to the Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos this week. According to the CNN, East Wing communications director Stephanie Grisham confirmed the change of plans due to "scheduling and logistical issues." Earlier, Grisham had reportedly informed the American TV station that Melania would be accompanying her husband, Donald Trump, to Davos. However, Trump's own trip was in limbo until Monday due to the shutdown of the US government, which has now been resolved. The White House press secretary Sarah Sanders had said that if the shutdown is resolved, President Trump would keep his promise to attend the global economic summit in Switzerland. "The President's delegation will leave tomorrow, and the President will continue on his trip later in the week," she said, at an event marking the end of the shutdown. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Michigan man has been arrested on the charges of making a call at the CNN's Atlanta headquarters and threatening to kill its employees. The man, Brandon Griesemer, was arrested on Friday from the home that he shares with his parents in Novi, near Detroit, according to federal court records. Griesemer could face up to five years in prison if convicted. He was later released on a $10,000 bond by the judge, Anthony Patti, following an initial hearing, where he was represented by a public defender. According to an FBI affidavit, Griesemer made 22 calls to CNN on January 9 and January 10, and four calls, which were recorded, contained threats, according to the affidavit, reported CNN. "Fake news. I'm coming to gun you all down," he told a CNN operator in one of the threatening phone calls. "I'm smarter than you. More powerful than you. I have more guns than you. More manpower. Your cast is about to get gunned down in a matter of hours," he said in another call. Griesemer, whose age was not mentioned, also made disparaging statements about Jewish people, African-Americans and the network in several calls. CNN, said on Monday, in a statement, "We take any threats to CNN employees or workplaces, around the world, extremely seriously. This one is no exception. We have been in touch with local and federal law enforcement throughout, and have taken all necessary measures to ensure the safety of our people. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Germany-based economist, Professor Anita Bose Pfaff, the only child of one of the heroes of the Indian independence struggle, Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, feels her father experienced mixed fortune. Seventy-five-year-old Pfaff, writing an exclusive foreword to a forthcoming book on her father, Laid to Rest: The Controversy over Subhas Chandra Bose's Death,written by London-based BBC and CNN broadcaster Ashis Ray and slated to be released by Roli Books on February 12, 2018 says: "Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose can be considered a tragic hero, a most unfortunate man since he did not live to see his beloved country - India - free of foreign occupation, oppression and colonial exploitation. But he can also be considered a fortunate man, because seventy-two years after his death many of his compatriots - who may not have even seen him personally - remember, love and respect him as their hero and idol." Significantly, Pfaff goes on to assert "the only consistent story about Netaji's demise remains his death in a plane crash on 18 August 1945". To support the Pfaff's firm position, the book presents the most comprehensive documentary evidence ever assembled on the subject, highlighting an incredible eleven different official and unofficial investigations into Bose's death, each and every one reaching the same conclusion - that he died as stated by Pfaff. A staggering array of irrefutable eye-witness accounts hitsthe reader as never before, including statements under oath by six survivors of the cash, doctors who treated him before he died, those who attended the cremation of his body and people who hand carried his remains to Tokyo and then this city's Renkoji temple, where it's preserved till date. Netaji's Austrian wife Emilie Schenkl passed in 1996 without closure on her husband's remains, which have been kept at Renkoji since 1945. Pfaff has requested the Government of India to bring her father's ashes to India. Among her wishes is they be immersed in the River Ganga in keeping with Hindu tradition. She believes he is deserving of this respect, but has so far been denied it. The book traces the genesis and history of the dispute over Netaji's death, with hitherto undisclosed recorded proof, and points to the disservice done to Netaji by the government and people of India by not bringing his remains to India. The bookis a must read for anyone interested in the intriguing 72-year- old controversy over the death of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan on Tuesday said that the new policies proposed in the Fintech policy would lead to creation of a digital environment, which would be favourable for the country. Sharing the dais with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, after the unveiling of the Magnetic Maharashtra summit, Shah Rukh said, "New policies will create a digital environment, which will be favourable to young India. Our country will be technologically advanced and lakhs of youths would be benefitted as well." Espousing himself as an example of how he fulfilled his dreams as an actor, Shah Rukh added, "I'm a living example of how someone can come to Mumbai and fulfill his dreams. I always say I have two mothers - Delhi, which gave birth to me, and Maharashtra, which helped me grow." The actor maintained that he came to Davos to represent Maharashtra and expressed interest that he would be ready to participate and represent the state through summits and conferences. On being asked about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's historic speech, at the World Economic Forum (WEF), earlier in the day, Shah Rukh asserted that he was inspired by his speech, especially on terrorism and his plans to make the country a top destination, as well as ensuring better standards of living. The actor also praised Prime Minister Modi's decision on making India a global hub, despite the slowdown of the world economy in recent times. "Our PM said 'Hum yahan apne logon ka danka bajane aaye hain' (We are going to make our people famous). He pointed out globalisation is losing sheen and India was the only bright spot. India can reclaim its hub back very soon.", Shah Rukh said. The Bollywood actor heaped praises on Prime Minister Modi's presence in the WEF since 1997. "It is a matter of pride for all of us, that for the first time in 20 years, we have a PM who came and represented our country at the global level," Shah Rukh concluded. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) At least 16 people have been arrested by the police from Gujarat's Ahmedabad on Tuesday, after a frenzied mob went on a rampage outside Himalaya Mall in the city to protest against the release of 'Padmaavat'. The police took an immediate action and managed the situation. "16 people have been arrested and their interrogation is underway. The CCTV footage will be examined and more arrests will be made", confirmed a senior official to the media. The official has also requested the people to keep a control on their emotions and not to take law and order in their hands. "We deployed proper security in all the theatres, where the movie will be released. It is our responsibility to give proper security to the theatres as the Supreme Court has allowed the screening of 'Padmaavat' in the state," added the official. On Tuesday evening, a group of people vandalised shops at a mall and a cinema hall in Ahmedabad and targeted vehicles that were parked outside it shortly after a candle march was carried out by Karni Sena activists against the release of 'Padmaavat'. The mall manager, Rakesh Mehta, told ANI, "the men attacked the mall even though it had displayed boards outside saying the film will not be screened there." Earlier in the day, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said, "the government will not allow anyone to resort to violence and police will stake stern action on them." Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Padmaavat' starring Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh will finally be released on January 25. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Haryana chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Monday announced that the state will abide by the Supreme Court orders on the controversial flick 'Padmaavat' and provide security to the cinema halls that will screen the movie. "The decision that has been delivered by Supreme Court on 'Padmaavat' will be respected. However, it will be good if some theatres don't run the movie. But those who want to screen it, will be provided full security," said Khattar after inaugurating two underpasses on the Delhi-Jaipur Highway in Gurugram. Haryana was among the four states that banned the screening of 'Padmaavat', posing law and order problems. However, the Supreme Court on January 18, set aside the notification passed by the states of Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat to ban the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's directorial. The movie has run into trouble time and again, as members of several Rajput factions have accused the director of the film of distorting history. Meanwhile, the Sanjay Leela Bhansali's magnum opus is all set for a worldwide January 25 release in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ticket counter of a cinema hall in Uttar Pradesh's Hapur was vandalised by unidentified miscreants in protest against Padmaavat yesterday. Several similar incidents also surfaced in different parts of the nation against the release of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali's magnum-opus. Earlier, members of Rajput Karni Sena burnt posters of the film and staged a protest against the release of the movie in Uttar Pradesh's Lucknow. A group of protestors from the same group also created a ruckus and tore the poster of the movie outside a movie hall in Telangana yesterday. Some miscreants also vandalised a mall in Haryana's Kurukshetra. The Supreme Court, recently, stayed notifications issued by the four states - Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan and Gujarat - to ban the release of epic drama. In its interim order, the court said all states are constitutionally obliged to maintain law and order and prevent any untoward incident during the screening of the film after permission has been granted by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). The flick has run into trouble time and again, as members of several Rajput factions have accused the director of the film, Bhansali of distorting history. . (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A senior Pakistan Minister has accused the judicial system of planning the ouster of former prime minister Nawaz Sharif. According to The Express Tribune, during a parliament debate on the supremacy of parliament, Pakistan Minister for Climate Change Mushahidullah Khan on Monday said, "the judiciary, with the connivance of the establishment, disqualified Nawaz Sharif". Pakistan's Supreme Court disqualified Sharif as Prime Minister after an inquiry into the 2016 Panama Papers which linked his family to offshore companies. A five-member bench of the Supreme Court, on July 28, had directed National Accountability Bureau (NAB) to file references against Sharif and his three children. Also during the debate in the Upper House of Pakistan parliament, the ruling party and the major opposition party were also united against the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chief Imran Khan and Awami Muslim League (AML) leader Sheikh Rashid for their anti-parliament speeches. Representing government side in the debate, Mushahidullah criticised the two leaders saying that such derogatory words against the country's most sacred institution were tantamount to committing treason. He urged the members to suggest some action against the PTI and AML leaders. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A former Pakistani police official accused of extra-judicial killings was stopped from travelling abroad on Tuesday. According to The Express Tribune, Former Senior Superintendent Police (SSP) of Malir Cantt Rao Anwar was offloaded at Benazir International Airport, Rawalpindi, from a Dubai bound international flight. Rao Anwar and other officers are in the dock for killing at least four men during what they claimed was a raid on a suspected Taliban hideout in Karachi. Relatives of one of the dead men, who was identified as Naqeebullah Mehsud, 27, from South Waziristan tribal district, rejected claims of him having militant links and maintained that he was an aspiring model who had been a resident of Karachi since 2008. They added that Naqeebullah was looking for a job and had been running a shop in the city. His killing evoked a national outcry and triggered protest rallies in several cities. Yesterday, Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Co-chairman Bilawal Bhutto called for an end to extra-judicial killings in Pakistan. Answering a question asked by media, Bilawal said he is against police encounters taking place anywhere in Pakistan. Such practices must end, he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Patanjali's Yog Acharyas, Acharya Smit and Acharya Bharadwaj, on Monday, praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi's decision of showcasing yoga on a global platform like Economic Forum (WEF). "We will be showcasing Yoga at such level platform. This has happened only because of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. I am very happy to get a chance of bringing Yoga to such a high-level platform. We will be conducting Yoga training sessions during morning and evening time over here at Davos," Acharya Smit told ANI here. Acharya Bharadwaj added, "The overall environment of Switzerland is very happening and positive. Tomorrow we will be taking Yoga training session, which will be for about 45-minute. We have divided the whole session into four parts. We will be commencing with a warm-up session, then Yogasana, then Dhyan and Pranayama and finally about how to live a spiritual life." Both the Acharyas further said that they were extremely proud in representing India at the WEF. Earlier on Sunday, Yoga Guru Ramdev said that organising yoga sessions at a global level could make the achieve peace. This is the first time sessions on yoga will be conducted at the forum in Davos. Prime Minister Modi arrived in Zurich on Monday and met President of Swiss Confederation Alain Berset before he proceeded to Davos. He hosted a round-table meeting with the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of top global companies in Davos. Thereafter, he will be addressing the plenary session of the WEF on Tuesday. The first Indian minister to attend the WEF in more than two decades, Prime Minister Modi is being accompanied by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu, among others. The last visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the forum was H. Deve Gowda back in 1997. The theme of this year's forum is- "Creating a shared future in a Fractured World". The forum aims to set an agenda to address political, economic and social challenges of recent times. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with the International Business Council, following his keynote address at the plenary session of the World Economic Forum here on Tuesday. On Monday, Prime Minister Modi, during his visit to Davos, interacted with top CEOs, both Indian and international, at a dinner hosted by him, where discussions took place on investment opportunities in India. "Yesterday, the Prime Minister had interacted with 64 CEOs from around the world, 40 of them from other countries and 24 from India. The total market capitalisation of these companies is USD 3.6 trillion. It was an important interaction, and 15 CEOs shared their thoughts," said Ramesh Abhishek, Secretary of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) here on Tuesday. Apart from this, Prime Minister Modi during his visit also interacted with his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau, and Queen Maxima of Netherlands, among others. Prime Minister Modi is expected to arrive in New Delhi later tonight. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the plenary session of the 48th World Economic Forum (WEF) at Davos in Switzerland this afternoon. The Chairman of WEF, Klaus Schwab will host the session and Prime Minister Modi will showcase 'New India' to the global chief executives. Several roundtable conferences, organised by Invest India will also be held at the session to promote clean energy solutions, digital payments, development of railway industry in India. Prime Minister Modi had reached Davos last evening and hosted dinner for global industry honchos from 18 countries and presented exciting opportunities for global businesses in India. The Prime Minister also held bilateral talks with the President of Swiss Confederation Alain Berset. The first Indian minister to attend the WEF in more than two decades, Prime Minister Modi is being accompanied by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu, among others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday paid homage to Shiv Sena's founder Bal Thackeray on his 91st birth anniversary. "Remembering Balasaheb Thackeray on his birth anniversary. He will always be remembered as a brave leader who worked tirelessly towards fulfilling the aspirations of people," said Prime Minister Modi. Thackeray, who had been an influential figure in Maharashtra, began his professional career as a cartoonist with the English language daily 'The Free Press Journal' in Mumbai, but left it in 1960 to form his own political weekly 'Marmik'. His political philosophy was largely shaped by his father Keshav Sitaram Thackeray, a leading figure in the Samyukta Maharashtra (United Maharashtra) movement, which advocated the creation of a separate semantic state. Through Marmik, Thackeray campaigned against the growing influence of non-Marathis in Mumbai. In 1966, Thackeray formed the Shiv Sena party to fight for the interests of Maharashtrians in Mumbai's political and professional landscape. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Prateik Babbar got engaged to girlfriend Sanya Sagar on January 22. The roka ceremony took place in Lucknow in the presence of immediate family including Raj Babbar, his aunts (late mother Smita Patil's sisters) and Sanya's parents. The 'Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na' star took to Instagram to announce the happy news with an adorable picture. "#monday.. "holy snappp!.. that just happened!," he wrote. The two, who met through common friends, have known each other for over eight years but got together only a year ago after Sanya returned from London. She has worked as a production assistant on the Danny Huston-starrer, "The Last Photograph", and as a production runner on the Salma Hayek short, "11th Hour". Prateik plans to hold separate functions in New Delhi, Lucknow and Mumbai post the nuptials in 2019. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Protests in many Canada-based gurudwaras are taking place against the announcement by Gurpreet Singh Bal, President of the Dixie Road Gurudwara Management Committee, banning the entry of Indian officials. The Dixie Road Gurudwara is located in the Greater Toronto area. The latest such voice of dissent to be raised is by the Managing Committee of the Gurudwara Sri Guru Nanak Sikh Centre, Gidden Road, Brampton and Gurudwara Brampton Sikh Sangat, Regan Road, Brampton. Both the Gurudwaras have issued Press Release disassociating themselves from the ban of Indian officials. A press release has expressed surprise at the dictate of Gurpreet Singh Bal and has clearly stated that no one has ever been given the authority to represent this matter in both gurudwaras, and as such, it was patently wrong on the part of Bal to include the names of these two gurudwaras in the list published by him. It further stated that no one had ever sought opinion of either of these gurudwaras on this issue, and emphasized that according to Sikh doctrine, no one can be stopped from paying a visit to gurudwaras, listening to the Gurubani, taking of Guru ka Langar or doing service in gurudwaras. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the unequal distribution of income in India, moments after the latter gave a keynote address at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Taking to Twitter, the Congress President urged the Prime Minister to let Davos know why India's 1 percent population receives 73 percent of the country's wealth. "Dear PM, Welcome to Switzerland! Please tell DAVOS why 1% of India's population gets 73% of its wealth? I'm attaching a report for your ready reference," Gandhi tweeted. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Modi addressed the plenary session of the 48th WEF meet at Davos in Switzerland. "In India, Democracy, Demography and Dynamism are giving shape to development and destiny. We believe in progress in true sense, when everyone can walk together to achieve this," the Prime Minister said in his speech. Lauding some of the recent economic reforms, which his government did, such as the Goods and Service Tax (GST), Prime Minister Modi said it has made working, travelling and living in India more seamless and plausible, while helping achieve a spike in exports. He reached Davos last evening and hosted dinner for global industry honchos from 18 countries and presented exciting opportunities for global businesses in India. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court will on Tuesday hear on the Kerala Love Jihad case. The Investigation Agency (NIA) will reportedly file another status report on the same. It will reportedly include the statement of Shafin Jahan, husband of Hadiya. Hadiya's father had alleged that his daughter was forcefully converted to Islam and marry the Muslim man. In November last year, Hadiya told the Supreme Court that she wanted to be with her husband Shafin Jahan. The 24-year-old has been in the headlines after she became a Muslim, following her marriage to Jahan. Hadiya said she had married Jahan out of her own will and not forcibly. During the course of the hearing, Hadiya, who was born as Akhila Ashokan, also said she wanted freedom and to see her husband after the top court asked whether she would prefer to continue studies. The top court has now directed Hadiya, who currently is in the custody of her parents, to be taken to college for her studies and that college should allow hostel facility to her. The top court also ordered Hadiya's college dean to be her guardian after she requested for it. Meanwhile, counsel for Hadiya's father, Rajendran, argued that the material submitted by Investigation Agency (NIA) should be looked into, while saying a modus operandi exists for conversion. Earlier, the NIA had submitted a status report in a sealed cover to the top court in connection with the case. The apex court has been hearing Hadiya's case after Jahan approached the top court following Kerala High Court, annulling his marriage with Hadiya. While Hadiya's parents have been alleging that her marriage was a case of love jihad and that she was converted to Islam forcibly, Hadiya has refuted these claims so far. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court will on Tuesday will hear pleas seeking direction for a comprehensive set of guidelines for the safety and security of the school children across the country. These pleas were filed in the apex court after Pradyuman Thakur, a Class II student of Gurugram's Ryan International School, was brutally murdered inside the school premises last year. The apex court had ordered a compilation of norms formulated by the Centre and states for its consideration. The top court had asked all states and union territories to file a response on a Public Interest Litigation (PIL), seeking guidelines to ensure safety and security of school children across the country, the deadline of which is today. So far, three states -- Haryana, Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh -- have filed their responses in the case. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray on Tuesday targeted the Centre on a slew of issues, including foreign visits, cow vigilantism, Hindutva and much more. Addressing the party's executive here, Thackeray said that Prime Minister Modi should have taken his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu to turmoil-affected Srinagar instead of Ahmedabad and unfurl the tricolour there. "The Prime Minister calls himself 'Pant Pradhan'. All he does is travel abroad. He took Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Ahmedabad, why not to Lal Chowk in Srinagar? Why couldn't he have done a roadshow in Srinagar? We would have felt sense of pride towards our Prime Minister, if he had hoisted tricolour in Lal Chowk," he said. Further training guns at the Centre, the Shiv Sena chief said that it does not endorse the definition of Hindutva which the BJP holds. "The definition of Hindutva that BJP endorses is different. We don't believe in their definition. For us cow killing is cow killing and terrorism is terrorism. Shiv Sena united the Maratha cadre without doing any discrimination on the basis of caste and this is our strength... It was Aurangzeb, who created a divide and rule policy. We cannot be divided on the basis of caste," he added. The two parties share a sour relationship, ever since the BJP has come to power in Maharashtra, the citadel of Shiv Sena. The 'blow hot-blow cold' relationship between saffron allies was further strained earlier in the day after the latter announced that it would contest the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly and Lok Sabha elections alone. The Shiv Sena often attacks the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Centre over a slew of issues in its editorial mouthpiece Saamna. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The armed opposition of Syria has launched an operation against President Bashar al-Assad regime-controlled areas around Turkmen Mountain in Latakia governorate. The Anadolu Agency quoted Jabal al-Islam Commander Zahir Abu Usama, as saying that "Russia is "intensely attacking Idlib". "In order to alleviate these attacks, we have launched an operation around Turkmen Mountain in regime-controlled Sarraf town and around the region," he added. The Commander further said that they have seized Assad regime controlled villages of Villa and Kapikaya in Sarraf. Reportedly, opposition's sudden attacks have also killed several soldier's. After the opposition's operation, Russian and regime warplanes attacked Turkmen Mountain, local sources said. In May last year, Russia, Iran and Turkey signed an agreement to set up de-escalation centres in Syria. De-escalation zones include the Idlib province, some parts of Latakia, Hama and Aleppo provinces, Homs, Eastern Ghouta, Daraa and al-Quneitra provinces in southern Syria. Syria has been embroiled in a civil war since 2011. Protesters have for long been demanding the resignation of Assad over his autocratic rule. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tokyo witnessed its heaviest snowfall in four years on Monday, as authorities urged commuters to return home soon from outdoors and get ready to brace for major traffic jams. The heavy snow in the capital prompted the Japanese Meteorological Agency to issue a warning to all of Tokyo's 23 wards, the Japan Times reported. The country's transport ministry issued an emergency announcement on Sunday, urging people to remain in their homes and not to go out unless absolutely necessary. Due to heavy snowfall, about 50 cars were stranded on the Rainbow Bridge over Tokyo Bay. Authorities said that the bridge had been closed due to car accidents caused by the snow, leading to a massive traffic disruption. Train services at Yurikamome Metro Line, which also passes Tokyo Bay after snow accumulated on a slope over the track. The line is still closed as of now. The snow disrupted air and rail traffic as well. The Japan Airlines cancelled over 120 flights at Haneda International Airport as of 5:30 pm on Monday, affecting more than 15,000 travellers. Tokyo Metro Corporation announced that it would delay or cancel train services on its lines and urged passengers to check for updates on its website. According to the weather agency, the Kanto region is expected to get 10 to 40 cm of snowfall up till 6 am on Tuesday. This also includes 5 to 10 cm in Tokyo's 23 wards. The Japan Automobile Federation urged drivers to use tire chains to prevent skidding and to avoid sudden acceleration to maintain control. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United States President Donald Trump has reportedly imitated Prime Minister Narendra Modi by faking his Indian accent in the context of US' decision of sending more troops into Afghanistan. According to the Independent, when Modi travelled to the US last year, he supported the decision of sending in more troops to Afghanistan in a bid to tackle terrorism and insurgency. At that time, Trump reportedly imitated the accent of Prime Minister Modi, claiming that the latter told him, "Never has a country given so much away for so little in return", referring to US' troops in Afghanistan. Both the White House and the US State Department were unaware of such a claim. Even, Indian officials in US did not immediately respond to it. This is not the first time that Trump has reportedly adopted a fake Indian accent. While he was campaigning last year, the US President had adopted the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) electoral slogan - "Ab Ki Baar, Modi Sarkar". He rechristened the slogan to as "Ab Ki Baar, Trump Sarkar" and reportedly said in the fake Indian accent in a campaign video. Also, Trump reportedly attempted to mock a call centre representative in India. He claimed that he called up his credit card company to find out whether their customer support was based in the US or overseas. Both the leaders share a close and cordial relationship between them. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Jammu and Kashmir assembly on Tuesday witnessed uproar over the issue of ceasefire violations along Line of Control (LoC). Opposition Conference (NC) and the Congress party tried to corner the state government over the issue. "People are suffering badly. People are running from borders. The government is not responding to our questions," one of the leaders told the media. Due to the ongoing tension on the border between India and Pakistan on January 21, the Opposition staged a walkout from the Jammu and Kashmir assembly to protest ruling government's "failure" to protect the lives of border dwellers in the ceasefire violations. According to reports, a total of 10 persons, including two Border Security Force (BSF) personnel and two Army jawans, were killed and over 40 others injured in the heavy firing and shelling by Pakistan along the International Border and Line of Control in the Valley since January 17. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United States has called on Pakistan to arrest or expel the Taliban insurgents from its soil. This US reaction comes after a deadly attack at central Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel claimed 18 lives. However, a survivor of the hotel attack said the number of casualties was much higher than revealed by government sources. According to The Express Tribune, White House Spokesperson Sarah Sanders on Monday said, "We call on Pakistan to immediately arrest or expel the Taliban's leaders and prevent the group from using Pakistani territory to support its operations." "In Afghanistan, where terrorists attacked the hotel in Kabul, such attacks on civilians only strengthen our resolve to support our Afghan partners," she added. Earlier on Sunday, Afghanistan Ministry of Interior (MoI) confirmed that all the three terrorists, who attacked the Intercontinental Hotel here, have been eliminated after a 13-hour stand-off. Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Dr Mohammad Faisal took to Twitter to condemn the attack and rejected the allegations of involvement of Pakistani nationals in the attack. "We reject the knee jerk allegations by some Afghan circles to point the finger at Pakistan for the terrorist attack on intercontinental hotel in Kabul. There is need for a credible investigation into the attack, including on reported security lapses," Faisal tweeted. . (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The White House announced on Monday that the United States Government will be running at its full strength from Tuesday. As the Congress races to finalise the bill to formally end the shutdown, White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement, "The Senate will head to the Office of Management and Budget after the bill is presumably passed by the House, paving the way for President (Donald) Trump's signature probably in the late afternoon, or early evening." "All government offices that were closed earlier would start back in full capacity by tomorrow morning", the statement added. Earlier, the Senate voted on Monday noon to reopen the Government, ending a three-day standoff that left federal agencies and thousands of people affected. The Democrats and Republicans earlier agreed to pass a short-term spending bill of at least three weeks, to allow the funding of the government until February 8. The final vote stood at 81-18. The three-week funding bill still needs to pass on a final up-or-down vote, but it is now a formality. The House is expected to approve the bill soon. Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell promised to allow a new immigration bill to be passed by next month. For the unversed, earlier, the Democrats and the Republicans reached on a deal to take up an immigration bill that would protect an estimated 8,00,000 people from deportation. McConnell attempted to schedule the vote late on Sunday night that would end the shutdown, but Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer objected to it since the Republicans and Democrats were yet to reach an agreement. McConnell said that the Congress must stop victimising the American people and get back to work soon. The House and Senate lawmakers met throughout the day on Sunday to end the government shutdown with both chambers hoping to strike a deal on spending and immigration that would reopen federal agencies soon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Mukesh Ambani owned Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) on Wednesday, in partnership with the World Economic Forum, announced establishing a center for Fourth Industrial Revolution in Mumbai. "The new economy will greatly benefit from the outcome of the Fourth Industrial Revolution in a digital age and is expected to create significant value to countries that embrace them quickly by accelerating their GDP and job growth. These opportunities include Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning, Internet of Things (IoT), Blockchain amongst many others," RIL said in a statement. The World Economic Forum has been championing the Fourth Industrial Revolution. They have been leading the discussions and shaping the agenda of its potential impact on addressing inclusive growth and solving some of the most pressing challenges facing humanity, by using a combination of multiple technologies and tools. It is in this context that the WEF had established Center for Fourth Industrial Revolution in the Silicon Valley at San Francisco. Recognising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership, his Digital India Vision and Startup India programme to encourage young entrepreneurs, the World Economic Forum has decided to open its first centre outside of Silicon Valley. "The Center for Fourth Industrial Revolution in India will operate as the sister center to the World Economic Forum Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in San Francisco, allowing policymakers and thought leaders in India to stay ahead of the curve through unique insights in new forms of governance and new technology applications, and connections with cutting-edge technology innovators globally," the statement added. The World Economic Forum has identified India as a partner since it is a key economic, political and social shaper of the 21st century's global, regional and industry systems, which is also on the cusp of a massive digital transformation. The capability for India to maximise the potential and minimise the risks of the Fourth Industrial revolution, both domestically for its economy and society, and globally as a major economic and social innovator, and cultural influencer will be one of the foremost drivers for prosperity and peace over the coming decades. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Minister of Petroleum & Natural Gas and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Shri Dharmendra Pradhan briefed about the acquisition of HPCL by ONGC. Shri Pradhan informed that the Government of India entered into an agreement with ONGC on January 20, 2018 for sale of its 51.11% equity shareholding in HPCL at a consideration of Rs. 36,915 crore. Shri Pradhan said this is in line with the Budget announcement 2017-18 to create oil majors in the country. This has completed the successful implementation of the Budget announcement in a time bound manner. Shri Pradhan said ONGC-HPCL integration is the first innovative vertical integration that will help leveraging the strength of both the companies. Through this acquisition, ONGC will become India's first vertically integrated 'oil major' company, having presence across the entire value chain. The group company will have advantage of having enhanced capacity to bear higher risk, take higher investment decisions and improve business. Shri Pradhan said ONGC-HPCL integration offers huge potential to attain economies of scale at various levels of operations and consolidation in petrochemical and refining business. The group company will leverage the financial strength and diversify business portfolio in upstream, midstream and downstream sectors. Shri Pradhan said that HPCL will continue to be a Board-managed Central Sector Public Enterprise and will maintain its distinct identity and brand value. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Asian Paints' consolidated net profit rose 15.9% to Rs 567.21 crore on 10.5% growth in net sales to Rs 4260.52 crore in Q3 December 2017 over Q3 December 2016. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 22 January 2018. Just Dial's net profit rose 4.2% to Rs 28.60 crore on 9.2% growth in net sales to Rs 196.79 crore in Q3 December 2017 over Q3 December 2016. The result was announced after market hours yesterday, 22 January 2018. Among Nifty 50 companies, Indiabulls Housing Finance is scheduled to announce Q3 December 2017 results today, 23 January 2018. Indian Oil Corporation said that the board of directors of the company may consider bonus issue of shares along with its announcement of Q3 results in a meet on 30 January 2018. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 22 January 2018. Kalpataru Power Transmission (KPTL) secured new orders/notification of award of Rs 871 crore. Commenting on the new order announcements, Manish Mohnot, Managing Director & CEO of the company said that the current orders reflect continued success of the company's railway and pipeline businesses. The cumulative order intake from these businesses this year has exceeded Rs 2600 crore. This will provide further impetus for growth in the next year, he added. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 22 January 2018. Om Metals Infraprojects announced that it has reached a compromise/settlement with Jaipur based realty developer in a prestigious land of 56,000 square meters in Viswa Karma Industrial Area (VKIA), Jaipur. The company announced that its associate company Om Metals Infotech (OMIPL) has secured compromise/settlement with Riya Garments who has agreed to withdraw its claim on the land from the High Court of Rajasthan. The land was purchased by the company in an auction from IDBI bank in year 2006-07 and Riya Garments challenged the sale. The execution of settlement agreement shall be presented to the High Court of Rajasthan and the same will take place in some time. This 56,000 sqmt land, which has been in the company's possession since the date of purchase, is well located in the city of Jaipur and has potential of being developed as residential/commercial subject to approval from appropriate authorities. The announcement was made after market hours yesterday, 22 January 2018. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The National Highways Authority of India has issued Letter of Award (LOA) for the development of the following national highway section in the state of Madhya Pradesh: NH No. Section Length Total Capital Cost Contractor's NameNH-12 Hiran River to Sindoor River from km 66.00 to Km 130 section 64 km Rs. 866.39 Crore M/s Krishna Constructions-Gawar Construction Limited (JV) The project would be implemented on EPC mode with construction period of 24 months. The project includes upgradation of the highway from 2 lane to 4 lane with rigid pavement (cement concrete road), along with construction of 4 major bridges, 20 minor bridges, 9 underpasses at the location of minor junction and 29 minor junctions for the free and safe movement of road users. Thirteen kilometer of the project road passes through wild life sanctuary in which 39.750 ha. area of wildlife forest land is required for diversion. The road also passes through Reserve and Protected forest for 2 km length in which 11.081 ha. forest land is required for diversion. In order to facilitate free and safe movement of wildlife, adequate mitigation measures have been included in the project viz. additional span of 5m on the either side of the major bridges, provision of structures of size 5X3.5M at 25 locations. On completion of the project, the journey on this highway stretch will become safer, saving time, fuel and vehicle maintenance cost. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Government of India, the Government of Uttarakhand and the World Bank Board signed a $120 million Loan Agreement which will help increase access to improved water supply services in peri-urban areas in the State of Uttarakhand. The Uttarakhand Water Supply Program for Peri-Urban Areas will help the State increase water supply coverage as well as ensure sustainable water supply service delivery in peri-urban areas. It will develop and implement a service-oriented and efficient water supply policy for peri-urban areas, strengthen the current monitoring and evaluation systems, and provide dedicated incentives for preparation and adoption of water supply 'master-plans' in peri-urban areas. Growth and urbanization has led to the rise of significant peri-urban areas (mostly in the plains) that, while classified as rural, are effectively urban in nature (in terms of density of population, the structure of the economy, and aspirations of the people). The disconnect between the formal classification of these populated areas and their actual nature, including provision of water supply, along with unique governance, infrastructure, and service delivery challenges. From 2001 to 2011, the state's urban population grew by nearly 42 percent, which is substantially higher than the national average of 32 percent. While the state has made significant strides in piloting and implementing innovative approaches in water supply and sanitation services, water supply services in peri-urban areas have not been a focus. Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Sameer Kumar Khare, Joint Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India said that over 700,000 people residing in peri-urban areas of the state are expected to benefit from the program. He said that with increasing urbanization, the demarcation between rural and urban is slowly diminishing. The rise of peri urban areas in Uttarakhand presents many challenges to development. Mr Khare concluded that through this project, the peri-urban population in the State, especially the women will have easy access to regular water supply services, thus freeing- up their time for other more socially and economically productive activities. The Program will focus on increasing coverage, quality and reliability of water supply services in all peri-urban areas of the State. Services would be provided through piped network and metered service connections with a focus on improving the operation and management (O&M) of it. Some of the efforts at improving services under the Program will include ensuring a minimum 16-hour water supply which meets the Government of India water quality standards, supplied at a minimum pressure of 12m, for no less than 300 days in a year; 100 percent customer metering and volumetric tariffs; and sustainable water supply systems which recover O&M costs through user charges with transparent subsidies, if any. Speaking on the occasion, Ms Smita Misra, Lead Water Supply and Sanitation Specialist and the World Bank's Task Team Leader for the program said that with rapid economic growth and urbanization, there is a strong demand for better public services, including water supply in peri-urban areas. She said that this Program is now a priority for the State as it moves towards achieving its goal of universal water supply coverage in urban areas by 2030 and in rural areas by 2022. She further said that we hope this program shows the way for others addressing service delivery issues in challenging 'peri-urban' areas that are increasingly part of the landscape of India and other countries in South Asia. The $120 million loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), has a 5-year grace period, and a maturity of 17 years. Powered by Capital Market - Live News (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With a view to giving back to their home towns, young ex-IITians are returning to take a shot at creating jobs through their tech ventures in Rajasthan, particularly in the field of Many of these tech-savvy youngsters realised that was in dire need of a major change in the state. "One day, we discussed that if travel, banking, hotels and food can be on phones, why not That was the trigger. We wanted to build a one-point communication between teachers and students," Madhup Bansal, from the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT-D), and co-founder and Managing Director of Myly, told IANS. Gaurav Mundra, the other co-founder and CEO of Myly, realised that his son's school circulars sometimes went missing. "So we brought a centralised app where parents had access to kids' timetable, results, fee deposits and other information via one mobile app," he says. Currently working with 800 academic institutions in India, he said they have operations in Dubai and the Philippines and were planning to be in Malaysia soon. Rishabh Jain, from IIT, Bombay, and COO of Qriyo, India's managed home tuition app, claimed to be first of its kind, says: "Me and Mudit, CEO of Qriyo, had envisioned to be job creators for around 500 people in our hometowns. So we started operations in Jaipur and Jodhpur. Now, it's heartening to see that we have evaluated over 15,000 tutors who are serving over 5,000 students in six cities of India." Mudit Jain was at the India division of Finmechanics as Country Head and had worked with the consulting arm of PricewaterhouseCoopers, US. "The idea of Qriyo originated while searching for a yoga teacher. Despite hundreds of providers listed online, I could not find a suitable match." In January 2016, Qriyo was born, offering over 400 courses in academics, co-curricular, extra-curricular and fitness activities, Mudit said. The returnees are all youngsters who wanted to pursue their dreams in distant lands, after finishing the most sought-after degree in the country. But a feeling for their roots and a conducive business atmosphere brought them back home, to use their knowledge about the cyber world for the benefit of their fellow residents. Nishant Patni, founder and CEO of CultureAlley, had finished his IIT from Bombay, his post-graduate degree from the US and worked with the Boston Consulting Group in Chicago and two start-ups in Delhi and California when he went to China and struggled to learn a new language. "If I am struggling this hard to learn a new language, what might be the case with others, I thought, and came up with 'Hello English', which is now India's No. 1 educational app with over 35 million learners," Patni told IANS. According to him, Hello English was part of Google's Editor's Choice 2017 and the year before, it was named Google's Best Apps of 2016. It now teaches several other languages. "We got infrastructural support from our hometown, Jaipur, and this city houses good engineering talent and hence we came here," he said, adding that the "real Bharat is outside top cities; the people you encounter here give you a real insight into everything". The company has also got funding from a global venture capital firm. SRJNA, which brings modern, innovative aids and methodologies into teaching of science, maths and astronomy, is among a few players helping schools to set up "tinkering labs". They create a design studio kind of place where students can learn via Robotics and 3-D tools. "We help in setting up innovation labs where teachers demonstrate to ensure students learn quickly by using real practical tools," says Sharad Bansal, CEO of SRJNA and an IITian from Delhi. So impressed was NITI Aayog by the approach that it had decided to set up 500 such labs across the country calling them Atal Tinkering Labs under the Atal Innovation Mission, named after the former Prime Minister. It provides Rs 10 lakh for setting up such a lab in a school and a similar amount each year for five years, for operational expenses. Amitabh Kant, CEO of NITI Aayog, had said at the time of launching the programme that "it will provide school students the opportunity to work with tools and equipment, fostering inventiveness". SRJNA got some benefit from a Rajasthan government's incubation scheme. Start-up Oasis has been extending a helping hand to provide start-ups with Rs 25 lakh every year for three years, and a built-up area of 25,000 square feet, to make their ventures operational. According to Tarun Agrawal, portfolio manager at Start-Up Oasis, there were 15 IITians who had come back to their hometown to set up tech ventures. But not all took the help of the incubator. Moinee Foundation, which supports "right to quality education", was set up by Arvind Thanvi, its Chief Mentor. Thanvi, an IITian from Kharagpur, left his corporate career with Accenture, Mumbai, where he worked for a decade as account director. He started smart class intervention with 12 schools in a district, by reviving their existing ICT labs. That has now reached over 1,500 schools in nine districts of three states. "Our community eLibrary programme received traction after being nominated for the Prime Minister's award last year. We are currently setting up over 125 new eLibraries in three states. We also implement community eLibraries in areas without Internet connectivity," Thanvi told IANS. The prime crop of IITians in the state is bound to attract many other start-ups. Rajasthan's tech fields are set to undergo change, led by tech-savvy youngsters who come back. (Archana Sharma can be reached at archana.s@ians.in) --IANS arc/hs/tb (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistani star Ali Zafar has urged for the installation of cameras in madrasas so that the conduct of teachers can be monitored. "I feel CC cameras need be installed in all madrasas. Their curriculum, teachers and conducts to be monitored by the government. Awareness campaigns on child abuse behaviour. Anyone to teach should be tested for qualification and appointed," Ali tweeted. His comment comes after the news of a nine-year-old child being beaten to death by his madrasa teacher on Sunday. The actor re-tweeted a post from the official page of the Chief Minister's Special Monitoring Unit from Pakistan's Punjab province, which read: "From a child protection perspective Punjab has made a hotline for receiving complaints regarding schools. This hotline is currently being tested across Punjab, and a full-scale launch is expected soon. "These are obviously starting measures and we are always looking for further suggestions from concerned citizens. Your help to the cause is invaluable." Ali said he appreciates the efforts. --IANS dc/rb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Protests against the release of "Padmaavat" intensified in Rajasthan on Tuesday soon after the Supreme Court dismissed a plea by the Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh governments seeking a ban on the film owing to the deteriorating law and order situation in their states. From Jaipur to Jaisalmer, the protests, led by the Shri Rajput Karni Sena and other Rajput associations, were seen in different locations. In Jaipur, members of Rajput associations gathered in front of Vaibhav Multiplex where they met the cinema hall owners and requested them not to screen the film. They also met cinema hall owners in Chittaurgarh, Udaipur, Pokhran, Jodhpur, Jalaur, Bhilwara, Ajmer, Churu, Jhunjhunu, Shri Ganganagar and other cities. Sawai Madhopur observed a bandh on Tuesday on a call by the Karni Sena. A rally was also taken out in this city where hundreds of members participated. Highway 144 was blocked by the Karni Sena in Pokhran and tyres were burnt to protest the proposed release of the film. One of the members of the Karni Sena confirmed that a chakka jam (in which roads are blocked) will be staged in different parts of the country on Thursday for a few hours. A call for a 'janta curfew' has also been given in this context on the same day. He said that advance bookings have not started in Rajasthan and Gujarat and even in some parts of Bihar, Punjab and Haryana. Another source said that a bandh has been called in Chittaurgarh on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Rajasthan Police have assured that all measures will be taken to ensure the peaceful release of the film in the meeting called by the state government soon after the Supreme Court's verdict. The film is set to release nationwide on Thursday. The Karni Sena and other fringe groups claim Sanjay Leela Bhansali's period drama distorts history. --IANS arc/him/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Manufacturing and marketing antibiotics responsibly so that they do not cause damage to the environment or lead to misuse can help tackle the threat of "superbugs" or antimicrobial resistance (AMR), said an Indian-origin expert at the World Economic Forum (WEF) here. Jayasree Iyer, from the Netherlands-based non-profit Access to Medicine Foundation, pointed out that besides developing new medicines and vaccines, pharmaceutical companies should ensure that doctors and patients do not overuse medicines and vaccines. "We reasonably expect from the industry that apart from developing new medicine and vaccine, we also expect them to manufacture and market antibiotics responsibly to ensure waste water does not end up in the environment," Iyer, the Executive Director at the Foundation, said late on Tuesday. Aiming at helping the pharma industry tackle the threat of "superbugs", Iyer also launched the first-ever AMR benchmark. The AMR Benchmark is to clarify the role of the pharmaceutical industry in improving access to medicine and vaccines. "This Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark is the first independent, detailed evaluation of how pharmaceutical companies are halting the rise of drug resistance," Iyer said. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), AMR is an increasingly serious threat to global public health that requires action across all government sectors and society. "Antimicrobial resistance is a disaster waiting to happen. We have seen it evolving in the past years, especially drug-resistant TB," said Paul Stoffels, the Chief Scientific Officer at Johnson & Johnson. AMR is causing an estimated 700,000 deaths annually, a number expected to rise sharply in the coming decades. While new antibiotics are desperately needed, the pharmaceutical industry has little incentive to invest in their development because antibiotics do not bring in the revenues that drugs for other diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular disease do. "We as an industry also face challenges finding viable business models," Stoffels said. "It takes a long time to develop such medicines for relatively small populations. But it's the right thing to do as a human." Globally, 480,000 people develop multi-drug resistant TB each year and drug resistance is starting to complicate the fight against HIV and malaria as well, according to the WHO. "The problem could only be tackled globally," Julian Braithwaite, Britain's Ambassador to the UN. Countries needed to work together to tackle this problem, which Braithwaite described as medicine's equivalent of climate change. --IANS rt/nks/mr (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Filmmaker Karan Johar, who was present at the panel discussion at World Economic Forum Annual Meeting on Tuesday, said that art should not have boundaries and one cannot enforce culture to the people. The filmmaker shared the stage along with renowned cellist Yo-Yo Ma, Alice Bah Kuhnke, Minister for Culture and Democracy of Sweden and Arlie Russell Hochschild, Professor of Sociology at the University of California. The panel was discussing "Can we avoid the spread of so-called 'culture wars'?" Talking on the matter Karan said, "You cannot enforce culture or imbibe it. There are immense economic and social problems, but sometimes the main papers and politicians don't talk about them because they are focused on a film. It's empowering to the film industry, but it's ridiculous." Recounting a time he was accused of being 'non-Indian' for casting a Pakistani actor in one of his films, Karan said, "Art should not have boundaries but then culture and patriotism is thrown at the artists." The panel discussed the virtues of tolerance. While Alice Bah Kunke said that in politics, one needs to be very, very tolerant, Karan said "there is a risk that tolerating intolerance in others can be misconstrued as validation." The annual meeting was graced by some of the iconic Indian personalities, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, business tycoon Mukesh Ambani, Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan who received the Crystal Award that celebrates the achievements of leading artists. The four-day long annual meeting, taking place at the Davos-Klosters, Switzerland will end on January 26. --IANS aru/sku/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu on Tuesday vowed to fight corruption tooth and nail so that welfare programmes percolate down to the needy and the state progressed on all fronts. "Corruption is the only stumbling block, which if tackled sincerely, will make Arunachal Pradesh, with its resources, outgrow many other states," Khandu told a gathering here, organised to celebrate the Bharatiya Janata Party's completion of one year in power in the state. He warned of action against anyone found involved in corruption, irrespective of his or her position or office. Reiterating that he has recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry into the infamous Public Distribution System scam, Khandu said it was just the beginning of his fight against corruption. The Chief Minister called upon the people to cooperate with the government in its fight against corruption and the shutdown culture. --IANS rrk/tsb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Joel McHale has defended fellow comedian and actor Aziz Ansari, who has been accused of sexual misconduct. He says the episode seems consensual to him. Ansari failed to make an appearance at the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday after being accused of "repeatedly cajoling" a woman into performing sex acts following a date. McHale, 46, who is in Park City, Utah, for the Sundance Film Festival, came out in support of Ansari, reports dailymail.co.uk. He told TMZ: "It sounds like it was consensual. The #MeToo movement is tremendous and is awesome and needs to continue forever. But if someone had a bad date, it's a bad date. "People will read just the name and just the accusation and they don't find out anything more than that. That's the problem." "Master of None" star Ansari has denied the allegations made against him by a 23-year-old woman who detailed her claims to women's website Babe. After a date in New York, the unidentified woman claimed Ansari performed oral sex on her and then asked her to reciprocate, which she did. And he continued to be intimate with her, she said. Ansari issued a firm denial, saying everything that happened that evening was consensual. --IANS sug/rb/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The by-election for the Bijepur assembly constituency in Odisha will be held on February 24 this year, the Election Commission of India (EC) announced on Tuesday. According to the EC schedule, while January 30 has been fixed as the date for issuing the gazette notification, the last date for filing of nominations is February 6. The date of scrutiny of nomination papers is February 7 and nominations can be withdrawn till February 9. The counting of votes and declaration of results would take place on February 28. The Bijepur by-election in Bargarh district got necessitated following the death of Congress MLA Subal Sahu on August 22 last year. The model code of conduct for the Odisha and central governments has come in force with the announcement of the election schedule. --IANS cd/nir/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Border Security Force (BSF) Constable has been suspended for allegedly molesting a woman passenger travelling by the India-Bangladesh Maitree Express from Kolkata to Dhaka, the BSF said on Tuesday. The victim's husband had lodged a complaint with the Station Manager of Kolkata Station that his wife was molested by the constable during the journey. "On January 22, a report was received from the railway authorities regarding molestation of a lady from Bangladesh travelling by 13108 Up Maitree Express ex-Kolkata to Dhaka," a BSF statement said. After inquiry, Constable Veeranna Bhavi of BSF was found to be involved in the incident, it said. It said he has been suspended. --IANS ssp/nir/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) By the end of March, CISF personnel at 59 airports across the country are expected to have miniature cameras fitted on their uniforms, quietly keeping a tab on all that happens around them. The much-awaited Rs 3 crore project for the purchase of 500 cameras is under the bidding process. The camera, fitted on the upper body of Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel, mostly on the shoulders, will record high quality audio and video. It will greatly help to know who was right and who was in the wrong in the event of disputes between passengers and the security personnel. The gadget will also improve security at the airports as it will film every passenger going through the frisking process -- and more. The step of buying such cameras -- each costing around Rs 60,000 -- was initiated by CISF Director General O.P. Singh, who on Monday moved to Uttar Pradesh to be the Director General of Police there. "The plan was initiated by him to ensure better surveillance at airports. The device can be checked later for both audio and video evidence," CISF Assistant Inspector General Hemendra Singh told IANS. He said some passengers engaged in needless arguments with the CISF personnel during frisking and at times even used abusive language or made derogatory remarks. On top of it, they also lodged complaints against the CISF personnel, accusing them of misbehaviour, Singh said. Absence of evidence at times leads to unpleasant situations. "Now, this camera will allow the CISF personnel to carry out their duties without any fear or hindrance." Singh said the process of buying these cameras was underway and would hopefully be completed by March-end. The move to install the miniature cameras, a common feature in Western countries, follows a successful three-month trial run conducted by the CISF at the Delhi and Mumbai airports, with three such gadgets at each city. The trial run, which ended last week, was found to be "very satisfactory and effective" in monitoring and detecting people from close range. Citing the benefit of such cameras, a CISF officer who did not want to be named said: "A passenger got angry with a CISF trooper when he was asked to remove his hat and shoes. But he calmed down after noticing the camera on the body of our man." The officer said the body-worn cameras on trial helped in reducing arguments with passengers at both airports, much to the relief of the CISF personnel. In the first lot, 500 cameras are expected to be bought -- and distributed among 59 major and minor airports all over the country. The CISF is in charge of providing security at all domestic and international airports in the country. CISF personnel are also deployed at the rapidly-expanding Delhi Metro network as well as at leading private and state-run industrial establishments. (Rajnish Singh can be contacted at rajnish.s@ians.in ) --IANS rak/mr/sac (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chief Minister Mukul Sangma on Tuesday said that the Congress party is likely to announce the list of candidates for the February 27 elections to the 60 member Meghalaya assembly before Republic Day. "The State Congress has conveyed its desire to the central leadership to announce the list of candidates before the Republic Day," the veteran Congress leader said after the Pradesh Election Committee and Manifesto Committee meeting. State Congress President Celestine Lyngdoh who heads the Pradesh Election Committee, chaired the day-long meeting, which was attended by Congress General Secretary in-charge Meghalaya C.P.Joshi, Lok Sabha member Vincent H. Pala and other senior Congress leaders. "The party at the state level had completed the exercise and the candidates had been more or less frozen and the names would now be presented before the Central Screening Committee and the same will be announced with the approval of the Congress President (Rahul Gandhi)," Sangma told journalists. Moreover, the Congress leader informed that the Election Committee will finalise the names of the candidates in one or two constituencies within the next 24 to 48 hours. On Monday, Gandhi appointed senior Congress leader Oscar Fernandes as chairman of the AICC's screening committee to finalise candidates for Meghalaya. Fernandes will be assisted by his fellow party leaders Tamra Dhwaj Sahu and Meenakshi Natarajan. On the other hand, senior Congress party leader Vincent H. Pala said that as many as 90 people have applied for party tickets to contest the assembly elections, including Chief Minister Mukul Sangma who had applied from Ampati and Songsak assembly constituencies. Sangma had won five consecutive times from Ampati in South West Garo Hills district, while Songsak assembly in East Garo Hills is presently represented by Nihim D. Shira of the National People's Party. However, Pala said that the screening committee will take a final call on whether the Chief Minister will be contesting from two seats. --IANS rrk/ahm/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The CPI-M on Tuesday said it was contemplating an impeachment motion with other opposition parties against Chief Justice Dipak Misra after four senior-most judges complained about arbitrary allocation of cases in the Supreme Court. "In this situation, there is no other option but to correct this institution (the Supreme Court) in case there is anything wrong. This can be done by an impeachment motion against the Chief Justice," Communist Part of India-Marxist leader Sitaram Yechury told reporters. He said the matter was being discussed with other opposition parties on the possibility of an impeachment motion against the Chief Justice in the upcoming budget session that begins January 29. "We are moving ahead. I think by the time Parliament opens on January 29, the matter will be very clear. We will be moving towards impeachment motion. It is time for the legislature to play its role along with the executive." The four judges on January 12 alleged that the administration of the Supreme Court was not in order and accused Justice Misra of assigning cases in an arbitrary manner. --IANS sar-vsc/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actress Esha Gupta, who has worked in Bollywood films like "Jannat 2", "Rustom" and "Commando 2", is now working on an Iranian project. "Right now I am working on an Iranian film," Esha told IANS here. The actress walked for brand Meena Bazaar and Vastya Couture's 'Destination Love' line at Delhi Times Fashion Week on Sunday. The brand showcased a bright collection that was the perfect amalgamation of traditional aesthetics and contemporary trends. Perfect for the grand Indian destination wedding, the collection seamlessly transitioned from the quintessential wedding wear to revitalized contemporary haute outfits. Talking about her evolution as a fashion queen, Esha said: "My style still remains, but fashion is something that changes with every season. I've got a great team who understands my style and make me look like I do." --IANS nv/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Britain's competition regulator provisionally rejected on Tuesday the proposed $15.5 billion acquisition by 21st Century Fox of the British satellite broadcaster Sky on the grounds that it was "not in the public interest". The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) had been assessing whether the deal, announced in December 2016, would negatively affect plurality in Britain and whether it would affect broadcasting standards in the country, the Guardian reported. The move raises the biggest hurdle yet in Rupert Murdoch's efforts to consolidate ownership of the broadcaster by buying out the 61 per cent of Sky shares that he doesn't already possess. While it is preliminary and not binding on the government, which must approve the deal, it could also scramble the calculations in Disney's separate $52 billion deal to buy many of Fox's assets including Sky, Efe news reported. According to reports, the determination shouldn't affect the terms of the Disney-Fox deal. But Sky was one of the jewels in the portfolio of assets that Disney is buying from Fox. If the government blocks the Fox-Sky deal, Disney would then have to initiate a new bid for the rest of Sky to take 100 per cent control, assuming the Disney-Fox transaction is approved separately. The regulator said any eventual Disney move to consolidate ownership could face less scrutiny and be easier to pull off. If Disney succeeded in its bid for the Fox assets, it would "significantly weaken" the link between the Murdoch family and Sky. It said the Disney deal to buy the Fox assets would be subject to its own regulatory review. The regulator also listed possible remedies, such as spinning off Sky News, Sky's news channel. Sky had said it might shutter the business anyway. The likelihood of Fox agreeing to any significant remedies is low, however, given the pending Disney deal. The UK's CMA said that Murdoch already holds significant influence in the British landscape through News Corp, which publishes widely-read newspapers, including The Times, The Sunday Times and The Sun. Murdoch and his family are major shareholders in News Corp, which publishes The Wall Street Journal. They are also major shareholders of Fox. The regulators said acquiring 100 per cent of Sky would give the Murdoch family "greater influence over public opinion and the political agenda through Sky News, and would add to the already-significant influence over public opinion and the political agenda through its control of the News Corp titles". In a statement, Fox said that it was "disappointed by the CMA's provisional findings. We will continue to engage with the CMA ahead of the publication of the final report in May". Fox also said it was pleased it passed the regulator's other test, of whether Fox was committed to British broadcasting standards. Tuesday's report was preliminary. The authority is set to publish a final report in May. Fox said that it expects the deal to be closed by June. --IANS soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) With mobility on the rise amid enterprises aspiring to create modern, connected workplaces, Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE)-owned wireless networking major Aruba is looking for double-digit growth in India, top company executives have reiterated. Aruba saw its business growing rapidly last year -- with over 67 per cent growth -- and India has become one of its fastest-growing markets. The company, acquired by HPE in 2015 for $3 billion, is today the leading provider of next-generation network access solutions for the mobile enterprise. "Mobility is one factor that is on the rise in India, with more and more devices being connected. Aruba is targeting double-digit growth in the country in 2018. We are seeing more and more customers using our wireless networks that come with valuable insights for businesses to drive growth," Steve Wood, Vice President, Asia Pacific, Aruba, told IANS. When it comes to R&D, core research is under way at Aruba's Bengaluru facility. "We are living in an era where sensors are everywhere -- be it home appliances, IoT devices or consumer devices -- and we need to help those units connect to the edge of the network. At Aruba, we are focused towards achieving that 'intelligent edge' for sectors like education, health care, hospitality, retail and manufacturing," Wood emphasised. Aruba has just bagged a big contract with an Indian bank with 5,000 branches to provide it with secure wireless networking solutions. "It is still in the implementation stage so I can't reveal the name of the bank now. Last year, the government business was 48 per cent of our revenue stream in the country," Santanu Ghose, Country Manager, HPE Aruba, told IANS. "Small and Medium Business (SMB) is the fasted-growing market segment for us. We have been receiving almost 30 new customers every quarter. We had nearly 130 new customers in 2017," Ghose added. Aruba's distributors and their partners -- as well as its own partners -- are helping the company reach more enterprises with its wireless offerings. It is also leveraging HPE partner framework to reach more businesses. "Wireless network adoption is happening very fast in the country. Rural Internet penetration, which is 17 per cent at the moment, needs to go up to 50 per cent with Wi-Fi and end-point connectivity. We have the strength to help the stakeholders achieve that," Ghose added. Within SMBs, Aruba is looking at micro-verticals like health care, mobile campuses and co-working offices. "Wireless is becoming an infrastructure. Co-working offices and mobile campuses are triggering innovations beyond the concrete walls. New design campuses are coming up. Going wireless today is the key," Ghose told IANS, adding that small-scale manufacturing firms are also coming back into life. When it comes to connecting governments and enterprises to the edge of the network, a secure, robust and agile wireless network is the need of the hour. To address this, the company recently launched "Aruba 360 Secure Fabric" -- a security framework that provides 360 degrees of analytics-driven attack detection and response to help organisations reduce risk in the changing threat landscape. "To prevent attacks, we have integrated User and Entity Behavioural Analytics (UEBA) into our central security piece called 'Clearpass'. This is now called 'Aruba IntroSpect' that will introspect behavioural anomalies -- be it a person or a device -- to gauge possible threats and mitigate those," Ghose informed. Aruba is also innovating in UEBA by expanding the "Aruba IntroSpect" product family, enabling businesses to easily and rapidly scale machine-learned behaviour detection from small projects to full enterprise deployments. The "Aruba 360 Secure Fabric" offers security and IT teams an integrated way to quickly detect and respond to advanced cyber attacks -- from pre-authorisation to post-authorisation across multi-vendor infrastructures, supporting enterprises of all sizes. "At the centre of our security are Machine Learning (ML) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) which are integrated into our security network for a seamless, wireless connectivity," Ghose said. According to Ghose, they haven't seen any known impact so far after the news of two security flaws in Intel and other chips shocked the tech world recently. "We have not seen any known impact as of now. We also use chips other than Intel but there has been no impact on our operations," Ghose noted. (Nishant Arora can be contacted at nishant.a@ians.in) --IANS na/sac (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An earthquake measuring 8.2 on the Richter scale jolted the southern Alaskan coast in the US on Tuesday, prompting a tsunami warning along the coastline. The quake hit 300 km southeast of Kodiak at a depth of 10 km at 12.21 a.m., the US Geological Survey said. The US National Tsunami Warning Centre issued a tsunami alert for areas that included the coast of Alaska to British Columbia and the border with Washington State, and a tsunami watch all the way down to the border of Mexico and the coast of Hawaii, the New York Times reported. Anchorage, Alaska's largest city, issued an extreme warning, saying there was "extraordinary threat to life or property". The alert told people to seek refuge on higher grounds in affected areas. Authorities said that based on the preliminary earthquake parameters, "widespread hazardous tsunami waves were possible". --IANS soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A contract for Mi-17V-5 helicopters, which was supposed to be signed last year, is now expected to be finalised soon, a top Russian official has said. "Negotiations with the Indian side on the delivery of 48 Mi-17V-5 helicopters have been completed; we expect to sign the corresponding contract in the first quarter of 2018," CEO of Russia's Rostec State Corporation, Sergey Chemezov, told IANS in an interview. He also said that there is "serious modernisation potential" in the Mi-17 and Mi-8 choppers which was proven by the development of the Mi-171A2 helicopter. The Mi-171A2 is an advanced medium multirole helicopter, based on the Mi-8/17 series with more powerful propulsion systems, upgraded main rotor, gear systems and fuselage and advanced avionics. Chemezov said the chopper has seen more than 80 new improvements in the platform. India at present has around 151 Mi-17V-5 helicopters, the last of which were delivered in January 2016. The Mi-17V-5 is based on the Mi 8 helicopter airframe and is one of the most advanced aircraft of the Mi-8/17 helicopter family. The helicopters are equipped with night vision technology, on-board weather radar, a new PKV-8 autopilot system, and a KNEI-8 avionics suite. The sturdy choppers have been the Indian Air Force's mainstay in a number of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations. The chopper was also used during the Mumbai terror attack of November 2008, where it aided in the commando assault to take back Chabad House. It is also said to have been used in the surgical strike carried out on Pakistani terror launch pads across the Line of Control in September 2016. It has TV3-117BM turboshaft engines, rated at 1900 hp each, giving the chopper greater service and hovering ceiling, and have proved efficient in the tough mountain terrain of the Himalayas. Asked about a recent tender for 111 Naval Utility Helicopters that India came out with, Chemezov said Russia will be participating in the tender with its Kamov Ka-226T helicopter. Chemezov said Ka-226T met all specifications of the tender, and a solution for Naval use of the helicopter had also been found. "Our helicopter meets all the requirements presented in the tender documentation, and its technical characteristics exceed our competitors. We already have a solution for the naval version of this helicopter with folding blades," he said. "If the Ministry of Defence of India selects the Ka-226T, India can save money significantly. Thanks to the project for joint production of helicopters, there are opportunities for joint maintenance, training of pilots and mechanics and other related costs," he said. He added that there will also be a scope to export the helicopters once India's requirements are met. In anticipation of the contract, the two countries have formed a joint venture for 200 Ka-226T helicopters, 40-60 of which are likely to be imported off-the-shelf from Russia, with the rest being assembled in India. At the Russian-Indian summit in Moscow in December 2015, an intergovernmental agreement was signed for implementation of the project for production of Ka-226T helicopters in India. In October 2016, at the Russian-Indian summit in Goa, the parties signed a Partner Agreement and ratified the Memorandum and Articles of Association of the new Joint Venture, which was announced at the BRICS summit. The Russian side has 49.5 per cent share, while India has 50.5 per cent stake in the Joint Venture which got Russian President Vladimir Putin's nod in April and was registered in India in May this year. (Anjali Ojha can be contacted at anjali.o@ians.in) --IANS ao/hs (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Asserting that India has progressed manifold since his last visit to the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Switzerland in 1997, former Prime Minister H.D. Deve Gowda on Tuesday said the country was perceived as "most corrupt" by other countries at the Forum during his period. "When I visited the WEF in Davos as the Prime Minister, the atmosphere that prevailed there among other countries was that India was the most corrupt nation," Gowda, who was the 11th Prime Minister of the country from 1996-97, told IANS here. The Forum, back then, was not so "conducive" to investments in India as it currently is, he said. "The country was facing a very tough time and was almost in debt-traps. Ever since then the country has progressed on many fronts -- in terms of investments and economic conditions," the 84-year-old national President of the Janata Dal (Secular) reiterated. After Gowda, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday attended the Forum at Davos and addressed the plenary session. But, with the economic situation of the country being "very different" today from that of two decades ago, one could not "compare" the two, the former Prime Minister insisted. "When I had visited the WEF, I had taken the responsibility to personally assure investors that the corruption in the country would not impact their investments," Gowda recalled, speaking to IANS. Gowda had attended the WEF earlier in 1995 as well, during his time as the Chief Minister of Karnataka. "During that time, this Forum was a place where the developed, developing and under-developed countries came together to mingle and communicate with an aim of investments," the Bengaluru-based political leader stated. Gowda was sworn in as the Prime Minister in June 1996 to head a government formed by the coalition of 13 political parties like All India Indira Congress, Janata Dal and Samajwadi Party, among others, together named the United Front. "The economic situation had not improved much in the country from the time I was a Chief Minister and had become the Prime Minister, as the government was formed through a coalition of parties," he said. It was "unfair" of any one political party to claim the credit for the country's development, he remarked. "There's no doubt that the country has progressed during the regime of (former Prime Minister Atal Bihari) Vajpayee and now during the time of Narendra Modi. One cannot say it's due to one single government." "It is Modi's way of criticising other political party leaders by saying that all the progress has been made by his party," he said. India currently has the advantage of being a "stable government", he admitted. Modi had emphasised at Davos on Tuesday that investing, manufacturing and production in India was "easier than before" as the government had decided to "finish the red tape" and made investments simpler through Foreign Direct Investment. "Last time when Deve Gowda ji had come to Davos in 1997, our GDP was little more than $400 billion. It has grown six-fold since then," Modi said. (Bhavana Akella can be contacted at bhavana.a@ians.in) --IANS bha/ahm/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Indian citizen has been arrested in Bangladesh for possessing contraband pills, police said. Lithon Marak, 33, of Meghalaya was arrested on a tip off in the northern district of Netrokona on Monday, said Police Sub-Inspector Marufuzzaman, bdnews24.com reported on Tuesday. Marak frequently sneaked into Bangladesh to sell the contraband yaba tablets, a police official said. A total of 182 tablets were found in his possession. --IANS soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tinu Verghis, the runway super model who bid goodbye to the fashion world to pursue art in 2013, is going to participate at South East Asias premiere art fair, Art Stage 2018 in Singapore. The event will take place from Thursday till Sunday at Marina Bay Sands Expo and Convention Centre. Working with artist and curator Rajinder Singh, Verghis will appear at an event titled "The Undiscovered Country", a performance art event created specifically for ArtStage Singapore 2018. The former model will kick off the event during the VIP Preview on Thursday. "Through the act of piercing or stitching myself with a needle and thread, the performance in collaboration with Rajinder Singh, will be a reflection on mortality," said Verghis. Born in Kerala, Verghis worked as a fashion model for 15 years before joining LASALLE College of the Arts for both her undergraduate and postgraduate studies. She left her modelling career to pursue art as a channel to address systemic injustice, social and gender inequalities. In her practice, she uses her body as a political and poetic symbol to challenge and expand preconceived ideas surrounding systems of oppression. By re-examining cultural standards she hopes to unpack misogynist ideas of how the body of a woman is over idealised, systematically abject or subjected to intense policing. She has won the President's Award at the International Biennale of Contemporary Art (Italy) in 2015 for her video art (Under My Skin) and The Winston Oh Travel Research Award (Singapore) in 2016. --IANS nv/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Jammu and Kashmir government on Tuesday said the state crime branch will probe the abduction and murder of an eight-year-old girl in Kathua district last week. This was conveyed to the state assembly by Abdul Rehman Veeri, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister. The body of Asifa, from the nomadic 'Bakerwal' (goatherd) tribe, was found on January 17 in the Hiranagar area of Kathua, a week after she had gone missing. After the opposition created an uproar in the state assembly, the state government ordered a magisterial probe and suspension of the station house officer (SHO) Hiranagar Police Station. --IANS sq/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Tuesday said the state was keen to work with Russia in areas of tourism development and water conservation. The state would seek cooperation in other sectors like investment, technology, road infrastructure and cultural ties with Russia, he said at a meeting here with a BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) delegation from Russia. The Chief Minister said providing adequate irrigation facilities was a top priority of the government through rainwater harvesting that would also help check soil erosion. An official statement quoting him said the state has vast scope of expanding tourism activities and all-out efforts would be made to tap this potential. Irrigation and Public Health Minister Mahender Singh stressed on the need for rainwater harvesting through check-dams to meet the water demand of farmers and horticulturists. He said the government wants that farmers should adopt horticulture along with agriculture to increase their income. BRICS International Alliance (Russia) President Larisa Zeneteslova told the Chief Minister that her government was keen to work with Himachal Pradesh in various sectors, especially developing tourism, road connectivity and ropeway sectors, besides cultural ties. Himachal Pradesh shares a close association with Russia via the International Roerich Memorial Trust, which manages Russian painter and philosopher Nicholas Roerich's estate. It houses over 8,126 artefacts. The Roerich estate is located in Naggar, 25 km from Kullu, where Roerich came in 1927 from St Petersburg. He made the village his home for more than 20 years. The estate comprises the premises of the Indian-Russian Memorial Complex, the Gallery of N.K. Roerich, Helena Roerich Arts College and exhibition halls in the buildings of the Urusvati Himalayan Research Institute. --IANS vg/him/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government has put in place policies and structures to make India a global hub of electronics manufacturing and LAVA's 'Design in India' initiative is a key milestone in that direction, Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said here on Tuesday. Domestic smartphone manufacturer LAVA launched its "Design in India" initiative, handing over the country its first mobile phone that is completely designed and manufactured in the country. "Our approach has led to setting up of 108 mobile manufacturing units in the country in the last three years. 'Design in India' is a key milestone in that direction," Prasad told reporters here. LAVA aims to launch the first 'Designed in India' smartphone by October, and the entire range of mobiles by 2021. Union Minister of State for Communications Manoj Sinha said that the government aims to create 100 million jobs by 2022. "Initiatives like 'Make in India' and 'Design in India' will play a vital role in creating jobs for a young and large country like ours," Sinha added. In 2016, LAVA set up its design centre in Noida. The design team received training in industrial, mechanical, hardware and software design for over a year in China. "'Design in India' is a critical step towards building the mobile components and parts ecosystem in the country. Over the last six years, LAVA has built its capability and expertise in mobile design which led to 'Design in India," said Hari Om Rai, Chairman and Managing Director, LAVA International. Priced at Rs 1,499, the "PRIME X" mobile phone has a battery stand-by time of 17 days. The phone also comes with a two-year replacement warranty. --IANS na/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A school in the Uttar Pradesh capital where a Class 1 student was critically wounded last week in a knife attack by a senior girl is set to lose its recognition, an Department official said on Tuesday. Officials said in the aftermath of the January 16 incident, an inspection was carried out at the Brightland School in Triveni Nagar which found "very many discrepancies" both in terms of standards and the security of students. The District Inspector of Schools (DIOS) of Lucknow Mukesh Kumar Singh has recommended to the Department that the recognition of the school be cancelled, the official told IANS. Prima facie, the official said, the management has been found guilty of trying to fudge the matter and hide it from the police. The DIOS said that various classes in the school were being run without permission and against norms, and the team set up by the government had found serious lapses in the security system. The school was allowed by the Uttar Pradesh Board to have classes till Class 12 but was running additional certificate courses, which is illegal, the official said. The management has claimed that it had installed 70 CCTV cameras in the premises, but there were only 64 and many cameras were found dysfunctional during the inspection, he said. There was no attendant near the toilet, where the incident took place in which Hrithik was slashed with a kitchen knife by the Class 7 girl student. District officials said the state government has directed them to conduct surprise inspections in various schools here to ensure that children are safe and that the managements were adhering to the norms. --IANS md/him/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a relief of sorts for Bollywood producer-director Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) on Tuesday said it would maintain a vigil outside cinemas where the controversial film 'Padmaavat' is slated for release. MNS General Secretary Shalini Thackeray said that if the Supreme Court and the Central Board of Film Certification have cleared the film, "it is wrong to protest against its release". Thackeray, also the Executive President of the Maharashtra Navnirman Chitrapat Karmachari Sena (MNCKS), reiterated that the party will ensure there are no obstacles to the film's release and screening in Mumbai and elsewhere in Maharashtra. "However, if anybody tried to prevent 'Padmaavat' release in Mumbai or Maharashtra, the MNS is capable of protecting the film director, artistes, and the crew," Thackeray asserted. Last fortnight, the party had announced that it had no objections to the film's release (set for January 25) and said filmmakers were entitled to freedom of creative expression. She said that despite the apex court's clear directives to release it in all states, in some states like Gujarat, there is no sign it will be exhibited as theatre and multiplex owners fear violence and losses as the Karni Sena is unnecessarily opposing the film. "The country's Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) hails from that state. If law and order cannot be maintained in that state, we can understand the kind of alarming situation that prevails there and in other Bharatiya Janata Party-ruled states like Rajasthan, Haryana, and Madhya Pradesh," Thackeray said. In a related development, the Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association of India (COEAI) President Nitin Datar said so far it's not clear in how many single-screen theatres or multiplexes the film is likely to be released. "We have already written to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to provide adequate security to cinemas screening the film. Also, we have advised all cinema owners to seek security from their local police, wherever they plan to exhibit the film," Datar told IANS. Cinema and multiplex owners in Mumbai have remained non-committal on the response to advance bookings and declined to comment on how many shows or number of days they are likely to exhibit 'Padmaavat'. --IANS qn/tsb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday held meetings with his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum. According to External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar, in his meeting with Trudeau, Modi discussed issues of mutual interest. "A strategic partnership underpinned by shared values of democracy and pluralism," Kumar tweeted. The meeting came ahead of Trudeau's weeklong visit to India next month. In another tweet, Kumar said that Modi and Queen Maxima "discussed steps to further strengthen our bilateral relationship". Earlier on Tuesday, Modi delivered the keynote speech at the plenary of the World Economic Forum, the first Indian Prime Minister to do so. --IANS ab/tsb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Myanmar authorities said on Tuesday that they are ready to initiate a gradual repatriation of Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh despite an announcement of delay by Dhaka due to incomplete preparations. Speaking at a press conference in Nay Pyi Taw, Minister of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Dr Win Myat Aye said Myanmar will receive the verified returnees at Taung Pyo Letwe and Nga Khu Ya reception centres. He said that the Hla Pho Kaung will be the transit camp for the returnees. Asked that why no displaced people were sent back yet from the Bangladesh side on the designated Tuesday, the minister replied that coordination will continue with the other side's working group on the repatriation process for further action, Xinhua reported. In accordance with the deal on the repatriation reached between the two countries on January 16, Myanmar and Bangladesh agreed to repatriate the refugees under a physical plan starting on Tuesday. The crisis erupted on August 25 following an attack by a Rohingya insurgent group that led to a violent response by the Myanmar Army in the state of Rakhine, where it is calculated that around 1 million Rohingyas lived. Members of the mostly Muslim minority community are not recognised by Myanmar's authorities, who consider them Bengali migrants, and refuse to grant them citizenship. The UN and various human rights organisations have said there is clear evidence of rights abuses in Myanmar with the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights calling the Army's operations "ethnic cleansing" and saying there were indications of "genocide". --IANS soni/sac (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The National Conference walked out of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly on Tuesday alleging harassment of people in the Kashmir Valley ahead of Republic Day celebrations. As soon as the day's proceedings started, party leader Ali Muhammad Sagar, a Srinagar MLA, said the valley had "turned into a prison and people are being harassed". "They are not allowed to come out of their homes," he alleged, referring to heavy security deployment days before January 26. The National Conference legislators then walked out of the House in protest. Congress MLAs also protested in the House over recent civilian killings on the LoC and international border, alleging that the government had failed to protect common people. They raised slogans against Pakistan before walking out. --IANS sq/sar/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) As more and more technology companies are being born and quickly assuming gigantic proportions within no time, regulating them is the need of the hour, top global company executives stressed here on Tuesday. "When CEOs abdicate responsibility, you have no choice but to bring in regulators. Trust has to be the most important value in companies. If it's not, something the company will find itself in trouble," Marc Benioff, Chairman and CEO of Salesforce, said during a panel discussion on the first day of the World Economic Forum (WEF) here. Martin Sorrell, founder and CEO at WPP -- the world's largest ad company -- said companies like Alibaba and Tencent have grown in no time to a gigantic scale. "The question now arises is that whether such firms need regulation on not," Sorrell told the gathering. Big companies like Google and Facebook are today hiring people to monitor their editorial content. "Are Google and Facebook media or tech companies? The Silicon Valley giants have yet to acknowledge that they're media owners," Sorrell added. Alphabet (that owns Google) CFO Ruth Porat said that platforms such as Google open up the world to people, creating opportunities for them. "Trust is all about about creating quality products and making real information accessible for people. Our platforms open the doors for developers. Trillion of searches are being done on Google. We have a duty for our users and publishers to create more opportunities for them," Porat said. "Why do we trust technology? It's because it continues to help us solve some of the world's most intractable issues such as tackling diseases," she added. Rachel Botsman, a leading writer and thinker, said that a great trust shift is happening today. "This is called a distributed form of trust, not the top-down hierarchical one. Regulations till date are designed for the top-down hierarchy. The world now needs regulations for new tech platforms," she added. --IANS na/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Nikitin Dheer says he is enjoying shooting "Ishqbaaaz" with his co-stars Surbhi Chandna and Nakuul Mehta. "Surbhi Chandna and Nakuul Mehta, with whom I had maximum scenes, have been a riot to work with. Surbhi ensured I was introduced to the crew and made me feel extremely welcome. Not once did I feel that I was new to the cast which has been shooting together for two years now," Nikitin said in a statement. Nikitin is seen playing the role of Veer Pratap Chauhan in the Star Plus show. -*- Vishal Vashishtha's special treat for 'Jai Kanhaiya Lal Ki' team Actor Vishal Vashishtha surprised the team of his show "Jai Kanhaiya Lal Ki" when he made lunch for all of them. "With my recently found passion of cooking, I thought of surprising everyone on the sets. I was merely experimenting with a lot of dishes, but what best I could make was biryani. So, I made biryani for my people," Vishal said in a statement. The actor, who essays a chef in the Star Bharat show, added: "Being inspired by Kanhaiya, I turned bawarchi on the set for a day. It turned out to be a successful recipe as everyone loved the food on the set." -*- Krystle D'Souza not a great cook in real life Actress Krystle D'Souza took a bribe of Rs 500 from her mother to enter the kitchen for the first time and try her hand at cooking. The actress, who is seen in the show "Belan Waali Bahu", couldn't make round 'chapatis'. "The only time I have entered the kitchen was the time when my mother bribed me of Rs 500 to make a chapati. I could make all kinds of maps -- be it India, Australia, Sri Lanka, but not a circle," Krystle said in a statement. "As I was not willing to give up, I cheated by taking a round utensil to get the shape right of the chapati. But, as they say a mother gets to know everything, she figured that I cheated," she added. The show is aired on Colors. --IANS sug/rb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Acclaimed filmmaker Christopher Nolan has scored his first-ever Oscar nomination for Best Director for his war drama "Dunkirk". Nolan picked up his first-ever Oscar nomination on Tuesday after three previous bids stalled with the Academy, reports variety.com. While the Directors Guild of America had nominated Nolan for "Memento" (2000), "The Dark Knight" (2008) and "Inception" (2010) prior to this year's recognition for his latest feat of virtuoso filmmaking, but he was never nominated. To win his first Oscar as the Best Director, Nolan will be fighting it out with Jordan Peele for "Get Out", Greta Gerwig for "Lady Bird", Paul Thomas Anderson for "Phantom Thread" and Guillermo del Toro for "The Shape of Water". In addition to the director recognition this year, Nolan was also nominated alongside wife and co-producer Emma Thomas in the Best Picture category for his gripping World War II drama. "Dunkirk" received eight Oscar nominations in total, the majority of them throughout the Academy's various craft categories. The 90th annual Oscars will be held here on March 4. It will air in India on Star Movies and Star Movies Select on March 5. --IANS sug/rb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Odisha on Tuesday celebrated the birth anniversaries of freedom fighters Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose and Veer Surendra Sai. The birth anniversary of Bose was observed in a big way at his birthplace in Odia Bazaar in Cuttack and several functions were organised in other places. The 209th birthday of Sai was marked in his village Khinda in Sambalpur district. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik visited the Netaji Museum in Cuttack and paid homage at the Janakinath Bhawan where Netaji was born on January 23, 1897. "My heartfelt tribute and salutations to the great freedom fighter, exemplary patriot and son of Odisha Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. "His undying love for the motherland and courage and sacrifice for country's freedom continues to guide us in nation-building," he tweeted. Patnaik also offered floral tribute to Sai's statue inside the Odisha Assembly premises and said his struggle against the British and the contribution in fighting for the rights of tribal people were immense. --IANS cd/him/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actress Parineeti Chopra, the first Indian woman ambassador of the "Friend of Australia" (FOA) advocacy panel by Tourism Australia, has shared her experience in the country in the form of a song. In view of the coinciding occasion of India's Republic Day and Australia Day celebrated on the same date January 26, Parineeti on Tuesday released a series of videos that narrate her holiday experiences in the Australian states of Queensland and Northern Territory. Adding a personal touch to the video showcasing Queensland, the "Golmaal Again" star has sung the background score with lyrics that summarise the vibe of the places she visited, read a statement. "I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Australia and the videos reflect every bit of fun I had there," Parineeti said. "From immersing in the aboriginal culture at Uluru to the fun and frolic in Queensland, I was fortunate to have an enriching experience of two completely different sides of the country. It is undoubtedly a must-visit holiday destination," she added. In the films, Parineeti can be seen cuddling a koala, learning to surf at the Gold Coast, getting a taste of Australia's freshest produce, enjoying a birds eye view of Surfers Paradise on the Skypoint climb, spotting whales, watching the sunset over the Red Centre in Uluru amongst others. Nishant Kashikar, Country Manager - India and Gulf, Tourism Australia, also added: "Showcasing Australia through Parineeti's journey helps reiterate Australia as a preferred holiday destination amongst high value travellers. India is currently the fastest growing inbound market for Australia and we look forward to a sustained increase in visitor arrivals." --IANS sug/rb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A powerful earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale struck the Gulf of Alaska in the US on Tuesday, prompting a tsunami warning along the coastline that urged people in the affected areas to head to higher ground. The earthquake had previously been measured at magnitude 8.2. It hit 300 km southeast of Kodiak at a depth of 10 km at 12.21 a.m., the US Geological Survey said. There were no immediate reports of damage. The US National Tsunami Warning Centre said a tsunami warning was in effect for southeast and south Alaska including the Alaska Peninsula and Aleutian Islands as well as British Columbia in Canada. A tsunami watch was issued for California, Oregon and Washington, CNN reported. It was cancelled for the islands of Hawaii and Guam. Residents in several places around the Gulf of Alaska were told to leave. They included Homer, Seward, Kodiak, Sitka and Unalaska, a source at Alaska Public Radio told the BBC. Anchorage, Alaska's largest city, issued an extreme warning, saying there was "extraordinary threat to life or property". Heather Rand, who was in Anchorage, told CNN that the earthquake felt like the longest she had ever experienced. "It was a very long, slow build up. Creepy, more than anything. Definitely the longest, and I was born here," Rand said. She reported no damage besides cracks in the drywall. According to Kodiak police, officials had reported water receding from the harbour. The alert told people to seek refuge on higher ground in the affected areas. Authorities said that based on the preliminary earthquake parameters, "widespread hazardous tsunami waves were possible". --IANS soni/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Protests were held in several towns and cities of Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday ahead of the January 25 release of the movie 'Padmaavat'. In Barabanki town, Muslims protested against the movie's release and burnt an effigy of filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali and its posters. The protesters warned that they will not allow the movie's release in the district. "We will not allow the film to distort history, even if it is about a Hindu queen," a protestor told the media. Supporters of Shri Rajput Karni Sena, a community organisation bitterly opposed to the movie, protested in Allahabad and tried to set on fire a city bus near the Mayo Hall. They vandalised public property before police chased them away. Protests were also held in Agra, Hathras and some parts of western Uttar Pradesh. Police said that the film would be allowed to be screened at theatres in view of the Supreme Court orders on the issue. Home Department officials could not be contacted for comments despite efforts. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, a state government official told IANS that so far there was no clear line given by the Yogi Adityanath government on the screening of the movie but they will respect the apex court directives and provide security to theatres where 'Padmaavat' is slated for screening. Cinema owners in the state capital have sought police security to ensure peaceful screening of the movie though they refused to come on record, saying they did not want more trouble than is already brewing. --IANS md/tsb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Attacking the CPI-M government in Tripura, BJP General Secretary Ram Madhav on Tuesday said the country is not aware of the true colours of state Chief Minister Manik Sarkar, who has for 25 years used violence and conflict to stay in power. Stating that the ideology followed by the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) had become obsolete in the 21st century, Madhav said the party was struggling to survive as the people in the state had started realising the truth. "Tripura is a state far from the Centre, due to which people are not aware of problems there. In Tripura, for the last 25 years, the Marxist party has created such an image of Chief Minister Manik Sarkar that the people in Delhi are not aware of his true colours. They have used violence to survive in the state," said Madhav. He was speaking at the launch of the book "Manik Sarkar - Real and the Virtual, The Gory Face of Anarchy" here. According to Dinesh Kanji, author of the book, it exposes the ideological hollowness and anti-national activities of the communist parties in Tripura. "It also throws light on the crimes and misdeeds of the communists of Tripura in the last decades," he added. Stating that the current situation in Tripura is well depicted in the book, Madhav said in the last five-six decades, the people of the state had been rendered incompatible. Madhav also accused Tripura's Chief Minister of misutilising the money that was being provided by the Centre. The 60-member Tripura Assembly election is slated for February 18. --IANS rup/nir/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Popular actor and Jana Sena Party chief Pawan Kalyan on Tuesday called for respecting cultures and languages of all regions, saying this is a must to keep the nation united. On the second day of his maiden political march in Telangana, he addressed the party workers in Karimnagar town. He said if the sentiments of a region were not respected, it might result in public anger which in turn endangered national integration. Stating that Andhra Pradesh and Telangana were no different, the actor-politician said that in both the states his party would do responsible "Andhra and Telangana are not different. I am ready to give my blood for Telangana," he said. Reiterating that he will not criticise other parties just for the sake of criticism, he said the Jana Sena would study the people's problems and try to resolve them by bringing them to the notice of the respective governments. "If the problems remain unresolved, then we will come out on the streets but that will be the last resort," the actor said amid thunderous applause from his fans. Pawan said if Andhra Pradesh had given birth to him, Telangana had given him a new life. "That is the reason I am launching my political journey from here," he said. At Kondagattu in Jagtiyal district, Pawan on Monday launched the 'praja yatra' after worshiping at a local temple. It was in this town that he had a narrow escape when a high-tension wire fell on him during campaigning in the 2009 elections. He was then campaigning for Praja Rajyam, the party floated by his elder brother Chiranjeevi. Pawan said he always respected the culture and traditions of Telangana in his films. Defending his praise for Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, the actor said Rao played a key role in the formation of separate Telangana and was also trying to solve people's problems. He said he would differ with Rao when required. Pawan urged the youth to work to root out corruption. Earlier, a large number of fans gathered outside the hotel where the actor stayed for the night. Police and his private security personnel had a tough time in controlling the crowd. The Jana Sena chief will continue his 'yatra' in Telangana on Wednesday. He plans to launch the 'yatra' in Andhra Pradesh on January 27. He has announced his party will contest the 2019 elections in both the Telugu states. --IANS ms/tsb/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Sikh clergy on Tuesday banned former Chief Khalsa Diwan (CKD) chief Charanjit Singh Chadha, alleged to be involved in a sex scandal, from participating in religious, political and educational functions of the community for two years. The decision was announced by Akal Takht Jathedar Gurbachan Singh here. Chadha, who appeared at the Akal Takht, the supreme religio-temporal seat of Sikhism, inside the Golden Temple complex here on Tuesday, was forced to resign as CKD President after an alleged objectionable video of him in the company of a woman Principal went viral on the social media. The Principal worked in a school under the CKD aegis, which Chadha headed. The woman had complained to police that Chadha had forced himself on her, threatening to remove her from her job. She alleged that Chadha's son had threatened her to withdraw her complaint. Chadha was booked by police last month on charges of outraging the modesty of a woman and criminal intimidation under the Indian Penal Code and the Information Technology Act. Chadha's son Inderpreet Singh, after the scandal broke out, shot himself with his licensed weapon. The Chief Khalsa Diwan is a central organisation of various Singh 'sabhas' (religious bodies) spread all over Punjab with a mission to promote aspirations and redress grievances of the Sikh community, settle religious differences and channel Sikh public opinion, the CKD website says. --IANS js/tsb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It was, as he said, his "fan moment". Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who was feted with a Crystal Award at the World Economic Forum summit here along with Hollywood celebrities Cate Blanchett and Elton John, requested a selfie. Shah Rukh received the award on Monday for his "leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India" with the help of Meer Foundation. After receiving the award, SRK lauded Blanchett and John for winning a billion hearts. "I am genuinely and deeply grateful for this honour and it is indeed a privilege to be in the company of two phenomenal and extraordinary human beings and talent -- Cate Blanchette and Sir Elton John. "She is of course the lady who commands the wind and you sir command the song of a billion hearts, including mine," Shah Rukh said in his speech. The 52-year-old requested Blanchett and John for a selfie. "So, I am really really touched that I have been chosen between these two. Just a special request before you go... Can I do a selfie," he said. After that, he joked that it may leave his children embarrassed. Shah Rukh also spoke about his social initiative via Meer Foundation, an organisation that works extensively towards empowering women subjected to acid attack. "To disfigure a woman by throwing acid on her face is to me one of the crudest acts of subjugation imaginable. At the source of it lies the view that a woman does not have any right to assert her choice or say 'no' to advances by a man or a group of men." He said he was grateful to the brave women and children who he has worked with. Shah Rukh also thanked his sister Shehnaz Lalarukh Khan, wife Gauri and daughter Suhana. "I want to thank my sister, wife and my little daughter for bringing me up well and teaching me the value of requesting, sometimes imploring and sometimes even begging a yes from a women instead of forcing on her," he said before wrapping up his speech with a "Namaskar" and "Jai Hind". Before the award gala, the "Raees" star shared a photograph of himself with his signature open arm style. In another post made after reaching Davos was a photograph featuring him with a pristine white snow-clad landscape as the backdrop. --IANS dc/rb/in (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Poll-bound Karnataka's State Election Commission (SEC) on Tuesday objected to the abrupt transfer of Rohini Sindhuri Dasari, an IAS officer of the 2009 batch, by the state's Congress government. "State Chief Electoral Officer Sanjiv Kumar, in a letter to Chief Secretary K. Ratna Prabha, questioned the transfer of Dasari ahead of the state polls and why the SEC wasn't informed," an official from the Chief Minister's Office told IANS here. Six other Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers, including three women officials, were also transferred on Monday. The transfers were merely "administrative", stated the official. Dasari, 33, was the Deputy Commissioner of Hassan district, about 190 km to the west of Bengaluru. She was transferred on Monday as Managing Director of Karnataka State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (KSIIDC) in Bengaluru. H.D. Deve Gowda, the Lok Sabha lawmaker from Hassan, a strong belt of the dominant Vokkaliga community to which the ex-Prime Minister belongs, criticised the Congress government's move to transfer Dasari. "I've never seen a state government like this anywhere that transfers honest officers," Gowda told reporters. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state unit President B.S. Yeddyurappa said: "... the transfer of Dasari is unceremonious. Is there no place for honest and upright officers in this government?" Responding to the opposition criticism, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had defended the transfers saying it was a "routine administrative matter". "The state can make the transfers as the poll dates or the code of conduct has not been given out yet by the poll panel," he said. --IANS bha/tsb/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A pupil at a school in western Germany was killed in a stabbing attack by a classmate on Tuesday, authorities said. Both the victim, 14, and the suspect, 15, were students at the Kathe Kollwitz school in the town of Lunen, Efe news cited the police as saying. The attack took place in the morning and the suspect was arrested during a search of the school following the incident. --IANS soni/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Students of two departments of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) on Tuesday boycotted classes against the compulsory attendance order of the administration. Students from the School of International Studies and School of Languages did not turn up for their classes after the JNU Students Union gave a call for boycotting lectures. "Students boycotted their classes and attendance to give a firm message to teachers who are coercing students to give attendance and the JNU Vice-Chancellor, who is trying to impose an illegal policy measure which was never part of or was discussed in the Academic Council meeting," the union said in a statement. The union has called for boycott of classes in the other departments on Wednesday, which include School of Social Sciences, Arts and Aesthetics and those of the science department. "Students complied on their own with the strike. Barring one or two no one attended classes. The boycott was observed throughout," Yashaswani Sehrawat, an international studies scholar at the varsity, told IANS. The students' protest is over an administration order which mandated minimum 75 per cent attendance for all students to qualify for exams. Scholars are refusing to comply with the order calling it against the JNU culture and arguing that making them lecture-bound would hamper the otherwise free flow of knowledge. -- IANS vn/nks/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 36-year-old Tanzanian woman was found dead under mysterious circumstances at her rented flat here, police said on Tuesday. The body of Fatma Ally was found on Monday by neighbours when they realised a foul smell was coming from her flat in Mehrauli in south Delhi. "There is no visible injury on the body. The body has been shifted to AIIMS for autopsy," a police officer said. "Her family will be informed through the Tanzanian Embassy." It appears she died a couple of days earlier, the officer said. "The team is examining CCTV footage. Her mobile phone and laptop are being checked. She had been staying in the flat for some months." --IANS sp/him/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hollywood legend Tom Hanks said he would love to star in a James Bond movie, but he has never been approached for a role. Hanks told Time Out London magazine that would love to join the 007 family and would be up for playing a villain. "That would be a treat. No one has asked me to be in any of those. I might have to hold out to play the guy who says 'Before I kill you, Mr. Bond, perhaps you would like a tour of my installation?'" Hanks said. Hanks can currently be seen alongside Hollywood veteran Meryl Streep in Steven Spielberg's latest movie "The Post" and the journalism drama marks his fifth collaboration with the iconic filmmaker, reports femalefirst.co.uk. However, Hanks said he thought he signed on to star in a film about "defending the First Amendment" not about gender politics or harassment. "It's ('The Post') a suspense thriller where there's an awful lot at stake, and it's a piece of history that still comments on the present day. "I thought I'd signed on to make a movie about defending the First Amendment, but it turned out we also walked into gender politics, harassment, and a chief executive (the president) who is hell-bent on obfuscating facts." --IANS dc/rb (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Over 2,000 school students and tableaux depicting various issues, including current ones, were part of a mammoth colourful procession here in Tripura on Tuesday to mark the 122nd birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. The students from the 69-year-old Netaji Subhash Vidyaniketan and other educational institutions highlighted terror strikes across the world, the 150th birth anniversary of Sister Nivedita (disciple of Swami Vivekananda), the adverse effect of mobile phones and electronic devices, protection of the environment, climate change, peace and ethnic harmony, traffic rules awareness, and dying folk culture and puppetry. Role of media in society, prevention of child marriage, Netaji's role and incidents related to India's freedom struggle, Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao, role of youth in protection and developments in the country, India's cultural diversity and unity, harmony among Hindus and Muslims, noise pollution, the devastating effect of floods, awareness on differently abled children were among issues showcased by various troupes of students. The participants also portrayed the negative effect of fast food, traditional culture of tribal people, drug menace, crimes against women, earthquakes and happenings related to India's freedom movement. Hundreds and thousands of spectators gathered along the roadside to witness the procession, the only of its kind in the entire country, flagged off by state Education Department director Uttam Kumar Chakma. In view of the February 18 assembly polls in Tripura, some mandatory changes were done in Netaji's birth day celebrations. Like previous years, the Tripura government declared an official holiday on Tuesday on the occasion. Government departments and NGOs also took out tableaux illustrating various national and regional issues. "We have been organising the procession on the occasion of Netaji's birthday for the past 69 years to highlight the role, sacrifice and dedication of this great freedom fighter," school teacher and staff council secretary Monimoy Roy told IANS. He said: "Since 1980 the annual celebration turned a government sponsored event and pre-Republic day carnival." --IANS sc/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The ruling Left Front on Tuesday released its list of candidates for the 60-member Tripura Assembly polls, featuring both old and new faces, with seven of the nominees being women. The state election is slated for February 18. According to Left leaders, the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) prevailed over the Left Front allies in the selection of candidates. "Twelve new candidates and seven women nominees of the Left Front would contest the assembly elections on February 18," Tripura CPI-M state secretary Bijan Dhar told the media after releasing the list. He said in the 2013 assembly elections, the Left Front partners Communist Party of India contested (two), Forward Bloc (one) and Revolutionary Socialist Party (two) but in next month's polls they would contest only one seat each. CPI-M central committee member Dhar, who was elected the Left Front's convener on Tuesday after Khagen Das died in Kolkata due to cardiac arrest on Sunday, said in the last assembly elections, five women candidates were fielded by the CPI-M and all of them won. This time seven women candidates would be fielded by the party. According to the Election Commission (EC)'s announcement, the single-phase assembly polls will be held on February 18 in Tripura, and in Nagaland and Meghalaya on February 27. Counting of votes for all the three states, which have 60 assembly seats each, will be done on March 3. Accompanied by the CPI-M and other Left Front leaders, Dhar said that five sitting CPI-M legislators were dropped on health grounds and due to organisational reasons. Among the 60 Left Front candidates, 35-year-old Jhumu Sarkar (Barjala constituency) is the youngest and 79-year-old Nirajoy Tripura (Chawmanu) the oldest. Incumbent Health and PWD minister Badal Choudhury will be contesting the assembly elections for a record 10th time and has won seven times, while Education and Law Minister Tapan Chakraborty would contest the polls for the ninth time, out of which he won six times since 1978, when the first Left Front government headed by Nripen Chakraborty came to power in Tripura. In the prestigious Banamalipur seat, CPI-M's youth wing DYFI (Democratic Youth Federation of India) secretary Amal Chakraborty will be the new Left Front candidate, while the CPI-M's Rajya Sabha member and the party's women's front leader Jharna Das Baidya has been fielded from the Badharghat seat. The Chief Minister and CPI-M's lone politburo member from Tripura Manik Sarkar will contest from his old turf Dhanpur (in western Tripura), while all the 11 ministers have again been renominated for the upcoming polls. --IANS sc/nir/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US President Donald Trump has imposed steep tariffs on imported washing machines and solar panels, the first major step by his administration to protect manufacturers in the country. The announcement on Monday came after a year of tough rhetoric -- but little action -- on curbing imports of cheap products from countries like China and South Korea. Both countries will be most heavily affected by the move, the New York Times reported. Both China and South Korea harshly criticized the action, suggesting they could take their complaints to the World Trade Organization. The administration's decision came in response to petitions from American manufacturers who have complained for years that rising imports were eating into their sales. It was in line with Trump's "America First" trade policy, which aims to protect local manufacturers from foreign competition. The action was being seen as the President's most significant trade move since his decision to pull the US out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal (TPP) and renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta). The administration said the tariffs were largely directed at China, which over the past decade has built itself into the world's largest manufacturer of solar products, flooding global markets with low-cost crystalline silicon panels. Beijing on Tuesday hinted it could take a similar approach. "With regard to the wrong measures taken by the US, China will work with other WTO members to resolutely defend our legitimate interests," its Ministry of Commerce said. South Korea's Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong said the tariffs may constitute a "violation of WTO provisions". The imposition of tariffs will most likely exacerbate trade tensions with other nations also and could result in an escalation of retaliatory trade measures against imports from the US. Trump will impose tariffs of up to 50 per cent on imported washers for the next three years and of up to 30 per cent on solar cells and modules for the next four years, said the Office of the US Trade Representative. The decision was based on the findings by the US International Trade Commission that increased foreign imports of both products "are a substantial cause of serious injury to domestic manufacturers". South Korean conglomerate Samsung called the decision "a great loss for American consumers and workers. This tariff is a tax on every consumer who wants to buy a washing machine". US appliance maker Whirlpool said that the tariff move would benefit US manufacturing workers. The announcement came with Trump's scheduled travel to Davos, Switzerland, for the World Economic Forum. He is scheduled to speak on Friday before the annual gathering of corporate and government leaders. --IANS soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Turkey had given no guarantee to Russia or any other country that military operation will be limited to Syria's Afrin, Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag said on Monday. Nobody has the right to impose limits on Turkey's operation against the US-backed Kurdish militia the People's Protection Units (YPG), Xinhua quoted Bozdag as saying. Meanwhile, a Foreign Ministry official also rejected Russian media reports that the Turkish military operation along the Syrian border will be limited to Afrin. Turkey has made no such commitment to Russia, the official was quoted by state-run Anadolu Agency as saying. "Turkey's measures against the YPG cannot be limited to Afrin alone. There is also Manbij and east of the Euphrates River," Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in Vancouver, Canada last week. Turkey on Saturday launched the operation dubbed as " Operation Olive Branch" with intense air raids and shelling seeking to oust from the Afrin region of northern Syria YPG, which Ankara considers a terror group affiliated to the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). It is Turkey's second major incursion into Syria after the August 2016 Euphrates Shield Operation in an area to the east of Afrin against both the YPG and Islamic State (IS) terrorists. --IANS sku/ (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two more ethnic armed groups in Myanmar have agreed to sign the government's Nationwide Ceasefire Accord (NCA), a joint statement issued by the two parties said on Tuesday. The pact signed by the New Mon State Party and Lahu Democratic Union already has the support of eight ethnic armed groups. The accord was initiated on October 15, 2015, Xinhua news agency reported. During their meeting with State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi and Sen-Gen Min Aung Hlaing, Commander-in-Chief of Defence Services in Nay Pyi Taw, the matters relating to the signing of the NCA and continuing the peace process were discussed. Suu Kyi told the press that she welcomed the two ethnic armed groups for promising to join hands with the government in the peace process. Following the initiation of the NCA, the 21st Century Panglong Peace Conferences were held in August 2016 and May 2017 respectively. The second meeting of the peace conference was able to incorporate a total of 37 adopted principles into a union accord in the country's peace process for the first time in Myanmar's history. The third meeting of 21st Century Panglong Peace Conference is likely scheduled for next month for a further discussion of fundamental principles on federalism and the formulation of the new principles. --IANS nks-soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Beirut, Jan 23 (IANS/WAM) A UN official on Tuesday praised the efforts by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in empowering Emirati women. Abdul Salam Sayed Ahmad, Regional Representative of the UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner in the Middle East and North Africa, praised the UAE for granting women their rights to become a key and effective partner in building the society. Ahmad said the election of the UAE as a member of the UN Human Rights Council was a confirmation of the country's efforts in promoting the principles of humanity. His comments came during his meeting with Hamad Saeed Sultan Al Shamsi, the UAE Ambassador to Lebanon, where they discussed the extent of the UAE's commitment to international treaties and conventions. Ambassador Al Shamsi emphasised the country's interest in the human rights field to make a positive impact on the global level through constructive action to support the implementation of the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. He said that the UAE had taken an important step in this regard as its foreign policy pillars were based on the principles of justice, equality, respect for the rights of workers on its territory, as it attracts more than 200 nationalities. --IANS/WAM soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) US Defence Secretary James Mattis has said he is looking forward to cementing America's ties with Indonesia and Vietnam during his week-long trip to the two countries. "We're going to continue our efforts to maritime cooperation but also support Indonesia as a sort of fulcrum between the Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean," the transcripts provided by the US Defence Department of conversations between Mattis and the reporters accompanying him on a plane to Jakarta stated on Monday. Answering questions as to what he hoped to achieve in Vietnam, he said he would "just sit down and talk with" Vietnamese officials and seek "pragmatic steps" to move the two militaries' relationship to "one of trust and collaboration". It will be Mattis' first visit to both Indonesia and Vietnam as US Defence Secretary. "I'll be doing a lot of listening," he said, adding he had a "full agenda" with his counterparts in the two countries. Mattis will meet Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Defence Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu during his three-day stay before heading to Hanoi. Mattis did not reveal his Vietnam schedule. --IANS soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The US has urged Pakistan to immediately take action against the Taliban, after the militant group claimed last week's attack on a landmark hotel in Kabul that claimed 22 lives. The Taliban militants stormed the luxury Intercontinental Hotel on Saturday. The siege had continued overnight as Afghan security forces battled the terrorists. Addressing a press briefing on Monday, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said: "We call on Pakistan to immediately arrest or expel the Taliban's leaders. Islamabad should prevent the group from using Pakistani territory to support its operations." Sanders said "the attack against civilians would only serve to strengthen Washington's resolve in working with its Afghan partners. "Afghanistan forces, with our support, will continue to relentlessly pursue the enemies who also seek to export terror around the world." Islamabad had strongly condemned the attack and highlighted the need for cooperation among states in combating terrorism. --IANS soni/mr (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan on Tuesday told his fans that he was not forming a political party with an eye on the government treasury. Meeting his fans at his residence here he said their journey towards the people started 37 years back. "We are not journeying towards the cash chest but towards people's progress. Those who didn't ask the question what is in it for me for the last 37 years will not ask now," Haasan said. According to Haasan he had not asked the fans about his religion, caste of political party affiliation. But now he would ask his fans about his/her political party affiliation and many people are expected to join the movement, Haasan said. Haasan who has announced to begin his political journey on February 21 from late President A.P.J.Abdul Kalam's residence in Rameswaram warned his fan club members that their actions would be keenly watched by others. --IANS vj/ahm/bg (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bollywood actress Parineeti Chopra unveiled her holiday videos in Australia and celebrated India's Republic Day and Australia Day on Tuesday. During media interaction, the actress said that unfortunately India hasn't taken care of its beaches as much as Australia has. "I will tell the truth. The water is there, the beach is there, but the Gold Coast is beautiful. Unfortunately, we haven't taken care of our beaches as much as Australia has," she said to the host's comment of how the venue looked like the Gold Coast in Queensland. The videos feature a spectacular montage of iconic Aussie experience. In the films, Parineeti, can be seen cuddling a koala, learning to surf on the Gold Coast, getting a taste of Australia's freshest produce, enjoying a bird's eyeview of Surfers Paradise on the sky-point climb, spotting whales, watching the sunset over the Red Centre in Uluru and standing amid Brunce Munro's beautiful art installation, 'Field of Light'. One of the videos also features the actress sing for a background tune. While reminiscing her memories of working with the team and on the video, Parineeeti said the project had somehow became a passion for her. "As actors, we associate with many films, brands, and take up different jobs for different reasons. But Australia Tourism and the trips we do every year, the videos, somehow is just a passion project for me." "Australia was one of the countries I wanted to visit since I was a child. I wanted to live there, study there. When I became an actor I never thought I will get the chance to be the ambassador for tourism for Australia," said 'Meri Pyari Bindu' actor. Parineeti travelled to the country in 2017. She said she regretted not being able to enter the waters on the Gold Coast due to an injury then. Asked what she would like to do on her next trip in April 2018, she said: "Hands-down scuba diving. Last year, we could not do it because of my foot; I wanted to but couldn't do so many things. As actors, we shoot on sets all the time and now I want to shoot underwater and I am really excited for it." The actress is set to travel for another trip to Australia after she finishes a schedule for her next film 'Namaste London' in April. --IANS iv/tsb (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An 18-year-old girl sustained serious burn injuries on Tuesday when her lover set her on fire after a spat in Banda in Uttar Pradesh, police said. Police official Tara Chandra said the girl has been admitted to the district hospital. He said the parents of the girl are working as daily wagers in Mumbai and the victim was living with her sister in Banda. The sister of the victim has told police that the boy was in a relation with her sister and had got into an altercation just before the incident. Livid over a trivial issue, the youngster set the girl on fire, and later apparently remorseful at his action tried to save her and burnt his hands. He then fled the crime scene. Police said they were trying to arrest the culprit and were on a look out for him. Doctors said the girl is in critical condition with over 70 per cent burns. --IANS md/rn (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Twelve new faces and as many sitting ministers figured in the ruling Left Front's list of 60 candidates for the upcoming Tripura assembly elections. The north eastern state goes to polls on February 18 and the results will be out on March 3. Barring the 12 new faces, the Left Front's list did not spring any major surprise as most of the old guards were accommodated in the list. The list of candidates was released today. The RSP, CPI and Forward Bloc, three key constituents of the ruling alliance, were allotted one seat each, down from two in the previous election. The newly appointed convener of the Left Front, Bijan Dhar, maintained that the candidates who hold sway over the masses have been nominated. "Altogether, seven women are contesting the assembly election this time, two more than the last time," Dhar, who is also secretary of the state unit of CPI(M), said. "Not a single minister has been dropped from the list. They would contest the election from their current constituencies," he said. Chief Minister Manik Sarkar will contest the polls from his home turf - Dhanpur assembly constituency, Dhar said. The Communist Party of India (CPI) has re-nominated Jail Minister Manindra Reang from Santir Bazar (ST) seat in south Tripura, while the Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) has decided to field a new candidate Srikanta Datta from Radhakishorepur constituency. Prominent among the new faces are Forward Bloc's Biswanath Saha, mayor of Council of Agartala Municipal Corporation, and Amal Chakraborty (CPI-M), president of the state unit of Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI). "The Left Front would win the elections with a thumping majority, giving a befitting reply to the BJP-Indigenous People's Front of Tripura (IPFT) alliance in the election," Dhar asserted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Thirteen naxals, including two women, were arrested from insurgency-hit Narayanpur and Kondagaon districts of Chhattisgarh by joint teams of security forces, police said. Nine ultras, including two women, were held from Narayanpur district, while four janmilitia members from a forested area in Kondagaon district. "In Narayanpur, a joint team of the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) and the district force apprehended the Maoists from the forests of Becha and Kadenar villages under Chhotedongar police station limits during an anti-Maoist operation," Narayanpur SP Jitendra Shukla told PTI. The arrested cadres are identified as Sitaram Watti, Munna alias Ravishankar, Shankar, Fagu alias Jaisingh, Sonadhar, Sukman Korram, and Lchhuram Netam. The two women are identified as Jaldai Watti and Budhmati alias Phulbati, Shukla said, adding that an arrest warrant was pending against each of them. The ultras are mainly lower-rung cadres who are wanted for crimes like attempt to murder, attacking police party, loot etc. In Kondagaon, four Maoists were arrested from Rajadongri forests under Mardapal police station limits by a composite squad of the Special Task Force (STF) and ITBP while conducting a combing operation to ensure security to the road construction work in the area, a senior police official said. "The ultras, identified as Pohduram Korram (45), Sonu Netam (35), Sonsai Netam (45) and Kenvsi Kashyap (32), were apprehended from Rajadongri forests under Mardapal police station limits," Kondagaon Additional Superintendent of Police Maheshwar Nag told PTI. After spotting the security forces, the naxals started bursting crackers to escape from the spot, he said. However, the troopers nabbed them after a brief chase. The arrested naxals were active as janmilitia members and were allegedly involved in several incidents including loot, arson, attempt to murder etc. in the area, the officer said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Jammu and Kashmir government today said that curfew and restrictions were imposed for 168 times in nine districts of the valley during the last two years. Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti informed this in the state Assembly in a written reply to a question by National Conference MLA Ali Mohammad Sagar. She said that in Anantnag district, curfew and restrictions were imposed for 51 times, followed by 37 times in Baramulla district, 25 times each in Srinagar and Budgam districts, 17 times in Pulwama district, 14 times in Shopian district, nine times in Bandipora district, seven times in Kulgam district and three times in Ganderbal district. Besides, five times in Kishtwar district of the Jammu region. Mufti said that the restrictions were imposed as necessities by the situation and cordon and search operations were carried out on specific information. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Three alleged drug peddlers, including an 80-year-old, were today arrested from Srinagar and Baramulla districts of Jammu and Kashmir in separate cases, the police said. "A notorious drug peddler -- 80-year-old Abdul Khaliq Khan -- was today arrested from Tangmarg area of Baramulla district," a senior police official said. He said 322 grammes of cannabis was recovered from Khan's possession and a case has been registered against him. Khan was allegedly supplying the contraband to the youth in the vicinity of Kunzer in Tangmarg area, the official said. In another case, police arrested two notorious drug peddlers and recovered contraband from their possession, a police spokesman said. Aarif Ahmad Mir and Waseem Ahmad Dar were arrested from Lal Bazaar area of Srinagar following recovery of 28 bottles of codeine phosphate from their possession. Police have registered a case under relevant sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act, 1985 and investigation was taken up, the spokesman added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sixty-two dogs and cats have been rescued from hurricane-battered Puerto Rico and brought to the US mainland for relocation. After months of efforts, the Dallas-based Southwest Airlines completed a relief flight that brought 6,350 kgs of supplies to the Caribbean island. On a return flight to Baltimore, 62 stray animals left behind during Hurricane Maria were on board the aircraft. "Each animal was boarded in the cabin of the aircraft in a crate which was secured into seats with seatbelt extenders," the airline said. A veterinarian and volunteers from Lucky Dog were also on board to monitor the animals, WFAA TV station reported. Puerto Rico is a Caribbean island and unincorporated US territory. The humanitarian flight was organised after a call from Washington, D.C.-based Lucky Dog Animal Rescue regarding their Puerto Rican partner's need to relocate animals rescued before or after Hurricane Maria hit the island in late September. "The devastation that Hurricane Maria caused the communities of Puerto Rico is heartbreaking," the report quoted Linda Rutherford, Southwest Airlines Chief Communications Officer, as saying. Foster families in Puerto Rico had been taking care of the stray animals through the rescue organisation PR Animals. It is not the first time Southwest Airlines has helped in the wake of a major hurricane. Two weeks before Maria hit Puerto Rico, Southwest rescued pets affected by Hurricane Harvey, which made landfall on the Gulf Coast in late August, the report said. Hurricane Maria is considered the worst natural disaster on record in Puerto Rico. It is also the third-costliest tropical cyclone on record with a total of roughly USD 100 billion in damages. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Jammu and Kashmir government today said that 721 people, including 196 civilians and 363 militants, were killed in law and order, militancy-related and cross-border shelling incidents during the last two years in the state. In a written reply to a question of NC MLA Ali Mohammad Sagar, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti informed the state Assembly that 162 police and security personnel and 196 civilians were killed in such incidents. Mufti said that 172 civilians were killed in law and order and militancy-related incidents and 24 civilians were killed in border shelling. The chief minister said that 213 militants were killed last year and 150 in 2016. Besides, 176 suspected terrorists were arrested during the period, she said, adding that 79 suspected terrorists were arrested in 2016, as many as 97 were arrested in 2017. The chief minister said that 104 civilians were killed in law and order and militancy-related incidents in 2016 as compared to 68 in 2017. Thirteen people were killed in cross-border shelling in 2016 and 11 in 2017, she said. An amount of Rs 23 lakh was paid to the next of kin of 23 deceased, Rs 6.20 lakh in favour of 110 injured people and Rs 43.66 lakh on account of 165 structures damaged due to border shelling during the period, she said. The chief minister said that 474 cases of the next of kin of civilians killed in militancy-related incidents were pending for disposal for cash compensation or compassionate appointments and these were at various stages of consideration for want of requisite documents. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat was targeted by the AAP on his very first day in office today with the party terming as "false" his claim that the Delhi MLAs, disqualified on charge of holding office-of- profit, did not seek hearings on the issue. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Raghav Chadha said that contrary to CEC Rawat's assertion in a newspaper interview that the AAP did not request the EC to hold hearings though it was served notices on September 28 and November 2 last year, the party did "respond twice". Chadha said the AAP MLAs wrote to the EC on October 16 and November 20. "The CEC is lying. We wrote, yes, we want to place our side, both in written and oral. The EC didn't respond. How can you not give us a hearing? "Every judicial and quasi-judicial body has to function as per law but what happened with us is unprecedented, where the cardinal principles of natural justice were violated. Nobody can be condemned unheard," he told PTI. In his defence, Rawat said that the "notice was comprehensive. But the AAP did not respond in the context of the notice." "Since the matter is subjudice, let us not talk about it further," Rawat told PTI. However, Chadha said that the MLAs, in their response, made it clear that apart from an oral hearing, they would also like to cross examine the petitioners and advance arguments on the merits of the case. Chadha also dubbed as "illegal" Rawat's decision to involve himself in AAP-related cases after having recused himself in April 2017 when he was the election commissioner. The AAP was in "complete dark" about this, he said. "In our letters to the EC, we had also sought to know the quorum of the panel that would hear us as Nasim Zaidi (former CEC) had retired and OP Rawat had recused himself," he said. Rawat withdrawing from the matter was seen as "an admission of guilt" on his part pertaining to the allegations that he was close to the BJP, Chadha said. "His role is under a cloud of suspicion. And the fact that he felt the need to justify the official order of the EC through the media is also surprising and something that is unheard of," the Aam Aadmi Party leader said. The AAP's Rajya Sabha-elect Sanjay Singh alleged that the Commission's "unilateral action" was in violation of all norms and wondered if the President could not have shown the "minimum constitutional propriety" by meeting the MLAs before acting on the EC advice. "MLAs of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Bengal, Assam and Mizoram have not been disqualified despite their appointments being quashed by the high court. "The EC is showing no enthusiasm in the case relating to Chhattisgarh legislators as the BJP government may fall. Are its actions guided by the prime minister?" Singh asked at a press conference. Chadha also questioned the role of Election Commissioner Sunil Arora in the matter, claiming he was never involved in the case related to the AAP MLAs. "We never even saw him and now he is one of the signatories to the document recommending the disqualification of the MLAs," he said. 20 AAP MLAs were disqualified last week on charge of holding office of profit. President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent on January 20 to the recommendation in this regard by the Election Commission. These MLAs were appointed as parliamentary secretaries by the AAP dispensation in Delhi in 2015 to assist ministers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat came under fire on his very first day in office today with the AAP terming as "false" his claim that the Delhi MLAs, disqualified on charge of holding office-of-profit, did not seek hearings on the issue. AAP leader Raghav Chadha said that contrary to CEC Rawat's assertion in a newspaper interview that the AAP did not request the EC to hold hearings though it was served notices on September 28 and November 2 last year, the party did "respond twice". "The CEC is lying. We wrote, 'yes, we want to place our side', both in written and oral. The EC didn't respond. How can you not give us a hearing? "Every judicial and quasi-judicial body has to function as per law but what happened with us is unprecedented, where the cardinal principles of natural justice were condemned," he told PTI. In his defence, Rawat said that the "notice was comprehensive. But the AAP did not respond in the context of the notice." "Since the matter is subjudice, let us not talk about it further," Rawat told PTI. Chadha also dubbed as "illegal" Rawat's decision to involve himself in AAP-related cases after having recused himself in April 2017 when was the election commissioner. The AAP was in "complete dark" about this, he said. Rawat recusing himself was seen as "an admission of guilt" on his part pertaining to the allegations that he was close to the BJP, Chadha said. "His role is under a cloud of suspicion," he said. The AAP's Rajya Sabha-elect Sanjay Singh alleged that the Commission's "unilateral action" was in violation of all norms and wondered if the President could not have shown the "minimum constitutional propriety" by meeting the MLAs before acting on the EC advice. "MLAs of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Bengal, Assam and Mizoram have not been disqualified despite their appointments being quashed by the high court. "The EC is showing no enthusiasm in the case relating to Chhattisgarh legislators as the BJP government may fall. Are its actions guided by the prime minister?" Singh asked at a press conference. Chadha also questioned the role of Election Commissioner Sunil Arora in the matter, claiming he was never involved in the case related to the AAP MLAs. "We never even saw him and now he is one of the signatories to the document recommending the disqualification of the MLAs," he said. 20 AAP MLAs were disqualified last week on charge of holding office of profit. President Ram Nath Kovind gave his assent on January 20 to the recommendation in this regard by the Election Commission. These MLAs were appointed as parliamentary secretaries by the AAP dispensation in Delhi to assist ministers in 2015. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Directorate of (DoE) today told Delhi High Court that an advertisement for appointing over 9000 teachers for its schools has been issued and the selection process is under way. The DoE of the Delhi Government's also said that 2,778 eligible Trained Graduate Teachers (TGT) have been recommended for ad-hoc promotions to Post Graduate Teachers (PGT) in schools of the AAP government here and this process will be completed by March 31. The DoE, in its affidavit, said since it has complied with the high court's earlier directions, the contempt petition filed by an NGO be dismissed. NGO Social Jurist has alleged deliberate omission in compliance of the high court's December 2001 order directing the Delhi Subordinate Services Selection Board (DSSSB) to ensure zero vacancy of teachers in Delhi government schools on the commencement of each academic year. The matter is listed for hearing tomorrow before Justice V Kameswar Rao. The affidavit, filed by DoE's special director(education) Ranjana Deswal, said "in compliance of order of December 11, 2017 of this court, requisitions for 9,232 posts of direct recruitment were sent to the DSSSB which have been advertised by the DSSSB... on December 20, 2017. The selection process by DSSSB is now going on." The Delhi government had introduced the Board with the purpose of recruiting capable, competent and highly-skilled individuals by conducting written tests, professional tests and personal interviews. DoE said as per the direction of Lieutenant Governor, a meeting of departmental screening committee for promotion of TGTs to the 3,652 posts of PGTs, on ad-hoc basis, was held on December 21, 2017 and 2,778 eligible TGTs were recommended for ad-hoc promotions to PGTs. It said that a meeting of the departmental screening committee to promote the primary teachers to the post of TGT will be held shortly. The single judge, on December 11, 2017, had stayed the DSSSB notice withdrawing the process of appointment of over 8,914 teachers for the government schools here. It had asked authorities to issue a fresh advertisement calling for applications from eligible candidates by December end. The court's order had came on application of the NGO, represented through advocate Ashok Agarwal, seeking a stay on the DSSSB order withdrawing a notice on appointment of the teachers in government-run schools and alleging that the Board's August 24, 2017 notice was "illegal and contemptuous in nature". The plea had said that after a high court order of April 11 last year, the DSSSB issued a vacancy notice on August 7 inviting applications from candidates for 8,914 teaching posts in the Directorate of of the Delhi government and for 5,906 teaching posts in the three municipal corporation schools here. It alleged that the DSSSB, without informing or seeking permission from the court, had on August 24, 2017 "abruptly withdrawn the advertisement" regarding the vacancies in the Delhi government-run schools. Agreeing with the NGO's contention, the court had put on hold the operation of the August 24 notice of DSSSB and had directed it to proceed with advertising afresh for recruiting teachers to the Delhi government schools. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to travel to the United Arab Emirates, Oman and Palestine in the second week of February, days after hosting ten leaders of the ASEAN countries. During his trip, the prime minister, who is currently in Davos to participate in World Economic Forum, is expected to discuss cooperation in strategic areas of security and trade, sources said. Significantly, Modi's visit to Palestine, likely to be on February 10 comes less than a month after Israeli prime minister Benjami Netanyahu's India trip. The two leaders had discussed the Palestine issue. After the Modi-Netanyahu talks, Vijay Gokhale, secretary (economic relations) in the External Affairs Ministry, had said, "What the two sides agreed, that the our relationship was much larger than any single issue...that we need to look at it holistically and while we continue to talk to each other, our relationship is not determined by a single issue." He was asked whether the long-pending issue of Palestine figured in the talks between the two prime ministers. Modi is also expected to attend the World Government Summit in Dubai from February 11 to 13, according to reports. In Oman, the two sides are expected to focus on boosting trade ties. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU) here has drawn up plans to launch an 'agri-incubation centre' to promote start-ups in the agri sector. The university would also arrange capital for the start-ups incubated in the centre, Vice-Chancellor V Praveen Rao said. "You have start-ups in every field. But not in agriculture....What we are trying to do is, make the students think innovative," he told PTI. Students can launch start-ups in different areas, including organic farming and agri clinics. Citing some examples, Rao said such start-ups can make products such as turmeric powder (using newer, faster processes), millet breads and noodles. The incubation centre may come into existence next year, Rao added. The university would first like to inculcate a spirit of entrepreneurship among students so that they become "job providers instead of job seekers", he said. The training in entrepreneurship is meant for final year students of B.Sc (Agriculture) and also the students of post-graduate courses, he said. The university would like to set the process of entrepreneurship training in motion by enhancing the capacity of students, Rao said. A series of workshops for students and teachers would be conducted for promoting entrepreneurship, he said. "We changed the curriculum in the B.Sc (Agriculture). Earlier, students used to go to farmers (for four months), stay there and the practical component is (then) over. Now, we have course work for three years. Entire final year, they have to be out," he said. After staying with farmers for four months, the students are also made to acquire practical knowledge through 'Experiential learning units". For example, they will learn about producing vermi-compost. Students are also sent for corporate training for about 12 weeks. After training them in entrepreneurship, the university would put in some money as venture capital and also get venture capitalists onto the platform, Rao said. The university would also rope in consultants "who will help the students to prepare business plans," he said. A Rs 35-crore proposal has also been submitted to the government to offer vocational training to farmers as well as students, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh has written to the Defence Ministry to set up a light combat vehicles (LCVs) manufacturing unit in the state, with the assurance that his government would extend all support, including land allocation, for such a project. In a letter to Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Singh said the LCVs unit will not only go a long way in promoting the establishment of ancillary units but also help in providing jobs to the unemployed youth in the state. Further, the proposed project would help make LCVs readily available to the forces on the border, he said. The chief minister drew Sitharaman's attention to the 'Industrial and Business Development Policy 2017', recently launched by the Punjab government, with many incentives for the industry. The policy, he said, was a holistic framework for the sustainable industrial growth of the state and was a part of the vision to put the state back on high trajectory of growth and prosperity. Singh further pointed out that in view of the potential for its growth and employment generation, the Aerospace and Defence sector was given special emphasis in the policy by treating it as one of the thrust sectors. Noting that Punjab had no major unit manufacturing items for defence or of the Defence Ministry, the Centre, the chief minister urged the defence minister to consider his request for setting up a LCVs manufacturing unit in Punjab at the earliest possible. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The American Center and the Library in the city reopened for the public today after declaring its closure until further notice a day before. "The US Congress has passed and President (Donald) Trump has signed legislation to fund US government operations. As a result, The American Center in Kolkata and the Library are now open to the public as usual," the Center said in a statement today. The U.S Consulate General in Kolkata, including Consular and American Citizen Services, are also open in the normal business hours, the statement added. Yesterday the American Center and the Library had said in a statement, "The American Center in Kolkata and the Library will remain closed to the public until further notice. Consulate Kolkata services will continue to function during the lapse in Congressional appropriations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Fifteen Congress councillors today boycotted the election of their party colleague Karamjit Singh Rintu as the Amritsar mayor, prompting Punjab unit chief Sunil Jakhar to seek a report. Jakhar has asked Punjab minister Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa, who was the party observer for the mayoral election, and the Amritsar district Congress chief to submit a report within a day or two. Jakhar said the "unpleasant" situation should have been avoided. "I have asked Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa and the Amritsar Congress chief to send a report on why this has happened and what were the reasons behind it," he told reporters here today. In an embarrassment for the Congress, the 15 municipal councillors, known to be supporters of Punjab cabinet minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, boycotted the official programme of the election of the mayor. They said they stayed away from the programme because Sidhu was not invited to programme. Talking to media in Amritsar, one of the councillors, who won civic polls from the wards falling under the Amritsar (East) Assembly constituency being represented by Sidhu, further said, "The cabinet minister was deliberately ignored." "It should have been avoided. We have got a Mayor after several years," stressed Jakhar. Asked whether he spoke to or met Sidhu who was miffed at not being invited for today's function, Jakhar said Bajwa had gone to meet Sidhu in Amritsar. Punjab Local Bodies minister Navjot Singh Sidhu, who is an MLA from Amritsar (East), was conspicuous by his absence. Yesterday, apparently miffed over not being invited for the Amritsar mayoral election, Sidhu had said he never goes anywhere uninvited "except the Golden Temple or Durgiana Temple". Karamjit Singh Rintu was today unanimously elected as Amritsar's Mayor after a meeting of municipal Councillors in the presence of Cabinet minister Tripat Rajinder Singh Bajwa here. Besides Rintu, Raman Bakshi was elected as senior deputy mayor and Younis Kumar as deputy mayor for the holy city. In the 85-member civic body, the Congress has 64 councillors, the SAD-BJP 15 and six are Independents. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress's Andhra Pradesh unit President N Raghuveera Reddy today accused the ruling parties of AP and Telangana of succumbing to pressure from the Centre instead of realizing entitlements the states deserved. Reddy was talking to reporters after over an hour-long meeting with AICC President Rahul Gandhi here. "The two chief ministers are not talking about completing the Polavaram project within the stipulated time nor are they sure about special category status/packages because of the pressure," Reddy said. "Chandrababu Naidu or Chandrashekar Rao are only sure about getting the number of seats increased in the assemblies. Looks like a deal has been clinched with the BJP," he said. CMs of AP and Telangana, Naidu and Rao, have been pressing for the delimitation of constituencies to increase the number of assembly seats. Reddy said the Congress was not against the move, but it was unable to understand the priorities of the two leaders. "If bills on increasing the number of seats alone are introduced in Parliament, the Congress and allies will insist on inclusion of special status and other promises made to them during bifurcation of the state," he said, quoting Gandhi. There would be agitations in Delhi if a bill seeking only an increase in the number of seats is introduced in Parliament, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) There was an "ulterior motive" behind the Andhra Pradesh government's move of cancelling tenders for an international airport at Bhogapuram, opposition parties have alleged, even as fresh details have emerged on the offer made by the AAI, which had won the bid. A top official said that not just a 30.2 per cent share in revenues, but the Airports Authority of India (AAI) had also offered 26 per cent equity partnership to the AP government for granting the airport development rights. Besides, the AAI also said it would pay a lease amount of Rs 20,000 per acre per annum that would have come to Rs 5,40,60,000 for the 2,703 acres. In contrast, GMR Group had offered only 21.6 per cent as revenue share and nothing more, the official claimed. Andhra Pradesh Airports Development Corporation Limited (APADCL) Managing Director M Venkateswarlu confirmed to PTI the offer made by the AAI. Despite that, on January 20, the Chandrababu Naidu Cabinet decided to scrap the tenders and take up the airport development under the public-private partnership mode, allegedly to hand it over to a private player. The Board of Directors of APADCL, formerly known as Bhogapuram International Airport Development Corporation, met on December 20 last year and approved the offer made by the AAI saying it was "the most beneficial" for the state. It also felt that the proposed aero city and aviation academy "may not be feasible" at this point of time, an official of the APADCL Board said. The Board sent its observations to the Empowered Committee of Secretaries, headed by Energy, Infrastructure and Investment Department Principal Secretary Ajay Jain. Jain, incidentally, is also a member of the APADCL Board. The Empowered Committee met here on December 29 and backed the recommendations of the APADCL Board. The recommendations were also communicated to the Finance Department. However, the Empowered Committee left the final decision on awarding the contract to the cabinet, in line with what chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu wanted during the previous cabinet meeting on December 1. Accordingly, the fresh note -- mentioning these points -- was placed before the cabinet on January 20 and it decided to scrap the entire tenders, leaving the winner AAI dismayed. Lashing out at the AP government, YSR Congress spokesman Ambati Rambabu said, "The Chandrababu Naidu government cancelled the tenders as it has to deal with a central government agency. Its ulterior motive is to award the contract to a private player so that kickbacks could be sought." "Chandrababu's only aim is to get maximum commercial leverage so that the ill-gotten wealth could be spent in the ensuing elections," he alleged. CPM state secretariat member Ch Narasinga Rao also criticised the state's decision saying the tenders were cancelled only because GMR could not win the race. "The government wanted to favour GMR Group to get commissions. It is not at all interested in the development of the state," Narasinga Rao alleged. With the chief minister and other key ministers away in Davos for the World Economic Forum meet, there hasn't been a reaction yet to the opposition criticism over the Bhogapuram airport controversy. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union minister Ramdas Athawale today disagreed with Dalit leader Prakash Ambedkar who had claimed that the PMO is shielding the Koregaon Bhima violence accused and Hindutva leader Sambhaji Bhide. "Merely having photos with the prime minister or Maharashtra chief minister doesn't mean that they (Bhide and another Hindutva leader Milind Ekbote) are protected. I disagree," Athawale told reporters when asked to comment on Ambedkar's claim. He said the NDA government would never shield any accused persons and would take a stern action against such elements. Ambedkar, president of the Bharip Bahujan Mahasangh, had said in Delhi that Bhide was being shielded by the PMO. "Now we hear from the corridors of power that the PMO has ordered the state government not to arrest Bhide," the former MP had alleged. Addressing a press conference here, Athawale said he was hopeful that Ekbote and Bhide would be arrested soon. One man was killed when clashes broke out between Marathas and Dalits on January 1, 2018 during an event to mark the bicentennial anniverary of the Koregaon Bhima battle. Ekbote, Bhide, and others were booked under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act, Arms Act, and for attempt to murder and rioting of the IPC. Athawale demanded a stringent action against "perpetrators" responsible for the caste violence. "The Maharashtra government has already initiated an inquiry. Real perpetrators should be brought to book. I will meet Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in this regard soon," said the MoS for Social Justice. He said several complaints, facts and reports indicate the alleged involvement of Bhide and Ekbote in the violence. "I have spoken to the police and was briefed that there is a collecting evidence to make a strong case against both the leaders," Athawale said. The minister said the social fabric of the state will get disturbed if Marathas and Dalits keep fighting with each other. "The disturbed social fabric will hamper the economic development of the state," he said. Athawale, who heads RPI (A), said Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani should not hobnob with the people with naxal links. "B R Ambedkar's ideology cannot go hand in hand with the Naxal ideology," the RPI(A) president said. Alleging that the Koregaon Bhima violence was "premeditated", Athawale said the police had failed to gather intelligence about the brewing trouble. However, the minister praised the police for their handling the situation in the aftermath of the clashes. "The situation had arisen in neighbouring Vadhu village but it was defused subsequently with the intervention of the police," he said while referring to the incident ahead of the caste clashes. Athawale said that some youths who were angry over the case lodged under the Prevention of Atrocities Act called for a bandh on January 1 in Koregaon Bhima. "On that particular day, a mob of around 1500 people gathered and violence broke out," he said. He said Naxals had no role in the Koregaon Bhima violence. Athawale also took a dig at the opposition for organising a rally on January 26 in Mumbai to save the Constitution. "Narendra Modi government is committed to safeguarding the Constitution in letter and spirit. The opposition should not worry about the Constitution as the government is committed to strengthening it. I and Modiji are there to safeguard it and the opposition should not worry about the same," he said. In the Koregaon Bhima battle, the British imperialist forces had defeated the Army of Peshwas, representatives of the Maratha kingdom. In dalit narrative, the battle is viewed as the defeat of "casteism" of Peshwas as the British forces comprised many dalit soldiers. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Global giant BAE Systems will promote defence manufacturing in Maharashtra for which the state government will provide supportive infrastructure, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said today. Here to participate in the World Economic Forum (WEF), Fadnavis today held meetings with several global corporate heads, including BAE Systems Chairman Roger Carr, and also hosted a business roundtable with several business leaders. After the meetings, Fadnavis said BAE Systems has agreed to promote defence manufacturing in Maharashtra. Maharashtra will give supportive infrastructure and BAE Systems, a global defence and aerospace major, has accepted the invitation to be part of 'Magnetic Maharashtra' to support defence manufacturing with Indian partners, he said. The chief minister also invited global companies to participate in the 'Magnetic Maharashtra' investment summit to be held next month in the state. Union minister Piyush Goyal also visited the Maharashtra pavilion with the chief minister and spoke about investment opportunities in the state. Fadnavis also lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi's opening plenary speech, saying he articulated India's position as a global leader very well at the WEF. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Former SBI chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya has dismissed the allegations that banks penalise the poor for not maintaining a monthly average balance, and said the financially weaker account holders are never charged. "No account of any poor man is ever charged," Bhattacharya told PTI. She said the accounts opened for financial inclusion under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna are "not charged for anything", and are exempted from maintaining the monthly average balance. Bhattacharya cited the Basic Savings Bank Deposit (BSBD) Account of SBI as an example. According to SBI officials, the BSBD account is primarily meant for poorer sections of the society, to encourage them to start saving without any burden of charges or fees. Bhattacharya said those who don't need a "full-fledged" account can convert to the BSBD account. She said the talk of banks penalising the poor for not maintaining monthly average balance is "non-sense". "Where is the question of poor being charged?" Bhattacharya asked. She said it was an "unnecessary hysteria" created by sections of media, which needs greater caution on reporting such issues. Asked about her opinion on some suggestions that physical banks will be irrelevant in the next few years on the back of data consumption growth and data analytics likely to further boost financial inclusion, she disagreed with the assessment. Bhattacharya said even if half of India's population stops visiting banks, there is a "sufficiently large enough population" which still prefers to go to branches to avail services. India's pensioner population, Bhattacharya noted, is a few hundred million strong. "These people will not stop going to banks," she pointed out. Even today, a significant number of people still "want cash", prefer transactions from across the bank counters and are not comfortable with credit, debit and ATM cards. The number of people who get their passbooks printed in branches and regularly visit banks is "humongous", she said. "These people are not going to stop visiting banks overnight," Bhattacharya added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The BJP today claimed that its member has become the Sarpanch of Malegaon village in Baramati teshil, the home turf of NCP chief Sharad Pawar. Malegaon gram panchayat is one of the biggest village local bodies in Baramati tehsil of Pune district. BJP's Jaideep Vilas Tawre defeated NCP's Rajendra Chavan by just one vote in the election, conducted after the sitting Sarpanch resigned, said Ranjan Tawre, a senior BJP functionary from the area. However, a local election official said the election was conducted among the 17 panchayat members, and it was not contested on party symbols. This is the first time the BJP has wrested the Gram Panchayat from the NCP, Tawre claimed. "With the BJP's Sarpanch taking charge today, we would like to convey the message that development can happen without Pawars," said Tawre. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The BJP will try to "provoke" Congress workers on communal lines in the poll-bound Karnataka, but they should not fall into the saffron party's "trap", AICC secretary Madhu Goud Yaskhi has said. Yaskhi, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) secretary in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka, advised partymen to stick to "pro-development" activities carried out by the Siddaramaiah government in the state as they campaign for the assembly polls, to be held later this year. His advise to partymen came at a time the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP were engaged in a bitter publicity war on social media. The online dual dripping with sarcasm began with the Congress recently posting a video, titled "recipe for a BJP star campaigner" on Twitter, mocking Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath following his campaign in Karnataka. The video with a caricature of Adityanath showed the BJP's recipe for a star campaigner had ingredients such as criminal records, saffron dye, crocodile tears, homophobia, misogyny, zero attention to development, simmer on communal flame and bringing to a boil, garnish with ignorance, and serve with hate in Karnataka. The BJP, which is seeking return to power in Karnataka, the only big state under the Congress's belt now, hit back with a video attacking the Siddaramaiah-led government of being "anti-Hindu". The BJP's video, titled "Gundu Rao Military Hotel", carried caricatures of Siddaramaiah as a chef, state party working president Dinesh Gundu Rao and social media in-charge Ramya. It claimed the recipe for "Siddu beef biryani" include stolen rice from 'Anna Bagya' scheme, cow meat from illegal slaughter house and Hindu blood (citing alleged murders of Hindu activists), among others. Retorting, the Congress poured scorn on the BJP, calling it "Beef Janata Party" and poked fun at its "hypocrisy" on the beef ban issue. "The BJP will try to polarise people communally, provoke our men by doing such things. Showing the chief minister as a chef (in the video released by the BJP) is derogatory and is a criminality. "Our workers should not fall into the BJP's trap and stick to the development agenda as guided by the party leadership," Yaskhi said. He lauded the state government for its performance, listing several of its "pro-people" measures. "So, the BJP cannot compete with the Congress on developmental issues. Hence, it is resorting to such tactics. People of Karnataka will not fall for such tricks," Yaskhi said as he exuded confidence that his party would retain power in the state. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A general knowledge exam organised by the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM), youth wing of the BJP, kicked up a row today, with the prelude to the question paper blaming the "greed of power" of Jawaharlal Nehru and Mohammad Ali Jinnah for Partition. The Madhya Pradesh BJYM later said it was a printing error, and the words "greed of power" were for Jinnah, not for Nehru. The last paragraph of the examination paper's prelude, titled "Akhand Bharat", read: "Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay ka spasht mat tha ki Bharat Mata ko khandit kiye bina bhi bharat kee azaadi prapt kee jaa sakti thi....kintu Pandit Nehru aur Jinnah ke satta lalach aur angrezon ki chaal me aa jane se yah sapna purn nahi hua aur khandit bharat ko azaadi mili." ("Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay was of firm opinion that India could gain independence even without the division of Mother India....But the dream was not realised because of the greed of power of Pandit Nehru and Jinnah and as they fell into the trap of English rulers, and a broken India got Independence.") The BJYM later put it down to printing error. "Nehru was the first prime minister of our country. We cannot disrespect him. This was for Jinnah only. Due to misprint, Nehru's name got mentioned alongwith Jinnah's," BJYM state president Abhilash Pandey told PTI. Opposition Congress termed it a conspiracy to mislead the youth. The Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly Ajay Singh said in a statement: "People of the country will give answer to this conspiracy to mislead the youth. The BJP should ask the youth how many of its own leaders including those of the RSS betrayed the country during the freedom movement." Earlier, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan attended a program at one of the examination centres here. The examination paper included questions about BJP ideologue Deendayal Upadhyay besides the schemes of the Central and the Madhya Pradesh governments. Pandey claimed that over 30 lakh students from various schools and colleges participated. "Over 30 lakh participants from 14 states of India and 40 countries of the world took part in the event through offline and online mode. Eight winners would be selected for the "Coffee with CM" program, while others would be given certificates and other prizes. The examination was open to students from Class eight and upto the age of 35," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Japanese Consul General Ryoji Noda said here today that India's first high-speed rail project between Mumbai and Ahmedabad should be completed by 2023. Noda, Consul General, Consulate of Japan in Mumbai, said both Japan and India were global and strategic partners and this relationship has further strengthened after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit to Gujarat in September last year. "Last year in September, our PM Abe and Mrs Abe visited Gujarat. Both Abe and (Indian PM) Narendra Modi also inaugurated the high-speed train project, which would connect Ahmedabad and Mumbai in just two hours. This project should be completed by the end of 2023," Noda told reporters here today. In September last year, Modi and Abe had laid the foundation of the high-speed rail project, commonly known as Bullet Train project, between Mumbai and Ahmedabad. Noda was in the city to present the 'Order of the Rising Sun', conferred by the Emperor of Japan, to city-based tax consultant Mukesh Patel, who is the president of Indo-Japan Friendship Association. Talking to reporters on the sidelines of the function, Noda also said they were promoting Japan as a tourist destination among Indians, as "very few people" from India visit his country as compared to those from China. "We are promoting our tourism among Indian people, as there is a huge gap between those coming from China and those from India to our country. While around 2.6 million Chinese tourists visit Japan (every year), only 1,20,000 come from India," he said. "By 2030, over 50 per cent of Indian population will be of middle-income group. Therefore, we see a great potential. To attract more Indian tourists, we are trying to soften our visa process. We have recently introduced multi-visa system to encourage Indians (to visit Japan)," Noda said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) One person was killed and several others, all of them South Korean nationals, were injured when a tourist bus met with an accident in the district today, police said. The mishap took place under the jurisdiction of Atri police station area when a bus, ferrying around 30 South Korean nationals from Bodhgaya to Rajgir, lost control and overturned, the Sub-divisional Police Officer of Nimchak Bathani, Gaya, Vijay Kumar Sinha, said. A resident of nearby Tapasvi Nagar village, who was crossing the area on a bicycle, got crushed under the bus and died on the spot, the SDPO said. He also said nearly a dozen passengers were injured in the mishap and they were administered first aid at local dispensaries. Two tourists, with serious injuries, were taken to the Anugrah Narayan Magadh Medical College in Gaya town where their condition was stated to be out of danger, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The CBI has begun a probe into an alleged scam of Rs 487 crore related to over-valuation of inferior quality of coal imported from Indonesia which was passed on to NTPC and Arvali Power Corporation as superior quality in collusion with officials. The action of the agency came on the basis of a Directorate of Revenue Intelligence investigation which had shown over-invoicing in the imports between 2011-12 and 2014- 15, officials said today. The CBI FIR is against Ahmed A R Buhari, promoter of Coastal Energy Private Limited, Chennai and unidentified officials of National Thermal Power Corporation, Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation, Aravali Power Company Pvt Ltd. The agency booked them under the charges of criminal conspiracy cheating and provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act, the officials said. According to the modus operandi given in the FIR, the NTPC and Aravali Power Corporation Limitedhad floated global tenders for the supply of imported coal of a certain grade and quality. The grade and quality of the coal are crucial for achieving certain levels of power plant operations. The MMTC, a PSU and Chennai-basedCoastal Energy Private Limited,emerged successful bidders for the supply of coal. The CEPL instead of importing coal from Indonesia directly, routed their supply through Dubai-based sister concerns, enabling them to manipulate invoiced and quality certification. It is alleged that they entered into criminal conspiracy to cheat the government by importing coal of Indonesian origin by fraudulently showing inferior quality coal as that of superior quality, officials said. NTPC, MMTC and Arvarli Power Company Ltd, a joint venture company of NTPC Haryana and Delhi governments operate coal- based thermal power plants for which they import coal through global tenders. CEPL was a successful bidder for supply of coal to NTPC and APCL after which it entered into agreements with its sister concerns in Dubai. When MMTC was a successful bidder, it entered into tripartite agreements with CEPL and its sister concerns in Dubai. The Dubai-based companies entered into agreements with Indonesian exporters for inferior quality coal, officials said. The coal procured by Dubai-based intermediaries was supplied to CEPL or to MMTC through CEPL on the basis of inflated invoiced and manipulated test reports like certificate of sampling and analysis as coal of higher grade, they said. Once imported, these consignments were provided to NTPC and APCPL as coal of higher grade with higher prices, they said. In order to conceal the original grade of the coal, the importing companies allegedly did not avail duty concessions offered by government of India for coal imports originating from Indonesia, they further said. To avail such duty concessions, the importers would have to submit factual documents from Indonesian exporters which would have exposed the actual value of the imports, it is alleged. The officials of NTPC did not press for fulfilling duty exemption requirements which they did not do and accepted the consignments of coal, they said. "The fraudulent modus operand adopted by CEPL had resulted in supply of coal of inferior quality to the said power generation companies, as coal of higher grade with active criminal participation of public servants concerned of NTPC, APCPL and MMTC by way of misuse of their official position," the FIR said. It is alleged that MMTC and CEPL imported 90 and 57 consignments respectively between 2011-12 and 2014-15 for supplying to NTPC which received 143 of them and APCPL which received four. MMTC and CEPL provided inflated values for these imports. According to DRI probe, over invoicing of Rs 363 crore was done by the MMTC while Rs 124 crore was done by CEPL. "Thus a total excess amount of more than Rs 487 crore was paid by NTPC and APCPL to CEPL/MMTC in the import of coal..." it alleged. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The CBI today informed the Kerala High Court that it has taken over investigation into the death of a 27-year-old man who allegedly died in police custody in 2014. The man's brother, Sreejith, is on a sit-in protest in front of the Secretariat at Thiruvananthapuram for more than 750 days demanding a CBI probe into the alleged custodial death. Sreejeev was taken into custody in May 2014 by Parassala police and the family was told two days later that he died after consuming poison. Disposing of a petition filed by the mother of Sreejeev seeking a CBI probe into his death, Justice B Kemal Pasha directed the agency to start investigation at the earliest. The counsel for the state government also pleaded with the court to direct the investigative agency to take over the case at the earliest. The counsel for the Union government produced a central notification directing the agency to probe the case. There has been an outpouring of support from people from various walks of life for Sreejith after the issue was raised on the social media. Coming out in support, the Congress and the BJP had also sought urgent intervention by the central and state governments on Sreejith's plea. On January 14, the state government again urged the Centre to order a CBI probe into the alleged custodial death. The letter in this regard was sent by the state chief secretary asking the CBI to re-examine its earlier decision not to take up case, according to a CMO press release. The state government had in July last year written to the Centre for a CBI probe as some police personnel were accused in the case registered in Parassala police station. However, the plea was rejected by the CBI stating they had an overload of cases and this particular incident did not come under the rarest of rare cases, the release had stated. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Officials of the ministry of civil aviation and Airports Authority of India today visited the site of the Jewar international airport in Greater Noida and assessed the progress of the project. The ministry of civil aviation cleared a proposal for Jewar airport in UP last year. It will be the second airport in the national capital region and is expected to be ready in the next five years. The Yamuna Expressway Industrial Development Authority's chairman posted on Twitter that time-lines for readying the airport were also discussed at today's meeting. "Secretary, Civil Aviation GOI with officers of MoCA & AAI visited YEIDA to discuss progress of Jewar airport, visited airport site and appreciated the progress made and time-lines set by us," tweeted Prabhat Kumar, Chairman of YEIDA. The plans to connect Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport with Jewar airport were also discussed, the official said, adding that a consultant will be appointed to do a technological feasibility test. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) China today expressed dissatisfaction over a US move to impose steep tariffs on imported solar cells and washing machines, asking America to refrain from "overusing" trade remedies and play a positive role in promoting the world economy. The US approved tariffs on imported washing machines and solar panels in line with President Donald Trump's "America First" trade policy, which aims to protect local manufacturers from foreign competition. Trump ordered tariffs of up to 50 per cent on imported washing machines for the next three years and of up to 30 per cent on solar cells for the next four years. China, the world's biggest solar panel manufacturer, called the move an "abuse" of trade remedies. "China hopes the US could refrain from overusing trade remedies, abide by multilateral trade rules to play a positive role in promoting the world economy," Wang Hejun, head of the commerce ministry's trade remedy and investigation bureau said. Wang pointed out the US trade remedies in recent years had overprotected American sectors, and the latest decision not only caused harm to the industries' healthy development, but further exacerbated a difficult global trade "The global economic recovery remains fragile, which requires joint effort and actions from all countries," Wang was quoted as saying by state-run Xinhua agency. He said China would work with other World Trade Organisation members to defend their interests. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Chinese courier company SF Express has opened cargo flights to Tibet with the help of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). The maiden flight took off from Chengdu, capital of southwest China's Sichuan province, and landed in Lhasa yesterday, state-run PLA Daily reported. The flight will reserve space for the PLA providing it with new means to airlift military cargo in and out of Tibet, an official of the logistic support department of the Central Military Commission was quoted as saying. The move marked the PLA's latest effort in pursuing the military-civilian integration strategy, state-run Xinhua agency said. In October 2017, the PLA air force signed an agreement with five civilian logistics companies, including SF Express, to work with them in transportation and distribution, storage management, supplies purchasing and other areas over five years. SF Express has been working with the PLA logistic department since 2016, taking part in pilot work such as the delivery of military uniforms and bedding, as well as drone deliveries, the Xinhua report said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Marin Cilic is into his second semi-final after world No.1 retired with a leg injury during a titanic struggle today. Cilic, the world No.6 and former champion, won 3-6 6-3 6-7 (5/7) 6-2 2-0 in 3 hours and 47 minutes on Rod Laver Arena when Nadal retired in early in the fifth set. He will play Britain's unseeded Kyle Edmund in an unexpected semi-final match-up on Thursday. It was the second time Nadal has retired at the after pulling out of his quarter-final win unbelievable in 2010 with a knee injury. The Croat played in his first Australian semi-final eight years ago when he lost to Murray and it will also be his fifth Grand Slam semi-final. Nadal was leading two sets to one before he called for the trainer and received a medical timeout trailing 1-4 in the fourth set. He received treatment for an upper right leg injury and upon resuming his mobility was greatly affected and he lost the fourth set before calling an early end after losing a service break at 0-2 in the fifth. "It was an unbelievable performance from the both of us and it is really unfortunate for Rafa, he's an unbelievable competitor, always gives his best and it's very unfortunate to finish this way for him," Cilic said. "When you are wounded, sometimes the balls are going in, you are a little bit looser, so I was really paying attention to these first couple of games, just try to keep my intensity up. "Overall I had a lot of chances there to break and somehow just Rafa was coming with some good serves, good shots in critical moments. "That's the way he has always been, always finding the way, even if he is not playing at his best level." Before Nadal's setback it had been a match of high quality, with Nadal edging ahead after a fluctuating third set tiebreaker. Cilic, last year's finalist, was taken to seven deuces before he held to 3-3 in the opening set, but was broken in his next service game as Nadal claimed the opening set in 52 minutes with a forehand winner. Cilic was incensed to receive a time violation warning while serving down two break points and came up with a double-fault for a break at 2-3 in the second set. But the Croat reeled off two service breaks and levelled the match 6-3 with an ace. Nadal won a mighty tussle for the third set lasting 72 minutes which went to a tiebreaker. The world No.1 held set point at 5-4 before Cilic held and in the tiebreaker a couple of Cilic misses gave Nadal his second set point which he took with an ace. But Cilic would not be denied and he broke Nadal's serve in the fourth game of the fourth set, racing to a 4-1 lead. Nadal took a rare medical timeout to seek treatment for his injury before resuming, but with difficulty. Cilic broke him a second time to take the match into a fifth set but with Nadal noticeably limping between points, the Spaniard eventually walked to the umpire and conceded. Cilic is coming off an outstanding 2017 where he lost to in the final and made the quarter- finals at Roland Garros along with climbing to a career-high ranking of four. In rumpled white kurtas and pyjamas, John Lennon and Paul McCartney strum their guitars on the steps of a verandah. Ringo Starr, a bit out of place in a long coat, looks on. With marigold garlands around their necks, Starr and McCartney -- this time with George Harrison -- sit cross- legged on a dais, in front of yoga guru Mahesh Yogi, and with a host of others. The stills, among the many photographs that capture the seven weeks the Fab Four spent in the yogi's ashram near the Ganges, will be on display in Liverpool, UK, from next month to mark 50 years of The Beatles in India, an event that will also be celebrated by the ashram, organisers said. One of the sitars of composer-instrumentalist Ravi Shankar, who famously introduced The Beatles to Hindustani classical music, will also be on display at Liverpool. The two-year exhibition will be part of a permanent museum called The Beatles Story in the hometown of the four. In February 1968, The Beatles -- John Lennon, George Harrison, Ringo Starr and Paul McCartney -- travelled to Rishikesh in what is now Uttarakhand to learn transcendental meditation at the Chaurasi Kutia Ashram of Mahesh Yogi. They wrote around 48 songs during their seven-week stay at the centre, now known as the Beatles Ashram. Among them were "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da", "Back In The USSR" and "While My Guitar Gently Weeps". The exhibition -- Beatles in India -- is scheduled to open to the public in the museum dedicated to the band in Liverpool on February 16, 50 years to the day that Lennon, with wife Cynthia, and Harrison, with wife Pattie Boyd, arrived in India. "Beatles in India will look at this key and relatively secretive part of the Beatles' story... with never-before-seen memorabilia, imagery and personal accounts from the people who were there with the band in 1968," Dave Milner, marketing and PR executive of The Beatles Story, told PTI from Liverpool. Shankar's sitar, he said, has been loaned to the museum by the Ravi Shankar Foundation. "Ravi used this smaller, lighter sitar during his later years," Milner added. The ashram, which comes under the Rajaji Tiger Reserve (RTR), is also planning to mark the occasion with an exhibition of rare photographs and documents. "The Maharishi Mahesh Yogi trust has agreed to donate some rare photos and documents - mostly newspaper clippings -- which will be no less a treat for international fans," RTR director Sanatan Sonkar told PTI. He said the celebrations included the display of memorabilia related to the band's India visit and the setting up of a cafeteria for visitors and a souvenir shop. Milner said the exhibition in Liverpool would include personal accounts of their India visit by Pattie and her sister, Jenny Boyd, on video. "It is being designed to be immersive so that visitors can really get a feel of what Rishikesh was like and why it was so important for The Beatles," Milner said. Shankar's sitar will be on display alongside pictures taken by Paul Saltzman of The Beatles in Rishikesh, he said. "The Beatles Story are not planning any events in India but we are still in contact with Rishikesh and are in full support of what is taking place there. We have our own programme of events taking place throughout the year in Liverpool which will include a variety of Indian themed workshops and Q&A sessions," he added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Opposition BJP and the Congress today slammed the BJD government in Odisha over the alleged suicide of a girl who had claimed to have been raped by "four men in uniform", staging separate demonstrations and calling for a state-wide shutdown tomorrow. A day after the minor tribal girl ended her life in Koraput, Congress gave called for dawn-to-dusk bandh across the state, while the BJP announced its decision to observe a 12-hour strike from 6 AM to 6 PM. In view of the bandhs, schools and colleges would remain closed for the safety of students and examinations would be shifted to a suitable date, officials said. Elaborate security arrangements have also been made, police said. Leaders of both the opposition parties said the shutdown would be observed to protest alleged failure of state government in handing out justice to the girl and to demand a CBI probe into the incident. Terming the 14-year-old survivor's suicide as a "black day", Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) President Prasad Harichandan also demanded resignation of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for failure to provide justice to the girl. The OPCC chief urged people to support the peaceful agitation against alleged injustice to the class 9 girl student, who was forced to end her life. Harichandan alleged that the girl took the extreme step 100 days after the incident as she was mentally tortured by police and other officials, including doctors. He also slammed police and its Human Rights Protection Cell (HRPC) for ruling out the girl had been raped, despite the girl claiming that she had been raped by four men in combat uniform near Kunduli in Maoist-hit Koraput district on October 10. Announcing the call for state-wide shutdown, BJP leader Prithviraj Harichandan said the party would continue its stir till the girl gets justice. The party had initially called for a strike in four districts in south Odisha. Meanwhile, stepping up attack on the BJD government, BJP activists, including women wing members, clashed with police while trying to march to 'Naveen Niwas', the residence of the chief minister. The police resorted to lathicharge to disperse the protesters, Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Satyabrata Bhoi said. Members of the Congress' women wing also staged a demonstration and attempted to enter 'Naveen Niwas'. The police have detained some BJP and Congress activists, the DCP said. "The situation is now under control. We have dispersed the agitators," he said, adding that at least four police personnel suffered injuries as the protesters pelted them with stones. Several BJP activists were injured in the police lathicharge. The girl had alleged that she was raped by four men in uniform in Kunduli on October 10 last year when she was returning home to Musaguda village, about five kilometres away. The suicide of the girl also triggered tension in Koraput as local people led by Congress leader Pradip Majhi took away the girl's body from the hospital without allowing officials to perform a post-mortem, officials said. BJP leader and Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram has demanded a CBI probe into the whole episode and alleged that the girl was denied justice. BJP state general secretary Bhrugu Buxipatra urged the people to make the bandh successful tomorrow "as the girl died after being denied justice". "The girl had earlier claimed that there was threat to her life. She was forced to take the drastic step of ending her life as she was denied justice," said Congress Chief Whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati. Meanwhile, Odisha Women and Child Development Minister Prafulla Samal said his department would inquire into the circumstances that led to the death of the girl. "We feel that the department has some responsibility. Our officers will probe into the cause of her death," Samal told reporters. Rajendra Dadua, president of Zilla Dom Samaja, said, "The state government did not take her plight seriously and justice was denied to her." The state government had ordered a crime branch probe and judicial inquiry into the alleged rape. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress today hit out at AAP and the BJP for the problems being faced by the traders and property owners in the national capital on account of the sealing drive and said the situation could become worse. Under the Delhi Special Laws Act enacted by the Congress- led UPA government, demolition of unauthorised constructions were stopped up to June 1, 2014, Delhi Congress president Ajay Maken said. "If this protection is not extended till 1 June, 2017, then there will be massive demolitions at urban villages and unauthorised colonies, for which the BJP-ruled Central government and AAP government in Delhi will be responsible," he said. In the blame game between the BJP and AAP, the traders and their workers and labourers were suffering, he alleged. Maken, in his letter to Union urban development minister Hardip Puri last month, had demanded reduction in conversion charges so that it could be paid easily. Conversion charge is levied on changing of land use from residential to commercial or mixed land use. The BJP-ruled municipal corporations in north and south Delhi have undertaken the sealing drive on instructions of the Supreme Court appointed monitoring committee. The Congress has extended its support to the traders who kept their shops shut under the 'Delhi Bandh' call by the Confederation of All India Traders. Delhi State Traders Congress coordinator Ajay Arora said that the losses due to the strike should be recovered from the AAP government and the MCDs ruled by the BJP. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress today appeared unimpressed with the Shiv Sena's decision not to align with the BJP and go solo in the Lok Sabha and Maharashtra elections in 2019 and obliquely questioned the Uddhav Thackeray-led party's continuance in the central and state governments. "The Sena resolution in this connection is not important, but how they are still working (with the BJP) is. One who is pro-poor, pro-people cannot be in this government," AICC general secretary in-charge for Maharashtra Mohan Prakash said. He said the Congress was focusing on reaching out to people and strengthening its Maharashtra unit, which has 48 Lok Sabha seats and 288 assembly segments. A senior party leader said it was too early to say if the the Congress and the Sharad Pawar-led NCP would come together. "There is a lot of time for both the elections. We will decide on our course of action keeping in view the situation at the time of the polls," the leader, who spoke on condition of anonymity, added. The resolution to part ways with the BJP and go it alone in the elections next year was tabled by Sena MP Sanjay Raut at the party's National Executive meeting in Mumbai. The party has shared an uneasy alliance with the BJP at the Centre and in Maharashtra since the state elections in 2014. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi today charged RJD-Congress combine with having "cheated the backward classes" of the state while claiming to champion their cause. "The RJD and the Congress do their in the name of the OBCs but in reality they have always cheated the backward classes. The Congress government at the Centre never had the courage to implement recommendations of the report of Kaka Kalelkar Commission tabled in 1953", he said. "When the Janata Party government assumed power in the country, the Mandal Commission was formed in 1977. But successive Congress governments kept its report in cold storage. Recommendations of the Mandal Commission saw the light of the day only after V P Singh formed a government with the BJP's support", the senior BJP leader said. The Bihar Deputy CM was addressing a function organized at the state BJP headquarters on the eve of the birth anniversary of former Chief Minister and OBC stalwart Karpoori Thakur. Seeking to underscore the BJP's pro-OBC stance, Sushil said "Thakur's tenure was marked by introduction of quotas for OBCs in government jobs. His government was supported by the Jan Sangh. When the NDA came to power in the state in 2005, the extremely backward classes were given 20 per cent reservation in local bodies' polls". He also claimed "in the last Bihar assembly polls, the BJP fielded 25 EBC candidates of whom 12 won. The RJD-Congress combine fielded only five EBCs. Twenty-three MLAs of the ruling BJP-JD(U) combine are EBCs". Speaking at the same function, Bihar BJP president Nityanand Rai came down heavily on RJD supremo Lalu Prasad, accusing him of "betraying the EBCs in Bihar". Others who spoke on the occasion included Union Minister Ram Kripal Yadav and state ministers Nand Kishore Yadav, Mangal Pandey and Pramod Kumar. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The police has registered an offence against four persons, including a police officer, after a 28-year-old man here allegedly committed suicide, an official said today. Amit Jha, residing in Virar area of the district, allegedly consumed a poisonous substance on Saturday. He died at a hospital in Mumbai yesterday, a police official said. Amit Jha is the brother of Vikas Jha (24), who had tried to set himself ablaze in November last year inside the office of a deputy superintendent of police, a police officer said. Vikas Jha had also tried to set the DySP on fire, the officer said. Amit Jha had alleged that police did not take any action in the case involving his brother and hence consumed poison, the officer said. Their father complained to police that Amit ended his life due to alleged harassment by four persons, police said. Based on a complaint, the Palghar police today registered an offence for abetment of suicide against the four persons, including a police officer. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Skipper Graeme Cremer led an inspired Zimbabwe bowling attack to restrict Bangladesh to 216 for nine in the fifth one-day international of the tri-nation tournament today. Cremer claimed four wickets with his leg-spin to trigger a Bangladesh collapse as the hosts slipped from 147-2 to 170- 8. Paceman Kyle Jarvis took three wickets. Bangladesh opener Tamim Iqbal top-scored with 76, providing a strong start with a 106-run second wicket partnership with Shakib Al Hasan, who made 51, after electing to bat first. It was Tamim's third successive half-century in as many matches of the tournament. The left-handed batsman also became the first Bangladeshi to amass 6,000 ODI runs during his 105- ball stay. Number-10 batsman Mustafizur Rahman struck an unbeaten 18 to take Bangladesh past the 200-run mark and survive their full quota of 50 overs. Zimbabwe would join Bangladesh in the final on Saturday if they can win the contest. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 22-year-old man, who had auditioned for dance reality shows such as Dance India Dance, was arrested for his alleged involvement in a robbery at a popular pizza outlet in Dwarka, the police said today. Adnan Khan who runs an Youtube channel on which he uploads his dance videos, was in dire need of money to maintain his dance career, they said. On December 11 last year, Amit Yadav, the manager of a pizza outlet in Dwarka, informed police that some unidentified persons robbed Rs 3.5 lakh from the outlet, the police said. One of the accused, Ram was arrested, and he revealed that four people were involved in the robbery and one of them was a dancer at a club, they said, adding acting on a tip-off, a trap was laid and Khan was arrested from Dwarka Mor bus stand. Khan is a Class 10 dropout. He had also auditioned for Dance India Dance. Though he could not make it to the top, he started getting invitations from other parts of country for dance competitions and performances, the police said. In 2014, he won 'Mr. Uttarakhand' dance competition and to earn money performing in clubs and restaurants in the national capital, they said. Khan could not earn enough from professional dancing. He had even got an offer for a role in Hindi film, but lack of money was a big hurdle, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Dwarka, Shibesh Singh said. Ram who assured Khan of earning enough money to fulfill his dream and got involved him in the robbery plan, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor David Strathairn is set to star along side Edward James Olmos in "The Devil Has a Name". Olmos will also direct the project, reported Variety. The film centers on an unhinged oil baron who gets in a bruising standoff with a stubborn farmer after the water on his farm was poisoned by her company. This portrait of corporate greed is based on a true story. Olmos will play Santiago, a Mexican immigrant and confidant, while Strathairn will star as the oil empire- fighting farmer. Written by Rob McEveety, the film is financed and will be produced by True Navigator Media's Steve McEveety, Patrick Hibler, and McEveety. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In a relief to prisoners, the Delhi government has increased remission of imprisonment by up to one month. A government official said that prisoners undergoing sentence of 10 years and above will now get remission of three months, which was earlier 60 days. The government remission to prisoners lodged in various jails, including Tihar prisons, is granted on the occasion of Republic Day every year. "The government has also decided to increase remission of imprisonment for those prisoners serving sentence of five years to 10 years by two months against the earlier 45 days," the official said requesting anonymity. Delhi Home Minister Satyendar Jain had directed the superintendent prisoners (headquarters) of Central Jail to make a proposal seeking to give maximum permissible remission on the eve of Republic Day this year. The move will also help government de-congest jails in the national capital. Any state government derives "unfettered power" regarding remission of imprisonment of any prisoner through section 432 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC). The government has also introduced new category of remission for those prisoners serving sentence of three months to six months. "The proposal has been given approval. A prisoner serving sentence of six months to one year will be given remission of 20 days. A 15-day remission will be given to those prisoners undergoing sentence of three months to six months," the official said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) After demands for carving out Harit Pradesh, Poorvanchal, Bundelkhand and Awadh, a demand for a separate 'Buddha land' is in discussion in Uttar Pradesh of late. The Poorvanchal Sena, a Dalit-majority organisation, is creating awareness among people for a separate Buddha land with 27 districts of Uttar Pradesh, including Shravasti, Gonda, Sant Kabir Nagar, Gorakhpur, Deoria, Maharajganj, Bahraich, Chandouli, Siddharthnagar, Faizabad, Balia, Mau and Varanasi. The sena started a campaign on January 1 and held demonstrations in support of their demand in Gorakhpur. On January 20, they took out processions in 19 blocks of the district, Poorvanchal sena president Dhirendra Pratap said. "Now we are planning to stage demonstrations in the villages of Gorakhpur next month," he said. Asked about the reason behind the demand for a separate Buddha land, Pratap said, "The population of Uttar Pradesh is 18 crore, which is more than the population of many countries, and due to its vast area and heavy population it becomes difficult to manage and govern the state." Pratap further said people of the state face difficulties owing to its vastness and development work is hindered too. "We want to connect the state with Gautam Buddha as a large number of international tourists come here for Lord Buddha and if the state will be developed keeping this in mind, the place will become tourist hub and the development of the state will take place fast and youth will get employment too," he said. The demand for a separate state by the Poorvanchal Sena began 20 years ago and BSP supremo Mayawati in 2011 also advocated splitting of the state into Bundelkhand, Paschim Pradesh, Awadh Pradesh and Poorvanchal. Though there were demands from different quarters, it was the BSP which had taken a concrete step by passing a resolution for division of UP when she was in power. Mayawati had also used it to corner the Samajwadi Party on development, and law and order issues, maintaining that smaller states could be governed better. Dalit icon B R Ambedkar, had recommended the division of Uttar Pradesh in his book "Bhashayi Rajya". Both the BJP and the Congress had supported the resolution brought by Mayawati in the House. But, Mayawati lost power in 2012 and her demand lost steam. As the BJP-led NDA had carved out Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh from UP, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, respectively, it was believed that further division of UP might find favour with it but the party has been silent on the issue. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury today said his party is reaching out to other opposition parties to discuss the possibility of bringing an impeachment motion against the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra in the coming budget session. His statement comes close on the heels of four senior judges of the Supreme Court virtually revolting against Misra, raising questions on "selective" case allocation and certain judicial orders, an unprecedented development that sent shockwaves across the judiciary and polity. Opposition parties like the Congress and the CPI(M) had then called for a probe into the issues flagged by the four judges. "The CPI(M) is discussing with other opposition parties the possibility of bringing an impeachment motion against the CJI," Yechury told reporters at the Left party's headquarters here. The Budget Session of Parliament is set to commence on January 29 and the Union Budget for 2018-19 will be presented on February 1. The first phase of the session will be from January 29 to February 9. After a recess, Parliament will meet again from March 5 to April 6. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kyle Edmund became only the sixth British man to reach a Grand Slam semi-final with an upset win over world No.3 Grigor Dimitrov at the Australian Open today. The unseeded Edmund, ranked 49, won 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 in 2hr 49min on Rod Laver Arena and will face either 16-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal or Marin Cilic for a place in the final. With another British Grand Slam semi-finalist Tim Henman watching on in the stands, 23-year-old Edmund troubled Dimitrov with his powerful forehand and serve. "It's an amazing feeling, very happy with these sort of things, you are so emotionally engaged that you don't really take it in, you don't really enjoy yourself," Edmund said. "It was my first match on Rod Laver Arena and it is very special." Edmund is the only British man in this year's field after five-time finalist Andy Murray's injury withdrawal before the tournament. "I know what it feels like to be Andy Murray for the last eight years or however long," Edmund said of the expected media attention after his win. "Yeah, of course, it comes with the territory of playing the sport. The better you do, the more attention you get. "It's probably the first time I've done well on my own. So it is more attention there, but of course you just take it in your stride, trying to embrace it as much as possible." The only other British men to get so far at a Slam in the Open-era were Henman, Murray, John Lloyd, Roger Taylor and Greg Rusedski. Edmund, who upset US Open finalist Kevin Anderson in the opening round, broke Dimitrov's serve five times and hit 46 winners and 48 unforced errors. Dimitrov began tardily and was broken in the opening game but quickly broke back. Edmund broke to 5-4 with a forehand and served out for the opening set in 42 minutes. The Bulgarian saved three break points to take a 3-0 lead in the second set and then served out to level the set scores on his first match point. But Dimitrov hit a flat spot and gave up a break with a double fault in the eighth game and Edmund seized the third set with a strong serve. Edmund got a break in the fifth game of the fourth set when Dimitrov shanked a forehand well out, but the British hope handed the break back with an errant forehand on break point in the next game. The errors continued to flow for Dimitrov and he fell behind two break points in the ninth game and was broken when he netted a backhand, leaving Edmund to serve out for the match. Dimitrov lost to Nadal over five sets in last year's semi-final and despite his No.3 ranking has yet to go beyond the semi-finals at a Grand Slam. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Security forces in Egypt today killed eight militants in separate raids in the country's restive North Sinai governorate, officials said. Police launched an attack on a group of militants in an under-construction shelter in Al-Arish city, killing six of them, the Interior Ministry said in a statement. They were planning a series of attacks against police in the coming days, it said. In a separate incident, the army killed two terrorists and arrested two others while they were preparing for an attack against military in North Sinai. A number of suspected terrorists have also been arrested. The raids by police and army came days before 'National Police Day' which marks the anniversary of Egypt's 2011 uprising that toppled former president Hosni Mubarak. North Sinai has witnessed many terror attacks since the January 2011 revolution. The attacks, targeting police and military, increased after the ouster of Islamist ex-president Mohamed Morsi in 2013 by military following massive protests against his rule. Hundreds of police and army personnel have been killed since then. The military has launched security campaigns in North Sinai where some terrorists are based. They have arrested suspects and demolished terrorists' den, including those facilitating tunnels leading to the Gaza Strip. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An autographed letter, in which German physicist Albert Einstein defends the character of a friend accused of murder, is up for auction in the US. Dated April 29, 1917, the letter is addressed to Einstein's close friend and scientific collaborator Michele Besso - the only individual credited in Einstein's paper on the Theory of Special Relativity. In the letter, Einstein addresses different topics, including General Relativity, quantum physics and his friend Friedrich Adler, who had recently assassinated Austrian Minister-President Karl von Sturgkh. Einstein comes to his friend's defense, describing his personality and wondering how he could help him. Adler's trial for the assassination of von Sturgkh was within days of Einstein's letter, according to the US-based Nate D Sanders Auctions. "A. proved himself a selfless, calm, hard-working, goodhearted, conscientious man who was highly esteemed by everybody, and that it is my heartfelt desire, therefore, to intercede for him," said Einstein wrote in the letter. "A. is a rather sterile rabbinical mind, obstinate, without a sense of the real. Ultra- selfless with a strong tinge of self-torture, even suicide. A real martyr-type," he wrote. Three page letter measures 5.5 x 8.25 inches, and is written in German. Alder had written to Einstein on the Theory of Relativity, but Einstein did not think highly of it. "I just received a manuscript on relativity from him, completed within the past few days, in which, with the conviction of the prophet, he broadly expounds quite worthless subtleties, so that I am painfully caught in the dilemma of how to respond to it," Einstein wrote. "I have been racking my brain about this. He keeps drawing on (Ernst) Mach's theories to the point of exhaustion. You are much wiser about human affairs than I am," he wrote. The bidding for the letter ends on January 25. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Pune Police today informed the Bombay High Court that it has transferred the case of alleged fraud and misappropriation of funds of the Osho Rajneesh Trust to its Economic Offences Wing (EOW). The police informed this to a division bench headed by Justice B R Gavai which was hearing a petition filed by Pune resident Yogesh Thakker. The petitioner had alleged that the spiritual guru's signature was forged in his will by the trustees of the Osho International Foundation. While an FIR was lodged with the Pune police last year, Thakker claimed the police had not made any substantial progress in the probe and hence, sought a direction to the CBI to take over the investigation. The court had last week sought to know if the case could be transferred to the EOW for a specialised investigation. Following this, Pune's deputy commissioner of police, in a letter submitted to the court, said the probe in the case has been transferred to the EOW. "The EOW shall file an interim probe report in the case within four weeks," the court directed. According to Thakker, the trustees allegedly transferred money from the trust to private companies owned by them. In 2012, Thakker wrote a letter to the Pune Police commissioner following which an FIR was lodged against the trustees in 2013, but so far there has been no further progress in the case. Rajneesh passed away in 1990 and his will was prepared in 1989. Thakker alleged that the will was forged and sought to support his claim with a report of a private handwriting expert. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An SUV belonging to former Union minister Natwar Singh that was stolen from Gurgaon in December has been recovered, the police today said, suspecting its use in last week's firing incident in Rajasthan's Churu district in which one person was killed and two others injured. The Fortuner car, which was stolen in Gurgaon on December 25 last year, has been recovered and seized. Its engine and chassis number have been matched with the looted vehicle, Superintendent of Police, Charkhi Dadri (Haryana), Himanshu Garg told PTI over the phone. Dadri Crime Investigation Agency (CIA) inspector Hitender Singh Dangi said the SUV's registration is in the name of Natwar Singh, Congress leader and a former external affairs minister. An FIR regarding the stolen vehicle was registered at the Sushant Lok police station in Gurgaon on December 25, 2017, the policeman said. The SUV was recovered in Charkhi Dadri on January 19, he added. He said a team of Rajasthan police had visited Charkhi Dadri with visuals and there is a strong possibility that the vehicle was used in Rajasthan's Churu district firing incident. Further details will emerge when any accused is arrested, Dangi said. On January 17, a 32-year-old man had died and two others, including an advocate, suffered bullet injuries when unidentified assailants opened fire on a history-sheeter in Sadulpur town court premises in Churu district. In the daylight firing in the court premises, three to four assailants came walking probably after parking the SUV at some distance and opened fire on Ajay, who had come for a court hearing after being released on bail a fortnight ago post two years jail term. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An 84-year-old farmer allegedly tried to commit suicide at the Maharashtra secretariat here as he was apparently upset over inadequate compensation granted for his land acquired for a thermal plant project. His condition is reported to be serious, an official said. Dharma Patil, from Sindakhedraja town in Buldhana district, came to the Mantralaya (secretariat) yesterday to follow up his request for higher remuneration from the state government for the acquisition of his land, his son Narendra Patil said. He later allegedly consumed a poisonous substance in the secretariat premises following which the police rushed him to St George Hospital in south Mumbai. An official at the hospital said, "Patil was admitted in the ICU after he consumed the poisonous substance. His condition is serious and we are closely monitoring his health parameters." He will to be shifted to J J Hospital for further treatment, the official said. The farmer's son told reporters today that his father got only Rs four lakh compensation for his five acres of land. He said the octogenarian had been visiting the state administrative headquarters here for the last three months to complain about the inadequate compensation for his land. Narendra Patil claimed that their neighbour, whose land was also acquired by the state government, received "Rs 1.89 crore as compensation for two acres of land." "Then why did we get such less compensation. Isn't it a case of injustice. We have been raising this issue for last two years," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Full implementation of the free trade agreement (FTA) in goods between India and the Asean bloc will help boost trade between the two regions, Minister of State for Commerce and Industry C R Chaudhary said today. He said however that connectivity and infrastructure are major challenges to further push the trade ties between India and the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean). India and the 10-nation bloc signed the FTA in goods in 2009. Under the pact, two trading partners set timelines for eliminating duties on maximum number of goods traded between the two regions. The 10 Asean members are Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines, Laos and Vietnam. The agreement has resulted in increase in trade, and "once the full implementation of tariff (or basic customs duties) reduction scheduling is done", it is expected to create more trade opportunities for both the sides, he said at the Asean-India Business and Investment Meet and Expo being held here. Chaudhary said both the regions are working to improve connectivity and infrastructure to promote trade and investments. "India is working with Asean on multiple connectivity projects," he said, adding that the country has made considerable progress in the construction of trilateral highway -- India-Myanmar-Thailand. This highway begins from Moreh in Manipur and ends in Bangkok, going through Myanmar. There are talks to extend the project to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. Kaladan Multi Modal Transit Transport Project (KMTTP) is also under implementation. The project aims to improve connectivity between Indian ports on the eastern seaboard and Sittwe port in Myanmar. These projects would also help develop the north eastern states of India, Chaudhary said. He also said that the Asean India maritime transport cooperation agreement will help in enhancing cooperation and communication between the two regions besides removing barriers for increasing maritime trade. There is also a proposal to establish rail link between India and Vietnam. India's exports to Asean increased to about USD 31 billion in 2016-17 from USD 25.15 billion in the previous fiscal. Imports too grew to USD 40.61 billion in 2016-17 from USD 40 billion in the previous year. The commerce ministry said in a statement that the Asean -India expo is showcasing products and services in areas including manufacturing, engineering, ICT, healthcare, tourism, environment, agriculture, Science & technology, logistics and retail. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It was a good day for women in Hollywood after the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences righted a wrong committed at the Golden Globes with Greta Gerwig bagging her maiden nod in the Best Director category for "Ladybird". Gerwig has now become the fifth woman to be recognised in at the directors round table in the Oscars history. The actor-director, who also scored a nod in the Best Original Screenplay category, joins the likes of Lina Wertmuller ("Seven Beauties"), Jane Campion ("The Piano"), Sofia Coppola ("Lost in Translation") and Kathryn Bigelow ("The Hurt Locker"). Bigelow is the only woman to have ever won the Oscar in the segment. Actor Natalie Portman had taken a dig at the Golden Globe Awards for having "all male nominees" in the top five directors list. Gerwig has also been nominated for Achievement in a Feature Film when the nominations for Directors Guild of America Awards were announced. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Indians' obsession for sending 'Good Morning!' messages is leaving one in three smartphone users in India run out of space on their phones daily, a media report said today. The problem, discovered by Google, was an overabundance of sun-dappled flowers, adorable toddlers, birds and sunsets sent along with a cheery message, The Wall Street Journal reported. Millions of Indians, who are getting online for the first time like nothing better than to begin the day by sending 'Good Morning' greetings from their phones. According to the WSJ, there was a 10-fold increase in the number of Google searches for "Good Morning images" over the past five years. To tackle the problem, Facebook's WhatsApp messaging service -- which has 200 million monthly active users in India, making the country its biggest market -- added a status message last year so users could say good morning to all of their contacts at once. Inexpensive smartphones and data plans in India have brought thousands of people online. According to the report, a survey by data-storage firm Western Digital Corp found that one in three smartphone users in India run out of space daily compared with one in 10 in the US. WhatsApp says more than 20 billion New Year's messages were sent in India, a record, and more than any other country. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The government and the opposition must work together to bring about a law against triple talaq and not allow their political differences to stall it, a Muslim women's rights group spearheading the movement against the practice of instant divorce said today. The Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA) made the appeal to the government and the opposition ahead of the Budget session which begins next week. The government is set to push for Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill in the Rajya Sabha in the session, which commences from January 29. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in December last year but was stalled in the Upper House after opposition parties demanded that it be sent to a Select Committee. According to the Bill, giving instant triple talaq will be illegal and void and will attract a jail term of three years for the husband. It would also be a non-bailable and cognisable offence. "The opposition and the government need to work together to bring about a law against triple talaq. They can't allow their political differences to stall a law. Muslim women have been denied legal protection for a long time because of abdication of the duty of the elected representatives," said Zakia Soman, co-founder of the BMMA, at a press conference. The BMMA was also one of the petitioners in Supreme Court against instant triple talaq. Soman said that if the opposition and the government could work together on the GST, then they could do so on triple talaq as well. "They need to demonstrate a similar political will in bringing about this law," she said. The NGO has also written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad, Congress president Rahul Gandhi among others and sent a copy of a proposed legislation to them prepared after holding consultations with over 60,000 Muslim women in different states in the past month. The BMMA, along with other civil rights groups such as Roshni, Muslim Women Personal Law Board and STEPS, has stated that the law must also lay down a legal procedure of divorce which should be based on reconciliation or the 'Talaq-e-Ahsan' method which prescribes mediation and dialogue between the husband and wife over a minimum of 90 days. In their proposed draft, BMMA has said that while talaq- e-biddat or instant triple talaq should be cognisable, the right to file an FIR should be only with the wife. The group has also recommended one-year jail term for the husband, instead of three-year jail term laid down in the bill. The women's group has also sought that the offence of giving instant triple talaq be made a bailable crime. The group also wants that those abetting and aiding triple talaq should be given a more stringent punishment of three years in jail. The BMMA has also demanded abolition of other forms of divorces such as nikah halala, where a woman has to consummate her marriage with another man before returning to her former husband, and muta, a temporary marriage which can be dissolved at a predetermined time. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Indian students can reach for the skies if an interest in astronomy is instilled in them right from their school days, former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K Kasturirangan has said. India, Kasturirangan said, would be one of the leaders in the field of astronomy in the future. "I think this is an extraordinary period of astronomy for India but what is important now is that we need to groom the younger generation to take an interest in astronomy, to bring them into astronomy and do justice to all the investments we are making," Kasturirangan said. For India to be "right in the forefront" of astronomy, it was important to draw the interest of the youth, he told PTI. Predicting that planetary explorations would further grow in the coming years, the scientist said there was a great scope for youngsters in this field. To generate interest in astronomy among the youth, the government should promote activities right from the schools, in colleges as well as universities and other research areas, he said. "I think even areas such as planetary explorations will further grow. And so there is a lot of scope and a lot of excitement in this but the youngsters have to be motivated... right from the schools. We should promote astronomical activities in the universities, research areas, institutions. We need a large number of youngsters from the university system, institutions, observational institutes," he stressed. Asked if India was capable of taking up space expeditions and research works on its own, Kasturirangan said ISRO would need to partner other nations after a certain point. "I would say up to a point India is capable of taking up space expeditions single-handedly. But I think at a certain stage India must move towards international collaboration and cooperation. "Chandrayaan had six instruments from abroad and six from India... I am sure that future Mangalyan and other planetary explorations will have (collaboration). And afterwards I believe we will be a part of an international expedition to planetary exploration," Kasturirangan said. He, however, advised the government not to go in for loans to facilitate space research programmes. We should not take loans because investments are very large and the resources can be very demanding. And I dont think there is any reason why we should when the international community also looks to collaboration with India because Indians are easy to collaborate with, are capable and can contribute substantially to major programmes. We have demonstrated that in the past, the space scientist said. Underlining Indias strong presence in international space programmes, the Padma Vibhushan awardee of 2000 predicted tremendous opportunities for the country in this field. He referred to India's participation in the Thirty Metre Telescope (TMT) project, a proposed astronomical observatory, mentioned the Square Kilometre Array, a large multi radio telescope project and said India was a partner for the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) to detect cosmic gravitational waves. "I think others will come here and they will be partners here of an Indian-inspired thing. And may be tomorrow there will be an astrostat in which others will come and participate. So just look at the things we are doing. So I think there is tremendous opportunity and the international community is very much inclined to do this, he stated. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A senior woman judicial officer of Delhi today informed the Supreme Court that she has tendered an unconditional apology in the high court, which had earlier ordered initiation of contempt and departmental enquiry against her. A division bench of the Delhi High Court, on December 22 last year, had ordered initiation of contempt and enquiry proceedings against Additional District Judge Kamini Lau after taking note of her alleged objectionable words used in four applications seeking expunction of adverse remarks passed by a single judge bench of the High Court in as many civil appeals. An apex court bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice D Y Chandrachud had on January 15 stayed the high court's order while asking Lau to tender an unconditional apology in the high court, saying it "wanted to protect" her for future as well. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Lau, today told the bench that as per the top court's direction, the judicial officer has filed an affidavit in the high court registry tendering unconditional apology and the matter was yet to be placed before the concerned bench there. "Let the said affidavit be placed before the concerned division bench which shall do the needful keeping in view our order dated January 15, 2018. Matter be listed on February 12," the bench said. Lau, in her appeal in the apex court, had said that the higher courts "should judge the judgements and not the judge". She has also sought that remarks passed against her by the high court should be expunged as it affected her dignity and reputation which are essential part of right to life under Article 21 of the Constitution. A single bench of the high court had set aside the judgements passed by Lau as Additional District Judge of Tis Hazari district courts in four civil cases and made some adverse remarks. The ADJ had then filed intra-court appeals before a division bench seeking expunction of adverse remarks on various grounds. The division bench of the high court had taken strong note of certain words used in the appeals and prima facie made an opinion that they had scandalised the court and the proceedings and had ordered initiation of criminal contempt and departmental proceedings against her. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Madras High Court today reserved its orders on a batch of petitions challenging the disqualification of 18 AIADMK MLAs owing allegiance to sidelined party leader TTV Dhinakaran. The first bench comprising Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M Sundar reserved the orders without specifying any date. The MLAs were disqualified by Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker P Dhanapal on September 18 last year under the anti-defection law on a plea by the ruling party's whip after they had met the state governor and expressed their lack of confidence in the chief minister. The MLAs had met the governor on August 22, a day after then rival factions led by Chief Minister K Palaniswami and his now deputy O Panneerselvam merged after deposing Dhinaknaran as deputy general secretary. The verdict is crucial for the Dhinakaran faction as well as the ruling side engaged in a power struggle in the AIADMK. Dhinakaran had been claiming that a verdict favourbale to the MLAs would lead to the fall of the Palaniswami government. During the hearing of the petitions which commenced on November 16, senior counsels for the respondents including the speaker, the chief whip, and the chief minister defended the disqualification of the MLAs. The crux of their argument was that the MLAs had approached the governor with the intention to topple the government headed by Palaniswami and thereby attracted disqualification under the anti-defection law. Senior counsels Abhishek Singhvi and P S Raman who appeared for the petitioners among others have argued that the disqualification of the 18 MLAs was a premeditated ambush. The Speaker had passed the order based on irrelevant considerations, ignoring relevant considerations which was malice in law, Singhvi has contended. It was also argued that the impugned order was passed by the Speaker in gross violation of principles of natural justice. Senior counsel Ariama Sundaram, appearing for the Speaker, has argued that there was no haste, mala fide or perversity in Dhanapal passing the order. Another senior counsel C S Vaidyanathan, representing Palaniswami, has contended the courts do not have jurisdiction to hear an appeal against such actions of the speaker. Ridiculing the claim of the 18 legislators that they met the governor only to vent their grievances against the chief minister, he had wondered, "How can the governor of the state interfere in internal party issues?" Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing the AIADMK chief whip, has said the MLAs had failed to resolve the internal party issues by approaching appropriate intra-party platforms. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hemant Kumar Sharma, a 2002-batch IAS officer, has been appointed as the Divisional Commissioner of Jammu, an official order said today. The divisional commissioner's post fell vacant after the incumbent officer Mandeep Kumar Bhandari proceeded on central deputation earlier this month. "Commissioner Secretary Transport department Hemant Kumar Sharma, who was also holding additional charge of the post of administrative secretary, science and technology department, is transferred and posted as Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, against an available vacancy," the government order said. The order also noted that IAS officer M Raju, secretary to the government, Public Health Engineering, Irrigation and Flood Control department, would now hold the additional charge of the posts of administrative secretary, transport and science and technology department, till further orders. Bhandari was appointed as private secretary to the union minister for human resource development in the higher education department at the level of director for a period of five years. The state government has also transferred programme officer, Integrated Child Development Service (ICDS) Suriya Jabeen (KAS) and posted her as the additional district development commissioner Jammu against an available vacancy. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A joint module is being developed by the departments of education, police, panchayati raj and, women and child development to sensitise people about prevention of crime against women and children. The police, health and departments should periodically organise training programmes to sensitise their officials and teachers on this topic and ensure better coordination, state Woman and Child Development Minister Kavita Jain said here today. According to an official release, presiding over a meeting with officers of police, and, woman and child development departments, the minister urged the stakeholders to put maximum effort in prevention of crime against women and children. She also directed the officers concerned to conduct a survey of girls, children and women who are vulnerable to such incidents. The minister suggested that the department should consider incorporating remedial measures for the prevention of such crimes in school curriculum. Highlighting the importance of safety of both girls and boys, she said it is also important to make family and society aware about safety of children and various social organisations should come forward to achieve the objective. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has fixed April 17 and July 17 as time-limits for India and Pakistan respectively for the filing of the written pleadings by them in the Jadhav, 46, was sentenced to death by a Pakistani military court on charges of espionage and terrorism in April, following which India moved The Hague-based ICJ in May. A 10-member bench of the ICJ on May 18 restrained Pakistan from executing Jadhav till adjudication of the case. According to a statement issued by the principal judicial organ of the UN, the ICJ authorised the submission of a reply by India and of a rejoinder by Pakistan in the Jadhav case. "The Court fixed 17 April 2018 and 17 July 2018 as the respective time-limits for the filing of these written pleadings," said the statement issued last week. It said the ICJ made its decision taking into account the views of the parties and the circumstances of the case. Pakistan claims its security forces arrested Jadhav alias Hussein Mubarak Patel from its restive Balochistan province on March 3 last year after he reportedly entered from Iran. India, however, maintains that Jadhav was kidnapped from Iran where he had business interests after retiring from the Indian Navy. India is changing at an unprecedented pace and the results in the next 10 years will be "overwhelming", Union minister Suresh Prabhu said today. Prabhu, who is here to participate in the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting, was speaking at the India World Business Leadership Summit on the sidelines of the Davos event. The commerce and industry minister also met several global leaders and narrated India's growth story. He would present the India story at WEF sessions and in his other meetings tomorrow as well. Stating that India is seeing several big and positive changes today, he said, "just the thought of how much we will change in next 10 years is overwhelming". Prabhu also participated in a session on "readiness for the future of production". Talking about how small and big companies can collaborate to create win-win for all, he said that while small companies would know 'what to manufacture', large companies can add value in 'how to manufacture'. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi today told top CEOs here that India means business and presents exciting opportunity for the global businesses. Addressing a roundtable before a dinner meet, Modi narrated India's growth story. He was accompanied by top government officials including Vijay Gokhale, Jai Shankar and Ramesh Abhishek. Under the tagline of "India means business", the roundtable was attended by 40 CEOs of global companies and 20 from India. After the meeting, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted about Modi narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global business in India at Davos. The spokesperson also tweeted that the prime minister "hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies". Modi, who arrived in Davos on Monday evening, will deliver opening keynote address on Tuesday morning at the world economic forum annual meeting. Besides, he will also interact with the members of international business community of the WEF. Modi is the first Indian prime minister to attend Davos summit in 20 years. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (TH) is likely to be operational by December 2019, Union minister Nitin Gadkari said today. India, Thailand and Myanmar are working on about 1,400 km long highway that would link the country with Southeast Asia by land and give a boost to trade, business, health, education and tourism ties among the three countries. "Next year by the end of December, we will be in a position to get connectivity...We are giving highest priority to this (Indian-Myanmar-Trilateral Highway project). This will boost trade and ties among the nations in the region," the Union Road Transport and Highways Minister said here. The minister said there are 24 projects in Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal and ASEAN (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) connectivity and work is on in 14 to 16 projects. He said most of the projects were being funded by the ADB. Asked about the challenges in the project, the minister said, "There are some land acquisition and other problems... Tree felling is a big problem...We are finding out solutions." Last month, Gadkari said connectivity of projects such as the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, extension of TH to Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam Kaladan Multimodal Transit Transport Project are being planned and they are at different stages of implementation. He also said India has proposed USD 1 billion line of credit to promote sea, air and road connectivity projects with ASEAN besides setting up a project development fund of USD 77 million to develop manufacturing hubs in Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) AES India and Mitsubishi today began construction of India's first utility-scale energy storage system of 10 MW which would be ready this year. The system will serve electric grid operated by Tata Power Delhi Distribution Ltd and facilitate grid balancing and stability, TPDDL CEO and Managing Director Praveer Sinha said on the sidelines of ground braking ceremony of the project. TPDDL has about 7 million customers in Delhi region. Sinha said it will help regulators come out with norms for these services. "At present, there are directives about grid stability, reactive power and peak load management. But this will help sell these services on power exchanges at grid level." TPDDL is not investing in the storage project. AES, the India unit of US based AES Corporation, and Japan's Mitsubishi Corporation will own the Advancion storage solution, which is being supplied by Fluence. The solution is being deployed in Rohini, Delhi at a substation operated by Tata Power-DDL. Once completed, the 10 MW solution will enable better peak load management, add system flexibility and enhance reliability for more than 7 million customers in the Delhi region. AES Managing Director, Energy Storage Manish Kumar told reporters that the first utility scale storage system will help the sector to develop business models for it. Without divulging the details about the investment on the projects, Kumar said that a special purpose vehicles would operate this storage project. Fluence, an energy storage technology and services company owned by Siemens and AES, will supply its Advancion technology platform for the project. The storage process involves capturing of energy produced for using it later through an accumulator or battery. It converts energy into conveniently storable forms. Indias renewable energy sector is experiencing remarkable growth and India recently expanded its renewable energy target to 175 gigawatts by 2022. Deploying energy storage will help network operators mitigate solar and wind resources variability and reduce congestion on the regions transmission system, delivering more affordable, clean energy and enabling new sources of revenue from frequency regulation and other grid services. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) An Indian national has been arrested in Bangladesh for possessing contraband pills, police said. Lithon Marak, 33, from Meghalaya was arrested yesterday in Netrokona district on a tip-off, it said. "A total of 182 yaba tablets were found on him," a police officer said. Marak frequently sneaked into Bangladesh to sell the contraband, Bdnews.com quoted the officer as saying. Yaba or "mad drug" are tablets containing a mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine. Its side effects include long- term decline of cognitive functions. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Japanese investments into India have risen manifold in the last ten years to reach USD 4,709 million in FY2017, says a Ficci report. The FDI inflow from the island nation was at USD 84.74 million in the fiscal 2006-07, the report titled 'India Japan Roadmap Towards Realising Vision 2025' said. The report was released here today in the presence of Japanese ambassador to India Kenji Hiramatsu, India-Japan Business Cooperation Committee (IJBCC) Chairman Onkar S Kanwar, Ficci Secretary General Sanjaya Baru and other delegates from both the sides. Hiramatsu said the growth potential lies with the sectors like textile, infrastructure and medical in India. "There are about 1,309 Japanese companies in India and number is growing steadily. It will grow in the years to come," the ambassador told PTI on the sidelines of the event. He further said that he would like to congratulate the Indian government for "reforming the Indian economy (with legislations) like GST but we need to have more improvement of infrastructure". However, situations are improving and more and more companies are interested in doing business in this country because of the improvements and there is a lot more to come in the future, he added. Talking about the Japanese investment in the future, Kanwar said the amount is expected to double by the year 2025. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The opposition today staged a walkout from the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly over the issue of shelling by Pakistani forces in border areas and asked the government to respond to the "extraordinary situation" on the border. As the House assembled this morning, members of the National Conference and Congress raised anti-government slogans over government's alleged failure to protect the people from Pakistani shelling which has left 12 people including 7 civilians dead. Amid noisy scenes, NC member Ali Mohammad Sagar charged that the government was silent on large scale deaths of people in border shelling. "There is an extraordinary situation on the borders. Government should respond to the situation. Why are we allowing deaths of people", Sagar asked. Sagar said while BJP MP Jugal Kishore Sharma had recently claimed that Rs 450 crore was allotted by the Centre for construction of bunkers for border people, Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said they do not need bunkers and the need is to improve Indo-Pak relations to end ceasefire violations. "There is difference in the thinking of two coalition partners.I want them to clarify the government stand", he said. Another NC MLA Mian Altaf said government should pass a resolution impressing on the government to ensure measures to end border skirmishes. The leader of the Congress Legislative party Nawang Rigzin Jora lashed out at the government for "helplessly watching" the deaths and devastation of the people and their properties. "People are dying daily.Scores are getting injured. Government should take measure to end ceasefire violations", he said. However, BJP MLAs Ravinder Raina and Sat Sharma batted for passage of a resolution against Pakistan in the Assembly condemning the shelling. All this while the opposition continued to create a ruckus, which was countered by BJP members by raising "Pakistan Muradabad" slogans. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Abdul Rahman Veeri intervened, asking Opposition members to keep silent. On this Opposition members including Leader of Opposition Omar Abdullah staged a walkout from the house. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actors Jonathan Banks and Sophia Bush are the newest cast members of the computer- animated film, "Incredibles 2". Disney has also revealed the character details for the latest entrants, along with the previously announced stars, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Banks plays Rick Dicker, a government leader who helps the Parr family (The Incredibles) protect their superhero identities as the chief of Super Relocation Programme. But the family is left to fend for themselves when the division is shut down. Bush essays Voyd, a young Elastigirl fan who aspires to be a superhero and possesses the power of creating voids which allows objects to appear and disappear. Isabella Rossellini voice stars as Ambassador, an advocate fighting for superheroes to be legalised. The details of the earlier announced members, Bob Odenkirk and Catherine Keener, have also been shared. Odenkirk plays Winston Deavor, who leads a telecom company with his sister Evelyn Deavor, played by Keener. Winston is a superhero fan, who would like to help bring the superteam out of hiding by reforming public perception about them. Evelyn is a tech wiz. The plot will centre more around Elastigirl (Holly Hunter), who will be out saving the world once more while Mr Incredible (Craig T Nelson) is at home looking after their youngest child, Jack-Jack (Huck Milner). Although, the film takes the story forward, no leap will be shown and the plot will proceed right after the cliffhanger ending in the first. Samuel L Jackson and Sarah Vowell also reprise their roles, with original director-writer Brad Bird returning. The sequel to the 2004 film, "Incredibles 2", is set to be released on June 15. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Karni Sena's Navi Mumbai unit president Bhagvat Singh Rathod was among eleven activists arrested today in connection with the last night's protest on Sion-Panvel highway against the forthcoming release of the controversial Bollywood film "Padmaavat". Around 25 members of the Karni Sena had placed seven burning tyres on the highway between the Vashi toll plaza and Vashi village at around 8 PM, briefly disrupting the vehicular traffic towards Pune. A police official said the activists carrying sticks and stones, besides kerosene cans, had gathered near the toll plaza and started raising slogans against the January 25 release of the film. "They fled after placing the burning tyres on road," he said. The Vashi police, who had registered a case under various sections of the IPC, traced the activists through CCTV footage and technical evidence and picked them up. "The arrested persons included Karni Sena's Navi Mumbai unit chief Bhagvat Singh Rathod alias Rajveer Singh (50)," he added. All the accused were produced before a local court which remanded them in police custody till January 26. "Padmaavat", starring Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh, is based on the saga of the 13th Century battle between Maharaja Ratan Singh of Mewar and Sultan Alauddin Khilji of Delhi. Rajput groups are stridently opposing the release of the film claiming that its director Sanjay Leela Bhansali "distorted" the history and showed Rajput queen Padmavati in bad light. The filmmakers had denied the allegations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal today appealed to the Centre to bring an ordinance, if required, to protect properties of traders from getting sealed in the national capital. The chief minister also offered all cooperation by the Delhi government to the Centre to stop sealing drives being carried out by the BJP-led civic bodies since last month. A group of traders under the umbrella of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) today participated in a day-long bandh to lodge their protests against the ongoing sealing of business establishments. In a tweet, Kejriwal said that the sealing has hit traders very hard and if it is not stopped, a number of people will become jobless. "...Economic situation already grim. Sealing has hit traders very hard. It is our duty to protect them...," Kejriwal tweeted. The Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress have supported the day-long bandh against ongoing sealing of business establishments for alleged unauthorised constructions. "Traders are saying Modi Govt can bring Ordinance to stop sealing in Delhi. Intentionally delaying Ordinance to collect maximum money using threats of sealing(sic)," AAP's chief spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj tweeted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra Government is making arrangements for sending the body of a Kerala fisherman, who died on sea off the Maharashtra coast, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said today. "Ratnagiri collector already in touch with Thiruvananthapuram collector since yesterday afternoon. All necessary arrangements being done to transport body of Kerala fisherman," Fadnavis, who is in Davos for the World Economic Forum meet, tweeted. "Total 9 persons were on the boat. One lost life, 5 left with the boat and three (are) with the body," the chief minister said, in response to Congress leader and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor's tweet seeking help. Tharoor had tagged Fadnavis in his tweet yesterday saying that fisherman Rajumon's boat was near the Maharashtra coast, and sought help to bring the body onshore and transport it by air to Thiruvananthapuram. Tharoor posted an update today, saying Rajumon's body has been brought ashore at Ratnagiri and taken to a local government hospital. It will be transported to Thiruvananthapuram after autopsy, he said, thanking the Maharashtra government for co-operation. Rajumon, whose boat was fishing off the Maharashtra coast, died after suddenly taking ill, reports said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) K M Ashokan, father of Hadiya who is at the centre of an alleged love jihad case, today accused the Left-led Kerala government of supporting extremists in the matter. Hadiya had converted to Islam and married a Muslim man, much against her parents' wish. "There is nothing more to say about their (state government) stand on this issue. People are very well aware of it," Ashokan told Malayalam channels. "The state government is always having a mentality to support the extremists. That was visible from the very beginning in this case," he said. He alleged that even the Kerala Women's Commission took a stand against him and his family in the matter. Asokan, however, did not react to the Supreme Court's directive to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) today that it could continue with its probe into the alleged love jihad aspect, but cannot investigate the marital status of the man and the woman. The father had alleged that his daughter Akhila's marriage to a Muslim man was a case of "forced conversion". The girl had taken the name Hadiya after converting to Islam. In May, the Kerala High Court had annulled Hadiya's marriage and ordered her to return to live with her parents in Kottayam district of Kerala. In an interim order on a petition by her husband Shafin Jahan challenging the verdict, the Supreme Court on November 27 set her free from the custody of her parents and directed her to continue her studies at the Salem college, appointing its dean as her guardian. A Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra today said, "You (NIA) can investigate it (the alleged love jihad case) but you cannot investigate about their marital status". The top court also said that Hadiya, alleged to be a victim of love jihad, had appeared before it and specifically said that she married Jahan on her own. The bench also observed that it would examine whether the Kerala High Court was correct in annulling the marriage while hearing a habeas corpus petition. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A controversy has erupted after Kerala Governor P Sathasivam skipped portions critical of the Centre while delivering the policy address of the CPI(M)-led LDF government in the state assembly. The Opposition Congress has insisted that the debate on motion of thanks to the Governor for his address should be held by avoiding any reference to the portions skipped by Sathasivam. BJP praised the Governor for not reading the portions in his address delivered on the first day of the assembly session yesterday. In the printed copy of his address, prepared by the state government and distributed to legislators and media, there was a reference to the alleged tendency of the central government to "roughshod" the traditions of cooperative federalism by bypassing the state government. However, this portion was not read outby the Governor during his speech. "We are also perturbed by the tendency of the central government to roughshod the best traditions of co-operative federalism by bypassing the state government and directly dealing with the district authorities and local bodies," the text said. The governor also omitted the reference about the "plotting" by some communal outfits in triggering riots in the southern state. "Kerala has once again been identified as first in the country in maintenance of law and order and top the country in the ranking of quality of life. There has not been any instance of communal riot in our state despite the plotting by certain communal outfits," the copy of the speech said. Leader of the Opposition in the assembly Ramesh Chennithala, in a statement, had said even though the portions were in the printed copy, the Governor did not read them out. Not only that, the governor also did not say that all be taken as read, as was the normal practise in the assembly. In such circumstances, the skipped portions should not be taken up for discussion during the motion of thanks, he said. Chennithala said he had given a letter to speaker P Sreeramakrishnan in this regard. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had sought to play down the issue, saying the Governor not reading the portions had not come to his notice. He was responding to a question from reporters here. BJP state President Kumanam Rajasekaran and national executive member V Muralidharan praised the Governor for omitting the references against the central government. Earlier, when contacted, the Chief Minister's Office told PTI that they were not keen on making any comment on this issue. "We usually do not make any comment on the Governor's policy address," official sources said. In his speech, Sathasivam referred to campaigns by some "communal outfits" on the law and order situation of the state on both social and conventional media, in the past year. "Despite being a state with some of the best law and order indices in the country, a month long campaign was carried out across India, on certain flimsy grounds by some communal outfits," he said. However, people of the state en masse responded to this campaign featuring the hash tags, the Governor said. During the past one year, there had been "slanderous" attacks on the secular traditions of Kerala, doubts thrown on its social sector achievements and vilification of the law and order situation from various quarters, he said. In October last year, the BJP had taken out the much- hyped 'Janaraksha yatra' against the alleged 'red terror'. BJP national president Amit Shah, who participated in the yatra, had alleged that Kerala, under the CPI(M)-led LDF government, had become a fertile ground for 'jihadi terror'. He had also alleged that whenever the LDF government came to power, attacks against saffron party cadres increased in the state. Countering the BJP charges, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had alleged that the Janaraksha yatra had propagated "lies and false messages". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) In an effort to attract more visitors to the state from Europe, diversified products will be showcased by Kerala Tourism, which has set apart Rs 7.5 crore for promotional activities. Kerala Tourism minister, Kadakkampally Surendran, said the state's tourism department has activated a rigorous promotional campaign involving diverse products to promote the state in Europe as it holds the top slot in the list of high potential markets for overall tourism growth. Highlighting the growth of state tourism, Rani George, Secretary, Tourism and Culture, stated that through this promotional and marketing campaign, the state aims to double the foreign tourist arrivals by 2021, a press release said. The latest tourist arrival statistics have shown very "positive" signs of attaining this goal. As many as 10,18,986 new domestic tourists were added during the time period of January to September 2017 as compared to the same period of previous year. As a result, the domestic tourist arrivals have achieved more than the target set out by the State Tourism policy. Despite major changes in the tourism industry, including enhanced GST rates, the foreign tourist arrivals have also increased by 4.23 per cent during the same time period, she said. Under the promotional campaign in Europe 2017-18, Kerala Tourism has planned to utilise all forms of promotional tools under various categories, including television campaigns, Consumer Travel Mart and Kerala Blog Express. Director of Kerala Tourism, P Bala Kiran said under this campaign, the department has continued its focus on promoting the unexplored and pristine destinations of North Kerala such as Bekal, Kannur, Malabar, Wayanad etc. Kerala Tourism has planned a string of B2B Meets & Trade Fairs in order to attract the European vacationers to the state. The aim is to scale up the trade and tourism business of the state, while establishing new trade connections in the potential markets, he added. The second phase of the ambitious promotional campaign had commenced with the participation of Kerala Tourism in Vakantiebeurs, the tourism-leisure fair of The Netherlands, which would be followed by FITUR, the international tourism trade fair of Spain. The German cities of Dusseldorf and Hamburg would be the venues for the first road shows in Phase II. Kerala Tourism would participate in BIT, the international travel expo and road show at Milan in Italy from February 11-13. Last year, Kerala Tourism had launched 'Yalla Kerala' (Let's go Kerala) campaign with a budget of Rs 7 crore targeting West Asian markets such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain to attract Arab tourists to Kerala. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal today stressed the need to build larger dams in India for increasing river water storage capacity to meet demands of population growth,economic growth and sustainable development. Speaking after inaugurating the two-day 'International Dam Safety Conference-2018' here,he said it was estimated that it was possible to create total river water storage capacity of about 690 Billion Cubic Meters in India. Against this less than 300 BCM storage has been created by building dams in the country so far, Meghwal said. "Thus there is a need to construct more large dams to meet the demands of population growth, economic growth and sustainable development', the Minister for Water Resources and River Development said. Stressing the importance of dam safety and regular maintenance of existing ones, he said there was also an urgent need to safeguard each and every dam. "Most of the existing dams are considerably old. Close to 80 per cent of the dams are more than 25 years old', he said adding India has a total of 4,254 large dams and 447 are under construction. "Health and safety of dams are of paramount importance for the sustainable utilisation of this valuable assets, besides protecting lives, and property', he said. The Minister also said that many existing dams are facing various degree of inadequacies in meeting India's health and safety standards, if compared to developed nations. In this regard, the on-going World bank aided Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP) would have a second phase with a total outlay of Rs 9,000 crore to strengthen about 600 larger dams. Meghwal said 18 states have already given their proposal to be included in the second phase Underscoring the importance of dam safety, he said India also has the experience of dam failures in the past,resulting in loss of lives and property. Central Water Commission Chairman S Masood Husain said the current six year DRIP programme launched in 2012 at an estimated cost of Rs 2,100 crore was for rehabilitating 223 dams in seven states. "However, the first phase was extended for two years until 2020 to finish all of the programmed rehabilitation works with a revised estimate of Rs 3,466 crore," he said. Kerala Power Minister M M Mani said there was need to strengthen the safety of existing dams because of opposition from environmentalists to building new dams. State Water Resources Minister Mathew T Thomas wanted a review of existing guidelines and norms for safety of dams in the country. The Conference, jointly organised by the Central Water Commission, Kerala Water Resources Department and Kerala State Electricity Board, is being attended by a large number of dam safety experts from the country and abroad. Lead Dam Specialist, World Bank Satoru Ueda, President of International Commission of Large Dams Anton L Schleiss and Chief Executive Officer, Australian Water Partnership,Nicholas Schofield are among experts taking part at the meet. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court today set aside an order of the Punjab and Haryana High Court granting bail to a British national in an alleged murder case, observing there was no reason to accord special consideration for him just because he was a foreigner. The apex court also set aside the high court order granting bail to two other co-accused in the murder case lodged in 2015 on the ground of parity. While setting aside the high court's last year order, a bench comprising Justices N V Ramana and S A Nazeer said that as per the prosecution, British national Resham Chand Kaler along with others had allegedly indulged in criminal activity. "We see no reason to accord any special consideration for respondent no. one (Kaler) by virtue of a simple fact that he is a citizen of different country. The law under section 439 of CrPC (relating to grant of bail) is very clear and in the eyes of the law, every accused is the same irrespective of their nationality," the bench said. Kaler had initially moved the trial court seeking bail but his plea was rejected following which he had approached the high court which granted him the relief. The complainant in the case thereafter approached the top court challenging the high court's order. During the hearing before the apex court, the state had supported the plea of the complainant and argued that bail was granted to the accused against the "established tenets" under the bail jurisprudence. "Though the respondent no. one (Kaler) is not a citizen of this country (British national), yet the fact remains that he along with other persons has indulged in the criminal activity," the bench said. The top court also observed that it was unfortunate that the high court had not appreciated the facts of the case with "prudent legal perception". "For all the aforesaid reasons, the appeal is allowed. We, therefore, set aside the order of the high court granting bail to the respondent no. one (Kaler) and direct the concerned police authorities to take the respondent no. 1 into custody immediately," it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said today that his government will complete its term in alliance with the Shiv Sena. His comments came after the Shiv Sena said that it will have no truck with ally BJP in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly and Lok Sabha polls. However, the Uddhav Thackeray-led party was silent about its continuance in the governments at the Centre and in Maharashtra. "We will complete our term with Shiv Sena. Let's wait. They have been saying many things. As of now, we are in alliance in the government and this government will complete its term," Fadnavis told reporters in Davos, where he has gone to attend the World Economic Forum. "I am sure we will get another term as well," he said. The resolution to part ways with the BJP and go it alone in the elections next year was tabled by Sena MP Sanjay Raut at the party's National Executive meeting. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrakant Patil faced protests in his hometown Kolhapur today for singing a Kannada song. Karnataka and Maharashtra are locked in a bitter border dispute. Maharashtra claims the areas of Belgaum and Karwar, currently part of the neighbouring state, and the matter is before the Supreme Court. The minister, invited to a private function near Gokak in Karnataka, sang a Kannada song which drew the ire of leaders of Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti, which is fighting for inclusion of Belgaum and Karwar in Maharashtra. According to media reports, the song praises Karnataka and its culture. Incidentally, Patil, a senior BJP leader, heads a coordination committee set up by the Maharashtra government to find solution to the dispute. Some activists of Ekikaran Samiti today took out a protest march to Patil's house in Kolhapur, however, police stopped them some distance away, an official said. The minister told a channel that all he recited at the function were four lines of a Kannada song in praise of goddess Durga, and he saw nothing wrong with that. "I had gone to a village near Gokak for 'vastu-shant' of a Durga temple. When we visit another state, we say a few lines in the local language. So I said four lines in praise of goddess Durga. A non-issue is being turned into an issue," Patil said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee today criticized the Narendra Modi government for not declaring Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose's birthday a national holiday and said the freedom fighter is yet to get his due honours. The people of this country are still keen on finding out the truth about Netaji's disappearance, the CM said after offering floral tributes to the war hero at Red Road here on the occasion of his 121st birth anniversary. "The birthday of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose has not yet been declared a national holiday. Cannot we show this much respect to him? The state had announced public holiday on January 23 years ago," the CM said. If the ruling dispensation cannot honour Netaji, then it is best not to keep any expectation from them, she retorted. "The people of the country want to know what happened to him. There is a version which only a section believes," the CM said. Banerjee also used the occasion to hit out at the Centre for disbanding the planning commission. "Netaji had envisaged the formation of the planning commission but it was disbanded (by Modi government)," she rued. In a tweet last week, Banerjee had said she wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to declare the birth anniversaries of Netaji and Swami Vivekananda national holidays. Echoing similar sentiments, Governor Keshari Nath Tripathi today said it will be a good gesture on the part of the central government if it accepts the state's demand. "The state has already taken up the issue with the Centre. If the Centre considers it, it will be a good gesture," Tripathi said at a programme at Netaji Bhawan in south Kolkata. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 50-year-old man, suspected to be the kingpin of an interstate narcotic drug cartel, was arrested, and over 1 kilogram of heroin worth over Rs 4 crore was seized from him, police said today. On January 10, the Special Cell had arrested two men who revealed that they had procured the heroin from Riyaz and Farid, who in turn had got it from one Anwar alias Mama, they said. During investigation, it emerged that due to insurgency in the Naxal-affected areas in Jharkhand and West Bengal, these areas have become notorious for illegal cultivation of opium, the police added. Various modules of drug suppliers from Jharkhand and West Bengal were indulging in preparing crude heroin and also pure heroin from opium and supplying it to various parts of Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Punjab, Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, deputy commissioner of police (Special Cell), said. Drug suppliers of Bareilly and adjoining areas are bringing crude heroin from Jharkhand and West Bengal and further preparing pure heroin by processing, Yadav said. Police teams were sent to Bareilly and other places to nab the accused. Finally, Anwar was traced to Faridpur, Bareilly. On January 18, a police team reached his house in Bareilly to nab him, the police said. His family members tried to mislead the team and in a bid to escape, Anwar jumped from the terrace of his house into the nearby fields, injuring his legs, they said. He was arrested and 1.050 kg of fine quality heroin was seized from his possession. He was admitted to a hospital where he iss recuperating, the police said. He has been indulging in this illegal trade of supplying drugs for the last 15 years, the official said. Earlier, he procured heroin from drug suppliers of Bareilly and Badaun and supplied it to drug traffickers in UP, Delhi and Punjab, he said. After that he developed his own network of drug suppliers and started procuring big consignments of heroin from Jharkhand and West Bengal. He sent his carriers to remote areas of Jharkhand and West Bengal to get the consignments, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Death failed a 31 year-old man who attempted suicide but ended up falling on a car and damaging it. Having jumped off a flyover apparently irked at not being able to get married, Vasanth landed on the bonnet of a car, only to face a police case for his failed suicide attempt. The man suffered a fracture in his shoulder as a result of the fall and is recuperating at a government hospital, police said today. The damage to the vehicle included a broken windscreen. A police official probing the case said Vasanth was apparently dejected over not finding a bride, and suddenly jumped off a flyover here at Royapettah High Road on Sunday night. A dancer, Vasanth shouted aloud that he was committing suicide as he jumped off the bridge, the official said. "He, however, fell on a car below and landed on its bonnet, suffering a fracture in his shoulder," the police said. He was rushed to a government hospital where he is recuperating. Police have filed a case of attempt to suicide under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against Vasant and a probe is on. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Maharashtra government today denied in the Bombay High Court the allegations that the police in Malegaon had ordered the externment of a local 'gau rakshak' as they were opposed to his cow protection efforts. In an affidavit, the state government submitted that it had inquired into the allegations of Macchindre Shirke that he was being targeted because of his efforts towards cow protection. However, the inquiry revealed that Shirke had a criminal history and several serious cases were registered against him, the state government said. "The petitioner (Shirke) has several cases against him dealing with serious offences such as culpable homicide, theft and property feuds. However, because of the power he wields among the locals, several witnesses were hesitating to testify against him," said the affidavit, signed by Malegaon's sub-divisional officer. "Therefore, the police ordered that he stay away from the village for two years to ensure that they could question witnesses freely while probing the criminal cases against him," it said. As per the affidavit, when the local police approached the sub-divisional magistrate's office to initiate proceedings of externment against Shirke, an inquiry officer was appointed to probe the case. The officer also had to affirm whether the externment proceedings were justified. The inquiry officer also issued a notice to Shirke granting him a hearing before approving the proceeding. However, Shirke failed to appear before the officer, the state's lawyer told the court. "After going through the case papers, and the police and the inquiry officer's report, I was satisfied that the petitioner regularly indulged in criminal activities," the sub-divisional officer said the affidavit. He held much power in the local community and was disturbing the peace in an area (Malegaon) that has a substantial Hindu as well as Muslim population, it said. "He has at least nine cases of serious offences registered against him. Thus, the order of externment was justified and not at all excessive," the affidavit said. On the previous hearing, Shirke, 29, had alleged that he was a "gau rakshak", an animal lover who had "saved thousands of cows and its (sic) progeny." He had alleged that he was externed from his village in Malegaon as well as from the entire Nashik district for a year because he had had lodged over 40 FIRs against people involved in cow trafficking, smuggling and slaughter. He had urged the HC to quash the externment order. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A cobbler, reportedly being questioned by the NIA in connection with the killing of Punjab's Shiv Sena leader Durga Das Gupta, today allegedly committed suicide by jumping into the Sirhind canal in Fatehgarh Sahib district. Passersby saw Rampal (52) jumping in the canal and informed the police. His body was fished out about two km downstream, the police said. His family members claimed that the NIA wanted to make Rampal a witness in the killing of Gupta and and he was fed up with constant questioning by the investigating agency. On November 30 last year, the Punjab government handed over seven cases, including killing of right wing and religious leaders to the NIA keeping in mind the possible "national and international ramifications" of a conspiracy behind the targeted killings in the state. Gupta (28) was killed by two motorcycle-borne assailants in April 2016 at Lalhedi chowk in Khanna. Earlier, the state government decided to transfer the killing cases to the NIA as the modus operandi in all of these cases was the same. According to officials, it was found that inter-state as well as international perpetrators, handlers, actors and a militancy angle were involved in the criminal conspiracy, to disturb the peace and communal harmony in the border state, by selectively targeting leaders of certain groups. The Punjab government and the NIA has agreed that the probe needed to be more broad-based as the handlers, conspirators and financers in the targeted killing cases operated from countries such as the UK, Canada and Italy, officials said. The police had last year arrested five persons, including UK citizen Jagtar Singh Johal, in connection with the targeted killings of leaders of the RSS, Shiv Sena and other outfits in the state between January 2016 and October 2017. The seven cases handed over to the NIA include the April 2016 Khanna killing of Durga Das Gupta, the president of labour service wing of Shiv Sena, Punjab, the January 2017 killing of Amit Sharma the Zila Pracharak Hindu Takht in Ludhiana, the February 2017 killing of Dera Sacha Sauda followers Satpal Kumar and his son Ramesh Kumar in Khanna and the July 2017 killing of Christian Pastor Sultan Masih in Ludhiana. Other cases handed over to the NIA include January 2016 firing on an RSS Shakha at Kidwai Nagar and February 2016 firing on Amit Arora, Local Hindu Leader. The incidents took place in Ludhiana. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Delhi Medical Council (DMC) has sent the Max hospital twin baby case to its disciplinary committee and the hearing in the matter is likely to be held early next month, a senior official today said. The case pertains to a baby boy being wrongly declared dead after his birth on November 30 by the upscale private hospital in Shalimar Bagh. The other twin, a girl, was still-born. The infant boy died a week later at a nursing home in Pitampura. Meanwhile, source said, two of the doctors involved in the alleged medical negligence case, have been asked by the city police's Crime Branch, to join it soon for further investigation. "On January 16, the case was put up before our executive committee and then it was referred to the disciplinary committee. All the parties involved in the incident, the complainant, the doctors, the hospital, would be called for a hearing," the senior official told PTI. When asked how early the hearing was likely to happen, he said, "It should happen sometimes next month." Delhi Police early this month had said that it will proceed with its probe into the case only after receiving a reply from the DMC on whether there was medical negligence in the matter. "There have been reminders sent to the DMC to expedite its probe," a senior police official said. The DMC's executive committee has already formed an expert panel comprising paediatricians and gynaecologists that will prepare a report in the matter, the DMC official said. The DMC has already received replies from the nine doctors and two nurses of Max Hospital, Shalimar Bagh, who were issued notices last month for alleged medical negligence in connection with the case. The medical body had also sought a reply from the Max hospital and they have also submitted it. The case was transferred to the Crime Branch on December 6, the day the new-born boy died at a nursing home in Pitampura, after battling for life for a week. An official, privy to the probe, said in the first week of January, 10 people, who were connected with the case were questioned. "These included the doctor who had carried out the artificial insemination, a doctor couple who was involved in the treatment and the two doctors whose services were terminated by the hospital," he said. The police have also questioned the nurses and the security staff of the hospital and recorded their statements along with the doctors. In a statement, the Max Healthcare group said, "The police have clarified that they will await the DMC's report before finalising their findings. Their calling doctors for investigation is a standard procedure." "It will be appropriate to await the results of the DMC's detailed inquiry before forming any judgment on the incident," it said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Meghalaya Chief Minister Mukul Sangma is keen to contest from two constituencies in the Garo Hills region in the February 27 assembly election, state Congress election committee chief Celestine Lyngdoh said today. The committee met at the residence of the chief minister during the day to discuss the names of candidates for the ensuing assembly poll. Lyngdoh said that Sangma wanted to contest from his home constituency Ampati in South West Garo Hills district, besides Songsak in the Garo Hills. Congress sources said that the party was finding it difficult to get candidates in certain constituencies, especially those where the Congress MLAs had quit and joined the National People's Party (NPP) or the BJP. The Congress suffered a blow today as 42 party leaders in Resubelpara constituency in North Garo Hills district resigned and are likely to support an Independent candidate. Among those who resigned included presidents, secretaries and other leaders of the district, block and primary committees in the constituency, which is currently represented by former chief minister S C Marak. The entire district Congress committee has collapsed after the leaders quit, its president Chisal R Sangma said. Asked for the reasons for their resignation, he said that the sitting MLA has "neglected the the people". The Congress, which is fighting incumbency after being in power for almost 15 years, also witnessed desertions of key party members and workers in both the Khasi Hills and Garo Hills region. Earlier this month, five sitting legislators, including veteran Congress leader and former deputy chief minister Rowell Lyngdoh, joined the NPP. A former Congress minister, A L Hek, joined the BJP, while another Congress MLA had joined to the PDF. Meanwhile, the NPP has said that it would not put up any candidate in Ampati and would support the BJP candidate. "We are not putting up candidates in some seats and that includes Ampati," NPP state president W R Kharlukhi told PTI. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Raj Thackeray-led Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) today supported the January 25 release of Bollywood film "Padmaavat" whose scheduled screening has been stridently opposed by Rajput groups in some states. The MNS said the protesters should respect the decision of the Supreme Court which has cleared the decks for the release of the 13th Century period drama, directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Issuing a statement, MNS' film wing working president Shalini Thackeray said they would not let anybody prohibit the release of the movie in the Mumbai region. "If anyone tries to obstruct the release of 'Padmaavat' in Mumbai region, they will have to face the wrath of MNS workers," Thackeray said. "A movie is not a historical document and filmmakers are bound to take some liberty while making it. MNS had never objected the content of a movie but our objection was on employing actors from Pakistan," the MNS leader said. Thackeray said though many organisations had opposed Bollywood movie "Bajirao Mastani" in the past, the MNS did not obstruct its release. "We have taken a similar stand in the case of 'Padmaavat' as well," she stated. Thackeray also took a dig at the BJP over the Gujarat government's stand that the movie would not be allowed to hit the screens in the state, before the supreme court stayed the ban. "If the movie is not going to be released in the home state of the prime minister, one can imagine the worse scenario of law and order in other parts of the country," she said. Protests have been held by various Rajput groups, mainly in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, and Rajasthan, opposing the screening of the film. Despite the apex court upholding the freedom of expression in its order to stay the notifications issued by a couple of state governments banning the movie, fringe Rajput groups are still opposing its release. Many multiplexes have reportedly refused to run the movie fearing vandalism. "Padmaavat", starring Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh, is based on the saga of the 13th Century battle between Maharaja Ratan Singh of Mewar and Sultan Alauddin Khilji of Delhi. The Karni Sena has accused filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali of projecting queen Padmini of Chittorgarh in bad light and distorting history. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Sending out a strong message against protectionism and inward-focused economic policies, Prime Minister Narendra Modi today said such tendencies can be as dangerous as terrorism and climate change as he pitched for creating a "heaven of freedom" free from divisions. Modi, who became the first Indian prime minister to address the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual summit here in two decades, talked about grave concerns facing the world, including terrorism and climate change. In a nearly-hour long speech delivered in Hindi, the prime minister sought to hard sell India as an investment destination, saying those wanting wealth with wellness and peace with prosperity should come to the country. Seen as an apparent reference to policies like America First, especially since US President Donald Trump would be coming to Davos later this week, Modi said "many countries are becoming inward focused and globalisation is shrinking and such tendencies can't be considered lesser risk than terrorism or climate change". Protectionism is rearing its head and there is risk of new tariff and non-tariff barriers coming up, the prime minister said, as he mentioned that division is not the solution to this problem of anti-globalisation. Noting that in an interconnected world, globalisation is losing its lustre, the prime minister wondered "do global organisations created after the Second World War really reflect the aspirations and dreams of mankind today? With respect to the developing countries there is a very big gap". Asserting that India is proud of its democracy and diversity, Modi said the country has always contributed towards global peace as well as believed in values of integration and unity. Stating that terrorism is dangerous, the prime minister remarked that worse is when people say there is a difference between 'good' and 'bad' terror, besides noting that it is painful to see some youngsters getting radicalised. The prime minister also emphasised that a predictable, stable, transparent and progressive India is good in an otherwise uncertain global environment. "Let us create a 'heaven of freedom', where there is cooperation and not division, fractures," Modi told the gathering even as he stated that issues of peace, security and stability have emerged as serious global challenges. The theme of this year's summit is 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World' and referring to it, Modi said it was relevant for him as Indians have always believed in uniting and not dividing people. "There are many questions before us that require answer for generations to come. Is the existing international system promoting fractures and rift in this world? Can we remove these rifts and distances to make a good shared future?" the prime minister said. "We always talk about 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' (world is one family)," the prime minister said, adding that the problem today is lack of consensus to tackle the problems. Citing Mahatma Gandhi, the prime minister noted that Gandhi had said, "I don't want doors and windows of my house to be closed and I want winds of cultures of all countries to come inside but I won't accept it if that uproots my own culture". The prime minister also quoted Sanskrit shlokas to emphasise that "we are children of mother earth". Hard selling India as an investment destination at the WEF, Modi said the government is following the principle of reform, perform and transform and that the country is moving towards becoming a USD 5 trillion economy by 2025. "We have made it so easier to invest in India, manufacture in India and work in India. We have decided to uproot licence and permit Raj. We are replacing red tape with red carpet," he added. Modi held meetings with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands and various CEOs. On Monday, Modi met Swiss President Alain Berset and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties. "Together we can! Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Indian CEOs present at the WEF working hand in hand towards a brighter future for the country," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson tweeted with the hashtag IndiaMeansBusiness, the campaign being run by India in Davos this year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said today that most theatre owners in the state had voluntarily decided to not screen controversial Bollywood film 'Padmaavat' as he emphasised that the state government was trying its best to maintain law and order. The deputy chief minister's comments came on a day when Karni Sena leader Lokendra Singh Kalvi issued a veiled threat suggesting there could be violence if the Bollywood flick was released despite widespread opposition. "Most theatres have declined to screen the film, despite the green signal from the Supreme Court. They have taken the decision voluntarily. The government is trying its best to maintain law and order in the state," Patel told reporters in Gandhinagar. In Porbandar, Mahatama Gandhi's birthplace, Kalvi said that when so many people from all walks of life were standing firm against the film, it will be a "huge insult for all of us" if it releases on January 25. "I respect the ethos of non-violence propagated by Mahatma Gandhi. I too believe that non-violence is absolutely necessary. Therefore, do not compel us to take to the path of violence," he said. There were no violent protests against the film in Gujarat today. Surat police arrested 19 more persons, accused of holding violent protests against the film in the city two days ago, taking the number of arrests to 42. Surat saw violent protests on January 21. Yesterday we had arrested 23 persons. Today, 19 more were arrested, including the two who misbehaved with a woman police officer, said Surat Police Commissioner Satish Sharma. We have learnt that those arrested in connection with the violence in Katargam were members of Karni Sena, Mahakal Sena and Bhavani Sena, he said. "Though we have assured police protection to cinema owners, they have informed us that none of them will screen the film on January 25. They also told us that the decision as to whether to screen the film on a later date will be taken afterwards," Sharma said. The Supreme Court had on Thursday paved the way for the nationwide release of "Padmaavat" on January 25 by lifting the ban on the screening of the film in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Today, the Supreme Court refused to modify its order, rejecting pleas filed by Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh governments. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) BJD's Sambalpur MP Nagendra Pradhan today came down heavily on media persons as they rushed to him for a comment after taking statement of the district collector beforehand. Both the MP and the collector were present at a function marking birth anniversary of Veer Surendra Sai here. The media persons had to face the wrath of the MP because they sought his comments after they took the district collector's comments. Pradhan questioned the media persons why they took the reactions of the bureaucrat before him. Pradhan even asked the media, "Who is more important, a political representative or the bureaucrat?" The video of the MP losing control and going into rage has gone viral since. In the video, Pradhan asked the media persons whether the chief secretary is more important than the chief minister. He even said that they formulate law and the bureaucrats execute it. Pradhan also accused the media persons of going after the bureaucrats to get advertisement. Refusing to answer the queries of the media, he and said that he would not make any statement until the reporters apologised. When contacted, Sambalpur MP, Nagendra Pradhan, said that the media persons came to him after they took the reaction of district collector. "I told them that I would not give any reaction. It is not mandatory for me to give reaction," he said. Pradhan also said, legislative, media and executive should work within their prescribed limits. The Sambalpur Press Club has condemned the behaviour of the Sambalpur MP. The President of Sambalpur Press Club, Deepak Panda said Pradhan's behaviour was unfortunate adding that media persons are not government servants. A journalist takes the reactions as per his/her convenience and as time permits. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Myanmar blamed Bangladesh today for delays to a huge repatriation programme for Rohingya refugees, as the deadline passed for starting the return of the Muslim minority to strife-torn Rakhine state. More than 680,000 Rohingya fled to Bangladesh after a brutal Myanmar army crackdown began last August, while a further 100,000 fled a previous bout of violence in October 2016. Myanmar agreed that from January 23 it would start taking them back from the squalid camps in the Cox's Bazar district of Bangladesh where they have sought shelter. But a Bangladeshi official said Monday the programme would not begin as planned. Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammad Abul Kalam said there was much more work to be done. The complex process of registering huge numbers of the dispossessed has been further cast into doubt by the refugees, who are too afraid to return to the scene of what the UN has called "ethnic cleansing". Myanmar authorities are also accused of drawing out the process by agreeing to take back just 1,500 people a week. It has prepared two reception camps on its side of the border. Myanmar officials said that by Tuesday afternoon no Rohingya had crossed back into Rakhine, the scene of alleged widespread atrocities by Myanmar's army and ethnic Rakhine mobs. "We are right now ready to receive... we are completely ready to welcome them according to the agreement," Kyaw Tin, Minister of Cooperation told reporters in Naypyidaw, Myanmar's capital. "We have seen the news that the Bangladesh side is not ready, but we have not received any official" explanation, he added. National Security Adviser Thaung Tun said "it is our hope that this will commence today as agreed." With hundreds of Rohingya villages torched and communal tensions still at boiling point in Rakhine, rights groups say Rohingya returnees will be at best corralled into long-term camps. Those who return must sign a form verifying they did so voluntarily and pledging to abide by Myanmar laws. Myanmar has sent a list of more than 1,000 "wanted" alleged Rohingya militants to Bangladesh, while headshot photos of the suspects have been widely circulated inside the country. In a sign of the tensions attached to the repatriation issue, a second Rohingya leader was killed in Bangladesh camps on Monday -- allegedly after endorsing the returns programme. Bangladesh, one of Asia's poorest countries, has been besieged by an influx of Rohingya since communal violence flared in 2016. Dhaka has tried to use the global outcry over the crisis to press Myanmar into taking back the refugees before they settle -- joining an estimated 200,000 Rohingya stuck in Cox's Bazar camps since a previous bout of violence in the 1990s. Highlighting the strong cultural bonds between India and ASEAN countries, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today said there is a need to propagate this "special relationship" amongst the youth of both the regions. There are mainly two things that connect India with ASEAN, one is Buddhism and the other is Ramayana, Swaraj said. "From the Government of India's side, we would like to institutionalise the relationship through a permanent mechanism so that the youth of ASEAN countries can partake our cultural and religious ethos and become true ambassadors of India in their countries," said the External Affairs Minister. The minister also said that India cannot become a member of ASEAN because of geographical reason as this grouping is of South East Asian nations while India lies in the South Asia. Swaraj was addressing the India-ASEAN Youth Awards function here. She also highlighted the strong cultural ties that bind India and the ASEAN countries. Swaraj said the cultural bonds between India and ASEAN countries were centuries old and the "onus was on us to propagate this special relationship amongst the youth in both the regions". ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) is a multilateral body whose member countries include Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) New Chief Election Commissioner Om Prakash Rawat today defended the poll panel's decision to recommend the disqualification of 20 AAP MLAs of Delhi for holding office of profit days before his predecessor A K Joti demitted office saying had it not been done, the matter would have remained "open" for re-hearing. Asked whether there is a 'trust deficit' with regard to EC after the decision to delay Gujarat polls and the recent disqualification of AAP lawmakers, he said he does not "subscribe to that view. I feel that in our working, this kind of expression of adverse opinion is not indicative of trust deficit". He told PTI that the AAP MLAs were issued two notices by the EC but their response was not in the context of the notice served on them. Refusing to comment further on the controversy, he said the matter is now before the Delhi High Court. He said three commissioners -- Nasim Zaidi, AK Joti and he himself -- had heard the case. "The commission works either on unanimity or majority. When Zaidi retired, there was only one commissioner. The commission felt that this won't be decided unless the second commissioner is on board so they requested me and I came on board," he said. Rawat had recused himself after AAP leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had questioned his neutrality. He said again a situation came up when Joti was retiring on January 22 (yesterday) and he would be alone and the matter would remain open for re-hearing. "So either you decide or you leave it open. Already it had taken over two years," he said. The president had signed on the opinion of the EC on Saturday last disqualifying the AAP MLAs. On AAP's allegations, that its MLAs were not given a chance to respond by the EC before they were disqualified, he said the Commission had issued them two notices. "They responded. But it was not in the context of the notice. The notices were very comprehensive -- whatever you want to say, whatever want to give... Only thing is that since this matter is sub judice, we should not be talking about his any further," the CEC said. To a question on whether the EC should have heard the matter at all as the AAP had already moved the court, Rawat said, "unless there was a stay, EC had no restriction in hearing the AAP matter." "Politics is the art of possible and they work on those lines. Whereas, EC has to get 360 degree information on every issue and decide every issue objectively. So we are doing whatever is befitting to us, they are doing whatever is befitting to them." He said the poll panel is working for public perception of absolute neutrality, impartiality and commitment to the cause of free and fair elections. Asked whether it was unfair on part of Kejriwal to question his neutrality he said, he would pass a "value judgement." "It is a learning process, you keep on learning nuances of different environment" Every event makes you wiser," he said. He said the poll watchdog is concerned about section 126 of the Representation of the People Act which bars campaigning and display of election material 48 hours prior to poll as there have been report that many people unknowingly did it through social media. Such people, he said, have become liable for prosecution. The commission took note of it and dug out records of 2014 Lok Sabha and 2015 Bihar polls. When it was revealed that a large number of people are being criminalised, the commission set up a committee to recommend changes to the law ministry. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A new hunt for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 using high-tech underwater drones has started, officials said today, in the latest bid to solve one of the world's greatest aviation mysteries. A ship operated by exploration firm Ocean Infinity arrived at the search area in the Indian Ocean yesterday and launched the drones, said Malaysia's Department of Civil Aviation director-general Azharuddin Abdul Rahman. "The vessel Seabed Constructor has arrived at the search area and commenced the search operation," he said in a statement. The jet disappeared in March 2014 with 239 people -- mostly from China -- on board, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. No sign of the plane was found in a 120,000 square kilometre sea search zone and the Australian-led hunt, the largest in aviation history, was suspended in January last year. Ocean Infinity struck a deal with the Malaysian government to restart the hunt on a private basis and will only be paid if it finds the jet or its black boxes. It stands to make up to USD 70 million if successful. The new search zone is an area of about 25,000 square kilometres in the southern Indian Ocean, north of the former search area. The hunt will last a maximum of three months. If the company finds the Boeing 777, the amount it is paid will depend on where it was located. If it is found within the first 5,000 square kilometres, the firm will receive USD 20 million. The amount rises gradually to a maximum of USD 70 million if the jet is found outside the 25,000 square kilometre search zone. The ship conducting the hunt is a Norwegian research vessel carrying 65 crew, including two members of the Malaysian navy as the government's representatives. It is using eight autonomous drones, equipped with sonars and cameras, that will scour the waters for wreckage and can operate in depths up to 6,000 metres (20,000 feet). The families of those who were on board will be kept up to date on the hunt, authorities said. Only three confirmed fragments of MH370 have been found, all of them on western Indian Ocean shores, including a two-metre wing part known as a flaperon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The international airport at Guwahati will soon offer passengers world class amenities at its swanky new integrated terminal building, which is set for inauguration next week, the AAI said today. Expanded and modernised at an investment of Rs 1,232 crore, the new facility will be inaugurated jointly by Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju and Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal on January 28, a spokesperson of the Airports Authority of India (AAI) told PTI here. The existing building at the AAI-run Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport at Guwahti currently handles 3.8 million passengers annually against a designed capacity of 3.5 million passengers. "Considering the rapidly growing air passenger traffic to and from Guwahati, which is the gateway to the ASEAN region, besides to the north-east of the country, the airport has been developed as an inter and intra-regional hub," the spokesperson said. The airport handled 3.8 million passengers last fiscal, logging a 36 per cent growth over the 2015-16 period, he said. A mini-ratna category Public Sector Undertaking, the AAI at present manages 129 airports -- 98 domestic, 23 international and eight customs -- pan India. Spread over an area of 90,000 sq mt as against 16,800 sq mt of the existing structure, the new integrated facility will have a handling capacity of 3,100 passengers per hour, including 200 international ones, the AAI said. Besides, it will have 64 check-in counters, 20 self check-in kiosks ((CUSS) as well as 16 counters - eight for immigration and an equal number for customs - for a seamless boarding process. In addition to this, the AAI has also provided for six arrival carousels, 10 aerobridges and 20 aircraft parking bays at the facility, the spokesperson said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The majority of the 182 newly-elected MLAs of Gujarat today took oath in a ceremony held at the state secretariat in Gandhinagar. They were administered the oath by protem Speaker Nimaben Acharya. The new Speaker of the 14th Assembly would be elected during the upcoming Budget session, scheduled to begin on February 19, an official release said. Among those who took oath were Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, his deputy Nitin Patel, Leader of Opposition Paresh Dhanani and other MLAs, it said. Out of the total 182 MLAs, around five to six legislators could not attend the function due to various reasons, said ruling BJP's chief whip Pankaj Desai. "All those who were absent today can take the oath in the protem Speaker's office till February 17," said Desai. The new government headed by Rupani was sworn in on December 26 last year at a ceremony attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP top brass. In the 182-member House, the BJP, which won the sixth straight term in the closely-contested polls, holds 99 seats, followed by the Congress (77). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Naga Mothers' Association (NMA) today urged political parties not to contest the February 27 Nagaland Assembly polls and demanded a solution to the insurgency problem first. NMA secretary Lochumbeni Humtsoe said the Naga public wanted a solution and not election, and it was imperative for all Nagas to resolve the issue. She told a rally here organised by the Naga Students' Federation that the aspiration of the Naga mothers was of permanent peace that will bring change and unity. She said, "Naga people are against holding of elections. NMA has also submitted a memorandum to the prime minister to postpone the electoral process for sometime". The Naga Students Federation along with apex tribal bodies and civil societies staged the rally here demanding solution to the Naga issue. NSF president Kesosul Christopher Ltu said, "The Naga peace process vis-a-vis political dialogue is an issue which is going to determine our future". He claimed that all mass based Naga organisations had appealed to the Centre for solution and not election. The Naga Hoho, an apex Naga tribal body, earlier in a memorandum to the Prime Minister said, "It is the unanimous view of the Naga people that the political solution or Naga peace accord is more important than elections and therefore, it has become imperative that the elections to the legislative assembly of Nagaland be deferred for peace and tranquillity". Naga Hoho general secretary Mutsikhoyo Yhobu said "20 years of peace process is very long, but Nagas have been patiently waiting for a settlement, which will be honourable and acceptable to both the Naga people and the Centre". "Let us stand up to strengthen our movement showing our resentment," he said. BJP national general secretary, in-charge of Nagaland, Ram Madhav had stated that assembly election would have to be held as there are constitutional obligations which cannot be avoided. "The peace process between Government of India and the NSCN(IM) has progressed to a great extent. We need a government that will be helpful in finalising the framework agreement," he has stated in Dimapur yesterday. The insurgent group NSCN-IM's key demand is to integrate Naga-inhabited areas of Arunachal Pradesh, Assam and Manipur, which has been strongly opposed by the BJP-ruled states. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Calm prevailed along the Line of Control and the International Border today with no fresh ceasefire violation by Pakistan reported since yesterday. The lull in firing came as a relief for border residents who have been forced to flee their homes in search of safety. Twelve persons, including five security personnel, have been killed and over 70 others injured in intense shelling by Pakistan along the IB in Jammu, Kathua and Samba districts and LoC in Poonch and Rajouri districts last week. "There is no ceasefire violation reported from anywhere along the IB and the LoC since yesterday, police and BSF officials said. The situation along the borders is peaceful but tense, they said. The ceasefire violations by Pakistan started on January 18 and continued unabated all along the 449 km stretch from Kathua to Poonch-Rajouri till5 amyesterday. Hundreds of border dwellers have migrated from their homes and are camping in relief centres set up by the government at various places. Officials said security forces are maintaining a close vigil and patrolling has been intensified all along the border to scuttle any infiltration attempt by terrorists to disrupt Republic Day celebrations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Shiv Sena said today it will have no truck with ally BJP in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly and Lok Sabha polls, but was silent about its continuance in the governments at the Centre and in the state, drawing ridicule from the Congress which dubbed the announcement as "laughable". The Sena, which has been routinely attacking the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in the state over a variety of issues--from demonetisation and GST to the plight of farmers and cross-border assaults by Pakistan-- also said it would now contest elections outside Maharashtra. Shiv Sena leader Uddhav Thackeray, who was re-elected as party president today, said it did not contest elections outside Maharashtra to ensure the Hindu votes do not get divided, but would try its luck in all Assembly polls in future, irrespective of the outcome. The resolution to part ways with the BJP and go it alone in the elections next year was tabled by Sena MP Sanjay Raut at the party's National Executive meeting. "I move the resolution for the Shiv Sena to fight the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls on its own in 2019," Raut said while tabling the document, which was adopted unanimously. "The BJP allied with the Sena in the name of Hindutva and the Sena kept its patience for Hindutva. However, the BJP in the last three years has been demoralising the Sena and using power to do so," Raut said. The opposition Congress and NCP taunted the Sena for the announcement, and asked why it continued to be part of the BJP-led dispensations. Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant termed the Sena's decision "laughable" and "illogical". "The Sena remains an ally in the government, and continues to be critical of its policies. The party has scored a century of announcements to pull out of the government which it has not done so far. The people do not take the Sena seriously," he said. NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik demanded that the Sena withdraw from the BJP-led state government and face mid-term polls. "We are ready for elections," he said. The fear of defection from its ranks is stopping the Shiv Sena from pulling out of the government, Malik alleged. "The party is unable to come to terms with being the younger brother in the alliance with the BJP," the NCP leader said. Thackeray, while addressing the party's National Executive, slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for flying kites with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu instead of focusing on insurgency-hit Jammu and Kashmir. The BJP government was spending money only on advertisements, Thackeray alleged, and said such a dispensation should be brought down. "Why did you have to take the Israeli PM to Ahmedabad? What purpose did it serve? The nation would have been proud of you had you taken him (Netanyahu) to Srinagar and hoisted the tricolour there or taken him to Lal Chowk and hoisted the flag there," said Thackeray. This government, he said, spends money on advertisements but seemingly nothing on the actual implementation of schemes and should be brought down if it was doing so. "If killing a cow is a crime and is banned, then speaking lies for power should also be considered a sin and be stopped," he said. Thackeray also took up the issue of Modi's indication during the Gujarat poll campaign that Pakistan was trying to influence the results of the Assembly election. "Today, we do not know if the country is going forward or backward. The environment in the country is such that Pakistan has become an election issue. The neighbouring country was also brought in for Gujarat elections... there is no co-relation between the two," Thackeray said. The situation became such that Pakistan had to formally ask India not to drag it in its internal issues, he said. Thackeray said that despite Modi's promise of 'acche din', soldiers were sacrificing their lives every day and their mutilated bodies were being brought to their native places and consigned to flames. "However, we just give talks about teaching Pakistan a lesson every time. Once and for all, take concrete action rather than just talk," Thackeray said. He also slammed Union minister Nitin Gadkari for his recent remarks about defence personnel. If Gadkari does not want to accept their demands, the BJP should also not take credit for the surgical strikes, he said. Gadkari had on January 11 said that "not an inch" of land would be given for Navy housing in south Mumbai, wondering why all its personnel wanted to stay in the posh area when they should be at the Pakistan border. Gadkari had made the remark while voicing his disappointment at the Navy's objection to a floating jetty plan at Malabar Hill in south Mumbai, where a floating hotel and seaplane service are planned. Thackeray said, "If you say you are the government and the Army personnel should go to the border rather than make demands, why did you take undue credit for the surgical strikes? Did you even go to the border then?" "People are saying you came to power by indulging in scams. The Army not just has a 56-inch chest, but valour as well," he said. The Sena and BJP contested the last Lok Sabha poll together but went their separate ways in the Maharashtra Assembly polls following dispute over seat-sharing. Though they came together again to form the government, the bitterness endures. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The ruling Naga People's Front (NPF) today decided to reinstate its ties with the BJP and also go to the February 27 assembly polls in Nagaland with T R Zeliang as its chief ministerial candidate, a party release said here. The decision was taken at an emergency meeting of the Central Executive Council (CEC) of the NPF held today. The NPF had severed ties with the BJP on July 18 last year but its central office-bearers had on January 15 referred the matter to the CEC. The BJP had been in alliance of the NPF since 2003. The NPF meeting, which was attended by Zeliang and party president Shurhozelie Liezietsu, said that the alliance was being reinstated "as desired by different sections of the people" and was "taken to protect the constitutional rights of the citizens at a time when there are misunderstandings from within the party", the release said. It said considering the urgency to create a congenial atmosphere for the ongoing political dialogue between the Centre and the Naga organisations for the Naga political solution, the CEC resolved to maintain the earlier status of having an alliance with the BJP. The committee also appealed to the NSCN(K) to "listen to the voice of the people", resume the ceasefire with the Centre and join the political dialogue. The NPF CEC also endorsed a resolution of the Nagaland assembly on the solution to the Naga political issue before election which was adopted on December 15 last year. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Personnel of National Security Guard (NSG) will be deployed for the first time here from today till January 27, as part of security arrangements for the Republic Day, police said. "At least 25 platoons of police force would take care of the law and order situation during this time, and would be led by a team of 150 officers," Commissioner of Police Y B Khurania told reporters. In addition, the specialised Quick Action Force Team (QAFT) of the commissionerate police would also remain deployed in the city during this period, he said. The security arrangements are being made as per a direction from Ministry of Home Affairs, based on intelligence inputs, Khurania said. He said the commissionerate of police, Bhubaneswar -Cuttack has decided to put the venue for the Republic Day function at the Mahatma Gandhi Marg under CCTV surveillance to maintain a strict vigil. Meanwhile, police teams have been formed for conducting spot checks at bus stands, railway stations and other sensitive places in the city. The 12-member commando team of NSG would be engaged on duty near the VVIP sitting place at the Mahatma Gandhi Marg during the Republic Day celebration, a senior police officer said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) O P Singh, a 1983-batch IPS officer, assumed office as the Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police today. Singh, who arrived here this morning, was received by officials at the airport. "The new DGP has taken over the charge and will be interacting with the media later in the day," DGP, PRO Rahul Srivastava said. Singh was relieved as the CISF chief on Sunday. The post of the UP DGP has been lying vacant for over a fortnight after Sulkhan Singh retired on December 31. Singh, a gallantry medal winner, had been heading the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) since September, 2016 and is given the credit for ushering in some major changes in the work profile and operations of the force, especially in the aviation sector. Under his initiative last year, the force did away with the traditional system of putting tags on air passengers' hand baggage, a move seen as a major game changer in the airport security domain. He also initiated simpler flying procedures for specially-abled passengers after talking to representative groups of such passengers. CISF provides security cover to nuclear installations, space establishments, airports, seaports, power plants, sensitive government buildings and heritage monuments. Singh, before heading the CISF, has served as the chief of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). He led his men from the front in a number of relief and rescue operations, including the massive earthquake in Nepal in April, 2015. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Odisha today paid rich tribute to freedom fighter Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on his 121st birth anniversary and Veer Surendra Sai on his 209th birth anniversary. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik offered floral tribute to Netaji at his statue in Cuttack, where he was born, this morning. "My heartfelt tribute and salutations to the great freedom fighter, exemplary patriot and son of Odisha, #Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on his birth anniversary. His undying love for the motherland and courage and sacrifice for countrys freedom continues to guide us in Nation-building," Patnaik said in his twitter post. Patnaik also said that the dedication of Veer Surendra Sai towards freedom struggle and protection of tribal interests will inspire the state. Union Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan paid his tributes to the freedom fighters. "I salute Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose on his birth anniversary. Netaji was an icon of our freedom struggle, his valour and sacrifice is an inspiration for all of us," Pradhan said. "My homage to the great revolutionary and freedom fighter Veer Surender Sai on his Birth anniversary," Pradhan said. Several functions were held, including by the state government to celebrate the birth anniversaries of the two nationalist leaders. Netaji was born in Cuttack on this day in 1897 and Surendra Sai at Khinda village in Sambalpur in 1809. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A screening of 'Padmaavat' will be held in the Rajasthan High Court after the controversial film's director Sanjay Leela Bhansali, who is seeking the quashing of an FIR against the movie, agreed to it. Bhansali's counsel, however, requested that adequate security measures should be put in place during screening of the film in the court. Acting on the plea, Justice Sandeep Mehta directed the government to ensure adequate security measures for the screening. During the last hearing, the court had ordered for arranging a screening of the film before arriving at any conclusion on the allegations that the movie distorts historical facts. Bhansali's counsel Nishant Bora said that they were ready to arrange the screening of the film in the court. However, he expressed apprehension over the possibility of law and order disturbance. The court then directed the public prosecutor to arrange for adequate security. The public prosecutor sought time to arrange for security. Mehta adjourned the hearing for the case till February 2. The court will then decide the date for the screening of the film. The case pertains to an FIR filed by two persons named Virendra Singh and Nagpal Singh with Deedwana police in March last year, alleging that the film has distorted historical facts and hurt the image of queen Padmavati. Challenging the FIR,Bhansalihad moved the court to get it quashed. The high court had then stayed the FIR, but had allowed the investigation in the matter to continue. The Supreme Court had earlier paved the way for the all- India release of "Padmaavat" on January 25 and stayed notifications and orders issued by Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat -- all ruled by the BJP -- prohibiting exhibition of the film in their states. The apex court had also restrained other states from issuing any such notification or orders banning the screening of the movie. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Pakistan's Supreme Court today barred from leaving the country a top police officer who has been put under suspension after a probe committee found him guilty of staging a fake encounter and killing a budding model along with three other suspected Taliban militants. Senior Superintendent of Police Rao Anwar and another policeman were suspended after an uproar on the social media as friends and relatives of Naqeebullah Mehsud, 27, who hailed from North Waziristan, disputed the claims that he was a commander of the outlawed Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP). The committee found that Mehsud had a shop in Sohrab Goth area in North Waziristan and was looking for a career in modelling and acting. Mehsud and three militants were gunned down by a raiding party led by Anwar on January 13 on the outskirts of Karachi with the police claiming that they were all TTP members. Victims' relatives and friends shared several Facebook pictures, showing him as a dashing man fond of modelling and frequently posting his status. The Supreme Court took a suo moto cognisance of the killing as a three-member probe committee of Sindh province concluded that Mehsud was innocent. A court official said that the Supreme Court ordered Anwar's name to be placed on the Exit Control List (ECL) after reports emerged that he tried to sneak out of the country this morning but was stopped. "The court also summoned him on January 27 in the case," said the official. Meanwhile, Additional Inspector General of the Counter- Terrorism Department (CTD) Sanaullah Abbasi, who headed the probe team, told the victim's grieving tribesmen that Mehsud was innocent. "This was a fake encounter in which an innocent man was killed. Whoever was involved will be brought to justice," Abbasi said, urging the tribesmen to remain calm as they have been camping in Karachi since last week to press for justice. Police also registered an FIR against Anwar and seven other police officials after the victim's father filed a formal complaint, police said. Earlier, Karachi's East District police chief Sultan Khawaja said that police will register an FIR as soon as Mehsud's family lodges a complaint. Anwar and his police party were suspended by Sindh's Inspector General A D Khowaja. He was also removed from his post as the senior superintendent of police, Malir district of Karachi. Anwar initially insisted that Mehsud was a terrorist and refused to appear before the probe committee, alleging that its two members were biased against him. But he changed his stance later and told media that the victim could be innocent. "There is sometimes collateral damage. Innocent people are also killed in aerial bombing," he said. Anwar, who started his career as a Sub-Inspector of Police in 1980s, slowed moved up. Known as a fearless and brash police officer, Anwar earned the name of "encounter specialist". He once boasted in a media interview of bumping of more than 150 suspects in encounters and raids. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi will participate in the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos from tomorrow where he will project Pakistan as a prime destination for business, investment and trade. The prime minister will participate in a number of important events and hold bilateral meetings with key world leaders and CEOs of 15 leading multinational organisations from the US, Europe, China and Japan. During his two-day stay, Abbasi will interact with heads of states and governments in a special session of the Informal Group of World Economic Leaders (IGWEL). He will also participate in a WEF session titled 'the Belt and Road Impact' tomorrow, the Foreign Office said in a statement. Pakistan is part of Chinas high-profile Belt and Road initiative, which focuses on improving connectivity and cooperation among Asian countries, Africa, China and Europe. Abbasi is attending the forum on the invitation of WEF founder and executive Chairman Klaus Schwab. "Participation of the Prime Minister in WEF Annual Meeting 2018 provides an opportunity to project Pakistan as prime destination of business, investment and trade, the Foreign Office said. It said he will showcase Pakistans upward economic trajectory and its huge potential and will provide the opportunity to meet a number of world leaders in an informal setting and share views on different issues. Pakistan is facing mounting pressure from the US to take action against against terror groups and dismantle their safe havens. US President Donald Trump has accused Islamabad of giving nothing to the US but "lies and deceit" and suspended about USD 2 billion in security aid to it. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Patna University administration today ordered an inquiry into holding of lewd song and dance programme, during Saraswati Puja celebrations yesterday, at one of its constituent college. The matter came to light today when a number of channels flashed video footage showing skimpily clad dancers gyrating lasciviously to the tunes of bawdy numbers at the Saraswati Puja function held inside the premises of Bihar National College. PU Vice Chancellor Ras Bihari Singh, who visited the college after taking note of the incident, told reporters "we are shocked by the incident. Permission was sought from authorities for holding a late night function in the name of Devi Jagran". "The college principal has been directed to conduct a thorough inquiry into the incident and strict action will be taken against those found guilty of wrongdoing", the Vice Chancellor said. The incident has tarnished image of Patna university which is celebrating its centenary celebrations. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today ordered for the immediate release of pending old age pensions, with strict instructions to regularise payment to beneficiaries, an official release said. The chief minister issued the directives at a meeting to review various schemes of the Department of Social Security and Women and Child Development here, it said. Expressing concerns over the non-payment of pension at many places since April 2017, Amarinder hoped that the process of payment would be regularised by March, with directives to ensure the payment for December was released by January 31. Stating that the government was burdened with a liability of nearly Rs 110 crore per month on account of pension arrears, the chief minister directed the department to start releasing the arrears in a staggered manner, the release said. Singh also directed the department to sort out the cases of absentee beneficiaries at the earliest, so that all eligible people were included in the list, which stood at 16,24,269, against the earlier 19,87,196, it said. A proposal to implement the electronic benefit transfer scheme to ensure timely and smooth payment of pension to the beneficiaries was discussed at the meeting, it added. In another decision, Amarinder ordered to get the latest specifications, including colour, for free bicycles being distributed to girls, with no photograph of the chief minister, in contrast to the existing practice of having the CM's picture on the specially coloured blue and saffron bicycles. The issue of the vacant Group A, B, C and D posts for the disabled in all government departments was also discussed, and the chief minister was apprised that 287 of the 899 vacancies had been filled so far. Amarinder ordered the remaining vacancies be filled by April 30, the statement said. The progress of the Accessible India Campaign (Sugamya Bharat Abhiyaan), launched by the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan), Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, was also discussed at the meeting. The campaign was aimed at achieving universal accessibility for Persons with Disabilities in Built environment, Transportation system and Information and communication system. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to utlise the amount mobilised from transfer of about 480 acres of FACT land in Kochi to KINFRA for modernisation and expansion of the sick central Public Sector Undertaking. A letter in this regard was sent to Prime minister today. The unutilised land of FACT has been transfered to Kerala Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation (KINFRA) for setting up a Rs 1,800 crore Petrochemical Park. An MoU in this regard was signed in December 2017 by the Kerala government and Fertilisers and Chemicals Travancore. The park is aimed at making Kochi a hub in petrochemical production chain on par with Jurong in Singapore and industrial complexes in South Korea. The fertilisers ministry had decided to utilise the amount for clearing the liablities of FACT and tax arrears. Once these dues are cleared, there will not be any resource left for revamping of the fertiliser company, an official press release said. FACT's rehabilitation is already under the consideration of the Fertilisers and Chemicals ministry. Hence, necessary instructions should be given to the concerned ministry to utilise the entire amount derived from the transfer of land for the expansion and modernisation of the PSU, the release added. The Chief minister also wanted Modi to either write off the loan amount of the centre or convert the same into shares of FACT. The Petroleum park project, being developed by KINFRA,will foster an for industries that use the by-product of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL). (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi today left this ski-resort town after attending the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual summit and meeting many world leaders and chief executives. In his plenary address, Modi talked about serious challenges and grave concerns facing the world, including terrorism. In a tweet, the prime minister said the WEF has truly distinguished itself a premier forum for deliberations on vital global issues. "This year's @wef theme, 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World' is thought provoking. It compels us to discuss ways to create a better future for our coming generations," Modi said in another tweet. Modi also became the first Indian prime minister to attend the summit in two decades. Among the world leaders, he met his Canadian counterpart Justin Trudeau, Queen Maxima of the Netherlands and Swiss President Alain Berset. More than 3,000 world leaders from business, politics, art, academia and civil society are attending the annual meet, where the Indian presence is the largest ever with over 130 participants. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold nine bilateral meetings with leaders of Southeast Asian countries on the sidelines of the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit with a focus on key areas of counter-terrorism, security and connectivity. In an unprecedented event, all the ASEAN leaders will also be the chief guests at the Republic Day parade. Modi will hold parleys with Vietnam prime minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, president of Philippines Rodrigo Roa Duterte and Myanmar's State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi tomorrow itself after their arrival here for the summit on January 25. The prime minister will hold bilateral talks with the leaders of Thailand, Singapore and Brunei on Thursday, ahead of the summit. Modi will also hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of Indonesia, Laos and Malaysia on Friday. The highest-level of participation at the summit, to mark the 25 years of Indo-ASEAN ties, comes in the backdrop of increasing Chinese economic and military assertiveness in the region. Some experts feel that the meet can be an opportunity for India to present itself as a powerful ally to these countries in the strategic areas of trade and connectivity. There will be a leaders' retreat during which the leaders will have a "free and frank" discussion on January 25. The theme of the retreat session is 'maritime cooperation and security'. Following the retreat, a plenary session will take place on the same day. ASEAN comprises Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Myanmar (Burma), Cambodia, Laos and Brunei. In the run-up to the summit, various programmes in different areas ranging from culture to trade have been organised by India. According to officials, before the summit, discussions are also being held between the working groups of India and ASEAN to step up air and maritime connectivity. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bihar Governor Satya Pal Malik and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar today paid tributes to nationalist leader Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose on his 121st birth anniversary. They took part in the function organized at the historic Gandhi Maidan where they garlanded a life-size portrait of the legendary freedom fighter. At a function held at Sadaqat Ashram, the state Congress head quarters, BPCC acting president Kaukab Qadri said that despite differences between Netaji and Mahatma Gandhi both had the common aim of ridding the country of the British. Leader of the Opposition in the state assembly Tejashwi Yadav also paid tributes to Bose. "His exemplary love for the motherland and courage, bravery, sacrifice and legacy will continue to inspire generations of Indians forever", he tweeted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Abdul Subhan Qureshi is being interrogated in Delhi by police teams from various states, who were on the lookout for the Indian Mujahideen founder wanted in several cases of terror, officials said today. Qureshi, who was also known as 'India's Osama bin Laden', was the main conspirator of the 2008 Gujarat serial blasts that claimed over 50 lives. He was arrested from Ghazipur area by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police last week following a brief exchange of fire. Qureshi alias Tauqeer is the co-founder of the Indian Mujahideen (IM) and also linked to the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). A senior officer privy to the probe that police teams from Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, have come here to interrogate him. He was in Saudi Arabia between 2015-2017 to raise funds for the revival of the IM. An officer said that he has gained training to mislead investigators during interrogation. Qureshi even claimed that he was not in touch with SIMI or IM operatives but police suspect that he could not have been planning IM's revival without touching base with his associates. Police are probing the source of his funding and will also be probing whether he was also in touch with ISIS since many of his associates had foreign contacts. Qureshi, one of India's most wanted terrorists, had executed the 2008 Gujarat serial blasts that claimed over 50 lives, as he wanted to do "something spectacular" to avenge the arrest of his associates. He had earned the moniker 'India's Osama bin Laden' as police forces of many states and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) were on the lookout for him. He was wanted by the NIA in connection with its probe into the December 2007 Wagamon SIMI arms training camp case. A reward of Rs four lakh had also been announced for his arrest. The Maharashtra Police was also on the lookout for him for his alleged role in the blasts that rocked Mumbai in July 2011. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Prateik Babbar and writer- director girlfriend Sanya Sagar are engaged. The duo, who was dating since past one year, formalised their relationship at a ceremony at Sanya's farmhouse in Lucknow. The roka ceremony was attended by the couple's immediate family members, including Prateik's father Raj Babbar, his aunts (late mother Smita Patil's sisters) and Sanya's parents. Prateik issued a statement, sharing the of his engagement. "I have always been a very guarded person when it involves my private life. Infact I went down on one knee and proposed to Sanya at Time Out 72 music festival in Goa in December and no one knew about it till she brought it up with her parents. "Since my grandfather passed away last year, we wanted to keep the festivities low key and hence will plan the wedding only next year," he said. Calling the engagement the happiest day of his life, Prateik said Sanya has brought a lot of stability in his life. "Yesterday was the happiest day of my life as Sanya brings a lot of stability and fortune into my life and I am someone who has always endorsed the idea of wedlock and brood," the actor said. The couple has known each other for eight years now, but got together only in 2017 after Sanya returned from London in January having completed a year-long post-graduate course from Goldsmiths, University of London, with specialisation in filmmaking. She has worked as a production assistant on the Danny Huston-starrer, "The Last Photograph", and as a production runner on the Salma Hayek short, "11th Hour". Prateik is planning to hold separate functions in New Delhi, Lucknow and Mumbai post the nuptials in 2019. On the professional front, the 31-year-old actor is set to return to the silver screen this year with two big ticket projects, Ahmed Khan's "Baaghi 2", co-starring Tiger Shroff and Disha Patani and Anubhav Sinha's social thriller "Mulk" with Rishi Kapoor and Taapsee Pannu. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Aspiring playwrights from the city will get a chance to present their productions at the prestigious Prithvi Theatre as a part of a collaboration between the British Council and Government of Scotland. Titled "Class Act", the project, in association with Creative Scotland, will have new works from 60 new generation playwrights based out of Mumbai, as a part of the celebrations of the Council's 70 years in India. "Class Act" is being conducted by Rage Productions in partnership with the Traverse Theatre from Edinburgh at the Prithvi Theatre today and tomorrow. The project saw the participation from 12 schools with five students each undergoing a two-week training on playwriting. At the end of the workshop, 20 of their original scripts, mentored by acclaimed professional playwrights from Scotland and India, directed by a mix of accomplished Scottish and Indian directors and performed by professional actors from Mumbai will be staged over these two days with 10 plays per day. "We are excited to bring the Class Act to Indian students, which will not only encourage creativity amongst young writers, but also provide them with a platform to develop and showcase their talents. "British Council's creative arts programmes not only allow individuals to celebrate their unique creativity but also unlock greater career choices by nurturing and developing the artiste within," Helen Silvester, Director-West India, British Council, said in a statement. "Class Act" has been delivered by the Traverse Theatre, Edinburgh, across 25 successful years, working with young people across the central-belt of Scotland, and even reaching Moscow and Ukraine. Through the programme, young people are mentored by professional playwrights to develop and write their own scripts for the stage. Following a process of creative workshops, the finished plays are performed by a professional company. Talking about the partnership, actor Shernaz Patel of Rage Productions, said, "We at Rage have been championing new writing for the past 15 years through our playwriting project Writers' Bloc. "We are therefore thrilled to be partnering with the Traverse for this absolutely unique project. We are certain that this initiative will, in the long run, lead to a new generation of playwrights. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Ahead of the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Padmaavat' on January 25, prohibitory orders have been imposed here till Sunday to maintain law and order situation, in view of Shree Rajput Karni Sena threatening to target theatres screening the film. There are over 40 multiplexes and cinema halls in Gurgaon. Karni Sena has been the most vociferous of the fringe groups opposing the period drama, alleging that historical facts were distorted in the movie. However, the Haryana government has said that it would implement the Supreme Court order that allows the screening of the movie. Gurgaon Deputy Commissioner Vinay Pratap Singh said, "Section 144 of the CrPC has been imposed in view of release of the 'Padmaavat' in various cinema halls and multiplexes on January 25 as there is likelihood of law and order disturbance." "Following imposition of Section 144, there is prohibition on presence of people carrying firearms and other articles capable of causing injury, raising slogans and exhibiting placards within 200 meters radius of the cinema halls and multiplexes from January 23 to January 28," Singh said. Shree Rajput Karni Sena patron Lokendra Singh Kalvi had said they would not allow the screening of the film. During a meeting with the people of his community at Rajput Vatika here yesterday, he had said, "We were not directed by the Supreme court. The apex court directed all state governments and not us. We are free to take our own decision and will protest against the screening of the film." "If screening of the film is not stopped, members of our community will not stop from demolishing screens in theatres," Kalvi had said. The Supreme Court had earlier paved the way for the all- India release of "Padmaavat" on January 25 and stayed notifications and orders issued by Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Gujarat -- all ruled by the BJP -- prohibiting exhibition of the film in their states. The apex court had also restrained other states from issuing any such notification or orders banning the screening of the movie. The movie, which was earlier titled "Padmavati", will now be released worldwide on January 25 with the new title suggested by the censor board. Starring Deepika Padukone as Rani Padmavati, Shahid Kapoor as Maharawal Ratan Singh and Ranveer Singh as Alauddin Khilji, the film was slated for release on December 1 last year but was postponed as the makers had not got a certificate from the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), or the censor board, till then. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Protests against the hike in bus fares in Tamil Nadu continued across the state for the fourth day today as the main opposition DMK petitioned the Chief Minister K Palaniswami, seeking its rollback. College students held protests in different parts, including Chennai, Karur, Coimbatore, Thanjavur and Tiruchirappalli, with several of them boycotting classes opposing the government move, police said. After a hiatus of six years, the state government had on January 19 hiked ticket fares of buses operated by state run transport corporations and private entities by about 20 to 54.54 per cent. Commuters continued to throng railway stations as several felt travel by trains "was cheaper" compared to bus fares. Public also demanded that more trains be operated on various shorter distance routes connecting local junctions. DMK Working President and Leader of Opposition in the state assembly M K Stalin wrote to the Chief Minister demanding rollback of the fare hike, saying it affected all sections of the society. He cited as "mere excuse" the government's defence that the increase was effected due to a host of factors including rise in fuel price, maintenance cost, salaries and pension and purchase of new buses to increase efficiency. Stalin suggested measures such as streamlining the administration of transport corporations, operating buses on profitable routes and using advertisement for revenue generation to make them economically viable. Instead of using such 'practical' measures, hiking fares would not ensure stability of transport corporations, he added. The fare hike had severely impacted various sections of the society including office-goers and would further affect people already facing general price rise, the DMK leader said. Stalin had earlier condemned the hike and accused the Palaniswami-led government of being "sadist". The government has hiked fare across categories such as moffusil, city, ordinary, express, ultra deluxe, Volvo and air conditioned buses. The hike which came into effect from January 20 has triggered protests from day one with people hitting the streets at many places besides venting their anger on social media platforms against the "steep revision". Termed as 'inevitable' by the government, the increase came in the wake of the recent eight-day strike by a section of transport employees unions in the state over wage revision. The agitation had severely affected public sector transport. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The following are PTI's top stories at 8 pm: STORIES ON THE WIRE Foreign:FGN34 WEF-LD PMClimate change, terrorism grave concerns: PM Modi at WEFDavos: Narendra Modi became the first Indian prime minister to address the World Economic Forum (WEF) here today during which he talked about "serious" challenges and "grave concerns" facing the world, including terrorism. By Barun JhaFGN39 WEF-PM-INDIAN CEOSModi meets Indian CEOs with 'together we can' messageDavos: Prime Minister Narendra Modi today met a group of Indian CEOs at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting here, as India presented a collective pitch for showcasing the growth story of the country. By Barun JhaFGN8UN-INDIA-LD PAKNo mediation on Kashmir unless both parties agree: UN chiefUnited Nations: UN chief Antonio Guterres has ruled out any mediation to resolve the Kashmir issue unless all parties agree to it and asked India and Pakistan to address their outstanding issues through talks amidst heightened tensions along the border. FGN36 US-2NDLD SHUTDOWN Trump signs funding bill, ends 3-day US government shutdown Washington: Claiming a "big win", President Donald Trump today signed a bill to end a three-day government shutdown after striking a deal with Democrats to hold a debate on the future of over 700,000 young undocumented immigrants. By Lalit K Jha FGN3 OLY-NKOREA Seoul envoys visit N Korea to prepare pre-Olympics events Seoul: A South Korean delegation crossed into the North today to inspect venues for joint Olympic-linked events, even as controversy over the rapprochement mounted and Pyongyang condemned demonstrators who burned Kim Jong-Un's image as "traitors". (AFP) Legal: LGB1 MH-HC-SOHRABUDDIN-PIL Sohrabuddin case: CBI to oppose PIL over Shah's discharge Mumbai: The CBI today said it will oppose the PIL filed in the Bombay High Court against the agency's decision not to challenge a lower court order discharging BJP president Amit Shah in the Sohrabuddin Shaikh alleged fake encounter case. LGD12 SC-PADMAAVAT (Lead expected) SC refuses to modify order allowing release of 'Padmaavat' New Delhi: The Supreme Court today refused to modify its earlier order which had cleared the decks for the nationwide release of 'Padmaavat', saying people must understand that orders of the top court have to be "abided with". LGD14 SC-LD MARRIAGE Love jihad: SC concerned about adult's choice to marry someone New Delhi: The Supreme Court today made it clear that the National Investigation Agency cannot probe the marital status of a Kerala man and a woman, alleged to be a victim of 'love jihad', saying it was concerned about the choice of an adult to marry someone. LGD18 DL-HC-LD AAP DISQUALIFICATION Office of profit: AAP MLAs move HC against disqualification New Delhi: The Delhi High Court will tomorrow hear fresh petitions filed by 20 AAP MLAs challenging the Centre's notification against their disqualification as legislators for holding office of profit. Nation DEL26 MH-SENA 2NDLD POLLS No truck with BJP for LS, Maha polls, says Shiv Sena; draws opposition ridicule Mumbai: The Shiv Sena said today it will have no truck with ally BJP in the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly and Lok Sabha polls, but was silent about its continuance in the governments at the Centre and in the state, drawing ridicule from the Congress which dubbed the announcement as "laughable". DEL33 ASEAN-PM-BILATERALS PM to hold 9 bilateral meetings on sidelines of ASEAN meet New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold nine bilateral meetings with leaders of Southeast Asian countries on the sidelines of the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit with a focus on key areas of counter-terrorism, security and connectivity. DEL38 BIZ-ASEAN-JAITLEY FM invites ASEAN nations to invest in India's infra, services New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley today invited ASEAN nations to invest in India, especially in infrastructure and services, saying the country is getting globally integrated in terms of trade and investments. DEL21 CBI-LD COAL CBI begins probe into Rs 487 cr coal import scam New Delhi:The CBI has begun a probe into an alleged scam of Rs 487 crore related to over-valuation of inferior quality of coal imported from Indonesia which was passed on to NTPC and Arvali Power Corporation as superior quality in collusion with officials. DEL29 DL-HRD-LD DARWIN Darwin theory row: Javadekar tells Singh to refrain from 'such comments' New Delhi: Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar today said he had asked his minister of state Satyapal Singh to refrain from making comments on issues such as Darwin's evolution theory. DEL23 POL-CPM-IMPEACHMENT CPI(M) begins efforts to bring impeachment motion against CJI New Delhi: The CPI(M) today kick started its efforts to rally opposition parties for bringing an impeachment motion against Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dipak Misra in Parliament. DEL37 DL-AAP-LD CEC AAP attacks Rawat on his first day as CEC New Delhi: Chief Election Commissioner O P Rawat was targeted by the AAP on his very first day in office today with the party terming as "false" his claim that the Delhi MLAs, disqualified on charge of holding office-of-profit, did not seek hearings on the issue. DEL5 ITX-POLITICAL-CASH Do not donate over Rs 2k in cash to political parties:I-T dept New Delhi: The Income Tax Department today cautioned people against indulging in illegal cash transactions including donating more than Rs 2,000 to political parties. DEL17 BIZ-LD STOCKS Mkt juggernaut continues; Sensex scales 36,000, Nifty tops 11K Mumbai: Domestic equities continued euphoric run for the fifth straight day riding a wave of optimism, with the BSE Sensex surging past the 36,000-level and the NSE Nifty breaching 11,000 for the first time ever following IMF's GDP forecasts for India coupled with positive global cues. DES9 UP-RAPE-BLOOD LETTER Rape victim writes in her blood to Modi, UP CM for justice Raebareli: Desperate to get justice for the wrongs done on her, a rape victim has reportedly written a letter in her blood to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath, demanding action against those responsible for her state. DES6 UP-DALIT GIRL BURNT ALIVE Dalit girl burnt alive in UP Pratapgarh: A 19-year-old Dalit girl was burnt alive allegedly by a father-son duo in Lalganj area, police said today. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rahul Gandhi and the BJP today locked horns over inequitable distribution of wealth in India, with the Congress president asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to tell people in Davos why one per cent of the country's population has 73 per cent of its wealth. The BJP hit right back, saying it was the result of Gandhi family's patented "poverty perpetuation" governance model. "Dear PM, Welcome to Switzerland! Please tell DAVOS why 1% of Indias population gets 73% of its wealth? Im attaching a report for your ready reference," he tweeted. Gandhi, who put out the tweet addressing the prime minister, also tagged a report quoting an Oxfam survey which said the richest 1 per cent cornered 73 per cent of wealth generated in India in 2017. Reacting sharply to Gandhi's tweet, BJP spokesman GVL Narsimha Rao took to Twitter, saying, "Dear @OfficeofRG This inequality is the disastrous consequence of your family's patented Nehru Congress's "Poverty Perpetuation" Model of Governance by which only Congressis became rich." He termed Gandhi's comment a case of pot calling the kettle black. Rao said in the last three-and-a-half years the Modi government has tirelessly worked towards inclusive growth, and taken a number of pro-poor intiatives such as Jandhan Yojana and Ujjawala Yojana. While 'garibi hatao' (eradicate poverty) was merely a slogan for Congress, for the BJP 'sabka sath, sabka vikas' (collective efforts, inclusive growth) is its model of governance. Modi today adressed the plenary session of WEF at Davos. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congress President Rahul Gandhi will kick start his campaign for the coming assembly polls in Karnataka on February 10. During his three-day visit, the first after being made All India Congress Committee chief, he will address a mega conference and conduct a road show. "Rahul Gandhi will be touring Karnataka for threedays on February 10, 11 and 12," state Congress Chief GParameshwara told reporters here. Speaking after meeting district leaders, legislators and in-charge Ministers of districts where Gandhi is expected to tour, he said "the plan is to organise a mega conference in Hospet." "The plan also includes travel by road in a bus along with party leaders, during which he (Rahul) may interact and address people at various places, leading up to Kalaburagi where he will halt. From there he will go to Bidar before leaving for Delhi," he added. Assembly elections in Karnataka are scheduled early this year. Eyeing a return to power, the ruling Congress in Karnataka has embarked on a series of state-wide tours. The first phase, which got underway on December 13 last year, saw Chief Minister Siddaramaiah tour about 124 constituencies, predominantly represented byCongress MLAs, to launch a series of government programmes. A team led by Parameshwara set out on a tour to remaining 100 odd constituencies that are not represented by the party in the current assembly. In the second phase,all state Congress leaders,including the Chief Minister are together expected to go on a state-wide tour from the first week of March. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rajasthan Governor Kalyan Singh today said that doctors should be sensitive towards patients and should not let differences with government affect them. Speaking at the convocation programme of the Rajasthan University for Health Sciences (RUHS) here, Singh said that doctors may have a difference with system or the government but this should not lead to inhumanity and they should be sensitive towards patients. He said that doctors are regarded as God and when the doors of hospitals are closed for even one day, it becomes troublesome for patients and their families. The governor said that the doctors should not be disinclined to their duty despite numerous of their own problems and should always serve patients. He also conferred gold medals and degrees to meritorious students of the university in the presence of vice chancellor Rajababu Panwar and others. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court today asked the Centre to take a decision within three months on a 2016 letter by Tamil Nadu government seeking its concurrence on releasing seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. The letter written on March 2, 2016, had said that while the state government has already decided to release the seven convicts, it is necessary to seek the Centre's concurrence as per an apex court order of 2015. A bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi, A M Sapre and Navin Sinha allowed the application moved by the seven convicts and asked Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand to take a call on the letter of the state government within three months. Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for Tamil Nadu government, also supported the demands of the convicts and said the Centre should respond to the letter. Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on the night of May 21, 1991 at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu by a woman suicide bomber, identified as Dhanu, at an election rally. Fourteen others, including Dhanu herself, were also killed. This was perhaps the first case of suicide bombing which had claimed the life of a high-profile global leader. Advocate Prabhu, who appeared for the seven convicts -- V Sriharan alias Murugan, T Suthendraraja alias Santham, A G Perarivalan alias Arivu, Jayakumar, Robert Payas, P Ravichandaran and Nalini, said they have been in jail for 25 years now and have remained stuck between two governments. He said the convicts in their application were seeking a direction from the court to Centre to take a call on the letter written by state government either way. Prabhu argued that the first letter written by the state government in February 19, 2014, seeking to remit the life sentence of seven prisoners after 23 years of their custody has now become infructuous as it had only sought an opinion. After the constitution bench verdict in 2015, the "concurrence" of Union of India was necessary, he said. Prabhu contended that in March 2016, the state government's letter sought the Centre's concurrence for remission of the sentence of the convicts, but the Union of India has not taken a decision over it till now. He said even the review petition filed by the state government against the constitution bench verdict of 2015, has been dismissed last year. The Supreme Court had on February 18, 2014, commuted the death sentence of three convicts Murugan, Santhan and Perarivalan citing inordinate delay by the executive in deciding their mercy plea. A day after on February 19, 2014, the then J Jayalalitha government in Tamil Nadu wrote a letter to then UPA government at the Centre seeking its opinion on the remission of the sentences awarded to all the seven convicts. Instead of giving its opinion, the Centre had rushed to the Supreme Court claiming itself as the competent authority to decide on remission and not the state government, under the provisions of the Code of Criminal Procedure. The apex court on February 21, 2014, passed an interim order and stayed the release of all seven convicts in the case and referred the matter to a five-judge constitution bench. The Centre had asserted that the killers of former Prime Minister did not deserve any mercy as the assassination was the result of a conspiracy involving foreign nationals. The Tamil Nadu government, on the other hand, had said that the states have power to grant remission under the law and trashed the accusations that its decision to release the seven convicts was "political and arbitrary". On December 2, 2015, the constitution bench held that the Centre has "primacy" over state's right to grant remission and its "concurrence" is necessary before freeing the convicts in certain cases. On February 8, 2017, the top court dismissed the pleas of the Tamil Nadu government and one convict A G Perarivalan alias Arivu seeking review of its judgement. After Gandhi's assassination on May 21, 1991, the probe was transferred to a Special Investigation Team of the CBI on the request of the Tamil Nadu government. The SIT had chargesheeted 41 accused including 12, who died in the blast and three who were absconding before a TADA court in Chennai. The prolonged trial culminated in 1998, when the TADA court sentenced 26 of the accused to death. In May 1999, the apex court upheld the death sentence of four, including Murugan, Santham, Perarivalan and Nalini, commuted the death sentence of three to life, and freed the remaining 19. In April 2000, the Tamil Nadu governor commuted the death sentence of Nalini on the basis of state government's recommendation and an appeal by former Congress president Sonia Gandhi. The death sentence of remaining three convicts were commuted in February 2014, by the apex court on the ground of inordinate delay of eleven years in deciding the mercy petitions. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Naga Students's Association along with apex tribal bodies and civil societies today staged a rally here demanding solution to the Naga political issue before the Nagaland Assembly election on February 27. The rally was spearheaded Naga Students's Association, apex students body in the state. The Naga Hoho and Naga Mothers' Association (NMA) also participated in the rally. On January 18, the Election Commission had announced that election to the 60-member Nagaland Assembly would be held on February 27. Speaking in the rally, NSF president Kesosul Christopher Ltu said "the Naga peace process vis-a-vis political dialogue is an issue which is going to determine our future and if I and you do not have our say on this matter who else will?". He claimed that all mass based Naga organisations had appealed to the Centre for solution and not election. "Prior to the Election Commission declaring the election to the state Assembly, all the mass based Naga organisations voiced out in unison appealing upon the Centre for solution and not election. However, it all fell to deaf ears and creating room to seriously doubt the sincerity of the Centre," he said. NMA secretary Lochumbeni Humtsoe said every Naga wants peace through solution of the Naga issue. The aspiration of the Naga mothers is for permanent peace that will bring change and unity, she said. She said "Today, Naga people is against the holding of election in Nagaland, NMA has also submitted a memorandum to the prime minister to postpone the electoral process for sometime till the peace talks is resolved". Naga public wants solution and not election and it is imperative for all Nagas to resolve the issue as Naga issue is more important than election, she said. The NMA secretary urged upon the political parties and aspiring candidates to refrain from contesting the elections by not filing the nominations to demonstrate that Nagas are serious and we want solution not election. Naga Hoho general secretary Mutsikhoyo Yhobu said "20 years of peace process is very long, but Nagas have been patiently waiting for a settlement, which will be honourable and acceptable to both the Naga people and the Centre". "Let us stand up to strengthen out movement showing our resentment," he appealed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Congress's Rajasthan unit chief Sachin Pilot today alleged that the state government and the Centre have failed to provide adequate compensation to farmers for damaged crops which has caused resentment among them. The opposition party leader also sought a clarification from chief minister Vasundhara Raje over what he described as "discrimination" by the central government despite the BJP being in power both at the Centre and in Rajasthan. Pilot said this while addressing public meetings in Mandalgarh assembly constituency of Bhilwara district, which along with Ajmer and Alwar Lok Sabha constituencies, is going to bypoll on January 29. He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced relief packages for Gujarat and other flood-hit states but Rajasthan was ignored. "Rajasthan has faced drought, hailstorm and excess rains which damaged crops but the government failed to provide adequate compensations to affected farmers," he said. "More than 1,500 villages were affected due to floods last year but no relief has been provided to affected people so far," he alleged. "There is resentment among farmers because they have been ignored by the government," Pilot said, claiming "the BJP government has no interest in resolving problems of people therefore public at large is suffering." Addressing the public meetings in Mandalgarh, the Congress president sough votes for the party candidate Vivek Dhakad. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Five motorcycle borne miscreants today shot at a staff of a car showroom here and looted Rs 10 lakh from him when he was going to the bank to deposit it, police said. The incident occurred near Tilka Manjhi chowk when the man alighted from his bike. The five miscrenats were waiting at the spot and shot at him before decamping with the bag containing the money, senior superintendent of police Manoj Kumar said. The man was admitted to Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College and Hospital, Bhagalpur and then sent to Patna for treatment, he said. Police are trying to identify the miscreants with the help of CCTV footage, the SP said. An FIR has been lodged with Tilka Manjhi police station based on the statement of showroom owner, the SP added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court today directed the Centre to set up a tribunal within a month to resolve the long-standing dispute between Odisha and Chhattisgarh over the sharing of water from river Mahanadi. A bench of Justices S A Bobde and L Nageswara Rao asked the Centre to constitute the tribunal and said that all pending issues can be raised before it. The apex court, however, refused to grant any stay as sought by Odisha government on the seven pick up weirs (small dams) across the Mahanadi river, which flows through Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand and Odisha before pouring into the Bay of Bengal. Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who appeared for Odisha government, said there cannot be any negotiation on the issue and the only way the dispute can be resolved is through the constitution of a tribunal. He said the court should stay the dams being built by Chhattisgarh government to extract more water from the river. Advocate Atul Jha, appearing for Chhattisgarh government, said the Chief Ministers of the two neighbhouring states can sit together and negotiate on the issue to resolve their long standing disputes. The apex court had on December 11 last year told the Centre that there was "no valid purpose" in resisting the setting up of a tribunal to deal with the dispute. The court had said it was "disappointed" that the Centre had not yet issued a notification on the constitution of a tribunal to deal with the ongoing issue despite having submitted before the top court in October that a decision would be taken in this regard by November 19. Odisha has been opposing Chhattisgarh's plans to build 13 barrages and seven pick up weirs (small dams) across Mahanadi river, in a plan to extract more water. Odisha has said this would adversely affect the interests of its farmers. Centre had earlier referred to a 1983 agreement between Madhya Pradesh and Odisha and said there was a mechanism to deal with the issue. When the Centre told the court that Odisha was not coming forward for negotiation in the matter, the bench had observed, "failure of negotiation has nothing to do with it. Odisha is saying they do not want to negotiate. If they are not coming forward, it is failure of negotiation". Odisha had told the apex court that no negotiation could be done in the matter and a tribunal should be constituted at the earliest. Chhattisgarh had on other hand countered the submissions of Odisha and said they do not want a tribunal in the matter and, as per the 1983 agreement, a mechanism was already there which should be exercised. In its written statement before the court, the Centre had said the ongoing dispute should be sorted out through negotiations between the concerned parties. The Centre has also said they were in the process of finalising a bill to constitute a composite tribunal which would deal with all the inter-state river water disputes in the country. The Inter-State River Water Disputes (Amendment) Bill 2017 was introduced in Lok Sabha by the Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Uma Bharti on March 14 last year. The Bill proposes to set up an Inter-State River Water Disputes Tribunal, for adjudication of water disputes, if a dispute is not resolved through the Disputes Resolution Committee. The Odisha government had moved the court in December, 2016, seeking an order asking Chhattisgarh to stop its construction work in projects on the upstream of Mahanadi. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Supreme Court today refused to modify its earlier order which had cleared the decks for the nationwide release of 'Padmaavat', saying people must understand that orders of the top court have to be "abided with". A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra said this while rejecting pleas filed by Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh seeking modification in its January 18 order. The Supreme Court had paved the way for the nationwide release of 'Padmaavat' on January 25 by staying the ban on the screening in states of Gujarat and Rajasthan. "People must understand that the Supreme Court has passed an order. They must abide by it. It is the obligation of the states to maintain law and order," the bench also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud said. "We are not inclined to modify our order," the bench said while dismissing the plea. It asked the states to follow its order and gave them the liberty to approach it again "if the situation arises". The bench also dismissed the applications filed by Shree Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena, which has been staging protest in several states against the release of the movie, and Akhil Bharatiya Kshatriya Mahasabha, seeking to stall the exhibition of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali movie. The apex court had earlier restrained other states from issuing any ban orders on the Deepika Padukone-starrer movie. Maintaining that states were under constitutional obligation to maintain law and order, the top court had said this duty also included providing police protection to persons involved in the film, its exhibition and the audience. The film, starring Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh in lead roles, is based on the saga of a historic 13th century battle between Maharaja Ratan Singh and his army of Mewar and Sultan Alauddin Khilji of Delhi. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Researchers have discovered rocks in Queensland that bear striking similarities to those found in North America, suggesting that a chunk of Australia was actually part of America 1.7 billion years ago. The research published in the journal Geology found that the rocks have signatures that are unknown in Australia and instead have a surprising resemblance to those found in Canada today. According to Adam Nordsvan, a PhD student at Curtin University in Australia, the findings are significant as they unlock important information about the 1.6 billion year old super-continent Nuna. "Our research shows that about 1.7 billion years ago, Georgetown rocks were deposited into a shallow sea when the region was part of North America. "Georgetown then broke away from North America and collided with the Mount Isa region of northern Australia around 100 million years later," Nordsvan said. This was a critical part of global continental reorganisation when almost all continents on Earth assembled to form the super-continent called Nuna, researchers said. The team was able to determine this by using both new sedimentological field data and new and existing geochronological data from both Georgetown and Mount Isa. Researchers then determined that when the supercontinent Nuna broke apart an estimated 300 million years later, the Georgetown area did not drift away and instead became a new piece of real estate permanently stuck to Australia. The research also revealed new evidence of mountains being built in both the Georgetown region and Mt Isa when Georgetown collided with the rest of Australia, said Zheng- Xiang Li, also from Curtin. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Actor Raima Sen, who is juggling between her schedules in Mumbai and Kolkata, said she only takes up roles that push her potential as an artist and gives us her considerable screen time. Her last Bollywood outing 'Vodka Diaries' has already hit the theatres and the actor is now busy promoting her upcoming Bengali suspense thriller 'Kaya', helmed by director Rajib Choudhury. "I play the character of Kaya, a mysterious woman who has a lot going around her," she said. The film, largely shot in Meghalaya, has Kaushik Sen and Priyanka Sarkar in pivotal roles. Asked about her experience in 'Vodka Diaries', the actor said she is happy to have shared screen space with Kay Kay Menon after 11 years. Sen was last seen with Menon in Reema Kagti's Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. The 38-year-old actor is also looking forward to her new film 'Sitara', portions of which will be shot in Coochbehar. "I liked the script and instantly gave a nod to 'Sitara', which happens to be Churni Ganguli's second film," Sen said, adding that she has her hands full this year with three Hindi films and another Bengali venture in the pipeline. Asked about her recent debut in web series 'Hello', the actor said she enjoyed working for the digital platform. "It was easier for me to get into the skin of the character for the web series as, unlike a film, the shooting schedule was extensive and a good number of scenes were shot on a single day," she added. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Rajasthan Police is bracing up to deal with law and order issues arising out of the release of the controversial movie 'Padmaavat' after the Supreme Court today dismissed the state's plea against the film. Hours after the Supreme Court dismissed the state's petition against the film, Rajasthan Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said, "Now, we have no other alternative but to ensure law and order situation in the state and that we will do". Additional Director General (Law and order), NRK Reddy said additional forces will be pressed into service and all district SPs have been asked to remain alert. "The challenge for the police will be to deal with law and order issues arising out of Padmavat release, Republic Day and five-day long Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF) starting from January 25." he said. He said the Jaipur commissionerate will be provided RAC companies to deal with the situation. Additional Police Commissioner, Jaipur, Nitin Deep Blaggan said security measures are being strengthened. "We have demanded additional force deployment to maintain law and order," he said. The film, slated to be released on January 25, has been been facing protests by Karni Sena and other fringe groups over allegations that historical facts were distorted in the flick. Rejecting the pleas of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh against the release of the movie, the apex court said, "People must understand that the Supreme Court has passed an order. They must abide by it. It is the obligation of the states to maintain law and order". (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The on Tuesday passed a resolution not to align with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and go solo in the Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly polls next year. The resolution was moved by Sena MP Sanjay Raut, who said the BJP had been demoralising the party for the last three years. The resolution was passed unanimously in the party's National Executive meet here. "I moved the resolution for the to fight the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls on its own in 2019," Raut said. He said the party will win at least 25 Lok Sabha seats (out of a total 48 in Maharashtra) and 125 Assembly seats (out of a total 288) in the state. "The BJP allied with the Sena in the name of Hindutva and the Sena kept patience for Hindutva. However, the BJP in the last three years has been demoralising the Sena and using power to do so," Raut said. Senior Sena leaders backed Raut's resolution. The is holding internal polls to elect its party president and other functionaries today, the birth anniversary of its founder Bal Thackeray. Sena president Uddhav Thackeray is set to be re-elected as there is no other nomination for the post, party sources earlier said. A meeting of senior Sena leaders was held at Thackeray's 'Matoshree' bungalow in suburban Bandra yesterday to discuss the internal polls. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Shiv Sena today decided not to align with the BJP and go solo in the 2019 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly polls, declaring that it had so far not contested elections outside the state to keep the Hindu vote together but that would no longer be the case. The Sena, which had stayed away from other states to ensure that the Hindu vote did not get divided, would in future contest all Assembly polls, irrespective of the outcome, said party chief Uddhav Thackeray. He also slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for flying kites with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu instead of focusing on insurgency-hit Jammu and Kashmir. The BJP government was spending money only on advertisements, Thackeray alleged and said such a dispensation should be brought down. The Sena has shared an uneasy alliance with the BJP at the Centre and in Maharashtra. The resolution to part ways with the BJP and go it alone in the elections next year was tabled by Sena MP Sanjay Raut at the party's National Executive meeting. "I move the resolution for the Shiv Sena to fight the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls on its own in 2019," Raut said while tabling the resolution, which was passed unanimously. He said the party would win at least 25 Lok Sabha seats (out of a total 48 in Maharashtra) and 150 Assembly seats (out of a total 288) in the state. "The BJP allied with the Sena in the name of Hindutva and the Sena kept its patience for Hindutva. However, the BJP in the last three years has been demoralising the Sena and using power to do so," Raut said. Senior Sena leaders backed Raut's resolution. The Shiv Sena held its internal polls to elect its party president and other functionaries today, the birth anniversary of its founder Bal Thackeray. Uddhav Thackeray, who was re-elected Sena president, criticised Modi's recent camaraderie with Netanyahu in Ahmedabad and said the nation would have been proud if he had hoisted the tricolour in Srinagar rather than flying kites. "Why did you have to take the Israeli PM to Ahmedabad? What purpose did it serve? The nation would have been proud of you had you taken him (Netanyahu) to Srinagar and hoisted the tricolour there or taken him to Lal Chowk and hoisted the flag there," said Thackeray. This government, he said, spends money on advertisements but seemingly nothing on the actual implementation of schemes and should be brought down if it was doing so. "If killing a cow is a crime and is banned, then speaking lies for power should also be considered a sin and be stopped," he said. Thackeray also took up the issue of Pakistan. "Today, we do not know if the country is going forward or backward. The environment in the country is such that Pakistan has become an election issue. The neighbouring country was also brought in for Gujarat elections... there is no co-relation between the two," Thackeray said. The situation became such that Pakistan had to formally ask India not to drag it in its internal issues, he said. According to the Sena chief, despite Modi's promises of 'acche din', soldiers were sacrificing their lives everyday and their mutilated bodies were being brought to their native places and consigned to flames. "However, we just give talks about teaching Pakistan a lesson every time. Once and for all, take concrete action rather than just talk," Thackeray said. He also slammed Union minister Nitin Gadkari for his recent remarks on defence personnel. If Gadkari does not want to accept their demands, the BJP should also not take credit for the surgical strikes, he said. Gadkari had on January 11 said that "not an inch" of land would be given for Navy housing in south Mumbai, wondering why all their personnel here want to stay in the posh area when they should be at Pakistan border. Gadkari had made the remark while voicing his disappointment at the Navy's objection to a floating jetty plan at Malabar Hill in south Mumbai, where a floating hotel and seaplane service are planned. Thackeray said, "If you say you are the government and the Army personnel should go to the border rather than make demands, why did you take undue credit for the surgical strikes? Did you even go at the border then?" "People are saying you came to power by indulging in scams. The Army not just has a 56-inch chest, but valour as well," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A district court in Thane awarded life imprisonment to five persons today for killing Sanjay Rokade, a Shiv Sena worker, in the city in 2014. District and Sessions Judge P R Kadam also directed the Maharashtra director general of police (DGP) to initiate a departmental inquiry against former investigating officer (IO), who is now retired, for carrying out "improper" probe into the case. Pronouncing the sentence in a packed courtroom, the judge held Mangesh Devidas Jadhav, Manish Devidas Jadhav, Nilesh Khandu Katate, Manoj Jairam Sonawane and Ganesh Narayan Devadiga, guilty under the Indian Penal Code Section 302 (murder) and others. The court also imposed fines of varying amounts on them. The prosecution told the court that the accused had brutally killed Rokade in the city's Naupada locality on July 22, 2014. According to police, the victim was with his friend when he was attacked by the accused, who later fled the scene. The murder was the fall-out of a gang rivalry. Rokade was part of a gang, which operated from the Tekdi Bangla area. Both the gangs had confronted each other on several occasions. The judge said, "The investigating officer (IO) did not carry out the probe into the case properly. Therefore, the director general of police (DGP) should initiate a departmental inquiry against him and take suitable action." "Even if he (IO) is retired, the DGP should act on the directions against the retired police officers," the judge noted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A man on Tuesday night hurled a shoe at AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi while he was addressing a rally at Nagpada in south Mumbai, police said. The MP was not hurt in the incident and the accused has been identified but was yet to be taken under arrest, they said. Owaisi was voicing his opposition on the triple talaq issue at the rally around 9.45 pm when the incident took place, a senior police officer said. "I am willing to lay down my life for my democratic rights. These are all frustrated people, who cannot see that the government decision on triple talaq has not been accepted by the masses in general and Muslims in particular," Owaisi told PTI. "These people (referring to the person who threw the shoe at him) are the ones who follow the ideology of the killers of Mahatma Gandhi, Govind Pansare and Narendra Dabholkar," he said. Owaisi claimed that such incidents were happening at the behest of people, who follow "hate ideologies" and that they are getting emboldened with each passing day. "This will not stop us from speaking the truth against them," the Hyderabad MP said. Deputy Commissioner of Police, Zone-III, Virendra Mishra said the police have identified through CCTV footage the man who hurled the shoe at Owaisi and were in process to arrest him. AIMIM MLA Imtiyaz Jaleel said Owaisi was unhurt and continued his speech after the incident. "We do not care for such incidents. Some people and parties do not want us to speak the truth. Mr Owaisi continued with his speech (despite the incident). We simply ignore these type of acts," he added. Six people were killed last weekend when cattle herders battled farmers in northeast Nigeria, a state government official said today, in violence that has piled pressure on the government. The clashes happened yesterday in the Numan district of Adamawa state, where militia from the ethnic Bachama farming community killed at least 30 Fulani herders last November. "Six people were killed and many others were injured in attacks on two villages, Kikan and Lauru," Adamawa state information commissioner Ahmad Sajo told AFP. "A group of Fulani attacked Kikan, which is a Bachama village, killing three people, injuring many and carting away cattle." He added: "Bachama youths in the area mobilised and launched a reprisal attack on nearby Lauru village." But the attack may have targeted the wrong community, as Lauru is home to Hausa-speaking Muslims who are not Fulani people. "They are largely vegetable growers," said Sajo. "They (the Bachama) killed three people, burned the whole village and injured one." Tit-for-tat attacks have left thousands dead in recent decades, mainly in Nigeria's central states. Religion has exacerbated long-standing ethnic and sectarian tensions. The Fulani are Muslim while the farmers are largely Christian. Tensions have been increasing because of the nomadic herders' need for land and water for their livestock, which has pushed them beyond their normal grazing land. Earlier this month, more than 70 people from the Tiv farming community were killed in the central state of Benue, bringing the issue to the fore once again. Critics of President Muhammadu Buhari, who is expected to seek a second term of office at elections next February, have accused him of failing to act. He has rejected claims that it is because he is also of Fulani stock, while the herders have said they have seen more than 1,000 killed since last June. Failure to prosecute those responsible, even where the perpetrators are known to the authorities, has been seen as a major factor in causing the spiral of violence. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The CBI today said it will oppose the PIL filed in the Bombay High Court against the agency's decision not to challenge a lower court order discharging BJP president Amit Shah in the Sohrabuddin Shaikh alleged fake encounter case. The public interest litigation, filed by the Bombay Lawyers Association last week, termed as "illegal, arbitrary and malafide" the CBI's action of not challenging the December 30, 2014 order of a special CBI court here discharging Shah. "We are opposing the petition. We also have an issue on the maintainability of the petition. The discharge order is of December 2014...there is an issue of limitations," CBI counsel Anil Singh said in the high court. A division bench of Justices S C Dharmadhikari and Bharti Dangre today posted the petition for arguments on February 13 after the CBI counsel sought time. Senior counsel Dushyant Dave, appearing for the petitioner, pointed to the bench that the PIL has also sought records from the high court administrative committee on why the CBI judge, who was initially assigned to conduct trial in the case, was transferred. The Supreme Court had earlier shifted the trial in the case from Gujarat to Mumbai, and said it should be conducted and concluded expeditiously, Dave told the high court. "The Supreme Court had said that the administrative committee of the high court would assign the case to a court where the trial may be concluded judiciously, in accordance with the law, and without any delay," said the petition. "The apex court had said that the administrative committee would also ensure that the trial should be conducted from beginning to end by the same officer," it said. To this, Justice Dharmadhikari said, "We leave it to the petitioner but we feel the institution (HC) should be kept out as far as possible. We request counsel Dave to take an appropriate decision on this." The PIL has urged the high court to issue a direction to the CBI to file a revision application challenging the sessions court's order discharging Shah. "The CBI is a premier investigating agency. It has the public duty to observe the rule of law in its action which it has miserably failed," the petition said. It submitted that the trial court had similarly discharged two Rajasthan Police sub-inspectors Himanshu Singh and Shyam Singh Charan and senior Gujarat Police officer N K Amin. "The petitioner has learnt that the CBI has challenged their discharge before the high court. This act of the CBI in challenging discharge of the accused persons on selective basis is arbitrary and unreasonable, rather malafide," it alleged. Sohrabuddin Shaikh, who the Gujarat police claimed was also a terrorist, was killed in an alleged fake encounter by the Gujarat and Rajasthan police along with his wife Kauser Bi in November 2005. The CBI took over the probe into the case in February 2010 and filed its charge sheet in July the same year against 23 accused, including Amit Shah, who at that time was minister of state for home in Gujarat. The trial court over a period of time discharged several accused in the case, including three IPS officers. (Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The AAP government is spreading menstrual hygiene awareness among adolescent girls in the city schools and are providing sanitary napkins every month "free of cost", it has told the Delhi High Court. A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal was also informed that even teachers in these school were imparted training on the issue of menstruation. "The teachers were trained on the issue so as to ensure a more sensitised and well-informed environment for the female students in schools here," additional standing counsel Sanjoy Ghose, submitted while filing an affidavit on behalf of the Delhi Directorate of (DoE). The affidavit was filed in view of the court's query to the Delhi government to apprise it about the programmes they have undertaken or intended to undertake on spreading awareness about menstrual hygiene among adolescent girls in the schools. The court posted the matter for further hearing on March 13. The DoE in its affidavit also said that they were on their own implementing the 'Kishori Yojana' (scheme) for the purpose, for which requisite funding is provided by the Delhi government. "Under the scheme, we are spreading awareness about and promoting menstrual hygiene among adolescent girls. Ensuring promotion of safe and hygienic practices during menstrual period," the DoE stated. "The scheme caters to approximately eight lakh registered beneficiaries, who are adolescent girls enrolled (class VI to XII) in the government girls school/government co-ed schools, government aided schools," it said, adding that each of the girls are given "one packet (containing 10 pieces) of sanitary napkins free of cost on a hand-to-hand basis". The court's direction came during the hearing of a plea by advocate Setu Niket, who sought direction to the Centre, the Delhi government and civic bodies to establish a mechanism to provide on mensuration and menstrual hygiene in all schools here. The petitioner through her counsel Esha Mazumdar told the court that according to a survey, the school dropout rate for girls was the most during puberty. She had sought direction to the authorities to ensure that menstrual hygiene products were made available to adolescent girls in schools free of cost or at subsidised rates. The plea had also sought the establishment of a mechanism to provide to girls aged 11-14 years about menstrual hygiene and safeguards, and access to trained female teachers or health counsellors in schools on a weekly or monthly basis for imparting education on the issue. Meanwhile, the New Delhi Municipal Council informed the court that the girls, studying in their schools, were given sanitary napkins on the last working day of each month. "All New Delhi Municipal Council/navyug schools already have separate toilets for girls, boys and school staff which are maintained by their civil department," the council said in its affidavit. The plea said it was imperative to sensitise children in the 10-14 age group about menstrual hygiene and every possible effort should be made by the State to help girls continue with their education. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) constable today moved the Delhi High Court against the paramilitary force's decision to deduct a major chunk of his monthly salary towards repayment of loan taken for his kidney transplant in 2015. In his plea, the SSB constable has claimed that an amount of Rs 30,000 was being deducted and he was getting only around Rs 5,000 each month since August last year which is insufficient to support his family of five and to meet the post-natal care of his wife and one-month-old baby, apart from his own medical expenditure. The petition came up for hearing before a bench of justices Hima Kohli and Rekha Palli which asked the SSB to bring the records related to the loan availed by the constable from a welfare fund meant for personnel of the force. With the direction, the court listed the matter for further hearing on February 6. In his plea, Manish Kumar has contended that he had a kidney problem due to continuous hard postings in the high altitude regions for six years and was undergoing dialysis for two years. In the petition filed through advocate Tushar Sannu, the SSB constable has claimed that the surgery he required was being performed with a high rate of success only at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital here and not the hospitals empanelled with SSB. But SSB refused to give permission to undergo surgery at its expense at Sir Ganga Ram and finally with no other choice, he decided to avail the loan from the SSB welfare fund, the petition said, adding that the amount had to be repaid in 60 instalments. While he received only Rs six lakh as advance for his treatment, the actual surgical expenses touched nearly Rs 12 lakh and to meet the amount the petitioner's father had to take loans from a bank as well as family and friends, it said. To add to his troubles, under the Central Government Health Scheme only Rs six lakh was reimbursed which had to be paid towards the loan taken by his father from bank, family and friends as he expired suddenly, the plea said. The constable has claimed that he was paying Rs 10,000 towards repayment of the money taken from the SSB welfare fund according to the terms of the loan. However, in August last year he was informed by SSB that he has violated the terms of the loan as he had paid only Rs 40,000 and Rs 5,60,000 remained outstanding, and therefore, they were going to deduct Rs 30,000 per month from his salary, the petition said. Thereafter, from August 2017 onwards, each month an amount of Rs 30,000 was deducted from his salary and he received only around Rs 5,000, the constable has claimed in his plea. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The DMK today took a veiled dig at popular actors Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth on their political aspirations, saying "new birds want to fly" and it remained to be seen how much distance they can cover on their strength. In a letter addressed to partymen, DMK working president M K Stalin said while democracy was a "sky" common for all, many birds can hardly make the distance. He branded his DMK as "high-flying" and one that was always "concerned" about the people of the state. "Aware of the political atmosphere, new birds want to fly. Democracy is a sky (common) for all. The political arena is watching how much distance a bird can fly on the strength of its wings," he said in cryptic remarks apparently aimed at the two actors. There have been instances when such "birds" that started a political flight could hardly achieve their objectives, with their journey "obstructed" after having "lost (their) way," he said, without naming anyone. Both Rajinikanth and Haasan, the two top actors of Tamil cinema, have announced their political forays, proposing to float their political parties in the coming days. Batting for honesty in and good governance, Rajinikanth had last month said that "everything needs to be changed" and declared that "spiritual politics" needed to be ushered in, sans shades of any caste or religion with transparency. Haasan, Rajinikanth's contemporary in celluloid, has taken on the ruling AIADMK over alleged corruption in recent past, with Chief Minister K Palaniswami and many of his cabinet colleagues hitting back at him. Stalin said that "new birds want to fly", aware of the "political climate", apparently hinting at the perceived political vacuum caused following the death of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in 2016. His father and DMK president M Karunanidhi has also been remaining inactive due to health reasons for over a year. For nearly 30 years, Tamil Nadu revolved around Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi. Earlier since 1972, it was virtually polarised between the two Dravidian parties after actor-turned politician and late Chief Minister M G Ramachandran floated AIADMK following differences with the DMK stalwart. Stalin, also the Leader of Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, has announced he would meet party office-bearers from February 1, in an attempt to address issues concerning the party. The announcement comes in the wake of the party's poor showing in the December 21 R K Nagar bypoll, where its candidate N Maruthuganesh forfeited deposit. Sidelined AIADMK leader TTV Dhinakaran had won the bypoll, necessitated due to the death of Jayalalithaa, and the loss had prompted the DMK to form a panel to probe the reasons for its defeat. The meeting would discuss the differences in the party's organisational units to ensure success in coming elections, Stalin said, adding that he was prepared to initiate all steps for the party's well-being. In the letter, Stalin hit out at the AIADMK government and said people were looking to the DMK for solutions. Irrespective of being a ruling party or in opposition, the DMK always stood up for the welfare of the people of Tamil Nadu, and strove for protecting the Tamil race and language, he claimed. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat today said open support to suicide attempts for political reasons was highly condemnable and should not be encouraged. He made the remarks during a programme organised in a college here to mark the 121st birth anniversary of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. Rawat said so far 11 such threats of suicide have been received and described the development as "worrying". "Open support of suicide attempts for political reasons is highly condemnable," he said, without mentioning any specific case. Earlier this month, a transporter, Prakash Pandey, who was allegedly worried over demonetisation and GST, had consumed poison and reached the BJP headquarters here but could not be saved despite immediate treatment. After his death, opposition parties, including the Congress, blamed the BJP's policies for his death, while the ruling party called him a victim of politics and there was a long round of allegations and contradictions between them. Rawat today asked the college students whether those who commit suicide should be given financial help from the government. On this, the students said that no such financial help should be given by the public exchequer for those attempting suicides. Describing the need for eradication of corruption today, he told the youth about their key role in rooting graft out and said it was for them to decide what is right and what is wrong and to take the path of the truth. "Only our new generation can make successful the government's campaign to completely eradicate corruption," he said, informing the gathering that so far, 14 people have been sent to prison in cases of corruption by his government. Rawat said young people need to think beyond typical jobs, emphasising the need for adopting entrepreneurship. He also exhorted them to utilise the government's programmes and initiatives like Stand up India-Startup India and skill development programme. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today met her Bruneian counterpart Lim Jock Seng and discussed ways to strengthen ties. Swaraj and Peng's meeting came two days ahead of the India-ASEAN Commemorative Summit to be held here. In an unprecedented event, all the ASEAN leaders will also be the chief guests at the Republic Day parade. "EAM @SushmaSwaraj met with Pehin Lim Jock Seng, Foreign Minister of Brunei Darussalam. Ministers discussed steps to strengthen bilateral cooperation," external affairs ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Swiss President Alain Berset today called for a collective action at national and international levels to fight rising inequality, terrorism and climate change. Swiss President Alain Berset said the world is facing several risks including on terrorism, climate change and trade protectionism. "There needs to be a partnership between national and international organisations. There is a mistrust about multiateralism and there is a need for a strong political will. It will be poorest and the weakest who will be the biggest victims if we don't adopt strong collective action at national and international levels. It is essential to act now. "The nationalist and protectionist moves we felt were passing phase but they are not and lessons of last two years are clear. There is only one solution that is to remove the underlying mistrust and for that we need to act now. "If we are to continue on the path of progress, I am convinced that 2018 must be the year of international cooperation and multilateralism," Berset said. The lesson of the last two years is clear, and still applies: The mainstream of society must see society as being fair otherwise it will use its veto, he said at the World Economic Forum meet here. "We need to balance between politics and economics, he said, while asserting that it is not the primacy of politics that is required. "Let us make 2018 a year in which each of us works to promote social inclusion," he added. He said Switzerland and the World Economic Forum go well together because international cooperation is a top priority for both. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Tata International, the global trading and distribution arm of diversified Tata Group plans to double its agriculture exports to USD 76 million by 2021 and quadruple to USD 152 million by 2025, a top company official said here. "Our exports to African countries is estimated at USD 440 million of which agriculture exports is USD 38 million. Our programme is to double it by 2021 and quadruple by 2025," Tata International chairman and independent director G K Pillai said here. Tata International has substantial presence in several African nations such as South Africa, Kenya, Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Uganda, among others. While speaking at the "South-south cooperation: India-Africa Partnership for Food Security and Capacity Building" conference, Pillai said that the Africa provides lot of business opportunities. However, the company faces several issues like port congestion, currency fluctuation and lack of qualified personnel in African countries. "Port congestion is a main issue as efficiency in some African countries needs to improve as port congestion hits exporters and demurrage charges are extremely high. Currency fluctuations is also a major issue for exports," Pillai said. Tata International is concern over lack of qualified lab personnel's in African countries. They are training local people for this, Pillai added. Set up in 1962, Tata International (TIL)'s key business verticals are sale of leather and leather products, trading in metals and minerals, distribution of auto and allied products, agri-trading, trading and distribution of industrial chemicals, distribution of drugs & medical devices and IT services. Meanwhile, several African countries namely Ehiopia, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda have sought investment mainly in agriculture sector from the Indian corporates. The conference aims at exploring and accessing the potential of India's ongoing partnerships with Africa in the fields of agriculture, food security and capacity building through bilateral and trilateral initiatives. It also aims to study the role of India FDI for capacity building and value addition to the agricultural sector Africa through government-led and private sector initiatives. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Tamil Nadu unit of Aam Aadmi Party today staged a protest here against the disqualification of the party's 20 MLAs in Delhi for holding offices of profit. State AAP convenor SAN Vasigaran led the agitation of party workers at Saidapet against the disqualification of the MLAs. The protesters carried brooms, the party's symbol, at the protest. Police said they briefly detained the agitating AAP workers. President Ram Nath Kovind had on January 21 accepted the recommendation of the Election Commission (EC) to disqualify 20 MLAs of Delhi's ruling AAP for holding offices of profit. A notification issued by the law ministry had quoted the president as saying that in the light of the opinion expressed by the EC, the 20 MLAs were disqualified. The AAP MLAs were appointed parliamentary secretaries and their appointment was described as them holding offices of profit by a petitioner. The 20 legislators, who later moved the Delhi High Court against their disqualification, yesterday withdrew their petitions challenging EC's recommendation, saying they would move fresh pleas on the matter. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The first lunar eclipse of 2018, a total eclipse, on January 31 will be visible from India, a senior scientist said here today. A lunar eclipse occurs when the sun, earth and moon are so aligned that for a certain period of time, the full moon passes through the shadow of earth in space, called earths umbra, Director (Research & Academics) M P Birla Planetarium Debiprasad Duari told PTI here. "During a total lunar Eclipse the moon gets shadowed by the Earth, but the red part of sunlight passing through the Earths atmosphere gets scattered by the atmosphere and falls on the moon surface thereby making the Moon take a reddish copper hue," he explained. In India, the January 31 lunar eclipse will start from 5.18 pm, the total eclipse will start at 6.21 pm and it will last till 7.37 pm, he said. The northeastern and eastern parts of the country will experience the eclipse just after the moon rises and in Kolkata, the moon will rise at around 5.17 pm, a minute before the before the start of the eclipse, he said. The lunar eclipse will last for 1 hour and 16 minutes in India, Duari said. The celestial event will also be visible from large parts of the US, northeastern Europe, Russia, Asia and Australia, he said. The next total lunar eclipse that will be visible from India will take place on July 27, 2018, Duari said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Hundreds of transgenders will converge here for a four-day "Surya Suta Mahotsava" to highlight the poor condition of the Yamuna river. The convention of the Kinnar Akhada, from March 7 to 10, will focus on the agony of the river, Acharya Laxmi Narain Tripathi of the Kinnar Akhada said. "The condition of the Yamuna is pathetic. We need to sensitize local people and pressure official agencies to do something. "We cannot let the river die. It's one of the holiest rivers of the country," he said. A number of politicians, celebrities and religious leaders will address the convention. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Two persons were arrested for allegedly demanding Rs 20 lakh extortion money from a doctor, who runs his own nursing home in Arthla colony here, police said today. Tracking the details of the number from which the calls were placed to Dr Udaiveer Singh, police arrested Aabid and Bittoo, SHO Rakesh Singh said, adding that a third accused, Parvez Ranghad, was still at large. Aabid confessed to making the call, police said, adding that he had incurred heavy losses in his Arthla-based tent house business and planned the extortion, along with his associates, to pay off his debts. Aabid was acquainted with the doctor and knew where he lived. On January 7, he and Bittoo reached the doctor's residence and fired a shot in the air to scare him. The two accused were sent to jail, SHO Singh said, adding that Parvez would be nabbed soon. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Fresh tensions emerged in British Prime Minister Theresa May's cabinet today after she rebuked Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson for making public his demands on government spending after Brexit. Johnson's allies briefed several newspapers that he would use the weekly cabinet meeting to press for money saved from Britain's withdrawal from the EU to be diverted to the state-run National Health Service (NHS). The anonymous reports were viewed by some commentators as an attempt by the highly ambitious politician to raise his public profile -- and went down badly with May and other ministers at the meeting. "Broadly the prime minister and a large number of cabinet ministers made the point that cabinet discussions should take place in private," May's official spokesman said. It is not the first time that Johnson has publicly challenged the prime minister. Last year, he set out his own vision for Brexit just days before her own big speech on the subject. Tensions among ministers are likely to rise further in the coming months as negotiations with the EU reach a critical point, ahead of Britain's departure in March 2019. During the 2016 referendum, Brexit supporters such as Johnson claimed that 350 million pounds (USD 490 million) a week paid into the EU budget could be used for the NHS after Brexit. The claim was widely condemned for being misleading, but it was also highly effective. Media reports in recent days suggested Johnson was pressing for 100 million pounds a week extra for the NHS. May's spokesman declined to confirm that he had made such an intervention, saying that several ministers spoke but nobody raised a specific figure. "The prime minister led the discussion on the fact that we will be able to spend this money (after Brexit) on domestic priorities, and a number of cabinet ministers made the same point," he said. But he said May pointed out that schools and housing were also priorities. Finance Minister Philip Hammond, who campaigned to stay in the EU, delivered his own rebuke to Johnson, telling reporters in Brussels: "Mr Johnson is the foreign secretary." Britain has agreed to continue paying EU contributions until the end of the current budget cycle in 2020, almost two years after Brexit. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The Uttarakhand police has said it will provide security to theatres screening the movie 'Padmaavat', in the wake of threats from various groups. Uttarakhand's Director General of Police (DGP) Anil Raturi today said there are enough arrangements to tackle any untoward situation that might arise after the film's release. Additional Director General of Police, Ashok Kumar, has instructed the superintendents of all the districts to provide ample security to all the theatres in their area. Kumar, in a letter to the police officers of the state, said the movie's release on January 25 may disrupt peace and they should make ample arrangements to tackle any situation. On the other hand, the Secretary of Uttarakhand Cinema Association Suyash Agarwal has said that the movie would be released in the state only if the police provides theatres with adequate security. There are nearly 50 theatres -- single screen and multi- screen -- in the state. The film, starring Deepika Padukone as Rani Padmavati and Ranveer Singh as Allaudin Khilji has been facing stiff opposition from right-wing groups who claim historical inaccuracies in the movie. The apex court has restrained states from banning the screening of the movie. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The UN Security Council has strongly condemned the Kabul terror attack and urged its member countries to "bring to justice the perpetrators of the heinous attack". In a presidential statement, the 15-membered body of UN underlined the "need to hold perpetrators, organisers, financiers and sponsors" of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice. It urged all states, in accordance with their obligations under international law and relevant Security Council resolutions, to cooperate actively with the government of Afghanistan and all other relevant authorities in this regard. In a statement, the Security Council President for the month of January, Kairat Umarov from Kazakhstan, said its members have condemned in the strongest terms the heinous and cowardly terrorist attack that took place at the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan, on January 20. At least 22 people were killed and 9 injured in the attack which was claimed by the Taliban. The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims, to the Government of Afghanistan and to other Governments whose nationals have been victims of the attack. They reaffirmed that terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) United Nations peacekeepers are returning to the only UN base in South Sudan "clearly" in an area under opposition control as residents hope for protection from what they call growing attacks by government troops. "We've had several requests to be there" in Akobo, UN mission chief David Shearer told The Associated Press, calling the gap in services there significant. The first peacekeepers are expected to arrive in the next few weeks. This will be the first UN peacekeeper presence in Akobo since 2013, when the base of 43 troops was abandoned after armed men stormed the compound and killed three Indian peacekeepers. Situated near the Ethiopian border, the bustling town is one of South Sudan's last opposition strongholds and has become a refuge for thousands of ethnic Nuer fleeing the fighting in Upper Nile and Jonglei states. South Sudan's five-year civil war has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions amid warnings of ethnic violence. The latest cease-fire, which took effect December 24, was broken just hours later with both sides blaming each other for the violations. Residents said clashes have increased in recent weeks in villages around Akobo, with people from other parts of Jonglei state streaming in daily in search of safety. Authorities estimate 2,000 people have arrived since the beginning of the month. During a visit to the rebel-held territory last week, the AP spoke with several people who fled attacks. Standing in a dilapidated school where she now shelters, Mary Maway said she arrived five days ago. "They killed my children," the 28-year-old said, lowering her gaze to the floor. Earlier this month when government troops attacked her town of Yuai, Maway said she watched soldiers shoot her 5- year-old and 6-year-old. "I hope the UN will protect us here," she said. South Sudan's government has repeatedly said that any attacks it has carried out during the cease-fire are only in self- defense. The opposition government in Akobo said it hoped the UN peacekeepers will hold those responsible for the fighting to account. "If we're attacked they'll be witness and can respond," said Gatluak Gatkek, deputy for Akobo's humanitarian arm of the government. "If there's an attack on civilians they can go onto the base and be protected." But the new UN presence will be different from its nine other bases around the country, with six of them sheltering more than 200,000 civilians after they threw open their doors in an unprecedented move when the civil war erupted in December 2013. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The US has asked Pakistan to immediately arrest or expel Taliban leaders who are carrying out terror attacks across the border in Afghanistan, days after the militant group attacked a landmark hotel in Kabul that left 22 people dead. The terse White House statement came after the Taliban claimed responsibility for a major terror attack at the Inter-Continental Hotel in Kabul on Saturday that killed at least 22 people, including 14 foreigners and eight Afghans. "We call on Pakistan to immediately arrest or expel the Taliban's leaders and prevent the group from using Pakistani territory to support its operations," White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders told reporters. "In Afghanistan, where terrorists attacked a hotel in Kabul, such attacks on civilians only strengthen our resolve to support our Afghan partners," Sanders said. "We commend the swift and effective response of the Afghan security forces. Afghan forces, with our support, will continue to relentlessly pursue the enemies of Afghanistan, who also seek to export terror around the world," she said. Pakistan is facing mounting pressure from the US to take action against terror groups and dismantle their safe havens. President Donald Trump has said that Pakistan has given nothing to the US but "lies and deceit" and suspended about USD 2 billion in security aid to the country. A spokesman for the Afghan interior ministry said yesterday that after the deadly siege ended on Sunday, security forces also defused a vehicle full of explosives near the site of the attack. Afghan security forces said they had killed the last of six Taliban militants who stormed the hilltop hotel. More than 150 people were rescued or managed to escape, including 41 foreigners, reports said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Congratulating India on joining the Australia Group, the US today said that the latest accomplishment underscores New Delhi's excellent non- proliferation credentials and commitment to preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. India last week gained entry into the Australia Group (AG), an important non-proliferation regime which seeks to ensure that exports do not contribute to the development of chemical or biological weapons. "This latest accomplishment underscores the Indian government's excellent non-proliferation credentials and commitment to preventing the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, including by regulating the trade of sensitive goods and technologies," State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said. "Its (India's) accession bolsters the effectiveness of the regime's non-proliferation efforts," she said. The United States congratulates India on becoming the newest member of the Australia Group, an informal forum that seeks to prevent the proliferation of chemical and biological weapons, and which now counts 43 members, she said. "India is a valued non-proliferation partner. We look forward to continuing our work with India in the Australia Group in furtherance of our shared nonproliferation goals," Nauert said in a statement. After the Missile Technology Control Regime (MTCR) and the Wassenaar Arrangement (WA), the membership in another of the four major export control regimes is expected to give India a leg-up in its bid to secure a berth in the 48-member Nuclear Suppliers Group, which has been blocked by China at the behest of Pakistan. China is not a member of the MTCR, the WA and the AG. Membership in the Australia Group comes months after India secured a berth in the Wassernaar Arrangement in December last year. New Delhi had bagged membership in the elite Missile Control Technology Regime (MTCR) in 2016. The Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies is a multilateral export control regime. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The United States on Wednesday designated Siddhartha Dhar, an Indian-origin Islamic State militant from Britain, along with a Belgian-Moroccan citizen as global terrorists and imposed sanctions on them, the State Department said. Dhar, a British Hindu who converted to Islam and now goes by the name Abu Rumaysah, had skipped police bail in the UK to travel to Syria with his wife and young children in 2014. Nihad Barakat, a Yazidi teenager held as a sex slave by Isis, was quoted as saying by the Independent in May 2016 that she was kidnapped and trafficked by Dhar, who was based in Mosul, the group's former stronghold in Iraq. Dhar was dubbed as the "New Jihadi John" and became a senior commander of the dreaded outfit, the report had said. The State Department has designated two members, Siddhartha Dhar and Abdelatif Gaini, as Specially Designated Global Terrorists under Section 1(b) of Executive Order which also imposes sanctions on foreign persons determined to have committed, or pose a significant risk of committing, acts of terrorism that threaten the security of US nationals or the security, foreign policy, or economy of the US, a state department spokesperson said in a statement. These designations seek to deny Dhar and Gaini the resources they need to plan and carry out further terrorist attacks, it said. Among other consequences, all of Dhar's and Gaini's property and interests in property subject to US jurisdiction are blocked, and US persons are generally prohibited from engaging in any transactions with them, it said. Dhar was a leading member of now-defunct terrorist organisation Al-Muhajiroun. In late 2014, Dhar left the United Kingdom to travel to Syria to join Isis, it said. He is considered to have replaced executioner Mohammad Emwazi, also known as "Jihadi John", it said. Dhar is believed to be the masked leader who appeared in a January 2016 video of the execution of several prisoners Isis accused of spying for the UK, the statement said. Gaini is a Belgian-Moroccan citizen believed to be fighting for Isis in the Middle East. Gaini is connected to UK-based Isis sympathisers Mohamad Ali Ahmed and Humza Ali, who were convicted in the UK in 2016 of terrorism offences, it said. Today's action notifies the US public and the international community that Dhar and Gaini have committed or pose a significant risk of committing acts of terrorism, it said. Terrorism designations expose and isolate organizations and individuals, and deny them access to the US financial system. Moreover, designations can assist the law enforcement activities of US agencies and other governments, it said. Americans were among the dead and wounded in the weekend attack by Taliban gunmen on a Kabul luxury hotel, a State Department official said today. "We can confirm that there were US citizen fatalities and injuries," the official said, without specifying how many Americans were involved. "We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who were killed and wish for the speedy recovery of those wounded. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) : Consumer durable firm Usha International has launched a series of models under the pump business as part of expansion plans,a top official said today. The company has launched seven new models exclusively designed and suitable for South Indian markets, Usha International, President, Electric Fans and Pumps, Rohit Mathur said. "Today the main agenda is a series of product launches under water pump business. We are launching seven new models. These are specifically designed for South Indian consumers", he told PTI. Elaborating, he said the company started the process of designing the pumps for South Indian market and the products are basically for Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Karnataka. Stating that the pump business has been under the company for more than 15 years, he said, "we have brought this business back in focus in the last two and half years. We have been in this business. Unfortunately, we never focused". With the launch of the new models, the company expects a "good growth" as it was already having a strong presence in South under the fans business. "We only need to bring in focus in the pumps category because we believe that this can be a high inorganic growth area for Usha International", he said. The new models launched come under the mini-mono block category, jet pump, submersible pumps and pressure booster pumps. Responding to a query, he said the company produces the pumps through "outsourcing" model and facilities were present in Tamil Nadu, Gujarat and New Delhi. As part of the new launch, the company would also expand the dealership outlets, he said. "There are 150 direct dealers for South India for pumps. We expect the number of dealers will reach total base of 5,000 outlets in South India by March, he said. Declining to reveal investment made in this category, Mohit said, the company would take up aggressive marketing campaign on the new range of pumps. To another query, he said the company was looking at a growth of 25 per cent in its pump business alone. "At the moment, if existing turnover in pump business is Rs 100, we expect it to be Rs 125. Within pumps category, our outlook is we must add 20-25 per cent increase in our turnover because of these new prodcuts in 2018-19", he said. According to him, the domestic pump business was around Rs 6,500 crore to Rs 7,000 crore. South will be approximately about Rs 1,800 to Rs 2,000 crore. To a query on whether the company would look at export of pumps, he said it may happen after two years. "At the moment the focus is on domestic market. We are looking at export market after sometime may be after two years", he said. Usha International currently ships sewing machines, fans to overseas, he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A Japanese soldier was killed today after a volcano erupted near a popular Japanese ski resort, sparking an avalanche that left several injured and scores stranded up a mountain, officials said. Footage broadcast on Japanese television showed thick black smoke interspersed with falling rocks rolling down the snow-covered side of the volcano towards a ski slope. "One of the six members of the Self Defence Forces (injured in the incident) has died after being caught up in an avalanche," a defence ministry spokesman told AFP. The ministry had earlier said that six infantry personnel who had been on a training mission on Mt. Kusatsu Shirane, northwest of Tokyo, were hit by the avalanche but had been rescued. The falling rocks kicked clouds of snow into the air as they made impact. "Black smoke rose from the top of the mountain and we were told to evacuate inside 30 minutes later," a man who was at the ski resort told public broadcaster NHK. "About 100 people have been evacuated," he said. A local town official said that a total of 78 people, some of them suffering injuries, were stranded at a gondola station at the top of the mountain. The gondola has been stopped because of a power outage. "We're now discussing how we can evacuate them," the official said. NHK said eight of those stranded had already been rescued. Television footage showed military helicopters buzzing overhead as people were airlifted to safety. A woman who was stranded at the ropeway station but later rescued told Japanese TV: "There was an eruption in front of my eyes. Black and white plumes came towards me. Then the ski slope went completely black." A snowboarder told NHK his gondola had stopped suddenly and he saw that other gondolas around him had broken windows and were covered in ash. "I realised it was an eruption. Forty to 50 minutes later, all the gondolas moved up to the station on the top of the mountain," he said. The area had seen heavy snowfall in the hours leading up to the eruption, making the slopes ripe for avalanches. Japan's Meteorological Agency urged people to stay away after it detected what it said was "slight volcanic activity. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Telugu actor and Janasena party founder Pawan Kalyan today said he wants to be in "active politics" for the next 25 years. "I want to be in active politics at least for 25 years," the actor, who has embarked on his first political tour in Telangana, said addressing a meeting of his party workers here, as part of his 'praja yatra' (yatra for people). Kalyan, who will be touring Karimnagar, Warangal and Khammam districts over four days, said he has "utmost respect" for the Congress, to which his elder brother, actor-turned politician Chiranjeevi, belongs. Kalyan had campaigned in support of the TDP-BJP combine in undivided Andhra Pradesh in the 2014 polls. Power in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh is limited to only a few castes, Kalyan said, adding Janasena would end this imbalance. "I will advise ruling parties in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh on public related issues but if they are not resolved, I will oppose their governments," Kalyan said. "Janasena is a party of all religions," he said, adding his motto was to eradicate corruption. The actor, who has a sizeable fan following in Telangana, attended a mass prayer at St Marys Church in Hyderabad on Sunday with his wife Anna Lezhneva, the first time he was seen in public with his Russian partner. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Riding on the success of "Dangal" and "Secret Superstar" in China, Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan today said he wants to make films with a common theme featuring actors from both the countries to help improve Sino-India ties. The 52-year-old actor, who appeared at a promotional event for "Secret Superstar" which proved a massive hit since its release on January 19 in China, in his interactions with Chinese film personalities said: "I want to really do a film with Chinese and Indian talent". "It will be really wonderful," Aamir said, according to video clips posted by microblogging site Weibo, which is akin to Twitter in China. Aamir said that he would like to make movies with stories which people of both the countries would love to see. "It would also bring two countries close. It will be wonderful for Indian audience to see the Chinese actors and Chinese talent," he said. Aamir, along with "Secret Superstar" co-star Zaira Wasim, appeared in the promotional show at a five star hotel here along with several Chinese film stars. Reports said that his film crossed Rs 200 crore since it was released. Huge crowds were seen at the theatres in several cities including Beijing and Shanghai. Aamir has become a household name in China after the success of "Dangal" last year which raked up over Rs 1,100 crore since it was released in China. It was only the 33th film in China's history to cross RMB one billion and won rare praise from Chinese leaders including President Xi Jinping for its theme. Most of the Chinese schools recommended the movie to parents and students for inspiration. Aamir's earlier movie "3 Idiots" was also successful, specially with school and college kids as it dwelled on the theme of monotonous approach towards education focussing just on academic success. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) It is Heath Ledger's 10th death anniversary today and Hollywood stars such as Naomi Watts and Jake Gyllenhaal paid their heartfelt tributes to the actor. "The Dark Knight" star was 28 when he died of cardiac arrest brought about by combined drug intoxication on January 22, 2008. Watts, who dated Ledger from 2002 to 2004, shared a black-and-white picture of the actor on social media remembering him as a "true original" soul. "Thinking about this beautiful soul today. 10 years ago he left this world. He was a true original. Heart always on his sleeve, with the most powerful charisma, strength, humour and talent. I will never forget his gentle spirit," she wrote. Ledger's friend, Gyllenhaal said the bond that he shared with his "Brokeback Mountain" co-star could not be put into "sound bite or can it in three-minute interview". "... Those who can do it I find sort of odd. I happen to not be one of those people. I think Heath meant a lot to a lot of people, the people who were fans and the people who saw his work and were moved by his work and the people who knew him as a person. "He was just an incredible force and is still missed," he told E! Actor Busy Phillips flew down to be with her friend actor Michelle Williams, Ledger's partner, on his death anniversary. Phillips posted a selfie of her with her "Dawson's Creek" co-star. She wrote, "It's ok", along with the picture that showed Williams with her eyes closed and leaning on her long-time confidant. Ledger and "All The Money In The World" star were in a relationship for three years and parted ways one year before the actor's demise. They have a daughter, Matilda, 12, together. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) The annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meet of the rich and the powerful began here today with a special message from Pope Francis being read out at the opening ceremony. WEF Founder and Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab declared the summit open amid the ski-resort receiving record snowfall. Schwab welcomed members from business, politics, academia and media as well as the first timers with a round of applause. He also said all are here despite such weather as "we are all part of a community". "Participants are here because they are part of a multi- stakeholder community. No stakeholder alone can address the complex global agenda effectively," Schwab said. He also invoked the spirit of Davos and asked everyone to come not only with their brain but with their soul and heart. The Pope passionately called upon participants to overcome fragmentation between states and institutions and work together to facilitate more inclusive approaches in an increasingly globalised world. In a speech delivered by Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, Pope Francis said, "It is vital to safeguard the dignity of the human person, in particular by offering to all people real opportunities for integral human development and by implementing economic policies that favour the family". He also applauded the summit's theme 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World'. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi and IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, among others, were present. The winners of WEF's Crystal awards -- cine star Shah Rukh Khan, music icon Elton John and Hollywood actor Cate Blanchett -- were also in attendance. More than 3,000 world leaders from business, politics, art, academia and civil society would be participating in the summit and the the Indian presence is the largest ever with over 130 participants. The official sessions would begin on Tuesday when Prime Minister Narendra Modi would deliver the 'opening plenary', during which he is expected to pitch India as an open economy that is ready for investments and also as a major engine to drive the global economic growth. Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister to attend Davos meeting in about 20 years since H D Deve Gowda in 1997. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Harry Potter was an unheard name, tweeting was done only by birds and Amazon referred to dense forests in 1997, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said today to stress upon the changes the world has seen in the past 20 years. Addressing the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting, Modi said he is the first Indian Prime Minister to come here since H D Deve Gowda in 1997. The Indian economy has changed significantly since then and so has the rest of the world, he noted. Speaking mostly in Hindi, Modi thanked WEF and the Swiss government for the reception accorded to him. He also recalled that when Deve Gowda came here in 1997, the theme of the WEF summit was building a networked society. That theme now looks centuries-old as the world today is about big data and so many other new developments, the prime minister said. Modi said very few people in 1997 had heard of Osama bin Laden and even Harry Potter was an unheard name. "Also, chess players did not have any big fear of the computer while Google was not there in cyber space and Amazon of that time was about dense forests. Tweeting was done by birds at that time and not by humans," he said. Modi, however, said at that time also, Davos was ahead of its time and was known for WEF. It is ahead of the times today as well with the theme of 'Creating a shared future in a fractured world'. "The world is changing fast today and there are new and serious challenges related to peace and security and various other matters. "We believe in linking people, not bending them or breaking them. But the challenges the world faces are as numerous as they are daunting. "Mountains of data are getting created and there is a race to control those as the feeling is that the one who gets control of this data would rule the world," he said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A 37-year-old man, who allegedly fled with one kg gold last month that was handed over to him by his employer for delivery to a customer, has been arrested, police said today. The accused has been identified as Sukhdev, a native of Panipat, and he was arrested yesterday from Jwala Heri market in West Delhi's Paschim Vihar, they said. On December 31, a jewellery showroom owner in Ranjit Nagar had complained to the police that one of his employees had fled with a one kg gold which was handed over to him for delivery to a customer in Pitampura. The accused, when called on phone by his employer, said he has gone to Panipat because his parents had suddenly fallen ill, according to a police official. When Sukhdev did not return even after some days and his phone was also switched off, his employer approached the police, the official said. On a tip-off, the police yesterday found a man wandering in Jwala Heri market with the intention to sell huge quantity of gold who turned out to be Sukhdev. Police arrested him and recovered 522 gm of stolen gold besides Rs 10 lakh cash which he got by selling the remaining gold, the official said. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) A prime suspect in high-profile rape and murder case of seven-year-old Zainab has been arrested in Punjab province of Pakistan. Police sources confirmed suspect Imran Ali, 23, a neighbour of Zainab, had confessed to his crime before an investigation team. They said Ali had been taken into custody over two weeks ago but was let to go on the Zainab familys interference 'claiming that he could not be a culprit'. Punjab government spokesman Malik Ahmad told PTI that Ali had confessed to his crime but it would be confirmed whether he is the culprit or not after a DNA test. "Imran Ali's DNA test is underway and hopefully we will have the report later in the day," Ahmad said, adding the suspect has been arrested from Pakpatan district of Punjab. On January 5, Zainab had gone missing while going to a religious tuition centre near her house in Kasur city, some 50-km from Lahore. Her parents had been in Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah and she had been living with her maternal aunt. After her abduction, a CCTV footage showed her walking with a stranger near Peerowala Road. On January 9, her body was recovered from a heap of trash near the Shahbaz Khan Road. Autopsy report had confirmed rape. Police have carried out DNA test of more than 1,000 suspects. The Supreme Court on last Sunday gave a 72-hour deadline to Inspector General of Police to arrest the culprit. Violent protests gripped the Kasur city following Zainabs murder that claimed two lives. The Zainab incident also stirred a national outcry demanding justice for her. Last year, 4,139 incidents of child abuse took place in the province where 43 per cent of them were acquainted with perpetrators. (This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.) Bacardi Ltd said on Monday it would buy high-end tequila maker Patron Spirits International AG in a $5.1 billion deal, hoping to become the second largest spirits company in the United States by market value. The acquisition marks the first major deal under Mahesh Madhavan, who was appointed Bacardi's chief executive in October by the family that controls the company and founded it some 156 years ago in Cuba. New, high-end tequilas including Patron's namesake drinks have helped the beverage broaden its reach beyond young partygoers. While the global market for ... By Allison LampertMONTREAL (Reuters) - Bombardier risks losing a hotly-contested U.S. trade dispute on Thursday which would effectively bar its CSeries jet from the United States for at least a year, a potential setback as the Canadian plane-and-train maker races to meet its 2018 delivery targets and attract sales from American carriers.The International Trade Commission's (ITC) ruling this week is unlikely to put an end to months of wrangling between Boeing Co , the world's largest maker of jetliners, and Bombardier, along with Canada and the United Kingdom, which have sided with the ... Budget airline group AirAsia Bhd plans to add around 30 jets to its airline affiliates across Asia this year due to strong demand growth across the region, CEO Tony Fernandes said on Tuesday. AirAsia, which operates close to 200 airplanes and is one of Airbus SE's biggest customers, has airlines in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, India and Japan and plans to grow in China and Vietnam. "We've been able to get the Philippines and Indonesia really rocking, turning them into little gems," Fernandes said in an interview with Reuters TV on the ... (Reuters) - Budget airline group AirAsia plans to add around 30 jets to its airline affiliates across Asia this year due to strong demand growth across the region, Chief Executive Tony Fernandes said on Tuesday.AirAsia, which flies close to 200 airplanes and is the largest operator of Airbus's best-selling A320 jet, has airlines in Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, the Philippines, India and Japan and plans to grow in China and Vietnam."We've been able to get the Philippines and Indonesia really rocking, turning them into little gems," Fernandes told Reuters TV on the sidelines of the World ... By Harry Brumpton(Reuters) - SRS Distribution Inc, a U.S. private equity-owned wholesale distributor of building products, is exploring a sale that could value the company at close to $3 billion, including debt, according to people familiar with the matter.The decision to explore a sale comes amid strong demand for roofing products. Americans are expected to spend nearly $340 billion in 2018 to upgrade or to patch up their homes, a 7.5 percent increase from last year, a report by the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University showed last week.Buyout firm Berkshire Partners LLC, ... WASHINGTON (Reuters) - IMF chief Christine Lagarde said on Tuesday she had met with South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos and agreed that structural challenges were a burden to economic growth in Africa's largest economy.Their meeting comes a day after the International Monetary Fund cut South Africa's growth forecast for the next two years, citing political uncertainty."We concurred that long-standing structural challenges continue to weigh on growth in South Africa," Lagarde said in a statement, adding: "We consequently agreed ... India could see more integration among state oil companies, its oil minister said on Monday, following top producer ONGC's $5.8 billion deal last week to buy a majority stake in refiner Hindustan Petroleum Corp Ltd. India wants to build bigger oil companies to better compete with global energy giants and withstand oil price volatility through integration of state-run oil firms. "There is scope for more vertical integration in the sector," oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan told a news conference. He was speaking after Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) announced on ... By Kaori Kaneko and Takashi UmekawaTOKYO (Reuters) - Eleven countries aiming to forge a new Asia-Pacific trade pact after the United States pulled out of an earlier version will hold a signing ceremony in Chile in March, Japan's economy minister said on Tuesday, in a big win for Tokyo.Trade officials from the 11 countries had been meeting in Tokyo to try to resolve rifts including Canada's insistence on protection of its cultural industries such as movies, TV and music.An agreement is a huge plus for Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government, which has been lobbying hard to save the ... By Paritosh BansalDAVOS, Switzerland (Reuters) - Prime Minister Narendra Modi mounted a defense of globalization at the World Economic Forum on Tuesday, urging joint action on climate change and economic cooperation, in a speech some delegates took as a swipe at U.S. President Donald Trump's America First agenda.Modi, making the forum's first speech by an Indian head of state in more than two decades, did not mention Trump by name but he criticised the rise of protectionism in remarks delivered three days before the U.S. President will address the summit."Instead of globalization, the power ... By Henning GloysteinSINGAPORE (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to slap tariffs on solar panel imports is a blow to a booming global industry.The protectionist measures will pull investments in the technology out of the United States and into Asia and other regions, as the industry tries to make up for the lost opportunity in America, industry sources said on Tuesday.Trump on Monday approved a 30 percent tariff on solar cell and module imports that will drop to 15 percent within four years. Up to 2.5 gigawatt (GW) of unassembled solar cell imports are allowed tariff-free in ... By Henning Gloystein and Christoph SteitzSINGAPORE/BERLIN (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to slap tariffs on solar panel imports is a blow to a booming global industry, and hit stocks in European and Asian solar groups on fears their business might suffer.Although the move was intended to help American manufacturers, some in the sector said it would slow U.S. investment in solar power and cost thousands of U.S. jobs. Trump on Monday approved a 30 percent tariff on solar cell and module imports, dropping to 15 percent within four years. Up to 2.5 gigawatts (GW) of ... Download BT Podcast (DAVOS special) WEF meet kicks off The annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meet of the rich and the powerful began here with a special message from Pope Francis being read out at the opening ceremony. WEF Founder and Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab declared the summit open amid the ski-resort receiving record snowfall. He also said all are here despite such weather as "we are all part of a community". Modi's visit generates interest Prime minister Modi, the first Indian Prime Minister in two decades to attend the summit reached Davos. Apart from holding a series of meetings with business leaders, the PM will also hold bilateral talks with the President of Swiss Confederation, Alain Berset and Prime Minister of Sweden. The opening plenary of the 48th Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) is already generating a lot of attention and interest with Prime Minister Modi set for his maiden inaugural speech . In an exclusive interview with India Today, WEF president Borge Brende said, "We are very much looking forward to listen to the Prime Minister's mission for India and the world. It is a significant visit for us." Modi is here to tell the world his 'Mann ki Baat': Anand Mahindra On the sidelines of the mega event, Mahindra and Mahindra Chairman Anand Mahindra spoke about the Prime Minister's agenda and India's role on the world stage "I think he has recognised the WEF is today's one-stop-destination to put forward your vision, which I presume is going to be Prime Minister Modi's vision too. In essence, he is here to tell the world his 'Mann Ki Baat'," explained Mahindra. Mahindra was also asked about Prime Minister Modi's "offensive" against criticism over structural reforms - carried out by the Narendra Modi government - after India's ranking on 'ease of doing business' took a sharp jump. "These are the initiative carried out with good intention. So he does not need to be apologetic. And I think his timing - decision to visit Davos to address the world's who's who at the WEF - is perfect that shows India is ready to play a big role." Honoured to receive WEF's 24th Crystal Award, says Shah Rukh Khan What is the superstar doing in the midst of all the political, business and world leaders? He received the Crystal award along with Cate Blanchett and Elton John. Shah Rukh Khan is the founder of the non-profit Meer Foundation, which provides support to female victims of acid attacks and major burn injuries through medical treatment, legal aid, vocational training, rehabilitation and livelihood support. He was presented the award for "his leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India". Shah Rukh Khan will also address a session called An Insight, an Idea with Shah Rukh Khan. The actor will be addressing issues of women empowerment in that session as well. Indian CEOs in Davos make a strong pitch for India Indian delegation, which is the fourth largest group at WEF Davos 2018, includes top industrialists including Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, Bajaj Auto Chairman Rahul Bajaj, Bharti Enterprises Chairman Sunil Mittal and JSW Group Chairman Sajjan Jindal, Anand Mahindra of Mahindra & Mahindra. Tata Sons CEO N Chandrasekaran are also present at the gathering. Kotak Mahindra Bank Chairman Uday Kotak said India needs to understand the subtle difference between sales and marketing, and presents the India story accordingly while positioning itself in the role of a statesman. Spicejet CEO Ajay Singh, who turned around the budget carrier Spicejet, said India has a real terrific story to tell in Davos and there can be no one better than Prime Minister Modi to tell this story. Download BT Podcast (DAVOS special) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday delivered the keynote address at the World Economic Forum's opening plenary session in Davos. In the very first session at WEF 2018, PM Modi spoke on big ticket reforms that his government has introduced in the last three years. "India has gotten rid of outdated 1400 laws in 3 years," PM Modi said. Speaking to a packed hall at WEF Davos, Prime Minister listed out three major challenges the world is facing right now. PM Modi highlighted the need to tackle issues like climate change, terrorism and protectionism. Narendra Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister in two decades to attend the WEF. In a bid to woo foreign investors, the Prime Minister said India has done away with 1400 archaic laws which were creating hurdles in starting business. "If you want wealth and wellness, come to India. If you want peace and prosperity, come to India," PM Modi told the gathering of world's richest people. PM Modi spoke on the challenges of climate change. "Glaciers are melting, Arctic sea ice is declining, some island are about to sink, extreme weather has become common," PM Modi said. PM Modi said that the world is facing a big obstacle in terms of countries turning self-centered. Many countries who preach globalisation have chosen to remain self-centered. This is equal to terror and climate change, and the sheen of globalisation is slowly fading. Voicing his concerns on the global challenges, PM Modi said we have to ask if economic progress at the cost of environment degradation is the real progress. Why are we not thinking about these challenges? In India, we have set a target to produce 175 gigawatt renewable energy by 2022. Total 60 gigawatt of the desired target has already been achieved. In 2016, India and France united to make an organisation to tackle these challenges and formed International Solar Alliance. This year, French President Emmanuel Macron and the other alliance leaders would come to India to take part in its first international meet in March, Prime Minister added. On Monday, the Prime Minister met with 60 CEOs which included 40 CEOs from countries around the world. PM Modi's Davos visit comes at a time when US President Donald Trump has advocated for protectionist policies. Commenting on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's keynote speech, Kotak Mahindra Bank Chairman Uday Kotak said, "A fair amount has been said on terrorism and climate change. I was enthused when PM mentioned protectionism. I look at PM's speech today as that of a statesman not a salesman." Here are the latest updates from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech at WEF opening session: 07:42 pm: PM Modi spoke like a global leader and not just as Prime Minister of India: SBI Chairman Rajnish Kumar 07:00 pm: I think it was an incredibly powerful message. To use a cricket analogy, this was India's moment at Davos and as the team captain, the Prime Minister hit not just one six but many sixes: SpiceJet CEO Ajay Singh 05:03 pm: It is proud moment for India. PM has invited leaders from across the world to invest in India. India can apply cement to a fractured world: Sunil Bharti Mittal 05:00 pm: The way PM spoke about sustainability and wealth is incredible: Vijay Shekhar Sharma of Paytm 04:48 pm: If you want peace and prosperity, come to India 04:45 pm: If you want wealth and wellness, come to India 04:40 pm: In India, Democracy, demography and dynamism are creating development and shaping our destiny: PM Modi 04:38 pm: Technology and digital revolution will help us combat poverty and unemployment in a new way: PM Modi 04:30 pm: More than 1400 archaic laws which were creating hurdles in starting business in India have been abolished: PM Modi 04:28 pm: The Indian youths were earlier tied due to poor policies. But now situation has changed, and in three years big changes have been happening in India. Now, India's youth is eyeing for $5 trillain economy by 2025, and they are capable in doing this: PM Modi 04:25 pm: The motto of my Government is 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas': PM Modi 04:22 pm: We in India are proud of our democracy and diversity: PM Modi 04:15 pm: Terrorism is dangerous. Worse is when people say there is a difference between 'good' and 'bad' terror. It is painful to see some youngsters getting radicalised: PM Modi 04:10 pm: As Indian representative here at WEF, it's a very urgent topic for me. We Indians believe in joining mankind not dividing them. For thousands years, we have been, as Prof Klaus Schwab said, giving the message of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' (the whole world is one family). The message of 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' is more relevant than ever today. 04:03 pm: Today we live in the time of Big Data, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robots. In 1997, very few people had known about Harry Porter or Osama Bin Laden. At that time, the Google was yet to be born. In 1997, if you had searched about Amazon you would have found rivers and jungles. During that time, tweeting was the habit of birds and not humans. 04:00 pm: The last time an Indian Prime Minister came to Davos was in 1997 when PM Deve Gowda had visited. In 1997 India's GDP was a little over $400 billion. After 2 deacdes, it is almost 6 times. Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Davos on Monday to attend the 48th annual meet of the World Economic Forum (WEF). PM Modi reiterated India's role in the world economy in his opening address. Last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping had delivered the keynote address at the World Economic Forum. Indian delegation, which is the fourth largest group at WEF Davos 2018, includes top industrialists including Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani, Bajaj Auto Chairman Rahul Bajaj, Bharti Enterprises Chairman Sunil Mittal and JSW Group Chairman Sajjan Jindal, Anand Mahindra of Mahindra & Mahindra. Tata Sons CEO N Chandrasekaran will also attend the gathering. India Inc. has made a strong pitch for a statesman like position for the country to counter the protectionism and domestic rhetoric likely to be presented by countries like the US. Kotak Mahindra Bank Chairman Uday Kotak said on Monday that India needs to understand the subtle difference between sales and marketing, and presents the India story accordingly while positioning itself in the role of a statesman. For the first time ever, India has jumped 30 positions to become the top 100th country in terms of ease of doing business ranking. This was announced by the World Bank Group's latest 'Doing Business 2018: Reforming to Create Jobs' report in Delhi on October 2017. The World Bank attributed the change in India ranking to the sustained business reforms. India also got a thumbs up from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which reaffirmed that India's economy is projected to grow by 7.4 per cent in the next fiscal year. Before leaving for the WEF summit in Davos, the prime minister in a series of tweets, said that he looks forward to sharing his vision for India's future engagement with the international community. The theme at the WEF forum this year is 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World'. The annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meet of the rich and the powerful began on Monday with a special message from Pope Francis being read out at the opening ceremony. WEF Founder and Executive Chairman Klaus Schwab declared the summit open amid the ski-resort receiving record snowfall. Schwab welcomed members from business, politics, academia and media as well as the first timers with a round of applause. He also said all are here despite such weather as "we are all part of a community". Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Zurich on Monday to attend the 48th annual meet of the World Economic Forum (WEF). He will deliver a speech at the opening plenary session in the World Economic Forum on Tuesday. It is expected that PM Modi will take the stage to reiterate India's role in the world economy. In a world order where the biggest economies dictate the rules and regulations, PM Modi will look to cementing India's position as one of the most dynamic and powerful economies. Today, 3:45 PM onwards the Opening Plenary of the @wef commences. PM @narendramodi will address the plenary. You can watch the address live here. https://t.co/vbG9VG4Eqq #IndiaMeansBusiness - PMO India (@PMOIndia) January 23, 2018 LIVE UPDATES 11:55 AM: India is evolving, every single day you are seeing the excitement about India grow all across the world. The WEF represents business from all parts of the world who are looking at the big Indian opportunity, the big Indian market: Railway Minister Piyush Goyal 08:00 AM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with top CEOs. He spoke about India's economic development and the investment opportunities in India. In Davos, PM @narendramodi interacted with top CEOs. He spoke about India's economic development and the investment opportunities in the nation. #IndiaMeansBusiness pic.twitter.com/LmRR28k9xL - PMO India (@PMOIndia) January 23, 2018 Bollywood director Karan Johar says he would speak on 'Weaponisation of Culture' at Davos on Tuesday. 12.20am: The WEF meet of the rich and the powerful begins with a special message from Pope Francis being read out at the opening ceremony. 9.10pm: A WEF report says India will be the world's fastest-growing economy in 2018, with a projected growth rate of 7.4%. China will be in second place with an expected 6.6% expansion, slightly higher than previously thought. 6.10pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Office tweets picture of him being welcomed at Zurich, Switzerland. PM @narendramodi reached Switzerland, where he will take part in the @wef. pic.twitter.com/ASA0qamQfS - PMO India (@PMOIndia) January 22, 2018 6pm: PM Modi is hosting a dinner for CEOs of global companies, including India, tonight. 5.50pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on way to Davos. 5.40pm: Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Zurich on Monday to attend the 48th annual meet of the World Economic Forum. The existing and emerging challenges to the contemporary international system and global governance architecture deserve serious attention of leaders, governments, policy makers, corporates and civil societies around the world. @wef #IndiaMeansBusiness - Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 21, 2018 USA President Donald Trump, who was also slated to be part of the meeting, might not be able to make it, in the wake of the government shutdown in the country. Speculations were running rife on whether PM Modi would meet President Trump. However, newly appointed foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale mentioned that the two world leaders will not be there on the same day. PM Modi tweeted, "The existing and emerging challenges to the contemporary international system and global governance architecture deserve serious attention of leaders, governments, policy makers, corporates and civil societies around the world." "In recent years, India's engagement with the outside world has become truly and effectively multi-dimensional covering the political, economic, people to people, security and other spheres," he added. "At Davos, I look forward to sharing my vision for India's future engagement with the international community," PM Modi said. PM Modi is the first prime minister in 20 years since Deve Gowda to attend the annual meeting. With agency inputs Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his keynote address at the WEF 2018 on Tuesday delivered a strong message to the world by calling for unity against protectionism and invited global companies to invest in India. He said due to the structural reforms carried out by the current government, India has opened a "new door of the FDI". He assured the CEOs and the leaders of world powers that India was ready to take on any challenges like protectionism and terrorism. Here are some key takeaways from Prime Minister Narendra Modi's pitch for 'Make in India'. Assures companies of smooth policies PM Modi said India has no indirect motives, and that it works in close coordination with partner countries without any agenda, indirectly hitting out at China's policies in Indian sub-continent. Slamming the protectionist policies adopted by many developed countries, Modi said they need to change their self-centered way. He even compared the problem of protectionism with climate change and terrorism. "We are facing a big obstacle in terms of countries turning self-centered. Many countries who preach globalisation have chosen to remain self-centered. This is equal to terror and climate change, and the sheen of globalisation is slowly fading," said PM Modi. India at cusp of major social change The Prime Minister said: "We are not only doing small changes in our economic and social policies but are bringing revolutionary changes by adopting a policy of reform, perform and transform." Boasting how the government has made it easy to invest in the country, the PM said due to our simple policies for investment, "it is now very easy to invest, visit, work, manufacture and export your product to all corners of the world from our country". "The Indian youths were earlier tied due to poor policies. But now situation has changed, and in three years big changes have happened in India. Now Indian youths are eyeing for $5 trillain economy by 2025, and they are capable in doing this," said the PM. From red tape to red-carpet nation Assuring India has completely shed its conservative working policy and that anyone could invest in India without facing much bureaucratic hurdles, Modi told the gathering "my country has now changed from a red tape to a red-carpet nation. The PM said that to improve major political, economic and security issues of the world, there's a need for strong coordination between likeminded nations. "There's a strong need to speed up global economic growth. Current results are encouraging but technology and digital revolution can help find out answers to these problems." The PM concluded his speech with a passionate call for investment by stating that "if you want wealth and wellness, come to India. If you want health and wellness, come to India. India will always welcome you." Investment opportunities in solar power The Prime Minister Modi drove the people's attention towards the problem of climate change by showing India's progress on the initiative. He said the real solution of problems lie in first accepting them and then finding solutions by working together. "We have to ask if economic progress at the cost of environment degradation is the real progress. Why are we not thinking about these challenges? In India, we have set a target to produce 175gigawatt renewable energy production by 2022. Total 60gigawatt of the desired target has already been achieved." The Prime Minister said India and France united in 2016 to make an organisation to tackle the solar energy production challenges and formed the International Solar Alliance. "This year, France President Emmanuel Macron and the other alliance leaders would come to India to take part in its first international meet," he said. The World Economic Forum was perhaps the biggest platform for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to pitch the country as a global investment destination and tell the world that India means business. And, he didn't disappoint. From the Prime Minister's strong-but-inclusive pitch at the plenary session of the World Economic Forum 2018, it was clear that he not only wanted the largest gathering of rich and powerful to hear India's growth story, but also see its blueprint to become the 'future superpower'. Uday Kotak, Managing Director, Kotak Mahindra Bank, said the Prime Minster was able to strike all right chords in his opening address. "A lot has been said on terrorism, and fair amount has been said on climate change. I was enthused by his position on protectionism. His statement that we're making the world narrow by going for protectionism, and that it is here that India will stand out was a big statement. PM Modi has taken leadership in the whole area of what is the World Economic Forum (WEF). It was all about environment, call for inclusiveness, and anti-protectionism. So in essence he hit all the right buttons." So is it right time now to compare India with China? "It's not about comparison. I think it's India's turn now. When the world is going inward, India is open for globalisation. Huge investment can come to India in all sectors. He has also taken stand on much larger issues of social nature like climate change, which affects everybody," said Rajan Bharti Mittal, MD, Bharti Enterprises, adding that it was a great honour that a PM had visited Davos after a gap of 20 years. "He has the will to do things, he has the mandate, and people are recognising his position." "It was a powerful message. This was team India's moment at Davos. And the Indian captain hit not one but many sixes. He reminded the world what an old country this was. What old wisdom India has and how it can be applied to solve global issues. He spoke about big data, AI and digital India - it was an incredible juxtaposition of old India and new India," said Ajay Singh, CEO, SpiceJet. On asking about Prime Minister Modi's vision for his Davos address, Mahindra and Mahindra Chairman Anand Mahindra on Monday said: "I think he has recognised the WEF is today's one-stop-destination to put forward your vision, which I presume is going to be Prime Minister Modi's vision too. In essence, he is here to tell the world his 'Mann Ki Baat'." He added: "I think his timing - decision to visit Davos to address the world's who's who at the WEF - is perfect that shows India is ready to play a big role." After his speech at the mega event on Tuesday, the PM met a group of Indian CEOs including Chanda Kochhar, Uday Kotak, Rahul Bajaj, Naresh Goyal, N. Chandrasekaran, Sunil Mittal, Ravi Ruia, Chandrajit Bannerjee and Anand Mahindra. "Together we can! Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Indian CEOs present at the WEF working hand in hand towards a brighter future for the country," Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted. He also tweeted another picture of PM Modi with international CEOs saying "the world applauds 1.3 billion people of India at the WEF in Davos, and appreciate the remarkable transformation in improving the business climate." The second and final qualification motor (QM-2) test for the Space Launch System's booster is seen, Tuesday, June 28, 2016, at Orbital ATK Propulsion Systems test facilities in Promontory, Utah. During the Space Launch System flight the boosters will provide more than 75 percent of the thrust needed to escape the gravitational pull of the Earth, the first step on NASA's Journey to Mars. (Bill Ingalls/NASA via AP) A company alternately known to Utahns as Thiokol, Morton-Thiokol, ATK-Thiokol and now Orbital-ATK still maintains facilities at Promontory in northern Utah plus seven other locations across the state. Before the company shared fault in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986 and since it has undergone steady changes. Mike Fuller, who works in business development for NASA programs at Orbital-ATK, said the company is developing boosters at the Propulsion Systems location at the Promontory facilities. Were developing the boosters for NASAs next generation human launch vehicle, space launch system. We are putting together a booster that is similar to what we did on the space shuttle but were making it bigger, with another segment. So it will be a five-segment solid rocket booster. The entire booster (including nose cap, frustum, and forward and aft skirts) will be approximately 177 feet long. Of the boosters total weight of 1.6 million pounds, propellant accounts for 1.5 million pounds. Fuller said it will put out about 3.5 million pounds of thrust at lift off and go for about 120 seconds before it gets jettisoned from the vehicle. We are looking forward to being an integral part of NASAs work to put humans both into earth orbit as well as beyond that to the moon and hopefully, eventually, to Mars. Fuller said Orbital-ATKs work is not limited to NASA contracts. Thats true. In combination with our other Propulsion Systems location down at Baccus in Magna, Utah, we employ about 2,100 people across a variety of different programs, both NASAs as well as Air Force, Navy and Army programs. We are developing and utilizing our capabilities to provide all of our customers with cutting edge technologies for whatever the mission case may be. Fuller confirms most of their work deals with solid rocket boosters, but there is more. Thats where we have made our mark but we also do a variety of different products mostly in the defense world with regards to warhead production as well as to some UAV work, where we are working with the Army and the Air Force on a variety of different sizes of unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones. LOGAN The Utah Legislatures 2018 session opened Monday and one local lawmaker said he has been looking forward to it. Republican representative Val Potter said it helped to be at a public meeting on Saturday where those attending were able to ask questions and offer opinion on some issues. Those meetings, he said, will continue to take place throughout the session. Well be having our Saturday morning town hall meetings every Saturday at 7:30 at the same place, at the multipurpose room (in the Cache County Administration Building), he said. That will happen every Saturday during the session. This is Potters second year of his first term as a state representative. He previously served on the Cache County Council and as mayor of North Logan. Before the Eastern Partnerships (EaP) Brussels Summit in November 2017, many observers expected the finalization of the new EU-Azerbaijan agreement. However, neither this agreement nor an expected aviation agreement were signed, as many technical challenges remain to be addressed. Azerbaijan signed only a visa-free agreement with the BeNeLux countries for service passports holders and the indicative maps of the Trans-European transport network (TEN-T). The summits final declaration clearly articulated the EUs support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of its partners and called for peaceful conflict settlement based on international law. The declaration also hailed the Southern Gas Corridors (SGC) strategic importance and the progress made in the negotiations for the new agreement. BACKGROUND: Dynamic and radical changes in the eastern neighborhood have necessitated the establishment of a new legal framework to ensure deeper strategic partnership between the EU and Azerbaijan. Instead of signing the Association Agreement (AA), Azerbaijan presented the draft Strategic Partnership Agreement (SPA) to the European Commission in 2015, which Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev called a new chapter in the relations. However, the negotiations were postponed after the European Parliaments (EP) critical resolution in September 2015, which questioned Azerbaijans democratic credentials. Azerbaijan subsequently withdrew from the EU-Azerbaijan parliamentary cooperation committee and renamed the state commission on EU Integration to Partnership with the EU. The parliamentary and diplomatic ties were later revived through constructive dialogue. The Nagorno-Karabakh (NK) conflict is a priority topic of the SPA. Baku is frustrated with the gradual weakening of the EPs previously clear stance on Azerbaijan's territorial integrity and on the withdrawal of Armenian military forces from Azerbaijans occupied territories. Moreover, the EUs official approach on the NK conflict has been downgraded to traditional rhetoric on supporting the endeavors of the OSCE Minsk Groups co-chairs. The EUs diplomatic indifference became more explicit when Brussels simultaneously supported Azerbaijans territorial integrity and endorsed the right to self-determination of Armenians residing in NK. The Azerbaijani government considers the EU to apply double standards in its introduction of sanctions against Russia because of its actions in Ukraine, but not against Armenia for its occupation of Azerbaijani territories. IMPLICATIONS: Although Azerbaijan has continually strived to form advanced cooperation with the EU, it refrained from signing the AA in 2013 due to its aversion toward the EUs past stance on the imposition of a unilateral normative agenda in the EaP. In this context, the AA failed to consider Azerbaijans strategic, political and economic interests. However, Baku now demonstrates an unprecedented level of political determination to complete negotiations on the new agreement. President Aliyev emphasized that Azerbaijan wants a speedy conclusion of negotiations without any delays and prefers a more individual approach. The SPA will be a comprehensive agreement, covering a range of cooperation areas. The agreement is underpinned by the two political principles of differentiation (highlighted in the ENPs review) and principled pragmatism (presented in the EUs Global Strategy). The latter implies that the EU will tailor its approach toward partners, acknowledging their different political paths and avoiding conventional one-size-fits-all principles. The SPA aims to create a competitive and diversified economy in post-oil Azerbaijan, which also requires proper market management, multilateral trade ties less dependent on resources, and reformed institutions. Although separate elements of the document have already been agreed upon, there is still no final agreement on any specific chapters. Yet the failure to sign the agreement during the summit came as no surprise as the Azerbaijani government focuses more on the documents quality than the timing. Negotiations are expected to be completed by the end of 2018. According to Azerbaijans EU Ambassador Fuad Isgandarov, Work will be completed when [the document] fully meets Azerbaijans interests. With the new agreement, Azerbaijan aims to establish strategic relations with the EU. Bakus golden principle is not to rush in signing any document, since the content is more significant than political visibility. Azerbaijan wants all bilateral interaction and strategic engagement concerning the political dialogue and regional security to be conducted on solid foundations and pragmatic terms guided by the principles of the EUs Global Strategy. Azerbaijan, which is subjected to an externally imposed military occupation, considers its sovereignty, territorial integrity and internationally recognized borders to be issues that cannot be the subject of compromise. Whereas the EU considers the status quo in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict to be unsustainable, Brussels prefers an impartial approach that balances the demands of Azerbaijan (territorial integrity) and Armenia (self-determination). The challenge lays in finding appropriate terminology for the conflict in the SPA framework. If the EU will formulate its new agreement with Azerbaijan based on the approach to the conflict taken in its new agreement with Armenia, then effectiveness of the SPA remains a key question. The signing of the Common Aviation Area Agreement will further increase the weight of the SPA. The former was not initialed during the EaP Summit despite expectations, though with a few exceptions, its main principles were basically agreed upon. Moreover, the newly inaugurated Baku-Tbilisi-Kars railway together with the Baku International Sea Trade Port and their interconnection with the North-South Transport Corridor, (all three are included in the external dimension of the TEN-T) will offer great potential of turning Azerbaijan into a new transport corridor and logistics center for North-South and East-West cargo transportation. Although the EU endorsed the BTK railway for its contribution to transport interconnections, the project received no financial or political backing from the Union in the past. Energy cooperation, notably in the framework of the SGC, remains the cornerstone of the strategic partnership. The SGC is an exceptional example of comprehensive project management implemented in Azerbaijan (strategic partner), Georgia (associated partner), Turkey and Albania (candidate countries), Greece and Italy (member states). The projects various segments are almost completed. 96 percent of Shah Deniz II is finished, 82 percent of TANAP, 53 percent of TAP and 95 percent of SCPx. The timely implementation of the SGC and its extension to Central Asian countries is important for Europe; although problems remain in Italys Puglia region concerning the construction of TAPs final leg. The SGC is not only about energy supply security, but also about diversification of routes bringing new sources of gas, which will eventually change the EUs energy map. Prior to the summit, media attacks on Azerbaijan, protests against the SGC from environmental/human-rights NGOs, and the EPs two resolutions slamming Azerbaijan for alleged corruption and human-rights crackdown, threatened to derail Azerbaijans warming dialogue with the EU after a year-long impasse. These actions were negatively perceived by the Azerbaijani government, which considers them as part of a political provocation by certain anti-Azerbaijani circles and other third parties in order to sabotage the perspective of Azerbaijan-EU relations. CONCLUSIONS: The scope of Azerbaijans agreement with the EU will unlikely be narrowed down to conflict, energy or values. It will be different from the agreement with Armenia and conditioned by Azerbaijans non-affiliation with the Eurasian Economic Union, geopolitical location and independent foreign policy. Although the SPA is considered to be tailored more closely in accordance with Azerbaijans interests, it will be a substantive document containing equal strategic perspectives. The EU understands that without reconciliation and consideration of Azerbaijans position, the Union cannot shape a convergence of interests regarding the changing regional security environment or change the political balance in its favor. Baku acknowledges that the SPA will enable it to embark on a more comprehensive reform policy and contribute to its economic resilience in the light of volatile oil prices. The extent of the partnership depends on how far the Azerbaijani government desires to go beyond the existing framework and how the EU will map out its communication diplomacy with official Baku on sensitive issues. The strained relations arose from a lack of strategic insight and two-way communication on delicate affairs. While inter-parliamentary deliberations are quite confrontational, bilateral diplomatic communication is conducted with silent diplomacy, which helps to solve many problems. The EUs attractiveness as a partner, in terms of its ability to address Bakus concerns, is linked to whether the EUs external interests and strategic priorities will prevail in its structural foreign policy towards Azerbaijan. The EUs conventional approach, which is based on conditionality and values rather than differentiation and pragmatism, prevented it from forming productive relations with Azerbaijan. Differentiation and pragmatism is a much better response to this confusion, which also grant more flexibility to the partner country in many contexts. Therefore, the EUs future neighborhood policy towards Azerbaijan should be more coherently conditioned by the countrys geographical circumstances, foreign policy reservations and priorities. AUTHORS BIO: Ilgar Gurbanov is a research fellow at the Centre for Strategic Studies (Azerbaijan). Image source: By European External Action Service eeas.europa.eu, accessed on 1.22. 2018 | BY Ricki Green | Australians cant help but help. Its built into our collective DNA. When someone needs a hand, we help out. In fact, 34% of us regularly volunteer our time to help others. Its a characteristic born out of necessity. You cant survive in this country, with its harsh weather, dangerous wildlife and, most of all, extreme remoteness, without helping one another. TAL brings this community spirit to life in a campaign to launch its partnership with the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), one of the largest and most comprehensive aeromedical organisations in the world, providing extensive primary health care and 24-hour emergency service to people over an area of 7.69 million square kilometres. Says Jen Speirs, creative director, BMF: As you can imagine, in the remote areas that the RFDS operates, luxuries like well-lit, rock-free runways without kangaroos grazing along them, just dont exist. So the only reason a plane can land safely and respond to an emergency, is because the people on the ground step up. Whatever time it is. And thats the story we wanted to tell: people coming together, as Australians do, to get the job done. Perfectly captured by Ben and the Exit team. Says Antony Wilson, general manager brand, TAL: This partnership is a coming together of two major brands. The Royal Flying Doctors is the number one most trusted charity brand in Australia, and TAL the number one and leading brand in Life Insurance. Bringing our two businesses together is a very exciting time, as we talk to Australians about insuring and protecting what is so wonderful in This Australian Life. TALs partnership with RFDS and the campaign will be launching this month during the Australian Open and will be on TV and Social. Agency: BMF Sydney Executive Creative Director: Cam Blackley Creative Director: Jen Speirs Art Director: Jessica Roberts Copywriter: Justin Butler Group Planning Director: David Warren Managing Director: Steve McArdle Group Account Director: Danielle Richards Senior Account Manager: Kimberly Ngo Head of TV: Jenny Lee-Archer Agency Producer: Tamara Kennon Director: Ben Lawrence Producer: Fiona Pakes Production Company: Exit Films Editor: Phil Horn Post Production: The Editors Music: Chandelier (Furler/Shatkin) by The Vitamin String Quartet Music Supervision: Level Two Sound Design: Rumble Studios DoP: Hugh Miller Photographer: Thom Rigley Art Buyer: Basir Salleh Chief Customer and Innovation Officer: Fiona Macgregor General Manager Brand: Antony Wilson Monday, January 22, 2018 at 8:17PM Thomson Reuters will host Girls make Games, an international game development program designed to inspire elementary and high school girls to pursue interests in STEM related fields. Participants will engage in game design, programming, and entrepreneurship workshops led by professional game developers to create their very own video game. Hit jump for details. What will the girls learn in one afternoon? + Intro to game programming + Game design and animation = Create your own video game! Workshop details Location: Thomson Reuters Offices 333 Bay Street, Toronto Dates: Two sessions available Saturday January 27 th AGES 8-11 Sunday January 28 th AGES 12-16 Time: 9am 2pm More details on registration can be found here. news, latest-news Roofer and soon-to-be dad Brett Hutchings is desperately playing catch-up as he waits to be paid for work on the Esque apartments. Mr Hutchings is one of as many as 15 subcontractors believed to be owed for work on the Esque development in Franklin, with the combined total of unpaid bills understood to be worth as much as $2 million. With his first child due in early March, Mr Hutchings has been working flat-out over summer while wondering if he will ever see a cent of the $40,000 he says he is owed. "It has put us in a bit of a hole. We've got our first child on the way, although we will recover," he said. "Because of this we've started off our year with no cashflow," he added. "These bills have been outstanding since August last year." Just before Christmas the M and A Group property development company went into administration, leaving Esque subcontractors in the dark over when they will be paid. Mr Hutchings' partner Chloe Drewery, an accounts manager, said the uncertainty had forced her to work far later into her pregnancy than she was planning. "I should have finished a couple of months ago but I'm still working full-time, just to keep up," she said. Mr Hutchings said the Christmas period had been "hectic" for his family. "Chloe finishes-up at work this week so it's all very hectic for her. It's very upsetting and has put a lot of stress on us," he said. "As a new family trying to get ahead, it's hard." It is understood the M and A Group wants to pay subcontractors as a priority when the remaining units in the Esque block are settled, although it is not known how this may fit into the administration process. "...construction of the Esque development is completed, the units plan has been registered and all except a handful of the settlements have already occurred," lawyer Bernard Tan said in December. "I would expect that the receiver will settle the rest of the units in the ordinary course." Appointed administrator David Mansfield from Deloitte has not replied to written questions about the administration process. In December Esque apartment owners were sent a "defects report" detailing 29 separate issues with the building. The list was compiled on behalf of residents by the Independent Property Group, which is the real estate agent selling apartments inside the Esque building. Each defect described on the report was accompanied by a list of the apartments affected. It showed that five units have complained about toilets that either leak or do not flush, six apartments have complained about their air conditioning not working, and four apartments need a plasterer to fix cracks or holes in the walls. Twelve apartments had complained about receiving either the wrong white goods, or advertised white goods not being supplied at all. Earlier in January the first annual general meeting was held for Esque residents, with the election of an executive committee to represent unit owners one of the main items of business. It is understood that residents have discussed how to get the list of defects addressed while the developer is in administration, and whether legal action is the best avenue to do so. Representatives from the Independent Property Group were present at the meeting. "The AGM went well considering the issues that are facing the unit owners in the Esque development," a company spokesman said at the time. "The executive committee will be investigating all options available to them and are awaiting communication from the appointed administrators. "Until communications are received and authorisation from the committee has been provided no further disclosures can be made." /images/transform/v1/crop/frm/silverstone-ct-migration/098b1ef1-2e76-4ad6-a15c-e89722ec6bc1/r0_119_1999_1248_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg What is the secret to a happy relationship? New York Times best-belling author Dr. Gary Chapman will describe what it takes to have a successful love relationship when he speaks at the Annual Benefit Dinner for Lifeline Family Center Thursday, March 22, at McGregor Baptist Church in Fort Myers. Millions of readers credit Chapmans best-selling book, The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love That Lasts, with saving their marriages and families by showing them simple and practical ways to communicate love. More than 600 community leaders are expected to attend the annual benefit dinner. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the dinner begins at 6:30 p.m. Tickets are $80 each or $440 for a table of eight. Sponsorships, which include a VIP reception with Chapman, are available from $1,000 to $10,000. Tickets may be purchased at www.lifelinefamilycenter.org/event/benefit-dinner or by calling 239-242-7238. Major sponsors for the event are Jerry and Dee Horne and Glenn and Ada Ann Healey. The Cape Coral Breeze and CTN10 Christian Television are the media sponsors for the event. CTN10 General Manager Paul Lodato will be the master of ceremonies. We are very pleased Dr. Chapman will be coming to Southwest Florida to share his expertise in marriage and family counseling and help us improve or heal our most important relationships, said Lifeline Family Center President and Founder Kathy Miller in a prepared statement. His message is sure to resonate with all who desire to communicate love in family relationships. Lifeline Family Center provides a home in Cape Coral for homeless young women in crisis pregnancies to help them become self-supporting through education, job training, parenting classes, professional counseling and spiritual guidance. It is the only residential program in Lee County for homeless young women in crisis pregnancies who are not part of the foster care program. Lifeline Family Center can serve up to 12 young women, ages 16 to 25, and up to 24 babies at a time in the residential program. More than 6,000 women have received assistance with material needs, such as diapers and formula, adoption counseling and resource referrals through Lifelines Outreach Program and the 24/7 helpline, 239-772-HOPE. Lifelines Outreach provides free pregnancy tests, free ultrasounds by appointment, and does outreach to all areas of Lee County, including community centers and college campuses. Katherina Ortiz, who graduated from the two-year residential program and now works at Lifeline in Outreach and Public Relations, also will speak at the benefit dinner on how her experience at Lifeline Family Center made a difference in her life and those of her children. Dr. Chapman has expanded his 5 Love Languages series with special editions that reach out specifically to singles, men and parents of teens and young children. He is the author of numerous other books, including The Family Youve Always Wanted, The Marriage Youve Always Wanted, Desperate Marriages, God Speaks Your Love Language, How to Really Love Your Adult Child, and One More Try. With Dr. Jennifer Thomas, he co-authored When Sorry Isnt Enough, which introduces readers to The 5 Languages of Apology. Dr. Chapman speaks to thousands of couples nationwide through his weekend marriage conferences. He hosts a nationally syndicated radio program, A Love Language Minute, and a Saturday morning program, Building Relationships with Dr. Gary Chapman, both airing on more than 400 stations. Dr. Chapman and his wife have two grown children and live in Winston-Salem, N.C., where he is senior associate pastor of Calvary Baptist Church. 30 Photo: Contributed A pizza delivery mans vehicle was stolen early Sunday morning. RCMP were called to Rutland Road North near McCurdy Road for a theft of vehicle just before 2: 30 a.m. Police arrived on scene to find an intoxicated youth being physically detained for the alleged theft. He was taken into police custody without further incident. RCMP determined that the victim was delivering food to a residence on Keithley Road when he suddenly heard his black BMW 540i sedan take off. The vehicle owner chased his vehicle on foot towards McCurdy Road, where he managed to climb into the rear seat of his car. Now inside his vehicle, the owner managed to physically overtake the alleged auto theft suspect, forced his vehicle into park and pushed the male out of the car, said Cpl. Jesse ODonaghey. They 16-year-old Kelowna man was held in police custody overnight and faces potential criminal and B.C. Motor Vehicle Act charges. He was later released, on strict conditions, into the care and custody of a guardian and is expected to appear in Court on April 24, 2018. If you witnessed this incident and have not yet spoken to police you are asked to contact the Kelowna RCMP at 250-762-3300. Photo: Contributed UPDATE 10:00 a.m. The Mayor of Tofino, Josie Osborne, tells Castanet the provinces Tsunami alert system appears to have worked well after a 7.9 quake hit off the northwest coast of Canada this morning. "This was what we call an orphan tsunami, so normally I would have gone to the high ground in my neighbourhood but in this case I was able to head downtown and join the co-ordination effort." Osborne says they did not feel the quake in Tofino this morning. Similiar stories of panic and confusion are making the rounds on social media today. Art Aronson who lives in downtown Victoria's James Bay, tells Castanet it was a panic for a while but many people slept through the alert and woke up to panic and uncertainty. UPDATE 6:32 a.m. A tsunami warning issued for coastal British Columbia was cancelled Tuesday morning after people living along parts of the province's coast evacuated to higher ground when a powerful earthquake struck off Alaska. Residents in some coastal communities were woken by warning sirens shortly after the quake with a magnitude of 7.9 struck at about 1:30 a.m. Pacific time. The quake was centred 278 kilometres southeast of Kodiak in the Gulf of Alaska at a depth of about 10 kilometres. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth said several communities activated their emergency plans and evacuated those at risk as the provincial emergency co-ordination centre and five regional operations centres were also mobilized. In low-lying areas of Victoria and Esquimalt, officials went door-to-door telling people to evacuate, while elsewhere sirens and text alerts were used to get the warning out, he said in an interview. Minister of Public Safety Mike Farnworth says the alert system appears to have done its job: "A tsunami warning on the Coast of B.C. has now been cancelled. "Overnight, several communities along the coast activated their emergency plans and evacuated those at risk. "Emergency Management BC activated the Provincial Emergency Co-ordination Centre, and five provincial regional operations centers. The agency also supported local governments to evacuate residents. Although the tsunami warning was eventually suspended, this event demonstrates that coast warning systems do work. "Please do NOT call 911 for information on the tsunami in B.C. - only call 911 when a life is at stake. It is important these lines are freed-up for those in immediate need. "In the event of a future tsunami warning, stay calm, stay safe; listen to your local officials and head to higher ground." ORIGINAL 5:12 a.m. A tsunami warning issued for coastal British Columbia was cancelled Tuesday morning after people living along parts of the province's coast evacuated to higher ground when a powerful earthquake struck off Alaska. Residents in some coastal communities were woken by warning sirens shortly after the quake with a magnitude of 7.9 struck at about 1:30 a.m. Pacific time. The quake struck 278 kilometres southeast of Kodiak at a depth of about 10 kilometres. Patricia Leidl, communications director with Emergency Preparedness BC, said there was a three centimetre wave and a 15 centimetre rise in sea level hours after the quake at Tofino on the west coast of Vancouver Island. "I think this exercise demonstrates that tsunami warning systems do work and, just to reiterate, that it's absolutely critical that those living in vulnerable and coastal areas do respond to these warnings and listen to their local officials should such an event occur," she said. The tsunami warning covered the Juan de Fuca Strait coast, the outer west coast of Vancouver Island, the central coast and northeast Vancouver Island, and the north coast and Haida Gwaii. People were told to evacuate inland or to higher ground, or move to an upper floor of a multi-story building, depending on individual situations. Dan Banks, a public works employee in Tofino, said residents in low-lying areas, including resorts on along the beach, were told to go to higher ground. "It's tsunami protocol, everybody is going to high ground and evacuating the low-areas like they are supposed to," he said, adding people also gathered at a community hall. Gillian Der, a University of British Columbia geography student who is studying in Queen Charlotte on Haida Gwaii, said she didn't feel the earthquake. "I don't think any of us felt anything," she added. "I just heard the fire trucks going around, honking their horns and on the loud speaker saying there is a tsunami warning. It was very apocalyptic. So I was just running up the street to the muster station, up the big hill." In Alaska, warnings from the National Weather Service sent to cellphones said: "Emergency Alert. Tsunami danger on the coast. Go to high ground or move inland." Lt. Tim Putney of the Kodiak Police Department said the earthquake woke him up out of a dead sleep, and he estimates it shook for at least 30 seconds. "I've been Kodiak for 19 years that was the strongest, longest lasting one I've ever felt," he told The Associated Press. The Alaska Earthquake Information Center said the quake was felt widely in several communities on the Kenai Peninsula and throughout southern Alaska, but it also had no immediate reports of damage. People reported on social media that the quake was felt hundreds of kilometres away, in Anchorage. Keith Perkins, who lives in the southeast Alaska community of Sitka, arrived at the high school early Tuesday morning, after an alarm on his cellphone alerted him of the tsunami warning. He said the city's sirens also went off later. Given the magnitude of the earthquake, Perkins said he thought it best to head to the school, the tsunami evacuation point, even though in the past he felt his home was at a "high-enough spot." "I figured I'd probably just better play it safe." Photo: DriveBC Another day another snowfall warning for the Coquihalla. Environment Canada is warning snowfall amounts could reach as much as 30 centimetres. A strong Pacific frontal system is rapidly approaching the southwest coast of B.C. Periods of snow will begin falling on highway passes this morning, and become heavy at times this evening and through tonight. The Coquihalla Summit could receive 25 to 35 cm snowfall accumulation, while Allison Pass and Kootenay Pass could receive 20 to 25 cm of snowfall accumulation. Snowfall should ease early Thursday morning as the system moves through to the east. Be prepared to adjust your driving with changing road conditions. Rapidly accumulating snow could make travel difficult over some locations. If visibility is reduced while driving, turn on your lights and maintain a safe following distance. Weather in the mountains can change suddenly resulting in hazardous driving conditions. Photo: CTV A raid on an illegal open-air marijuana market in Vancouver has resulted in four arrests, with a fifth expected soon. Eleven criminal charges have been recommended two days after Vancouver police hit the scene on the 800-block of Robson street. All those taken into custody were released on the condition they not return to the location, which one person disobeyed. That person was arrested on Monday. VPD said Tuesday that trafficking and possession charges had been approved against David Hill, 42. Other names will be released as charges are approved by Crown Counsel. The police said they expect more charges and arrests as the investigation continues. The raid, which took place from late Sunday night through early Monday morning, was part of a six-week investigation into the unlicensed marijuana market located outside the Vancouver Art Gallery. Police seized over nine pounds of dried bulk marijuana, 23 pounds of edible products, over $4,000 in cash, a bat, pipe and baton, used drug paraphernalia, six tents and 10 tables. CTV Vancouver had previously investigated the market using hidden cameras, which revealed instances of vigilante justice and evidence that illegal sales of marijuana were pushing out legal, licensed vendors. A spokesperson from the City of Vancouver said Tuesday that they would be working with the police, and all questions should be directed to the VPD. with files from CTV Vancouver Photo: Contributed A very scary situation for an employee of Sleep Country Canada who was bound and robbed at knifepoint Monday night. Vernon North Okanagan RCMP say it happened around 8 p.m. at the location on 58th Ave. in the north end of Vernon. The alleged robber walked into the store and found a lone male employee and began asking questions about cheap mattresses. After a while, the man allegedly pulled out a knife and demanded the employee get behind the counter and on the ground. The employee then had his hands and feet bound with clear packing tape. "Fortunately, there were no customers in the store at the time of the robbery and the victim sustained no injuries from being bound," stated Const. Kelly Brett. "The suspect fled on foot with an undisclosed amount of cash and once the suspect fled, the employee broke free from the restraints and was able to call the police." RCMP brought the dog service and set up a perimeter, but the alleged robber got away. The suspect is described as: A caucasian male, with a blemished complexion. Short dark hair. In his late 30s to early 40s Approximately 510 tall with a slim build. The man was wearing a white jacket with orange stripes with the words Ski-Doo and Free Style on the right arm, a small black beanie style toque, black sneakers and carrying a black backpack with red writing on it. The knife used in the robbery is described as a hunting knife with a 4 - 5-inch blade with a green handle and a crescent moon shape carved out of the tip. "RCMP are asking businesses in the area to review any surveillance footage which may have captured the suspect as he arrived and departed after committing the robbery." Brett adds, "Being that the store is well lit and that it was dark outside, the chances of the general public seeing something through the large storefront windows is very possible." Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Vernon North Okanagan RCMP at 250-545-7171. Or remain anonymous by calling Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477, or leaving a tip online at www.nokscrimestoppers.com Photo: CTV Investigators with the Coquitlam RCMP and Canadian Pacific police and working together to determine what caused a collision between a tanker truck and a train early Monday evening. The collision caused a massive fire at the Coquitlam CP railyard, and the evacuation of several businesses in the surrounding area. The tanker truck was carrying ethanol that ignited and led to a complete closure of the Lougheed Highway for several hours. After battling the blaze for about eight hours, officials say the fire has been completely extinguished. There were no injuries, and all parties involved have been cooperative with police. A cleanup of the area has been completed and all traffic routes have been reopened. Businesses in the area have also been cleared to reopen. Yes, you can transfer your domain to any registrar or hosting company once you have purchased it. Since domain transfers are a manual process, it can take up to 5 days to transfer the domain. Domains purchased with payment plans are not eligible to transfer until all payments have been made. Please remember that our 30-day money back guarantee is void once a domain has been transferred. For transfer instructions to GoDaddy, please click here. A group of diverse but like-minded individuals, the members of ARC have come together in their common desire to fight hatred, bigotry, intolerance and violence because of the harm these antisocial behaviors cause to our society. In that effort, we will not use or sanction the use of illegal actions (such as violence or intimidation) in pursuit of our desired aims and if we learn of anyone who does use these unethical methods we will report those individuals to the authorities. Instead, we will use the guarantees found in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms that ensure freedom of legal speech and expression. The Kiap Song The Strong Chimbu man looks straight ahead. He hears his masta's voice, he's lost his nerve again. The kiap shouts, the big buffoon he yells his orders through the coffee trees. That's the way it's done up here yeah, the boss, the boys, the fight up here that's the way it's done up here. The hot nights roll on endlessly. His face is crushed from twenty years of drink. And the Townsville men all own plantations here. They drink at the club with their Philipino brides. That's the life they have up here, the labour's cheap and strong up here, that's the way it's done up here. And the coffee bean stench fills the air. The heat falls off his brow. And they've worked the fire since morning time. For a lousy three kina a day, well that's all . (tasol) That's the way they're paid up here, The boss, the boys, the fight up here, that's the way it's done up here. The Tabaran DVD includes a film clip of every song on the album - including Not Drowning, Waving classics such as Sing Sing, Rain, Abebe and Up In The Mountains. As a bonus, George Telek's performances of Amidel and West Papua are included. The three-day federal government shutdown is over. Congress on Monday passed a three-week spending bill, bringing an end to the temporary stalemate that stemmed from the debate over protections for undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. The House passed the continuing resolution by a 266-150 vote. The Senate approved it by an 81-18 margin. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, New York's senior senator, reached an agreement with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to reopen the government and continue discussions about a permanent solution to the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. President Donald Trump rescinded the policy, which was established under the Obama administration, last year. Schumer, D-N.Y., said if a larger agreement on other outstanding issues isn't reached by Feb. 8, the Senate will advance legislation to address DACA. "I am confident that there are 60 votes in the Senate for a DACA deal," he said. "And now there is a real pathway to get a bill on the floor and through the Senate." The daughter of a New York state trooper who was killed in the line of duty will be U.S. Rep. Elise Stefanik's guest at President Donald Trump's State of the Union address next week. Stefanik, R-Willsboro, announced Sarah Pratt, of South Glens Falls, will attend the event. President Trump will deliver his State of the Union address at 9 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 30. Pratt is the daughter of Timothy Pratt, a New York state trooper who was killed in 2016 while assisting the driver of a stopped tractor trailer in Saratoga County. He was 55. Timothy Pratt was a 30-year veteran of the New York State Police. A bridge in Saratoga County was renamed in his honor. "Our law enforcement families make incredible sacrifices each day on behalf of our communities," Stefanik said in a statement. "I am humbled by the opportunity to host Sarah in our nation's capital and know that she will greatly enjoy the opportunity to hear the president address the nation." Members of Congress are allowed to have one guest attend the State of the Union. In 2016, Stefanik's guest for President Barack Obama's final State of the Union address was Brigadier General Diana Holland. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Chemical sensing with 2D materials During the last decade, two-dimensional materials (2DMs) have attracted great attention due to their unique chemical and physical properties, which make them appealing platforms for diverse applications in opto-electronic devices, energy generation and storage, and sensing. Among their vari ... more Atomic hydrogen interactions with gas-phase coronene cations: hydrogenation versus fragmentation Sequential hydrogenation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) cations drives a gradual transition from a planar to a puckered geometry and from an aromatic to an aliphatic electronic structure. The resulting H-induced weakening of the molecular structure together with the exothermic nat ... more ExxonMobil has signed a petroleum agreement with the government of Ghana to acquire exploration and production rights for the Deepwater Cape Three Points block. The block is located 92 km off the coast of Ghana. It measures approximately 1,482 km2 in water depths ranging from1,550 to 2,850 m. ExxonMobil will carry out the work program as operator. The company will hold 80 % interest and Ghana National Petroleum Corporation 15 %. ExxonMobil will work with the government to identify a Ghanaian company to potentially hold up to 5 % interest. The agreement is subject to parliamentary ratification. ExxonMobil, Irving, TX, USA Article Views: 1712 The Union Springs Central School District will hold an open registration event for parents of eligible preschoolers and kindergarteners in the 2018-2019 school year. The event will take place from 3 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, March 28, at Cayuga Elementary School, 255 Wheat St., Cayuga. Children must be 4 years old by Dec. 1, 2018, to be eligible to attend preschool, and 5 years old by that date to be eligible to attend kindergarten. The Cayuga County Health Department will also be at the event to provide free lead screenings to students and their siblings. Parents unable to attend the event can enroll their children by sending the child's full name, address and birth date, along with the parents' full names, address(es) and phone number(s) to Penny Ross, Cayuga Elementary School, 255 Wheat St., Cayuga, 13034 or pross@unionspringscsd.org. For more information, call (315) 889-4170. Love 0 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 Brittany Williams, a doctoral student in Georgia, was one of those vowing on social media to close her Bank of America account after news of the account elimination. Williams said shes been a Bank of America customer for more than a decade; it was the first checking account she opened when she was 18. But because the University of Georgia does not allow her to split direct deposit between her main checking at another bank and the Bank of America account, it made no sense to continue using their services, she said. An option on a futures contract gives the owner the right to buy or sell the futures at a fixed price before an expiration date. An option that would have no value if exercised is considered to be out of the money. Lindstrom is accused of buying deep out-of-the-money options on U.S. Treasury futures at a discount to their minimum settlement value of about $15.63 each, making the trades seem profitable until the options expired as worthless. The settlement agreement reflects that there was also an agreement between Kirkpatrick and Kirkpatrick Capital on how the proceeds would be allocated, the suit says. The portion of the settlement that would go to the limited partners in Kirkpatrick Capitals investment in United Shore was determined after discussions with those investors, including Rauner, the suit says. Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C., left, and Vice Chairman Mark Warner, D-Va., speak to reporters on Oct. 4, 2017, at the Capitol. The senators on Jan. 22, 2018, unsuccessfuly tried to make a budget amendment that would limit President Donald Trump's discretion over intelligence spending. (J. Scott Applewhite / AP) Hallowed ground can play tricks on the mind. Or, maybe it was because of a question Id just put to an old man shoveling snow across the street from where King lived when he brought his civil rights crusade to Chicago in 1966. As a conversation-starter, Id said: How are things going? NEW YORK (AP) A longtime aide to New York's governor is being tried on charges he used their relationship to collect bribes from two companies doing business with the state. Jury selection started Monday in federal court in Manhattan in the trial of Joseph Percoco, a former aide to Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Percoco has pleaded not guilty. Prospective jurors say they can be fair even after some noticed an anti-corruption demonstration outside the courthouse. The Democratic governor has not been accused of wrongdoing and is not expected to testify. The charges against Percoco were brought by former U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara (bahr-AHR'-ah), who was fired by Republican President Donald Trump last year along with other federal prosecutors. The trial will be the first major prosecution supervised by Bharara's interim replacement, Geoffrey Berman. Love 1 Funny 0 Wow 0 Sad 0 Angry 0 THE LOOP Fisk & Co. is inspired by Belgian bistros and serves mussels and beer, as well as lobster rolls. It also has a raw bar with oysters and clams. Chef Austin Fausett will be at the helm. The tavern will also have an extensive craft beer menu. 225 N. Wabash Ave., fiskandcochicago.com Cal in Camo, which was written by William Francis Hoffman and premiered at New Yorks Rattlestick Theater in 2016, is one of those plays where the metaphors are so hefty and portentous that they get in the way of the human themes, which becomes especially apparent when the work is acted at the elevated level you find here. In its best moments, this is a play about how the first weeks with a new baby can be very difficult a challenge made all the more acute by the likelihood that the parents. especially the mother, will be surrounded by people telling them how thrilled they must be. As Neal shows us without stinting, Cal just does not feel bonded to her own child. And that makes her feel incredibly inadequate and alone. It is also one of the busiest, encompassing four disciplines: Medical, mental health, patient advocacy and legal services. Although surgery is not available at the center, its clinicians maintain close ties with local surgeons to whom they refer patients upon request. On the day that Jacob arrived for his appointment, the examining rooms were filled with 15 elementary schoolchildren, adolescents and teenagers who had traveled from as far away as Hawaii and Sweden and as nearby as the Bay Area. All were seeking a change in their physical sex characteristics to align with their gender identity. It does shape the way I represent the people of Illinois and the nation, she said. I think back to when I was deployed to Iraq and what it was like for people to leave their children and babies. I know women who left 8-week-old infants. This trip to Japan and Korea was seven days, and its the longest Ive been away from my daughter, and it was horrible. Walsh also claimed at the City Club that illegals are three times more likely to commit murder than a natural born American and a legal American, a statistic that appears to be derived from the fact that 9 of 75 murder cases prosecuted in federal court in 2014 were committed by illegal immigrants, but overlooks the more salient fact that of the 14,249 murders committed in the U.S. in 2014, the overwhelming majority cases that were charged were prosecuted in state court. Data on the immigration status of defendants is not readily available in state court cases. The glow that used to be so obvious in the eyes of people, particularly in poorer countries, when they came upon Americans, has dimmed considerably since Trumps election. Foreigners dont seem as eager to come to America as they once did. They dont look at us so much anymore as the land of hope, the land of limitless opportunities or the land where dreams come true. The reality of treating acute pain is were often guessing how many pills a patient will need, said Dr. Jonah Stulberg, a Northwestern surgeon who has led its opioid reforms. Some peoples pain gets much better in 24 hours; others have significant pain for three to five days. We probably will never be able to exactly match the number of pills a patient needs with their pain. Other residents of the apartment building were outside when fire crews arrived. They reported that smoke detectors had alerted them to the fire, officials said in the release. ODells attorney, Henry Sugden, argued that the encounter was merely a scuffle and that ODell was protecting his friend, the woman who lived in the apartment. Sugden said ODell had brought the woman a small amount of marijuana, as he did on occasion, ostensibly to ease her multiple sclerosis symptoms, when the group barged in unannounced. Lefkow was at the center of a horrific tragedy in 2005 when her husband and mother were found fatally shot in the family home. Bart Ross, whose medical malpractice lawsuit had been thrown out by Lefkow months earlier, confessed to the slayings in a suicide note; he shot himself during a traffic stop outside Milwaukee less than two weeks after the slayings. Its a rare but growing predicament as more people consider pets as part of their family and are willing to go to court to fight for them. Pet custody cases typically in domestic situations like divorce are on the rise, according to the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers in Chicago. This month, an Illinois law took effect that allows judges to consider the best interest of pets for custody in divorce cases rather than treating them as property. *Quick spins: Democratic attorney general candidate Aaron Goldstein announced a first TV ad themed "Standing Next to You." ... Cook County Treasurer Maria Pappas, who is running for re-election, announced that her office no longer will charge a $1 fee to pay property taxes online. The first installment is due March 1. ... The Illinois Department of Revenue announced state income tax return filers can start doing so on Jan. 29. Here is way more detail than you need: Given the tax hike halfway through the year, the agency announced most filers "will use a blended rate of 4.3549 percent." House Speaker Michael Madigans chief of staff, Tim Mapes, sent a memo Tuesday saying that until further tests are complete, everyone in the Capitol is advised to have a pencil-sized stream of water when washing their hands and turn off all nebulizers and humidifiers. The direction came after Democratic and Republican staff met with Secretary of State Jesse Whites office, health officials and environmental consultants. Sessions noted that "our work is not done," but he outlined steps the Trump administration had taken, saying it had brought more cases against violent criminals, pursued more federal firearm prosecutions and convicted human traffickers and gang members alike. He also pointed to the decline in violent crime over the first half of 2016 while saying that even though the number of murders increased again, that uptick had slowed. The six Taliban militants who stormed Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel on Saturday in suicide vests were looking for foreigners and Afghan officials to kill. Afghan security forces have said the standoff ended Sunday when they killed the last of the militants. More than 150 people were rescued or escaped during the siege, including 41 foreigners. Some hid in bathtubs or under mattresses as the attackers roamed the hotel's hallways killing people. Yes, the court in the Nixon case said, there might sometimes be particular needs, in particular cases, to protect particular military secrets. (That's why we still don't know the extent of the NSA's warrantless wiretapping, despite the ACLU's best efforts.) But can a president claim a generalized right to shield all his communications from Congress and the courts, just because he's the president? No, he cannot. The court rejected that claim, because the president is not above the law. OK, the shutdown is over. But no one should be fooled into thinking that this settles the big questions facing the country. Even if (a big if) the immigration laws are overhauled and the nearly 700,000 young immigrants brought to this country illegally as children stay in the United States, at least three large issues remain that neither party has yet had the courage to confront. Now the future of DACA relies on a promise from McConnell to take it up in the next three weeks, now that the rest of the budget deal has been approved. But theres no guarantee that he will stick by his promise or, if the measure does pass the Senate, that House Republicans will take it up. Cook County property owners generally appeal their assessments directly with the assessors office or turn to the Cook County Board of Review, a three-member panel that also hears appeals. If they are not satisfied with those decisions, they can appeal to the Property Tax Appeal Board whose five members are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate or file a property tax objection case in Circuit Court. Most attorneys in Cook County opt for the latter. Eloy Jimenez got hit in the knee by a line drive while sitting in the dugout and later left the game with a bruised right knee during the Chicago White Sox's 6-3 victory against the Oakland Athletics. The Sox said Jimenez is day to day. "Some of them are scared that they are going to be taken any second...," she said. "One of my closest friends' parents do not have papers. She is scared to death every time her parents leave the house." That path to the red carpet all started with a brief and quickly created YouTube video he'd sent out to about five librarians a few years ago. The librarians had requested his expertise on how to deal compassionately with the homeless population. Then Dowd left Hesed House in 2013, where he'd been executive director for almost a decade, for Washington, D.C., to start a nonprofit working with Christian humanitarian issues in countries under the control of brutal dictators. From the start of 2017 through Dec. 31, there were 344 total flu-related intensive-care unit admissions across the state, and 135 outbreaks defined as two or more cases of the flu in a group setting reporting to the state, and at least one confirmed through testing, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Brian Kraskiewicz, an ecologist with the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County, said a visitor and a police officer spotted the cat wandering through a field near a dog park in the East Branch Forest Preserve. But neither was able to get a photo before the animal slipped away, he said, and officials didnt find telltale tracks in the snow. Chery Auto launches new sub-brand Jetour Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On January 22, Chery Auto launched a new sub-brand, dubbed Jetour, under Chery Commercial Vehicle, not long after the automaker getting rid of the controlling shares of Qoros and Cowin. The two models under the new brand, Jetour X70 and X70S, also made official debut at the launching conference. The mass-production X70 will hit the market in June this year, according to the new brand. Bao Siyu, vice general manager of Chery Auto and general manager of Jetour, said that with customers demand in mind, the brand will supply high-quality products to create a sharing value ecology. Even though it is a sub-brand under Chery Commercial Vehicle, Jetour will form a product portfolio covering SUV, MPV and new energy vehicle (NEV). Up to now, Jetour has finished the 4+3+N product layout, namely four SUV models (X60, X70/S, X90, X95), three MPV models (V60, V70, V90) and the NEV versions of the above-mentioned models. In 2018, X70, X70S and X90 will go on sale while X60 and X95 will be launched in the future. All models will have their NEV versions, including battery electric version, plug-in electric vehicle version and hydrogen fuel cell vehicle version. Besides, the new brand will adopt innovative marketing mode. Pennington, was using her cellphone to record the interaction with officers, got out of the car and one of the officers alledgedly began placing her in handcuffs then "slammed her body against the car" while another officer grabbed her hair "and slammed her face onto the trunk of the car," according to the lawsuit. U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman said he'd clear three weeks of his schedule to preside over the trial. Prosecutors asked for two weeks to present their case against Wyllie, which they noted is complex. A defense attorney suggested three weeks total should work. Earlier in the evening, Ward requested that the two dozen speakers who wanted to speak on the issue be allowed to do so during the public comment portion early in the meeting. Her request was denied because the comments weren't related to anything on the agenda. Police said the incident began when a motorist parked and left his sport utility vehicle in a parking lot on the south end of the campus. He was approached by four men in the Chevrolet sedan and two people in the car, one carrying a handgun, got out and demanded the victim's keys. Because most of the robotics sets cost at least $150, having them available at the library gives parents a chance to judge how much their child enjoys them and whether the child is the appropriate age for a specific kit, Martinez said. Sergel's show is a story about three generations in a family. "It's a slice-of-life story about how in any family, we're all taking turns on who's getting the attention and what's going on in a family," Beadle said. "We see different moments in time where one of the sons comes out and the dad is diagnosed with cancer," and how the family reacts. "I think people will love it, and happy they took the risk to see it," said Westerman, an Evanston native. "Sex With Strangers" premiered at Steppenwolf Theater in 2009 and became very popular, he said. The play was produced off-Broadway in New York in 2014. It was one of the most produced plays in the U.S. during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons, according to Citadel Theatre. It's also been performed in London, Australia and Argentina. "He was very motivated," Creamer said. "This is not a guy who you had to make sure he was in on time. This is a guy who worked his heart out for the goal. He was motivated to give his all, and that's an extremely important trait." An eight-story limestone-and-granite fortress that opened in 1925 as the main branch of the Waukegan National Bank and was once home to the downtown Walgreens, the Waukegan Building has a Classical Revival design and glazed terra cotta cornices that earned it a spot on the National Register of Historic Places. But it has sat empty since the mid-1980s, failing to attract a successful redevelopment plan. Cunningham said the time has come to decide what will become of the site. Harmony Auto expects over RMB 1 billion net profit in 2017 Shanghai (Gasgoo)- China Harmony New Energy Auto Holding Limited (Harmony Auto) announced that it expects net profit to top RMB 1 billion in 2017, in contrast to a net loss of around RMB 370 million in the previous year. According to Harmony Auto, remarkable profits resulted from the lucrative 4S shops' businesses, lower expenditures and the investment revenue brought by a considerable growth in the equity interest held by Harmony Auto in Future Mobility Corporation Limited (FMC), an intelligent electric vehicle startup. Harmony Auto gained net profit of around RMB 565 million in the first half of 2017. To be specific, some RMB 271 million was from 4S shops businesses and around RMB 253 million was from the appreciation of the companys equity in FMC, according to the interim results released by Harmony Auto. FMCs contribution nearly kept up with the revenue from the 4s shops sales which is the core business of Harmony Auto. In August 2017, Harmony Auto had announced that FMC Cayman, of which the company indirectly holds 33.33% equity interests, has signed an equity capital increase agreement (including a supplemental agreement) with an investment funded formed by several investors with respect to FMCs latest round of financing. The investment fund agreed to invest $200 million in FMC to subscribe for FMCs equity interests. At that time, Harmony Auto predicted that FMC would bring about investment profits of no less than RMB 600 million to the company until the announcement being released in August last year. The boy was in a bathroom during a passing period when he showed the handgun-like BB gun to other students, according to Mundelein Deputy Police Chief Don Hansen. He said dispatch received the call at about 1:42 p.m. and the school was on a soft lockdown for about 20 minutes while officers investigated. "The municipal center meeting rooms are not available for private parties, commercial purposes, rehearsals, social gatherings or fundraising activities," according to the city's meeting room rental application. "The meeting rooms may not be used for meetings organized by a political candidate or by an organization formed specifically for a candidate or an issue. Political meetings with a less specific focus are permitted." "We were not pulling money in; just covering rent and expenses," Acuna said. They were about to give up when Acuna mentioned to owner Saul Garcia the idea of a taco-focused spot with bright colors and a laid-back feel. "I understand the concerns of the community about safety," Abu-Taleb said. "Addressing crime is our top priority. Fortunately, we have one of the finest police departments anywhere led by a chief with more than three decades of experience. I know Chief Ambrose will take the right actions to protect the community. He has demonstrated time and time again that he knows how to get the job done." His father, Louis F. Jogmen, a Tinley Park patrolman, was shot in the head in 1977 after exchanging himself for a hostage during an armed robbery at a 7-Eleven. He died when Jogmen was 16 from esophageal cancer; the younger Jogmen believes it was caused by exposure to possible carcinogens during the many surgeries he had following the shooting. As for the remainder of the library board's attendance last year, meeting minutes show Foss-Eggemann attended 29 of 34 meetings; Karen Burkum attended 32 of 34, Judy Rayborn attended 26 of 34, and Michael Reardon attended 31 of 34. Trustees Gareth Kennedy and Josh Kiem were appointed in July. Kennedy was absent from one meeting the second day of director candidate interviews and attended three by phone, while Kiem did not have any absences, according to meeting minutes. The filming of the movie spanned from March to June 2008 and also included some other Northwest Indiana on-location scenes, such as the beach at the Indiana Dunes. However, because of better tax incentives, most of the on-location filming was done in Wisconsin, including key trial scenes set in the landmark Lake County Courthouse in Crown Point. Even though movie crew was just down the street to film the jail news conference scenes, Mann opted to use the Lafayette County Courthouse in Darlington, Wis., for filming as the stand-in for the Crown Point Courthouse. The dam is on Deep River between Liverpool Road and 29th Avenue. It's near the closed, flood-ravaged Riverside Mobile Home Park, 3601 E. 29th Ave. The mobile homes have been removed and the area is vacant. Fishermen still walk down an old path to the area below the dam where they angle for salmon and other fish. An initial investigation by the reconstruction team showed a pickup truck driven by Lucas Smith, 28, of Valparaiso, in which Dexter was a front seat passenger, was westbound on Ind. 130 when Smith reportedly lost control of the pickup and slid sideways, crossing the center line and into the eastbound lanes of travel, police said. BMW to expand mobility program in China Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On January 21, at 2018 China EV100 Forum, Joe Pattinson, Head of Mobility Services at BMW China, extended BMWs will to expand its mobility service business in China. In his speech, Pattinson mentioned BMWs partnership with EVCARD, a Shanghai-based electric vehicle-sharing brand under Global Car-Sharing & Rental Co., Ltd. On December 1 last year, the BMW Group, cooperating with EVCARD, launched its vehicle-sharing service in Chengdu (capital city of Southwest Chinas Sichuan province) under the co-brand ReachNow Powered By EVCARD. The automakers ReachNow brand was launched in U.S. as early as 2016 and followed by a successful pilot operation in Beijing. This program provides an innovative mobility solution for Chinese customers. 100 units of the pure electric BMW i3 have been put into operation in Chengdu at a price of RMB 2 per minute. Besides, Joe Pattinson stated that BMW also has collaboration with local government in Chengdu to try some new programs, such as open parking lot and EV charging station. In addition, BMW started to provide its vehicles to some Chinas mobility platform. At 2018 China EV100 Forum, BMW China delivered 50 units of i3 to Ur-car, a Chinese mobility brand who was responsible for the transportation during the forum. According to the speaker, BMW has done lots of researches and made planning in mobility service area, including vehicle-sharing platform and vehicle rental service. The service is now active in 13 European cities. Besides, 20% of operation vehicles are electric-powered. The automaker thinks that this service will not only reduce the number of vehicles running on roads, but also lessen the cost of public transportation. "Too often we don't bring up the concerns for which the march stands for," Hickman told me. "Maybe we fear that others don't share our views, but that is a disabling reaction that prevents sharing what is, essentially, who we really are, which is intimacy at its best." During the court proceeding, Wesselman recounted anecdotes from her daughters brief life. She recalled the bright girl who already knew how to read before she started school, the feisty high school freshman who wanted to play on the football team, the promising student chosen to be in the honor guard for a 1984 campaign appearance by President Ronald Reagan. Grado suggests that those fighting against gentrification in Chicago should get in touch with the CIG support network in Mexico to share experiences and strategies. But they ask that they also "contribute to the battle to fight the struggle in Mexico because we have to change things in Mexico so they do not have to emigrate and suffer this discrimination in another country," Cruz said. For Subscribers Pueblo County has state's highest unemployment rate Pueblo's complex job market features the highest unemployment rate in the state, yet job recovery is not far off state and national averages. Baidu vice president Wu Xuebin to leave for Baoneng Group Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Baidu confirmed that its vice president Wu Xuebin has submitted a resignation and will leave for Baoneng Group. On September 28, 2016, Wu Xuebin joined Baidu as vice president in charge of the company's autonomous driving unit. Before that, Wu had previously worked at BAIC Group, a Chinese state-owned auto enterprise. Besides, his life in auto industry also includes the experience he served for General Motors, Ford and Porsche, etc. During his tenure in Baidu, Wu managed the external cooperative matters for Apollo autonomous driving platform and other auto-related businesses of Baidu. At an internal meeting this morning, Wu stated that he has witnessed the birth and development of Apollo platform and leaving Baidu is a hard choice for him. Lu Qi, president and COO of Baidu, delivered that Baidu may invite Wu as a promoter to participate in Apollo cause after he leaves Baidu. At the 2018 CES two weeks ago, Baidu unveiled Apollo 2.0 version that attracted a lot of attention worldwide. In addition, Baidu revealed a number of new partners at CES, and announced that Apollo will provide full support for four computing platforms, Intel, NXP, Nvidia, and Renesas. At that time, Wu Xuebin was interviewed by some media. Confirmed by Wu Xuebin himself, his next station will be Baoneng Group, Qoros' new shareholder, and will be responsible for auto-related businesses of the new company. By Vincent Bonhaume and Thibaut Minot French President Emmanuel Macrons visit to China this January ushered in a wave of optimism for China-France relations, as the two countries look to strengthen economic ties in 2018 and beyond. The presidents trip was aimed at boosting confidence and economic cooperation between China and France, with the ambitious plan for the French delegation to re-equalize the trade balance, which is currently unfavorable for France. The Chinese market, the biggest in the world for many products and services, is attracting the attention of French multinationals even though access remains complicated for foreign companies. While encouraging French companies to come sell in China, Emmanuel Macron took advantage of his visit to lobby for fairer competition standards in this market. Macrons state visit to China has resulted in significant contract signings for major French groups such as Airbus and Areva, as well as new partnerships in the sectors of culture and art. Concrete results such as these demonstrate Macrons ambition to better leverage Sino-French relations by adopting a more pragmatic and business-focused approach to diplomacy, and his desire to boost French exports through this strategic partnership. Pre-Investment, Market Entry Strategy Advisory Services from Dezan Shira & Associates More trade reciprocity in 2017 China, pursuing its quest to become the worlds biggest economy, is now a major export market for many nations around the world. At present, trade between China and France remains measured. China currently accounts for 7.5 percent of French trade in terms of value, with a total of 75.3 billion worth of bilateral trade recorded between December 2016 and November 2017. While China is Frances second largest supplier after Germany, it is only the seventh largest market for French exports. French Customs estimate that, between December 2016 and November 2017, France exported 25.5 billion worth of goods to China and imported 49.8 billion worth of Chinese products. As a result, the French side recorded a deficit of 24.3 billion over the period, although the gap decreased last year as the trade deficit amounted to 28.6 billion in 2016. In addition, the increase in the value of French exports to China (by 4 billion) and imports of Chinese products into France (by 2.7 billion) over the past 12 months indicate an encouraging increase in trade between the two countries. The portfolio of French industries showing positive results in China in 2017 remained relatively comparable to previous years. Aerospace construction products (34 percent of the value of Frances exports to China), beverages (6.9 percent), machinery and equipment for general use (6.2 percent), and pharmaceuticals (5.6 percent), to name a few, still enjoy favorable export conditions with China. With respect to imports from China, France maintained its appetite for clothing (12.4 percent of the value of imports), communications equipment (12.3 percent), computers and peripheral equipment (10.6 percent), and electrical equipment (7.1 percent). China is a sizeable market for French companies, as demonstrated by the 6 billion worth of French FDI in China in 2016. Moreover, several French industries record increases in turnover through exports to China, such as luxury products, food and beverage, high-tech goods, and art. French companies recorded nearly 74 billion in turnover in China in 2015, and more than 1,600 French firms were established there that year. In France, there are currently no less than 700 subsidiaries of Chinese and Hong Kong companies, employing around 45,000 people. While many French companies continue to sell well in China via brick and mortar stores, 2017 reinforced the necessity of having an online sales strategy, especially for the sale of consumer goods. Online sales continue to skyrocket, with international brands eager to trade via the major e-commerce platforms such as Tmall and JD.com. This also stands for French companies, especially in the cosmetics, luxury goods, and food and beverage industries, and many French companies are signing major contracts with online retailers as a result. Business France, a French governmental agency promoting trade, signed an agreement with JD.com on January 9 for the sale of 2 billion worth of French products on the Chinese platform within two years. For French SMEs, the cross-border e-commerce model, which allows brands to sell to Chinese consumers via the Internet without necessarily establishing a subsidiary in China, offers new lower-cost and lower-risk market entry opportunities. RELATED: China-Canada Relations: Towards a New Economic Partnership? Forecast for 2018 The election in May 2017 of a president favorable to free trade has initiated a program of reforms aimed at strengthening Frances international competitiveness. Accordingly, Macron and his government intend to revive the attractiveness of France as a business destination, and the fact that China was the first choice for a state visit in 2018 is no coincidence. The visit of the French president, considered as a success by numerous observers, has quite possibly launched a positive dynamic in the economic relations between the two countries in 2018. The French food and beverage sector will continue to perform well in China this year, with the loosening of the long-standing embargo on French beef in China likely to greatly contribute. The sector benefits from strong governmental support, as illustrated by the visit to China of the Minister of Agriculture Stephane Travert at the start of the year, who seeks to boost exports of beef, pork, and poultry to China. Also worth noting is the ambition to encourage the export of animal parts less consumed in Europe but very popular in China, such as pork and chicken feet. Likewise, the export to China of French services continues to grow, as illustrated by the success of the Orpea Group and their recent launch of various retirement homes in China. The culture and contemporary art industries are also growing, and benefit from numerous cooperative agreements in place between the two countries. Finally, the fight against climate change offers many opportunities for French entrepreneurs in China, in sectors such as energy, waste treatment, and urban planning, among others. Nuclear power, of which the development alongside renewable energies is favorably seen both in France and China, is a particularly promising French industry in China. The AREVA-CNNC framework agreement dating from February 2017, and the industrial commissioning of the first EPR reactor in Taishan planned for February 2018, illustrate this well. The various contracts signed during the presidential visit will mainly benefit large French groups, although discussions were also held on a 1 billion investment fund to invest in SMEs doing business in the respective countries, although few details on this project have been announced. The agreements made during Macrons visit augur a positive period for trade between France and China in 2018. Time will tell whether the greater reciprocity requested by Macron during his visit in China will materialize and will further strengthen the quantity and quality of bilateral trade flows between the two nations. About Us China Briefing is published by Asia Briefing, a subsidiary of Dezan Shira & Associates. We produce material for foreign investors throughout Asia, including ASEAN, India, Indonesia, Russia, the Silk Road, and Vietnam. For editorial matters please contact us here, and for a complimentary subscription to our products, please click here. Dezan Shira & Associates is a full service practice in China, providing business intelligence, due diligence, legal, tax, IT, HR, payroll, and advisory services throughout the China and Asian region. For assistance with China business issues or investments into China, please contact us at china@dezshira.com or visit us at www.dezshira.com Dezan Shira & Associates Brochure Dezan Shira & Associates is a pan-Asia, multi-disciplinary professional services firm, providing legal, tax and operational advisory to international corporate investors. Operational throughout China, ASEAN and India, our mission is to guide foreign companies through Asias complex regulatory environment and assist them with all aspects of establishing, maintaining and growing their business operations in the region. This brochure provides an overview of the services and expertise Dezan Shira & Associates can provide. An Introduction to Doing Business in China 2017 This Dezan Shira & Associates 2017 China guide provides a comprehensive background and details of all aspects of setting up and operating an American business in China, including due diligence and compliance issues, IP protection, corporate establishment options, calculating tax liabilities, as well as discussing on-going operational issues such as managing bookkeeping, accounts, banking, HR, Payroll, annual license renewals, audit, FCPA compliance and consolidation with US standards and Head Office reporting. China Industries Outlook 2018 In this issue of China Briefing magazine, we analyze macro-level foreign investment trends into China, and how the high-tech sector stands out above others. We then shift our focus to Chinas healthcare sector in the context of policy reforms and demographic changes. We also examine how to invest in Chinas education industry and how Chinas war on pollution introduces new opportunities for foreign investors. Dezan Shira & Associates China's top banking regulator has proved with actions that oversight in the banking sector will be tightened and regulatory standards will become stricter. China Banking Regulatory Commission (CBRC) has fined the Chengdu branch of Shanghai Pudong Development Bank (SPD Bank) for 462 million yuan (about 72 million U.S. dollars) for illegally covering up bad loans. The SPD Bank branch was found to have offered credit worth 77.5 billion yuan to 1,493 bogus firms via illegal means in exchange for repayments from enterprises to cover non-performing loans. The organized malpractice reveals poor internal regulation, a low sense of compliance and an excessive focus on business expansion, according to the CBRC. This came after the 722-million-yuan fine imposed on China Guangfa Bank last month for offering illegal guarantees for defaulted corporate bonds. The move signaled a continued hard stance from the government following a tough financial clean-up in 2017. The CBRC last year imposed nearly 3 billion yuan in fines on banking institutions and punished 270 individuals. "China will step up the in-depth crackdown of the banking sector, while improving its regulatory regime in 2018," said Zeng Gang with the Institute of Finance and Business under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. China has repeatedly vowed to clean up the disorder in its banking system, stressing that long-term efforts will be needed to control banking sector chaos. "Banking shareholder management, corporate governance and risk control mechanisms are still relatively weak, and the root causes that create market chaos have not fundamentally changed," the CBRC said in a statement on its website. The regulator said that violations in corporate governance, property loans and disposal of non-performing assets will be punished more strictly, and that it would strengthen risk control in interbank activities, financial products and off-balance sheet business. "Bringing the banking sector under control will be long-term, arduous and complex," it said. Meanwhile, supervision over the regulators is becoming significantly stricter as well. While the head of the SPD Bank branch was banned from working in the banking sector for life, local banking regulatory officials and SPD Bank senior management were also punished for their negligence of duty. In addition, the CBRC expects to optimize the market environment through stricter regulations so as to prompt steadier development in the banking sector to better serve the real economy. More capital was redirected into the real economy as the financial sector saw constant leverage ratio drops in 2017, with over 100 banks offering to reduce their balance sheets, CBRC chairman Guo Shuqing said earlier in an interview with the People's Daily. In 2018, the banking regulator will further support China's innovation-driven strategy by proceeding with inclusive financing and bringing down financial costs, said Guo. While risks in the financial system are manageable, Guo warned against hidden dangers of "gray rhinos" and "black swans" in safeguarding China's financial stability. "Shadow banking and cross-selling in financial services require urgent attention, as they are most likely to trigger financial risks within the system," according to Lian Ping, chief economist with Bank of Communications. The tone-setting Central Economic Work Conference listed defusing major risks as one of the "three tough battles" the country will fight in the three years starting in 2018. "We are sure that stricter banking oversight will provide solid support for winning the battle of preventing major financial risks," said Guo. JD.com, Chinese leading e-commerce company, on Monday announced it had opened an office in Paris "to develop its French brand portfolio and ...ramping up its European presence." Calling the Paris office as "an important milestone," the Chinese firm said "a French presence will give the company an in-depth understanding of the development ambitions of its French partners, who are looking to access the 266.3 million active Chinese consumers on JD.com." The e-commerce platform added the office was launched a part of "an ambitious agreement" with Business France, the country's official trade promotion agency, to sell 2 billion euros (2.45 billion U.S. dollars) of French goods to Chinese consumers over the next two years. The deal also included "the implementation of a "one-stop shop" solution for French brands and retailers to get their products to Chinese consumers quickly and conveniently," it said. According to the statement, Florent Courau was appointed to manage the Paris office. He had various management positions in France and China for 12 years, particularly in the wine and spirits and perfumes and cosmetics departments.(1 euro = 1.226 U.S. dollar) The 2018 World Economic Forum will take place in Switzerland January 23-26, focusing on the theme of 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World'. The title alone is clearly linked to China's interests and objectives. President Xi Jinping regularly uses the terminology 'shared future' in his speeches. One year ago, for instance, he delivered a keynote speech at the UN Office in Geneva entitled: 'Work Together to Build a Community of Shared Future for Humanity'. He has repeated the same message on several occasions, such as his 2018 New Year speech. The 2018 Davos Forum is taking place at a time when political, economic and social fractures are emerging. The European Union has managed to absorb the Brexit shock but remains unable to inspire the younger generation of member-states and cannot hide its inhuman face shown during the refugee crisis with few exceptions. In addition, the U.S. exhibits deep social divisions with people either loving or hating Donald Trump. The Charlottesville incident last July shows America has not healed the nation's wounds as he promised. From another perspective,civil wars are jeopardizing the future of some countries, including Syria and Libya, still dreaming of peace and stability six years after the beginning of the Arab Spring. Amid the turbulence, China is investing in continuity and responsibility. Its policy decisions are in line with either its international obligations or its 13th five-year plan for economic and social development. Further to this, with the implementation of its Belt and Road Initiative, China is elaborating on the 'win-win' concept based on infrastructure work that is boosting interconnectivity and creating the conditions for renewed prosperity. Last year, Xi made a landmark speech in Davos, where his presence in the Swiss resort was both substantial and symbolical. It was substantial because he clarified his country's position in favor of free trade and globalization. And it was symbolic in that the leaders of both the U.S. and Germany were absent, giving him the necessary space to outline shifts in the world economy with China being an economic colossus defining developments. It is no coincidence that most Chinese affairs experts are referring to Xi's 2017 Davos address in interpreting China's role in international affairs and comparing it to that the withdrawn attitude of the U.S. under the Trump administration. This year, China will be represented in Davos by Liu He, member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, Director of the General Office of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs and Vice Minister and Leading Party Members Group Deputy Secretary of National Development and Reform Commission. This Chinese economist and politician is enjoying good reputation abroad. In a recent article, for instance, Bloomberg focused on his contribution to the stabilization of the Chinese economy during the 'New Normal' phase, as well as his role in promoting the economic relationship between Beijing and Washington. On the same wavelength, the founder and chief executive of the World Economic Forum, Klaus Schwab, has admitted: 'We know [Liu's] crucial role in shaping the economic policies in China'. This said, Liu can certainly inform other Davos participants often incredulous about the progress of his country's economy. Numbers themselves are telling. According to a preliminary estimation of the Chinese government, the national GDP was 82.7122 trillion yuan in 2017, an increase of 6.9 percent at constant prices compared with last year. On a quarterly basis, the year-on-year growth of GDP was 6.9 percent, 6.9 percent, 6.8 percent, and 6.8 percent. The World Bank recently raised its forecast for China's economic growth in 2017 to 6.8 percent from 6.7 percent it projected last October. That is because personal consumption and foreign trade supported growth. Economists surveyed by the Institute of Industrial Economics of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences had agreed the country's economy would grow 6.8 percent year-on-year in 2017 and the stable momentum would continue into 2018. This economic calmness is important as long as supply-side structural reform remains the centerpiece of China's economic agenda. Priorities are continuously shifting from high-speed growth to high-quality development. All in all, the Chinese presence at the 2018 World Economic Forum constitutes another good opportunity for leaders, economists and journalists to familiarize themselves with the country's economic achievements in a 'fractured world'. George N. Tzogopoulos is a columnist with China.org.cn. For more information please visit: http://www.china.org.cn/opinion/GeorgeNTzogopoulos.htm Opinion articles reflect the views of their authors, not necessarily those of China.org.cn. Flash China called on the United States to take concrete actions in safeguarding the multilateral trade system on Monday. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying made the comment after the U.S. government said on Friday that it was a mistake to support China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO) on terms that have failed to secure China's embrace of an open economy. "It is the unilateral moves by the United States and its unilateral messages that pose unprecedented challenges to the multilateral trade system. Many members of the WTO have expressed their concerns over that," Hua said. Since it joined the WTO, China has strictly abided by relevant rules and regulations, fulfilled its due obligations, and made significant contributions to the development of the multilateral trade system. Other countries also benefited from trading with China, she said. In fact, most WTO members affirm China's stance on upholding the multilateral trade system and expect China to play a bigger role, according to Hua. "Both the United States and China, as important members of the WTO, should safeguard the authority of the WTO rules, and jointly improve a rule-based, fair, and open multilateral trade system with the WTO as the core," Hua said. You are here: World Flash Russia agreed to supply six Su-30 fighters to Myanmar during Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu's visit to the country, Russian Deputy Defense Minister Alexander Fomin said Monday. Shoigu's visit to Myanmar on Jan. 20-22 gave an "additional impetus" to military and technical cooperation between the two countries, Fomin said in an online press release. Fomin said he is confident that the Su-30 warplanes will become the main fighters of Myanmar's Air Force to "protect territorial integrity and repel terrorist attacks." During Shoigu's visit, the two countries agreed to streamline entry for warships in Russian and Myanmar's ports. Myanmar is also interested in purchasing Russian naval and land equipment and over 600 soldiers from the Southeast Asian country are studying in Russia's military academies, Fomin said. BYD urges more government support for PHEV (Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD Auto) Shanghai (Gasgoo)- At the 2018 China EV100 Forum, Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD Auto, stated that plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) will continue to be the mainstream in global private vehicle market and thus the government policy should encourage the promotion of PHEVs. The PHEV system has taken up nearly half of the global new energy vehicle (NEV) market shares, according to Wang. In his speech, Wang took the NEV sales of Europe and the United States as examples. The NEV sales in Europe reached 259,000 units last year while PHEV accounted for 49 percent. In the United States, the sales of the segment totaled 195,200 units in 2017 while PHEV took up 47 percent. In China NEV market, PHEV sales took up 47 percent of the total NEV deliveries to private owners, excluding the deliveries of A00-class vehicle, whose proportion was so small in Europe or American NEV sales. The percentage of the PHEVs would be even up to 67 percent without counting the NEV vehicles used as taxi or for ride-sharing. Thus the founder and his company expect the PHEV as the mainstream in the private vehicle market. Out of the above consideration, Wang called on the government to give much more policy support for the development of PHEV. According to Wang, there shouldnt be any traffic control or purchasing restriction on PHEV and the consumption tax on PHEV should also be exempted. (Yang Yusheng, member of Chinese Academy of Engineering) However, another speaker at the same forum delivered totally different viewpoints. Yang Yusheng, member of Chinese Academy of Engineering, said that PHEV is not a real kind of electric vehicle. He also shared an anecdote at the forum. Certain PHEV buyers in Shanghai span off the vehicle's battery for light weight and fuel efficiency. They used PHEVs as traditional fuel-fossil powered vehicles but with subsidies and free license plates. From the academicians perspective, the right approach to cultivate NEV market is to develop safe and fuel-efficient electric vehicles with lower emissions, which should be yard stick for NEV. The focus of the industry should be put on battery electric subcompact vehicles and the range-extended battery electric mid-large vehicles, according to Yang. KATHMANDU - Tourism Minister Jitendra Narayan Dev has hinted at plans to revoke the order tightening rules for disabled people from attempting to climb Mount Everest, known in the West as Qomolangma. The minister made the suggestion to a delegation of disabled rights organizations on Friday. The group included Hari Budha Magar, who lost his legs in an improvised explosive device blast in April 2010 in Afghanistan and has been training for several months to scale Qomolangma, the world's highest mountain. On Dec 28, the Cabinet's Bill Committee had approved an amendment to the Mountaineering Expedition Regulation under the Tourism Act, prohibiting double amputees, persons without arms and legs and blind people from attempting to climb the mountain. SANAA, Yemen - The United Nations on Sunday made what it said was a record appeal for aid to Yemen, calling for nearly $3 billion in humanitarian relief for the war-torn country. The $2.96 billion will be used to respond to an ever-broadening crisis in Yemen, where war, looming famine and cholera have killed thousands and put millions of lives at risk. The appeal, made on behalf of UN agencies and humanitarian partners, came as 11.3 million people "urgently require assistance to survive", UN aid agency UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in a statement. "A generation of children is growing up in suffering and deprivation," OCHA said. "Nearly 2 million children are out of school, 1.8 million children under the age of five are acutely malnourished, including 400,000 who suffer from severe acute malnutrition and are 10 times more likely to die if they do not receive medical treatment." Jamie McGoldrick, humanitarian coordinator in Yemen, said: "Humanitarian assistance is not the solution to the plight of the people of Yemen, but it is the only lifeline for millions of them. "Today, humanitarian partners appeal to the international community to support this critical lifeline," McGoldrick said. More than 9,200 people have been killed in Yemen since 2015, when a Saudi-led military coalition intervened to back the country's government against rebels. Another nearly 2,200 Yemenis have died of cholera amid deteriorating hygiene and sanitation conditions, the World Health Organization said. Over the past year, the UN's efforts to address what it has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis have been hampered by a crippling blockade of rebel-held ports by the Saudi-led coalition. On Monday, the coalition announced $1.5 billion in new humanitarian aid for Yemen. More than three-quarters of Yemen's population - 22.2 million people - are now dependent on some form of assistance in Yemen, the UN said. Some 8.4 million Yemenis are also at risk of famine, according to OCHA. In 2017, international donors provided $1.65 billion of the $2.34 billion requested by the UN and humanitarian partners. Afp - Xinhua (China Daily 01/23/2018 page11) Thousands of Greeks protest in name dispute China Daily | Updated: 2018-01-23 07:38 ATHENS - Thousands of protesters hit the streets of the northern Greek port city of Thessaloniki on Sunday to voice their objection to the use of the term "Macedonia" in any resolution to the name dispute with former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Meanwhile from Athens, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras suggested calm and clear thinking to seize an opportunity to end the row. About 100,000 people gathered at the seafront, according to police estimates from a police news statement. Addressing the event which ended peacefully, organizers claimed that 400,000 people participated, waving Greek national flags. The rally was organized by local citizens' associations not affiliated with political parties. It was attended by far-right to center-left politicians, Greek hardliners dressed in traditional costumes who traveled to Thessaloniki from as far away as Crete island. Sunday's demonstration was the first staged as the UN-mediated talks between the political leaderships of the two neighboring countries have intensified in recent weeks and both Athens and Skopje express optimism that within the first half of 2018, a row which started almost three decades ago can end. Athens and Skopje are at odds over the use of the name of Macedonia since Greece's northern neighbor broke away from Yugoslavia in 1991. Macedonia is the name of a province in Greece of which Thessaloniki is the regional capital and Athens is worried that the use of the same name by the neighboring state could lead to territorial claims. Following a government change at Skopje in 2017, the climate of cooperation between the two sides for resolving the name issue has improved, fueling optimism for an end to the long-standing dispute. Hardliners in Greece warn that they will block any agreement containing the term "Macedonia". Eight out of ten Greeks rejects any new name for the neighboring country which will contain the word "Macedonia", according to a survey conducted by polling firm Metron Analysis. "I am half Macedonian myself. I urge them to calmly consider what promotes the national interest and what undermines it. The nonsolution undermines it," the Greek prime minister said in an interview with the Sunday edition of "Ethnos" (Nation) newspaper. "For the last 25 years our neighbors are recognized as 'Republic of Macedonia' by a number of countries while we are struggling everywhere to call them FYROM.... If there is an opportunity for solution that will reverse these negative facts then it would be a national foolishness not to take advantage of it," Tsipras said. Xinhua (China Daily 01/23/2018 page11) Upgraded facilities come of age as leading aviation hub Businessman Cui Xinyu has witnessed the growth of Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport from being a worthy domestic facility to its approach path towards becoming a fully fledged international aviation hub. Read More Guangzhou looks to become global exchange center Processing an increasingly competitive airport with more international routes, Guangzhou in South China's Guangdong province, will leverage its ambition to become a global exchange center. Read More 'Flower City' abloom with modernity and vibrancy It didn't take long after he arrived in Guangzhou in July 2014 for Didier Boschung to be impressed by the modernity of the city, its thriving daily life and the friendliness of its people. Read More Southern gateway keen on international exchanges Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong province, plans to grow into an international exchange hub in three years, joining hands with overseas friends in communication of resources, assets and talents. Read More Magical, soaring structure serves to inspire As the old saying goes: there are a thousand Hamlets in a thousand people's eyes. But the Canton Tower is definitely one of the most-recognized iconic buildings in the eyes of Guangzhou's residents. Read More Overseas students look to opportunities for good life and future career path More and more overseas students who have chosen to study in Guangzhou are coming to realize that working in the vibrant city is one of their best options after they graduate. Read More Region cuts red tape to get down to global business Guangzhou has dramatically reduced its red tape so that companies can register and get up and running in just three working days compared to the previous 25 needed. Read More Guangzhou pushes for keen edge in industries The government's emphasis on innovation has given rise to a swift transformation for the millennial trade hub of Guangzhou to become a city with cutting-edge technologies and an influx of investment from world leading industries. Read More Core city for innovation cooperation The Guangzhou government has promised to expand its cooperation and exchanges with advanced countries and regions to help build the southern metropolis into a core city for the country's innovation industry in 2020. Read More Guangzhou strengthens its role as southern hub Guangzhou, capital of Guangdong province, is expected to strengthen its status as a major aviation and shipping hub in the southern Chinese region with the coming expansion of its airport and ports. Read More Ambitious plan laid out for future of ancient port Ren Xuefeng, Party chief of Guangzhou, mapped out an ambitious plan to construct the ancient commercial port city into a new national center city with three strategic hubs in his opening speech at the Guangzhou Annual Investment Conference that opened in the metropolis on Wednesday. Read More Ambitious plans for historic port Guangzhou has unveiled an ambitious plan to develop the ancient port city into an international shipping hub within three years, said local authorities. Read More Ranked No 1 for business climate In the eyes of Hubert Xu, the competitive business environment has always been an ace Guangzhou can play to win the hearts of investors. Read More Guangzhou's vision of glimmering future Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong province, sponsored the first Guangzhou Annual Investment Conference on March 26 to court investment for further modernization. Read More Thirty years ago, David Turpin, the father of 13 rescued children, drove 1,000 miles to Texas to elope with Louise when she was just 16. Louise was in 10th grade when her high school sweetheart David persuaded school authorities to release her to him. They then drove a thousand miles until they were caught by police and Louise was returned home. Two of Louise's siblings, younger sister Teresa Robinette and half-brother Billy Lambert, gave shocking new details about the so-called 'House of Horrors' parents to DailyMailTV. Teresa shared that David's attempt to elope with Louise made their father angry. "He was angry at my mom for letting them date. He was so upset. He told her it was all her fault. He got on the phone and told Louise," Teresa shared. "This is the life you want, you're now an adult, I love you and I'll always be your daddy, but now you can take care of yourself. If this is what you want, you go for it. "So he let her marry him. They came back to Princeton and had a small intimate church wedding, just the two families. "Then they went back to Texas to start their lives together." The couple were arrested on charges of child abuse and are now being held at $13 million bond. They deny all charges, which include torture, false imprisonment, child abuse and abuse of dependent adults. David also faces a separate charge of lewd acts with a minor. Teresa says she's not sure if she'd like to see the two beyond prison walls ever again. "I hope they suffer as much, if not more, than those kids suffered," she continued. This essay was the second place winner of the 2017 CT Science Writing Contest. The two most hair-raising moments I have ever had with my dad happened within 10 minutes of each other. A few years ago we were snorkeling with my two brothers off Santa Fe Island, one of the 13 major islands that make up the Galapagos Islands. We had hardly rolled into the water when a Galapagos shark about three meters in length gracefully floated by only a few body lengths away. Thankfully, it did not take much interest in us. As the shark disappeared into the dark blue backdrop of water, we continued to move along the shoreline looking for sea turtles, brightly colored fish, and less dangerous whitetip reef sharks. After a couple minutes, I noticed my dad slowly drifting toward a large adult male sea lion who was floating a few meters offshore. Having been warned that male sea lions were somewhat territorial, I moved as quickly as I could to steer my dad the other direction. By the time I reached him, the sea lion was no more than a few arm lengths away. Again, thankfully, it did not take much interest in us. We had similar though less harrowing experiences everywhere in the Galapagos. It was common to come within arms reach of some of the most fascinating animals in the world. Marine and land iguanas, giant tortoises, sea lions, sea turtles, stingrays, albatrosses, and blue-footed boobies paid little attention to us fawning tourists. Their tameness was disarming and beautiful, but it also made them look a little stupid. Charles Darwin seemed to have the same observation on his famous voyage 150 years earlier. He described the marine iguana, an animal whose uniqueness to the Galapagos is only surpassed by its number, as a hideous-looking ... 1 You have reached the end of this Article Preview You have reached the end of this Article Preview To continue reading, subscribe now. Subscribers have full digital access. Have something to add about this? See something we missed? Share your feedback here. Charles H. Murphy III, retired bishop and founder of the Anglican Mission in the Americas (AMiA), died Jan. 9 of brain cancer at his home in Litchfield Plantation, South Carolina. He was 70. Through his organization, created in response to liberal drift in the mainline Episcopal Church, Murphy gained acclaim from conservative Christians for taking a public stand against liberal theology that rejected the authority of Scripture, the divinity of Christ, and other orthodox doctrines. AMiA provided a new institutional home to marginalized conservative Christians, churches, dioceses, and bishops in the US and Canada. Chuck was an astonishingly eloquent speaker and expositor of the gospel, FitzSimons Allison, who served as Murphys bishop in South Carolina, told CT. He got many invitations to speak. He was billed as a person who helped raise money, but actually he was preaching the gospel, including generosity. He did it so well that there were clergy who disliked him and jealous of success. He could preach the horns off a billy goat. At that time, Murphy was rector of All Saints in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, growing the congregation to become one of the largest Episcopal parishes in the region. By September 1997, Murphy and other conservative Episcopal clergy believed that their denomination had thoroughly embraced false doctrine and was resistant to reform. These clergy drafted and signed the First Promise statement. It declared the church had departed from the doctrine, discipline, and worship of Christ as this church has received them, and we declare their authority to be fundamentally impaired, and that they are not upholding the truth of the gospel. The document signed that day lit dry tinder ready to burst into flame, Jon Shuler, founder of the New Anglican Missionary Society, wrote online last fall. Chuck Murphy, very reluctantly it must be said, took the chairmanship. Without his efforts, almost nothing most of those leaders did would have been as effective in the subsequent years. Over the next three years, the chorus of global Anglican leaders who were calling the US Episcopal Church to account grew louder. By 2000, a handful of conservatives decided to take much bolder steps. Meeting in Singapore, Anglican archbishops Moses Tay (Singapore) and Emmanuel Kolini (Rwanda) consecrated Murphy and John Rodgers Jr. as missionary bishops to America. (This act was irregular by not following the normal Anglican Communion church process for establishing new bishops.) Later that year, Murphy and Rodgers launched AMiA as a rallying place for conservatives as well as mission-minded institutions to evangelize, plant churches, and emphasize Christian orthodoxy. But their work was sharply criticized for being divisive and disorderly. Chuck was not appreciated fully, and he would not defend himself when he was attacked personallywhich was a personal virtue and an organizational fault, Allison said. Richard Baxter in the 17th century said it very well: It is better to have a disorderly orthodoxy than an orderly heresy. Despite the controversy, the movement to turn Anglicans back to their reformed and orthodox heritage went global, spreading to Asia, Latin America, and Africa. (In June, conservative Anglicans will regather in Jerusalem for GAFCON 2018.) AMiA was under the jurisdiction of the Anglican Province of Rwanda, and Murphy traveled to Rwanda many times. Samuel Mugisha, currently a bishop in the Rwandan diocese of Shyira, told CT that Murphy was pastoral, but could be prophetic when necessary. Ministry is tough, but we must always learn Jesus way, said Mugisha, who as a priest at the cathedral many years ago was tasked with chauffeuring Murphy and other visiting AMiA leaders. He overturned tables and rebuked, but still healed and gracefully came back to bless them. (Mugisha said he was speaking for himself, and not the province.) After a watershed gathering of conservative Anglicans in Jerusalem in 2008, AMiA and Murphy supported the 2009 creation of the Anglican Church in North America (ACNA), which today has almost 1,000 member congregations and claims 100,000 congregants. Top Anglican archbishops in Africa and elsewhere are in communion with ACNA, but not the Archbishop of Canterbury, leader of the worlds 85 million Anglicans. But Murphy pulled AMiA back from its full membership in ACNA in 2010, saying in a communique that its dual involvement in ACNA and the Rwandan Anglican province had caused significant confusion and was not sustainable. In 2011, relations between Rwandan Anglican bishops and Murphy soured over financial accountability and control issues. AMiA cut its official ties with the Rwandan province, becoming a self-governing missionary society. This triggered a loss of two-thirds of its 268 church plants, according to Murphy. In 2012, he formed a new congregation, The Abbey, also on Pawleys Island. He stepped down as AMiAs top leader in 2013. Allison said that Murphy consistently resisted efforts to elevate church polity over Christian doctrine. If you are not committed to Christian teaching, what teaching are you committed to? His legacy would be for a radical change in the way the church sees its mission, said Allison. Bishops should be more like Celtic bishops in the sixth century. They were missionaries and converted people. Bishops shouldnt sit as [the] CEO of an organization. After Murphy died, Philip Jones, the current bishop of AMiA, said in a statement, God worked through him in significant and fruitful ways to change the face of Anglicanism in North America for generations to come. Chuck often said of the AMiA, We are about mission: nothing more, nothing less. Evangelical Radio Makes Waves in the Mideast SIMI VALLEY, Calif., Jan. 23, 2018 / "We will also support faith leaders in this region and across the world, as they teach their disciples to practice love, not hate. And we will help persecuted peoples (Christians and other religious minorities), who have suffered so much at the hands of ISIS and other terrorist groups. To this end, the United States has redirected funding from ineffective relief efforts. And, for the first time, we are providing direct support to Christian and other religious minorities as they rebuild their communities after years of repression and war." -- Vice President Mike Pence's Speech at Israel's Knesset Video Link: Galilee, Israel: With the Trump administrations announced commitment to protect Middle East Christians and Vice President Pence's visit today in Israel; persecuted Christians struggling under the oppression of ISIS have just received the clear and powerful message that they are neither forgotten nor alone! In a move of strong support for the plight of Mideast Christians, the government of Israel granted its first and only Christian radio license and frequency to international broadcaster, Strategic Communications Group after its president, Rev. John D. Tayloe appealed on behalf of the persecuted Christians in the region. The VOICE OF HOPE 1287 AM, a new 50,000-watt evangelical Christian radio station, began its Arabic broadcast service from the biblical region of Galilee Israel on March 2017. The radio station is reaching populations of over 40 million living in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Cyprus and Israel. "Our strong friendship with Israel, our commitment to encourage Middle East Christians, along with our desire to share the Gospel of Peace with Muslims, makes the VOICE OF HOPE radio station a truly unique partnership for peace in the Middle East." John Tayloe went on to say, "Politics can not solve a thousand years of conflict. We believe that the answer is in the renewed Hope of God's word. The message of Hope delivered with love through the intimate and powerful medium of radio." Israel's Minister of Regional Cooporation, Tzachi Hanegbi said, "This radio station exemplifies the deep connection and unique bond that Israel has with the American people and between the Jews and the Christians. We are certain that the message of hope that will be brought by the station will be an uplifting tool and a benefit to our neighbors. The State of Israel supports any message of peace to the people in neighboring countries and this is why we decided to support the establishiment of the Voice of Hope." The VOICE OF HOPE is one of the loudest radio signals on the dial and its reach into five Middle East countries is unprecedented in a region where religious freedoms and individual rights are challenged everyday. The establishment of this Christian broadcast voice is a powerful tool for peace in the hands of Evangelicals who believe that the message and ministry of Jesus is relevant for today's overwhelming circumstances. Share Tweet Contact: John Tayloe, 805-338-0075, jdtayloe@voiceofhope.com SIMI VALLEY, Calif., Jan. 23, 2018 / Christian Newswire / -- The Voice of Hope, the only Christian radio station in Israel, welcomes Vice President Pence in his visit of solidarity with Christians in the Middle East."We will also support faith leaders in this region and across the world, as they teach their disciples to practice love, not hate. And we will help persecuted peoples (Christians and other religious minorities), who have suffered so much at the hands of ISIS and other terrorist groups. To this end, the United States has redirected funding from ineffective relief efforts. And, for the first time, we are providing direct support to Christian and other religious minorities as they rebuild their communities after years of repression and war." -- Vice President Mike Pence's Speech at Israel's KnessetVideo Link: www.i24news.tv/en/tv/replay/daily-dose/x6dcz19 Galilee, Israel: With the Trump administrations announced commitment to protect Middle East Christians and Vice President Pence's visit today in Israel; persecuted Christians struggling under the oppression of ISIS have just received the clear and powerful message that they are neither forgotten nor alone!In a move of strong support for the plight of Mideast Christians, the government of Israel granted its first and only Christian radio license and frequency to international broadcaster, Strategic Communications Group after its president, Rev. John D. Tayloe appealed on behalf of the persecuted Christians in the region.The VOICE OF HOPE 1287 AM, a new 50,000-watt evangelical Christian radio station, began its Arabic broadcast service from the biblical region of Galilee Israel on March 2017. The radio station is reaching populations of over 40 million living in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Cyprus and Israel."Our strong friendship with Israel, our commitment to encourage Middle East Christians, along with our desire to share the Gospel of Peace with Muslims, makes the VOICE OF HOPE radio station a truly unique partnership for peace in the Middle East." John Tayloe went on to say, "Politics can not solve a thousand years of conflict. We believe that the answer is in the renewed Hope of God's word. The message of Hope delivered with love through the intimate and powerful medium of radio."Israel's Minister of Regional Cooporation, Tzachi Hanegbi said, "This radio station exemplifies the deep connection and unique bond that Israel has with the American people and between the Jews and the Christians. We are certain that the message of hope that will be brought by the station will be an uplifting tool and a benefit to our neighbors. The State of Israel supports any message of peace to the people in neighboring countries and this is why we decided to support the establishiment of the Voice of Hope."The VOICE OF HOPE is one of the loudest radio signals on the dial and its reach into five Middle East countries is unprecedented in a region where religious freedoms and individual rights are challenged everyday. The establishment of this Christian broadcast voice is a powerful tool for peace in the hands of Evangelicals who believe that the message and ministry of Jesus is relevant for today's overwhelming circumstances. What Does it Look Like to Really Follow Jesus? Author shows how to follow Christ as a disciple, not just as a fan Contact: Kevin Wandra, 404-788-1276, SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 23, 2018 / Sri, a founding leader of FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) and professor of theology at the Augustine Institute, addresses what it means to be more than a fan of Jesus in INTO HIS LIKENESS. Discipleship needs to be more than just another Catholic buzz word. When grounded in Scripture, discipleship reminds us that following Jesus involves more than saying prayers and going to Mass and through the motions of the faith. It's about being changed in Christ's likeness "from one degree of glory to another" (2 Cor 3:18). "We must remember two basic truths: First, the truth of our weaknesses, wounds and sins (A). And second, the truth of what we're made for healing and perfection in Christ (B). Living as a disciple is all about the process of getting from A to B," Sri says. But on a practical level, how does one answer that gentle tugging of the Holy Spirit and experience lasting transformation in Christ? Sri structures INTO HIS LIKENESS in three parts: what it means to be a disciple, how to experience the transformation Christ wants to accomplish in our lives and how to deepen our encounter with God throughout our lives. At the end of every chapter, Sri offers reflection questions to help the reader consider the next steps God wants them to take as disciples. INTO HIS LIKENESS demonstrates what a transformative change in life looks like and how the reader can turn their love of Jesus from a fan to a disciple, to walk with Christ and be transformed by Him. "I've heard it said that 'God loves us right where we're at. But He also loves us too much to keep us there.' In his down-to-earth, relatable style, Dr. Sri does just that with this book," said Teresa Tomeo, syndicated Catholic talk show host of "Catholic Connection" and "The Catholic View for Women." "INTO HIS LIKENESS indeed meets us all right where we're at in life while providing a way forward. It's a path of powerful but practical spiritual steps to not only help us follow in the footsteps of Christ and His Church but to become more and more like Him in our everyday lives; something all of us need to continually strive for." For more information, to request a review copy or to schedule an interview with Dr. Edward Sri, please contact Kevin Wandra (404-788-1276 or Share Tweet Contact: Kevin Wandra, 404-788-1276, KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 23, 2018 / Christian Newswire / -- Discipleship in Jesus' time meant getting as close to the Rabbi as one could, close enough that the dust from the Rabbi's sandals would fall on his disciple. That's how close Jesus wants us to be, writes Dr. Edward Sri in his new book, INTO HIS LIKENESS: BE TRANSFORMED AS A DISCIPLE OF CHRIST.Sri, a founding leader of FOCUS (Fellowship of Catholic University Students) and professor of theology at the Augustine Institute, addresses what it means to be more than a fan of Jesus in INTO HIS LIKENESS. Discipleship needs to be more than just another Catholic buzz word. When grounded in Scripture, discipleship reminds us that following Jesus involves more than saying prayers and going to Mass and through the motions of the faith. It's about being changed in Christ's likeness "from one degree of glory to another" (2 Cor 3:18)."We must remember two basic truths: First, the truth of our weaknesses, wounds and sins (A). And second, the truth of what we're made for healing and perfection in Christ (B). Living as a disciple is all about the process of getting from A to B," Sri says.But on a practical level, how does one answer that gentle tugging of the Holy Spirit and experience lasting transformation in Christ? Sri structures INTO HIS LIKENESS in three parts: what it means to be a disciple, how to experience the transformation Christ wants to accomplish in our lives and how to deepen our encounter with God throughout our lives.At the end of every chapter, Sri offers reflection questions to help the reader consider the next steps God wants them to take as disciples. INTO HIS LIKENESS demonstrates what a transformative change in life looks like and how the reader can turn their love of Jesus from a fan to a disciple, to walk with Christ and be transformed by Him."I've heard it said that 'God loves us right where we're at. But He also loves us too much to keep us there.' In his down-to-earth, relatable style, Dr. Sri does just that with this book," said Teresa Tomeo, syndicated Catholic talk show host of "Catholic Connection" and "The Catholic View for Women." "INTO HIS LIKENESS indeed meets us all right where we're at in life while providing a way forward. It's a path of powerful but practical spiritual steps to not only help us follow in the footsteps of Christ and His Church but to become more and more like Him in our everyday lives; something all of us need to continually strive for."For more information, to request a review copy or to schedule an interview with Dr. Edward Sri, please contact Kevin Wandra (404-788-1276 or KWandra@CarmelCommunications.com ) of Carmel Communications. The closure of three Sam's Club locations in Houston will cost 470 jobs, the Texas Workforce Commission reports. The Arkansas-based members-only wholesaler began shuttering 63 stores nationwide earlier this month, including two locations in Houston and one in New Caney, as the company diverts its resources to e-commerce. The bodies of five workers, including one Texan, were found Tuesday after an explosion ripped through a drilling rig in Oklahoma, triggering the nation's deadliest oil and gas incident in several years. The drilling rig is owned by Houston-based Patterson-UTI Energy, which employed three of the deceased. Patterson-UTI has grown into one of the nation's largest onshore drilling and hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, companies. The deceased include one from Forth Worth, three from Oklahoma and one from Colorado. They are Josh Ray, 35, of Fort Worth; Cody Risk, of Wellington, Colo.; and Matt Smith, Parker Waldridge and Roger Cunningham, all of Oklahoma. Ray, Smith and Risk were Patterson-UTI employees. "Five people were tragically lost in the event," said Patterson-UTI Chief Executive Andy Hendricks. "Our focus right now is supporting the families. This has been a terrible tragedy and a terrible loss." Patterson-UTI and the natural gas well operator, Oklahoma's Red Mountain, said they are working with local authorities and the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration to investigate the accident. "We want to know what caused this horrible event, but today is not the time for those questions," said Red Mountain spokesman Tony Say. While Hendricks acknowledged Patterson-UTI has had other safety incidents in the past, he argued his company has ranked among the safest drillers in recent years. The explosion cut through the Patterson-UTI rig just before 9 a.m. Monday. More than 20 people were working at the well site when the explosion occurred west of Quinton, about 100 miles southeast of Tulsa, authorities said. Authorities said 16 people escaped the explosion without major injuries. One person was airlifted to a hospital. The fire was extinguished Monday night. The intense fire had prevented investigators from getting to the scene to confirm any fatalities. Authorities earlier searched the surrounding woods to see if anyone had fled into the area. Aerial footage showed several fires were still burning by midday Monday on the rig and much of the equipment had collapsed to the ground. Patterson-UTI has about 25 drilling rigs active in Oklahoma, second only to Texas, where it has nearly 60 rigs in operation. The incident occurred at the site of one of Patterson-UTI's more modern APEX 1500 rigs, described as a "light, safe, and efficient rapid deployment rig." The DeLorean Motor Co. hopes to start production on its iconic time-traveling vehicle from "Back to the Future" in Houston before the end of the year. The announcement was made by Stephen Wynne, CEO of DeLorean, in a video produced by KPRC2 on Monday. Two people were hospitalized early Tuesday after a road rage incident in south Houston ended with a car crash and shots fired, Houston Police said. The incident started after two groups were leaving an unnamed club near the Southwest Freeway and Old Spanish Trail around 5 a.m., police said. Some time after, police said there was a road rage incident that caused one car to crash on the Southmore Boulevard overpass. This week, the mourning family of a beloved chicken in the College Station area was honored with a loving obituary in The Eagle, the town's newspaper. Big Mama, as she came to be known, was rescued by a family after they learned that she was due to be put down after her Houston owners could no longer keep her. WASHINGTON - Most efforts underway to restore so-called net neutrality face big obstacles and would take many months, if not years, to succeed. But in Montana, the governor has used the stroke of a pen to bring the rules to broad parts of his state. Through an executive order, Gov. Steve Bullock declared Monday that any internet service provider with a state government contract cannot block or charge more for faster delivery of websites, two core aspects of net neutrality, to any customer in the state. Many major landline and mobile broadband providers, including Charter, CenturyLink, AT&T and Verizon, hold government contracts in the state. The new requirements apply to new and renewed contracts signed after July 1, 2018. In December, the Federal Communications Commission rolled back rules meant to protect a free and open internet. The new rules say states cannot create net neutrality laws. The agency did not respond to a request for comment about the Montana action. But Bullock, a Democrat, and some public interest advocates who have advised him argue that the state has wide latitude to set conditions to any contracts with the government - one of the biggest customers in most cities and states - to get around the FCC's restrictions. "If you want to do business with Montana, there are standards on net neutrality you will have to follow," Bullock said. The idea is similar to bills in New York and Rhode Island that are also trying to use government contracts to regulate the practices of internet service providers. Those efforts are proceeding slowly along with multiple lawsuits filed last week by more than 20 state attorneys general. Broadband providers say they will have difficulty following different state laws related to net neutrality. Various trade groups said they were watching Montana's action and other state bills and were considering lawsuits. Texas Southern University on Monday announced it had received a five year, $2.7 million grant to put toward research stipends, scholarships and data collection in a new criminal justice center. The grant, from the Koch Foundation-backed, D.C.-based Center for Advancing Opportunity, creates the center, which will be devoted to criminal justice research at the historically black university in an effort to create policy solutions to reform efforts. Administrators expect researchers to partner with local Houston law enforcement agencies, including the district attorney's office. "We've got to go to work," said Howard Henderson, an administration of justice professor at TSU, adding that research can help build an "equitable" criminal justice system. To his students, he said, "all of this is really for you." Henderson will be the center's director. It's the largest grant TSU President Austin Lane has nabbed since taking office in 2016. The proposal had support from Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Houston, and District Attorney Kim Ogg, both Democrats. Both said university research will be important tools in solving complex issues, like mass incarceration. "You're trained to analyze the data we're so busy creating," Ogg said. "Many times we don't have the hindsight (or) foresight to look at it." Jackson Lee, in an interview after TSU's press conference, said the university is the right fit for the center because, as a historically black college it has long opened doors for vulnerable populations. "It is a symbol of a place where we correct ill," she said. "We can be a very effective tool with this grant to impact not only state and local legislation...we can also impact the national story, the national matrix." The Center for Advancing Opportunity was created in 2017 by the Koch Foundation-backed Thurgood Marshall College Fund to support faculty at historically black colleges and universities who research education, criminal justice and entrepreneurship. Money from the Center for Advancing Opportunity can finance on-campus programming, scholarships, research and polling and original research, like the campus research center announced Monday at TSU. Winston-Salem State University similarly received a $3 million grant to study barriers to economic mobility in North Carolina. The Koch brothers have long funded conservative political candidates. Lane, who since becoming president has seen campus protests block two Republican politicians from speaking, said he has heard no pushback regarding the source of the money. Many recognize that external research dollars are key to research, he said. Jackson Lee said criminal justice is an issue on which people across the ideological spectrum can collaborate. TSU's location in Houston and pledged partnerships with law enforcement agencies made it an appealing choice to house such a center, said Gerard Robinson, the executive director of the Center of Advancing Opportunity. Lane said the grant will support the research fully and will create a center for anyone to use to learn about mass incarceration or recidivism. "So many problems have to be researched and addressed," he said. "Many times, people come from an emotional standpoint...we're coming from more of a research standpoint." Human trafficking is a growing problem in Texas and a huge problem in Houston. The National Human Trafficking Hotline reports that 2,135 calls were made to the organization in 2016 (the last full year of statistics), up from 1,731 calls in 2015. Since 2007, 13,560 calls have been fielded by the Hotline. According to a 2017 study by researchers at the University of Texas, it is estimated that "313,000 people in the state are victims of human trafficking, with 79,000 minors and youth as sex workers." Further, according to a study by Cheryl Butler in the Akron Law Review, about 25 percent of trafficked people in the United states are in Texas. Nationwide, about 22 percent of trafficking victims travel through Texas. Finally, according to the same study, of the calls to the National Human Trafficking Hotline nearly a third come from Texas. Yes, it is bad. But the battle continues. January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month and law enforcement is taking it serious. In the Harris County Precinct 1 Constable's Office, Constable Al Rosen is hosting a seminar, "Behind the Shadows: The Truth about Human Trafficking," on Monday Jan. 29. To register or get more information, contact Erica Davis at 713-755-3372 or email erica.davis@cn1.hctx.net. In the constable's monthly newsletter, the precinct's Director of Precinct 1 Human Trafficking Division Kathy Griffin said, "It is not okay to be number one in this travesty. For so long, people have looked at human trafficking as someone else's problem, but here in Precinct 1 we'll make sure that we train people on what it is and what it looks like." Meanwhile, Children at Risk has scheduled a "Human Trafficking Bus Tour" through the streets of Houston on Feb. 27. Information at childrenatrisk.org indicates it "for an educational presentation on human trafficking in Houston as well as an awareness tour where participants will learn to identify the red flags and potential signs of human trafficking in their community." By the end of the night, organizers believe you will be able to answer questions about what exactly is human trafficking, where it takes place and what are the red flags. Go to childrenatrisk.org to register for the tour. In the state of Texas, prostitution is a Class B misdemeanor. If you get more than a couple of convictions it means higher penalties. For instance, if someone has previously been convicted four times for prostitution, that person may face a state jail felony. At most, that means two years in jail and up to a $10,000 fine. Soliciting a prostitute is a similar Class B misdemeanor. Forcing someone to be a prostitute is punishable as a second-degree felony, meaning someone convicted of the crime is facing two to 20 years in prison and/or a fine of no more than $10,000. All this information can be found under the public indecency code of the Texas Penal Code. (Penal Code, Title 9, Chapter 43, Section 43.02 - 43.06.) Late in 2017, the state of Texas hired its first director of human trafficking prevention, Kim Grabert. The state is perhaps finally taking human trafficking seriously. Two things need to happen to curb human trafficking: harsher penalties for those who practice it and harsher penalties for those who pay for the services. If the greater Houston area, Texas and the nation are serious about putting an end to the business of human trafficking juveniles in particular make it so that there is a harsh penalty to be paid for getting caught, even once. Letter to the editor Have something to say? Say so. Write a letter and send it in to rkent@hcnonline.com. Please include contact information for verification purposes only. Dickinson Bayou mariners are free to use the waterway for boating, two days after a chemical spill forced the town to suspend all boating activity. The Coast Guard reopened Dickinson Bayou to water traffic after "significant progress" was made in overnight cleanup efforts, according to the Dickinson Police Department. Mariners are advised to move at slow speeds in the vicinity of work crews, with the spill isolated to one small area of the bayou. The Dickinson Bayou boat ramp will remain closed. The police department determined that the chemical was a sulfonate solution that originated from the Calumet-Penreco plant upstream. Brittany Eck, a spokeswoman for the Texas General Land Office, said that the chemical is a non-flammable, non-corrosive hydrocarbon product used in drilling fluid. Calumet-Penreco will be held liable for the cost of the cleanup, which is being handled by the General Land Office and Coast Guard. Sgt. Tim Cromie, a spokesman for the police department, said that cleanup efforts are expected to be completed by the end of Monday. Floating booms will remain in place for the next several days to collect any residual product that may flush out from rocks or along the shoreline, with work crews inspecting those booms over the next several days. Calumet Refining is currently conducting an internal investigation to determine the cause of the spill. The Texas General Land Office and U.S. Coast Guard are carrying out state and federal investigations. Sunset Coffee Building, a historic building located at Allen's Landing, at 1019 Commerce St., Houston, after sitting empty for decades, is now open again for business, and with it, a crucial piece of Houston's history is now revived. Brothers John Kirby Allen and Augustus Chapman Allen arrived in 1836 and purchased 6,642 acres to establish a city, named after General Sam Houston. The site, at the confluence of Buffalo and White Oak Bayous, eventually became Houston's first port. The Sunset Coffee Building, back then known as the International Coffee Building, was built in 1910 as an annex to the 1880's W.D. Cleveland & Son's wholesale grocer supply building. Both buildings accepted goods as they came into the port. It also functioned as a coffee roasting company. The Columbian coffee was an important role in Houston's development and economy. Today, Allen's Landing, and the space outside of Sunset Coffee Building, is designed with typography design work that tells the history, and highlights the goods that came through the port, such as seed, wool and, of course, coffee. The Sunset Coffee Building closed sometime in the 1920s and remained empty until David Adickes bought the building in the late 1960s. He turned it into the Love Street Light Circus and Feel Good Machine, a hippie type music club. Adickes sold the building and closed the club in 1971. It has been vacant since, until Buffalo Bayou Partnership stepped in. "It was the founding place of Houston. There are very few buildings left that tell our history," Buffalo Bayou Partnership President Anne Olson said. "We just felt that if someone else bought it, they would turn it into a high rise. We value history, so it made sense for us to take it on and to save it. We realized that there was just as much importance in saving the building as saving the site as well." According to buffalobayou.org, BBP worked for over a decade to raise money for renovation of the building and finalized an agreement in 2013 with Houston First Corporation to contribute the remaining funds needed for the project. According to Olson, the state of the building when BBP bought it, was in decrepit shape. "It was horrible. It was totally trashed over the years, with broken windows. People couldn't believe that we purchased it actually, but we could see that it had good bones and good potential," Olson said. BBP's offices reside on the top floor of the building. There is currently open space on the second level. The ground floor is going to house canoe, kayak and bike rentals, slated to start in the spring and summer. The building also features a water front balcony, and a roof top terrace. "We are debating on what to do on the second floor. We might just leave it raw and leave it open for exhibits. A cafe could be a possibility. We have had quite a lot of interest for people who want to rent it out for weddings or birthday parties. I think people are looking for a unique venue like that. We are feeling out the waters for that now," Olson said. In an effort to bring and expose more people to the new space, the 46th annual Buffalo Bayou Partnership Regatta, Texas' largest canoe and kayak race, held on March 10, will end at Allen's Landing. The regatta usually ends at Sesquicentennial Park. Currently, biking and hiking trails from the north end at the historic area, and BBP is in the process of designing trails that would leave from the Sunset Coffee Building and head east. "We just want people to get a glimpse back at the history, the importance of the port and the building. It is just a good destination along the bayou. We hope for it to become a hub," Olson said. No one knows their names or ages, what they did or where they lived. But Anthony Shore says he raped them. In the weeks before his execution, the Houston serial strangler known as the Tourniquet Killer confessed to another 60 rapes, according to two sources familiar with the investigation. The former wrecker driver who last week became the nation's first killer executed in 2018 also admitted to two copycat assaults in the 1970s previously attributed to a Sacramento predator known as the East Area Rapist a case in which his sisters already suspected him. "Everywhere we lived, there was a rapist," his youngest sister, Laurel Scheel, told the Chronicle. Exclusive: Houston killer facing execution this week admitted to 2 more slayings in morbid hoax The four-time killer confessed to law enforcement before his Thursday night execution, boasting of seducing strangers at bars, dosing them with Rohypnol the so-called date-rape drug and sexually assaulting them in the back of his van, the sources said. He didn't remember any details, except that he raped them. This isn't the first time Shore has offered up a confession with scant evidence. Late last year, he falsely copped to two other slayings, then got his first execution date pushed back after investigators learned of an alleged plot to confess to a third murder. Now, less than a week after his death by lethal injection, the charismatic killer has left behind a new trail of unanswered questions. One woman who knew him recalled many nights of drug-fueled parties and black spots in her memory. "I know that he drugged and date-raped me," said the woman, who asked not to be identified. And it wasn't just her, she said. There were others. The musical prodigy who grew up to become one of the Bayou City's most notorious serial killers was hit with the state's harshest punishment in 2004 for the rape and murder of 21-year-old Maria del Carmen Estrada, one in a series of brutal slayings that terrorized Harris County in the 1980s and 1990s. When police finally caught up with him after a DNA breakthrough tied him to the last of the killings he calmly confessed to three additional murders as well as a rape. Even early on, there were whisperings of more. "He would allude to other things, but it was always an allusion," said defense attorney Patrick McCann, who defended Shore during his initial trial. "'If you guys only knew the whole story.' But honestly, we were just trying not to ask questions we didn't want the answers to." During the punishment phase of his 2004 trial, the court heard about how he raped a handful of other women, including his pre-teen daughters. Those crimes had previously landed him on the sex offender registry, which is how police got the DNA they later matched to a cold case. A 2007 true crime book, "The Strangler" by Corey Mitchell, offered other chilling details, including an ex-wife who suspected he'd drugged and raped her, even during their marriage. If the circle of victims was even wider, though, there wasn't any proof. Eventually, the public stopped asking questions. His name fell out of the headlines. He grew old on death row as his attorneys quietly fought his appeals. But for 13 years, Shore's life went on. He picked up pen pals and found new friends, even from the silence of his prison cell. One of those pen pals was a woman named Lea. Still in her late teens, she started writing the condemned killer more than a decade before his death, and the two grew to be close friends. "He would always say, 'You're the only one who will love me regardless," said the woman, now 28, who asked that her last name not be used. "I think he is genuinely remorseful for what he did, but he also knew there was something wrong with him." The two talked about their lives and their feelings, about spirituality and books. But they also spoke of darker things. "There were a lot of rapes going back to when he was a teenager in California," she said. "A lot of the rapes he had said he just didn't know their names." BACKGROUND: Sister of notorious Houston serial killer: 'He should be killed' It's not clear when the alleged assaults started, but one of the first times Shore's sisters suspected him was when they lived in the Sacramento area, where the East Area Rapist was already making headlines. Before his death a few days before word of the new rape confessions emerged his sister Gina Shore voiced suspicions about the California case, though she pointed about that the predator was already active when the Shores moved to the area. "It's entirely possible that him or his friends did a copycat," she said last week. Anthony Shore would have only been 17 or 18 years old at the time, and there may not be any DNA preserved from the case to help check his claims, one source said. In his final days, Shore also claimed a slew of Houston-area rapes. But again, there's no evidence. His DNA doesn't match any unsolved assaults and he couldn't offer any details. It's not clear how so many assaults could have gone unreported, with no DNA left behind. Nonetheless, he insisted to investigators that he'd regularly drugged girls in bars and raped them in his van, sources said. He even claimed he'd taken on two apprentices. All told, he allegedly told authorities, there were roughly 60 victims. "I doubt it ends at 60," Scheel said. Tom Berg, first assistant at the Harris County District Attorney's Office, said the claims are being reviewed by the state. "We're not really in a position to comment," Berg said. "We've got to wait for the Texas Rangers to more fully investigate." DEATH DATE: Houston's 'Tourniquet Killer' put to death in first execution of 2018 The 11th-hour confessions don't seem to square with the killer's last words. In his final statement, he claimed there were "no others." But some who knew him are skeptical. "I call bull**** on 'There are no others,'" said the woman who described Shore's pattern of drugging and raping women. "There are no other what?" Another woman who knew Shore told the Chronicle she sensed his regret. The former musician and longtime friend started writing Shore more than a decade ago, after getting in touch with her faith. He wished her happy birthday in his final statement. "I've got to say his final statement sounded like remorse to me," said the woman, who asked not to be named again. "And the fact that he took the time to wish me a happy birthday." But his own family is less inclined to trust the killer's words. For his daughter, Tiffany Hall, the fact that he signed over his remains to someone else instead of family is just another, final slap in the face. "He was a pretty awful person in life," she said. "So it only follows that he would be an awful person in death." Staff at the scandal-plagued Texas Juvenile Justice Department have been asked to review a few dozen violent inmates for possible transfer to adult prisons, a move that has sparked concern among activists and advocates. "Children don't belong in adult prison," said Jay Jenkins, a project attorney with the Texas Criminal Justice Coalition. "Juveniles don't belong in adult prisons. Full stop." But lawmakers and officials stressed that the review is part of a push to boost security by working to remove assaultive youth. "I am very positive on the plan to once and for all make Juvenile Justice safe," said state Sen. John Whitmire, D-Houston The review coincides with a push to reduce the population of TJJD facilities amid ongoing staffing shortages and an unfolding sexual abuse scandal amid that has caused lawmakers, the governor and advocates to lose confidence in TJJD's ability to protect kids in its facilities. In addition to reviewing troublemaking teens for possible transfer to prison from three of the agency's secure facilities, officials are taking a broader look at files of sentenced offenders at two other facilities just to "figure out what the next step is," according to a TJJD spokeswoman. "Some facilities have been looking at sentenced offenders and specifically the ones assaulting staff, and if they meet the objective criteria for transfer, they're starting the process," said spokeswoman Carolyn Beck. "So they're making sure that process is starting for those kids that are hurting people." Transfer to an adult facility, which ultimately requires a judge's sign-off, can take months, Beck said - so the ongoing reviews aren't expected to result in any moves in the immediate future. The juveniles under review are those currently held on "determinate sentences," usually reserved for more serious offenses and leave the possibility of prison on the table if the juveniles have failed to demonstrate they've benefitted from services and programs before they turn 19. Although kids can be up for transfer to adult prison once they turn 16 if they meet certain criteria, typically the agency works to avoid that outcome. It's not clear how many kids could undergo some type of review. Roughly 35 determinate-sentenced offenders systemwide meet transfer criteria and have a history of assaulting staff, Beck said, though she didn't have concrete data on how many fit that profile at the two facilities zeroing in on those teens for evaluation. "The goal over time would be to reduce our population by approximately 250 to get to where we needed to be to be safe, based on the number of staff we have available," Beck said. At the same time, this month the agency is taking a look at non-sentenced offenders who could be eligible for release back into the community. "We are reinstating release criteria to make sure that all the kids that are appropriate to go home get to go home," Beck said. Last year, when the agency previously put in place such criteria, it netted around 20 releases per month. Agency officials have said in the past that a few hundred of the roughly 1,000 juvenile offenders could be better housed in community-based programs rather than a remotely located state facility. With an eye to the future, the agency's governing board recently hired a new executive director, Camille Cain, whose vision for reducing the population in TJJD facilities also includes assessing which kids might be eligible to be transferred to prison or release on parole. Beck stressed that the current sentenced offender reviews were "more for safety than for population management" and said they should have been getting done anyway. She also debunked recent whisperings about possible large-scale transfer of youth to TDCJ, misinformation she said stemmed from discussions about how to make facilities safe. "The rumor about them being told to review all the sentenced offenders as tied to population management is coming from this, these conversations," she said. Cain declined to be interviewed for the story, citing the fact that she's only been on the job for a few weeks. "The new director is trying to determine what the real problems are," Whitmire said. "I've got confidence in her." Some experts questioned any push to move kids - even those with disciplinary problems - to adult facilities. "I don't want to downplay if there are serious incidents of violence where people are getting hurt," said Michele Deitch, a criminal-justice expert and senior lecturer at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Austin, "but there's also just going to be a lot of youth who are acting out in anger and simply need to have different approaches tried in managing them." Jenkins called transferring kids to adult prisons a "bad way" to solve juvenile justice disciplinary problems. "The abuse that took place in the TJJD facility was horrific but the abuse for a young offender in the adult system is going to be much much worse," Jenkins said. "You're solving a sexual assault problem by creating a very strong likelihood of sexual assault." Lance Lowry, a sergeant in Huntsville and former Texas prison union chief, begged to differ. "TDCJ does a lot better job - you don't hear me saying that a lot - at managing the youth offenders than TJJD," he said. "The inmates run the asylum at TJJD - they have no control. We're just contributing to these guys becoming future wards of the state." A family and their baby escaped from their burning north Houston home early Tuesday, fire department officials said. Firefighters were called around 1:30 a.m. to a house on East Sunnyside Street and O'Donnell Drive. There, they found heavy smoke coming from a one-story home. The family told officials the fire started in the attic of the home. No one was injured. Voters living in Houston ISD could be asked to approve a new school bond totaling at least $1.2 billion as early as November, according to a recently unveiled district financial plan. The bond would finance major construction projects, technology upgrades, fine arts purchases and other capital costs. If the bond request totals $1.2 billion, it would likely come with a tax increase of 3 cents to 7 cents per $100 of taxable value, depending on Hurricane Harvey's impact on property values, district administrators said. For a homeowner with a property valued at about $275,000, roughly the average in HISD in recent years, the increase would amount to $80 to $190 per year. District leaders unveiled the plans over the weekend during a wide-ranging preview of major changes to the district's budget, magnet schools program and approach to long-failing schools. HISD's last bond election came in 2012, when two-thirds of voters approved a $1.89 billion request. District leaders did not present specific projects or amounts, but they're expected in the coming months to finalize a proposal for school board members. Board trustees must approve sending a bond election to voters. Administrators said the bond would help finance new campuses in pockets of the city's west and south sides, where student enrollment has grown, along with upgrades to outdated elementary and middle schools. The 2012 bond largely focused on renovating and building new high schools, with 26 campuses getting about $1.3 billion worth of construction. The district's financial staff estimates that a $500 million bond request could be passed without raising taxes, but the amount "would not do much for a school district of this size," HISD Chief Operating Officer Brian Busby said. "It would be something that would possibly pass, depending on what you do, but it would not be as impactful as we need a bond to be, based on our strategic vision moving forward," Busby said. Nixing advisory teams HISD has the lowest tax rate among the region's larger districts, but it also boasts a disproportionately large tax base. A $1.2 billion bond in HISD, the state's largest school district, would fall in line with the amounts approved by voters in other big Texas districts. Voters in Dallas, Cy-Fair and Austin ISDs have each approved bonds of $1 billion to $1.6 billion in the past five years. If HISD voters favor a school bond, multiple district leaders said they don't want to use Parent Advisory Teams, which were employed to execute the 2012 bond. The teams involved parents and community members meeting frequently with architects to design campuses. "I love my community. I do. But my community is not an architect," HISD Board of Trustees President Rhonda Skillern-Jones said. "We have got to stop overindulging decision-making." Abbott hopes to rein in debt Trustee Diana Davila advocated for designs that reflect the programming within a school, particularly as the district considers overhauling its magnet and school choice systems. "I don't want us to go back and say, 'Doggone it, it should have been this, and look at what it is today,'" Davila said. The bond announcement comes one week after Texas Gov. Greg Abbott proposed reining in debt held by local governments, including school districts. Part of Abbott's plan involved requiring a two-third super-majority vote to approve new local debts, such as school bonds. "While much of this debt is legitimate because local governments play a key role in providing transportation, water, and other types of infrastructure, the state must take care to ensure that debt is affordable and does not reach levels that imperil the future fiscal and economic stability of Texas," Abbott said in his written plan. A child care worker at the Goddard School in Pearland has been charged with indecency with a child after investigators say he gave hugs and inappropriately touched a student late last year. Derion Hanson was charged by the Brazoria County District Attorney's Office earlier this month after a 7-year-old student told her parents he had touched her on Dec. 27. Melinda Harmon, a lifetime appointee to the federal bench who oversaw civil class action lawsuits involving Enron shareholders, has announced she plans to retire Mar. 31, creating a vacancy on one of the busiest dockets in the country. Harmon, 71, wrote a letter to President Donald Trump and noted she was appointed by President George H. W. Bush in 1989 at the recommendation of Sen. Phil Gramm, R-Texas. "I hope that I have lived up to the confidence Senator Gramm had in me," she wrote. Harmon said she did not plan to take senior status, a move open to all sitting judges at retirement age, that allows them to handle a lighter caseload. But she said she would consider the possibility of taking senior status at a future date. The announcement triggers a process to seek a replacement that could take a year or more, according to one expert. Chief U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal said the court will convene to discuss how to handle Harmon's caseload while the president seeks a nominee to take her seat. Lena Zwarensteyn, an expert on the judiciary process at the progressive American Constitution Society in Washington, D.C., said Texas will either convene a commission to review interested nominees or it will tap into the pool of candidates it has already vetted and propose names to the state's senators. That process could take months. Once the senators make a recommendation, the White House takes three months to run its background check and vet the candidate while the Senate's confirmation process could add more months. And the American Bar Association vetting usually takes five weeks, although Trump has opted not to wait for the ABA ratings before moving forward on candidates, she said. "Conservatively, the best case scenario it would be about a year from vacancy to someone sitting on the bench," Zwarensteyn said. "There are so many nominees having to be vetted it could take a lot longer." A federal judge Tuesday ordered Harris County lawyers to produce missing or additional evidence in the trailblazing lawsuit in which she ruled the county's bail practices kept poor people in jail due to a wealth-based detention system. Chief U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal noted that she had asked county misdemeanor judges and hearing officers to clear their afternoons and be present at the Houston federal courthouse to impress upon them the extreme gravity of the questions before her. "I asked you here to make clear how very serious the issues (are)," she said, adding, that "it was not my intent to imply a rebuke or criticism or indication of how I intend ultimately to come down on the merits." The unusual court hearing was triggered by discipline handed down earlier this month by the state's judicial conduct commission, which reprimanded a trio of county judges for not following legal requirements to consider a person's ability to pay when setting bond. The judges said they had been instructed not to grant personal bonds, and feared dismissal if they did. Rosenthal was stern and serious as she explained that the evidence in question is vital because it has "impact on so many people's lives that we cannot afford to avoid talking about (it) in this case." Specifically, the judge gave the county until Feb. 23 to produce information about any instructions or restrictions formal, informal, verbal or simply understood that misdemeanor judges had for magistrates for how to handle no-cash bonds. The county insists none exists. The question is whether historically these hearing officers who are first judicial officers to see defendants after an arrest understood that they had discretion and independence to grant personal bonds. Lawyers for the indigent defendants who brought the civil rights lawsuit suggested that contradictory evidence has come to light indicating magistrates thought they were obliged to follow the county judges' instructions when it came to bond. MORE: Lawyers in Harris County bail case claim evidence may have been withheld The judges and the hearing officers say there is no such conflict and no contradiction in testimony. The magistrates have had that discretion in misdemeanor cases for decades, they said. "It could have been cleared up with one phone call," said Kate David, attorney for the magistrates. On Jan. 10, the State Commission on Judicial Conduct publicly admonished the three judges for not following the law by failing to exercise judicial discretion "by strictly following directives not to issue personal bonds" from their presiding judges. The discipline was also based on video recordings of bond hearings where they denied personal bonds, increased bonds or appeared to have little regard for the circumstances of indigent defendants. When asked by the judicial commission whether he had been given a directive by misdemeanor or felony judges that restricted his discretion, Magistrate Eric Hagstette submitted a written response that until March 27, 2017, several felony judges had instructed the magistrates not to grant personal bonds. MORE: Harris County hearing officers sanctioned by state for not considering personal bonds He indicated the misdemeanor judges also gave them rules. "The County Criminal Court at Law Judges historically had similar rules. These rules were passed to the Hearing Officers through the years through email, written notes, and word of mouth," he wrote in the statement. When called before commission in December, Hagstette testified he regretted his demeanor during a video of a bond hearing where he increased a woman's bail after she said "yeah" instead of "yes." He said there was much more to his finding than was on the tape. "I'm absolutely, completely mortified that when you Google my name, this is what comes up," he said. "It has been the most mortifying thing of my life." The commission sanctioned Hagstette and his colleagues Joseph Licata III and Jill Wallace this month for failing to exercise discretion and follow the law, noting they gave them lesser punishments because they had presented evidence they felt their jobs were on the line and they were beholden to the judges who employed them. The commission noted that Harris County settled a similar federal court lawsuit brought against it 30 years ago, and the 1987 settlement agreed to give hearing officers the authority to grant personal bonds. In court Tuesday, Neal Manne, a pro bono lawyer who represents the indigent defendants along with two civil rights groups, said the county failed to produce information about these "instructions" in the bail case, but it came up with more than 600 pages when it came time defend the magistrates before the commission. RULING: Judge finds Harris County bail process is unconstitutional Michael W. Kirk, a lawyer representing the county judges, said there was no missing evidence in the earlier federal injunction hearing, because it had focused on the immediate past and not rules from many years ago. He told Rosenthal it might would be impossible to deliver email, since the county deletes messages after two weeks and it would be cumbersome to collect word-of-mouth accounts of the old rules. Rosenthal urged him to try. The judge ruled in April that Harris County violated due process and equal protection clauses by forcing poor, low-level defendants into wealth-based detention. She ordered the county to release defendants who didn't have holds or detainers but couldn't afford bond within 24 hours. That ruling is on appeal before the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The county has spent more than $5 million defending itself in the case. District Attorney Kim Ogg attended the hearing and noted afterward that Rosenthal was tightly focused on the issue of whether magistrates have always had the discretion to grant bond. Also present in the packed courtroom was Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis, an advocate for bail reform, who supports the indigent defendants' allegations. "Today's arguments in federal court raised additional questions on whether the county has been completely transparent about how magistrates are setting bail," Ellis said afterward. "Rather than continue to run up the county's legal bills to defend an unjust system, I believe this is another opportunity to settle this case and focus all of the county's attention and resources on implementing a bail system that lives up to the promise of fairness and justice for all that our constitution guarantees," he added. Gabrielle Banks covers federal court for the Houston Chronicle. Send her email at gabrielle.banks@chron.com and follow her on Twitter. A five-year-old Texas girl is recovering from a traumatic snake bite she received last Sunday. Emily Rose Oehler was playing at Longhorn Cavern State Park roughly 60 miles northwest of Austin when a diamondback rattlesnake struck her on the ankle, according to KXAN. An ambulance was called and Oehler and her mother were taken to a local hospital in Burnet. Staff told the family the child needed anti-venom, which was only available at the Dell Children's Medical Center of Central Texas in Austin, reports the Daily Mail. CLOSE CALL: Man discovers he encountered a venomous snake while visiting Battleship Texas A few miles into the hour-long drive, Oehler began vomiting non-stop. A helicopter was called and the 5-year-old was rushed to the Austin hospital where she received nearly 40 doses of anti-venom to stop the snake poison. Now, thankfully, Oehler is recovering from the close encounter with the reptile, but the family's stressful experience isn't over yet. The expensive anti-venom treatment has inundated the family with medical bills and Oehler's mother, Alicia, is asking for help via a GoFundMe campaign. See if you're able to identify Texas' venomous snakes in our quiz above. Fernando Ramirez is a reporter for Chron.com and the Houston Chronicle. You can read more of his stories here and follow him on Twitter at @fernramirez93. Schools across America are as segregated now as they were 50 years ago, based largely on how school boundries are set up, an investigation by Vox found. Vox looked at elementary schools across the country, including in the San Antonio-area, and mapped out their demographics. The piece looked at how schools are currently zoned and what schools would look like if students attended the one nearest them. A driver got out of his car and told the pedestrian he had just hit that he was OK before fleeing the scene, police said. Police said the pedestrian was trying to cross the 5100 block of Rigsby Avenue around 11:30 p.m. when the driver hit him. The mother of three boys who was killed Sunday morning during a custody exchange with her estranged husband has been identified by family members. Police said Richard Concepcion fatally shot his estranged wife around 8 a.m. in the front yard of her home in the 10400 block of Arbor Bluff. Law enforcement has not released the woman's identity but her cousin, 33-year-old Darren Moon, told mySA.com it was Sarah Alexis Furey, 32. She was a medic in the U.S. Navy who served in Afghanistan close to a decade ago, according to her family. Moon also created a GoFundMe to raise money for Furey's now-orphaned children. The account has raised more than $14,000 since it was created. A second GoFundMe created by other members of Furey's family had raised almost $2,500 by Monday afternoon. RELATED: Manhunt sparked by killing, child abduction ends after suspect found shot "We're all just shocked and extremely sad," Moon said. "When we found out about everything, we were just in disbelief. You never think this would happen to anyone you know, let alone your family." Police said that after Concepcion killed Furey, he fled with their 18-month-old child, Aaron Joseph Concepcion. A manhunt ensued, and authorities issued an Amber Alert for Aaron. A Guadalupe County deputy then spotted Concepcion about two hours after the Amber Alert was issued, according to Guadalupe County Operations Captain John Koch. RELATED: Man fatally shot outside of Northeast Side apartment Concepcion then shot himself, authorities said. Paramedics took him to a nearby hospital in grave condition, and he was later pronounced dead. Prior to Sunday's fatal shooting, Concepcion had no criminal history, with the exception of a minor traffic violation in Anchorage, Alaska, according to public records. Furey and Concepcion had two other children, aged 7 and 5 according to Bexar County court records, but they were not involved in Sunday's shooting and manhunt. Text "NEWS" to 77453 for breaking news alerts from mySA.com Caleb Downs is a crime reporter for mySA.com. Read more of his stories here.| cdowns@mysa.com | Twitter: @calebjdowns WASHINGTON - U.S. authorities issued an emergency order Monday requiring additional screening of cargo on flights departing for the United States from five Mideast countries, citing a threat of terrorism. The Transportation Security Administration order is aimed at preventing terrorist attacks in response to "persistent threats to aviation," TSA said in a statement. The countries falling under this order are Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and United Arab Emirates. The countries were chosen because of "demonstrated intent by terrorists groups to attack aviation from them," the statement said. TSA said most of the requirements of the emergency order are already being carried out voluntarily by airlines in some countries, but didn't identify the countries. Airlines that TSA said are affected by the order are EgyptAir, operating out of Cairo International Airport; Royal Jordanian, operating out of Queen Alia International Airport; Saudia, operating out of King Abdul-Aziz International Airport and King Khalid International Airport; Qatar Airways, operating out of Doha International Airport; and Emirates and Etihad, operating out of Dubai International Airport and Abu Dhabi International Airport. EgyptAir, however, previously stopped accepting cargo shipments on flights to the U.S. at the request of American authorities. Under the requirements of the order, airlines are supposed to provide certain information to U.S. customs officials on the shipments "at the earliest practical point" before loading the cargo. The shipment information is then compared to information the U.S. has on terror threats. A foiled plot last summer to smuggle a bomb aboard an Etihad plane bound from Australia to UAE is "an ominous reminder" that "we need to continue our efforts to keep our skies secure," the agency said. Abu Dhabi-based Etihad said in a statement that it was "fully compliant with all regulatory security requirements across its operations." Abu Dhabi International Airport already has a U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility that allows passengers to clear screening they'd otherwise have to go through when landing in America. That means passengers can walk right out of the airport on arrival. Dubai-based Emirates, Qatar Airways and Saudia didn't respond to requests for comment. AUSTIN -- Gov. Greg Abbott is weighing in on yet another intensely competitive GOP primary in the Houston area. This time Abbott on Tuesday declared his support for longtime GOP fundraiser Kathaleen Wall, who is running in a nine-person Republican primary for the 2nd Congressional District. "Kathaleen Wall has been a champion for the conservative cause for many years," Abbott said in a press release. "From fighting for the unborn, to working to secure our border, to helping the greater Houston area recover from Hurricane Harvey, I have complete trust in Kathaleen to get the job done in Washington." Abbott is no stranger to Wall and her husband Holloway Frost. Since 2010 the couple has combined to give Abbott over $745,000 for this Texas For Greg Abbott, the Republican governor's political action committee. Frost's last donation to Abbott was in July when he sent the governor's committee $100,000. Wall's last donation to Abbott was $10,000 on the day before U.S. Rep. Ted Poe announced he would not seek re-election. Wall and eight other Republicans are running in a March 6 primary to replace retiring U.S. Rep. Ted Poe, the Humble area Republican who announced last year he won't seek re-election. Besides Wall, the race also includes health care CEO David Balat, State Rep. Kevin Roberts, heart surgeon Jon Spiers, Navy veteran Dan Crenshaw, attorney Jonny Havens, investment banker Justin Lurie, attorney Malcolm Whittaker and businessman Rick Walker. Abbott's seal of approval is a big boost for Wall in a primary where none of the candidates have household name recognition. Roberts has touted an endorsement from longtime Harris County Judge Ed Emmett and Crenshaw has been highlighting one from astronaut Buzz Aldrin. Abbott's announcement comes just days after Poe took to social media to declare that he is not going to endorse any of the candidates running in the 2nd Congressional district, which runs from parts of west Houston to the northern edges of Harris County and wraps around to include Humble. Abbott, elected governor in 2014, has become a common figure in tough primaries in the Houston area. Earlier this month he endorsed state Sen. Joan Huffman, R-Houston, who is facing a spirited challenge from Missouri City Republican Kristin Tassin. And in Houston, Abbott has thrown his support behind Susanna Dokupil, a Republican challenging State Rep. Sarah Davis, R-Houston. Jeremy Wallace writes about state politics and government for the Chronicle. Follow him on Twitter at @JeremySWallace. AUSTIN More than three out of four dollars Justin Nelson raised to take on the state's top lawyer in the November general election came from himself and the lawyers he works with. Nelson raised money from more than 100 lawyers since announcing in November he would run as a Democrat for the job of Texas attorney general. More than 40 of those attorneys work for Susman Godfrey LLP, either in Houston where the firm was founded or from offices in New York, Seattle and Los Angeles. The first-time Democratic candidate raised a total of $946,703 -- including giving his campaign a $500,000 loan, collecting nearly $253,000 in campaign donations, amassing $159,000 in pledges to give at a later date and $35,000 in in-kind contributions. Of those promised and received dollars, nearly $230,000 came from colleagues at Susman Godfrey, a firm known for giving to Democratic candidates, including Hillary Clinton. Add in the $500,000 Nelson gave to his own campaign, and 77 percent of his contributions came from people who work at the practice. "It's painfully obvious from his finance report that Justin Nelson has outsourced his campaign to the Susman Godfrey Law Firm whose members have loaned, donated and pledged over $729,000," said Matt Welch, campaign spokesman for Nelson's opponent, Attorney General Ken Paxton. "Nelson will soon wake up to the reality that Texas political campaigns aren't won at law firm cocktail parties." Nelson, an Austin lawyer and underdog candidate, is running against Paxton, a first term Republican from Collin County and tea party darling who has focused on suing the Obama administration, fighting so-called sanctuary cities and defending pro-life causes. Paxton is fighting a trio of criminal charges in state court that include two first degree felony counts of securities fraud. The case has yet to go to trial, although Paxton maintains he is the victim of a political witch hunt by his own party and a judge tossed similar charges in federal civil court. As of Dec. 31, Nelson had $644,995 on-hand to use in his bid for election. Paxton had $5.7 million ready to use this election season, according to campaign reports. "Ken Paxton, who is indicted for defrauding his friends and clients, wants to continue discussing our latest fundraising numbers? Bring it on," said Nate Walker, Nelson's campaign manager. "We will have the resources to make sure everyone knows we need a new attorney general who will fight for the people of Texas and not the political class. Unlike Paxton, Justin's partners like him and believe in him and he hasn't defrauded them." Paxton raised $774,177 in the last six months of 2017. Nelson claims he raised more in the seven weeks he was allowed to fundraise, although the Democrat counted promised future donations and his personal loan to the campaign in his total. Paxton, has who had six months to raise money for this year's election, collected $774,177 in contributions. His biggest contributors gave $25,000 a piece and included JP Bryan, chairman of Torch Energy Advisors; Timothy Dunn, an oil and gas executive at CrownQuest Operating, LLC; David Haug, managing director at Arctas Capital Group; McAllen Anesthesia Consultants, P.A.; Lee Roy Mitchell, an executive at Cinemark USA; Kyle Stallings, an oil and gas investor; and John Thaler, who works in finance for JAT Capital in Connecticut. Nelson's largest political donations came from Joseph Samuel Patt, a financial adviser from 683 Capital Management in New York who gave $25,000; Max Tribble, business owner of MaxBowl and an attorney at Susman Godfrey in Houston gave $15,000; Susman Godfrey attorneys in Houston Neal Manne and James Soutwick gave $10,800 each. Andrea Zelinski covers state government and the attorney general's office for the Houston Chroncile. Follow her on Twitter and Facebook. Send her tips at andrea.zelinski@chron.com. The government shutdown is over. Democrats finally realized that closing the government over illegal immigration was a losing political battle. They created a needless crisis and got rolled. So who is to blame for their current predicament? Along with Charles Schumer and Nancy Pelosi, Democrats can put the blame squarely on the man who could have legalized the "dreamers" when he had the chance: Barack Obama. During his 2008 campaign, Obama promised in a conversation with Univision anchor Jorge Ramos to make passing immigration reform one of his first legislative priorities, and even set a timetable. "I cannot guarantee that it is going to be in the first 100 days," he said. "But what I can guarantee is that we will have in the first year an immigration bill that I strongly support and that I'm promoting. And I want to move thteat forward as quickly as possible." If he had wanted to act, he could have. Obama's party controlled the House, and Democrats had a 60-vote filibuster-proof majority. If Obama really wanted to pass either the Dream Act or comprehensive immigration reform, Republicans were powerless to stop him. But he didn't do it. In a 2012 interview, Ramos called Obama on it. "At the beginning of your governing, you had control of both chambers of Congress, and yet you did not introduce immigration reform. And before I continue, I want for you to acknowledge that you did not keep your promise." Obama objected that he had made his promise "before the economy was on the verge of collapse. . . . And so my first priority was making sure that we prevented us from going into a Great Depression." Ramos was having none of it. "It was a promise, Mr. President. . . . And a promise is a promise. And with all due respect, you didn't keep that promise." Obama's excuse was weak. In the midst of dealing with the economic crisis, he championed Obamacare and got other legislation passed. If passing immigration reform had been a real priority, he could have done it. And if he had, there would be no immigration impasse today. Of course, Obama was not alone in failing to act. Who was in charge of the issue on Capitol Hill? On the Senate side, none other than Schumer, D-N.Y. In 2009, Schumer succeededEdward Kennedy, D-Mass., as chairman of the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on immigration. In that role, the New York Times reported, "Mr. Schumer would take the point in pushing for passage of a new bill." But Schumer didn't push. Neither did Pelosi, D-Calif., who was speaker of the House at the time and had the power to bring immigration legislation to the floor at will. And Obama also did not push because, according to the Times, the president "does not intend to get out in front of any proposal until there is a strong bipartisan commitment to pass it." Funny, he did not wait for a "strong bipartisan commitment" before pushing Obamacare. But apparently immigration was not a priority. By the time Obama got around to immigration legislation, Republicans had retaken the House. After failing to act when he had the votes, in 2012 Obama announced he would implement Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, an unlawful executive action to effectively legalize the presence of illegal immigrants who had arrived in the United States as children. The Post's editorial board correctly called it an "unprecedented" move that "flies in the face of congressional intent," adding that "Republicans' failure to address immigration . . . does not justify Mr. Obama's massive unilateral act." Even "Saturday Night Live" skewered Obama's executive action. President Trump was right to reverse Obama's unconstitutional decision. He had no choice. He also said at the time he supported letting DACA recipients stay, set a deadline of March 5 for a legislative solution and added that he would be willing to give Congress even more time if necessary. "Congress now has 6 months to legalize DACA," Trump tweeted on Sept. 5. "If they can't, I will revisit the issue!" In other words, there was no crisis for DACA recipients. This was, as Obama said when Republicans shut down the government in 2013, a "manufactured crisis" - one that Obama helped manufacture with his broken immigration promises. For once, Democrats were the ones making unreasonable demands. And now Democrats will have to pay the political price. If they don't like it, they can only blame themselves and Obama. We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please click here to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, you may click here to disable notifications and hide this message. CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The city of Cleveland Heights has settled a wrongful-death lawsuit with the family of a woman who was found dead in a city's jail cell in June 2015, though details of the settlement have not been made public. The settlement was reached between the city and the family of Ralkina Jones. It was noted through an order issued Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Christopher Boyko, who is presiding over the case. The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office ruled her death accidental, though jail logs released to cleveland.com appeared to show that Jones, 37, may have been improperly medicated by jail staff during the two days she was held. Exactly how much the city agreed to pay was not immediately known. A Cuyahoga County Probate Court judge is presiding over a case dealing with Jones' affairs, but an accounting of the proposed settlement had not been filed as of Tuesday. Cleveland.com also asked the city of Cleveland Heights' law director for a copy of a settlement agreement. Assistant Law Director Elizabeth Wells Rothenberg said in an email that "there is currently no document setting forth the terms of the proposed settlement agreement." She did not respond to a follow-up email asking how much the city agreed to pay. Phone calls left for attorneys representing Jones' family were not returned. The lawsuit -- filed in July 2016 against the city and several employees -- initially listed claims against HealthSpan, which owned an urgent-care facility Jones was taken to when she fell ill while in custody. HealthSpan paid $10,000 to settle claims against the company and its employees, probate court records show. Jones was seen in body-camera footage discussing her various health concerns and emphasizing that she needed to take her prescriptions. Jailers gave her drugs while she was being held, but her family said staff did not properly document when they administered her medication. Jail logs released to cleveland.com in August appeared to show that Jones may have been improperly medicated, as different logs showed a different numbers of times that she was given medication. A professor who reviewed Jones' jail and medical logs at the request of cleveland.com said there was potential for adverse drug interactions. The Medical Examiner's Office said Jones died of sudden cardiac death in association with postural tachycardia syndrome and obesity with amphetamine therapy. Her autopsy showed that Jones had oxycodone, butalbital, alprazolam and zolpidem in her system. The lawsuit also noted the surveillance video from the jail contained gaps and that jail staff did not properly check on Jones for more than six hours after she returned from urgent care, even though city policy required them to do so every hour and even though Jones was asking for medical attention. Technical experts reviewed the jail's DVR system to determine why they were gaps in its recording. The city has since taken steps to upgrade its system and said it worked with the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction to implement new procedures for giving medication to prisoners. If you would like to comment on this story, please visit Tuesday's crime and courts comments section. CLEVELAND, Ohio - WWE is coming of its epic Raw 25th Anniversary show on Monday night. But it's not all positive news for the company. The New York Post reports WWE has suspended Cruiserweight Champion Enzo Amore after the star was accused of rape. Arizona police are investigating Amore, real name Eric Arndt, after a woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, accused the wrestler of rape on Twitter. According to the Post, the investigation is nearly complete with the police waiting for lab results to come in. Meanwhile, WWE issued a statement confirming Amore's suspension: "WWE has zero tolerance for matters involving sexual harassment or sexual assault. Until this matter is resolved, Eric Arndt (aka Enzo Amore) has been suspended." CLEVELAND, Ohio -- You're coughing, sniffling and sneezing and feeling lousy, but is it a cold, or the flu? It's important to know the difference, because the flu is much more serious than a cold, and lasts longer, explained Dr. Amy Edwards, associate medical director of Pediatric Infection Control at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital. Three flu-related deaths were reported in Cuyahoga County during the week of Jan. 7-13, bringing to five the total number of flu-related deaths this season. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention last week reported widespread flu activity across the country, with 10 pediatric flu-related deaths during this flu season so far. Getting a flu shot is the best way to protect yourself and others from getting a serious case of the flu. Here is Edwards' explanation of the difference between a cold and the flu. Q: What is a cold? A: A cold is a catch-all term for an upper respiratory infection caused by many different viruses, Edwards said. A cold's runny nose, cough, fever and sore throat lasts up to five or six days. "It's a fairly minor infection," she said. There's no cure for the common cold; antibiotics are not effective against cold viruses. Over-the-counter pain relievers, decongestant nasal sprays, cough syrups can be used to relieve symptoms, according to the Mayo Clinic website. Follow your pediatrician's guidelines when giving medicine to children. Q: What is influenza, and how does it differ from a cold? A: Influenza is also caused by viruses, but this illness attacks the lower respiratory system, including the lungs. It makes sick people feel worse, and for longer, causing a high fever, body aches, tiredness, loss of appetite, cough and trouble breathing for up to two weeks, Edwards said. Flu can turn into serious complications, including pneumonia and inflammation of the brain and heart. A bad cold can turn into a sinus or ear infection. Antibiotics can't be used to treat flu viruses; just stay in bed and drink fluids. You can get an antiviral medicine, such as Tamiflu, from your doctor if your illness is diagnosed within 48 hours of the onset of symptoms, according to the Mayo Clinic. Tamiflu may shorten the time you're sick and help prevent serious complications. Reader comments on a previous flu story on Cleveland.com brought up concerns about influenza and the flu vaccine. Here are the questions and Edwards' answers: Q: Aren't most "flu-related deaths" actually deaths from pneumonia? A: Death caused by a complication from flu is considered a flu-related death. Pneumonia is often listed as the cause of a flu-related death, because influenza irritates the lungs and leaves them susceptible to pneumonia. "They got pneumonia because they had influenza," Edwards said. The same is true of encephalitis. Public health records list a primary and secondary causes of death. If pneumonia or encephalitis is the primary cause of death, influenza is the secondary cause of death. Since public health organizations don't track pneumonia deaths because that illness is not contagious, the deaths are attributed to influenza. Q: Why don't we ever hear whether people who died from flu had gotten the flu vaccine? Is it because that data would show that the vaccine doesn't prevent flu deaths? A: The government can't track everything, and the names of people who get flu shots are not compiled. "It's not a part of the reporting practice because it's something the government doesn't track," Edwards said. When someone lands in the hospital with serious influenza, determining if the person got the flu vaccine is not a priority. The attending doctor may not know, and privacy laws keep detailed health records from being made public. It is true that you can get the flu shot and still die from flu. "That can 100 percent happen," she said. "It is less likely, but it still happens." The flu shot is recommended for everyone over 6 months old. It will offer some protection through the rest of the flu season, which ends in the spring, typically May. You can get a flu shot at many drugstores, retail stores, the Cuyahoga County Board of Health and doctors' offices. The cost is $10 and up, depending on insurance. Click here to find a place near you that's offering the flu shot. Call the Cleveland Department of Public Health flu hotline at (216) 664-4621 to find out about the department's flu vaccination schedule. Q: Do doctors promote the flu vaccine in order to make money? A: You're free to get a flu shot anywhere that's convenient, such as the Cuyahoga County Board of Health and pharmacies. Those vaccination fees are not going to your primary care doctor. When a doctor provides any vaccine, the insurance reimbursement is so low that the doctor makes little to no profit on the procedure. But, this varies by insurance company, Edwards said. Q: Doctors would never recommend a drug that was less than 100 percent effective, so why do they recommend a flu vaccine that isn't 100 percent effective? A: Actually, lots of drugs are not 100 percent effective. Many people have had the experience of taking a prescription drug that didn't work for them. Even though the flu vaccine is not completely effective, it's the best protection we've got, Edwards said. Q: What about the toxic chemicals in the flu vaccine, such as mercury? A: This worry concerns thimerosal, which is a non-toxic form of mercury that prevents germs from contaminating vaccines. Thimerosal used in vaccines and other medical products has a record of being very safe, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Studies have shown no evidence of harm caused by the low doses of thimerosal in vaccines. While thimerosal is safe, public concerns about it prompted the makers of flu vaccines to remove thimerosal several years ago in single-use flu vaccine vials. These are the vials that are widely used. Thimerosal is still used as a preservative in multi-use vials of flu vaccine. Multi-use means that multiple needles are inserted into one vial to give injections to several people, which keeps costs lower. Multi-use vials aren't often used in this country; ask your flu vaccine provider if you are concerned. Here is a Snopes.com article about fallacies concerning the flu vaccine. Do you have other questions about flu and the flu vaccine? Leave them in the comments and we will try to answer them in a future story. Andre Moore LORAIN, Ohio - A MetroHealth doctor called the severe burns and other injuries a 2-year-old boy suffered before he died a "textbook case of a child that had been abused," a detective said Monday in court. The doctor who examined Brandon Williams before he died Nov. 22 said the boy had second-degree burns on approximately 45 percent of his body. The boy also had bruises on his face and thigh and a fractured rib that had been healing for two to three months, Lorain Detective Tabitha Angello said in Lorain Municipal Court. The information was revealed during preliminary hearings for Andre Moore, who is charged with aggravated murder and child endangering in the boy's death, and Brandon's mother Samone Boykins, who is charged with child endangering. Judge Mark Mihok ended the hearing by binding both cases over to a Lorain County grand jury. Moore, 30, remains in custody on $1 million bond. Boykins, 30, had her bond reduced to $50,000 from $100,000. Investigators said Moore put the boy in a bath of scalding water Nov. 17 which caused burns on the lower part of his body. Brandon died Nov. 22 at MetroHealth's burn unit. Moore called 911 on Nov. 17 to report that Brandon was burned at a home on Concord Avenue near Clark Street, police said. Moore later told investigators he put the boy in the bathtub and left the room, then returned to find him burned, Angello said Monday in court. Boykins was at work when her son was hurt, Angello said. Moore was babysitting the boy. Samone Boykins Boykins' other two children later told investigators that Moore had abused the boy in the past by punching him and grabbing his neck, Angello said. The other children also detailed an instance where Moore held one of Brandon's feet while dangling him upside-down, Angello said. The other children told investigators that Boykins scolded Moore for his prior behavior, but Boykins denied any knowledge of her son's previous injuries when she spoke to detectives, Angello said. Defense attorney Richard McClure said no one witnessed Moore give the boy a bath, and argued the boy could have burned himself by climbing into the hot water. Boykins' defense attorney, Kenneth Ortner, argued the mother was not home at the time and had no knowledge of the incident until her son was taken to the hospital. To comment on this story, visit Monday's crime and courts comments page. LAKEWOOD, Ohio -- The Lakewood school board will vote Feb. 5 on a proposed contract to sell two properties to Liberty Development Corp. Under the proposed contract, Liberty would buy the two buildings, located at 1456 and 1470 Warren Road, for $500,000. The business plans to complete $8 million in renovations. After those are completed, the district would have the option to lease office space in the renovated building. "The proposed contract allows us to remain in downtown Lakewood in renovated office space without going to voters for funding," Superintendent Jeff Patterson said in a press release Tuesday. Board employees would have to leave 1456 Warren by June of 2018, but would be able to stay in the other building until August of 2019 under a lease agreement. Space for board administrative offices would be cut from 30,000 square feet to 10,000 square feet, saving operating costs, Patterson noted in the release. Liberty Development Co. also bought the site of McKinley Elementary School in 2013. Construction began on a group of town homes, McKinley Place, in 2016. The project is now in its final phase. The contract also lays out plans to preserve the facade of East Rockport Central School building at 1456 Warren and the safety and security of Grant Elementary School. No plans are set as of yet for the space at 1470 Warren. The Ohio Division of Forestry stirred up a flurry of protest last summer after it announced plans to log 20 to 40 acres of pine trees per year for the next 20 years in the Mohican-Memorial State Forest, about 80 miles south of Cleveland near Mansfield. Now, a plan that critics say would remove protection from an additional 1,700 acres of state forest hardwood is renewing the logging controversy, raising concern from tourists and conservationists. Without formal announcement, state foresters posted a draft proposal, "Restoring Native Hardwoods Initiative," on the Division of Forestry website in August. The draft proposes changing the designation for thousands of acres in the southern half of the forest that previously had been shielded by "future old growth" status, known as High Conservation Value Forest. The 1,100-acre Mohican State Park, located within the forest along the Clear Fork branch of the Mohican River, is not affected by this plan. The change was made in such a way that it "would not be readily apparent to laypersons," said Nathan Johnson, director of Public Lands for the Ohio Environmental Council. "It's a decision that came without any explanation, and which is flying under the radar." 'Some places ... just too special to log' Twenty years ago, Mohican was awarded what Johnson calls the "Gold Standard" of protection from logging. Now that the Division of Forestry has expressed its intention to remove that imprimatur, he's dismayed. "Some places in the state forest system are just too special to log," Johnson said. "These places should be preserved for the recovery of old growth and for the enjoyment of future generations. Mohican is one of these places." Forest manager Chad Sanders acknowledged the changes last week, but said they were designed to improve the diversity of a forest that's out-of-balance, not to cut it down. He said the changes in the proposed plan were made "to honor the intent" of the forest advisory council that established the protection of 4,000 acres in 1998. A final plan "is forthcoming," he said. "It would not be accurate to say that we are removing protection of old growth and thereby opening these areas up to logging, or that these areas are no longer protected," Sanders said. Commercial logging has been banned from the forest since 1998. Mohican advocates such as Cheryl Harner and Annette McCormick say they would consider it a "travesty" if that ban was lifted. "Tourism is an important part of Mohican," Harner said. "Campers, bikers, canoeists, birders, hikers all enjoy this quiet place where they can engage with nature. But it's difficult to enjoy yourself when you're listening to chainsaws." McCormick lives near the Malabar Farm State Park, located a short distance from the Mohican forest. She served on the forest council that established the protection in 1998, and has old growth white pines on her property. "All of Mohican should be considered an aesthetic area," McCormick said. "Old growth habitat is something that is desperately needed by wildlife and cherished by visitors. They don't come here to see stumps." McCormick said she and her neighbors were unaware such a change of plans was even being considered. "They only shared their plans with their logging supporters, not the rest of us. We thought it was all safe." Sanders challenged that statement, explaining that the Division of Forestry's plans were shared with environmental groups such as The Nature Conservancy, The Ohio Environmental Council, and the Sierra Club, as well as with The Ohio Forestry Association and the National Wild Turkey Federation over a 77-day public comment period. "While some may have felt excluded, we did do our homework and due diligence," Sanders said. "Anyone with questions and concerns had more than enough time to review and ask questions. There were no secrets." Attorney and conservationist Eric Miller shares McCormick's concerns, but for now considers Mohican's hardwoods to be "reasonably well protected." "But the real problem is that the Division of Forestry has the right, under the law, to come up with a new plan whenever they wish, and to even clear-cut the entire forest if they want to. That's something we have to change." Hardwoods would replace white pines At the core of the logging debate is a Division of Forestry plan unveiled last year to log, and eventually remove, white pines from 1,800 acres of Mohican. The so-called pine plantations were planted by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression to conserve soil from eroding farmland. Sanders said he hopes deciduous hardwood trees with more ecological value, such as oak, hickory, maple, and beech, would gradually replace the newly opened acreage. "It was purely a forest composition decision," Sanders said. "It was a way to better promote more hardwood." The pine plantations comprise an unnatural, man-made monoculture with little plant diversity, scant understory and limited ecological value for wildlife, he said. The logging work will be bid out to timber companies; the state will distribute 65 percent of the revenue back to Ashland County, Hanover Township and the Loudonville/Perrysville Local School District, he said. Eventually, as hardwoods replace the conifers, forest birds such as cerulean, blue-winged and Kentucky warblers will benefit, and one day ruffed grouse could return to the forest, he said. "We have similar goals of providing habitat" as the critics of the plan, Sanders said. "We just disagree on how we get there." He added: "All of these issues should not distract from the fact that the Division of Forestry's initiative will improve the forest and restore native hardwoods." OEC's Johnson calls the pine harvest "overall, a good project," and considers himself one of the Division of Forestry's biggest boosters. Annette McCormick also does not oppose thinning the pines, but fears the state will one day seek to log the hardwood trees. Steve McKee, the retired director of the Richland County Park District, worked as an adviser to Sanders on the proposed changes to the Mohican forest map and the pine harvest program. He said he recommended additional protections to sensitive sections of the forest that Sanders agreed to implement. "That gave me great relief," McKee said. "I trust Chad. If they do what they say they're going to do I'll be able to die peacefully." McKee called his work on behalf of Mohican, "One of the most significant things I've ever done." But he acknowledged an underlying fear that the Division of Forestry will someday change its plans again. "In 20 years there will be a whole new regime in Columbus. You never know if this opens the door for something else. I'm holding my breath and hoping it works out." CLEVELAND, Ohio - Two months after Ohio State University suspended fraternity organization activities, nearly all of the fraternities have regained the right to recruit new members. Ohio State suspended all social, recruitment and new member activities on Nov. 16 after 11 chapters were placed under investigation for violations of the Code of Student Conduct. The Office of Student Life Sorority and Fraternity Life required all 36 chapters to draft and submit a detailed plan for conducting all social, recruiting and new member events and a timeline of planned activities for each area. Each plan had to be approved by the university, alumni advisors and the inter/national organization. Thus far, 31 chapters have been approved to recruit, 19 can begin new-member activities and 10 can hold social events, according to a status update that is posted online by the university. Chapters are approved for social events only after approval is given for recruitment and new-member activities. "Overall, I am certainly hopeful that each chapter will be back to full reinstatement within the next couple of weeks," Interfraternity Council President Drew Cooper told the student newspaper The Lantern. Dave Isaacs, spokesman for the Office of Student Life, told The Lantern that the goal is to change the community structure. Ohio State took the action and set up the reinstatement requirements to give fraternities time to meet them by spring semester, when the majority of sorority and fraternity recruitment occurs. While fraternity activities are resuming at Ohio State, Greek life is under increased scrutiny at other universities, especially those that have had deaths from hazing. COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Supporters of "right to work" legislation are taking a different route to enact changes critics say would unnecessarily weaken unions in Ohio. Ohio Republicans have shied away from advancing right to work bills after voters overwhelmingly voted in 2011 to repeal the controversial law Senate Bill 5, which would have limited collective bargaining among public sector employee unions. Instead of a state law, a pair of Republican legislators want to put right to work language and other union-related provisions in the state constitution -- if Ohio voters approve. Reps. John Becker and Craig Riedel have proposed a package of six separate constitutional amendments that would limit how unions are funded, ban project labor agreements where the state or cities require union labor for construction projects and eliminate prevailing wage, which sets a floor wage for skilled labor on publicly funded projects. Riedel said a lot of Ohioans felt Senate Bill 5 was rammed down their throats, and he and Becker are taking a totally different approach. "We're not legislating any bills here," Riedel, a Defiance Republican, said in a Tuesday news conference. "We're bringing this to the ballot and we want the citizens of Ohio to vote on this so once and for all, we'll get this settled." When would it be on the ballot? Becker and Riedel want to see the proposals on the November 2020 ballot because turnout is higher in presidential election years. Riedel said it will take time to educate voters about the issues, and they want as many Ohioans as possible to weigh in. Becker said there is some concern that the issues could drive Democrats to the polls and thus boost a Democratic presidential candidate. But he said the issues could also increase turnout among Republicans who might not otherwise vote. What are they proposing? Employees already cannot be required to join unions. But state law allows collective bargaining agreements to require "fair share" or agency fees. The fees are lower than union member dues payments and cannot be used for services beyond contract negotiations. Twenty-eight states have passed "right to work" laws banning mandatory union membership or fair share dues, including neighboring Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky and West Virginia. Their proposed constitutional amendments: Private-sector right-to-work: Eliminates requirement employees pay fair share dues. Employees would have to opt in to pay dues. Public-sector right-to-work: Eliminates fair share dues for public sector unions. Prevailing wage: Repeals Ohio's prevailing wage law, which sets a minimum hourly wages and benefits for skilled workers on certain projects. A standalone bill on this issue has not advanced in the Ohio Senate. Dues withholding: Prohibits state and local government employers from withholding union dues or fees from workers' wages. Unions could not spend dues on political activities without workers' consent. Project Labor Agreements: Bans state and local government entities from requiring project bidders or contractors to enter into project labor agreements, which are pre-hire agreements that set timelines for project completion and methods for resolving disputes, among other terms. A standalone bill was introduced during the last legislative session but did not pass. Union recertification: Requires annual "recertification" where workers vote to renew public collective bargaining units. Becker said unions won't have to represent employees who opt not to pay union dues or fees under his proposal. But critics say that provision runs afoul of federal labor law requiring unions to represent all employees. Becker said it's not clear whether the language would be illegal, and he's willing to fix it. What do opponents say? Becker tried during a Tuesday news conference to distance his proposals from Senate Bill 5, but the group behind 2011's successful referendum effort promptly issued a statement condemning the effort. "Reps. Riedel and Becker are carrying water for out-of-state interests like the Koch brothers and the American Legislative Exchange Council," Dennis Willard, spokesman for We Are Ohio, said in a statement. "There are no workers lining up behind these dangerous, divisive and disastrous ideas for Ohioans. Right to Work is wrong for Ohio. Don't trust it." House Minority Leader Fred Strahorn said the legislature should be focused on creating good-paying jobs instead of establishing restrictions that will lead to lower wages and lower safety standards. "The Republican package of so-called 'right to work' legislation is wrong for working families and wrong for Ohio," Strahorn, a Dayton Democrat, said in a statement. Union membership in Ohio and nationwide has declined in recent decades. About 14 percent of Ohio workers belong to a union or are represented by one, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Do the amendments have a chance? The proposals need to pass with a three-fifths majority of each chamber voting yes. Republicans hold such a majority, but legislative leaders from both parties have questioned the need for right-to-work legislation. Gov. John Kasich has said right-to-work isn't necessary to bring jobs to the state and that it's not on his agenda. CLEVELAND, Ohio - ECOT founder William Lager and two companies he owns have paid more than $5 million back toward the $80 million enrollment and state aid fight the online charter school is having with the state. But Lager's companies still owe at least another $10 million - money that would keep the just-closed Electronic Classroom of Tomorrow (ECOT) solvent through the school year, if paid back immediately, according to State Auditor Dave Yost. "They don't even need all of it to be able to float to the end of the year," said Yost, who reviewed ECOT's finances last week for Franklin County Common Pleas Court. Yost said that if Lager's companies were repaying money faster, other state officials might have eased the pressure on the school and averted a vote to close it last week. "It would have been a different calculation," Yost told The Plain Dealer today. Repaying money faster, though, is a sticky point, since Lager and the school are disputing that bill in court. And there has been a flurry of activity, appeals and offers surrounding the school since last week. The major ones: - ECOT proposed last week its own timetable and plan to repay money - a plan which was just made public today - to avoid bankruptcy. ECOT, which says it can't afford fast repayments to the state, proposed a longer payment plan and changes to its payments to both of Lager's companies. - Then, today, ECOT made a new offer: Cutting any payments to Lager's companies for the rest of this year, so that the school can re-open. Exact details of that new proposal are not yet available. - Meanwhile, the school, the state and ECOT's sponsor and oversight agency are working out details in Franklin County Common Pleas Court to have the court oversee the school's finances as it winds down operations - or revives. See Yost's letter to the court and his calculations below, along with more details about ECOT's proposal last week. The battle between the 12,00-student online charter school and the state is a complicated mess - one the state Supreme Court is still sorting out. It centers on more than $100 million a year in state funding paid to ECOT in recent years for students the state found were barely participating in classes. The state is trying to to recover $60 million of what it considers overpayments for the 2015-16 school year and another $20 million for the 2016-17 school year. But the state's two-year repayment plan isn't feasible, the school maintains, and would bankrupt the school by March. Its sponsor and oversight agency shut ECOT down last week to avoid having to close the school mid-term. In a letter to Franklin County Common Pleas Court last week, Yost said ECOT has paid about $26 million back to the state toward its bill of $80 million or more. Yost also estimated that two companies ownded by Lager - Altair Management, which runs operations of the school, and IQ Innovations, which provides the online program and curriculum - owe about $16 million as their share of ECOT's $80 million bill. Here's how that works: Those companies are paid a percentage of ECOT's revenue - Altair four percent and IQ 16 percent. Because school revenue comes from per-student aid from the state, inflated enrollment leads to inflated payments to ECOT and, in turn, to those companies. Yost calculated the companies' share using the percentage of revenue they were paid. ECOT put both of those companies on a two-year repayment plan last summer, just as the state set for the school, and has been deducting payments to each company every month. IQ has paid back about $4.1 million, Yost's calculations show, and Altair just over $1 million. The two still owe about $10.7 million. With ECOT projecting deficits of $5 to $8 million in June, immediate repayment from IQ and Altair would keep the school open, Yost confirmed today. "ECOT could have pressed Altair and IQ to advance their payments rather than just doing their payments on the same schedule ECOT was," Yost said. Though he does not know what cash reserves those companies have, Yost said they have been paid millions over several years and should have resources. ECOT, though, gave the state a different proposal last week - one Yost believes would have had more support at the Ohio Department of Education if Altair and IQ were paying back more. - The state would cut repayments charged to ECOT from about $4 million per month to $1.9 million. - Altair would manage the school for free for five years - Payments to IQ would shift from 16 percent of revenue each year - about $13.8 million with ECOT's current enrollment of 12,000 students - to a flat fee of $675,000 per month. That amounts to $8.1 million a year - a reduction of $5.7 million. That's also about what IQ would end up with each year after state repayments anyway. A flat fee would also insulate IQ against a collapse in fees if enrollment falls. As we reported last week, Ohio Department of Education lawyer Diane Lease rejected that offer, saying in an email to the school that it "does not address ECOT's ability to maintain a standard for its educational services during its continued period of operations and is inconsistent with statements that ECOT has made elsewhere regarding its ability to continue operating, even through the end of the school year." ECOT Superintendent Brittny Pierson wrote back that she was "confused" by that reply, asking what "standard" Lease referred to and what previous statements posed a conflict. Lease responded this morning, telling Pierson: ECOT has represented in the past that monthly reductions of the amount that ECOT now proposes would have significant and immediate consequences for ECOT's ability to continue providing services to its students. Yet, now ECOT proposes those monthly reductions, but fails to address the operational issues that ECOT claimed those reductions would entail. In light of that, the Department is concerned that ECOT's students, rather than for example ECOT's vendors, would bear the brunt of the funding reduction. In response to your second question, in previous communications, ECOT has indicated that monthly reductions of the size ECOT now proposes are not sustainable, and that ECOT would not remain a viable entity, even in the short term. Moreover, the offer that ECOT sent, on the one hand seems to suggest that ECOT would close at the end of the academic year, but on the other hand talks about suspending payments to Altair for five years, suggesting that ECOT would remain in operation for that time (as otherwise what would it mean that ECOT is suspending payment for five years?). In short, given ECOT's various prior statements and the ambiguous language of ECOT's most recent offer, the Department is unclear as to when or if ECOT would be closing under this proposal. ECOT's latest proposal - coming in an appeal to its sponsor, the Educational Service Center of Lake Erie West - would let the state continue recovering $4 million per month. "As part of its latest appeal, ECOT founder, Bill Lager, has agreed to suspend all management and learning platform fees through June in an effort to keep ECOT open for the students and staff," a press release from the school states. "Additionally, as part of the appeal, ECOT would still agree to the appointment of an interim master by the court to have oversight of the school through the end of the school year." The release does not list the amount of money that would save the school over the rest of the year. Yost was also unclear if "learning platform fees" includes all money going to IQ. "Depending on what that actually means, it could be significant." Yost said. SOLON, Ohio -- For 14 years, this Cleveland suburb allowed people accused of traffic offenses and misdemeanors to plead guilty and pay fines at a so-called violations bureau that the city had failed to register with the Ohio Supreme Court. The oversight was detected last week by cleveland.com while reporting on why mayor's courts and violations bureaus in Ohio have bad reputations among advocates for good government. It's unclear what, if any penalties, the city might face for having failed to register the bureau. Mayor Eddy Kraus and Law Director Thomas Lobe, who inherited the bureau when they took office, said they arranged last week for the city to begin complying with the registration requirement. "We've already put in place the mechanism to start reporting," Kraus said. Kraus and Lobe said they don't think the city's lack of compliance will create a problem. Solon Prosecutor Lon Stolarsky spoke with less confidence. said, "I hope not," he said. "Obviously it's not a good situation." Ed Miller, spokesman for the Ohio Supreme Court, said he could not comment on Solon's situation because it would require a legal opinion on something that has not come before the Ohio Supreme Court. Ohio law allows cities and villages to operate mayor's courts, some of which are nothing more than pay windows - as is the case in Solon -- where fines and fees can be paid without having to make a personal appearance in either a mayor's court or a municipal court. More than 30 cities and villages in Cuyahoga County have mayor's courts. Twenty-four of them are of the full-service variety, where a mayor or magistrate will hear traffic cases and misdemeanors that aren't settled through the violations bureau. The other eight only operate violations bureaus, which are also referred to as waiver bureaus. Gates Mills and Solon are two of the eight, but unlike the other cities, they are not listed in the Ohio Supreme Court's 2016 summary of mayor's courts. Gates Mills has an excuse. It just began operating its violations bureau in 2017. Gates Mills Police Chief Greg Minichello said the village registered with the Ohio Supreme Court to have a mayor's court, although its intention is to only operate a violations bureau. One of the requirements is to send caseload information to the Supreme Court on a quarterly basis. Solon is another story. It has had a violations bureau for decades. But the suburb failed to comply with a 2004 law that requires cities with mayor's courts to report information to the Ohio Supreme Court on an annual basis. Robert Paulson, who served as Solon mayor from 1987 to 1997, recalls being brought a collection of tickets each day by a violations clerk and told to decide which ones could be paid at the Solon waiver window in City Hall and which had to go on to Bedford Municipal Court. For the most part, Paulson said, he would allow minor first offenses to be waived, and would send the rest to Bedford Municipal Court. Paulson said the city built a new police station in 1997, and the waiver function was transferred that same year from City Hall to the Police Department. Stolarsky said the Solon violations bureau operates much differently. A list of offenses that can be paid at the waiver bureau is posted, along with the fees. The amounts charged by the Solon violations bureau are less than if the waiver were to be paid through Bedford Municipal Court. CLEVELAND, Ohio - Cuyahoga County's Juvenile Justice Center, populated by youths accused of violent offenses such as murder, carjackings and armed robbery, is out of control, officials say. A Jan. 8 riot that authorities said was led by six teens, including one accused of killing a 12-year-old, has led to renewed calls to have the Cuyahoga County Sheriff's Department assume management of the facility, which is currently run by juvenile court judges. The youths, one 14 and the rest 15, used tables and other broken pieces of furniture to wreak havoc in a housing unit, authorities said. They caused an estimated $200,000 in damage. They were charged with aggravated rioting, inciting violence, disorderly conduct and vandalism. Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O'Malley said he is concerned that the detention center, which historically focused on rehabilitating young offenders rather than punishing them, has a high concentration of inmates charged with serious crimes. One of the inmates involved in the fight is accused in the killing of a 12-year-old boy outside his father's beauty-supply store, and five others are charged with armed robbery, officials said. The detention center can house 180 inmates, but staff can only oversee about 120. There are typically about 150 to 160 inmates being held in the detention center, either awaiting an initial appearance in front of a judge or waiting out the conclusion of their criminal case. High overtime costs have been a long-term issue. Juvenile Court Administrative Judge Kristin Sweeney, in an October budget hearing, expressed concerns about the safety and security of the detention center. "We continue to have problems in there, and while we continue to work to address those problems, while those problems are being fixed, our overtime budget is higher than we want to be," she said. Four former inmates in the detention filed a lawsuit last fall claiming jail guards forced them into "bloody and brutal brawls" as part of a long-standing tradition called "fight night." County Council member Michael Gallagher Gallagher said after the Jan. 8 riot that he planned to meet with Sweeney, Sheriff Clifford Pinkney and O'Malley to discuss the best ways to reform the detention center. Gallagher spearheaded an unsuccessful initiative in 2014 to allow the sheriff to take over the detention center. Should there be a stronger security presence at the juvenile justice center and in the housing pods? Have those who currently oversee the facility been unable to maintain control? Let us know in this moderated conversation today from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Comments on this topic will be reviewed by a moderator before they are published. In our Talk it Out pre-curated conversation, comments are published after they are reviewed -- promptly -- to ensure they adhere to our community rules, which prohibit indecent, hateful, abusive or harassing comments, personal attacks, vulgar nicknames, personal information including telephone numbers and addresses, email addresses belonging to others, anything inciting criminal behavior and copyrighted material for which you do not own the rights. KALAMAZOO, Michigan -- A Polish-born doctor who has been in the U.S. for 40 years has been taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents in connection with two misdemeanors from when he was a teenager, reports say. Now family members of Lukasz Niec, 43, say he could face deportation, even though he's been in the U.S. since he was 5 years old. He was arrested on Jan. 16 at his home near Kalamazoo, CNN reports. He has been held in the Calhoun County Jail since his arrest, mlive.com reports. He is awaiting a bond hearing and possible deportation, the Washington Post reports. Niec is a physician specializing in internal medicine at Bronson Healthcare Group in Kalamazoo, the Post reports. "He doesn't even speak Polish," said his sister, Iwona Niec-Villaire, according to CNN. "He doesn't know anyone, he wouldn't know where to go." Niec arrived in the U.S. in 1979 with his parents and sister. He received a temporary green card then became a lawful permanent resident in 1989. When he was 17 years old, Niec was charged with two misdemeanors, USA Today reports. In January 1992, he was charged with malicious destruction of property under $100. A few months later, he was charged with receiving and concealing stolen property over $100. According to the Post, federal officials say in a "notice to appear" that Niec was convicted of two crimes involving "moral turpitude" and is subject to removal under the Immigration and Nationality Act. "It's shocking," Niec-Villaire, his sister, tells the Post. "No one can really understand what happened here." But mlive.com reports Niec has had more recent legal troubles. In 2008, he pleaded guilty to operating impaired by liquor offense in Kalamazoo County. As part of a plea agreement, the conviction was set aside and the case dismissed after he completed probation. In 2013, he was charged with domestic violence but a jury found him not guilty after a trial, mlive.com reports. Immigration lawyer Charles Kuck tells CNN that Kiec's situation shows that permanent U.S. residents with a criminal record still can be deported, no matter how minor or old convictions might be, unless they're a naturalized citizen. "(Niec) is a microcosm of what's happening all over the country but doesn't get publicity until it happens to a white guy from Europe living in the suburbs," Kuck tells CNN. Reports say ICE has not responded to media organizations seeking comment. Meanwhile, Niec-Villaire says her brother would be lost in Poland. "He cannot go back to Poland, a country he doesn't know, he has no family at, both our parents passed away in the United States, he doesn't know anyone, he wouldn't know where to go," Niec-Villaire said, according to USA Today. ATLANTA, Georgia -- A Michigan man, reportedly upset over "fake news," is accused of calling CNN's headquarters in Atlanta several times and threatening to kill employees. A federal affidavit shows Brandon Griesemer, who is from Novi, Michigan, a Detroit suburb, made 22 calls to CNN Jan. 9-10, CNN reports. Four of the calls, which CNN says were recorded, included threats against the network's employees. According to WGCL Channel 46, the affidavit says Griesemer told a CNN operator: "Fake news. I'm coming to gun you all down." In another call, he said: "I'm smarter than you. More powerful than you. I have more guns than you. More manpower. Your cast is about to get gunned down in a matter of hours. ... I am coming to Georgia right now to go to the CNN headquarters to f---ing gun every single last one of you." CNN reports Griesemer also made disparaging remarks about Jews and African-Americans. In September, he reportedly called an Islamic center in Ann Arbor, Mich., and made derogatory comments about Muslims and the mosque. He was released on a $10,000 bond after being charged in federal court last week with transmitting interstate communications with the intent to extort and threat to injure. If convicted, he could be sentenced to up to five years in prison. To comment on this story, visit Monday's crime and courts comments page. CLEVELAND, Ohio - As a brash fighter pilot forced out of the sky by an unexpected pregnancy in George Brant's "Grounded," Anjanette Hall is woman consumed by the gray. The warrior who once flew missions dropping bombs on Saddam's army has been relegated to "the Chair Force." She now fights from a Naugahyde Barcalounger, operating a UAV (unmanned aviation vehicle, popularly called a drone) in an air-conditioned trailer outside Las Vegas. Gray, we learn, in Hall's riveting, white-knuckle performance at Dobama Theatre, is the color of everything she sees as she gazes into a video game screen, hunting for "military-aged males." She knows it's hardly a fair fight. She hovers over her prey in a county she never names, though it's most likely Afghanistan or Pakistan, fixing them with her "Gorgon's Stare" before unleashing her deadly arsenal and watching everything go "boom" from thousands of miles away. When war is "shift work," her million-dollar training used to control a joystick, "the threat of death," she says, "has been removed." But the perks of modern warfare, which allow her to incinerate "the guilty," then still make it home in time for dinner with her husband and to kiss daughter good night, is no boon. It's breaking her down - minute by minute, 12 hours a day, 7 days a week - the same way she once reduced minarets to sand. None of her evasive maneuvers is working. The gray begins to seep into her civilian life, even into the sleeping body of daughter, Sam, a toddler with a love of ponies. The Pilot imagines that she and Sam are being watched from above at the mall, just as she tracks the movements of a target known as "the Prophet." Ending him becomes her obsession, but it will also lead to her tragic fall. As the grounded flier, Hall speaks directly to us - we are her only confidants. (The flyboys with whom she used to decompress at a Pilot bar are now on different shifts.) As she narrates her own mental collapse, it steadily gains speed, like a jet before takeoff. The Western theatrical canon has trained us, with few exceptions, that such great roles belong to men. We expect grand breakdowns and epic soliloquies out of the mouths of Hamlet and Lear, but never Ophelia. (One of those glorious exceptions: Tennessee Williams' Blanche DuBois.) "Grounded" has been produced more than 100 times and in 17 countries since its world premiere in 2013. Brant, who lives in Cleveland Heights, has created a modern character that a 30-something actor can dive into. Hall wastes no time pushing the throttle forward. Anjanette Hall in George Brant's "Grounded." In addition to the Dobama Theatre production, Brant has two other plays on the boards this month: "Marie and Rosetta," opening at Cleveland Play House Jan. 26, and the world premiere of "Into the Breeches!" at Providence, Rhode Island's Trinity Repertory Company Jan. 31. When she greets us, she's all swagger, so comfortable as one of the guys that you're a little surprised when she doesn't adjust her package or spit a wad of chaw. Her eyes sparkle with a mixture of lust and pride as she tries to explain the feeling of slicing through the blue in Tiger, her F-16. She's sexy and aggressive and a killer. She knows who she is, knows her place in the world. Then, as the clock-punch combat begins eroding her confidence and pride, you can almost see her soul droop. At times, she loses her balance and almost falls, as though her very center of gravity has been compromised. This is the third production I've seen, and each has been captivating and provocative in its own way. Julie Taymor's kinetic, high-octane take with Anne Hathaway at New York's Public Theater in 2015 never stopped moving, its scenic design - endless projections, the stage floor turned to sand-swept desert - reflecting the sensory overload in the Pilot's head. In the Page 73 production at the Cleveland Play House New Ground Theatre Festival in 2014, Drama Desk Award nominee Hannah Cabell arrived on a Spartan set in an Air Force flight suit, ushered in by a blast of AC/DC's "Back in Black," then rooted her feet and didn't move for nearly an hour. That spare, bare-bones treatment relied on the transporting language of Brant's propulsive script and a tour de force performance by Cabell. Hall matches her here, assisted by director Alice Reagan, who plants her flag between those opposing poles, making space for both legitimate movement and powerful stillness. Tesia Dugan Benson's artful and utilitarian production design is dominated by a swooping "X" that evokes both a runway and a bullseye, backed by a corrugated metal silhouette of a mountainous landscape that doubles for a Nevada desert and one in South Asia. And then there is the sky. At the start, it's the Pilot's brilliant, welcoming blue. As her psyche erodes, it too goes putty gray. There are many lessons in "Grounded" - not the least of which is how "bloodless" combat opens the door to endless war. But the lesson this production teaches is how much Hall deserves such a part. The versatile actress can deliver classics (Nora in "A Doll's House") and break our hearts in contemporary work (as Aimee, a doomed, sometime prostitute in Connor McPherson's "The Night Alive"). But she has never been given the wide-open sky in which to soar that Brant's play offers. Boom. REVIEW Grounded What: Dobama Theatre presents the one-woman play by George Brant. Directed by Alice Reagan. When: Through Sunday, Feb. 11. Where: 2340 Lee Road, Cleveland Heights. Tickets: $27-$32; student discounts available. Go to dobama.org or call 216-932-3396. Approximate running time: 90 minutes, with no intermission. STRONGSVILLE, Ohio - Two applicants to the vacant Ward 2 and Ward 3 City Council seats blasted council last week for its approach to filling those positions. Tim Zvoncheck, who had applied for the Ward 3 seat, said council was not transparent when deciding which of 18 applicants would win the two positions. He said only three of the five remaining councilmen - Jim Carbone, Joe DeMio and Matt Schonhut - privately made the decisions. "I along with many residents of this city demand that you (Carbone, DeMio and Schonhut) recuse yourselves from this process, as it's certainly impossible for you to make an unbiased decision," Zvoncheck said during a Jan. 16 council meeting. Erin Sullivan Lally, a Ward 2 applicant, agreed, saying that council violated state law by picking the winning applicants in a private, executive session. She said Carbone, DeMio and Schonhut had acted "dishonorably." "This process as it stands, no matter what you say or how you try to spin it, doesn't give anybody a fair shake, least of all those of us who put ourselves out there ready to serve our community and were already told, 'No thanks,'" Lally told council. Previously, Lally said that Schonhut called her Jan. 7 and told her that Annmarie Roff, a Howe Road resident, would win the Ward 2 appointment. Zvoncheck said Carbone called him that same day and said council would appoint Kelly Kosek - who ran unsuccessfully for an at-large council seat in November - to the Ward 3 position. Council started the interviewing and appointment process over again due to Lally's and Zvoncheck's concerns. Council is expected to vote on the Ward 2 and Ward 3 replacements tonight. Aside from Zvoncheck and Lally, most residents who spoke at the Jan. 16 meeting - including other applicants to the Ward 2 and Ward 3 positions - defended council and called candidates who complained about the selection process "sore losers." "That man's (DeMio's) integrity is bar none," resident Ron Schroth said. "And when he sits there and says something, it's true and it's real. If anybody wants to disparage him, they have to come through me first." Actually, council said little about the matter. When Schroth asked council members if all five were present when deciding which applicants to appoint, and if they had made their decisions in executive session, they didn't answer. Law Director Neal Jamison said he had advised council not to comment. "Can we say that all five of us were present for all interviews of all applicants?" Schonhut asked Jamison. "It's up to you," Jamison told Schonhut. However, Schonhut's statement did not answer Schroth's questions. After the meeting, cleveland.com asked Schonhut if all five council members were present when decisions were made about the appointments. Schonhut didn't answer, deferring to Jamison, then added that council never made any "formal" decisions. It's not the first time questions have been raised over council's private and public discussions. In 2014, Carbone and Schonhut said they and other council members discussed a proposed rezoning for Hampton Inn in private phone conversations. At the time, Schonhut said council committees - each consisting of three council members - sometimes had casual phone conversations about city business. Ohio Sunshine Law requires governmental bodies to discuss and deliberate public business in public, with some exceptions, including personnel issues. Hard feelings At the Jan. 16 meeting, Zvoncheck said that a ward councilman - presumably Carbone or Schonhut - informed him in January 2017 that he and another ward councilman - again, presumably Carbone or Schonhut - were going to run for at-large council seats in November 2017. Zvoncheck said the ward councilman advised him to apply for the Ward 3 seat. According to Zvoncheck, the ward councilman said, "Dude, if we (Carbone and Schonhut) get in (to the at-large seats), we can appoint you, and hold meetings in your basement bar." Zvoncheck said it was the first indication for him that council was holding secret meetings. Carbone and Schonhut did win at-large seats in November, leaving the Ward 2 and Ward 3 seats open. The city charter gives council the responsibility of filling vacant council positions. Zvoncheck applied for the Ward 3 seat. Then, on Jan. 7, Carbone called Zvoncheck, saying that Kosek would get the job. "When did the public meeting and vote take place?" Zvoncheck said. "It never did. It was a behind-the-scenes scam meant to lean our city council in a certain direction, and I feel badly that Kelly (Kosek) and Ann (Roff) have become victims of such questionable politics." Lally said that according to the Ohio auditor's website, public bodies cannot make decisions in executive session. She said that any action taken in executive session - including council's decision to start the appointment process over again - is void. "More importantly for this process, any action taken in open session which results from an unlawful executive session is also void," Lally said. Supporting council Strongsville resident Margaret Queen - mother of Ward 2 applicant Crystal Queen - said she voted for Carbone and Schonhut in the November at-large council race because she wanted the voices of the two men heard. However, Queen urged council to clear up confusion over the Ward 2-Ward 3 appointment process. "We really do need a statement of the truth, because we're all hearing (nonsense) from sore losers who didn't win," Queen said. Robert Stein, who had applied for the Ward 3 seat, said he has had experience with executive sessions as vice chairman of the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio, an elected position. He said that Strongsville City Council acted appropriately, under Ohio Revise Code Section 121, in its use of executive sessions. "You don't have to make your discussion public, only your decision has to be made public, when dealing with executive session rules," Stein said. Resident John Bourjaily said voters spoke in November by electing Carbone and Schonhut to at-large seats and that it's time to make the Ward 2 and Ward 3 appointments. "Let's not divide the city any more," Bourjaily said. "The mayor (Thomas Perciak) will tell you it doesn't affect our bond ratings. He'll tell you it doesn't affect business. It affects the city. It is time to heal and move forward." Crystal Queen said council's approach to filling the Ward 2 and Ward 3 seats was the same process used in 2011 to appoint Duke Southworth, who lost his at-large seat in November 2017. She said council interviewed applicants for the vacant position in executive session in 2011, then made a decision. She wondered why some were questioning the process now. "I trust you guys," Crystal Queen told council. "And I hope every single one of you have the residents' best interests at heart." Sarah Marxen countered that just because council's 2011 executive sessions weren't questioned doesn't mean they were right. "Mr. Jamison may not want to acknowledge any impropriety, but the appearance of impropriety was there," Marxen said. However, Marxen said Carbone, DeMio and Schonhut should not recuse themselves now from the appointment process. Otherwise, only two councilmen - Michael Daymut and Gordon Short - would have the power to choose the next Ward 2 and Ward 3 council representatives. "I hope the last few weeks have been a learning experience and that the five of you will get it right the next time," Marxen said. Laura Green said council supporters were misunderstanding the concerns of Lally, Zvoncheck and other residents questioning council's process. "It's not that anybody here is a sore loser or are bashing the people who were selected," Green said. "They're just saying, 'Hey, was it done correctly?' That's what I'm asking, too." Some residents, including Jenny Baker, expressed support for Roff and Kosek. Baker said Roff was the only Ward 2 applicant who last year fought against a proposed "slip ramp" leading from Interstate 71 southbound to Howe Road. City officials believed the slip ramp would have alleviated traffic at Ohio 82 and I-71, but Ward 2 residents in the Howe area opposed the idea. Resident Leslie Hohenfeld said Roff showed exceptional leadership organizing Ward 2 homeowners against the slip ramp. Jessica Cozza said Kosek helped her secure services for her 6-year-old son after she met Kosek at a PTA meeting. "She would be a great asset," Cozza told council. "You guys need a woman on here, and you need a mom." Kirt Bissell said he worked on Kosek's council campaign in November. He said she received about 5,000 votes, just missing an at-large seat. "She has all the qualifications of an outstanding council person," Bissell said. GREEN, Ohio - Passenger traffic at the Akron-Canton Airport dropped 9 percent in 2017, to its lowest number in more than a decade. The airport served 1.27 million passengers in 2017, down from 1.4 million in 2016. The decrease is largely the result of the exit of Southwest Airlines from the airport. Akron-Canton has seen a steady decline in passenger traffic since 2012, the year after Southwest announced its purchase of AirTran Airways. AirTran built a large network of service at Akron-Canton, at one time flying more than half of CAK's total annual passengers. Southwest gradually reduced service from Akron-Canton, flying its last route from the Summit County airport in June 2017. Cleveland Hopkins International Airport has certainly picked up some of that traffic. The Cleveland airport announced last week that it served 9.14 million passengers in 2017, an 8.5 percent increase over 2016, and the highest number since United Airlines pulled its hub from Cleveland in 2014. Related: Cleveland Hopkins airport traffic grows 8.5 percent in 2017, surpasses United hub years As Southwest Airlines eliminated flights at Akron-Canton, it expanded in Cleveland, adding routes to St. Louis, Milwaukee and Atlanta. Allegiant Air, too, has grown in Cleveland at the expense of Akron-Canton. The low-cost, leisure-focused carrier pulled its operation from CAK and moved to Cleveland Hopkins in early 2017. Today, Allegiant flies to 10 cities from Cleveland. Other small airports in Ohio, including Dayton, are facing a fall-off in traffic similar to Akron-Canton. Traffic at Dayton International Airport is down 6.2 percent through October, largely due to cutbacks from Southwest. Bigger Ohio airports are faring better. Traffic at John Glenn Columbus International Airport was up 3.4 percent in 2017; Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, meanwhile, announced last week that its passenger volume in 2017 was up 16 percent over the year before. 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Market Research Future Published at Half Cooked Research Report on "Global Aromatics Market Research Report - Forecast to 2027" - Market Analysis, Scope, Stake, Progress, Trends and Forecast to 2027. Eastman Chemical, Ashland, BASF SE, Huntsman Corporation, Celanese Corporation, Petrochem Carless, INEOS AG, ExxonMobil, Royal Dutch Shell and Honeywell among others are prominent players at the forefront of competition in the Global Aromatics Market and are profiled in MRFR Analysis. Aromatics Market - Overview The Global Aromatics Market is expected to grow at moderate annual increment, driven by demand from application industries like automotive, petrochemical and chemical industries. The aromatics manufacturers are increasingly shifting towards Asia Pacific region in line with the shift of consumer demands in rubbers, lubricants, dyes, detergents, drugs, and pesticides sectors. As a result of this shift, China is the largest contributor and accounted for nearly half of the global production of Aromatics. Significant refining and cracker capacity of the petrochemical has been added in China to address rapidly growing car fleet sales as well as the diverse needs of a growing Chinese middle class. Overall, the rate of aromatics capacity addition has been very high in Asia Pacific region while global consumption is expected to slow down, due to economic slowdown of many developing and developed countries. As a result of this, aromatics operating rates is expected to decline, leading to lower margins and pressure on the higher-cost producers. Competitive Landscape: The report analyses the degree of competition among the industry players as well as industry growth and market scenario in India and the world. The Global Aromatics Market is at a growing stage, which represents moderate stats in terms of market value and overall volume. Over the past few years, Aromatics Market has witnessed healthy demand from end use industries such as pharmaceuticals textiles automobiles, paints, papers, soaps, detergents. Globally market for aromatics is fragmented and it is moving towards growth expansion by specifically adopting partnership, expansion and joint-venture strategies and product launch strategies. Aromatics Market India Indian Aromatics Market is estimated to grow with incremental growth rate of the world market. Globally, India ranks at significant level in exports of Aromatics. Regionally, western India has been the dominant region contributing approx. 50% to the Gross Value Added (GVA) for the Aromatics sector. Several initiatives taken by Government of India will support the growth of Chemical Industry in India. One of such initiative is 'Make in India'. This initiative is expected to foster growth in Indian Aromatics market by allowing duty rationalization for skill development, feedstock, improving infrastructure and tax incentives for R&D investments. Approval of the GST bill is another key reform which is expected to lower logistics cost by 10-15% and create a unified market across the country. The launch of Single Window Interface for Facilitating Trade (SWIFT) by government would help importers or exporters to file a common integrated declaration, instead of 9 forms across 6 agencies. Request a Sample Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample_request/930 The R&D investment and facility of Indian companies have been limited traditionally, but the situation is changing slowly with more and more companies looking at R&D as a key source of staying in competitive environment of Aromatics market in India. The investment in R&D for Indian companies is expected to grow above 2% of the total revenue, thereby help to innovate them the product in the market. The industry is also observing increasing tie-ups with academia which will facilitate the technology applied research further. Industry/ Innovation/ Related News: June 2017 Vinati Organics planned to expand its isobutyl Aromatics capacity to 25,000 tonne at its Mahad facility to meet the strong demand outlook for the product. This expansion would help the Vinati Organics to increase its market share in the region. February 2017 Kuwaits state petrochemicals firm PIC made contract for the Third Olefins and Second Aromatics projects in Kuwait to UKs Amec Foster Wheeler. The plants are decided to build at Al-Zour in the Kuwaiti part of the Partitioned Neutral Zone between Kuwait and Saudi Arabia to be integrated with a refinery that is being built by state refiner KNPC. As per the prediction, the start-up of the olefins and aromatics projects are scheduled for 2022 due to growing demand of aromatics in the region. May 2017 ExxonMobil Chemical Companys Singapore affiliate has agreed to acquire a 1.4 million-tonnes per year aromatics plant on Jurong Island in Singapore from Jurong Aromatics Corp. Pte. Ltd. The acquisition and expansion strategy of Singapore is driven by the expected increase in global demand for chemical products over the next decade of nearly 45%, and about 4% per year, which is a faster pace than energy demand and economic growth in the world. October 2016 Due to growing demand petrochemicals and aromatics like benzene and xylene. The Hungarian integrated oil firm Mol planned a new long-term business strategy to 2030, diversifying away from producing motor fuels to focus more on high-yield petrochemicals. November 2017 Indian Oil Corporation, Indian largest oil firm, planned to invest rupees 18,000 crore to raise capacity of its Panipat refinery in Haryana to 25 million tons by 2020, larger than previously planned. The investment would include MEG (monoethylene glycol) and Aromatics expansion unit modifications at Panipat. The expansion decision comes in to picture due to growing demand of aromatics in the extraction process. May 2017 ExxonMobil Corporation recently announced the acquiring a massive petrochemical plant in Singapore from Jurong Aromatics Corporation Pte Ltd. The aromatics chemical plant to be acquired by ExxonMobil was opened in 2014. Jurong Aromatics is struggling financially at present and is going through the U.S. equivalent of bankruptcy proceedings. The plant has been shut for the majority of its existence, only resuming operations in July. May 2014 - ONGC Mangalore Petrochemicals Ltd. planned to build an aromatics complex in the Mangalore special economic zone (SEZ). OMPL is promoted by ONGC and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd. (MRPL; Mangalore), a subsidiary of ONGC. The aromatics complex will produce 900,000 mt / year of p-xylene and about 300,000 mt / year of Aromatics. MRPL is separately building at 450,000-mt / year PP plant at the Mangalore SEZ, which is also expected to be on-stream in the fiscal year ending March 2015. Access Complete Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/aromatics-market-930 About Market Research Future: At the Research Market Future (MRFR), we provide our customers to unravel the complexity of our industries through our Cooked Research Reports (CRR), Half-Cooked Research Reports (HCRR), Raw Research Reports (3R), Continuous -Feed Research (CFR), and Market Research & Consulting Services. MRFR team have supreme objective to provide the optimal quality market research and intelligence services to our clients. Our market research studies by Components, Applications, Logistics and market players for global, regional, and country level market segments, enabling our clients to see more important questions. Contact: Market Research Future +1 646 845 9312 Email: sales@marketresearchfuture.com Questo comunicato e stato pubblicato piu di 1 anno fa. Le informazioni su questa pagina potrebbero non essere attendibili. Market Scenario: Palm oil is one amongst the most nutritious edible oil. It is derived from palm fruit which is originally from Western Africa but can flourish wherever heat and rainfall are abundant. Palm oil can be classified into crude palm oil, palm kernel oil, and others. Crude palm oil is derived from the fruit of the oil palm tree and referred as "red palm oil" because of its rich dark red color in its unprocessed natural state. Whereas, palm kernel oil is derived from the seed or the kernel of the palm fruit. Palm oil has a high resistance to oxidation and therefore has a long shelf life. Globally, palm oil is witnessing a high demand in the market. Palm oil is applicable as a cooking oil, bio-diesel, lubricants, cosmetics, and others, which is driving the growth of the market. Increasing demand for vegetable oil is a major factor driving the growth of the market. Moreover, in the biofuels market, it is used as the feedstock for the production of biodiesel and as an alternative to mineral oils for use in power stations which is boosting the growth of the palm oil market. The fatty acid derivatives of palm oil are used in the production of bactericides, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals and water-treatment products. Increasing consumption of palm oil in the manufacturing process of soaps and detergents and in the production of greases, lubricants, and candles is further boosting the growth of the market. Moreover, increasing usage of palm oil as a substitute for trans-fat in processed foods is adding fuel to the growth of palm oil market. Get a Sample Report @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/sample_request/5235 Key Findings: Indonesia, Malaysia, the Netherlands, Papua New Guinea, and Guatemala are the major exporters of palm oil market India, China, Pakistan, Spain, and Egypt are the major importers of Indonesia palm oil market Segments: The global palm oil market is segmented into type and application. On the basis of type, the palm oil market is segmented into crude palm oil, palm kernel oil, and others. Among all, crude palm oil is dominating the market followed by palm kernel oil. Crude palm oil has less saturated fat than palm kernel oil. Moreover, crude palm oil has a high level of tocotrienols which makes it an outstanding source of vitamin E and a powerful antioxidant, driving the growth of the segment. On the basis of the application, the palm oil market is segmented into cooking oil, bio-diesel, lubricant, cosmetics, and others. Amongst all the cooking oil segment is dominating the market. However, cosmetics segment is expected to witness high growth over the forecast period. Regional Analysis: The global palm oil market is segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, and rest of the world (RoW). Asia Pacific is dominating the market and is witnessed to have a substantial growth over the forecast period with increasing consumption of palm oil in different industries. Indonesia and Malaysia are the major producers and exporters of palm fruit which are majorly contributing to the growth of palm oil market in Asia Pacific. North America and Europe are projected to have a moderate growth during the forecast period. Moreover, Latin America and the Middle East & Africa are anticipated to be the fastest growing region in palm oil market over the estimated period. Access Report Details @ https://www.marketresearchfuture.com/reports/palm-oil-market-5235 Key Players: Some of the key players profiled in the global palm oil market: Cargill Inc. (U.S.), Wilmar International Limited (Singapore), Sime Darby (Malaysia), IOI Corp. (Malaysia), Golden Agri Resources Limited (Singapore), Kulim BHD (Malaysia), Godrej Agrovet Limited (India), London Sumatra (Indonesia) Change the date and the system! CPA statement on the date of Australia Day As January 26 approaches, a vigorous debate is raging in the media about the current date for Australias national day. Long-standing requests for reconsideration of the date have been ignored and pilloried by reactionary forces as divisive and examples of political correctness. Supporters of the current, radically inappropriate date suggest that, while January 26, 1788 was the date on which the British proclaimed possession of the entire land mass of Australia inhabited by dozens of nations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, that is somehow a suitable occasion for the celebration of the achievements of modern, multicultural Australian society. Some of the more sophisticated of the defenders of the indefensible date have pointed out that changing the date would do nothing to improve the lot of Aboriginal people and, therefore, not worthy of consideration. If nothing other than changing the date were to happen, the exercise would not be very worthwhile. But if the date were changed as part of a recognition of a great historical wrong, the effects of which are still reverberating in the form of lower life expectancy, massively higher incarceration rates, deaths in custody, the removal of children from their families and other outcomes of dispossession and policies of genocide, it would be an important step, both symbolically and in practical terms. Such a step and such a change is long overdue. In 1938, on the occasion of the sesquicentenary of British invasion of Australia, a national meeting of Aboriginal people in Sydney issued a call for January 26 to be declared a day of national mourning and protest. The Communist Party of Australia supported the call and the movement that sprang from the Sydney meeting. The CPA still supports such treatment of the day currently called Australia Day. We support and work with others for immediate steps to right the historical wrongs, the establishment of enduring lands rights and the eradication of systemic and other forms of racism. These tasks and the immediate and the ultimate one of building socialism go hand in hand and the Communist Party is committed to both. High cost of scheme Last December, in the same week that the federal government moved to further extend its income management program, new research found that compulsory income management in the Northern Territory had negative effects on birthweight and school attendance. The research team from the School of Economics at the University of Sydney and the Menzies School of Health Research in Darwin found the income management scheme, introduced by the Howard government in 2007 as part of the NT Intervention, coincided with significant negative outcomes for children in the short term, and showed no noticeable improvements in the long run. Lead investigator of the studies Associate Professor Stefanie Schurer, from the University of Sydneys School of Economics and Charles Perkins Centre, said the research showed the average birthweight of babies who were in utero when income management was introduced to their community was over 100 grams lighter, and that the babies were at slightly higher risk of low birthweight (less than 2,500g). The research team examined daily school attendance records of children attending NT government schools in the 73 Aboriginal communities and 10 town camps affected by the policy. As income management was introduced to communities in stages researchers used this as a natural experiment and compared the pre- and post- school attendance outcomes for children in each of these communities. The researchers found school attendance declined by 4 percent on average in the first five months, after which attendance rates eventually returned to their initial levels. We were surprised by the findings, Professor Schurer said. We expected to find a positive impact or, at worst, no impact at all to the introduction of income management. Also last December, a Senate Inquiry released its report into the federal governments most recent income management scheme, the cashless welfare card, which was the brainchild of billionaire miner Andrew Forrest. The program was originally trialled in Ceduna, South Australia, and the East Kimberley in Western Australia both areas with a high Aboriginal population. The Senate committee was investigating whether the trial of the program should be extended from the original two sites, to include the WA Goldfields, and the Bundaberg region of Queensland. The Coalition senators on the committee recommended extending the trial, but both Labor and the Greens wrote dissenting reports. Australian Council of Social Services (ACOSS) chief executive Cassandra Goldie called on the Senate to reject mandatory cashless debit cards and instead support a voluntary income management scheme. Mandatory cashless debit cards are not backed by reliable evidence, she said. Legislation to expand the cards does not have support of a broad range of individuals and organisations within and without trial sites, including the Social Justice Commissioner June Oscar, and the National Congress of Australias First Peoples. There is wide-ranging concern that mandatory cashless debit has been imposed on communities without proper consultation and consent. This is a totally unacceptable approach to policy making. Communities must be listened to and have control over their futures. We know that the card is making peoples lives more difficult. The governments own interim evaluation found that half of the people subjected to the card said their lives had become worse since its introduction. Made lives worse Research conducted by the ANU found that 34 of 35 people interviewed in the East Kimberley said the card had made their lives worse. The cashless debit card applies to anyone receiving a working-age income support payment in trial site communities, irrespective of whether they have an addiction to alcohol, drugs or gambling. Cheryl Axleby, the chief executive of South Australias Aboriginal community-controlled legal service, the Aboriginal Legal Rights Movement (ALRM), said she has spoken to people who have worked and paid taxes all their lives, bought up kids, never had any trouble with child welfare and because of the postcode area they live in their pension is subject to income management. It just crushes them. It takes our mob back to living on the missions that time when government had full control of their lives, she said. Its insulting going up to the shop with your Basics Card. Its shame. Our mob live with enough shame. Why do we keep having to make our mob feel so different from society and disconnected all the time? Thats all it does it should be voluntary. Professor Sven Silburn, a co-investigator into the studies into income management in the NT from the Menzies School of Health Research, said they couldnt say whether the negative impacts were because of the policy itself, because of administrative challenges and implementation problems or because of negative sentiment surrounding its compulsory introduction in these communities. Associate Professor Schurer said they had also accessed alternative data sources. A preliminary analysis of data from the Longitudinal Study of Indigenous Children (LSIC) showed that a transition into income management was associated with an increase in the mothers experience of being humbugged, or receiving excessive demands for money, and reporting that children were being upset by family arguments, she said. Income management changes the way household resources are allocated and consumed and therefore may affect the dynamics of family decision making. Koori Mail Film Review by Ed Rampell In the Fade I never fail to be astonished at how the arts, as Shakespeare put it, hold a mirror up to nature, that is, to our society and current events. As the right wing anti-immigrant, anti-Muslim tide rises, with its ripped-from-the-proverbial-headlines vibe, In the Fade (Aus dem Nichts) is a case in point. This German neo-Nazi drama written and directed by Turkish-German auteur Fatih Akin (Head On, Soul Kitchen, The Edge of Heaven) is extremely timely. Diane Kruger as the films protagonist, Katja Sekerci. Specifically speaking, Fade has its filmic finger on the societal pulse not only due to the Charlottesville Nuremberg rally but because theres currently lots of chatter about lone wolf terrorists who independently take matters into their own hands in the West. Usually these non-state actors are represented as admirers and/or adherents of jihad-inspired groups such as ISIS. But a trend may be emerging onstage and on-screen wherein anti-fascist individuals take vigilante direct action against ultra-right extremists. This was the major plot point in the two-act Daytona by playwright Oliver Cotton, that the envelope-pushing Rogue Machine Theatre presented in its US premiere last September in Los Angeles. Fades protagonist Katja Sekerci (Diane Kruger) follows a similar fateful, violent course. Unlike Daytona, which is set in Florida and New York, Fade is a thriller that takes place in modern Hamburg, Germany, and Greece. [Note: This review may contain plot spoilers.] Katjas husband Rocco (Rafael Santana) and son Nuri (Turkish-born Numan Acar, who has appeared in Showtimes Homeland as Haissam Haqqani and the 2016 Armenian genocide tragedy The Promise) are blown up in what appears to be a premeditated neo-Nazi terrorist sneak attack. Although fascist sympathizers Andre Moller (Ulrich Brandoff) and his wife Edda (Hanna Hilsdorf) are arrested and tried, what happens is Exhibit A of the wariness and distrust Alfred Hitchcock always displayed towards the police (and by extension the courts). Because Katja and Nuri have a history tied to hashish which Nuri was incarcerated for and even worse in the eyes of the contemporary German state is of Turkish ancestry, much of the investigation into his death and the Mollers trial is a case of blame the victims. Never mind that Nuri studied business administration behind bars and turned his life around after serving time by establishing his own legitimate small business: He is first and foremost guilty of operating his office while Turkish. It doesnt matter that Nuri paid his debt to society: Will the German judicial system convict the Aryan Mollers of committing a murderous hate crime against the Turkish Nuri and Rocco? Confronted by the failure of the German capitalist state to render justice, Katja embarks on individually seeking vengeance for her slain loved ones. Shes essentially alone, with the exception of her dedicated attorney Danilo (Denis Moschitto), who promises to appeal the verdict. But instead of pursuing further legal recourse or joining an antifa (militant antifascist) course, like an anti-Nazi John Wayne or Gary Cooper Katja decides to ride alone. Her Homeric odyssey for justice takes her, appropriately, to Ulysses homeland, Greece, as she tries to track the Hitlerian hit man and woman down and, with some poetic justice, confront them with a dose of their own, as Bob Dylan put it, mixing up the medicine. Diane Kruger is superb, portraying a tortured character with her own Subterranean Homesick Blues who is thinking about the government. Kruger won the Best Actress Award at 2017s Cannes Film Festival for her depiction of the anguished Katja. Like, say, Catherine Deneuve, Kruger is a European beauty who has crossed over the Atlantic: American audiences saw her in Quentin Tarantinos anti-Nazi Inglourious Basterds. The gifted Kruger has also portrayed royalty, playing Marie Antoinette in 2012s Farewell, My Queen and the title role in TVs The Kellyanne Conway Story (Let them eat alternative facts!). Kruger also appears as a talking head in the documentary about another German actress, Bombshell: The Hedy Lamarr Story. (In the Fade is Golden Globe-nominated for Best Foreign Film and I wouldnt be surprised if it was likewise Oscar nominated and, in this woman-oriented year in Hollywood, if portraying an empowered woman Kruger also picks up a Best Actress Academy Award nomination. I predict she will face off against Meryl Streep for The Post but that Frances McDormand will win that coveted golden statuette for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Remember, readers, you saw it here first!) Although Fade is indeed a stylishly made political film with important things to say, some will likely deem it dubious to include graphic, explicit explication of the materials that go into making a do-it-yourself bomb and then demonstrating mixing up the medicine. When I lived in Micronesia in the 1980s, after television was introduced to the islands, I remember an astute Palauan observer commenting that police procedures actually taught would-be criminals in Palau techniques for how to carry out and commit crimes. Although Kruger delivers an undeniably compelling performance, some may also take issue with Akins script (which adapted Hark Bohms novel, inspired by a spate of actual neo-Nazi racist attacks in Hamburg). Instead of going it alone, perhaps Katja should have joined the heroic antifa militant movement and participated in organised direct action against resurgent fascists. Why be a lone wolf when you can run with a pack instead? Especially given the resurgence of the anti-immigrant right in todays Germany, reacting against Hamburg-born Chancellor Angela Merkels merciful policies towards refugees (seems like the former resident of the German Democratic Republic may have actually learned something about socialist solidarity growing up in the GDR after all). But this is an ideological quibble which shouldnt stop viewers of intelligent, well-made movies from seeing the thought-provoking, gripping In the Fade, which has moviegoers sitting on the edge of their seats by daring to dramatize important issues and big ideas on the big screen. Peoples World Socialism and a Catalan Republic The continuing struggle over Catalan independence raises many questions for socialists and the left, especially those in countries, such as Ireland, where the national question still has a prime place in politics. Events in Catalunya show that independence movements are not, as idealists would think, concerned only with such issues as flags and the like but rather are motivated by real material conditions. Of course, this also means that there are different class interests at play. We shouldnt fall prey to supporting any and all independence movements, as some are reactionary and only serve capitalist and imperialist interests and not the interests of the majority of the people in that territory. However, there is also a danger in simplifying the struggle against capitalism and imperialism into an economistic bosses verses workers analysis, which fails to take into account the hegemonic manifestation of capitalism as a political-economic system. Such things as language are real material things that are affected by political policies adopted to suit economic interests. Therefore, class struggle is manifested within the struggle for language rights, and cultural and national rights, as well as the issue of sovereignty. Whether or not that sovereignty takes the form of autonomy or independence is a product of the conditions. In Ireland, James Connolly was one of the main Marxist thinkers who contributed to this understanding of the national question, and this contribution is shown in the Connolly-Walker controversy. Catalunya is one of the better-off regions controlled by the Spanish state, thanks to its early industrialisation. Its loss to Spain would mean a significant dent in the state. It is also home to one-fifth of cooperatives in the Spanish state, which reveals a latent radicalism and consciousness, going back to the famous struggles in Catalunya against the fascists in the 1930s. The main party in government is united with Madrid in its economic policies, which are fiercely pro-austerity and anti-worker. Youth unemployment in the Spanish state is at 50 percent, while in Catalunya it is about 40 percent slightly less, but still very significant. Language is one of the pillars of the independence movement. Madrid has paid scant attention to the Catalan language, which was heavily suppressed in the Franco era. To give an example, twice as many university courses in Catalan are available in Germany as there are in the Spanish state. As a result of the influx of migrants to the industrialised Catalunya, many Castilians learnt the language, and today it is seen as the language of all resident in Catalunya, regardless of origin. This has contributed to the feeling that the solution to Madrids refusal to actively promote the language can be found only if Catalunya has its own independent state. The demands centred around the call for sovereignty began in the wake of continued intransigence by Madrid over giving concessions to the region. It is also in the context of the imposed austerity measures, which have seen the average income of Catalans drop by a fifth. The Spanish state has been even more intransigent with the Basque Country, where the state established death squads, which murdered Basque activists. Basque political movements were banned if they were seen to support independence, which included the Basque Communist Party. It is in this context that more and more Catalans took to the streets to call for a referendum on independence. More than a million have taken part in the annual demonstrations, which have taken place every year since 2012. Pro-independence parties have been in a majority for nearly a decade. Clearly, the demand for Catalunyas right to decide its future is a mass movement, albeit one with a broad character. The capitalist class in Catalunya, and the main right-wing parties, adopted a pro-independence stance only after the mass movement began in the streets. The Catalan capitalists are still dependent on Madrid and are fearful of independence actually happening, preferring instead more concessions. They are begging for Madrid to agree to negotiations before the mass movement forces them to declare a new independent state. The demand for sovereignty, the right to decide, which was brutally repressed last October 1, has been replaced with a demand for independence. The Catalan working class demonstrated its strength, and support, with a general strike. It should be noted that this independence would be in the form of a republic, as against the monarchy in Madrid. The socialist understanding of such movements is that the energy and momentum should be pushed further and employed to bring the struggle of the people for national-democratic demands to the next stage, or, to quote Lenin: We would be very poor revolutionaries if, in the proletariats great war of liberation for socialism, we did not know how to utilise every popular movement against every single disaster imperialism brings in order to intensify and extend the crisis. Socialist Voice Culture & Life The American way of war Lenin wrote Imperialism, The Highest Stage of Capitalism in 1916 to address an issue that had been raised by JA Hobson and Rudolf Hilferding in their works about the changing nature of capitalism towards the end of the 19th century. The concept of private property was completely alien to Indigenous Americans. After all, the Earth was alive, so how could you own it? Lenin recognised that the war then taking place was an imperialist one between the old imperialist powers of Britain, France, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, and Russia. Britain was the leading power at the time and included vast swathes of Asia and Africa in its empire. With the exception of France and Turkey, all were monarchies. By the end of the war Britains status had been undermined, and it was in debt to the United States. Woodrow Wilson, an isolationist American president (like Donald Trump), had brought America into the war to end all wars. He was also instrumental in the establishing of the League of Nations. After the war Wilson reverted to isolationism, and the United States never joined the League. The establishment of the Soviet Union and the growth of independence movements around the world meant that the old imperialism was under attack. Initially the old empires had attempted to stifle the Russian Revolution, and when that failed they spent the 1920s and 30s trying to undermine the Soviet Union and all democratic movements. The League was ineffectual in the face of the growth of fascism and gave effective support to the fascists in Spain. Inevitably, the conflicts between the growth of democratic movements, the existence of the USSR controlled by workers, and the old imperial powers seeking to maintain their empires and fossilised way of life, together with the growth of fascism, led to war on a global scale. At the end of it the USSR had consolidated its position and had demonstrated that it could defeat fascism. The United States was now the leading imperialist power, displacing Britain and the others, who were now to play a secondary role, despite occasional attempts at their old-style behaviour, as in Suez. The United States, while declaring itself to be democratic, was in fact an old-style imperialist, every bit as bad as, if not worse than, the countries it displaced. Imperialist culture, rhetoric, arrogance and practice is part of the DNA of the United States. When the first white settlers arrived in North America they found a land already occupied by an Indigenous population with their own culture and languages. The various nations were cultivating the land, growing corn and other crops, hunting and fishing in a sustainable manner. More importantly, they did not have a philosophical outlook based on private property. This concept of private property was completely alien to them. After all, the Earth was alive, so how could you own it? In Capital (volume 1, chapter 31) Marx describes how the Puritans of New England set a premium of 40 on every Indian scalp and every captured redskin. The privatisation of land and thus the primitive accumulation of capital meant that anyone who resisted had to be characterised as lazy, stupid, or savage. Basically, the same methods were used as had been employed in Ireland: attack the social system, language and culture of the Indigenous population. Exterminate and enslave if possible. Scalping and the taking of ears were all used as in Ireland, and would be used again in Viet Nam against the Vietnamese in the 20th century. The core group of planter colonialists in North America were the settlers known as Scots-Irish. These had a firm belief in their own righteousness. Over time they developed a method of warfare still employed by the United States: razing and destroying enemy villages and fields; killing enemy women and children; raiding settlements for captives; intimidating and brutalising enemy non-combatants; and assassinating enemy leaders (John Grenier, The First Way of War). They also developed two other aspects of the American way of war, both demonstrated in Vietnam in the 1960s to 1970s and again more recently in Iraq and other theatres of war: unlimited war, and irregular war. This included the use of agent orange in Vietnam; carpet bombing; bombing civilian areas; the use of irregular forces such as Rangers (they still use Roberts Rules of Rangering from the colonial wars of the 18th century); and private contractors. The Indigenous population was suppressed and driven off their land. However, they have never given up their resistance. Geronimo was the code name used by the American SEALs (special forces) for Osama Bin Laden; anything not controlled by the military is regarded as Indian Territory. The wars of the 18th and 19th centuries are deeply embedded in the culture of American imperialists. So are the legal rulings from those wars. Perhaps the most glaring is the decision made in 1873 as justification for the execution of Modoc Jack (Kintpuash, a leader of the Modoc people of California and Oregon). He had killed General Edward Canby, and it was decided in the attorney-generals Modoc Prisoners Opinion that because the killing was deemed so uncivilised, the Modocs were savages and therefore outside the law. This opinion is used as justification for the torture of those held in the Guantanamo concentration camp and for other crimes perpetrated by US armed forces. Lenin, when he wrote Imperialism, had not studied America (for obvious reasons, given the time at which he wrote the pamphlet). He does say that unless the economic essence of imperialism is studied it will be impossible to understand and appraise modern war and modern politics. I believe the culture, rhetoric and philosophy also to be worth study. Socialist Voice There are a few things almost everyone agrees on: Water is wet, babies are cute, and Millennials are the worst generation humanity has ever created. There isn't a thing they like, from selfies to avocado toast, that hasn't become a sign that their inventions and fads are ruining the very fabric of society. But guess what? Half of the "Millennial" trends your grandpa complains about are actually even older than he is. For example ... 6 "Sexting" Has Been Around Since The Renaissance It's unsurprising that the invention of a device that is capable of both taking pictures and sending those pictures to another human being was followed immediately by the invention of the practice of sending people photos of your own sex bits -- or as people much cooler than we are call it, "sexting." But the idea of "sending nudes" in order to make someone horny for you is much older than camera phones. Hell, it's older than cameras. Nell Gwyn This was accompanied by a smaller painting of eggplant and peach emojis. Take this 17th-century portrait of a lady preparing food while a black servant gives her an expression that seems to ask "Why are your boobs out?" The woman in the picture is Nell Gwyn, comedic actress and mistress to English King Charles II, who sent this lusty portrait to her lover sometime during their 16-year affair. The very suggestive piece shows a virginal white Gwyn flash ample cleavage while "stuffing sausages," which we'll assume was the Renaissance equivalent of sending the eggplant emoji. The original picture, made by a wisely anonymous painter in the late 17th century, is only a little larger than a postcard -- not big enough to hang on a wall, but probably just about the right size to carry around in a king-sized pocket and show to his ducal bros. Continue Reading Below Advertisement Flash-forward to 1828, and this self-portrait by Boston painter Sarah Goodridge might be the first sext selfie. And unlike Gwyn, Goodridge knew there was a quicker way into a man's unmentionables than some subtle iconography: Sarah Goodridge Perhaps the slightest bit less coy than the last example. Continue Reading Below Advertisement She sent this as a gift to none other than U.S. senator Daniel Webster. It's a miniature painting, measuring around 2x3 inches, which was popular at the time. Pretty useless for display, but handy for, say, keeping it hidden from your wife. Webster and Goodridge insisted they were only close friends, and historians have found no evidence they were doing the wild thing. Except, of course, for exhibit Double D. BRIDGEPORT As downtown continues to welcome restaurants, the latest addition to the Bijou Square is serving up hot ramen and noodle soups in minutes. Easton resident Skye Kwok opened Eat Noodle in downtown Bridgeport on Jan. 8 at 269 Fairfield Ave. The eatery opened in the space that once housed Can Tiin, which closed last summer. A former Bridgeport resident, Kwok said the area has changed since his days growing up in the Park City. As residential development and the office market has grown over the years, he said a community vibe has developed that he felt his restaurant could thrive in. Bridgeport is growing right now, he said. When I came to this area I was surprised (at how) it changed a lot, and I saw a lot of potential. Kwok began working in the restaurant industry 22 years ago, after attending Sacred Heart University, and has since opened restaurants in other parts of Fairfield County. He also owns Sweet Basil in Fairfield and Pink Sumo Sushi & Sake Cafe in Westport. According to the business owner, he wanted to bring his own spin on the growing noodle soup market to the city, with options like pho, ramen and specialty items like curry soup. Curry soup is definitely in high demand here, Kwok said. Other restaurants dont have that because its so hard to get the curry-soup-based ingredients and do it right. Everybody has their pho and ramen noodles. You can go to YouTube or Google to get (a recipe), but with curry to do it right, you have to know the ingredients. The Eat Noodle space has also previously housed Bare Tapas & Vino and Cafe Roma. Like his other restaurants, Kwok said he opted to open Eat Noodle in a smaller space where customers can get a quick bite during their lunch break. In his first week, the Easton resident said his staff cut their customers wait time from a half-hour to within 10 minutes. The goal in coming weeks is to cut that time in half, as well, Kwok said. While he wants the new business to thrive, Kwok said his goal goes beyond financial success. I do want to make money fast, but my biggest interest is I want to see the downtown Bridgeport (area) grow, he said, adding that hed like to see more opportunities for people to shop along with dining out. You want people who live upstairs to head out into the area to eat and drink, and thats the main thing, Kwok added. Then, if you have a shopping area where they can buy a phone or buy clothing or something, we dont need to go to Stamford or we dont need to go to downtown Fairfield or Norwalk. While this is his first restaurant in Bridgeport, Kwok said he wants if business is good to expand and open more lunch-style spots in the city with different themes. But first he wants to create a positive community feel around Eat Noodle. When people come in, I want everyone to know each other, Kwok said. Thats how you create a family-type (place with) a warm feeling. Eat Noodle is open Monday through Wednesday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Thursday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. and Saturdays from 3 to 10 p.m. jordan.grice@hearstmediact.com; Twitter: @JordanEGrice Connecticut native Laura Halzack has been dancing all her life or at least as far back as she can remember. It was at age 4 that Halzack started taking dance lessons, along with my best friend of the time and a whole group of little girls, whose mothers thought it would be a healthy, fun activity, Halzack said in a telephone chat from the Brooklyn, N.Y., home she shares with her husband. As it turned out, my friend dropped out. But I was loving it and took to it naturally, she said, thanks in part to a certain ability to focus on the task at hand and a willingness to share a sense of imagination with others. Halzack, who was raised in Suffield, returns to her home state on Friday, Jan. 26, as a member of the much acclaimed Manhattan-based Paul Taylor Dance Company, performing at the Quick Center for the Arts in Fairfield. On the program will be Roses (1985), Continuum (choreographed by Lila York, 2017), and Piazzolla Caldera (1997), featuring music by Astor Piazzolla and Jerzy Peterburshsky. She will be featured in Continuum, an ensemble piece, and also will dance in the Piazzolla work. Considered by many to be Americas greatest living choreographer, Paul Taylor (born 1930) is a founder and towering icon of Americas indigenous art form of modern dance, said Quick officials in a news release, noting that Taylor is a recipient of the National Medal of the Arts, recognized as a Kennedy Center Honors recipient and won an Emmy award for his achievements in choreography. Before founding his troupe in 1954, Taylor performed in the companies of such dance giants as Merce Cunningham, Martha Graham and George Balanchine. Whether youre a fan of ballet or modern dance, or just curious to dip your toe into the world of dance, this is one company everyone should experience at least once, said the Quick Center. Or as New York Magazine describes the company: One of the most intelligent, stylish, and physically magnificent dance troupes we have. In her quest to develop further as a dancer, Halzack would go on to study at the School of the Hartford Ballet and the Conservatory of Dance at Purchase College. Thinking she might want to eventually go on to get a doctorate ( and become a college professor), she graduated summa cum laude with a degree in American history from the University of New Hampshire in 2003. I quit dancing for about two-and-a-half years during college. I had become so focused on dance that I became burned out. But after college, I realized that I greatly missed dance and so she began the journey back to her first love. She then studied at the Hartt School in Hartford, and at the Taylor Schools 2004 Summer Intensive, followed by two years of study at the Taylor School, before joining the Paul Taylor Dance Company in the summer of 2006, which has grown to 18 members. Halzack said she continues to be energized by Taylors world view: I love the humanity, the human quality and the fluid way his choreography evolves. His works are grounded ... very rooted in the earth. More Information Quick Center for the Arts, Fairfield University, 200 Barlow Road entrance to campus. Friday, Jan. 26, 8 p.m. $50, $40, $30 for center members, $5 Fairfield University students. 203-254-4010, 877-ARTS-396, bit.ly/2FSavzy See More Collapse Taylors philosophy mirrors her own, she said. Dance is part of who I am. I just dont dance; I am a dancer. Movement is in my body and my spirit. pasboros@ctpost.com; Twitter: @PhyllisASBoros Pi: It's a mathematical constant that represents the ratio of a circle's circumference to its diameter. It looks like this: . Archimedes calculated that pi is equivalent to 3.14159....(it goes on for trillions of digits). Bored yet? Well don't be because March 14 (3-14, get it?) is Pi Day, and since you can't eat pi, people celebrate by eating piebe it fruit or pizza. If you find yourself in New Haven or Storrs tomorrow, you can get a good deal on a pizza pie too. LeBron James-backed Blaze Pizza is celebrating by offering $3.14 whole pizzas all day at its Connecticut locations (12 Royce Circle, Storrs and 40 Sargent Dr., New Haven at Jordan's Furniture) Click through the slideshow to see where you can feast this PI Day in southwestern Connecticut. Pie is almost synonymous with "American," but according to the American Pie Council (yes, that exists), it was actually the Romans who invented the dessert. "The first pies were made by early Romans who may have learned about it through the Greeks. These pies were sometimes made in 'reeds' which were used for the sole purpose of holding the filling and not for eating with the filling," the site writes. The first pie recipe was published by the Romans and was for a rye-crusted goat cheese and honey pie. Early English settlers brought pie recipes to America, and the rest is history. Today, approximately $700 million in pies are sold in grocery stores each year, according to the American Pie Council. _____________ The American Pie Council also claims pie preference is indicative of personality. Here are a few examples of what your favorite pie says about you: If you love chocolate pie, you might describe yourself as loving. More of an apple pie person? You may consider yourself independent, realistic and compassionate. Pumpkin pie eaters think they're funny and independent. Those with a proclivity for pecan pie might say they're thoughtful and analytical. MILFORD The Department of Health will conduct an additional flu clinic on Wednesday, Jan. 24, from noon to 5 p.m. at the department, 82 New Haven Avenue. Flu shots will be available at the clinic to people 3 and older. The cost of the flu shot is $20, payable by cash or check. Even though we are already well into the flu season, it is not too late to get your flu shot as there are still several weeks left to this flu season, said Deepa Joseph, city health director. The clinic will also offer Fluzone High Dose for individuals 65 years of age and over. Fluzone High Dose is the first and only influenza vaccine designed for people 65 and older. People in this age group have a higher risk for complications from influenza. The cost of the high-dose flu shot is $40.50, payable by cash or check. The state Department of Public Health announced that this years flu virus has been particularly severe among people aged 65 and older. The Health Department is also encouraging residents to practice good respiratory etiquette to prevent and reduce the spread of flu this season. Precautions such as staying at home when youre sick, covering your mouth and nose when you cough and sneeze, using and properly disposing of tissues, and washing your hands are important measures to help reduce the spread of serious respiratory illnesses. For questions regarding seasonal influenza, please visit the Milford Health Department website at http://www.ci.milford.ct.us/health-department or at 203-783-3285. TRUMBULL Retired teachers took the initiative during a community forum held by state Sen. Marilyn Moore to complain about changes to the Teachers Retirement Fund. Several retired teachers told Moore, D-22nd District, during the Monday gathering that they were not happy that the General Assembly raised their mandatory contribution from 6 to 7 percent and pulled around $19.4 million from the Retirement Funds surplus to help pay for the Medicare Savings Program for Connecticuts seniors. Ive been concerned about the condition of the retirement and the health insurance fund because it appears to me that whenever the state needs money, they use our funds as a slush fund, said Rita McDougald-Campbell, a retired teacher from Trumbull. Moore, whose forum drew about 15 people, defended her vote to re-fund the Medicare Savings Program, which helps low-income seniors and those with disabilities pay for their insurance premiums and prescription medication. Its not that Im not going to take responsibility for it, Moore said. Im there to vote, theres no way I couldve voted against not taking that money when I knew I had 144,000 people in Connecticut who were telling me they werent going to be able to buy medicine, they werent going to pay for their food because they were no longer going to get that check that helps them once a year. After the General Assembly passed the state budget in October, the Department of Social Services notified Medicare Savings Program beneficiaries that some could lose their benefits under new funding guidelines. When complaints flooded into members of the General Assemblys office, lawmakers, including Moore, voted to restore $54.5 million in funding. Included in the new budget was an increase to teachers mandatory contributions to the retirement fund that was expected to create a surplus that could be used to help re-fund the Medicare Savings Plan. Teachers in Connecticut do not receive Social Security benefits. Moore said during the General Assemblys next session, which begins on Feb. 7, one of the discussions they will have is where they can find the money to restore the funds that the teachers had contributed. The 22nd District covers Trumbull and parts of Bridgeport and Monroe. NORWALK Norwalk Community College has been named the 2018 Best Online Two-Year College in Connecticut by AffordableCollegesOnline.org. NCC is ranked first among the states 12 community colleges. ACO is an online resource for higher education information, resources and rankings. Only public, nonprofit institutions were eligible for the ranking. Elle Darby | Youtube Hotel and cafe owner Paul Stenson isnt finished with his public shaming of Instagram and YouTube influencer Elle Darby, a controversy thats been dubbed #BloggerGate. He just invoiced her for the equivalent of $6.5 million. If youre not caught up, on Jan. 16, Stenson posted a screenshot to Facebook of an email Darby had sent him, in which she requested a complimentary stay at his hotel, the Charleville Lodge, in exchange for videos and social media posts shared with her followers. His disdainful post shamed her: Jesus Christ, Stenson wrote, I would never in a million years ask anyone for anything for free. Ar Nest: Truthful. I love Ar Nest reporting. Big Lee: Massively. Were gonna win Big Lee. Barmed: Crashed. Megyn Kelly really barmed last night. Boy Cut: To refuse to take part in. We should boy cut Fake News CNN. Byoo Divul: Lovely. Byoo divul weather all over our great country. Channer: Worlds most populous country. Very disappointed that Channer is allowing oil to go into North Kreeya. Culler Mist: Newspaper commentator. Thank you to all respected culler mists for their powerful writing on furriner fairs. Dis Arn Nest: Untruthful. This news is totally made up by the Dis Arn Nest Me Dya. Dis Gastin: Off-putting. Toadly biassed and dis gastin reporting. Dough Pee: Foolish. The guy who just asked that question is so dough pee. Duzznava Kloo: Ignorant. Global Warming is a fake. David Attenborough duzznava kloo. Fan Das Dik: Extraordinary. General John F. Kelly is doing a fan das dik job. Fay Canoes: Unreliable journalism. So much fay canoes is being reported. Furriner fairs: International relations. Crooked Hillary Clinton knows nothing about furriner fairs. Fin Um Inaw Jub: Excellent work. Steve Bannon is doing a fin um inaw jub. (July 2017) Goo Fee: Stupid. Goo fee Steve Bannon has lost his mind. (December 2017) Grade: Respected, powerful. Maker Merry Ker Grade Agen. Gunner: All set to. Were gunner do grade things. The 45th president of the US is known for his colourful vocabulary Incomtent: Substandard, unskilful. Crooked Hillary hasnt a clue. Shes incomtent. Jaroozum: City in the Middle East. I have determined that it is time to recognised Jaroozum as the capital of Israel. Jub: Task, or job of work. First Lady Mel Arnyer is doon a great jub. Lair Fing: Poking fun. The phony Russian witch-hunt continues. The whole world is lair fing at us. Kreeya: Region in East Asia, divided into North Kreeya and South Kreeya. Lie Twate: Lacking seriousness. Baracker Bammer is a toad hall lie twate. May Kamerry Kagray Tagen: Campaign slogan. Tomorrow its back to work to May Kamerry Kagray Tagen. Milly Tairy: Armed forces: A government shutdown will be devastating to our milly tairy something the Democrats care very little about! More Un: Obtuse person. Im worth billions of dollars, employ thousands of people, and get libelled by More Un bloggers who cant afford a suit! Nobuddy: Nobuddy respects our milly tairy more than me. Nutjub: See More Un. Nutter nice person. Hes a real nutjub. Nutternice person: Unpleasant human being. Crooked Hillary was soundly beaten nutternice person! Obamakehh: Health insurance. So unfair that poor people are getting so much better but paying so much less under Obamakehh. O Vrayded: Assessed too highly. The cast of Hamilton, which I hear is highly o vrayded, should apologise to Mike Pence for their tair bull behavior. But how much of his parlance do you really understand? Sickindy Vidyoos: Mentally unstable people. The guys who claim I am dumb are sickindy vidyoos. Soculled: Inappropriately named. Weve had enough of this soculled climate change. Stoo Pid: See Nutjub. The me dya must think the people are so stoo pid. Strungly: Forcefully. I strungly disagree. Stup: Halt. The only way to stup all this killing is with guns. Tear Bull: Very bad. Crooked Hillary was a tear bull candidate. Toad Hall: Complete. Dealing with fay canoes is a toad hall waste of time. Truss: Believe. Truss me, Ill be the greatest President ever. Umbly Vubble: Incredible. Umbly vubble support in North Carolina last night. Thank you! Vairivairi: Extremely. Once again, fay canoes CNN was vairivairi unfair so were gunner hit them vairivairi hard! Winnuz: Champions. Were nut intrestid in losers, only winnuz! Worrier: Combatant. General Mike Flynn is a brave worrier. Yuge: Exceedingly large. Yuge crowd expected tomorrow night! Yuman Beens: People. Yumorous culler mists are to my mind the most dis arn nest yuman beens on the face of this earth. A popular makeup brand came under attack online after trying to trademark the hashtag and words #MeToo, just days after the social media movement focusing on sexual assault started to trend. The online campaign against abuse and harassment first began to gain traction back in October 2017 and Hard Candy quickly jumped on its coat tails, filing an application for the trademark of #MeToo on October 20, through the U.S. Patent and Trademark database. According to TMZ, the brand wanted to use #MeToo on its own makeup and fragrance products, with many accusing it of trying to 'capitalize on rape culture' for its own commercial gain - however Jerome Falic, CEO of Falic Fashion Group, which owns Hard Candy, insisted that was not the case. Fury: A major beauty brand is being slammed after trying to trademark the hashtag and words #MeToo for its own products not long before several A-list stars made a statement against sexual harassment by wearing all black to the Golden Globes Under fire: Hard Candy has been criticized for the move, with many accusing the brand of trying to capitalize on the powerful movement Falic told TMZ that it wasn't the brand's intention to make money off the back of the anti-sexual harassment movement and instead insisted: 'The company's intention is to give back to women worldwide.' While he initially didn't give anymore information to the site, TMZ did credit a source who said his plan was actually to donate all proceeds of the trademarked products to the #MeToo cause. However that didn't stop people from blasting the brand when the news of the trademark application first came to light on January 17. Immediately following that, Hard Candy faced serious backlash from customers who were so deeply offended, that the company decided to pull the application. Falic then told TMZ, just two days later, that a result of the outrage, which saw Hard Candy accused of trying to 'glamorize, commercialize and capitalize on rape culture', the brand had rethought its plans. Falic added: 'Our objective was to bring greater awareness to this important and long overdue movement.' Meanwhile, the CEO also shared a statement with Teen Vogue, 'As a brand devoted to women since its inception, Hard Candy has and will continue to support womens rights. Capitalizing: After it was announced that Hard Candy had applied for the trademark, the brand received an outpouring of criticism with some saying they were 'capitalizing on rape culture' Time's up: #MeToo lead to celebrities and activists creating the Time's Up movement, (top L-R) activist Tarana Burke, Natalie Portman, Michelle Williams, America Ferrera, Jessica Chastain, Amy Poehler, Meryl Streep, (bottom L-R) activists Ai-jen Poo and Saru Jayaraman 'Hard Candy has always quietly and proudly supported a non-profit organization that directly contributes to many womens causes. 'When the trademark application for #MeToo was filed, one of our objectives was to bring greater awareness to this important and long overdue movement. We planned to donate 100 per cent of all profits arising from this trademark to #MeToo. 'Based on several public responses, we have abandoned the application. We will continue to support the work of this watershed movement and other causes that respect the dignity of women and all people.' Ever since the #MeToo movement was introduced, everything has changed and tons of brave women have been coming out about their sexual assault experiences. The main contenders of the movement are celebrities in particular, who have been going through great lengths to fix the corruption of men in Hollywood. The social media movement of #MeToo, started the snowball effect of publicly denouncing sexual assault allegations and eventually led to the Time's Up movement which is an anti-sexual harassment initiative created by top celebrities. The Time's Up movement was launched by stars such as Shonda Rhimes, Reese Witherspoon, America Ferrera, and Eva Longoria, to name a few. However, the movement officially took off when Hollywood joined together at the 75th Annual Golden Globe Awards and decided to wear all black to show their support of sexual harassment victims. A teacher who starred in the hit show Educating Greater Manchester has admitted she 'wasn't prepared' for the level of poverty she witnessed during a charity trip to Zambia. History teacher Alicia Shanks swapped the modern facilities of Harrop Fold School in Salford for the 'appalling' conditions of Njola East Community School in rural Zambia's Southern District with WaterAid. The Channel 4 star was joined by geography teacher Simon Humphreys on the 'overwhelming' trip which was organised as part of the charity's biggest ever fundraising appeal, Untapped. Alicia and Simon, who had never been further than Benidorm before, learned how accessing clean water and decent toilets was a daily struggle for the locals. Scroll down for video Emotional: Alicia Shanks has admitted she 'wasn't prepared' for the level of poverty she witnessed during a charity trip to Zambia (pictured left, with colleague Simon Humphreys) The two teachers worked alongside Zambian teacher Mwene Susan, gaining hands-on experience into how tough it can be to teach in schools that lack basic hygiene facilities. Njola East School currently has no running water and only two filthy latrines with missing doors shared by over 180 students. The students take it in turns to fetch water from a pump located around half an hour's walk away in the sweltering heat, and are often absent from school through illness. The inadequate toilets regularly mean that the students defecate in the bush which can spread disease, and girls who have reached puberty often skip school during their periods because of the total lack of privacy. Culture shock: History teacher Alicia Shanks swapped the modern facilities of Harrop Fold School in Salford for the much more basic conditions of Njola East Community School Alicia and Simon (pictured), who had never been further than Benidorm before, learned how access to clean water and decent toilets was a daily struggle for the locals Alicia was joined by geography teacher Simon on the 'overwhelming' trip which was organised as part of the charity's biggest ever fundraising appeal, Untapped Following her return to the UK, Alicia said: 'It's just not right that children around the world are routinely missing out on their right to a good education because their school doesn't have basic toilets and taps. 'The students I met at Njola East were often too dehydrated to concentrate in class and constantly tired from the daily burden of collecting water. 'Girls were unable to focus on learning because the school didn't have decent toilets, and it made me feel really angry and emotional when they told me that they were staying home from school during their period and falling behind in class. 'You could see that the indignity and shame felt by the students was damaging their confidence and really affecting their ability to learn.' Educational journey: The two teachers worked alongside Zambian teacher Mwene Susan, gaining hands-on experience into how tough it can be to teach in schools that lack basic hygiene facilities The school has just over 950 students making it a similar size to Educating Greater Manchester's Harrop Fold and now has its own clean water supply and a 20,000 litre solar powered water tank Important cause: WaterAid is working with the school to bring clean water and decent toilets so that children are able to access a better education Simon (centre) said: 'We walked to the pump with the students and really struggled in the sweltering heat - the water was so heavy that I could barely lift the jerry cans that small children carry every day' Fond farewell: On the last day of the visit, Alicia and Simon visited Nabukuyu Community School where WaterAid has already worked with local partners to install water and toilet facilities Sadly, the situation faced by teachers at Njola East School is not unique globally three in ten schools do not have clean water, and one in three schools do not have decent toilets Simon added: 'We walked to the pump with the students and really struggled in the sweltering heat - the water was so heavy that I could barely lift the jerry cans that small children carry every day. 'As a teacher I feel quite humble to have met such dedicated students and teachers whose schools have such challenging conditions.' On the last day of the visit, Alicia and Simon visited Nabukuyu Community School where WaterAid has already worked with local partners to install water and toilet facilities. The school has just over 950 students making it a similar size to Educating Greater Manchester's Harrop Fold and now has its own clean water supply and a 20,000 litre solar powered water tank. The inadequate toilets regularly mean that the students defecate in the bush which can spread disease, and girls who have reached puberty often skip school during their periods because of the total lack of privacy The students take it in turns to fetch water from a pump located around half an hour's walk away in the sweltering heat, and are often absent from school through illness It also has water taps, private flushing toilets and even showers so that girls are able to keep clean during their period. Since having the new facilities, absenteeism is down and academic results have improved. Simon said: 'To see the difference that something as simple as water has made is incredible, the pupils, teachers and the whole community have benefitted from it and it brings real hope for the future.' Sadly, the situation faced by teachers at Njola East School is not unique globally three in ten schools do not have clean water, and one in three schools do not have decent toilets. Tim Wainwright, WaterAid's chief executive, commented: 'Without clean water and decent toilets, children are held back from the education they deserve and are denied the opportunity to break the cycle of poverty. 'By supporting our Untapped appeal, Alicia and Simon are helping WaterAid to raise awareness of the crisis facing so many teachers and students globally. 'The money raised through the appeal will help untapped communities and schools around the world gain access to the basic facilities they so desperately need.' WaterAid is working with the school to bring clean water and decent toilets so that children are able to access a better education. For further information, please go to wateraid.org/uk/untapped A five-year-old girl whose excruciating pain was dismissed by 30 doctors discovered she was actually suffering from a 'Lyme-like disease'. Little Genavieve Jackson, from Canberra, fell seriously ill after she was bitten by a tick at Sydney's North Narrabeen headlands in September 2012. But just two weeks later, the young girl started experiencing flu-like symptoms, including headaches, fatigue, achy muscles, and a sore throat. Speaking to Daily Mail Australia, her mother Marie Huttley-Jackson revealed they were accused of being 'terrible parents' and their daughter was 'faking' her illness. Genavieve Jackson (pictured with her mother Marie) discovered she was suffering from 'Lyme-like disease' 20 months after she was dismissed by 30 different doctors The then-five-year-old girl was taken to hospital when she suffered from excruciating pain 'It was heartbreaking,' Ms Huttley-Jackson said. 'She tried to walk on her sore feet but would just collapse. All these doctors thought she was having this delusion. It was one of the saddest times.' Her condition started to deteriorate within weeks after getting a tick bite. 'She had a tick bite on her right shoulder and my husband just pulled it out. We didn't think anything more than that,' the mother-of-three said. The family met with 30 doctors - but they would misdiagnose her with a different ailment from juvenile arthritis to connecting tissue disorder or dismiss her pain. 'Over 18 months, we went from one doctor to another,' she said. 'It was quite frustrating. She was getting worse and worse. It was terrible, she started off with sore feet, and then she couldn't sleep at night. 'The pain would flare up so she couldn't walk. I was picking her up from school and having to carry her to the car by the hip because she was in a lot of pain. 'There was clearly something wrong with her but no one would help us.' The young girl started experiencing flu-like symptoms, including headaches, fatigue, achy muscles, and a sore throat Her mother Marie said her daughter couldn't sleep at night because of the achy muscles But things took a turn for the worse when Genavieve started experiencing numbness in her face for an entire year and she was also left bed-ridden. 'There was one morning, I patted her cheek trying to wake her up but she wouldn't -that was terrifying,' Ms Huttley-Jackson recalled. 'She was numb in the face for a year. We took her to a neurologist where they stuck a needle in her cheek and she couldn't feel a thing.' 'But they said she was faking it. It was absurd. We had some dark moments. She was even paralysed and we took her to the hospital but doctors couldn't find a reflex.' Far from getting better, the family desperately tried to get their daughter to the hospital on several occasions but Genavieve was repeatedly sent home. WHAT IS LYME DISEASE? Lyme disease is a tick-borne infection caused by bacteria in the Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato group. The first symptom is usually a characteristic pink or red rash that starts as a small red spot that gradually spreads in a much larger circle with a characteristic bulls-eye appearance called erythema migrans. This normally happens between three and 32 days after being bitten by an infected tick. Not everyone with Lyme disease gets the rash. There may also be fever, headaches, tiredness. If left untreated, the Lyme disease infection can spread through the bloodstream and can cause infection in the brain and membranes surrounding the brain and infection in or around the heart. The disease can also cause inflammation of joints and cause joint pain and long-term neurological symptoms Source: NSW Health Advertisement Far from getting better, the family desperately tried to get their daughter to the hospital on several occasions but Genavieve was repeatedly sent home 'We were so worried and getting really desperate because Genavieve was so unwell,' she said. Ms Huttley-Jackson said they were also accused of being 'terrible parents' and their daughter was simply making up the illness. Around 20 months later, one of their friends who is a naturopath suggested their daughter could be suffering from Lyme Disease. But when the family met with doctors in Australia, they told them the disease 'doesn't exist' and they refused to test for it. After googling about the disease, Lyme Disease Association of Australia put the family in touch with US doctors who specialised in the condition. Ms Huttley-Jackson (pictured with her daughter Genavieve and husband Carl) said they were also accused of being 'terrible parents' and their daughter was simply making up the illness Now, five years on, little Genavieve is full of energy after she was prescribed antibiotics Following test results, they discovered the girl was suffering from a Lyme-like illness. As she was placed on antibiotics, Genavieve started showing signs of improvement. Now age 10, she no longer needs her medication. 'She's amazing. There are days where she's a little run down but she no longer has any neuropathological symptoms,' her mother said. 'Genavieve isn't numb anymore, she doesn't get headaches or a sore throat. We're not sure if the bacteria will come back but we keep a close eye on her. 'Since then, she has been really good, and there hasn't been any trouble. She's a lot energetic.' And while their daughter hasn't been officially diagnosed, the family wanted to share their story to raise awareness about the condition. 'We're optimistic but this disease still doesn't have a name so we don't know for sure what's going to happen next,' she said. 'Something has to be done to fix this problem. There are a lot of people in this position but they are too sick to speak out.' A six-year-old New Zealand girl is fighting for her life after doctors discovered a malignant tumor taking up a quarter of her brain that has left her completely blind. Paige Jury-Lynn, of Christchurch, is fighting what her parents have been told are a 'couple of different cancers rolled into one'. The cancer appears to be so rare that the tumour has been sent to Germany for diagnosis. Doctors have only given the young girl a 50 per cent chance to live. But if it wasn't for a visit to a local eye store, Paige may not have even made it to Christmas. Six-year-old Paige Jury-Lynn, of Christchurch, New Zealand, has gone completely blind and is currently fighting both brain and spine cancers In December doctors discovered a malignant tumour that took up three quarters of the right side of her brain (pictured) during an MRI Paige's symptoms began a year and a half ago, when the bubbly girl began to suffer headaches so terrible they would cause her to vomit and scream in pain. Cory Jury, Paige's father, told Daily Mail Australia that the family took her to see a doctor numerous times but were always told she was just suffering from migraines and sent home with vitamins. 'We took her home and treated it as migraine symptoms, but they got worse,' he said. 'She would wake up at night, screaming.' Katrina Jury-Lynn, Paige's mother said she was made to feel like a hypochondriac. She researched her daughter's symptoms online and begun to worry it could be serious. 'She actually asked the doctor "Does Paige have a tumour?" and the doctor said, "No, she's too healthy to have a tumour,'" Cory recalled. On November 28 Paige's condition significantly worsened and Cory, 34, and Katrina, 35, took her to the emergency department at Christchurch Hospital. Paige's symptoms began a year and a half ago, when the bubbly girl began to suffer headaches so terrible they would cause her to vomit and scream in pain Doctors initially prescribed Paige (pictured with her parents Cory and Katrina) with migraines, but her symptoms took a turn for the worse in November She hadn't eaten in two days, wasn't taking fluids, and barely sleeping. Cory said the hospital sent her home after a check-up and gave the family an appointment with a pediatrician the following month. She underwent an emergency life-saving brain operation after the MRI discovered the tumour But just two weeks later Paige was getting even more headaches and started to suffer from eyesight loss. Katrina took her to their local Specsavers, where an optometrist discovered she had a swollen optic nerve. Paige went right back to Christchurch Hospital, where the family immediately got a referral and were booked for an MRI the next day. Two hours later, they were given news that would completely turn their world upside down. The MRI found a tumour that had spread to three quarters of the right side of Paige's brain. There were also two malignant tumours on her spine. Doctors told Cory and Katrina that Paige would only have days to live if she did not have emergency brain surgery, which was done the very next morning. 'If it had been another couple of days to a week later, Paige wouldn't be with us today,' Cory said. 'She would be dead by then.' Paige is currently undergoing a six-week radiation treatment to try and shrink the tumours on her spine Cory said Paige's six brothers and sisters, aged 16 to 11, have been doting on their youngest sibling and are trying to make her life as comfortable as possible After the life-saving operation, Cory received a reminder for Paige's scheduled pediatrician appointment - still weeks away. Paige's brain tumour was sent to Germany following the surgery, and doctors are holding off on chemotherapy until they know the exact diagnosis. She is currently undergoing a six-week radiation treatment to try and shrink the tumours on her spine. Cory said it has been extremely painful watching Paige's condition deteriorate so quickly. Cory said the family are planning to file legal complaints against Paige's doctor and the Canterbury District Health Board 'What parent should have to see their child in so much pain?' he said. 'Seeing how big the tumour was, it's unbearable.' 'If I could take any of the pain she's gone through, I would take it 100 times over and so would a lot of our family members.' 'They're in the same boat as us and going through all of this with us, not knowing if Paige is going to be okay.' Cory said Paige's six brothers and sisters, aged 16 to 11, have been doting on their youngest sibling and are trying to make her life as comfortable as possible. Katrina has also had to leave her job so she can be with Paige at all times. 'My wife doesn't want to leave her side,' he added. 'We nearly lost our daughter. Everything has changed, our whole life has changed.' 'We're taking it day by day, and it hurts a lot. I can't help my daughter.' 'Dads are meant to be tough and protect their children no matter what, and I just can't do that.' Paige's brain tumour was sent to Germany and doctors are holding off on chemotherapy until they know the exact diagnosis. She has been given a 50 per cent chance of survival Cory said that the family has been 'very honest and open' with Paige about what she's going through, but that she's 'still carrying on life as if she's fine'. Relatives have begun a Give A Little fundraiser page for the family, and have already raised more than $7,000 for Paige. Cory said the family are also planning to file legal complaints against Paige's doctor and the Canterbury District Health Board. 'We don't want sympathy, we just want something done,' he said. 'Something needs to be looked at with the health system.' 'I want my daughter's case to be a lesson for the health system to wake up. If the cancer was found over a year ago, Paige's tumour wouldn't be as big as it is.' 'I know it's a misdiagnosis, but something needs to change seriously. It could have been my innocent, poor daughter.' Daily Mail Australia has reached out to the CDHB for comment. Cory said he hopes that, by sharing Paige's story, he can show other people it's okay to push for answers from their doctors. 'With any doctors, if you ever have doubts - don't be scared to get more advice,' he said. 'Don't be scared to ask questions.' A 20-year-old is exposing the dark and dangerous side of social media fame by risking his safety - and the safety of those around him - while pulling dangerous pranks simply to impress his millions of Instagram followers. Supreme Patty, whose real name is Patrick Wallace, has amassed a legion of fans online in recent months thanks to his willingness to flout both logic and laws in the quest to create content that he believes his followers will enjoy. From squeezing lemon juice into his eyes to performing a snowboarding stunt that landed him in the hospital, there seems to be no end to the bizarre activities that Patty, from Daytona, Florida, is willing to partake in - and all, of course, while in front of a camera or smartphone. Scroll down for video Celeb: The latest Instagram star, Supreme Patty, (pictured), posts videos of himself doing disgusting and dangerous pranks Viral: The 20-year-old internet sensation has amassed over two million followers from posting videos of himself smoking things like hot sauce out of a bong, and then drinking the leftovers Dangerous: Born Patrick Wallace, the star's latest stint where he squeezed lemons and limes in his eyes before snowboarding for the second time in his life, landed him in the hospital The SoundCloud rapper is perhaps most well-known for putting random liquids, foods, and items into a bong and then smoking it; thus far he has done everything from hot sauce to milk and Oreo cookies. In one disgusting video, he combined a horrifying mixture of food and medicine, put it into his bong and then inhaled it, before drinking the leftover liquid. 'This is what you got to do if you can't fall asleep from the munchies,' he says in the video as he pours Oreos, milk and NyQuil into a blender and then purees it. Once the gross mixture was liquidized, he poured it into his bong, smoked it, and then without taking a breath, drank the remaining mixture straight from the top of the bong until it was finished. As if that wasn't disgusting enough, he does this quite often; he even poured a bottle of hot sauce into his bong, smoked it, took a sip of from the tiny spout, poured the leftover hot sauce onto chicken wings, and then ate them. But despite these being his most frequent - and perhaps most popular - stunt, smoking random things out of the bong is just one of the many wacky things Patty will do to try and boost his online following. Gross: Patty from Daytona, Florida poured hot sauce into a bong instead of water, smoked it, and then took a sip out of it Medical attention: The social media star also documents his visits to different doctors who treat his acne with different drugs and injections Taking it to another level: In reaction to the viral Tide Pod Challenge, Patty went to a restaurant where he convinced them to serve him spaghetti topped with the detergent capsules Other videos, for example, show him receiving different acne treatments from doctors. This, however, is relatively tame in comparison with some of the more dangerous pranks he pulls, in which he recklessly puts himself in harms way - while also endangering those around him. Supreme was allegedly arrested recently for starting a riot and shutting down Los Angeles, according the description of a YouTube video which shows him being walked to a cop car by an officer. As he is put in handcuffs and lead into a patrol car, the crowd surrounding the scene can be heard chanting, 'Free Supreme Patty!' While in the cop car, his friend is in the back seat with him laughing as he records Patty in cuffs. One recent stunt even landed him in the hospital; on a recent ski trip, Patty filmed himself on the snow, right before he was about to go snowboarding, saying: 'It's only my second time, but this time I'm bringing out the lemons and limes,' as he squeezes both into his eyeballs. The next shot shows him snowboarding down the mountain and crashing into someone because he is unable to see where he is going. When his friend pulls up to the scene, there's blood everywhere surrounding Patty as a ski blade went right through his hand. He had to be taken to the hospital where he had to get 35 stitches in his hand after the stupid incident. Sickening: Patty is perhaps best known for his Bong Water Challenge videos that see him filling a bong with disgusting mixtures that he then smokes and drinks Disgusting: After smoking and sipping the hot sauce, he then poured out the leftover sauce onto chicken wings, and ate it Fame: Supreme Patty has not only landed himself in the hospital, he was also arrested for starting a riot in the middle of Los Angeles Another dangerous prank he pulled featured him and a friend out to eat when they ask the waiter for an order of spaghetti marinara with a side of Tide Pods and a Tide Pod for their water. At the end of the video, when the spaghetti arrives with Tide Pods on top, the camera pans to Patty who takes a big spoonful of spaghetti with a laundry detergent capsule on top, and eats it. The reason for this 'funny' skit is because of the viral Tide Pod Challenge which has teens eating Tide Pods as a joke on video and daring their friends to try it next. While not much is known about Supreme Patty's claim to fame, he did say that one of his videos where he eats three hot dogs in five seconds, got reposted by Orlando Bloom, in an interview for the YouTube series, Before They Were Famous. In the interview he says, 'When I was in the 10th grade, I smoked weed for the first time. Weed is fine, but it led me to hang with the wrong crows and getting into deeper s**t. 'Once I became a senior, I got into more hardcore drugs such as Xanax, cocaine, acid, shrooms, molly, etc,' he continued. He also shared that he had to check into rehab and dropped out of high school just three credits shy of graduation. 'I began to start getting depressed and life was taking a tumble. So bad, that one time I was off about six Xanax and tried committing suicide by jumping off a bridge. Rehab changed me, and it also really hurt my family. 'I felt really bad and hated to see them cry about it. I quit all drugs after that and ended up getting a job for the count, as a lifeguard for Volusia County on the beach,' he shared. Once he got himself a job, he got his GED and said he 'found inspiration from a name generator for his Instagram account' and he also started making the crazy videos because he was broke and had no money. Patty's rise to social media fame comes just as Some of the most popular authors names, including Dr. Seuss, are not actually pronounced the way we all think they are, and most people have been saying them wrong without even knowing it. Prepare to have to your world flipped upside down because popular names in literature that have become so common, are not actually being said correctly. Reader's Digest shared a list of 18 author's names that you think you're saying right, but are actually so wrong and once you see the correct pronunciation, you won't be able to look at their names the same. Dr. Seuss Suess: While majority of people pronounce Dr. Seuss to rhyme with 'Zeus,' the real pronunciation is 'soice,' rhyming with 'voice' The majority of people tend to pronounce Dr. Seuss so that it rhymes with 'Zeus' or 'moose' - however, that is not correct. According to Alexander Liang, a college friend of Dr. Suess, the correct pronunciation is 'Soice,' which rhymes with 'voice.' Liang even created a little poem sharing the correct way to pronounce the author's name: 'You're wrong as the deuce and you shouldn't rejoice, If you're calling him Seuss. He pronounces it Soice or Zoice.' Eventually, after no one could catch on to the real pronunciation, Seuss gave up and just adopted the way everyone said his name. J.K. Rowling Rowling: J.K. Rowling, who's real name is Joanne Rowling, pronounces her name as 'rolling' even though people say 'row-ling' or 'raw-ling' Creator of Harry Potter, J.K. Rowling, who's real name is Jo Rowling, short for Joanne, does not pronounce her name as row-ling or raw-ling. Instead, it's pronounced exactly like the word, 'rolling.' In an interview with The Guardian, J.K. was asked about her names and admitted, 'I answer to both. I can't remember the last time I corrected someone when they said 'row-ling.'' 'In fact, in America, I think everyone thinks I'm J.K. Rowling, so I just answer to both. Rowling is a fairly horrible name anyway,' she said about the real and fake pronunciation of her last name. Roald Dahl Dahl: Roald Dahl, author of Willy Wonka and James and the Giant Peach, is Norwegian and pronounces his first name 'roo-all' not 'rolled' or role' Author Roald Dahl of classic books like Willy Wonka and James and the Giant Peach, has always had a hard name to pronounce. While never quite sure if we were saying it correctly, we didn't think the real pronunciation would be what it actually is. Many people pronounce his name as 'rolled' or 'role,' but actually his name is pronounced 'Roo-all' Dahl, which is a Norwegian pronunciation. He was named after Norwegian polar explorer, Roald Amundsen. Diana Gabaldon Gabaldon: Author of the Outlander series novels, Diana Gabaldon pronounces her name 'gab-uhl-dohn' with a long 'o' but many people pronounce her name to rhyme with 'mastodon' Diana Gabaldon, author of the Outlander series novels, has her name mispronounced all the time, so she took to her website where she cleared up some confusion. Gabaldon is pronounced 'GAB-uhl-dohn,' with a long 'o.' In Spanish it's pronounced 'gav-ahl-DOHN,' still with a long 'o.' It rhymes with 'stone.' She explained why people mispronounce her name. 'For reasons unknown, people from New York City invariably pronounce it to rhyme with "mastodon." One of these days, I'm going to put the accent mark over the "don" that the name probably had when it came from Spain, and see if that helps.' Louis Sachar Sachar: Author of Holes and the series Wayside School, Louis Sacher said that many people struggle with his last name and say 'Satcher' or 'Suh-kar' but it's actually 'sacker' Chuck Palahniuk Palahniuk: One of the hardest names to pronounce is Chuck Palahniuk, author of Fight Club, pronounces his name 'pahl-a-nik' not 'pa-law-nee-uk' Vladimir Nabokov Nabokov: Russian-American author of Lolita, Vladimir Nabokov pronounces his name as 'na-boe-kof,' not 'nah-ba-kof' Ayn Rand Rand: Ayn Rand, author of Atlas Shrugged, who's birth name is, Alisa Zinov'yevna Rosenbaum, says her first name as 'ine', not 'ann', and the correct way should sound like 'mine' Goethe Goethe: German writer, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, can simply be referred to by his last name, which is pronounced correctly as 'gur-tuh' but people say 'goh-thee' or 'go-thuh' Junot Diaz Diaz: While many Latino names starting with a J are pronounced 'hoo,' Pulitzer Prize-winning author from Domincan Republic, Junot Diaz, pronounces his name as 'joo-no dee-as' Jodi Picoult Picoult: Author of My Sister's Keeper, Jodi Picoult pronounces her last name as simply, 'pea-ko' not 'pea-coat' or 'pea-cault' Rick Riordan Riordan: Author of the Percy Jackson series, Rick Riordan pronounces his name as 'rye-ohr-din' not 'rear-din,' or 'ree-ohr-din' Albert Camus Camus: French philosopher and author, Albert Camus, pronounces his name with a silent 't' and its pronounced 'ahl-behr kah-moo' not 'al-bert kam-muss' Jon Sciezska Sciezska: Childrens book author, Jon Sciezska, well known for his Time Warp Trio series, pronounces his last name as 'sheh-ska' not to be confused with 'see-ez-ka' Jorge Luis Borges Borges: Jorge Luis Borges, an author from Argentina, pronounces his last name with a silent 'g' and its said as 'bor-hays' not to be confused with the most common way 'bor-gess' Michael Chabon Chabon: Author and winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Michael Chabon pronounces his last name as 'shay-bun' not 'sha-bone' Rainer Maria Rilke Rilke: Austrian poet and author, Rainer Maria Rilke, born in Prague, pronounced his name as 'rill-kuh' not 'rill-kee' as many people say Annie Proulx American actress Chloe Grace Moretz no doubt believes that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. In her attempt to ingratiate herself with her boyfriend Brooklyn Beckhams mother she has now taken to copying her style. Chloe Grace Moretz (right) was photographed this weekend wearing a blouse with a high collar similar to the one worn by Victoria Beckham (left) last November Chloe, 20, was at a gala dinner in Utah this weekend sporting a blouse with a high collar similar to one worn by Posh at the Harpers Bazaar Women of the Year awards at Claridges last November. Chloe, who has been dating 18-year-old Brooklyn since last summer, also favours wearing clothes designed by Victoria. In December, she wore a pink and white blazer and cropped pants combo from Mrs Beckhams spring collection. With the first day of the new school year fast approaching, parents are scrambling to get their hands on last minute stationery, lunch boxes and uniforms. Thankfully, many retailers are holding excellent Back to School sales where parents can snag a number of essentials like school shoes and pencil cases at discounted prices. So, for those who have exhausted their second hand options and have searched their homes for any leftover stationery or bags from 2017, raiding the sales is the best way to save some extra money ahead of the school year. Here, FEMAIL rounds up some of the best sales in Australia at the moment for school shoes, school bags, lunch boxes, stationery and uniforms. Here, FEMAIL rounds up some of the best sales in Australia at the moment for school shoes, school bags, lunch boxes, stationery and uniforms Get your hands on some Back to School coupons! Groupon is offering a number of deals and coupons on the top back to school brands in the country. Advertisement 1. SCHOOL SHOES Geoffrey Crichton, a podiatrist with more than 27 years' experience and a father of seven kids, recently told School A to Z that expensive shoes are not necessarily better. Instead, parents need to look for three simple things - resistance through the middle of the shoe, a strong heel when squeezed and a flexible shoe at the forefoot. Big W are currently selling school shoes for as little as $12 and higher quality slip-resistant school shoes for between $49 and $59 each. Target is selling lace up shoes for $15, tab shoes for $15 and Mary Jane shoes for $15 and Kmart has shoes starting from just $8.50. These school shoes from Kmart cost just $8.50 and can be ordered online here Amazon Australia is selling a number of popular brands for less including $49.99 New Balance sneakers and $80 leather running shoes. Alternatively, Williams is having a huge back to school with a '1/2 price second pair' offer, 20 per cent off Clarks shoes and prices starting from $49.95 for well known brands. One of the best deals on the site is a pair of Arlo Lynx Blue leather school shoes slashed to $49.95 from $80. The Povel lace up shoes from Target (left) cost just $15 and the Ewan twin tab school shoes (right) cost $20 Tips for buying the perfect backpack * Skip leather and buy a lightweight fabric * Get the smallest size possible * Look for compartments * One packed the bag shouldn't be more than 20 per cent of your child's weight. The ideal weight is no more than 10 per cent. Source: Spine Health Advertisement 2. BACKPACKS Backpacks are on sale in a number of large department stores at the moment, with good quality bags selling for under $50. Target has one of the biggest ranges of backpacks, with prices starting at just $10 for minimalistic pink or navy options. There are also printed, canvas and geometric options for $15 and three piece sets for $20. For $29, parents can snag a black duffle bag great for school sport and for $30, a chic leather look backpack great for the older kids. Kmart has some enormously cheap options as well, including a $4 junior backpack, a $15 three piece backpack that includes a water bottle and pencil case and a five piece backpack for just $20 that also includes a ruler and key ring. This five piece backpack is at Kmart for just $20 and includes a ruler and key ring Brands you may not have thought of that have lunch box deals * Cotton On has some great sales on lunch items, including drink bottles slashed from $12.95 to $5. * Surfstitch is currently offering an extra 30 per cent of all most everything in store including Rip Curl, Volcom, Billabong and Rusty lunch boxes Advertisement 3. LUNCH BOXES With so many options for lunch boxes around, it's important to pick one that is sturdy, nice to look at and, ideally, compartmentalised. Big W currently have $8 lunch box sets for $8 instead of $15, $1 drink bottles and 'food movers' for $10 each. Lime Tree Kids (which offers After Pay on all products) has some excellent deals on the ever-popular bento lunchboxes, with bento cups starting at just $9.95 each. They are also selling the bento boxes from $29.95 - each of them stamped with pastel prints, black and white designs or flamingos. The popular unicorn bento box ($42.95) has five segments and has been designed specifically for children who prefer variety or who are fussy eaters. Woolworths also has an excellent range of lunch boxes and drink bottles (some of them half price), with drink bottles starting from $1.50 and $7.50 bento lunch boxes slashed from $15. Some great deals can be found on Amazon Australia, with a number of drink bottles on sale for under $6. The above lunch boxes from Lime Tree Kids cost just $29.95 each and are perfect for fussy eaters and making lunch time exciting This Rip Curl lunch box from Surfstich costs just $25.99 and has an insulated inner lining This adorable safari themed lunch box costs just $34.95 Canna Campbell's tips for saving money while school shopping Canna Campbell, a top finance expert, shared her top six tips with FEMAIL: 1. Shopping at Officeworks where they can price match and even beat it is great value for money. Plus you can do click and collect which saves heaps of time 2. Always check what you already have a home to avoid doubling up 3. Also consider shopping in bulk as a community with other parents (like using Costco) 4. Be prepared, make a list 5. Consider buying second hand 6. Avoid shopping with the kids Advertisement 4. STATIONERY As always, Officeworks has some excellent Back to School offers at the moment and promises to beat any identical stocked item on a quoted school list at a lower price by 20 per cent. Big W has also launched sales on BIC pens, Artline markers and exercise books - some of which cost just 15 cents each - while Target has cut the costs of a number of their popular products in the lead up to the school season. Notable sales at Target include the Dymo LetraTag for $29 (was $39), a pack of 10 Papermate black pens for $2.50 (was $5) and a pack of 36 Crayola pencils for $9 (was $12). Cotton On is also selling some quirky pencil cases on sale - some of which have been slashed to just $3 from $12.95. Smiggle, which is in the middle of their 'biggest back to school sale yet', is offering 30 per cent off if parents spend $100 and 50 per cent off for a sale of $30 or more. Kmart's range includes $5 diaries, a chic wooden stapler for $5 and stationery collections ranging from rose fold to 'abstraction'. Notable sales at Target include the Dymo LetraTag for $29 (was $39) (left) and the Faber-Castell pack of five pencils costs just $5 (right) Smiggle, which is in the middle of their 'biggest back to school sale yet', is offering 30 per cent off if parents spend $100 and 50 per cent off for a sale of $30 or more One exercise book costs just $1.50 at Big W (left) and the 9x7 book costs just 40 cents 5. UNIFORMS While uniform lists often name items sold only at the school's uniform store, it is possible to buy parts of the uniform like polo shirts, sport uniforms and school skirts or shirts at stores like Kmart, Target and Big W. Big W has slashed the price of their uniform range, with the offering including $10 pants, $8 school skorts and two-pack polo shirts for just $4. Target has some great offers as well - from a pack of three short sleeve school polo shirts for $15 to standard school cargo shorts for just $10. They also have $12 school dresses, which can cost upwards of $100 at the uniform store, $6 white socks and a pack of three unisex school short sleeve shirts for $15. At Target, a three pack of unisex long sleeve polo tops costs $18 and a short sleeve costs $5 The votes are in - Australia's favourite lolly for 2018 is officially blackberry and cream. The purple sweet took out the top spot in the biggest voting competition for confectionery company Allen's. Over 35,000 Australian's cast their ballot to name the flavour of the year, which beat both apple and cream and contemporary flavour yuzu and cream. The votes are in - Australia's favourite lolly for 2018 is officially blackberry and cream The new flavour will be released in a Fruits and Cream packet in February, alongside fan favourites strawberries and cream and peaches and cream. The vote comes a year after sweet-toothed fans cast their votes to have peaches and cream as a standalone lolly. Nestle General Manager of Confectionery, Martin Brown, said the search to find the favourite attracted more entries than ever before. 'What better way to decide on a new Allen's lolly than with the help of the nation! The final addition to the new Allen's Fruits & Cream Mix has been chosen by our fans the never-been-tasted, by the public, Blackberry & Cream is sure to put smiles on faces when it arrives in store next month,' Mr Brown said. The flavour will launch exclusively at Woolworths from mid-February 'We can't wait for our lolly lovers to taste this latest flavour in the Allen's line-up. And no matter how you like to eat your Fruit & Cream fruit or cream first, or all in one go it's sure to be truly delicious.' Blackberry and cream received 64 per cent of the nation's votes, followed by apple and cream with 22 per cent and yuzu and cream with 14 per cent. The flavour will launch exclusively at Woolworths from mid-February. A selfless mother has become a surrogate for a gay couple for the second time, and delivered the baby free of charge in what she describes as a 'BOGOF' deal. Becky Harris, 30, from Suffolk, carried a daughter for two businessmen from the south of England in 2012 and on January 8 she delivered the couple's second baby. Becky is one of Britains youngest, most prolific and altruistic surrogates, and did not charge the terrific dads a penny for carrying their child. Becky Harris gave birth to a baby girl for a gay couple on January 8, and she is the second daughter she has carried for the couple Last night she said: All of my surrogate babies are special, but this little one is unique as she was a gift from me to her two dads. I first gave birth for them five years ago and since then they have become like an extended part of my own family. 'They are terrific dads and so last year, when their daughter told me shed love to have a brother or sister one day, I turned to the dads and said: Would you like me to give you another baby? but this time round I dont want any kind of payment. This is simply a gift from me to you. They were so touched they both burst into tears. The selfless mother-of-one refused to charge the 'fantastic dads' in what she calls a BOGOF baby deal Becky has now given birth to six surrogate children as well as her own son. The care home worker, who is separated from the father of her son Levi, seven, usually asks around 5,000 in expenses to cover transport to-and-from hospital and loss of earnings. But this time round, despite surrogacy laws stating that she is entitled to up to 15,000 in expenses, she asked for nothing. She said: People ask what is my motivation for doing this and for me its about helping someone. This is the sixth surrogate baby that Becky has delivered and her seventh pregnancy in total Becky offered to carry the two fathers' second child after their eldest daughter admitting to wanting a brother or sister of her own. Pictured: The latest baby scan Becky has helped many other couple realise their dreams as parents including Mark and Benita Cutter who fell victim to a surrogacy con. Pictured: Becky with their son Logan Becky (pictured with Logan) approached Mark and Benita with the offer to become their surrogate after reading about their story in the news I also love being pregnant, I find it easy and as a mother I just could not imagine being deprived of having a desperately wanted child. I also have the bonus of having extremely quick labours, although this time round, now Im 30 I am starting to notice that its taking much more of a toll on my body. But after seven babies, and one sad miscarriage, my body has been through a lot. My family joke Im addicted to being pregnant but actually what I do love more than anything is the moment the baby is born. The powerful emotions in the room are just extraordinary, theres often tears, you witness the couples love for their baby as he or she takes their first breaths...and you know you have just created a family. 'Its a wonderful feeling that I just wish could be boxed up so I can experience it every day. There is nothing like it. Becky first became a surrogate in 2010 when she first helped a husband and wife who were unable to have a child of their own. Pictured: Becky with her first surrogacy (left) and her second (right) The mother-of-one says that she loves the feeling of handing over a child to a couple desperate for their own family I have had lots of other couples approach me to have babies for them, offering me my full expenses, but having a baby isnt about transactions its about giving a deserving couple a longed-for and much -loved family. You form a unique bond with the couple you are helping and I enjoy almost every part of being pregnant I dont even get morning sickness which is why I can be pregnant all the time. It doesnt faze me or change me, even my emotions dont change the only side effect I get is baby brain for a few months. For me its about the amazing feeling when you hand over a child to someone who really wants to have a family of their own, and who would not be able to so otherwise. Thats what keeps me going. Becky (pictured pregnant with the fifth surrogate baby) says that while she doesn't consider herself to be the mother of the two fathers's daughters she is happy to be a part of their lives Becky first became a surrogate in 2010 when her son Levi was seven months old when she first helped a husband and wife who were unable to have a child of their own. Becky has also been able to help couples who have been victims of surrogacy fraud. Hull mother Benita Cutter, who was conned by a fake surrogate out of her and her husband Mark's life savings. BECKY'S SEVEN PREGNANCIES Baby one Beckys own son Levi, seven who was born March 2010 Baby 2: A girl for a straight couple, born August 2011 Baby 3: A girl born for gay dads born November 2012 Baby 4: A girl born for a straight couple in June 2014 Baby 5: A boy born to gay dads in July 2015 Baby Six: A little boy born October 2016 Baby Seven: A little girl born on January 8 2018 for the same couple. Advertisement The couple met bogus surrogate Samantha Brown on a magazine forum in 2013, where she posed as a former policewoman who wanted to change someone's life through surrogacy. After agreeing to get pregnant, Brown feigned morning sickness, wore maternity clothes and spoke about antenatal appointments to keep up her pretence during regular meetings with Benita and buildings manager Mark. She faked a car crash, that she claimed killed their unborn child days before the due date. But her lies were later exposed by police when Benita and Mark feared she was lying to keep the baby herself. Detectives discovered, in fact, she'd never even been pregnant. After reading the couple's story in the story in the news Becky approached them and agreed to carry what would be her fifth surrogate child. She went on to then help the two gay dads, who do not wish to be identified. She said: I met the dads on a private surrogacy forum on the internet. I hadnt considered helping a gay couple but they were were warm, sincere and kind and I told my family straight away I really loved them. They left the house after our first meeting and rang me literally two minutes later and said: Wed be honoured if you would have our baby. I fell pregnant at the first attempt with their daughter. From the moment she was born they called me Auntie Becky and I am like an aunt to her. Every single day since her birth they have sent me messages and photos. 'While I dont consider myself to be their daughters mother, Im very happy to be able to share their joy and their experience of fatherhood as she grows up. I truly feel they have all become a part of my extended family. Over the years Ive seen they are such extraordinary dads and their little girl has asked me many times if she have a brother or sister; pretty much every time she sees me. Shes such a sweet little girl how could I refuse. I know they are going to love baby number two, who weighed 7lb 1oz, and looks just like her sister, just as much as number one. At first they insisted they couldnt take advantage of me after what Id already done for them, but agreeing to help them complete their family wasnt about money for me. This was something I wanted to do for them. A student who accidentally swiped left on his Tinder crush has injected the romance back into online dating by going on a university-wide search for his would-be lady love. Hayden Moll, from Missouri, was crushed when he pressed the 'reject' button on the app by mistake, losing sight of a potential match he had set his sights on- only known by her first name. The student quickly went about emailing every Claudia on his Missouri university campus of 23,000, explaining his search in the huge round robin. And his efforts didn't go unrewarded, with his search quickly going viral and finding his crush Claudia Alley. Tinder's Romeo: Hayden Moll, from Missouri, was crushed when he pressed the 'reject' button on the app by mistake, losing sight of a potential match he had set his sights on- only known by her first name Emailing about forty students at the University of Missouri, he wrote: 'Hello all Claudias of Missouri state (I think I may have missed some and if so someone help me). 'First off my name is Hayden and I made a rookie mistake on Tinder. I accidentally swiped left on Claudia's profile (left is bad) and I really wanted to swipe right.' Explaining his search further he continued: 'If Tinder provided last names that would be much easier but it doesn't so I have to describe the profile to you. 'I swiped left on a girl with the name Claudia. The age next to her name was 20 but in her bio it said she was actually 18 but she didn't know how to change it. Tindarella: The student quickly went about emailing every Claudia (pictured) on his Missouri university campus of 23,000, explaining his search in the huge round robin And his efforts didn't go unrewarded, with his search quickly going viral and finding his crush Claudia Alley 'The pictures she provided had some with her friends and her mom in them. In her bio it said some of her friends were single and if anyone liked them better that's fine but they couldn't have her mom (this had me dead btw). 'So like I said I meant to swipe right but that didn't happen. My Instagram is hayden.moll if you want to look me up.' And offering up a date of doughnuts if the correct Claudia was indeed interested, he continued: 'I'm just asking, if this is your profile I described please message me back with 'right' or 'left' just so I know if you're interested or not. 'If you're interested we could totally get some doughnuts or something but if you choose 'left' that's cool too. No worries! 'If it's none of you Claudias and you know even more Claudias spread the word please. It would be very much appreciated. 'Hayden'. 'This guy literally emailed every Claudia at Missouri State to find me on Tinder', Claudia Alley wrote on Twitter alongside the snaps of his search Offering up a date of doughnuts if the correct Claudia was indeed interested, he continued: 'I'm just asking, if this is your profile I described please message me back And the round robin email certainly got the correct Claudia's attention, with the surprised student taking to Twitter to share screengrabs of his efforts. 'This guy literally emailed every Claudia at Missouri State to find me on Tinder', she wrote alongside the snaps. She then shared a shot of her Tinder profile, proving she was indeed the Claudia he had been searching for. Soon afterwards, Hayden replied to her tweet, writing: 'Hey that's me', of his search that has since gone viral. Soon after Claudia shared his search on Twitter, Hayden replied to her tweet, writing: 'Hey that's me', of his search that has since gone viral The round robin email certainly got the correct Claudia's attention, with the surprised student taking to Twitter to share screengrabs of his efforts And followers of the would-be romance soon flocked to Twitter, keen to find out the outcome of the flirtation. 'We need answers. did you message him left of right? did you get doughnuts? are you in love??? would he rather have one of your friends? answers claudia answers!!! (sic)', one follower wrote. Another added: 'Its been four hours and Im stressing out by the fact that I dont know if she swiped left or right,' and a third wrote: 'Did she she email left or right'. But while the duo have both followed each other on Twitter, it is not yet known whether they will go for those doughnuts. Femail has contacted Claudia and Hayden for comment. Followers of the would-be romance soon flocked to Twitter, keen to find out the outcome of the flirtation His debut novel features a depressed heroine, a grisly murder and whip-crack plot twists. But the story of how Oxford-educated author Daniel Mallory, 38, came to write The Woman In The Window is almost as riveting. For Mallory penned the thriller, which has already been hailed as the successor to best-sellers Gone Girl and Girl On The Train, in secret under a nom de plume, all while holding down his day job as a publishing executive. The novel also draws on Mallory's own personal battle with bipolar disorder for its plot. In a matter of months, Mallory, who lives in an apartment in New York's trendy Chelsea neighbourhood, has gone from a respected figure in the publishing world to this year's predicted breakout talent - complete with a seven-figure publishing deal, Hollywood film rights, and a superstar agent in Felicty Blunt, sister of actress Emily. The book went on sale in the US three weeks ago about became the first debut novel in 12 years to enter the New York Times Best Seller List at number one. It is expected to have similar success when it is released in the UK on Thursday. Double life: Daniel Mallory wrote The Woman In The Window in a year of long weekends and nights', using a nom de plume as he was fearful of what his publishing colleagues would think The author, who was born in New York to Wall Street banker John and mother Pamela, studied at Duke University, North Carolina, before taking up postgraduate studies at Oxford University - his 'happiest years' - where he developed a passion for English history and literature. However at the same time Mallory was also battling with mental health issues. They first presented during his final year at Duke, worsened during his time at Oxford, and by the time he took up his role as publisher at British crime publisher Sphere, in London, he was forced to take time off due to the illness. Speaking to Event magazine, Mallory said: 'I struggled from the age of 21. I tried everything drugs, therapy. There were days I couldn't get out of bed. Nothing worked. I'd been misdiagnosed. When I finally got the 'right' doctor he diagnosed bipolar disorder and put me on the correct medication. Bright: The author, who was born in New York to Wall Street banker John and mother Pamela, studied at Duke University, before taking up postgraduate studies at Oxford University Superstar agent: Mallory is represented by Felicity Blunt at Curtis Brown. Pictured, Felicity with husband Stanley Tucci 'Within six weeks I was restored and transformed. It was the summer of 2015 and that's when I started thinking about writing a book. Once I was diagnosed I felt a hell of a lot better and I wanted to give this a shot.... 'People don't necessarily want to read about depression, but they do like thrillers, and I hope I give a sense of what depression is like through my book. Hotly anticipated: Mallory's novel 'There's a stigma surrounding depression, particularly for men. Hopefully this will help get the dialogue going.' The novel tells the story of Dr Anna Fox, a child psychologist living in Manhattan. She spends most of her days downing vast goblets of wine and handfuls of prescription pills while spying on her neighbours through the lens of her Nikon camera - a nod to Hitchcock's Rear Window, a favourite of Mallory's. The rest of the time she bemoans the loss of her husband and eight-year-old daughter and watches countless black-and-white movies: Gaslight, Rebecca, Strangers On A Train. Then she witnesses a murder - or does she? By the time he started writing, Mallory was as senior editor at New York publishing house William Morrow. He wrote the suspense-laden thriller in a year of 'long nights and weekends' under the 'gender neutral' nom de plume A J Finn, fearful of what his publishing colleagues might make of his debut work if they knew. The finished 90,000-word manuscript was sent via his agent to publishers and quickly created a buzz. Best-selling comparisons: Critics have compared The Woman In The Window to The Girl On The Train, which was made into a film starring Emily Blunt (pictured) Last September, the book was put up for auction, with editors locked in a seven-figure worldwide bidding war. In a neat plot twist worthy of a Hollywood film, the winning bid eventually came from the publishing house that had employed Mallory. Critics are already raving and it has impressed Mallory's peers. Stephen King called it 'un-put-down-able'. Gillian Flynn, the author who started it all with Gone Girl, calls it 'astounding and thrilling'. The film rights were bought by Hollywood producer Scott Rudin, who won an Oscar in 2008 for another adaptation of a best-selling novel, Tom McCarthy's No Country For Old Men. Kate Winslet is reportedly in the running for the lead role. Inspiration: Mallory, a lifelong fan of Hitchcock and film noir, drew on Rear Window, starring James Stewart (pictured), for the plot of his much-anticipated debut novel Mallory has now quit his role in publishing and bagged himself his own literary agent, Felicity Blunt, of Curtis Brown. The British agent is married to actor Stanley Tucci. Despite the A-list connections, Mallory insists he does not want to be in the spotlight himself. 'I have some celebrity friends, but I've never wanted to be famous,' he said. While Mallory has said he is 'flattered' with the comparisons to Gone Girl and Girl On The Train, now he just hopes the book lives up to the feverish level of expectation. He added to Event: 'There's always a danger when a book gets so much advanced buzz going that it won't live up to the hype.' Is The Woman in the Window the new The Girl on the Train? The Woman In The Window has been hailed as the successor to The Girl On The Train, the 2015 novel by Paula Hawkins, and Gone Girl, written by Gillian Flynn in 2012. Both were later made into hit films with A-list stars, a path that Mallory also hopes to follow. Here, FEMAIL charts the journey of the other two titles. Gone Girl Written by Gillian Flynn in 2012, Gone Girl is a thriller that centres on Nick Dunne, who becomes the primary suspect in the disappearance of his wife, Amy. The novel quickly made the New York Times Best Sellers List. By the end of 2012, the first draft of a screenplay had been submitted to Fox. The film adaptation, directed by David Fincher and written by Flynn, was released in October 2014, starring Ben Affleck and Rosamund Pike in the central roles. The film was met both with commercial success and widespread critical acclaim. Critical acclaim: The 2014 film adaptation of Gone Girl, starring Ben Afflect and Rosamund Pike Girl On The Train The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins debuted at No. 1 on The New York Times Fiction Best Sellers List in February 2015 and remained in the top position for 13 consecutive weeks, until April 2015. It was met with a warm critical reception and immediately drew favourable comparisons to Gone Girl, due to its similar themes and narrative style. By early March 2015, the novel had sold more than one million copies. It is estimated there had been 15million copies sold by October 2016. DreamWorks Pictures acquired film rights to the book in 2014, months before the book was released. The film adaptation, starring Emily Blunt, was released in October 2016 to mixed reviews. Advertisement The Woman In The Window is published by HarperCollins on Jan 25, priced 12.99. Three women who have been left horrifically scarred in acid attacks and a gas explosion have undergone pioneering surgery to have their faces reconstructed. Fatima Muneer, 45, and Niaz Bano, 53, both from Pakistan, were both doused with acid in unrelated attacks, leaving them scarred for life. Cleaner Zahida Parveen, 24, was badly burned when a gas cylinder exploded in her kitchen, which left her needing reconstructive surgery. All three women, from Karachi and its neighbouring areas, have undergone numerous operations to rebuild their faces - including having a rare eyebrow transplant procedure performed by a leading British surgeon. Dr Asim Shahmalak, who lives in Manchester but travelled to Karachi to perform the procedures for free, said he was playing a 'small part' in surgeons 'phenomenal' efforts to help the women in the wake of their life-altering injuries, by repairing their eyebrows using hair transplanted from the scalp. Grateful Niaz said her new brows felt like the 'last stage of my efforts to rebuild my face'. Niaz Bano, 53, from Pakistan, lost her left eye following an acid attack during a row over her 16-year-old daughter's wedding. She is pictured here before receiving the eyebrow transplant She has undergone eight operations so far to repair the damage, including a rare eyebrow transplant procedure. Niaz is pictured after receiving an eyebrow transplant on both eyebrows Shopkeeper Niaz lost her left eye after a relative hurled acid at her disguised in a cup of tea during a row over her 16-year-old daughter's wedding, and has since undergone eight operations so far in an effort to repair the damage. Mother-of-two Fatima was doused in sulphuric acid during a family feud over money, which left her needing four reconstructive operations. During the attack, she had lifted her arm in an attempt to protect herself and was left with deep scars all over her face, arm and upper body. Cleaner Zahida, who was injured while cooking in her kitchen, was left needing four reconstructive surgeries in order to repair the damage to her face. Fatima Muneer, 45, was doused with sulphuric acid during a family feud over money, leaving her with deep scars. She is pictured here before receiving the eyebrow transplant She has undergone four reconstruction surgeries, including the pioneering eyebrow procedure which gave her a new left eyebrow (pictured after the procedure) The women were given eyebrow transplants as part of their facial reconstructions by British surgeon Dr Asim Shahmalak, who travels regularly to Pakistan to treat women who have been the victims of acid attacks. He is one of only nine surgeons in the world qualified to carry out the eyebrow procedure. Dr Shahmalak, who runs Crown Clinic in Manchester where he is best known for carrying out hair transplants on celebrities such as Calum Best, used hair taken from the scalp in order to rebuild the women's eyebrows. The father-of-two described how he 'wept' when he heard the stories of the acid attack victims, who he treated at a hospital in Karachi. Cleaner Zahida Parveen, 24, was badly burned by a gas cylinder that exploded in her kitchen. She is pictured here before receiving the eyebrow transplant She has undergone four operations to reconstruct her face. She is pictured here after undergoing a procedure on her left eyebrow 'Fatima was incredibly brave and tried to protect herself as the attack took place,' he said. 'She was doused with a lot of powerful acid and her injuries went right up her arm and over her upper body. 'Surgeons have done a phenomenal job performing grafts on her arm and returning her face to normality.' He continued: 'I played a small part by providing her with a new left eyebrow to replace hair lost on her brow in the attack. British surgeon Asim Shahmalak is seen taking hair from Fatima's scalp for the procedure The doctor is pictured performing the pioneering procedure on Zahida's left eyebrow 'I took hair from the back of her head and replanted it in the gaps in her eyebrow. 'This new transplanted hair will grow back in the same way as her head hair so she will need to trim it every now again when the eyebrow transplant beds in. 'But in a few months the damaged brow will be completely repaired.' Speaking about the recovery of Niaz, he added: 'Niaz's face has been transformed by the surgery. She has bounced back brilliantly from the attacks and now runs a successful grocery store [not far] from her home. Niaz, pictured before she was attacked with acid, lost her left eye after a relative hurled acid at her disguised in a cup of tea Fatima, pictured before the attack, had lifted her arm in an attempt to protect herself and was left her with deep scars all over her face, arm and upper body Zahida, pictured as a little girl with her father, was left badly burned following the accident in her kitchen 'I gave some symmetry to her face by performing transplants on both eyebrows. The new hair will grow back in her brows in the next few months and the bald patches will be gone.' Following the procedure, Fatima said: 'I cannot thank Dr Shahmalak enough. I've been very lucky to have been helped by such a wonderful team of surgeons and I am really getting back on my feet. 'I love my new eyebrow and I cannot wait to see it grow back.' Niaz, who had her eyebrows repaired using hair transplanted from her scalp, added: 'I love my new brows and this feels like the last stage of my the efforts to rebuild my face. Fatima has undergone four operations to reconstruct her face. She is pictured here before receiving the eyebrow transplant The mother-of-two was left with scarring on her arm, which she had lifted in a bid to protect her body 'Thank you to Dr Shahmalak and the all the surgeons who have helped me.' Dr Shahmalak, who lives with his doctor wife Rubina in Cheadle, Manchester, also provided Zahida with a new left eyebrow. The trip to Karachi was the third time Dr Shahmalak has performed surgery for free on acid attacks victims. He was introduced to the women by the Karachi-based charity Depilex Smileagain Foundation, whose founder Masarrat Misbah has worked tirelessly to help victims of acid attacks. The charity not only finds surgeons like Dr Shahmalak to perform surgery for free, but also helps to secure jobs for the women afterwards Dr Shahmalak used hair taken from the scalp in order to rebuild the eyebrows. He is seen extracting donor hair from the back of the scalp The surgeon, who lives in Manchester, regularly travels to Pakistan to help treat victims of acid attacks We're just a few weeks into 2018, but it's already been a busy year for Queen Letizia of Spain. The 45-year-old has been snapped at a number of formal engagements so far this January, and on Tuesday she welcomed representatives of a charity to a reception at Madrid's Zarzuela Palace. Chic as ever, Letizia looked perfectly put together in a cream silk blouse tucked into a pair of high-waisted cropped trousers. Scroll down for video Queen Letizia continued to put on a regal appearance with the representatives of the deaf persons association (FASOCIDE) at Zarzuela Palace in Madrid on Tuesday The former journalist was meeting with representatives of the Spanish Federation of Associations of Deaf and Blind People. Opting for a silky shirt with a pleated effect, Letizia had tucked it into her smart trousers, accentuating her slender waist. She completed the outfit with a pair of chunky brown heels. Wearing her hair in its trademark glossy style, she added a hint of sparkle with a pair of cluster earrings. Letizia, 45, put on an elegant appearance in business chic attire, making the most of her enviable proportions Opting for a crisp white shirt with ruffled neckline, Letizia showed off her slender waistline Accentuating it further, she teamed it with a pair of high waist taupe trousers, elongating her stature with chunky heels Letizia met with charity workers from FASOCIDE, the Spanish Federation of Associations of Deafblind People, which represent the rights of deaf and blind people. The organisation's website describes itself as assuming 'the representation and defense of the rights and interests of Deafblind people to Governments and other public and private institutions.' Letizia has already had a busy month of royal engagements, having started the year by attending the Victims of Terrorism Foundation Awards to hand out trophies for those affected by the Barcelona terror attacks in August 2017. Letizia wore her brunette locks sleek around her shoulders as she greeted people at the event Letizia met with FASOCIDE, the Spanish Federation of Associations of Deafblind People, who represent the rights of deaf and blind people On the morning of August 17, Younes Abouyaaqoub, 22, drove a van into the busy La Rambla in the Spanish city killing 14 people and injuring 130 others. Hours later, a car attack in the seaside town of Cambrils killed another person early Friday Just hours after the attack Letizia and Felipe travelled to the city where lead tributes to the victims as well as visiting survivors in hospital. Former journalist Letizia shares children Leonor, 12, and Sofia, 10, with King Felipe VI, 49, who she married in 2004. The royal appeared relaxed as she met with the members in the palace on Tuesday He made headlines when he debuted his newly-shorn head at an engagement last week. But it appears Prince William might already be having second thoughts about his dramatic new look. The Duke of Cambridge, 35, was spotted sporting longer and thicker hair on his sides at a public engagement today, in a sign he might let the style grow out slightly. Award-winning celebrity hairdresser Jason Collier said it is 'not surprising' William could be having regrets over his bold new look, explaining that buzzcuts are a deceptively high-maintenance style. Growing out? Prince William's hair appeared noticeably thicker at an event in London today Shorter style: The prince, 35, debuted his closely shaved look at an event last Thursday Speaking to FEMAIL, Jason said: 'It does look like hes leaving it to grow out slightly its much thicker around the sides, and the hair is growing back at the top of his scalp, where his most prominent hair loss is. 'The buzzcut is a dramatic look and can take a little while to get used to, so its not surprising that HRH might be leaving the look to soften a little, especially with all of the attention its gathered. How often should Wills trim his buzzcut? Award-winning celebrity hairdresser Jason Collier warned: 'A buzz-cut requires weekly trims to keep it short and sharp, if thats the look youre aiming for. 'A grown-out buzz cut can easily look a little out of control and its very noticeable.' Such a short cut also requires additional scalp maintenance. Men's grooming experts at GQ also recommend choosing a gentle, skincare focused shampoo that won't strip away the oil and natural goodness from the scalp. In the same way that facial skin needs to be moisturise, men with buzz cuts should also ensure they moisturise their scalp to reduce dryness. Suncream is also essential wear for those with very short hair, or they risk being left with a painful burnt scalp. Lloyd Hughes, Creative Director and Lead Educator at mens grooming brand men-u, added: 'Additionally, keeping hair so short actually has good benefits for the scalp, having so little hair on top helps to keep the scalp clean and healthy.' Advertisement 'A buzz cut is often seen as a low-maintenance, quick-fix kind of haircut, but in reality it takes a lot of work to keep it looking sharp and fresh.' Jason, who posts about his work on Instagram, added that buzzcuts ideally need to be trimmed every week or risk looking 'out of control'. For those looking to copy William's look, he advised: 'Book in at a salon for the initial buzz, to find a length that suits, but after that, this is a look that you can easily keep on top of at home.' Lloyd Hughes, Creative Director and Lead Educator at mens grooming brand men-u, agreed: 'I'd recommend visiting a stylist one every couple of weeks to ensure all is kept in order and the style doesnt start to over-grow. It is key to keep a masculine look to the cut, with the back and sides cut shorter than the hair on top where possible. Ideally, a number 2, on top, and a 1.5 on the sides. This will help to maintain the appearance of a styled haircut, rather than an all over buzz cut.' Ross Charles, Owner of Ross Charles Hairdressing, said William should consider investing in some at-home grooming products if he wants to keep the look. He said: 'The precision with this style must also be considered as it looks best when it is clean and exact, therefore it is usually recommended to have a set of clippers at home to keep the sideburns, over the ear and nape of the neck neat between appointments.' The third-in-line to the throne, whose hairline has been receding for several years, decided to brave the shave ahead of his visit to the Evelina London Children's Hospital on Thursday last week. Prince Harry has been known to tease his older brother about losing his locks; while chatting to a Second World War veteran in Barbados several years ago, Harry remarked that William 'was already bald aged 12'. The Duke of Cambridge spoke today at the Charity Commision's annual public meeting. His hair appeared noticeably longer at the sides, according to hairdresser Jason Collier William, pictured today, might be having regrets over the dramatically different length, according to an expert. Buzzcuts also require regular maintenance to stay looking fresh Bookmakers William Hill are now offering odds of 6/4 that William will go for a totally shaved head for Harry's wedding. Although the odds are 1/2 that he will stick with his new buzz cut, punters can also place bets on whether the future king will have a hair transplant, with odds of 16/1. Speaking at the event today, Prince William told how his parents taught him about the importance of charity work while he was growing up. Outlining the royal family's deep dedication to charity work, William said: 'My family have not done this because it looks good - they do it because charity is not an optional extra in society. Prince William showed off his new, shorter cut at an event in London last Thursday, pictured 'We believe that, above anything else, charities nurture, repair, build and sustain our society. Without the work that charities do, society would be an empty shell.' He spoke of how his mother Diana, Princess of Wales famously took him to homeless shelters as a child and explained to him 'why people I met there matter'. But he also said of the Prince of Wales: 'From my father, I learned how central charity was to his life, his sense of purpose. William - who is set to become a father for a third time - made his way through the sealife-themed ground floor of the building, greeting and speaking to children and their parents 'The Prince's Trust is not an arms-length organisation for my father. He cares deeply about The Prince's Trust because it is a living projection of his values.' The Duke also paid tribute to his grandparents, the Duke of Edinburgh and the Queen. 'My grandfather Prince Philip has been one of the most tireless public servants of this country, deeply committed to helping young people fulfil their potential,' he said. 'My grandmother the Queen has never given a Christmas broadcast without paying tribute to charitable organisations, volunteers and people who care for others.' Russian fashion designer Ulyana Sergeenko is facing backlash for using a racial slur in a note sent to lifestyle blogger Miroslava Duma. The card, which reads: 'To my n****s in Paris, was shared on Duma's Instagram Story on Monday evening, prompting backlash for both of the women neither of whom are black. Sergeenko's message on the note is a reference to Kanye West and Jay-Z's song of the same name, as well as a nod to Duma attending her couture show in Paris on Tuesday. Controversy: Designer Ulyana Sergeenko (left) is facing backlash for sending lifestyle blogger Miroslava Duma (right) a card that she addressed: 'To my n****s in Paris' Bad choice: Sergeenko's message on the note is a reference to Kanye West and Jay-Z's song of the same name, as well as a nod to Duma attending her couture show in Paris on Tuesday Many are appalled that the fashion insiders casually use the N-word, while others couldn't believe Duma would actually post a photo of the offensive message. Sergeenko wrote a lengthy apology, which she posted on Instagram Tuesday, but her attempt to excuse her behavior by saying she is a huge Kanye West fan made people even more outraged. 'I was born in a small town in East Kazakhstan, my daughter is half Armenian, I have never divided people on white or black,' she wrote. 'Kanye West is one of my favorite musicians, and NP is one of my most favorite songs.' The designer went on to admit that she and her friends do call each other the N-word from time to time, but she insists they are just trying to be like the song's rappers. Offensive: The designer admitted to casually calling her friend the N-word 'sometimes.' Sergeenko and Duma are pictured at Paris Fashion Week in 2016 Excuse? In her Instagram apology, Sergeenko explained that Kanye West is her 'favorite musician' 'And yes, we call each other the N word sometimes when we want to believe that we are just as cool as these guys who sing it,' she continued. I am deeply sorry to everyone whom I might have offended. 'Mira is a dear friend and even the fact that she so naively posted my private card to her on her social means that we meant nothing wrong and didn't realize the consequences. 'I have certainly learned my lesson and I am grateful for it. There is enough anger in the world out there, please, can we stop it here?' she ended the apology. Sergeenko's casual use of the N-word and her lame apology prompted a response from numerous people in the fashion industry. Unacceptable: Fashion photographer Ed Kavishe shared a screenshot of Sergeenko's note while slamming the fashion insiders for their use of the racial slur Outraged by her words: Many were appalled by the designer's attempt at an apology 'Makes my blood boil': Callia A. Hargove, a social media editor at Teen Vogue, tweeted her disgust 'Of course she's not Racist!' Fashion blogger Bryanboy also took to Twitter to slam Sergeenko's apology Outcry: Shelton Boyd called for fashion editors to boycott Sergeenko's couture show in Paris on Tuesday Fashion photographer Ed Kavishe shared a screenshot of Sergeenko's note to Duma on Instagram, writing: 'What planet would you think this was acceptable language and behavior? You don't get to use these words ever.' He later posted Sergeenko's apology, adding: 'Here is Apology Number one from @ulyanasergeenko "Kanye West is one of my favorite Musicians" #SoImnotaRacist - Not sure what's more pathetic the original post or this pile of vomit apology.' Callia A. Hargove, a social media editor at Teen Vogue, tweeted: 'This DISGUSTS me. To see Mira post something on IG so casually using this racial slur, and then have Ulyana defend the usage with such a bs excuse makes my blood boil. 'So tired of "fashion girls" thinking that listening to one rap song gives them the right.' Shaking her head: One person couldn't get over the fact that the designer said she uses the N-word 'to be cool like Kanye' No excuses: Phillip Picardi pointed out that Sergeenko and Duma are both 'cultured, educated, extremely wealthy citizens of the world' 'In light of Ulyana's soggy apology': Writer Marjon Carlos insisted 'there have to be repercussions for behavior like this' Too late? Duma also apologized for sharing the 'utterly offensive' language in her 'regrettable Instagram story' Fashion blogger Bryanboy also took to Twitter to slam Sergeenko's apology. 'So Lena Dunham definitely wrote Ulyanas apology letter! Of course shes not Racist, Kanye West is her favorite musician!' he wrote, later tweeting: 'I love rich Caucasian woman privilege! I mean.' Later on Tuesday, Duma released her own apology on her Instagram page. 'I sincerely apologize for my regrettable Instagram story that went out,' she wrote. 'The phrase references is from a Kanye West and Jay-Z song by the same title. The word is utterly offensive, and I regret promoting it and am very sorry. 'I deeply respect people from all backgrounds and detest racism or discrimination of any kind,' she added. 'My organizations and I are committed to our core values of inclusion and diversity.' She has walked the runway for the likes of Dolce & Gabbana, and today Lady Amelia Windsor showcased her style credentials once again at Paris Fashion Week. The Duke of Kent's granddaughter, who is signed with Storm modelling agency, was spotted in a chic black ensemble at the Giorgio Armani Prive Haute Couture Spring Summer 2018 show. The 22-year-old Edinburgh University student turned fashion muse donned a textured black jacket and wide-legged trousers as she rubbed shoulders with fashion legend Roberta Armani, the niece of the legendary designer. Amelia, who was dubbed Britain's 'most beautiful royal' by society bible Tatler, added a subtle pop of colour to her look with a pair of scarlet heels and matching chain handbag. Scroll down for video Royally good style: Amelia was spotted in a chic black ensemble at the Giorgio Armani Prive Haute Couture Spring Summer 2018 show (pictured with Roberta Armani) Lady Amelia has been making increasingly frequent appearances at fashion parties since being snapped up by Dolce & Gabbana to appear in a campaign. She made a show-stopping appearance at the British Fashion Awards last month, wearing a sheer lace gown. The granddaughter of the Queen's cousin attended many high profile catwalk shows in 2017, and has also walked the runway numerous times herself. Since that appearance on the BFA red carpet, industry experts have tipped her as having the potential to earn herself 1 million through brand collaborations over 2018. Colour blocking: Amelia, who was dubbed the world's 'most beautiful royal' by society bible Tatler, added a subtle pop of colour to her look with a pair of scarlet heels and chain handbag Fashion Week ready: The 22-year-old Edinburgh University student turned fashion muse donned a textured black jacket and wide-legged trousers for the star-studded runway show Branding expert Chris Ogle, of Flow Digital, told Femail: 'Realistically, should she choose to monetise her value through brand endorsements, she would be able to earn around 1m per year without too much difficulty.' As well as modelling for Dolce & Gabbana, Amelia is now represented by the same modelling agency as original supermodel, Kate Moss. After a relaxing Christmas break and a host of New Year celebrations, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark has wasted no time getting back to her official royal duties. And on Tuesday, the 45-year-old arrived in Strasbourg, France to speak at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. The effortlessly elegant royal donned one of her favourite Sixties-inspired dresses for the occasion - a tailored tweed number thought to be from Prada. Scroll down for video On Tuesday, Crown Princess Mary of Denmark arrived in Strasbourg, France to speak at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe The effortlessly elegant royal donned one of her favourite Sixties-inspired dresses for the occasion - a tailored tweed number thought to be from Prada The Princess has worn the dress to several events previously including a gathering at the Copenhagen Business School in 2017, the Women's Board Awards in 2016 and an event at the International Criminal Court in 2015. True to her sartorial style, Mary kept it minimal with her accessories and accessorised the form-fitting frock with a pair of diamond earrings and a pair of beige pumps. Soon after her arrival in Strasbourg, Mary participated in a number of meetings before addressing the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, which is under Danish presidency until May 2018. Princess Mary wore the same dress during a visit to the International Criminal Court in The Hague, The Netherlands, in 2015 (left) and to the Copenhagen Business School in 2017 (right) The royal also wore the dress to the Women's Board Awards in 2016 The visit was one close to the royal's heart, with gathering focusing heavily on supporting work on the protection of human rights, gender equality and democracy. 'Human rights are the basic rights and freedom that belong to every person in the world from birth until death,' Princess Mary said in her address. 'They apply regardless of where you are from, what you believe or how you choose to live your life. Soon after her arrival in Strasbourg, Mary participated in a number of meetings before addressing the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly, which is under Danish presidency until May 2018 The visit was one close to the royal's heart, with gathering focusing heavily on supporting work on the protection of human rights, gender equality and democracy 'As a nation we have seen first hand that gender equality is a prerequisite for economic growth, welfare, social cohesion and the freedom and opportunities of the individual. 'And although much has been achieved, we also recognise that we have much to achieve. 'Violence against women is one of the strongest manifestations of gender inequality and is one of the areas which the Council of Europe has raised the bar.' 'Violence against women is one of the strongest manifestations of gender inequality and is one of the areas which the Council of Europe has raised the bar,' she said The mother-of-four concluded by asking for a world that is 'more equal, fair and one that holds a sustainable and brighter future for us all' The mother-of-four concluded by asking for a world that is 'more equal, fair and one that holds a sustainable and brighter future for us all'. Princess Mary has worked tirelessly to prove her commitment to human rights - from fighting for women's equality on the world stage to working with the World Health Organisation and United Nations. She has been a near constant presence in Denmark and abroad as she carries out royal duties and serves as patron for some 25 international organisations. These include the World Health Organisation Regional Office for Europe and the United Nations Population Fund, where she supports their work to promote maternal health in more than 150 developing nations. As the week inches closer to Australia Day, bars and restaurants across the country are coming up with unique ways to give everything a special a Aussie touch. But one Mexican restaurant in Sydney has unveiled something truly unexpected - a margarita made out of Tim Tam biscuits. El Camino Cantina revealed their $16 Tim Tam Margarita this week, a surprising concoction that blends a raspberry margarita with the biscuit's mint flavour. Sydney Mexican restaurant El Camino Cantina is offering up a Tim Tam Margarita in honour of Australia Day Maksim Babajev, El Camino's assistant restaurant manager, told Daily Mail Australia that he wanted to create something 'unique and symbolic' for the holiday. 'Tim Tams have a cult following, as do our margaritas,' he said. 'So, we decided to try and combine the two. It turned out to be the perfect marriage.' 'Our Tim Tam Margarita is a celebration of all things Australian: Australian tastes, an Australian icon, and Aussie humour. It's the perfect way to celebrate Australia Day.' To create the margarita, El Camino's staff blended mint-flavoured Tim Tams into their Raspberry Margarita. Each drink is also served with a mint flavoured Tim Tam as a garnish. 'The reason I picked these flavours is that raspberry naturally pairs very well with chocolate and mint,' Babajev explained. To create the margarita, El Camino's staff blended mint-flavoured Tim Tams into their Raspberry Margarita. Each drink is also served with a mint flavoured Tim Tam as a garnish Fratelli Fresh is also offering up an Australia Day special with Vegemite Pizza this weekend 'The drink is a good balance between sweet and sour: the sweetness of the chocolate, the tart-sweetness of the raspberry, and sour notes from the lime juice.' 'The Tim Tam flavours do not overpower the Raspberry Margarita. It's just a lovely margarita with an Aussie twist.' Babajev said the dessert cocktail is perfect on its own or a sweet way to end a meal. If you're looking to keep the Aussie theme going throughout the day, Fratelli Fresh is also offering an Australia Day special. The Italian chain - which, like El Camino, is owned by the Rockpool Dining Group - is serving up Vegemite pizzas on Friday. Fratelli Fresh will be selling the $16 pizzas at all seven of its Sydney locations from January 22 to January 28. The pizza features a crust smeared with Vegemite and topped with both smoked and buffalo mozzarella cheeses. With Valentine's Day just weeks away, couples everywhere are scrambling to find the perfect chocolate or perfume for their beau. But one Australian company has brewed up a perfect alternative for the partner who would prefer beer any day to another box of chocolates. BoozeBud has released the Valen-Tinnies Gift Box, a case of 16 craft beers that have been hand-picked to please any beer lover. No need to fear if your partner hates chocolate but loves beer. This Valentine's Day BoozeBud is offering the Valen-Tinnies Gift Box - complete with 16 cans There is a wide variety of beers in BoozeBud's box, which includes a range of styles including Pale Ales, Lagers, IPAs, and Summer Ales The box costs $69.69 and is specially gift-wrapped. It even comes with a card asking 'Will you beer my valentine?' There is a wide variety of beers in BoozeBud's box, which includes a range of styles including Pale Ales, Lagers, IPAs, and Summer Ales. A variety of brands, both Australian and international, have been selected - with Dog Days, the Drunken Trumpet, Dead Pony Club, and War Hog among the mix. BoozeBud's Valen-Tinnies Gift Box can be purchased online or from its app, and delivers anywhere in Australia. For the partners who'd rather take a shot of tequila instead of a couple of pints, you can get gorgeous shot glasses made from pink Himalayan salt If your partner prefers tequila to brewskis, upgrade their shots with glasses crafted from pink Himalayan salt. The glasses, which are sold in a variety of online retailers including John Lewis, are hand carved from the natural pink rock salt mined from the famous Asia mountain range. Whiskey rocks can help your beau keep their drink cool without the dilution from melting ice cubes Since each glass is naturally made out of salt, you can eliminate one step in the tequila shot process and look far classier doing it. If your bae prefers whiskey instead, you can still upgrade their drink of choice with the help of some rocks by Avanti. There will be no hearts of stone on Valentines Day except in their drink. These $18 non-porous soap stone rocks help keep whiskey cool without the dilution from melting ice cubes. For the couple that sips on G&Ts and look good doing it theres a classy way to show a dedication to your partnership and favourite drink. The Oak & Rope Company is offering $140 custom Gin & Tonic boards, made from solid oak inscribed with you and your beaus initials, where you can cut your lemons and garnishes. Vermont became the the ninth state in the US to legalize recreational marijuana on Monday. Governor Phil Scott privately signed Vermont's marijuana bill into law, making the state the first in the country to authorize the recreational use of the substance by an act of a state legislature. The law, which goes into effect July 1, allows adults to possess up to one ounce of marijuana, two mature and four immature plants. 'Today, with mixed emotions, I have signed' the bill, Governor Scott said. 'I personally believe that what adults do behind closed doors and on private property is their choice, so long as it does not negatively impact the health and safety of others, especially children,' he added. Vermont has become the ninth state to make it legal to buy and use marijuana recreationally. Medical marijuana is legal in an additional 28 states and Washington, DC WHERE MARIJUANA IS LEGAL IN THE US Medical marijuana states: Arizona Arkansas Connecticut Delaware Florida Hawaii Illinois Maryland Michigan Minnesota Montana New Hampshire New Mexico New Jersey New York North Dakota Ohio Pennsylvania Rhode Island Washington DC West Virginia Recreational marijuana states: Alaska California Colorado Maine Massachusetts Nevada Oregon Vermont Washington Advertisement The Republican governor had until the end of the day Monday to sign the bill. His office issued a statement Monday afternoon saying he had signed the bill. Marijuana is legal in a total of 29 states. The state's law contains no mechanism for the taxation or sale of marijuana, although the legislature is expected to develop such a system. A group that opposed legalizing marijuana sees the law as a compromise since it doesn't provide for selling the drug. The group, Smart Approaches to Marijuana, or SAM, said it will continue to educate Vermonters 'on the dangers that legalization poses to their beautiful state.' While the bill was under consideration, a number of doctors from the Vermont Medical Society wrote a resolution calling for better labeling on medical marijuana and urging caution about its recreational use and the risks it could pose to children. Last year saw the first reported marijuana overdose. A baby in Colorado died of heart failure and doctors said they were unable to find a cause besides the marijuana edibles the infant ingested. As an early adopter, Colorado has served as a bellwether for the impact of legal recreational marijuana on public health. While the state has seen more traffic accidents since legalization, opioid overdoses have decreased. Yet research has shown the positive effects of marijuana for many, including cancer patients and people with mental illnesses, and still other work has claimed it poses no health risks. James MacWilliams prunes a marijuana plant that he is growing indoors in Portland, Maine on December 13, 2017. With the legalization of recreational marijuana in Vermont on Monday, residents there will be able to own two mature plants beginning July 1 (file image) Vermont's move is an incremental reform that will have little impact for most people in the state, said Matt Simon, New England political director for the pro-legalization Marijuana Policy Project. 'I think the vast majority of Vermonters won't notice any change at all,' Simon said. 'It's simply eliminating a fine and eliminating a penalty for growing a small number of plants.' The new law is unlikely to prompt people who don't now smoke marijuana to take it up, said Robert Sand, a professor at the Vermont Law School and former county prosecutor who has advocated for years to change the state's drug laws. The differences between THC and CBD Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) are both derived from the cannabis plant. Together, they are part of the cannabinoid group of compounds found in hashish, hash oil, and most strains of marijuana. THC is the psychoactive compound responsible for the euphoric, 'high' feeling often associated with marijuana. THC interacts with CB1 receptors in the central nervous system and brain and creates the sensations of euphoria and anxiety. CBD does not fit these receptors well, and actually decreases the effects of THC, and is not psychoactive. CBD is thought to help reduce anxiety and inflammation. Advertisement 'There will be times when people misuse marijuana, and opponents will cite the incidents as evidence that legalization was not a good thing,' he said. 'I believe we will end up with a net improvement of public health and safety even though I recognize there will be some bad outcomes,' Sand said. The Vermont Legislature passed a similar proposal last spring, but Scott vetoed it, citing practical concerns. Lawmakers revised the proposal to do more to protect children and enhance highway safety. The new law comes at a time of uncertainty fueled by the federal government. Attorney General Jeff Sessions two weeks ago rescinded an Obama-era leniency policy that kept federal authorities from cracking down in states that have declared the drug legal. Recreational use of marijuana already has passed in Maine and Massachusetts, and both states are awaiting the implementation of systems to tax and regulate marijuana. New Hampshire's House gave preliminary approval to a bill earlier this month that would allow adults to possess up to one ounce of marijuana and to cultivate it in limited quantities, even though a commission studying the issue won't finish its work until next fall. Vermont's governor said last week he would decline to hold a bill signing ceremony for the new law because 'some people don't feel that this is a momentous occasion.' If you're wondering what you can possibly do for your partner when they're in excruciating pain, just holding their hand could be enough, new research shows. The familiar urge to reach for a hand when we're hurting, or desire to be held when we're sick, now has a biological explanation. A Colorado University, Boulder study found that the mere touch of a partner can communicate empathy, and reduce the sensation of pain. Women reported a milder pain experience from heat experiments when their male partners were in the room and holding their hands. New dads really should be in the delivery rooms when their partners deliver babies, as a new study inspired by that very scenario showed the real pain-relieving effects of a loving touch (file image) A loving touch may be the best medicine a new father can offer his partner during childbirth After holding his wife's hand through her labor and delivery of their oldest daughter, Pavel Goldstein, a neuroscience researcher at CU Boulder wondered if hand-holding couldn't have effects on our physical experience of pain. 'I was in the delivery room, and I felt like I didn't know how I could help my wife,' Goldstein recalls. 'She asked me to hold her hand, not to speak too much, just to hold her hand, and that was very helpful to her.' Goldstein recreated the scenario in the lab. He and his team recruited 23 straight couples between the ages of 23 and 32. They all had to be healthy, on no medications besides birth control and be in a romantic relationship, 'defined as couple who reported being in a serious relationship, living together for at least one year and having significant feelings of love for each other.' The women were subjected to pain, in the form of heat to one forearm in four different settings: alone, in the same room but not touching their partner, while holding their partner's hand, and while holding a stranger's hand. Holding a partner's hand, they found, significantly reduced the pain that the women experienced, according to their own ratings, while a stranger's touch, or the mere presence of a partner was little help. Like clockwork: Our biology syncs up with our romantic partners, boosting empathy The CU researchers also gauged the empathy levels of the male partners. The more closely they ranked their partner's pain to what the women experienced, the more empathetic they were deemed to be. The more empathetic the men were to their female partners, the more relief the women got form holding their hands. Goldstein and his team showed that people's physiology is affected by empathy too. Things - and people - naturally tend to sync up, according to both physics and behavioral science. I think about it like intelligence and muscle. When you want to do something really well, you want to practice the movement and skill. I think about this with touch and empathy Pavel Goldstein, CU Boulder behavioral scientist Two pendulum clocks hung in the same room exert tiny gravitational forces on each other, eventually syncing up their swings. A similar thing happens between people, only instead of swinging together, our breaths and heart beats fall into time with one another. It happens with everyone, to some extent, as part of the rhythm of communication. 'Even as I'm talking to you right now, there is some level of synchrony as we adjust to talk to one another, and that's expressed physiologically,' Goldstein says. Goldstein and his team guessed that synchrony, touch, empathy and pain-relief were all related. 'We expected high synchronization during pain, when female pain increased, even without touch, it is a very stressful condition' for her male partner too, Goldstein says. That wasn't the case, but once touch and pain were restored, so was synchrony. They found that while they were touching their female partners, the most empathetic males were most in sync with their counterparts, and had the most pain-reducing effects though hand-holding. Touch can be a healing tool by expressing empathy to the ones we love The results make him suspect that 'touch is a tool for us transfer our empathy through touch, so it's about communication, and is a possible way for expressing the synchrony.' He says that this upholds previous research that has demonstrated that when people choose to communicate a particular emotion through their touch, the receiver is able to correctly identify the intended emotion. But this isn't something we think much about, let alone do. 'You never had anyone teach you how to touch, right? It's not something we're very mindful of in our community,' Goldstein says. If we could change that, 'the effects of touch can be powerful,' Goldstein says, adding: 'We have such a problem around painkillers, so it's very important today to find [other] methods for pain relief.' 'I think about it like intelligence and muscle. When you want to do something really well, you want to practice the movement and skill. I think about this with touch and empathy,' Goldstein says. 'Maybe we can use it more. I think touch is generally a good tool for connecting people - that doesnt mean you need to touch everyone in the streets - but I think that touching between friends or romantic partners is very powerful.' Linzy Bromfield (pictured) from Chelmer village, Essex survived a rare blood cancer that was triggered by her breast implants Linzy Bromfield, 48, believes she is lucky to be alive after her breast implants triggered a rare type of cancer. My doctors said if this cancer had been left for only another month, it would have spread round my body and killed me, she says. Around 29,000 breast implant operations are performed in the UK each year, many of them following cancer surgery. Now the Royal College of Surgeons says prospective patients must be warned of the risk from a specific cancer triggered by breast implants: anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL). This is a form of blood cancer affecting the lymphatic system, which drains excess fluid from tissue and helps fight infection. It is very different from breast cancer which occurs in the breast tissue itself. It is thought to be caused by a reaction between the bodys white blood cells immune cells which mobilise to expel the foreign implant and the new generation of rough surfaced breast implants introduced 15 years ago (designed to stay in place better than previous smooth implants, which were prone to rotate). Untreated, the cancerous cells can travel around the body in the bloodstream. Three British women are reported to have died from the disease out of 41 diagnosed in the UK (a rise on the 25 reported last July by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). However, experts believe the real number of cases may be much higher, because many women have their implants removed after suffering swelling and lump formation, unaware of the true cause. Although the risk of ALCL is part of the breast implant consent procedure, doctors are simply not aware of it, says Elise Bevan, a medical negligence solicitor at Penningtons Manches in Guildford, Surrey, who is advising several women who required intensive treatment after cancer triggered by their implants was not picked up. One GP simply refused to do the tests for it. In the case of one 38-year-old, who does not want to be identified, the ALCL spread to her reproductive organs and she had to have a hysterectomy. Mother-of-two Linzy (pictured centre) suffered from anaplastic large cell lymphoma (ALCL), a rare form of blood cancer affecting the lymphatic system Mother-of-two Linzy decided to have breast implants 13 years ago when she felt she had lost her femininity after having children, Courteney, 24, and Oakley, 16. I just wanted to feel good about myself, she says. With the blessing of her husband Nick, a police officer, also 48, she booked the 4,500 operation at the private practice of Jim Frame, a professor of cosmetic plastic surgery at Anglia Ruskin University in Chelmsford, Essex. I went from a 34B to a 34D, says Linzy, who lives in Chelmsford and works in an NHS unit fitting artificial limbs. I was delighted. My breasts looked really natural. Then, in late 2015, things started to go wrong. I felt as if my right boob had got bigger, she says. At first, I just thought Id strained something in the gym. Then I couldnt get my bra on. It was as though it had gone up two cup sizes. She went to the GP three times in the following weeks and each time a cupful of fluid was drained off. But the swelling came back within days. She was referred to specialists at Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford and early last year the doctors diagnosed ALCL after testing the fluid. I was told I needed the implants taken out as soon as possible, and I couldnt have new ones because of the risk that the cancer would come back, she says. They did a whole body scan to see if the cancer had spread. It took four days to get the results, which were the longest four days of my life. I really thought I was going to die. Ms Bromfield (pictured with her daughter Courtney) said she got the breast implants 13 years ago after she felt she had lost her femininity Fortunately, the scan came back clear. Theyd caught it just in time, says Linzy. Professor Frame, who observed the operation as hed never seen ALCL, told Linzy that the affected implant had to be completely drained of the cancer-cell-carrying fluid it came out looking like a crumpled carrier bag. Linzy says: Having the implants out has given me a new lease of life. I realised afterwards I had felt very tired and achey for ages, so the cancer must have been developing for a while. Id been off sick with lots of minor problems and I was having to sneak off at work to have little sleeps. Ive been incredibly lucky. They told me I was the 74th woman in the world to be diagnosed with the condition. ALCL can occur in people who dont have implants and elsewhere in the body, though it is rare and typically affects children and young adults. ALCL in women with breast implants has been reported as far back as 1997, and in 2012 regulators at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a national alert warning doctors of the link between implants and the cancer. Breast-implant-associated ALCL was also recognised as a separate disease by the World Health Organisation in 2016, and last year the Royal College of Surgeons issued a warning of the possible cancer risk to women considering cosmetic breast enlargement. The condition takes on average ten years to develop and breast implant surgeons are now instructed to warn patients of the recently discovered danger. Women receiving implants should be told that lumps or swelling around an implant could be an early indication the malignancy is affecting them. However, there are concerns this message is being downplayed. There still seems to be an effort to keep the risk of this cancer under wraps, says Professor Frame. I think it is a potential bombshell. This condition is curable only if an early diagnosis is made. Dr Suzanne Turner, a Cambridge University researcher, is investigating the breast-implant-associated ALCL The MHRA, which is in charge of monitoring the safety of medical devices in the UK, set up the Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery Expert Advisory Group (PRASEAG) last year to review the risks associated specifically with breast implants. There is no definitive evidence of an association with ALCL and any specific make or model of implant, but we are monitoring the issue, an MHRA spokesman told Good Health. The MHRA advises that the risk is low, but it says women are strongly encouraged to check for symptoms such as lumps, swelling or distortions through continued regular self-examination, and to consult their doctor if they have any concerns. The risk of ALCL may have risen since the introduction of textured implants, although there have been cases reported linked to smooth implants, too. In reports collected by the FDA in the U.S., 203 cases of ALCL were linked to textured implants and 28 to smooth implants. It does appear that texturing of the implant surface significantly increases the risk, says Laura Johnson, a specialist breast surgeon at Barts Hospital in London, and a leading expert on the disease, who has been asked to join the PRASEAG group. DR Suzanne Turner, a researcher in cellular and molecular tumour biology at the University of Cambridge, is investigating breast-implant-associated ALCL. She says there is a need to find out exactly what breast implants are made of. Unlike the tight regulations surrounding drug ingredients, manufacturers of implanted medical devices are not required to reveal what materials they use. Dr Turner believes ALCL is caused by an interaction between particular types of bacteria and specific toxins on the implants, with TH-17 cells which are a type of white blood cell. Because the manufacturers dont disclose whats in the implants, we just dont know what ingredient could be causing this effect, she says. A spokesman for Allergan, which makes market leader Naturelle implants, said no specific brand had been identified as a risk and patient safety is their priority. Kitchen Safe (pictured) costs 44.95 from Amazon and is one of the weight-loss gadgets that we tested Eating better and exercising more were this years most popular New Year resolutions, according to a YouGov poll. Yet few of us expect to stick to our good intentions: a Bupa survey found that half us think we wont actually achieve our 2018 goals, weight loss or otherwise. So if we cant trim down with willpower alone, might a weight-loss gadget help? From cords that tie round your waist to high-tech headsets, there are lots of products that claim to help reduce your calorie intake. But do they work? Dr Ian Campbell, an obesity specialist and a Nottingham-based GP reviewed a selection, then we rated them. LOCK UP YOUR SNACKS Kitchen Safe, from 44.95, amazon.co.uk If you are struggling to resist your favourite food, or have already eaten too much, you can lock it away in this safe for later. Available in three sizes, the Kitchen Safe looks a bit like a Tupperware box and has a timer on the lid you can set (for between one minute to ten days) and then press to lock. The safe cannot be opened until the time has elapsed it works in a similar way to pet food timer feeders. A digital display counts down the time remaining until you can retrieve your treat. VERDICT: In theory this provides a good way of limiting access to fattening foods, but there will always be other things to snack on. It doesnt encourage the active self-discipline we need to resist the temptation around us. 7/10 Diet Piggy is 7.49 from Amazon and is a pig that 'stops you pigging out' NO PIGGING OUT Diet Piggy, from 7.49, amazon.co.uk Pitched as the pig that stops you pigging out, this battery-operated plastic pig (top right) sits on the shelf of your fridge, or inside a cupboard where you store food you want to eat less of, such as crisps and biscuits. It has a light-activated sensor which means when you open the door of the fridge or cupboard, youll be greeted with a loud oink oink until the door is shut again. VERDICT: Its harmless and fun, but will have no meaningful effect on food intake or weight loss. 2/10 CURB THE HUNGER Modius, 369, modiushealth.com Modius costs an eye-watering 369 and stimulates a part of your bria Developed by doctor and neuroscientist Jason McKeown, at the University of California, this headset is designed to stimulate the vestibular nerve behind the ear. This, in turn, activates a part of your brain called the hypothalamus, an area that helps regulate appetite and metabolism. The maker claims that wearing the device while sitting for an hour a day helps reset your set point (the weight your body likes to settle at) by stimulating the production of the hormone leptin, which helps curb hunger. It also says the brain registers the nerve stimulation as calorie-burning physical activity. However, some say the device can cause an unpleasant swaying sensation. VERDICT: At first glance, the information about this gadget makes a lot of sense, but the set point is just a theory. Theres no peer-reviewed evidence to back up the claims. One small study showed 15 subjects who used this for 16 weeks saw a 2 to 14 per cent reduction in abdominal fat, but Ive read nothing to really prove to me that Modius works. Its expensive, too. 5/10 Slow Control 10s Fork costs 35 and is an electronic fork that slows your eating down EAT SLOWLY Slow Control 10s Fork, 35, slowcontrol.com This electronic fork aims to slow down your eating, and the maker cites research saying that slower eaters consume 11 per cent fewer calories at a meal. A sensor counts each movement of wrist to mouth and vibrates and flashes red if you leave less than ten seconds between bites. It links via Bluetooth to an app that will give you feedback and helps you track meal duration and number of bites over time. VERDICT: Theres enough evidence to support the idea that slower eating helps reduce calorie intake; it creates mindful eating habits and gives the brain extra time to receive the Im full message from the stomach, so the theory makes sense. The device may well help you eat less, but people can get bored with such things. 8/10 TUMMY SQUEEZE The Malory Band costs 28 and is a polyester cord that ties around your stomach Malory Band, 28, maloryband.com You secure the unstretchable, hard-wearing polyester cord around your tummy with a button, making it the right size for you (the manufacturer provides comprehensive advice about how to do this). Essentially you wear it so it feels quite snug before you eat. The downside is that you can just remove or resize it to cheat. VERDICT: Theres no evidence presented for the claims that it helps you lose weight, and no way this could reliably and consistently guide anyone as to how much theyve eaten. Fullness isnt just about tummy girth, its also about blood sugar levels and hormone changes. 1/10 MINDFUL PORTIONS Little Bite Portion Control Cutlery costs 11.95 and forces you to take smaller mouthfuls of food Lite Bite Portion Control Cutlery, 11.95, bariatriccookery.com This stainless steel knife, fork and spoon set is a reduced size the amount you can fit on the head of the fork or scoop with the spoon is about half the normal amount, forcing you to take smaller mouthfuls. Created primarily to help people who have had weight-loss surgery and cannot fit much food in their stomach, the maker says the cutlery also encourages mindful eating (where you savour food). It is claimed that this cutlery is more suited to adults than simply using a child-size knife and fork, because its shaped and weighted to feel comfortable in larger hands. VERDICT: This reduces how much food you can eat in a given time, which means your meal may take the 20 or so minutes needed for messages saying you are full to pass to the brain. I can also see how it might promote more mindful eating. However, cutlery cant help with hand-held snacks, which is often where excess calories are consumed. 7/10 NOT TO BE SNIFFED AT Slissie, 29.99, slissie.co.uk Slissie costs 29.99 and gives you a burst of calorie-free flavour when you suck on it and it comes in different flavours This small, mascara-sized rechargeable device delivers a burst of calorie-free flavour when you suck on it. The cartridges, which you buy separately, have different flavoured liquids inside, such as chocolate or mint. The idea is you suck in a mist of the flavour when you crave a sweet snack. The maker claims the aromas from the flavour are sensed by smell receptors in the nose, conveying satiety messages to the appetite control centre of the brain, reducing sugar cravings. VERDICT: This is an interesting product, but I need more convincing. The maker produces some research evidence that smelling foods can cause weight reduction, but unfortunately the research did not use the Slissie product. 7/10 WINE OR WHINE? Civilized Glass costs 36 and stops you drinking too much wine as it drains the excess Civilized Glass, 36, mr-sci.net Modelled on an invention by Pythagoras made around 2,500 years ago, the secret of this civilised glass is the siphon structure in the middle. When you keep the level of wine in the glass below the top of the siphon (a maximum of approximately 250ml, or a third of a bottle of wine), all is well. However, if you pour above this, every drop of wine drains out through a hole in the bottom, onto your lap or whatever surface is below. VERDICT: A bit of fun, maybe, but would it help you lose weight? Not a chance. Best not to try it while in your best clothes. The best strategies to cut down on alcohol, and the calorie content in it, are to use small glasses, not accept top-ups, and intersperse alcoholic drinks with water. 2/10 TAKE A BITE ELMM Bite and Step-Counting Watch, 86, myelmm.com You switch this bite counter watch on at the beginning of each meal and it measures hand-to-mouth wrist roll motion, and hence the number of mouthfuls taken. The ELMM Bite and Step-Counting Watch costs 86 and it measures the number of mouthfuls you take during a meal You get a reading of the number of bites taken and you can set an alarm to sound if you take more or fewer bites than you need. The two professors who invented it at Clemson University in the U.S. say research suggests around 100 bites a day is ideal for weight loss for most people. However, you find your own bite goal by using the watch to monitor your normal intake for two weeks, then shaving off 10 to 20 per cent of the bites. The watch has a pedometer built in, too hence eat less, move more, which ELMM stands for. The bite counter can also be downloaded as a free app by Apple Watch owners VERDICT: In a small study with children, using this bite counter did lead to some weight loss, so there may be some substance to this device. Theres plenty of evidence that slower eating can help reduce total calorific intake. However, I remain to be convinced that solely counting bites will result in meaningful, long-term weight loss. 8/10 BRACELET GIVES YOU AN ELECTRIC SHOCK Pavlok shock wristband, 179.99, amazon.co.uk The Pavlok shock wristband costs 179.99 and delivers an electric shock to the wearer to try and help you avoid 'undesirable behaviour' This bracelet is based on aversion therapy, thought to help people to avoid an undesirable behaviour by conditioning them to associate it with an unpleasant stimulus (a shock in this case). You press the lightning bolt symbol to administer a zap, ranging from mildly unpleasant to painful depending on the intensity you pick (between 50 and 450 volts). The idea is you give yourself a shock if you find yourself picking up unhealthy snacks. The maker says it should change behaviour in five days. VERDICT: Aversion therapy can help people quit smoking, as smokers can respond quickly to it. Weight loss is more complex. You have to initiate the shock, so it is unreliable. 1/10 Modern technology has isolated mothers and stopped them from turning to professionals for advice, the adviser to the BBCs Call the Midwife has said. Terri Coates, who is a practising midwife and lecturer, raised concerns about parents not getting the right answers when they turn to websites like Google for help. She also commented on how the camaraderie between mothers that existed in the eighties has been lost because NHS mothercraft and parentcraft classes are no longer offered. Terri Coates (pictured on the left), who is a practising midwife and lecturer, raised concerns about parents not getting the right answers when they turn to websites like Google for help Speaking about the impact of technology, she said: Nowadays, because there is so much information at the touch of a button, I dont think people feel the same need for midwives professional advice and the way the NHS is funded now, we couldnt afford to run classes like that anyway. But the problem with Google or Siri is that, if you dont know which questions to ask, youre not going to get the right answers. Technology has isolated mothers enormously. Millions of parents turn to websites such as Mumsnet for help, follow other parents on social media to see their tips or subscribe to parenting blogs. Others search their parenting questions on Google or the voice-activated tool Siri. And Miss Coates lamented the subsequent decline of the social side of parenting, telling the Radio Times: Until well into the 80s, pregnant women were offered training in what was called mothercraft and later became parentcraft a series of classes, paid for by the NHS, where they made great friendships that lasted beyond their babys birth. Millions of parents turn to websites such as Mumsnet for help, follow other parents on social media to see their tips or subscribe to parenting blogs If dads attended those early antenatal classes, it was mostly to tell them what to expect after delivery and if they were present at the birth, it was generally because they hadnt left the room quickly enough! In our antenatal sessions we used to shoo the dads off to the pub. The mums then had a whole different level of intimate conversation. The camaraderie was wonderful. Call the Midwife returned to the BBC for a seventh series on Sunday night, with more than 7 million people tuning in. In addition to covering the 1962-1963 Big Freeze, the series will also tackle the influx of West Indian nurses to the NHS and the racism many of the young nurses experienced. The drama is known for not shying away from hard-hitting issues, including disability, domestic abuse and female genital mutilation, and the birthing scenes are so realistic they are played to trainee midwives. Miss Coates, who is studying for a PhD in the portrayal of childbirth in TV drama, told the magazine: I help the director choreograph what is clinically plausible within a given scenario. We practise with dolls and prosthetics, so you can spend five or six hours doing a birth, but the baby is only on set for a minute or two. Im always there, crouching, dangling or leaning just out of shot, to make sure the baby is safe. A woman has had four balloons implanted under her skin to save her life because doctors fear the birthmark that covers half her face could become cancerous. Xiao Yan needs the bizarre treatment to allow her to grow new tissue that doctors can use to graft onto her face when the birthmark is removed. The 23-year-old, from Longjing Village in Guizhou Province in south-western China, suffers from congenital melanocytic nevus which affects just one in 500,000 people. She now has to endure several months of coping with the balloons stretching her skin in four areas before she can have her 'new face'. Scroll down for video Xiao Yan was told she needs the life-saving treatment to grow new tissue on her face to stop the huge mole turning malignant The 23-year-old had otherwise been prepared to live with the massive birthmark on her face for the rest of her life HOW DOES THE TREATMENT FOR CONGENITAL MELANOCYTIC NEVUS WORK? When small nevi (birthmarks) need to be removed, the surrounding skin is simply pulled together and stitched up. Removal of a large nevus involves the replacement of the affected skin. Skin can be transferred from another area of the body known as grafting or adjacent skin can be stretched, then used to cover the area where the nevus was removed (called tissue expansion). Tissue expansion is the best course of action for very large moles and doctors inject saline into the devices twice a week to help expand the skin. The treatment often takes around five months. Advertisement Promise of a 'new face' Medics at the Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital in East China took action after her facial mole began to cause her pain last March and they recognised the risk of cancer cell growth. Statistics regarding how often congenital melanocytic nevus becomes cancerous vary, with higher figures suggesting 5-10 per cent of cases and others as low as 1-2 per cent. Ms Yan said she had been prepared to live with the massive mole on her face for the rest of her life. 'Despite the big black mole on my face, I enjoyed my childhood playing with my friends,' Ms Yan said, adding: 'I was carefree.' 'But as I grew older, the fact that I was "different" became increasingly magnified,' she added. Her mother Yang Xiu'e said she had to 'beg' the villagers to stop making fun of her daughter, who became the talk of the town. Following recommendations from doctors last year, Ms Yan's poor family managed the challenging task of raising 100,000 yuan (11,177) for the first stage of her treatment, which she began in October last year. She now faces several months of coping with the balloons stretching her skin in four areas before she can have her 'new face' Her mother Yang Xiu'e, pictured here, said she had to 'beg' the villagers to stop making fun of her daughter Her treatment will continue for a further five months and will include five or six more surgeries ending in June this year WHAT IS A GIANT CONGENITAL MELANOCYTIC NEVUS? A giant congenital melanocytic nevus is a birthmark that covers more than two per cent, or 20cm, of a sufferer's body and requires more than one incision to remove. The head, legs and arms are normally affected. Treatment can involve birthmark removal, however, scarring is likely. Laser therapy can reduce skin pigmentation, however, in some cases the colour returns. Source: Nevus Outreach Advertisement 'I used to feel sorry for myself,' she admitted, saying: 'But I've grown up under the support of my family and now I'm much more positive.' Ms Yan has been dubbed the 'Gourd Doll' because the lumps on her face resemble the shape of gourd fruits. A congenital pigmented nevus is considered giant if by adulthood it is larger than 20cm (about 8 inches) in diameter, according to dermatologist Dr Amanda Oakley Sufferers may have no other symptoms or may have several symptoms such as fragile, dry, or itchy skin. Ms Yan's twin brother and the rest of her family are continuing to raise funds for her follow-up surgeries and have managed to acquire about 50,000 yuan (5,588). The heartbroken parents of a baby who died after his skull was fractured during childbirth have described the scene as a 'bloodbath'. Evan Tuite, who was born in Drogheda, Ireland, passed away in his mother Fiona's arms just hours after he entered the world in June 2012. A five-year investigation by the Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital has now concluded that there was a 'deficit in care'. Speaking for the first time about their horrific ordeal, Ms Tuite, 45, and Ivan Murphy, blasted the hospital's apology as 'worthless'. Evan Tuite, who was born in Drogheda, Ireland, passed away in his mother Fiona's arms just hours after he entered the world in June 2012 (also pictured with his father Ivan Murphy) Ms Tuite told The Irish Mirror: 'It has completely ruined my life. I will never ever be the same again. 'His injuries were so bad that they insisted on putting a little hat on him. I couldn't even show you some of the photos we have of him, they are just too upsetting. 'The place was like a bloodbath. It was worse than a horror film. 'When he eventually came out he was flopped on to me for a second before they then had to rush off with him. Evan was very lifeless.' A five-year investigation by the Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital has now concluded that there was a 'deficit in care' The hospital admitted there was a deficit in care just before Christmas - despite the parents' claims that bosses repeatedly said they did nothing wrong. Irish health officials allegedly even tried to say Evan suffered from a bone disease that left him brittle - which led to his skull being fractured, the parents claim. But when they asked for X-rays to prove the diagnosis they were given nothing, the newspaper reports. Mr Murphy gave an emotional statement outside Drogheda Four Courts on Friday following a hearing. He said: 'Our son Evan was born on June 14, 2012 at 6.20am. He passed away in his mothers arms at 7.15pm. 'Every day I wish and pray we could have that day back again and I would have said stop. I would never have let him go ahead and deliver Evan by force.' Their case was finally settled for an undisclosed sum. Mr Murphy publically appealed for a date for an inquest into their son's death. Hospital bosses wrote an apology to extend their 'heartfelt sympathy' to the family. It read: 'Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, together with its clinical and midwifery staff, wish to extend their heartfelt sympathy to you and your family on the death of your son Evan. 'I would like to sincerely apologise for the deficits in care provided to you and your son Evan.' After Ms Tuite had given birth, she was taken to theatre and needed four blood transfusions. She spent hours recovering. There were big balloons and a teddy bear waiting for when she was brought back to the ward to see Evan for the first time. However, she was told her baby wasnt well. Evan passed away roughly 13 hours after he was born. Ms Tuite initially didnt want to go back to the hospital she gave birth in. She described it as a crime scene. She has since had another baby, Jayden, now three. A controversial paper that shows exactly how to make a virus similar to smallpox has prompted fierce outrage in the scientific community. Furious researchers have blasted the publication of the report, warning it is a 'serious mistake' and 'the world is now more vulnerable' to the killer virus. Fears the lethal virus could fall in the hands of terrorists have circled for years, amid reports North Korea was mass producing deadly batches of smallpox. And now researchers have attacked the new study, which shows precisely how to construct horsepox - a close relative of the feared bug. Smallpox killed at least 300 million people in the 20th century and is considered to be one of the most devastating diseases in history. Furious researchers have blasted the publication of the report, warning it is a 'serious mistake' and 'the world is now more vulnerable' to smallpox The worrying trial, led by Professor David Evans at the University of Alberta, Canada, stirred alarm when it made headlines last July. Concerns were raised that any successful experiments to make a horsepox virus from scratch would make it just as easy to reproduce its deadly cousin. They were able to recreate the extinct virus after assembling 212,000 fragments of DNA that they purchased on the internet for around $100,000 (71,000). The researchers received more backlash, with critics warning of the same problems they did before, when their final results were published in PLOS ONE on Friday. It was claimed that the experiment would lead to a more effective vaccine against smallpox amid rising fears it could be used in biological warfare. But leading experts in their fields have slammed the decision to publish the study, which shows their exact method in creating the horsepox virus. They also warned that effective vaccines against smallpox already exist, with the US government stockpiling 28 million doses, with easy access to another 13 million. Dr Thomas Inglesby, director of the Center for Health Security at Johns Hopkins University, warned publishing the study was a 'serious mistake'. He told Science: 'The world is now more vulnerable to smallpox.' Professor Evans, whose work was funded by pharmaceutical firm Tonix, argued last July that the risk of recreating a deadly virus was always there. While horsepox itself is not harmful to humans, the technique to piece it together could be used to synthesise other dangerous viruses. Virologists agreed 'some guy in a cave' wouldn't be able to recreate the bug, but a 'reasonably equipped' undergraduate medical student could. The original work prompted calls for tougher regulation over what research can be conducted with killer viruses, such as smallpox. Researchers warned that it is likely other universities could be working on similar projects as Alberta University isn't a leading institution. World Health Organization guidelines only prevent scientists from attempting to build the full smallpox genome, not one for a similar virus. Adventurous fitness fanatics will be soon be able to take naked high intensity interval training (HIIT) classes in London. Just weeks after a trendy New York gym launched nude personal training sessions, British wrestling champion and director of Right Path Fitness Keith McNiven will be doing the same at pop-up locations across the city from next month. He will be running all-male, all-female and mixed-sex sessions. The personal trainer said exercising in your birthday suit maximises your workout and boosts your motivation as you watch your body move and flex. Activities like naked yoga have making waves in Australia for months with benefits said to include better results and improved sleep. High intensity interval training (HIIT) classes are coming to London next month (stock image) WHAT IS HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING? HIIT describes any workout that involves short burst of high-intensity exercise followed by a brief low-intensity activity, repeatedly. The medium exercise should be about 50% intensity. The number of repetitions and length of each depends on the exercise, but may be as little as three repetitions with just 20 seconds of intense exercise. There is no specific formula to HIIT. A common method involves a 2:1 ratio of work to recovery periods, for example, 30-40 seconds of hard sprinting alternated with 15-20 seconds of jogging or walking, repeated to failure. The entire HIIT session may last between four and 30 minutes, meaning that it is considered to be an good way to maximize a workout in a short time. Advertisement Mr McNiven who is running all-male, all-female and mixed-sex sessions said: 'Exercising naked introduces a new and exciting way to burn calories and is great for those of us who dont like the restriction of clothing. Its also a fun way to meet others and enjoy a unique workout session.' HIIT has become a popular way of getting fit because of its potential to torch maximum calories in a minimum amount of time. However, the exercises which typically included jumps, squats and lunges may be too much to even think about for some, particularly women with large chests. Forcing you to examine your body Mr McNiven said exercising naked forces you to examine your body's condition. He said: 'Youll be forced to come face to face with yourself, exactly how you look. 'By consistently doing this, youll be getting used to your body, slowly getting more comfortable in your own skin. 'Youll notice progress theres nowhere to hide when youre not wearing clothes, and by knowing the ins and outs of your human form in the nude thanks to consistently observing it, youll notice the most minor changes. 'This will help to keep you motivated and show you that your hard work is paying off.' He also said watching your body work out brings psychological benefits. 'One of the biggest benefits of exercising naked is that you can actually watch your body work. Without clothes, youll be able to see the different muscle groups in all their glory as you exercise. 'If you wear clothes whilst you work out, believe it or not, you are technically not giving your skin enough room to breathe. When you sweat, your body release toxins, and by wearing tight workout clothes, youre weakening your skin by reabsorbing sweat that is released. 'Without the restriction of clothes as you exercise, your body is likely to be a little more flexible, allowing you to truly maximize your workouts. 'This could result in improved calorie burn and allows you to get a better sense of your alignment whilst exercising.' Hanson Fitness in New York, which boasts celebrity clients such as Rihanna, Julia Roberts and Tom Cruise, announced in December it would hold naked personal fitness classes to kick off 2018. The experts there say working out naked keeps you cooler, releases endorphins to make you happy, increases body awareness and gives you unrestricted movement. But if anyone is uncomfortable, nude coloured underwear is permitted. What do the experts say? Dr Amesh Adalja, a senior scholar at John's Hopkins Center for Healthy Security and an infectious disease physician, told Patch, that from a hygiene point of view, working out in the typically open clothing we usually wear in the gym and exercising nude is not all that different. He said: 'I would think it's not a major infectious risk to work out naked. 'If people have open skin lesions, you should obviously avoid skin-to-skin contact with that.' However, when it comes to whether building up a sweat without clothes on has physical health benefits there is a lack of research. Madagascar has been rocked by a new suspected plague case in a school, raising fears it could spread to children. More than 200 people were killed during the epidemic that ravaged the island over the winter. It was primarily caused by the lethal pneumonic form. Local health chiefs assumed they had the 'crisis' - which prompted 10 nearby African countries to be placed on high alert by the WHO - under control and it was no longer at epidemic levels. But panic has re-emerged after a fresh suspected case in Ankazobe, a small town in the Analamanga region - 54 miles (88km) away from the capital Antananarivo. A 40-year-old school cook was struck down by the mystery bug last week, local reports say. Schools are often considered breeding grounds for infections. Tests have yet to confirm if it was plague, however officials have stated that new cases of bubonic plague 'continue to appear this season'. The man, whose name is unknown, had all the symptoms of bubonic plague, said Andriamanantena Rakotoarivony, of the Ankazobe Public Health District Service. Local health chiefs assumed they had the 'crisis', which prompted 10 nearby African countries to be placed on high alert by the WHO, under control He told Le Verite: 'This 40-year-old man presented all the symptoms of bubonic plague including fever, fatigue, and swollen lymph glands. 'Since his consultation at Ankazobe level II health centre last Tuesday January 16 2018, the patient is being treated in the isolation ward.' The school closed its doors for two days, but reopened yesterday after the building was disinfected. 'Despite the declaration of the end of the epidemic of urban lung plague, new cases of bubonic plague continue to appear in this season,' added Dr Manitra Rakotoarivony of the country's Ministry of Health. How many people were infected? During the outbreak, which was considered to be under control at the end of November, 2,300 people were infected, including doctors and nurses, according to figures from the World Health Organization. Plague season hits Madagascar every year between August and April. International aid workers desperately battled to contain the 'crisis' as experts warned it was unusual because two thirds of cases were pneumonic. This form of the disease can be spread through coughing, sneezing or spitting and kill within 24 hours. It is strikingly different to the bubonic form, responsible for the 'Black Death' in the 14th century, which rocks the country each year and infects around 600 people. But panic has re-emerged after a fresh suspected case in the Analamanga region (Officials in Madagascar warned residents in November not to exhume bodies of dead loved ones and dance with them because the bizarre ritual can cause outbreaks of plague) A 40-year-old cook at a local school was struck down by the mystery bug last week, local reports state. Tests have yet to confirm if it was plague If left untreated, the Yersinia pestis bacteria can reach the lungs. This is where it turns pneumonic described as the 'deadliest and most rapid form of plague'. It is easily treated with antibiotics in the current climate - however, experts remain concerned it will cause eternal havoc because it is constantly mutating. Countries told to prepare South Africa, Seychelles, La Reunion, Tanzania, Mauritius, Comoros, Mozambique, Kenya, Ethiopia and Malawi were told to prepare amid fears the outbreak would spread in November. Paul Hunter, professor of health protection at the world-renowned University of East Anglia, was the first expert to predict the plague could travel across the sea. He previously told MailOnline: 'The big anxiety is it could spread to mainland Africa, it's not probable, but certainly possible, that might then be difficult to control. Professor Hunter's concerns echoed that of dozens of leading scientists, many of whom predicted the 'truly unprecedented' outbreak would continue to spiral. Professor Jimmy Whitworth, an international health scientist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, described it as the worst outbreak in 50 years. And Professor Johnjoe McFadden, a molecular geneticist at Surrey University, said that the plague is 'scary' and is predominantly a 'disease of the poor'. Speaking exclusively to MailOnline in November, he also said: 'It's a crisis at the moment and we don't know how bad it's going to get.' HOW DID THE 2017/18 PLAGUE OUTBREAK IN MADAGASCAR BEGIN? Health officials are unsure how this year's outbreak began. However, some believe it could be caused by the bubonic plague, which is endemic in the remote highlands of Madagascar. If left untreated, it can lead to the pneumonic form, which is responsible for two thirds of the cases recorded so far in this year's outbreak. Rats carry the Yersinia pestis bacteria that causes the plague, which is then passed onto their fleas. Forest fires drive rats towards rural communities, which means residents are at risk of being bitten and infected. Local media reports suggest there has been an increase in the number of blazes in the woodlands. Without antibiotics, the bubonic strain can spread to the lungs - where it becomes the more virulent pneumonic form. Pneumonic, which can kill within 24 hours, can then be passed on through coughing, sneezing or spitting. However, it can also be treated with antibiotics if caught in time. Madagascar sees regular outbreaks of plague, which tend to start in September, with around 600 cases being reported each year on the island. However, this year's outbreak has seen it reach the Indian Ocean island's two biggest cities, Antananarivo and Toamasina. Experts warn the disease spreads quicker in heavily populated areas. Advertisement International agencies sent more than one million doses of antibiotics to Madagascar. Nearly 20,000 respiratory masks were also donated The school where the cook worked closed its doors for two days, but reopened yesterday after the building was disinfected (stock) Amid concerns the plague had reached crisis point in November, the World Bank decided to release an extra $5 million (3.8m) to control the outbreak. The money allowed for the deployment of personnel to battle the plague in the affected regions, the disinfection of buildings and fuel for ambulances. At the time, aid workers on the ground revealed that police were having to seize the corpses of plague victims. If officials suspect someone to have died from pneumonic plague, an officer armed with chemicals will be disposed to kill any bacteria on the corpse. Traditions of the Malagasy culture They are then placed in a sealed body bag and placed in a common grave - but the practice goes against the traditions of the Malagasy culture. Concerned health officials also warned an ancient ritual, called Famadihana, where relatives dig up the corpses of their loved ones, may have fueled the spread. Experts have long observed that plague season coincides with the period when Famadihana ceremonies are held. Health officials are unsure how this year's outbreak began, but local media reports that forest fires drove rats towards rural communities. The outbreak reached the Indian Ocean island's two biggest cities, Antananarivo and Toamasina, which prompted fears it would spread quicker. The first death this year occurred on August 28 when a passenger died in a public taxi en route to a town on the east coast. Projections stated this year's outbreak would dwarf previous ones because it struck so early. International health agencies sent more than one million doses of antibiotics to Madagascar. Nearly 20,000 respiratory masks were also donated. Schools and universities were temporarily shut in a bid to contain the respiratory disease, with children known to come into contact with each other more than adults. New York City has sued several major pharmaceutical companies in an effort to hold them accountable for their role in the city's opioid epidemic. Mayor Bill de Blasio announced the lawsuit on Tuesday, saying it seeks to recoup $500 million of what the epidemic has cost the city, which he says will be reinvested into fighting opioid addictions and overdoses. In 2016, more than 1,000 New York City residents died as a result of opioid overdoses, according to a statement from the mayor's office. The city is claiming that opioid manufacturers have burdened the health and finances of New York's government by employing deceptive marketing to sell inordinate amounts of dangerous and addictive drugs to citizens. Mayor Bill de Blasio's office announced that New York City filed a lawsuit against more than a dozen Big Pharma defendants on Tuesday, shortly after his January 10 announcement of a similar lawsuit against oil companies for contributing to climate change (pictured) Between 2010 and 2016, overdose death rates more than doubled in New York City, where about 2.7 million opioid prescriptions are filled annually. Nearly 20 percent of opioid overdose deaths in New York happen as a result of prescription opioids. De Blasio and First Lady Chirlane McCray filed their lawsuit against more than 10 major pharmaceutical companies that manufacture and sell opioids. The defendants include Allergan, Johnson & Johnson, Purdue Pharma and Teva, and distributors such as AmerisourceBergen, Cardinal Health and McKesson. The lawsuit charges these companies and others with being a 'public nuisance,' acted negligently in their distribution of opioids and 'were unjustly enriched at the City's expense.' 'More New Yorkers have died from opioid overdoses than car crashes and homicides combined in recent years,' the Mayor said in a statement, blaming Big Pharma for fueling the epidemic. 'Its time for hold the companies accountable for what theyve done to our City, and help save more lives,' he said. The mayor's office has promised that any damages awarded to the city through the lawsuit will be dedicated to its fight against the opioid epidemic. McCray, who heads up New York City's mental health and substance abuse efforts through ThriveNYC, said: 'Today, New York City demands transparency and accountability from the nations largest opioid manufacturers and distributors who have profited from peoples pain. Opioid overdose deaths among men (blue) and women (red, combined: purple) in New York City have climbed steadily in recent years, fueled in part by Big Pharma, the city's suit claims PHOTOGRAPHER NAN GOLDIN URGES ART WORLD TO BOYCOTT BILLIONAIRE PURDUE PHARMA FAMILY Renowned photographer Nan Goldin, herself a recovering opioid addict, is waging a campaign to hold the family behind painkiller brand OxyContin accountable for its role in the epidemic. The drug is made by one of several companies owned by the Sacklers, who are among the richest families in the US. The family's drug company, Purdue Pharma, has made tens of billions on opioid sales, and the Sacklers have spent some of that money supporting the arts. Now, Goldin, 64, is circulating a petition, already signed by more than 6,000 people, demanding artists boycott the Sackler's money and that Purdue Pharma take responsibility for helping to fuel opioid addiction in America. Advertisement The de Blasio administration introduced HealingNYC, a $38 million local initiative to distribute naloxone, addiction treatment medications and to educate local emergency rooms and clinicians about opioids, in March. Tuesday's filing follows a suit the city leveled against oil companies, similarly accusing them of contributing to climate change, which the mayor announced on January 10. New York City is hardly the first government to sue Big Pharma companies over the opioid epidemic. Montana and Washington as well as some smaller city governments have also filed legal complaints against OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma. Earlier today, opioid commission member and former Congressman Patrick Kennedy slammed the federal government for what he described as hollow efforts against the opioid epidemic. Of New York City's action, he said 'lawsuits like this are important because they can generate an influx of sorely-needed resources to fund treatment and prevention efforts for those suffering from addiction.' Kennedy applauded de Blasio's proactive approach and pointed out that 'Congress only appropriated $500 million this year to fight the opioid crisis. 'In contrast, the federal government was spending $24 billion at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. People in need of treatment and their families need support now,' he said. The Financial Conduct Authority is a bed of nails. Andrew Bailey, who did such a good job of keeping the banking system safe from his perch at the Bank of England, recognised this when he made the journey east to Canary Wharf. What he inherited at the FCA was a great deal of the detritus from the financial crisis. Legal constraints have meant that despite the publication of a robust report into shenanigans at HBOS, actions against former directors, including the last chief executive Andy Hornby, is still in abeyance. Hard work: Andrew Bailey inherited a great deal of the detritus from the financial crisis at the FCA Hornby continues to coin it in as the boss of Ladbrokes Coral and is still in line for a 8m pay-out if and when the GVC takeover is consummated. Aside from crashing HBOS, before it was saved by Lloyds, there is also the outstanding matter of the alleged cover-up of fraud at the banks Reading branch and the snails pace of compensation to customers whose lives and businesses were laid to waste. As appalling are the disclosures of how the Royal Bank of Scotlands Global Restructuring Arm (GRG) bullied small and medium sized firms into submission. Most shocking was the disclosure of a memo from an unnamed official suggesting that customers should be encouraged to hang themselves. RBS chairman Sir Howard Davies described this on television as embarrassing. What is as disturbing is that two of the bankers allegedly involved in GRG Nathan Bostock and Chris Sullivan having parted company with RBS now hold top jobs at Santander UK as chief executive and head of corporate banking respectively. Santanders scrupulous chairman Baroness Vadera must have concerns about their presence at the top of a major lender seeking to make its mark in the small and medium sized lending market. It is not as if the recent record of corporate lending by Santander UK is without its own stain. The Spanish-owned bank is among the leading bank creditors of failed outsourcer Carillion and may already have had to take a write-off of 38m against its loans, a figure which may well rise. Quite what Santander UK, largely a consumer and mortgage franchise, was doing lending to such a high risk client is not clear. Santander UKs parent in Spain must be concerned about the reputational damage from the GRG fallout and the Carillion loans. Bailey and the FCA are severely restricted in their ability to name names and to take regulatory action against wrongdoers because of legal protections and the demands of natural justice. But there comes a point where the public interest in full disclosure and seeing justice done overrides all else. Indeed, all that secrecy and delay does is leave the careers of those involved swinging in the wind. It is a disservice to the victims of unacceptable decisions and behaviour and brings disgrace on an already distrusted banking sector. Digital champ Visitors to Whole Foods stores can have little doubt who is now in the driving seat as window displays and stores fill up with Amazon devices and products. The fresh food delivery revolution is sending food retailers to the drawing board. Britains Ocado, which has had success with Waitrose and Morrisons in the UK, is finally gaining some global traction, defying the wisdom of analysts which doubted the model. Latest to sign up is the Canadian grocer Sobeys. Ocado will assist the group in building a website and mobile application, and construct an automated warehouse. It will also manage Sobeys delivery system and customer service. The latest deal comes hard on the heels of a deal with French supermarket group Casino to roll out its systems in Paris. There will be questions about Ocados capacity to scale up, deliver internationally and maintain margins. The market marked the shares up by 27.5 per cent. Is this take-off for a home grown digital champion? We certainly need it. Coming home Dixons Carphone is adopting an online first strategy with the choice of Alex Baldock from Shop Direct as its chief executive. As for departing Old Etonian boss Seb James, he gets to run Boots. He could be the leader to bring Boots back to the UK through a partial demerger from Walgreens and an initial public offering. Ocado shares surged more than 27 per cent after it struck a deal to supply its technology to a Canadian supermarket. In a huge blow to hedge funds who are shorting the online supermarkets stock, its shares rose to four-year highs adding nearly 720m to its value. The FTSE 250 firm made its first foray into North America by striking a deal with Sobeys, Canadas second-largest supermarket. Driving ahead: Ocado has been boosted by fears of competition from internet giant Amazon Two months ago bosses revealed a long-awaited tie-up with French supermarket Groupe Casino. Ocado has been boosted by fears of competition from internet giant Amazon, which rattled the grocery market last year with its shock acquisition of Whole Foods. It has prompted North American chains to overhaul their online offerings, with Ocado promising pioneering warehouse and robot technology. David Shriver, communications director at Ocado, said: Consumers want the ability to buy their groceries while sitting in the warmth of their kitchen and have them delivered to their home in an hours time slot. We see lots of factors driving that and without a doubt Amazon buying Whole Foods was part of that. Sobeys has more than 1,500 stores across Canada and racked up sales of 13.7bn last year. The deal sent Ocados shares 27.5 per cent, or 113.6p higher, to 526.6p, putting a painful dent in the hopes of hedge funds who are betting its stock will fall. More than 13 per cent of the companys stock is currently shorted. They had piled in as doubts about Ocados ability to strike a major deal grew. Discovery Capital Management has the biggest position at 3 per cent, with GMT Capital Corp holding 2.3 per cent and Marshall Wace one of the firms that shorted doomed construction giant Carillion holding 1.7 per cent. They are likely to have lost tens of millions of pounds as a result of yesterdays movement. Ocado will create an online ordering system for Sobeys and develop an automated warehouse in Toronto, which will use Ocados grid-like system for storing food and its robots for picking and packing goods. When asked whether Ocado would secure more deals this year, Shriver said: We remain pretty optimistic about the future. Dozens of British tourists trapped in a 'disgusting and horrible' Cuban hotel are begging Thomas Cook to let them go home, a distraught holidaymaker has said. Charles Powell, 74, said he is 'despairing' after spending nearly a week at the Sol Rio de Luna and Mares Resort on the east of the Caribbean island. His wife, 73-year-old Johanna, has contracted pneumonia in large part because of the damp and mould in the couple's room, he added. But when the former company director, from Newmarket in Suffolk, complained to Thomas Cook he claims he was simply bounced between the firm's UK office and local Cuban office. Charles Powell (pictured with his wife Johanna) said he is 'despairing' after spending nearly a week at a hotel in Cuba. His wife has contracted pneumonia in large part because of the damp and mould in the couple's room, he said Dozens of British tourists trapped in a 'disgusting and horrible' Cuban hotel are begging Thomas Cook to let them go home Charles Powell said his wife, 73-year-old Johanna, has contracted pneumonia in large part because of the damp and mould in the couple's room He told MailOnline: 'We feel like we are in prison. I've spoken to about 30 British tourists here - out of perhaps 100 - and they are all complaining of the same things. We are despairing. 'Our room had no hot water, the electricals were broken, it was leaking, it had damp and mould, and my wife has now got a serious illness.' He added: 'There's also lots of food poisoning. Large numbers of people are ill, shattered, worn out and disappointed. We have to get out of this hell hole. It is disgusting and horrible.' Mr Powell said Thomas Cook's response has made the guests at the resort 'very, very angry' and led to most of them declaring they will never holiday with the company again. 'This is a crisis and it needs urgent attention - but Thomas Cook aren't doing anything,' he said. He said his room had damp and mould, no hot water, the electricals were broken and the ceilings were leaking (above) He added that around 30 other British tourists he has spoken to at the hotel has complained of similar things Mr Powell said Thomas Cook's response has made the guests at the resort 'very, very angry' 'There are people flying to this resort from Britain right now, heading towards this disaster. 'The chief executive should be informed of this and it should be fixed immediately.' Mr Powell - who said he will be expecting not merely a refund, but compensation for his ordeal - also said he and his sick wife are now in a room with the air conditioning stuck on cold. 'This is despite the doctor telling my wife she shouldn't stay in a cold room,' he explained. 'We want our customers to have the best possible time on holiday so we are sorry to hear of Mr Powell's experience,' a Thomas Cook spokesman told MailOnline. 'We arranged alternative accommodation for Mr Powell and his wife which they have accepted. As always we will be looking into this case and any other customer feedback thoroughly.' Mr Powell said he will be expecting not merely a refund as well as compensation for his ordeal The Sol Rio de Luna and Mares Resort (as pictured on Thomas Cook's website) is on the east of the Caribbean island Sarah suffered head and eye injuries and required ten stitches to a deep laceration on her face, which is now likely to leave a permanent scar This time last year, a British couple were left fearing for their lives when the lobby roof at the same hotel suddenly buckled and collapsed - trapping them underneath and injuring many members of the wedding party. Sarah and John Wenham had saved for years for 'the wedding of their dreams' in Cuba, costing more than 25,000 for themselves and 24 guests. Sarah, 35, said: 'We were just about to meet with hotel staff to discuss our wedding plans in the lobby, when John pointed out the ceiling as it started to move. 'A loud bang followed as the roof then suddenly collapsed and fell upon us, trapping us underneath. This time last year, a British couple were left fearing for their lives when the lobby roof at the same hotel suddenly buckled and collapsed 'The roof debris knocked us clean to the ground. 'It was so heavy that I couldn't move under it, and I was terrified because I couldn't get to my daughters who I could hear screaming from somewhere beneath the debris. 'I saw the blood start to gush from my head and I genuinely thought in that moment that I was going to die.' John, from Gravesend, Kent, says he looked up after they had been in the lobby for around ten minutes to find the ceiling moving. Several other members of the wedding party suffered serious injuries, including head and spinal injuries, a leg fracture and a deep head laceration, with one guest requiring 19 stitches across the top of her scalp. Left: The couple after the collapse. Right: The scene He shouted at Sarah and their nine-year-old daughter Mia to run, pushing them out of the way. But as the ceiling fell, he leapt in front of baby Penny, 20 months, to shield her from the debris, taking the brunt of the weight. John was left with two fractured ribs, an injured spleen and severe bruising. Sarah suffered head and eye injuries and required ten stitches to a deep laceration on her face, which is now likely to leave a permanent scar. Several other members of the wedding party suffered serious injuries, including head and spinal injuries, a leg fracture and a deep head laceration, with one guest requiring 19 stitches across the top of her scalp. Thomas Cook apologised for the incident at the time. Chinese state media has claim that Beijing would finish building two manned deep-sea submersibles that could reach 11,000 metres (36,089 feet) under the ocean in the next two years. Another unmanned submarine which is designed to reach the same depth is also being developed by scientists in the nation. This means if any of the projects is successful, the remotely-controlled vehicles would be able to touch the bottom of the Challenger Deep, which is the deepest known spot in the ocean. China has invested heavily in its deep-sea exploration programme. Pictured, China's manned submersible 'Jiaolong' dives down the Pacific Ocean in the Mariana Trench in June, 2017 Jiaolong (pictured), a manned submersible, has reached over 7,000 metres under the ocean. Now Chinese scientists aim to build an unmanned vehicle that could reach 11,000 metres Japan is building a manned sub that could dive 12,000 metres Japanese researchers are currently developing a manned submersible aimed to dive to a maximum depth of 12,000 metres, reported Tech Times. The machine, called Shinkai 12000, is expected to be complete in a decade or so and would be able to carry a crew of six people, said the report. It would help scientists reach the deepest seafloor, exam organisms and explore natural resources. Advertisement Located in the Pacific at the southern end of the Mariana Trench, the Challenger Deep has a depth of 10,898 to 10,916 metres (35,745 to 35,813 feet). Probably the most alien part of the earth, it remains largely unknown to the humans. While nearly 1,000 people have climbed to the top of Mount Everest, only three men have ever reached the Challenger Deep in history. Retired US Lieutenant Don Walsh and his Swiss colleague, late Jacques Piccard, reached a depth of almost 10,790 metres (36,000 feet) in a submarine in 1960. In 2012, Canadian filmmaker James Cameron descended 10,898 metres (35,756 feet) in a submarine on a solo journey to reach the Challenger Deep. It took more than seven years to design and build the submarine, called the Deepsea Challenger. The Challenger Deep is the deepest known spot on earth and boasts a depth of 10,916 metres The news of the development of China's manned submersibles was reported by Xinhua, China's state news agency today. If seems that one of them would be an upgrade of an existing submersible. The report didn't give any further details. The unmanned submersiis being built by a team of scientists at the Shanghai Jiaotong University as a part of China's effort to become a maritime global power. The greatest depths a Chinese unmanned submersible has reached is 10,767 metres (35,324 feet), achieved by Haidou in 2016; while Jiaolong, a Chinese manned submersible, dived over 7,000 metres (22,965 metres) in 2012 carrying three people, creating a record for the country. Deep-sea Warrior (pictured) is another manned submersible developed by China. The vehicle could reach 4,500 metres under the surface of the ocean and would be put to use next year The team at Shanghai Jiaotong University recently told Wenhui Daily, a Shanghai-based newspaper, that the project would be complete by 2020, and afterwards they would try to send the submersible into the Challenger Deep. Professor Ge Tong, the leader of the project, told Wenhui Daily: 'Autonomous and remotely-operated vehicle needs to be capable of researching precisely and avoiding obstacles. 'In addition, it needs to be able to transform what it sees, smells and feels into data and instantly transfer them to researchers through miles of deep ocean.' Professor Ge and his team have successfully built several submersibles for the Chinese government since Beijing started an ambitious deep-sea exploration programme in 2011. Their products include two remotely operated vehicles, namely Hailong, which could dive to 3,500 metres (11,428 feet), and Longhuang, which was designed to reach 10,000 metres (32,808 feet). Federal prosecutors say they'll recommend a 21-month prison sentence for the man accused of tackling Senator Rand Paul in his front yard. The court document also delves into the cause of the attack last November that left the Republican lawmaker with six broken ribs. The document says Rene Boucher saw Paul stacking more brush and 'had enough.' Scroll down for video Federal prosecutors say they'll recommend a 21-month prison sentence for the man accused of tackling Senator Rand Paul in his front yard The court document also delves into the cause of the attack last November that left the Republican lawmaker with six broken ribs. The document says Rene Boucher saw Paul stacking more brush and 'had enough.' The two had an ongoing dispute over yard maintenance for a few months. Boucher has been charged with assaulting a member of Congress as part of a federal plea agreement. A date has not yet been set for his guilty plea. Boucher signed the plea agreement Friday. Boucher's attorney, Matt Baker, says he'll recommend that Boucher serve no time in prison. Baker characterized the attack as a dispute between two neighbors that boiled over. He said Monday that it had nothing to do with politics. 'Assaulting a member of Congress is an offense we take very seriously,'J Minkler, US Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana, said Friday. 'Those who choose to commit such an act will be held accountable.' Baker characterized the attack as a dispute between two neighbors that boiled over. He said Monday that it had nothing to do with politics. Pictured is Boucher's home Paul and Boucher are longtime neighbors in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Paul's home in Bowling Green, where he was attacked, is pictured Boucher's attorney says he is 'very regretful' about the attack and that it had to do with the upkeep of their yards. Paul and Boucher are longtime neighbors in Bowling Green, Kentucky. 'This is over a matter that most people would regard as trivial,' Boucher's attorney, Matt Baker, said in a phone interview Friday. 'It has to do with yards and the maintenance of those.' Boucher is 'very meticulous' about how he maintains his yard, while Paul takes 'a much different approach' to the upkeep of his property, Baker said. 'It all goes to large piles of leaves and branches and yard clutter that were placed on the property line,' Baker said. Some residents of the gated neighborhood had speculated the attack was motivated by a dispute over yard debris- but Paul's office rejected that. Paul told the Fox News Channel in November that ultimately, the motive does not matter. 'This is over a matter that most people would regard as trivial,' Boucher's attorney, Matt Baker, said in a phone interview Friday. 'It has to do with yards and the maintenance of those' Boucher, a retired anesthesiologist in his late 50s, already faces a misdemeanor assault charge in state court in Kentucky. He has pleaded not guilty to that charge. Baker said Friday that he's hopeful the state charge will be dismissed now that Boucher has reached the plea agreement on the federal charge. Paul, a former presidential candidate, was attacked Nov. 3 while mowing his lawn at his home. A close friend of Paul's said the senator had gotten off his riding lawn mower to remove a limb when he was tackled from behind. Paul has said he never saw the attacker because he was facing downhill and wearing ear protection from the noise of his lawn mower. He returned to Washington less than two weeks later but developed pneumonia when he returned to Kentucky. Paul has since said he's recovering well from the attack. Baker said Friday the attack was 'completely, 100 percent out of character' for Boucher. He said his client is looking forward to getting the case resolved. Minkler's office was assigned the case after a U.S. attorney in Kentucky recused himself. The case was investigated by the FBI's Louisville office. Curiosity got the better of a Western Australian teenager after he was attacked by a stingray at a Perth beach on Sunday. The teenager, 13, suffered a 10-centimetre gash to his chest while swimming next to Woodman Point jetty in Munster, just south of Coogee Beach. '(The wound) was under the left arm from the back all the way to the front, it was about four inches long, by about a half an inch wide and it was really deep,' witness James Fowler told 9 News. The teenager, 13 (pictured) suffered a 10 centimetre gash to his chest in the stingray attack The boy (pictured) spent Sunday night in hospital and was released the following day The attack occurred at Woodman Point jetty in Munster, south of Coogee Beach (pictured) A fisherman hooked the stingray on the jetty moments before it attacked the teenager as it swam back into deeper water. 'It was heading towards these three children so I yelled out to the children to get out of the way,' Mr Fowler told Channel Nine. '(The boy) had googles on so he was straight away curious on what it was that we were trying to get him away from. 'He stuck his head under water and started swimming towards it, once he got towards it that's when he dove on top of it.' The boy managed to make his way to the shore before falling in and out of consciousness as his father and other beach goers frantically performed first aid until paramedics arrived. Experts say stingray (pictured) attacks are very rare but can be fatal He was raced to hospital and has since been discharged. Stingray attacks are rare but can be deadly. Marine experts say that stingrays will only attack when they feel threatened. Crocodile hunter Steve Irwin was killed by a two metre stingray in chest-deep water off north Queensland in 2006 while filming for a documentary. A Perth man almost lost a foot when he stepped on a stingray at a beach in the Pilbara region last July. Following a many ex-politico before her, Omarosa Manigault Newman signed with a speakers bureau on Monday and will begin asking for up to $50,000 a speech, TMZ has learned. Manigault Newman, the reality TV villain turned White House aide, signed with the American Program Bureau, which represents celebrities including Goldie Hawn and Rob Lowe and political types including Sarah Palin. 'Since it's Black History Month and Women's History Month, I'm sure Omarosa will be in high demand, as she has always been,' said American Program Bureau's founder Robert P. Walker to TMZ. Omarosa Manigault Newman is photographed during the first week of the Trump administration entering the Brady Press Briefing Room. Manigault Newman signed a deal Monday with the American Program Bureau, where she hopes to command $50,000 a speech Omarosa Manigault Newman is escorted to her seat on January 20, 2017, President Trump's inauguration day. When the White House initially announced Manigault Newman's departure it was slated for January 20, 2018 President Trump (right) grabs the shoulder of Omarosa Manigault Newman (left). The two met each others in 2004 when Manigault Newman appeared on Trump's show 'The Apprentice' Omarosa Manigault Newman (far left) sits among the women of the White House including (from left) Communications Director Hope Hicks, Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway and Deputy Press Secretary Lindsay Walters Black History Month is celebrated in February, while Women's History Month is marked in March. Walker told the online publication that his firm's goal is to book at least 10 appearances starring Manigault Newman over the next three months. Manigault Newman first met the now-president when she appeared on his show 'The Apprentice' in 2004, making additional appearances during the program's seventh and thirteenth seasons. She was one of the few black women to campaign heavily for Trump when he announced his White House ambitions in 2015. And she followed her old boss to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in January 2017 when he was sworn in. The former director of communications for the White House Office of Public Liaison would likely command an even larger sum if she decided to spill the beans on what she saw working for Trump during the first 11 months of his administration. Manigault Newman was on the government's tab until Saturday, but had physically left the White House a month before. On December 13, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters that Manigault Newman was leaving her post to 'pursue other opportunities.' A White House official told NBC News the former reality TV star had had a 'nice' and 'very cordial' conversation with the president before Huckabee Sanders' announcement was made. Counselor to the President Kellyanne Conway (left) chats with Omarosa Manigault Newman (right), who had served as the director of communications for the Office of Public Liaison until December However, sources later said that on the evening of December 12 Manigault Newman had been informed by Trump's Chief of Staff John Kelly that her White House tenure was over. Manigault Newman had to be escorted off White House grounds as she tried to storm Trump's residence in the executive mansion to protest. Trump finalized the firing by tweeting the evening of December 13: 'Thank you Omarosa for your service! I wish you continued success.' Manigault Newman has kept a low profile since, as Huckabee Sanders had noted that the ex-Apprentice villain would be officially be done at the White House on January 20, a year after Trump's inauguration. She hasn't tweeted a single time and has posted only one time of Instagram, uploading a photo of herself and her mom on her mother's birthday. The son of a high flying British barrister has appeared in court accused of raping a 20-year-old student while she slept at his parent's luxury New York apartment. George Fay, 23, clambered into bed with the woman after she had consensual sex with his friend, who was asleep beside her, prosecutor Sara Sullivan told the jury. 'As she slept next to her friend, she thought she was safe,' she said. 'Instead she woke up to this man George Fay, a stranger, forcing oral sex as she lay sleeping.' George Fay (right) the son of a high flying British barrister Michael Fay (left), are pictured at Manhattan Supreme Court in New York City yesterday for the former's trial Fay (right), 23, denies three counts of rape, sex abuse and committing a criminal sexual act while the victim was 'physically incapable' of giving consent Fay, whose QC father Michael sits as a deputy high court judge in the Caribbean and is now based in the British Virgin Islands, had spent the night drinking with friends, including his childhood friend Jack Slye. He gave Slye the keys to his parents' Upper East Side apartment so he could 'hook-up' with a casual girlfriend, the court heard. The couple fell asleep after having sex and did not hear Fay come into the room, it was claimed. Slye, who gave evidence for the prosecution, told Manhattan Supreme Court he was in the city celebrating his 22nd birthday and asked to stay at Fay's flat. He described his relationship with the woman as 'random and sporadic', explaining they 'hooked up every now and again.' Fay (walking down the hallway at with his father at Manhattan Supreme Court) is accused of climbing on top of the woman as she slept and forcing her to perform a sex act in July 2016 Dark-haired, sun-tanned Fay, dressed in an expensive charcoal grey suit, blue and white striped shirt and patterned tie, stared intently at his friend as he gave evidence. He has pleaded not guilty to three counts of rape, sex abuse and committing a criminal sexual act while the victim was 'physically incapable' of giving consent. Fay, once a star lacrosse player at his expensive American boarding school, is on bail but is understood to be wearing an ankle monitor. London-born Fay, whose family now split their time between the Channel Islands, the Virgin Islands and America, was arrested shortly after the alleged attack in July 2016. George Fay was in court, with his father Michael and mother Sofia, for the first day of the trial Fay (pictured with his father outside court yesterday) was arrested in July 2016 but was granted bail and appeared to be wearing an ankle monitor Michael Fay (pictured with his son), a partner in a top Virgin Islands law firm, was also in court for the hearing. He is expected to be called as a witness for the defence Fay's mother Sofia, a partner in a Caribbean PR company, sat at the back of the court listening to the evidence. His 53-year-old father, an honorary member of London's Radcliffe Chambers and now a partner in a top Virgin Islands law firm, was also in court and is expected to give evidence for the defence. Fay's lawyer Steve Sirocco told the jury that the woman had given 'several versions' of what had happened including 'omissions and distortions.' He told them: 'She woke up with a stranger's penis in her mouth. She gagged? No. She screamed? No. She struggled? No. She fell back to sleep.' The trial, which is expected to last two weeks, continues. The same group is believed to have assaulted two other women at 2am next day Police believe the alleged victim, 24, was assaulted by the group inside the lift They released images of group who may be able to assist with police enquiries Police are investigating assault of a woman in a Melbourne lift on New Year's Day Police are trying to identify a group of women of African appearance who allegedly assaulted another female in a lift on New Year's Day. The alleged attack took place in a lift in an apartment building on City Road in Southbank, Melbourne, at 3.30am on January 1. Police claim the group assaulted a lone woman when she tried to get out of the elevator on her floor. Scroll down for video Police are trying to identify a group of women of African appearance who allegedly assaulted another female in a lift on New Year's Day (pictured are people police believe may be able to assist with enquiries) The alleged attack took place in a lift in an apartment building on City Road in Southbank, Melbourne, at 3.30am on January 1 (pictured, left and right, are two women police believe may be able to assist with enquiries) Police claim the group assaulted a lone woman when she tried to get out of the elevator on her floor (pictured is a woman police believe may be able to assist with enquiries) The alleged victim suffered bruising and a lump on her head, and was taken to hospital for observation after the incident. The same group may be responsible for a similar attack on two women in a lift in the same building at 2am the next morning, police believe. Investigators are urging the two female victims of the second attack to come forward. Police have released CCTV footage and images of a number of people who may be able to assist them with their enquiries. The alleged victim suffered bruising and a lump on her head, and was taken to hospital for observation after the incident (pictured are people police believe may be able to assist with enquiries) The 24-year-old recent college graduated appointed to a top position in the White House drug policy office has come under scrutiny after it was revealed he fudged details on the resume he submitted for the position. Taylor Weyeneth's scanty resume was published by the Washington Post, who noted that it was not only riddled with inaccuracies, but that he was fired from his last job due to his inability to show up to work. Weyeneth was appointed as deputy chief of staff at the Office of National Drug Policy. He was appointed about a year after receiving his undergraduate degree from St John's University in New York in 2016. His only prior professional experiences before taking the job were a position on the Trump campaign, which he took just after graduating, and a legal assistant job at the New York Lawfirm O'Dwyer & Bernstein, which he had as an undergraduate. Taylor Weyeneth's scanty resume was published by the Washington Post , who noted that it was not only riddled with inaccuracies, but that he was fired from his last job due to his inability to show up to work. He is pictured far left the night Trump was elected Weyeneth was appointed as deputy chief of staff at the Office of National Drug Policy. He was appointed about a year after receiving his undergraduate degree from St John's University in New York in 2016 And according to the Post, he lied on the resume he submitted when applying to the position in Trump's administration - claiming he spent more time at the law firm, that he was vice president of his college fraternity, and that he had a Masters degree. It was also revealed that he was 'discharged' from O'Dwyer & Bernstien for failing to come to work. A partner at the firm, Brian O'Dwyer, told the Post, 'he just didn't show.' Since the information became public Weyeneth has been reassigned to 'administrative work' instead of making policy decisions but still holds the deputy chief of staff title. Weyeneth's resume also claim he is has a Masters of Political Science from Fordham's Center for Electoral Politics and Democracy. He did enroll in the program, but has not completed his degree yet, a spokesperson for the Bronx school told the Post. The Office of National Drug Policy is looking for a new second-in-command, according to the Post. The Office has not yet released an official comment about the matter. And according to the Post, he lied on the resume he submitted when applying to the position in Trump's administration - claiming he spent more time at the law firm, that he was vice president of his college fraternity, and that he had a Masters degree Since the information became public Weyeneth has been reassigned to 'administrative work' instead of making policy decisions but still holds the deputy chief of staff title. He is pictured second from the left with other members of Trump's administration Weyeneth's quick rise within the office was previously attributed to staff turnover and vacancies. The Post's expose came after Trump was called out by 10 Democratic senators who excoriated him for hiring Weyeneth in the first place and for his failure to tackle the opioid crisis in a timely manner. The Post's expose came after Trump was called out by 10 Democratic senators who excoriated him for hiring Weyeneth in the first place and for his failure to tackle the opioid crisis in a timely manner 'You have claimed that the opioid epidemic is a top priority for your administration, but the personnel you have staffing these key agencies - and hte lack of niminees to head them - is cause for deep concern,' the lawmakers wrote. Among them were Senator Diane Feinstein, Senator Maggie Hassan and Senator Elizabeth Warren. 'This crisis knows no bounds, and we are committed to working across party lines with anyone who is serious about addressing this devastating epidemic.' Earlier this year Weyeneth was tasked with taking on some roles meant for the general counsel and acting chief of staff following their departures, according to internal memos obtained by the Post. 'ONDCP leadership recognizes that we have lost a few talented staff members and that the organization would benefit from an infusion of new expert staff,' according to the January 3 memo from acting director Richard Baum. 'For the immediate future, the acting chief of staff role will not be filled and ONDCP will operate with the current director's office staffing.' 'The functions of the chief of staff will be picked up by me and the deputy chief of staff.' A group of 16 Senate Democrats including some with potential presidential ambitions voted against a resolution that ended the three-day government shutdown. Many of the holdouts said they did not trust President Donald Trump to come up with a deal to help DREAMers who came to the country illegally as children. Others weren't satisfied by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's statement of his intention to bring up immigration legislation within 18 weeks in a statement that included plenty of wiggle room for the Republican. 'My concern with the three-week extension adopted today is that the Republican leadership will fail to negotiate for 15 of the next 17 days,' said Oregon Democratic Sen. Jeff Merkley. Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA) speaks to reporters after the Senate reached an agreement to end the shut down of the federal government on Capitol Hill in Washington, U.S., January 22, 2018. She was among 16 Democrats voting against a funding resolution Monday 'Leader McConnell's track record of keeping his 'commitments' is thin at best,' Merkley complained. The resolution passed anyway on a on a 81-18 vote. Two Republicans joined the Democratic holdouts. California Democratic Sen. Kamala Harris, a first-term senator who has drawn speculation of presidential ambitions, said it was 'follhardy' to believe McConnell made a binding commitment. 'Listen, I'm disappointed with a conversation that suggests a false choice: You either fund the government or you take care of these DACA kids,' Harris said, CNN reported. 'We can do both.' Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren also voted against it. In the House, Minority Leader Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California blasted the three-week continuing resolution, which included a six-year extension of authorization for a children's health insurance program, considered a win for Democrats despite their retreat from using the funding bill to try to secure legal status on DACA. Senator Bernie Sanders talks at Convocation Hall to talk about Canadian healthcare at the University of Toronto in Toronto. October 29, 201 Sen. Cory Booker D-N.J., questions Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen during a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018. He was among 16 Democrats voting against a funding resolution Monday President Donald Trump 'I refuse to be an enabler to the Republicans' failure any longer,' said Pelosi on the House floor shortly before the vote to reopen the government. She blasted the 'utter incompetence of the Republican controlled government.' Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer complained during the shutdown after a Friday meeting with Trump over cheeseburgers that negotiating with the president was 'like negotiating with Jell-O.' On the House side, it was a much more lopsided result, with 144 Democrats voting against a resolution to reopen the government, after many demanded any deal include a solution for DREAMers, whose status is to expire in March. McConnell spoke on the Senate floor to announce the arrangement, which some Democrats complained was vague, but Schumer accepted as a way to end the shutdown. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, a Democrat from New York, also voted against the resolution Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) was among those with possible presidential ambitions who voted 'no' 'All of us want to make life better for the American people. Bearing this in mind, I hope and intend that we can reach bipartisan solutions on issues such as military spending, immigration and border security, and disaster relief before this February 8th deadline. But yesterday evening, I restated my position that these negotiations can't last forever,' McConnell said on the floor. 'Should these issues not be resolved by the time the funding bill before us expires on February 8th, so long as the government remains open it so long as it remains open it would be my intention to take up legislation here in the Senate that would address DACA, border security, and related issues as well as disaster relief, defense funding, health care, and other important matters,' he added. Others voting against it were Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Chris Murphy of Connecticut, Mazie Hirono of Hawaii, who tangled with Trump at an immigration meeting, and Sen. Dianne Feinstein of California. Also voting no were Sens. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, Ed Markey of Massachusetts, Patrick Leahy of Vermont, Robert Menendez of New Jersey, Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada, Jon Tester of Montana a rare red state lawmaker among the group, andRon Wyden of Oregon. A 44-year-old woman went overboard from a Carnival cruise ship into the Gulf of Mexico Sunday night just four days after another passenger died after falling from her balcony. Carnival Cruise Line spokesman Vance Gulliken told news outlets that the 44-year-old woman fell from the Carnival Triumph. The woman is still missing and rescue efforts for her are still under way. The Carnival Triumph was on the second day of a five-day cruise when the 44-year-old woman was 'seen going overboard', according to Gulliksen. A 44-year-old woman went overboard from the Carnival Triumph (file image) cruise ship into the Gulf of Mexico Sunday night just four days after another passenger died after falling from her balcony 'All appropriate authorities have been notified and Carnival's CARE Team is providing support and assistance to the guest's family,' Gulliksen said in a statement to the Miami Herald on Monday. The ship had sailed from New Orleans when the incident happened. Carnival officials said the Triumph is now en route to Cozumel. The Mexican Navy is now leading the search and rescue operation by sea and air, Gulliksen said. This incident comes just four days after a woman on board the Carnival Elation died after she fell from her cabin's balcony. A woman aboard the Carnival Elation fell from her cabin's balcony to a deck 'several' stories below and died on Friday morning (File photo of the Elation) 'There was blood everywhere,' a woman on board texted her mother, who then told the Miami Herald. Pictured are scenes from the incident. Photos courtesy of Cruise Law News The woman, who has not yet been identified, died early Friday morning on the Elation, which was traveling from Jacksonville, Florida to The Bahamas, the Miami Herald reported. She fell onto a deck 'several' stories below, Gulliksen said on Friday. 'There was blood everywhere,' a woman on board texted her mother, who then told the Herald. 'The ship's medical team responded immediately, but, unfortunately, she passed away,' Gulliksen said in his statement. 'The incident was reported to all proper authorities and CARE Team support was offered to fellow travelers and her family. Our thoughts and prayers are with the deceased and her family.' The Elation was on a four-day journey to Freeport when the fall occurred. The passenger who texted her mother said the ship was held in Freeport while authorities investigated the incident. In the past calendar year, Carnival has seen three death-by-falling incidents. In October 2017, eight-year-old Zion Smith, of The Bahamas, died after she fell from the Carnival Glory while it was docked in Miami Kevin Wellons (right) fell overboard from the Elation into the sea in February 2017 Eight-year-old Zion Smith fell off the fifth-story deck of Glory while the ship was docked at a Miami port in October 2017. She fell to the third story and died. Zion, who was from Nassau, The Bahamas, was traveling with her brother, mother and her mother's boyfriend when she tragically died. Her uncle, Damien Fox, told ABC Local 10 at the time that some family members on the ship believed several people were pushing in an attempt to get out of an elevator may have accidentally caused the girl to fall. In February 2017, Kevin Wellons of Georgia fell from the 11th-floor deck of the Elation into the water while the ship was near the Bahamas. His wife reported the 24-year-old missing the morning after his fall, and a 1,300-square-mile Coast Guard search for his body proved futile. The cruise ship line was also hit with controversy in December, when a family from Florida found a secret video camera had been hidden in their cabin while they were traveling aboard the Fantasy. And in May 2016, the Adonia's inaugural trip to Cuba was not without scandal as it emerged that some of the 700 passengers might have caught the dreaded novovirus. DailyMail.com has reached out to Carnival for comment. Children are getting drunk on strong alcohol sold for pocket money prices, a police expert has warned. Sergeant Mick Urwin, a spokesman on licensing for the National Police Chiefs Council, said youngsters were able to buy booze for less than the cost of their school dinners. He said groups of underage drinkers were hiding away in woods or by rivers to neck very cheap, high-strength alcohol such as three litres of cider for 3 putting them at risk of sexual exploitation or other dangers. Sgt Urwin, of Durham Constabulary, spoke out as the Commons Health and Home Affairs select committees carried out a joint investigation of introducing minimum unit price on alcohol. In November, the Scottish Government announced it would press ahead with plans to charge alcohol at a minimum price of 50p per unit. That means a 500ml can of beer can be sold for no less than 1.50 and a bottle of whisky 14. Sergeant Mick Urwin, a spokesman on licensing for the National Police Chiefs Council, said youngsters were able to buy booze for less than the cost of their school dinners The UK Government will reconsider introducing a minimum price for alcohol after the Scottish scheme was backed by the Supreme Court. Campaigners argued that minimum pricing would reduce the consumption of super-strength ciders, cheap vodka and special brew lagers. Then Prime Minister David Cameron dropped a fixed price per unit in 2013 after a lobbying campaign by drinks companies and ministers warned it could unfairly hit responsible drinkers on lower incomes. Sgt Urwin said: Alcohol is being sold at pocket money prices. Young people will go for the cheapest drink they can get. If we continue to allow young people the access to cheap alcohol at less than the cost they are paying with their dinner money at school then it will continue to cause a lot of harm. Giving evidence yesterday MON Rosanna O'Connor, of Public Health England (PHE), said just 4 per cent of the population consumed almost one-third of all the alcohol sold in England. Sgt Urwin, of Durham Constabulary, spoke out as two select committees carried out a joint investigation of introducing minimum unit price on alcohol like the Scottish government is planning A three-litre bottle of cider containing 22.5 units of alcohol can be bought for as little as 3.60. If the 50p minimum unit price were to be introduced, the costs would jump to 11. Ms O'Connor said: The result would be a significant impact on a small group of people. That's why it's such a targeted policy for such great health gains. Professor Nick Sheron, a liver expert at the University of Southampton, said for people drinking 14 units per week - the recommended weekly limit - the cost would be an extra 1.26 per week for someone drinking wine or spirits, 2 for a beer drinker and 3 for a cider drinker. Those supporting the minimum unit price say it only targets a small group of problem drinkers, such as street drinkers, under age drinkers and young people "pre-loading" before a night out. Unlike a tax, it will not impact alcohol price in pubs and clubs, which they say could have a negative impact on the night-time economy. Critics of the proposals say money raised from a minimum unit price goes straight to the manufacturers, while increased duty could be used to provide alcohol treatment programmes. Government figures estimate that alcohol abuse in England and Wales costs 21billion annually, including cost to the health service, alcohol-related crime and losses to the economy. Introducing a minimum price of 60p per unit would see 3,000 fewer alcohol-related deaths over five years, 88,000 few hospital admissions and 350,000 crimes, according to health data. U.S. President Donald Trump slapped steep tariffs on imported washing machines and solar panels in an order he was signing Tuesday. The move gave a boost to Whirlpool and dealt a setback to the renewable energy industry in the first of several potential trade restrictions. The decisions were the first of several potential tariff actions that Trump may take in the coming weeks and months. They are being made ahead of his visit to the Davos World Economic Forum in Switzerland where the White House say he will deliver an 'America First' message to the CEOs, billionaires and celebrities who gather at what is seen as the key get-together for free-trade globalists. Trump is considering recommendations on import restrictions for steel and aluminum on national security grounds under a 1962 trade law and tariffs or other trade sanctions against China over its intellectual property practices. America First: Trump imposed tariffs on washing machine and solar panel imports after a finding that American firms had been hit by dumping. The measure is intended to reassure his base that he is tough on trade Domestic versus foreign: Imported washing machines such as those by Samsung (left) will be hit by tariffs of up to 20 per cent, which was welcomed by domestic manufacturer Whirlpool (right) The washer tariffs are steeper than had been demanded by the domestic industry - 50 per cent at their highest. Trump will impose a 20 percent tariff on the first 1.2 million imported large residential washers in the first year, and a 50 percent tariff on machines above that number. The tariffs decline to 16 percent and 40 percent respectively in the third year. A 30 percent tariff will be imposed on imported solar cells and modules in the first year, with the tariffs declining to 15 percent by the fourth year. The tariff allows 2.5 gigawatts of unassembled solar cells to be imported tariff-free in each year. Whirlpool, which sought the washers 'safeguard' action against rivals Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics after years of anti-dumping cases, saw its shares rise. 'By enforcing our existing trade laws, President Trump has ensured American workers will compete on a level playing field with their foreign counterparts,' Whirlpool Chairman Jeff Fettig said in a statement. Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics expressed concern over the tariffs, saying they would hit U.S. consumers and jobs. Together they ship between 2.5 million to 3 million washing machines annually to the United States, with sales of around $1 billion, and they hold a quarter of a U.S. market dominated by Whirlpool and General Electric. Samsung recently began washer production in South Carolina, and LG is building a washer factory in Tennessee. 'This tariff is a tax on every consumer who wants to buy a washing machine. Everyone will pay more, with fewer choices,' Samsung said in a statement. LG Electronics said that the decision will hinder the ramp-up and employment prospects of its new plant, which will not begin production until late 2018 or early 2019. 'It is clear that the latest safeguard measures would violate the WTO [World Trade Organization] rules,' South Korea's trade minister Kim Hyun-chong said in a meeting with industry officials. 'We will actively respond to protectionist measures.' China, the world's biggest solar panel producer branded the move an 'overreaction' and said it would work with other WTO members to protect its interests. 'The U.S.'s decision ... is an abuse of trade remedy measures, and China expresses strong dissatisfaction regarding this,' Wang Hejun, the head of the commerce ministry's Trade Remedy and Investigation Bureau, said in a statement. The decisions in the two 'Section 201' safeguard cases followed findings by the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) that both imported products 'are a substantial cause of serious injury to domestic manufacturers,' U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement. The washer tariffs exceeded the harshest recommendations from ITC members, while the solar tariffs were lower than domestic producers had hoped for. The restrictions aim to help domestic manufacturers but drew complaints that consumer costs for new washers and solar installations will rise. Trump ignored a recommendation from the ITC to exclude South Korean-produced washers from LG from the tariffs, as prior anti-dumping duties on these machines have been dropped. The decision could also hurt retailer Sears Holdings, whose Kenmore brand sources its larger washers from LG's overseas factories. LG shares fell as much as 5 percent in Seoul trading against the wider markets 0.4 percent gain. Shares in Samsung Elec were up 0.83 percent. Record snowfall is causing havoc in the Alps and disrupting the World Economic Forum in Davos, which Trump will address Friday An armed Swiss police officer stands guard on the roof of a hotel near the congress center as the forum gets under way. Trump will speak on Friday with what the White House say will be an 'America First' message Blue-collar boost: Trump has been speaking tough on trade since the start of his campaign and went to a factory in Coraopolis, Pennsylvania, last week The tariffs are expected to slow a shift to renewable energy in the United States, just as solar was becoming cost competitive with electricity generated from fossil fuels like coal, an industry that Trump has pledged to protect. MJ Shiao, head of renewable energy research for Wood Mackenzie, said the tariffs would likely reduce projected U.S. solar installations by 10 to 15 percent over the next five years. 'It is a significant impact, but certainly not destructive to the end market,' Shiao told Reuters. The domestic solar panel producers who sought the trade remedies wanted tariffs of 50 percent - the highest allowed under law. Petitioners Suniva and SolarWorld have said they cannot compete with the influx of cheap imports, mostly from Chinese producers, which has caused solar panel prices to drop more than 30 percent since early 2016. The U.S. solar trade group, the Solar Energy Industries Association, campaigned against the tariffs and estimated the decision would create a 'crisis' for the burgeoning industry and result in the loss of 23,000 U.S. jobs this year as billions of dollars in solar investments are canceled. Suniva, majority-owned by Hong Kong-listed Shunfeng International Clean Energy Ltd, applauded the decision, saying that Trump 'is sending a message that American innovation and manufacturing will not be bullied out of existence without a fight.' China and South Korea condemned the steep import tariffs and Europe also said on Tuesday it regretted the U.S. decision and would react 'firmly and proportionately' if EU exports were hit by the tariffs, which Asia fears could be be the start of greater protectionism and stall a revival in global trade. Trump's actions on trade during his first year had been less alarming than many outside the United States had feared, but Louis Kuijs, head of Asia economics at consultancy Oxford Economics in Hong Kong, said this may now be changing. 'This could very well be just one step of many,' he said, adding that steel and aluminium were also on Washington's list. Economists still believe the United States will avoid taking measures that could impact U.S. companies global supply chains, particularly for cars and electronics. The European Commission said it regretted the measures, had serious doubts that they met WTO conditions and would not hesitate to react if they harmed European Union exports. German Finance Minister Peter Altmaier told reporters in Brussels that the EU opposed protectionism and said that the measures would make products more expensive for Americans. China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) said that the outlook for solar firms' expansion overseas was not good because of protectionist sentiment, and that China was encouraging firms to build factories overseas. Other U.S. trading partners were also quick to react, with Mexico saying it would use legal means to ensure Washington met international obligations, pointing to compensation envisaged under the North American Free Trade Agreement. India has recently re-opened a U.S. dispute, alleging Washington has failed to comply with a ruling on solar power, while Vietnam has challenged U.S. anti-dumping measures against exports of fish fillets. Some analysts in Seoul believed Trump was stepping up pressure on the Asian ally to rely more on him when dealing with North Korea, while gaining leverage renegotiating a bilateral free trade pact he has previously labeled 'horrible'. 'Security and trade are linked to each other under Trump,' said Choi Won-mog, an international trade law expert at Ewha University. A WTO filing published on Jan. 12 showed Seoul had already sought authorisation to impose annual trade sanctions worth at least $711 million on the United States, in response to the dispute over washing machines. South Korea also asked for permission to impose an open-ended amount of trade sanctions if Washington broke the same rules again on other products. Californians who fled the Montecito mudslides will be able to return home by the end of this month as before and after images reveal neighborhoods being returned to normal after a mammoth cleanup operation. Officials said it will be a gradual process getting residents back into homes in Montecito, where at least 21 people were killed during flash floods on January 9. Sections of the 101 freeway that were inundated with mud and streets blocked by logs and rocks have now been cleared, images show. Before and after photos show how emergency workers have repaired the damage caused by the Montecito mudslides as residents have been told they will be allowed to return this month Above was the scene in Montecito shortly after the January 9 mudslides that killed at least 21, while below is the same scene on January 22 after cleanup crews had finished Mud, rocks, pieces of trees and debris washed down from the hillsides and up against this sea barrier have now been cleared away by emergency crews The coastal town's narrow streets are clogged with bulldozers and utility trucks as crews remove mud and boulders and rebuild drainage pipes and power lines. A 17-year-old boy and two-year-old girl remain missing in the wreckage. Robert Lewin, director of Santa Barbara County's office of emergency management, said it may be into February before natural gas service is restored to the area. A major highway reopened Sunday after a nearly two-week closure caused by the mudslides. Governor Jerry Brown declared Monday a Day of Remembrance of the Montecito Mudslides and ordered flags flown at half-staff over the state Capitol. He said it was California's deadliest flooding event in recent memory. 'As we remember those we lost in this disaster, we should also remember the injured, the missing and the survivors who may need our help in rebuilding their lives,' his proclamation said. A section of the 101 highway running between Ventura and Santa Barbara had to be closed after it was inundated with floodwater, but is now back open Cars were swept away and the 101 covered with debris and floodwater, blocking one of the busiest routes through California Crews fixed most of the damage from the mudslides, though gas supplies will not be reconnected until next month, officials say Director of the Santa Barbara County Emergency Management Office, Rob Lewin, said in a statement that clearing the debris and blocked drainage channels are of main concern last week. 'We have got to get those basins cleared as fast as we can,' Lewin said in the statement. 'If we don't get those debris basins cleared out, then we're not going to be prepared for the next storm, and we don't know what that storm is going to look like.' The disaster struck just after heavy rains drenched the area near Montecito, where vegetation had been stripped bare by the largest wildfire in California's history. Rain-soaked hillsides gave way, unleashing a sudden, violent stream of mud, water, uprooted trees and boulders onto the valley below and killing victims, now know to be ages 3 to 89. Residents displaced by the mudslides that devastated a Southern California community will finally be able to return home by the end of the month - provided that utilities can be restored by then, authorities said Sunday. A home hit by the disaster is pictured January 10 The coastal town's narrow streets are clogged with bulldozers and utility trucks as crews remove mud and boulders and rebuild drainage pipes and power lines. Pictured is the debris at least a week after the disaster, as seen on Oprah's Instagram story The destruction covered 30 square miles, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection said. Officials ordered residents in most of the southeastern corner of Montecito, which is east of Santa Barbara, to leave their homes for what was likely to be 1-2 weeks. A young mother asleep with her 3-year-old daughter as her 10-year-old nephew slumbered nearby were among those killed. Other victims included a 22-year-old woman who died in the arms of her brother as he frantically tried to save her after their father was swept to his death by the fast-moving river of mud. Centrelink telephone hold times continue to grow with analysis revealing callers are waiting the longest since the reporting scheme was updated. On average people calling the welfare office waited an average of 15 minutes and 44 seconds to talk with someone, according to the agency's annual report. 'I think it's important to make the point that it only represents a 35-second increase on the previous year,' Centrelink spokesman Hank Jongen said. Centrelink callers are waiting the longest since the reporting scheme was updated by parent company DHS Mr Jongen indicated the standard is within the company's target of 16 minutes, the ABC reported. He does however understand the frustration and the company is doing all they can to improve, he said. A mother in Perth however believes she had spent more than 10 to 12 hours on hold to the agency since May. 'Some days it's taken me an hour or two before I can even get through to Centrelink - I get the engaged tone,' Ms Eves said. The new average is the longest recorded since 2014 when the Department of Human Services (DHS) updated its reporting regime. Labor's Social Services spokeswoman Jenny Macklin said the result was an 'absolute disgrace' from the Turnbull government. During the 2015/16 financial year the expected wait was 15 minutes and 9 seconds, 35 seconds less than today's average. On average people are waiting an average of 15 minutes and 44 seconds to get through to the welfare office For a number of other call lines the average had ballooned much worse, including for young people and students dialing Centrelink who wait an average of 31 minutes and 15 seconds - an increase of around six minutes. Anyone calling through to the employment hotline would typically experience a 30 minute and 21 second hold time - up by about five minutes. Up by more than three minutes was wait times for people phoning about disability, sickness or carers payment who wait on average 28 minutes and 17 seconds. 'It certainly looks like they're (the groups) being discriminated against,' Ms Macklin said of the groups.' Mr Jongen said calls were more complex as online services were used to handle simple matters. Turkey has launched a major operation to oust US-backed Kurdish militias from an inside Syria near the countries border. Its forces had yesterday (Mon) captured a number of villages in north-western Syria, on the third day of the offensive. Named Operation Olive Branch the offensive began on Saturday with a number of strikes against the Kurdish YPG militia. The Turkish government considers the YPG to be a terrorist group as well as the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has waged a bloody three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state. Turkey said it wanted to create a 30km safe zone around Afrin, deep inside Syria. Turkey has launched a major operation to oust US-backed Kurdish militias from an inside Syria near the countries border (Pictured: Turkish soldier pictured today as they move towards the Syrian border) On the third day of 'Operation Olive Branch' Turkish forces captured a number of villages in north-western Syria It comes after an announcement by a US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State group that it is working to create a 30,000-strong border security force in northern Syria. But, the invasion of Afrin puts Turkey at risk of confrontation with its Nato ally, the US, which closely backs the YPG as its partner against ISIS. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson yesterday said he was concerned about Turkeys new offensive and urged all sides to show restraint in the conflict. Speaking in London as Turkey intensified its assault he said: The US is in Syria to defeat ISIS. Weve done that with a coalition of partners and the (Kurdish-led) Syrian Democratic Forces, so we are concerned about the Turkish incidents in northern Syria. We recognise and fully appreciate Turkeys legitimate right to protect its own citizens from terrorist elements that may be launching attacks against Turkish citizens on Turkish soil from Syria. Turkey said it wanted to create a 30km safe zone around Afrin, deep inside Syria Tillerson said he was in talks with Ankara and the leadership of the US-led coalition in Syria and hoped to address Turkish legitimate security concerns. Meanwhile a spokesman for Theresa May said the UK would look for ways to stop any further escalation of the violence. He said: We recognise Turkey has a legitimate interest in the security of its borders. The UK is committed to working closely with Turkey and other allies to find solutions that provide stability, refrain from escalating the situation and protect Turkeys security interests. France has already called for a UN Security Council meeting to discuss the situation. But Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed: We will take no step back. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says at least 54 fighters, including 26 Kurdish militia members and 19 Syrian rebels, have been killed since Saturday. It says 22 civilians have also been killed in the Turkish bombardment, while two have died in Kurdish bombing of Syrian territory of pro-Ankara rebels. Ankara denies targeting civilians. A Michigan hospital has vowed to fight for the release of one of their doctors who was arrested at his home by ICE agents and thrown in jail last Tuesday morning. The Polish doctor fled to the US with his family nearly 40 years ago, faces deportation to his birth country, despite not even speaking Polish. Lukasz Niec, who has a permanent green card, was home with his two daughters Tuesday morning when three Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents showed up, placed him in handcuffs and took him to jail. The 43-year-old internal medicine physician at Kalamazoo's Bronson Methodist Hospital has spent the past several days at the Calhoun County jail awaiting his fate. Lukasz Niec, a physician at Kalamazoo's Bronson Methodist Hospital, was arrested Tuesday by ICE agents and jailed. The 43-year-old doctor was home when his two daughters when three Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents showed up and placed him in handcuffs. Niec (left) is pictured here with his wife, Rachelle Burkart-Niec, and kids Niec's family told WOOD TV that there's a chance the doctor could be deported to Poland, a country he left with his parents and sister nearly 40 years ago. Niec has two misdemeanor convictions for destruction of property less than $100 and receiving and concealing stolen goods. Bronson HealthCare is 'following the situation surrounding the detention of Dr. Lukasz Niec closely and are doing everything we can to advocate for Dr. Niec,' a statement from the hospital obtained by mlive.com reads. 'There are two misdemeanor convictions from 26 years ago that have been cited by ICE to support Dr. Niec's detention,' Bronson said. 'We believe that Dr. Niec's recent history as a contributing member of our community is far more indicative of the type of person he is than the incidents that occurred when he was a teenager.' 'Since 2007, Dr. Niec has been a skilled and caring physician, a valued employee and respected member of the Bronson medical staff. His detention in a county jail while awaiting deportation proceedings simply does not make sense,' the Bronson statement reads. The family believes Niec was arrested because of two misdemeanor convictions from when he was 17 'We are requesting the community's best interest be considered and he be allowed to return to work and his family as soon as possible,' Bronson said in the statement. Iwona Niec-Villaire said her brother is 'shell-shocked' about being arrested and the possibility he may be deported. 'We did go see him on Wednesday, he was shaking,' she said. Niec-Villaire, an attorney, told the outlet that her family left Poland in 1979 for a 'better life'. She said her brother was three years old at the time and this is the only home he's ever known. 'He cannot (go) back to Poland, a country he doesn't know, he has no family at, both our parents passed away in the United States, he doesn't know anyone, he wouldn't know where to go,' she said. 'He doesn't even speak Polish.' Niec and his family fled Poland in 1979, when he was 3, for a better life in the US. The doctor is pictured on the right with his sister, Iwona Niec-Villaire He pleaded guilty to the charges under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act, which allows young first time offenders to avoid a criminal record if they never offend again. The family said Niec was unaware when he accepted the plea agreement that ICE does not honor it. 'Now, they're using this expunged case that's stamped non-public record against him,' Niec-Villaire told WWMT. Niec could get a bond hearing in February but his family thinks a judge will deny bond because of the misdemeanors. If it is denied, Niec will remain in jail until it's decided whether he can return home or be deported. Niec could get a bond hearing in February 'Until this gets heard, which could be up to six months, he could be stuck in a prison cell and not helping and being with his family,' Niec-Villaire told WWMT. His wife, Rachelle Burkart-Niec, added: 'He's an excellent physician, he's loving, he's caring, he's an honorable husband and he's always helping others.' The couple has two children. Niec's colleagues at Bronson are outraged at the situation and are hoping he will not be separated from his family. 'He's exactly the kind of person our immigration policies should be encouraging to prosper here, he's been here for 40 years, this is a ridiculous situation,' Dr. Michael Raphelson said. Marc Asch, an immigration attorney in Kalamazoo, told WWMT in the last year ICE has been going after cases it wouldn't have made a priority in the past. 'These days there's less discretion being exercised in who they go after, they're being more aggressive, generally speaking,' he said. Alexa Chung is seen as such a trend-setter that Marks & Spencer asked her to launch the High Street giants collection Archive By Alexa. The 34-year-old model faces a struggle, however, to turn her own fashion company into a money-spinner. For I can reveal that her business, Alpha Charlie, lost almost 1.5 million last year. The television personality-turned-style mogul ran up the debts in the company before it launched in May last year. Documents for Alpha Charlie named after her initials disclose that losses in the business went up from 75,000 to just over 1.5 million. The 34-year-old model faces a struggle, however, to turn her own fashion company into a money-spinner. For I can reveal that her business, Alpha Charlie, lost almost 1.5 million last year The accounts cover the year before launch, but mean the star and her backers have to sell huge quantities of her range, Alexachung, before Alpha Charlie can go into profit. The company issued 3 million in shares to fund the company and now has a little more than 1.4 million left. Shareholders include film producer Eric Fellner, his wife the former model Laura Bailey, property developer Anton Bilton and Lady Dunstone, wife of Carphone Warhouse co-founder Sir Charles. Alexa, left, is the biggest shareholder. The television personality-turned-style mogul ran up the debts in the company before it launched in May last year The company owes creditors more than 260,000, including a 25,000 tax bill and 52,000 to the entrepreneur Peter Dubens, who is another major shareholder. Alexa, who split from Hollywood star Alexander Skarsgard last summer, launched her brand with 145 pieces and said: I just wanted the freedom to make my own world, without someone elses brands brief to stick to. I feel like I need to get it up and running while Im still young enough to have the energy and in touch with pop culture enough to make something that is actually relevant to the audience today. The clothes line is being sold in stores such as Selfridges and many items are currently being sold at 40 per cent discount on her own website. Comedian Noel Fielding observed last year: Nobody wants a real job any more. Everyone wants to be Alexa Chung. But can they afford it? Alexachungs managing director, Edwin Bodson, tells me: We are ahead of forecasted sales and on track to exceed the company's projections. As our third collection goes into the shops, our team is very proud that the Alexachung brand is now selling in over 115 points of sale in more than 20 countries. He adds, however: We will need to continue to work very hard for a long time to come to fulfill the team's ambitions. An Australian man returned home in the early hours of Saturday morning to find a huge crocodile waiting for him at his front door. Clayton Gray, from Port Douglas in far north Queensland, was shocked to find the three-metre long crocodile sitting by his front door at 1.30am. Local police had spotted the huge creature casually strolling along the road, pushing the crocodile onto Mr Gray's front yard. Scroll down for video Clayton Gray, from Port Douglas in far north Queensland, was shocked to find a three-metre long crocodile sitting by his front door at 1.30am 'I'm lucky to be alive, it was right there,' My Gray told 7 News. 'I heard a rustle and I went to look before my phone rang - it was Sergeant Damian Meadows and he said "Clay, get inside now".' Sgt Meadows believed the reptile was probably 'looking for a lady friend' as it strolled down the residential street. The crocodile was seen at Mr Gray's front door after being pushed off the road by police The animal was found walking the streets of Port Douglas in the early hours of Saturday morning Video captured by police shows the scaly creature being pushed off the road as an officer can be heard saying: 'What do we do about this?' 'We're pushing it into someone's yard!' The animal eventually moved from Mr Gray's front door to a neighbour's garage. The crocodile was escorted down an alleyway and, after 45 minutes of coaxing, was left at a water drain. The EU has been warned that a new Calais Jungle could spring up on its headquarters doorstep. Belgiums deputy prime minister Jan Jambon said an unofficial migrant camp in Brussels was inevitable unless authorities took action. It is feared the city has become a new hub for people-smuggling gangs hoping to find a backdoor into Britain. Speaking to a parliamentary committee last week, Mr Jambon said: If we want to avoid a new Calais Jungle, continuous monitoring has to be carried out. The warning came after the minister gave the green light to a police crackdown to tackle an apparent increase in UK-bound migrants arriving in Brussels. The approach prompted a furious response from charities and activists, who accused the senior politician of fear-mongering. Belgiums deputy prime minister Jan Jambon said an unofficial 'Calais Jungle' style migrant camp in Brussels was inevitable unless authorities took action (Pictured: Calais Jungle after being cleared in 2016) More than 2,000 took to the streets of Brussels on Sunday to protest Mr Jambons inhumane order to arrest more migrants. Mr Jambon, who is also Belgiums interior minister, said a tough response was needed after an increase in the number of migrants in an area of Brussels that previously hosted a Jungle-style camp. His officials counted about 600 migrants as food was handed out last week at a meeting point just two miles from the EUs buildings in the city. Mr Jambon, who belongs to the Flemish N-VA party, said this marked an increase from 500 on New Years Day, 250 in mid-December and 100 in November. The area, which lies beside Brussels North railway station and an immigration office, became a makeshift home for 1,000 at the height of the migration crisis in 2015. The camp was closed later that year. Charities yesterday disputed Mr Jambons figures and said there were no signs a new camp would emerge. Mehdi Kassou of the Brussels Citizen Refugee Support Platform, which assists asylum seekers, said: This [suggestion of a Calais-style camp] is communication based on fear. Mr Jambon wants to make people feel afraid. The Jungle camp in Calais, which has been a magnet for those hoping to reach the UK for years, was home to 10,000 at its peak before being destroyed in October 2016. The warning came after the minister gave the green light to a police crackdown to tackle an apparent increase in UK-bound migrants arriving in Brussels, prompting protests (Pictured: A boy holding up a sign which reads 'we are all the same') Mr Kassou disputed Mr Jambons claims about the numbers of migrants in Brussels, with a peak of 523 registered by the charity last week, down from 720 last August. He admitted that those arriving in the city often used it as a point of transit, with the UK seen as the default destination for most. The groups records show most of those coming to Brussels were men, with about 45 per cent from Sudan, 20 per cent from Eritrea and another 20 per cent from Ethiopia. A further 10 per cent were from Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. Police began the hard-line approach on Sunday evening, arresting 17 suspected illegal immigrants without valid documents at Brussels train stations. Officials said the stations were targeted because they lead to a busy motorway that connects Brussels to the ports of Calais and Zeebrugge both major smuggling points into Britain. A spokesman for the interior minister said yesterday: We want to map out how the smugglers work. We suspect that Brussels is an important hub for transporting migrants to [the motorway] from where they continue their journey. Last week Belgian police said smuggling gangs were driving migrants to use increasingly violent tactics to board vehicles destined for Britain. On Friday, officers were forced to fire a warning shot after coming under attack from a group of 40 migrants armed with wooden poles at a lorry park near Brussels. Police had spotted five migrants trying to board lorries before two officers were struck in the melee. Megyn Kelly has incensed the liberal base she would often toy with during her years on Fox News with comments she made about Jane Fonda on Monday The host criticized Fonda for her actions during the Vietnam War four decades ago on her now infamous trip to Hanoi, and then claimed that the actress had yet to apologize for her 1972 tour of North Vietnam. That claim is questionable at best, with Fonda stating multiple times that she regrets ever giving off the impression that she did not support US troops. Fonda did not need to defend herself however, with a host of celebs coming to her aid and quickly going after Kelly. 'Megyn Kelly is a moron - spineless wanna be barbie - she sucks and so does her show,' wrote Rosie O'Donnell. 'What a moron this woman is,' noted Rosanna Arquette. And Kelly's very first guest on Today, Debra Messing, said: 'This is disgusting. Shameful.' There was support for Kelly too, with lawyer and columnist Kurt Schlicter responding to Messing's tweet by writing: 'Maybe you should prioritize American heroes, like VADM James Stockdale, who were tortured and sometimes murdered by the communist bastards Hanoi Jane cavorted with, over your Hollywood traitor pal.' This could be just the response Kelly wants though in hopes that it might be able to drive up ratings on her show, which after a recent uptick is slowly starting to drop again over the past week. Scroll down for video Drama: Megyn Kelly is under fire, with celebs criticizing comments she made about Jane Fonda on Monday morning (Kelly leaving work on Monday) Burn: 'Megyn Kelly is a moron - spineless wanna be barbie - she sucks and so does her show,' wrote Rosie O'Donnell On the attack: Megyn Kelly (above on Monday) tore into Jane Fonda for repeatedly criticizing her over a plastic surgery question she asked the actress, 80, back in September Letting loose: 'Look at her treatment of our military during the Vietnam war, many of our veterans still call her "Hanoi Jane" ... for shaming troops,' said Kelly (Fonda above in Vietnam) It has been four months since Megyn Kelly earned the wrath and ire of Jane Fonda for asking the 80-year-old actress about her plastic surgery, and the NBC host is now responding to the backlash. That moment occurred during Kelly's third episode on September 27 when she asked the Oscar-winner about what work she had done in the past, which prompted a steely Fonda to stare Kelly down and ask: 'We really want to talk about that now?' Since then Fonda has complained about the question to a number of outlets, and even mocked Kelly's question on Today last week during an interview with Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb 'When she first complained publicly after the program, and repeatedly, I chose to say nothing, as my general philosophy is what other people think of me is none of my business,' said Megyn at the end of her program on Monday. 'However, Fonda was at it again last week, including right here on NBC, and then again elsewhere. So it's time to address the poor-me routine.' 'First, some context. Fonda was on to promote a film about aging. For years she has spoken openly about her joy in giving a cultural face to older women,' Kelly told her studio audience. 'Well the truth is most older women look nothing like Fonda, who is now 80. And if Fonda really wants to have an honest discussion about older women's cultural face, then her plastic surgery is tough to ignore.' She continued: 'Fonda herself knows this. She knows this. And that is why, to her credit, shes discussed her cosmetic surgery pretty much everywhere before coming on our show.' Kelly went on to list the many outlets that Fonda has complained to along with the many outlets to which she has previously discussed her plastic surgery. Today was one of them, with Lily Tomlin joking last week during an interview with Kotb and Guthrie about how long she had known Fonda by stating: 'Oh, my GodI think before your first facelift!' Fonda shot back: 'Who are you, Megyn Kelly?' At the moment, all four women erupted in laughter, and the exchange was later posted on social media. 'Jane Fonda had quite the response to Lily Tomlin's facelift question, read the caption. Kelly does not seem to be laughing however in the wake of that interview. 'Look, I gave her the chance to empower other women, young and old, on a subject which she purports to know well and she rejected it. Thats okay. But I have no regrets about the question,' explained Kelly. 'Nor am I in the market for a lesson from Jane Fonda on what is and is not appropriate. After all, this is a woman whose name is synonymous with outrage.' That is when Kelly launched into Fox News mode. 'Look at her treatment of our military during the Vietnam war, many of our veterans still call her "Hanoi Jane" thanks to her radio broadcasts which attempted to shame American troops. She posed on an anti-aircraft gun used to shoot down our pilots,' stated Kelly. 'She called our POW's "hypocrites and liars" and referred to their torture as understandable. Even she had to apologize years later for that gun picture - but not for the rest of it.' She then closed out by saying: 'By the way she still says she's not proud of America. So, the moral indignation is a little much. She put her plastic surgery out there. She said she wanted to discuss the plight of older women in America. And honestly she has no business lecturing anyone on what qualifies as offensive.' Kelly's claim is inaccurate however, with Fonda apologizing directly to a group of Vietnam veterans in 2015 while appearing at an event in Maryland. 'Whenever possible I try to sit down with vets and talk with them, because I understand and it makes me sad,' Fonda told those assembled at the Weinberg Center for Arts according to The Frederick News-Post. 'It hurts me and it will to my grave that I made a huge, huge mistake that made a lot of people think I was against the soldiers.' She later described herself as a 'lightening rod' to many, like to 50 protesters outside the venue that evening who carried signs reading: 'Forgive? Maybe. Forget? Never.' Fonda then explained: 'This famous person goes and does something that looks like Im against the troops, which wasnt true, but it looked that way, and Im a convenient target. So I understand.' She would not say however she regretted travelling to North Vietnam. Jane Fonda had quite the response to Lily Tomlin's facelift comment pic.twitter.com/2qUUxReqiy TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 16, 2018 Oh no she did not: Fonda (above in September after being asked about her plastic surgery) had recently spoken about the question in an interview with Variety and on Today last week Going hard: ''She called our POW's "hypocrites and liars" and referred to their torture as understandable,' Kelly said of Fonda (above in image on set) Grudge match: Kelly failed to mention that she herself had run multiple segments on her Fox News show The Kelly File which were highly critical on Fonda (pair above in September) Viewers of The Kelly File might recognize these comments from episodes of the host's Fox News program. In at least three videos from 2014, Kelly welcomed guests on her program to trash Jane Fonda while also taking some shots of her own at the Oscar winner. In one interview with Dennis Miller in June of that year, Kelly smiled while saying that 'things went south' for the actress after her role in 'Barbarella.' She continued to laugh as Miller said that Fonda 'made sense' to him when she played the the title character in that film, a voluptuous space traveler from the planet Earth who spent most of her time in little to no clothing. Those comments were made in response to her actions during the Vietnam War. 'She's not beloved by a large portion of Americans,' said Kelly in that interview. Just a few months before Kelly and Miller went after Fonda in 2014, the host also called out then-first lady Michelle Obama for saying she admired the actress' political savvy. 'The thing is, if she had just said I want to have a body like Jane Fonda when I'm 76 most women would say, "yeah, me too,'' said Kelly. 'But when she named the political savvy and said she was someone she wanted to live like she crossed over into territory where people would criticize her.' WHY IS JANE FONDA CALLED HANOI JANE? Jane Fonda was one of the most public faces in the anti-war movement throughout the years that the United States was in Vietnam, but drew the outrage of many in 1972 when she traveled to Hanoi in North Vietnam. After touring the area and being heavily photographed with the forces that the US were fighting, Fonda publicly attacked her country for bombing farmland and destroying the dyke system which was crucial to feeding much of the population. The United States denied ever carrying out such an action. Fonda on an antiaircraft gun that would have been used to shoot down and destroy American planes before taking any surviving servicemen captives as POWs It was the photograph of Fonda on an antiaircraft gun that would have been used to shoot down and destroy American planes before taking any surviving servicemen captives as POWs that truly angered millions, and is still a great source of outrage for some veterans. Congress later held hearings to decide if Fonda should be punished for her actions, with many calling her trip an act of treason and the actress a traitor. Fonda recounted the trip in her memoir At the same time, false reports began to surface also claiming that Fonda spoke with POWs in North Vietnam and relayed the information they shared with her to enemy troops. Fonda wrote about the infamous antiaircraft gun photo in her 2005 memoir My Life So Far. 'Someone (I dont remember who) leads me toward the gun, and I sit down, still laughing, still applauding. It all has nothing to do with where I am sitting. I hardly even think about where I am sitting,' said Fonda. 'The cameras flash. I get up, and as I start to walk back to the car with the translator, the implication of what has just happened hits me. Oh, my God. Its going to look like I was trying to shoot down U.S. planes! I plead with him, You have to be sure those photographs are not published. Please, you cant let them be published.' She went on to write: 'I am assured it will be taken care of. I dont know what else to do. It is possible that the Vietnamese had it all planned. I will never know. If they did, can I really blame them? The buck stops here. 'If I was used, I allowed it to happen. It was my mistake, and I have paid and continue to pay a heavy price for it.' Advertisement In what looked at the time to be an ill-advised and poorly conceived move, Kelly decided to ask the actress to detail the plastic surgery she has had done over the year back in September. 'You, you've been an example to everyone, on how to age beautifully and with strength. And unapologetically,' began Kelly, nervously drawing out her question. 'You admit you had work done. I think it's to your credit. You look amazing. Have you ... why did you say .. I read you felt you're not proud to admit you had work done, why not?' That is when Fonda asked why they were discussing the subject. Kelly tried her best to salvage the question, with Fonda at that point glancing over to her guest Robert Redford in disbelief that she was being asked that question while out promoting the pair's new film, 'Our Souls at Night.' 'Well, one of the things people think about when they look at you, is how amazing you look,' said Kelly. A composed-as-ever but noticeably chilly Fonda at that point demurred: 'Thanks. Good attitude. Good posture. Take care of myself.' She then took control of the interview from Kelly by telling the host: 'Let me tell you why I love this movie that we did, "Our Souls at Night," rather than plastic surgery.' Redford then looked at his co-star and showed his support for her by laughing and saying: 'Back to that, huh.' Fonda then launched into her own talk about the film, no longer waiting or wanting to take one of Kelly's questions. 'You kind of have a choice in life, when you get to be close to 80, or even before then, what you want to do with your life. And my character, Addie, in this movie, she knows there's a lot more time behind her than in front,' explained Fonda. 'And she doesn't want to go down lonely and scared. She's been a widow, living in this house by herself. And she's lonely and scared. And she's a shy person, who is not someone who would normally do this. But she girds her loins and decides...' Redford jumped in saying: 'That's where I come in. You need to be girded.' Heard it all before: Kelly previously had a similar discussion about Fonda with Dennis Miller on her Fox News show back in 2014 (above) Watch the latest video at foxnews.com Redford later sang the praises of his co-star, who he previously worked with on such films as 'Barefoot In the Park' and 'The Chase.' 'One of the things I like about Jane that's manifest in this film, is she is a force. As long as I've known Jane, she always has been moving forward. And doesn't look back,' said Redford. 'And whatever pain, whatever problem she's had in the past, remains in the past. And she keeps moving forward. It's an admirable quality. And few people have it like Jane does.' The rest of the interview was a wash, with Kelly getting no response from Fonda when she launched into a bit about how she was an aerobics instructor for 10 years shortly after the actress released her bestselling exercise tapes. And to close it all out, Fonda drove home just how little she cared for Megyn's questions and how proud she was of her looks and how she has aged when the host asked her guests: 'On behalf of our audience member, Victoria wanted to ask, if you could go back to any age in your life, what would it be? I ask that to both of you.' Fonda very curtly replied: 'Right now. I wouldn't want any other time.' The actress has indeed spoken about procedures she has had done in the past, but only while promoting her fitness and wellness projects. Once upon a time, when Britain ruled nearly half the world and the Royal Navy dominated the seven seas, our forefathers took it for granted that this country was the target of jealousy and hatred. Thus, we built dreadnought battleships and sent soldiers to garrison far-flung shores, to protect our national riches. Today, however, this country has shrunk, its people ask only to be left in peace to get on with our lives and watch The Crown on Netflix. To some, it thus seems monstrously unfair that we should have to spend tens of billions of pounds defending ourselves against foreign foes to whom we wish no ill. We have got used to the menace posed by Islamic fanatics. But why should we have to go head-to-head with the Russians, of all people? What is the head of the British Army thinking of, delivering a speech in London last night in which he warned that President Vladimir Putin's nation presents 'the most complex and capable security challenge we have faced since the Cold War'? General Sir Nick Carter (pictured) has warned that President Vladimir Putin's nation presents 'the most complex and capable security challenge we have faced since the Cold War' General Sir Nick Carter, probably the ablest Chief of the General Staff so far this century, declares that 'the parallels with 1914 are stark'. He also warns, with the direct sanction of his political boss, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson, that Britain's Armed Forces are today in no state to face the threats; nor will they be, unless the Treasury finds money to plug the yawning chasm in the defence budget. Some cynics will say the service chiefs are playing a familiar game of crying wolf, warning of a 'Red Peril' in Moscow as they have done so often before, in order to secure expensive new weapons and platforms with which to posture on the international stage. Yet anybody who knows anything about defence and national security on both sides of the Atlantic understands that General Carter's depiction of the Russian threat, and of our weakness in the face of it, are all too true. Indeed, General Carter's speech was one of the toughest by a military leader for many years, and he used some chilling language. A very senior American officer said to me in the summer: 'The British Armed Forces are no longer big enough to command credibility either in Washington or with our enemies.' Some cynics will say the service chiefs are playing a familiar game of crying wolf, warning of a 'Red Peril' in Moscow as they have done so often before. Above, Russian President Vladimir Putin General Carter (above) also warns that Britain's Armed Forces are today in no state to face the threats; nor will they be, unless the Treasury finds money to plug the yawning chasm in the defence budget I told him that I hoped the next time he saw our Prime Minister, he would say as much to her, because American top brass are often too polite to British leaders for our own good. In 2018, the RAF's centenary year, its fast-jet resources are strained to the limit to sustain a tiny contingent operating over Syria and Iraq. The Royal Navy is crippled by its mad commitment to two giant aircraft carriers we lack the cash to arm these with anything more than a token force of aircraft. The Army and Royal Marines, already relatively small and under-recruited, are threatened with further severe cuts. All this is because, with the NHS and welfare budgets almost devouring the State, a weak British government flinches from responding realistically to the challenges to our national security. The Treasury lavishes resources only on the intelligence services, because terrorists represent a daily threat to ordinary British people on our streets. Yet, as General Carter said last night, terrorists cannot destroy our society, whereas the Russians pose a major threat to the West's stability. Nobody supposes that Putin's soldiers are about to launch an amphibious assault on East Yorkshire. But the Russians have mastered an extraordinary range of cyber, fake news, military and guerrilla tactics to destabilise the Western alliance and threaten its most exposed regions, such as the Baltic states. The clear distinction between peace and war is gone: the world henceforward must exist in an uneasy and permanently perilous limbo between the two. The Russians have mastered an extraordinary range of cyber, fake news, military and guerrilla tactics to destabilise the Western alliance. Above, Russian ships are seen in the English Channel in 2017 The Russians like the Chinese and North Koreans have, says General Carter, 'become masters at exploiting the seams between peace and war'. One reason for taking the 1914 comparison seriously is that the Great War broke out not because either Germany or Russia wanted a big war, but because both miscalculated. Carter points out that 'whether we like it or not', in the eyes of the Russian people, we Westerners 'have been made to appear as the enemy'. The Russians have shown again and again that they respect strength and exploit weakness. Thus we must protect our capabilities or, though General Carter was too tactful to say this baldly rebuild them from the sorry decay into which they have fallen. We must convince our European allies, of whom only the French have war-fit Armed Forces, of the need to work much more seriously together. It is weakness that makes Russia dangerous: its population is shrinking and its economy would be a basket case but for oil and gas. Putin needs enemies including us and, frankly, also conflicts, in order to sustain his own power-base at home, and browbeat his way to the respect he demands, in the spirit of every street bully. General Sir Nick Carter also declared that 'the parallels with 1914 are stark'. Pictured, new recruits march alongside armed officers following the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 Lest anyone suppose that either I, or General Carter, am making all this up, consider the overwhelming evidence of Russian meddling, not only in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, but in almost every aspect of the information struggle that has become part of all our daily lives. The Russians' annexation of Crimea; their shooting down a civilian airliner; the war in eastern Ukraine these are stark facts. Carter concluded last night: 'These threats are now on Europe's doorstep and the character of war is making it much harder to recognise the true intentions of our opponents, and thus distinguish between what is peace and what is war.' I am not nostalgic about Britain's Armed Forces. We should not keep tanks or jets, guardsmen or frigates, merely to ornament reviews and look pretty at Trooping the Colour. But the rundown of our Armed Forces by successive governments represents a scandal. Successive prime ministers have been deeply irresponsible to allow it to happen. Nations that wish to avoid fighting wars can only hope to do so by possessing defences that deter prospective aggressors, as today ours do not. One reason for taking the 1914 comparison seriously is that the Great War broke out not because either Germany or Russia wanted a big war, but because both miscalculated. Pictured, British troops in France during the First World War The only plausible means of dissuading Putin from his adventurism on both the physical and electronic frontiers of the U.S. and Europe is that he should believe aggression will cost him, as today he does not. 'We have to invest,' says General Carter and that means in men, weapons, ships and planes, the total cost of which is still a tiny fraction of Britain's social spending. Some cash should, of course, be diverted from the bloated overseas aid budget, but there must also be new money. Nobody who takes an adult view of Britain's safety, of our self-respect in the world, should begrudge this. Some of the Defence Secretary's colleagues at Westminster curled their lips cynically after last night's speech, attributing to Gavin Williamson's naked ambition his willingness to allow General Carter to speak so honestly about the cash crisis facing the Armed Forces. But Williamson's predecessors, Philip Hammond and Sir Michael Fallon, brought shame on themselves by seeking to conceal from the nation the scale of the defence cash crisis, rather than try to solve it. Both the new Defence Secretary and his army chief have acted honourably by telling us the truth. Now, it is up to the Government to act to repair our ailing forces, and to the British people to back them in doing so. A woman who mysteriously died after giving birth to her sixth child was already fighting for life when she was rushed to hospital, it has been revealed. Vicki Butler died in Ipswich Hospital, near Brisbane, at 6.20pm on December 27, just hours after her new son Leo Victor Butler Swan was born. Leo is in the care of his father while the other five of her children are 'doing well' living with her ex-husband with support from family and friends. Vicki Butler died in Ipswich Hospital, near Brisbane, at 6.20pm on December 27 Ms Butler was farewelled at a funeral at Westside Church of Christ in Brisbane on January 5 The 41-year-old's father Gil said at her funeral on January 5 that she delivered the newborn before she was rushed to hospital. 'Complications set in and by the time she arrived at the hospital her situation was critical,' he said. 'The staff in ICU at Ipswich Hospital did their very best, they went above and beyond, but they lost the fight and we lost our Vicki.' Ms Butler's death is being investigated by the coroner, with her family in the dark about exactly how and why she died. 'We're all devastated and have many questions about how such a tragedy could occur,' Mr Butler said. Ms Butler's death is being investigated by the coroner, with her family in the dark about exactly how and why she died The 41-year-old's father Gil said at her funeral on January 5 that she delivered the newborn before she was rushed to hospital Giving birth outside the hospital did not appear to be Ms Butler's plan, as according to friends she only wanted part of her labour to be at home. 'She had told me she wanted to labour at home as much as possible so her kids could be part of the experience but she had not mentioned wanting to homebirth,' Angie Petersen told News Corp. Her brother Cameron Butler said the family didn't know more than that she died from complications from childbirth and 'may find out more' from the investigation. 'There's only a couple people that know exactly what happened and where,' he said. Ms Butler had five children with her ex-husband, evangelical preacher Tosh Sturgess, whom she married in 2001 before they divorced a few years ago. Mr Sturgess said Daniel 15, Christy 13, Lily 11, Hannah 9, and Zoe 6, were 'doing really well' with the support of family and their mother's many friends. 'They have lost their mum but they haven't lost everything,' he said. 'They have a happy well established connection and routine with me, they have a mountain of friends, close family on both sides who love them dearly, and they have each other.' Her brother Cameron Butler (pictured together) said the family didn't know more than that she died from complications from childbirth and 'may find out more' from the investigation The doting dad thanked the dozens who helped the family deal with the aftermath of Ms Butler's death, and said the children were dealing with it privately. 'Kids in grief swing between two extremes: Being normal kids and the expressions of emotion. The emotion is usually for behind closed doors,' he said. 'It's good to acknowledge their loss, but please be assured they are all expressing themselves very healthily and traveling well in expressing their emotion to close friends and family.' Leo, born a healthy baby weighing 3.87kg, will be looked after by his father Jason Swan whom Ms Butler was dating for more than a year before her death. Ms Butler's father said he, his wife Elaine and other family celebrated 'a good Christmas' together with his daughter and Mr Swan in 2016. 'Jason never got to become my son-in-law, but has agreed to take care of baby Leo. That warms my heart and we will do everything we can to support him in every way we can,' he said. Her father said Ms Butler 'wanted to be remembered and a helper, healer, truthspeaker, gentle and faithful friend, and a musicmaker' In December 2013 Ms Butler gave birth to baby son Anthony seven weeks early, after just 33 weeks, but he died after just a few days The family shared photos of Leo in Cameron's arms, and being held by Zoe in a shot of all six children. The childbirth that killed her was not Ms Butler's first to have complications. In December 2013 she gave birth to baby son Anthony seven weeks early, after just 33 weeks, but he died after just a few days. The death of their sixth child devastated the couple and within a year or so their marriage ended, with Ms Butler reverting to her maiden name. She became a single parent and homeschooled her five children as part of a close group of likeminded Brisbane mothers, one of whom spoke at her funeral. 'Vicki did it tough, especially over the past few years,' Mr Butler said, describing how the relationship ended 'for various reasons'. The proud father's emotional eulogy detailed how Ms Butler was a 'model baby' born in Coffs Harbour, NSW, to missionary parents in April 1976. She spent her early years on a remote Pacific island before moving to an Aboriginal community in Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory, and Papua New Guinea. Mr Butler said his daughter had a happy childhood but afterwards struggled to adapt to an Australian culture that was foreign to her. Ms Butler spent her early years on a remote Pacific island before moving to an Aboriginal community in Arnhem Land in the Northern Territory, and Papua New Guinea Numerous tributes flowed at both the service and online, and fundraisers for her children and memorial raised $11,530 in Australia and US$5,700 in the U.S. She moved to Brisbane to study teaching and music, excelling at flute and piano, and worked as an educator for several years before her marriage. Her ex-husband, Mr Sturgess, frequently travelled around the world for his ministries for the Assemblies of God church. He claims dozens of miracles healing serious illnesses have been performed at his meetings in Thailand, South Korea, Singapore, India, South East Asia, Mozambique, Africa, Mexico, and the U.S. 'Blind eyes, deaf ears, twisted spines, major arthritis, limp arms, lame legs, brain aneurysms, ruptured spinal discs, nerve damage and many other diseases have been healed by the Lord in Tosh's meetings,' his website reads. Ms Butler worshiped at his church but after their divorce she 'found a haven' at Westside Church of Christ in Brisbane, where her funeral was held. 'Vicki wanted to be remembered and a helper, healer, truthspeaker, gentle and faithful friend, and a musicmaker,' her father told mourners. Numerous tributes flowed at both the service and online, and fundraisers for her children and memorial raised $11,530 in Australia and US$5,700 in the U.S. 'Vicki had a nurturing nature and her passion for her children always stood out. We can all say your mum adored you,' a homeschooling friend told her children at the funeral. Ipswich Hospital said it was working with Queensland Police to prepare a report for the coroner investigating Ms Butler's death Friend Nadine Asmus wrote on Facebook: 'She lived a full and vibrant life, blessing so many people with her kindness and generosity. 'Her love and passion for her children, God, people, and life will not be forgotten. We miss you terribly, but find comfort in knowing you are at peace now with Jesus.' Homeschooling friend Vivienne Fox wrote: 'Vicki was a gifted, committed home educating mother who adored her children, but also made time to help other families, in many ways. She will be greatly missed.' 'Vicki has left an incredible legacy in her beautiful children and the impact she has had on the world through all who knew and loved her,' another wrote. Ipswich Hospital said it was working with Queensland Police to prepare a report for the coroner investigating Ms Butler's death. 'The circumstances surrounding her death will be a matter for the coroner and it would be inappropriate to provide further comment at this stage,' police said. Millie is recovering from her serious injuries after she was allegedly hit on the head and shot with a speargun on Monday A Labrador-cross has undergone surgery following a shocking case of animal cruelty on the New South Wale's Central Coast. Father-of-four Alistair Morgan was refused bail in Gosford Local Court on Tuesday in relation to the alleged incident that occurred on Monday. It is alleged Mr Morgan 'finally snapped' over his neighbour's barking dog Millie and broke into her home on Cogra Road, where he allegedly hit the dog over the head, which caused several cuts. He then allegedly fired a speargun at Millie, hitting her in the head. He was charged with committing an act of aggravated cruelty on an animal, firing a speargun in a manner likely to injure and break and enter into a home. Mr Morgan's solicitor Ryan Finch told the court his client had never been in trouble with the law before, the Daily Telegraph reported. Magistrate Bruce Williams refused Mr Morgan bail because of the risk of him further offending 'was no different today to what it was yesterday'. The matter was adjourned until February 6. Scroll down for the video Father-of-four Alistair Morgan was refused bail in Gosford Local Court on Tuesday in relation to the alleged incident that occurred on Monday Millie remains in a serious condition. 'My dog was in my house and he's gone in there and got the dog out and done what he did,' the dog's owner Kim Lott told 7 News. 'I'm still in shock I just can't believe what's happened - such a beautiful dog all because she was barking.' Daily Mail Australia has contacted the dog's owner for comment. A 40-year-old woman (pictured) accused of electronically wiring $30,000 to ISIS jihadis overseas was arrested by the NSW Joint Counter Terrorism Team in Sydney around 7.30am on Tuesday morning A 40-year-old Australian woman accused of electronically wiring $30,000 to ISIS jihadis was arrested by the NSW Joint Counter Terrorism Team on Tuesday morning. The woman, who is an employee of a federal government department, was confronted by police around 7.30am and taken to the Parramatta Police Station for questioning. She is expected to be charged with five counts of intentionally collecting and making funds available to a terror organisation, according to police. The charges each carry a maximum 25 year jail sentence. Officers claim the woman transferred $30,000 to ISIS jihadis between February 2015 and October 2015 via Western Union. The large chunk of money, which police are still investigating the source of, was sent overseas in five separate transfers. Her arrest is the result of the ongoing investigation by Operation PEQIN, which has been investigating the murder of police accountant Curtis Cheng, according to The Daily Telegraph. The 58-year-old was gunned down in front of the Parramatta Police Station in October 2015 by Farhad Jabar, 15, who was shot and killed by police. The woman (pictured), who is an employee of a federal government department, was confronted by police and taken to the Parramatta Police Station for questioning She (pictured) is expected to be charged with five counts of intentionally collecting and making funds available to a terror organisation, according to police Operation PEQIN has charged four men over the terror attack that claimed Mr Cheng's life. Operation PEQIN has also charged a 16-year-old and a 20-year-old with funding a terrorist organisation. Police said the 40-year-old woman's arrest was linked to the charges pending against the 16-year-old and 20-year-old. Officers would not say if the funds were related to the murder of Mr Cheng. The woman has been refused bail and will appear in Parramatta Local Court this afternoon. Operation PEQIN has charged four men over the terror attack that claimed Mr Cheng's (left) life. The 58-year-old was gunned down in front of the Parramatta Police Station in October 2015 by Farhad Jabar (right), 15 Jabar was also shot and killed by police at the scene (pictured) Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull praised the 'excellent' work of the Joint Counter Terrorism Team comprising Federal Police, ASIO and NSW Police. 'I can't add to what has been in the public domain other than to say there is no ongoing threat to the public,' he told reporters in Brisbane when questioned on the matter. 'Good intelligence and good cooperation enables terrorist plots and activities to be disrupted,' Mr Turnbull said. The brother of Roberta L Snider, 70, called the Harville, Ohio, police department on January 9 to tell them of the strange details surrounding her death An Ohio man who told authorities that his wife died on a trip to Elvis Presley's Graceland and he turned her body over to EMS workers, now says he put her body in the Tennessee River after she died of natural causes. The brother of Roberta L Snider, 70, called the Hartville, Ohio, police department on January 9 to tell them of the strange details surrounding her death. Philip Snider, 72, told family that he took his wife to Graceland 'one last time before she died,' according to Fox 8 Cleveland. According to Roberta's husband, the woman died in Memphis, Tennessee, causing Philip to pull over and ask an EMT for help. Philip asserted that his wife was taken to an unknown location after paramedics confirmed that she was dead. But after speaking with Philip and EMS companies, hospitals and medical examiner offices in the Memphis area, police determined that no women matched Roberta's description. According to Roberta's husband, the woman died in Memphis, Tennessee, while on a trip to Graceland causing Philip to pull over and ask an EMT for help. But no record of Roberta was found in the Memphis area Police would later piece together that Philip left Ohio for Tennessee on January 4 and checked into a hotel near Graceland the next day. However, surveillance video doesn't have record of Roberta actually being at the hotel. When confronted with the information, Philip shared that his wife died of natural causes while on the journey. Philip would then share that his wife died of natural causes while on the journey. He claimed to have 'put her with nature,' throwing her off a bridge on Interstate 90 in the Tennessee River on January 6 He claimed to have 'put her with nature,' throwing her off a bridge on Interstate 90 in the Tennessee River on January 6. And while the Benton County Sheriff's Office has been looking in the area for her body, Roberta has not been found. Phone records, credit card data and GPS information is now being used by inestigators to hopefully get further detail as to what happened. The FBI was also asked to conduct a polygraph on Philip. Boris Johnson will use today's meeting of the Cabinet to demand using the 'Brexit dividend' to give the NHS a 5billion annual cash injection. The Foreign Secretary is said to have the backing for the move from a string of ministers, including Michael Gove, Jeremy Hunt, Chris Grayling and international development secretary Penny Mordaunt. Mr Johnson, whose campaign to leave the EU promised billions of pounds in extra funding for the NHS, has raised the issue with Theresa May in private on several occasions since the 2016 referendum. But the move is being resisted by Downing Street and the Treasury. Mr Johnson's plans to give the health service 100 million a week are being delayed to prevent him claiming a political victory, friends of the Foreign Secretary have warned. One source said it would be 'premature' to start spending a Brexit dividend which has not yet been finalised. Scroll down for video Plans to give the NHS a fresh cash injection are being delayed to prevent Boris Johnson (pictured) claiming a political victory, friends of the Foreign Secretary have warned The PM's chief of staff Gavin Barwell is said to have told Tory MPs there is no point trying to compete with Labour on health, where the Tories trail heavily in the polls. One ally of Mr Johnson last night claimed some ministers were reluctant to link extra cash for the NHS to Brexit because they believed it would hand Mr Johnson 'a win'. 'We are delivering Brexit and we are going to have to give the NHS more money before the next election, whatever happens,' he said. 'Why not link the two and deliver on the promises made to leave voters? The only reason not to is to deny Boris a win.' Another ally of the Foreign Secretary said he would continue to make the argument for more money for the NHS 'until it happens'. 'Boris believes that if the Tories are going to beat Corbyn at the next election they must make the NHS a top priority and deliver new funding,' the source said. Mr Johnson has raised the issue with Theresa May (pictured) in private on several occasions since the 2016 referendum 'Every poll conducted shows the NHS is top of swing voter concerns and every expert says it needs more money - the Cabinet will have to act and the sooner the better. 'This isn't about the referendum - it's about delivering on the number one concern for the public and beating Corbyn at the next election. 'Boris has a track record of winning and knows the Tories simply cannot afford to concede the NHS to Labour - which is why he will continue to make this argument until it happens.' Former Tory vice-chairman Robert Halfon said it would be 'madness' to short-change the NHS for political reasons. He added: 'There's an umbilical cord between the British public and the NHS. They want a government that puts the NHS first and foremost.' Mr Johnson will use today's meeting of the Cabinet to make the case for using the 'Brexit dividend' to hand the NHS an extra 100 million a week During the referendum, Mr Johnson famously campaigned in a red bus emblazoned with a slogan suggesting Brexit would release up to 350 million a week to spend on domestic priorities like the NHS. One Cabinet rival said it was 'not our job to keep Boris's promises for him'. And a Whitehall source said it was too early to start allocating cash from a Brexit dividend that had yet to be agreed. 'It is premature,' he said. 'Boris has given quite a few figures on this - 350 million a week, 438 million and now 100 million. Once we have an idea of the figure we will be saving we will set out what we will do with it. During the referendum, Mr Johnson famously campaigned in a red bus emblazoned with a slogan suggesting Brexit would release up to 350 million a week to spend on the NHS In the meantime, we are already getting on with giving the NHS more money such as the 2.8 billion announced in the Budget.' Meanwhile, Tory grandee Sir Nicholas Soames yesterday became the latest senior figure to urge No 10 to embrace a more radical agenda. Sir Nicholas branded the government's agenda 'dull, dull, dull' and called for a 'brave and bold' approach. He added: 'It really won't be enough to get people to vote against (Corbyn). They must have really sound reasons to vote Conservative. We really need to get on with this.' Last week, former planning minister Nick Boles said the government 'constantly disappoints' because of 'timidity and lack of ambition'. The extraordinary resilience of the British economy since the Brexit vote in June 2016 has been evident for some time. Predictably, though, few Remain supporters and economists have admitted that the scare stories put about as part of Project Fear such as a big downturn in output, the necessity of an emergency Budget and years (or decades) of hardship were wildly inaccurate. So we must heartily applaud the honesty of Lord O'Neill, a very vocal pro-EU businessman who was a Treasury minister under Project Fear's architect George Osborne. In a bold mea culpa, the former chief economist at investment bank Goldman Sachs says Britain's economy will reap the benefits of a robust global expansion and this will 'easily dwarf' any damage caused by our departure from the EU. Scroll down for video Few Remain supporters and economists have admitted that the scare stories put about as part of Project Fear were wildly inaccurate. So we must heartily applaud the honesty of Lord O'Neill (pictured second from right) Lord O'Neill knows what he is talking about when it comes to the international economy. He made his name 17 years ago by coining the acronym BRIC for the fast-developing countries Brazil, Russia, India and China, which he predicted would overtake the six strongest western nations in terms of economic might. In the main, the BRIC nations are booming and, with other newly rich countries, account for 57 per cent of world output. What the Brexit doom-mongers irresponsibly failed to anticipate was that the US economy would enjoy a spurt of growth and that there would be stirrings of recovery in the EU both, in turn, helping Britain. Experts say there has been a 'synchronised recovery', when the world's major economic blocs expand at the same time. What is often forgotten is that the US is Britain's biggest trading partner a market in which we have a trade surplus of almost 40billion a year. Labour politicians such as London mayor Sadiq Khan may deplore Donald Trump, but they foolishly ignore how his big tax cuts for businesses will boost the US economy. Labour politicians such as London mayor Sadiq Khan may deplore Donald Trump, but they foolishly ignore how his big tax cuts for businesses will boost the US economy Yesterday, the International Monetary Fund said the cuts would turbo-charge American and global growth for years, adding up to 1.2 per cent a year to US output. This will raise global expansion to 3.9 per cent this year and next year. The IMF said US growth would rise from a previously predicted 2.3 per cent for 2018 to 2.7pc, and raised its forecast for 2019 from 1.9 per cent to 2.5 per cent. Here, a more competitive exchange rate (following the devaluation of sterling in the aftermath of the Leave vote, which made UK goods and services cheaper overseas), and the impressive global strength of our services sector has helped Britain thrive. How delicious it is for Brexiteers to see these doom-mongers forced to recognise a reality they tried to trash. Prime among these was Christine Lagarde, the French head of the IMF, who shamefully signed up to Project Fear and warned that if Britain voted for Brexit, it would be 'pretty bad, to very, very bad' for the UK. How delicious it is for Brexiteers to see these doom-mongers forced to recognise a reality they tried to trash. Prime among these was Christine Lagarde (pictured), the French head of the IMF, who shamefully signed up to Project Fear Embarrassingly for Madame Lagarde, the IMF now suggests Britain's economy will grow by 1.5 per cent this year faster than Japan's or Italy's. Even though Lord O'Neill still thinks the Leave vote was a 'weird thing for the UK to impose upon itself', he now concedes our economy was more robust than he had thought. The jobs market has improved, with an unemployment rate of 4.3 per cent of the workforce being the lowest for 42 years. Companies do not take on more workers unless they see strong economic prospects. Productivity the measure of workers' output also jumped in December by its highest level for six years. In general, British businesses are in a confident mood. Carolyn Fairbairn, the strongly pro-EU boss of the employers' organisation the CBI, may be in despair about the Government's Brexit policy, but a recent survey of her members in the manufacturing sector found that orders for goods were at the highest level for three decades and exports orders at their best for two decades. For too long, the British people have been forced to endure a cacophony of gloom from anti-Brexiteers To his credit, Lord O'Neill (once minister for the Northern Powerhouse Osborne's vision of an economic region to rival London and the South East) says parts of the UK, particularly the North West, are 'doing better than people realise'. His is the rare voice of a Remainer who repents, admitting that the economy has bounced back from the financial crash of 2008 and is expanding despite the squeeze on household income caused by higher import prices. For too long, the British people have been forced to endure a cacophony of gloom from anti-Brexiteers. But the facts must be allowed to speak for themselves: Output and exports up, more jobs, and international experts predicting above-average growth. There is still a long way to go until Brexit works itself out, but voters deserve honesty rather than the persistent dishonesty and apocalyptic warnings of the agents of Project Fear. Jeanette Epps was replaced by Serena Aunon-Chancellor as NASA gave no explanation but her brother claims that she has had an uphill battle with NASA The brother of the NASA astronaut who was bumped from a June mission to the International Space Station, is citing racism as the motive for the change. Jeanette Epps was replaced by Serena Aunon-Chancellor as NASA gave no explanation but her brother claims that she has had an uphill battle with NASA. 'My sister Dr. Jeannette Epps has been fighting against oppressive racism and misogynist in NASA and now they are holding her back and allowing a Caucasian Astronaut to take her place!' Henry Epps said in a Facebook post according to Newsweek. The post - which has since been deleted - included a link to a MoveOn.org petition demanding Epps be reassigned to the mission. The petition called 'Demand NASA to return Dr. Jeanette Epps Back To ISS Mission !!!' as of Monday had 1,222 of the 2,000 signatures needed. And while Henry didn't start the petition, he and other members of the family did sign it. Scroll down for video 'My sister Dr. Jeannette Epps has been fighting against oppressive racism and misogynist in NASA and now they are holding her back and allowing a Caucasian Astronaut to take her place!' Henry Epps said in a Facebook post 'My sister deserve a chance just life [sic] her white peers! This administration policies and culture is reprehensible against their stance against women and minorities in this nation. We have lost all of the gains we gained over the past 40 years in one year?No more!' he wrote on Facebook. 'We cannot continue to tolerate what is going on in America but we must stand together and stand behind our people and out [sic] nation!' The decision to bump Jeanette Epps was said to be a 'personnel matter' but many noted how uncommon it was for NASA not to give details as to why a change occurred. The post - which has since been deleted - included a link to a MoveOn.org petition demanding Epps be reassigned to the mission. Called 'Demand NASA to return Dr. Jeanette Epps Back To ISS Mission !!!' as of Monday, the petition has 1,222 of the 2,000 signatures needed 'My sister deserve a chance just life [sic] her white peers! This administration policies and culture is reprehensible against their stance against women and minorities in this nation. We have lost all of the gains we gained over the past 40 years in one year?No more!' her brother wrote on Facebook She will now stay on the group in Houston and work at the Johnson Space Center. NASA added that she could still be selected for later missions. NASA bumped the astronaut slated to be the first African-American resident on a Space Station off an upcoming spaceflight, in a rare move for the space agency so close to launch. She was supposed to rocket away in early June. Brandi Dean, a NASA spokesperson, said last week several factors were considered, but could not elaborate further. 'These decisions are personnel matters for which NASA doesn't provide information,' Dean told collectSPACE.com. Dean added on Friday the decision to remove Epps from the mission was a NASA decision, not the Russian Space Agency's. Astronaut Jeanette Epps (in a 2016 spacewalk training session in Houston) was supposed to be the first African-American to live on the International Space Station Thursday NASA announced it was pulling her off the June mission for undisclosed reasons Meanwhile, the astronaut is returning to Houston from Russia where she had been training to fly alongside a German and a Russian. News of Epps historic residency at the International Space Station was widely reported after NASA made the announcement in January of 2017. 'Next year, astronaut Jeanette Epps will add her name to an exclusive list of women who have traveled to space,' Woman's Day reported in it's 80th birthday issue in September. 'After almost a decade of training in robotics and the Russian language so that she can communicate with the cosmonauts on her mission she will become the first African American woman to live and work long-term at the International Space Station.' Epps' journey to becoming an astronaut was epic. In 2002 she joined the CIA and worked as a technical intelligence officer, before NASA chose her with its 20th astronaut class. NASA announced her replacement will be Epps' back-up Serena Aunon-Chancellor (pictured) Soyuz MS 01 pictured docked at the International Space Station, where Epps was expected to be residing 'I did think about being an astronaut, but I never thought that they would take me,' Epps said in December, during a press conference, according to Fox News. 'So I decided to become an engineer. Through that route I made it into the astronaut corps.' 'I did a lot of studying I went through graduate school, undergrad and graduate school 11 years,' Epps added. 'I did a lot of work in school and then I worked for a motor company and then I worked for the government. I've been with NASA for about eight years or so. It is a long road.' She was chosen in 2009 to join NASA, and over almost a decade she trained in robotics and the Russian language, to be able to communicate with fellow cosmonauts on a mission. Fellow African American astronauts have visited the station on missions, including Robert Curbeam, Alvin Drew, Joan Higginbotham, Leland Melvin, Robert Satcher and Stephanie Wilson, but none have lived there. The family of the Slipknot bassist Paul Gray who died from an overdose in 2010 have received a payout after suing the doctor and hospital treating him for addiction. The 38-year-old died at Urbandale Hospital in Iowa after overdosing on an array of drugs including fentanyl and morphine, according to the Des Moines Register. His family, including his wife Brenna Gray, sued Dr Daniel Baldi, a pain-relief and addiction specialist who treated Gray for years, and the hospital, which is now called UnityPoint-Des Moines. The lawsuit was scheduled to go to trial Monday but was settled over the weekend, Baldi's lawyer Connie Diekema told the Register. Slipknot bassist Paul Gray, 38, died at Urbandale Hospital in Iowa in 2010 after overdosing on an array of drugs including fentanyl and morphine (pictured May 24, 2010, just before his death) The 38-year-old's family received a payout over the weekend after suing his doctor, Dr Daniel Baldi, hospital treating him for addiction She wouldn't comment on which party agreed to pay to settle the case, or how much money was involved. The case was the last of several lawsuits filed in relation to his death. In September 2012 the case against Baldi drew national attention when he was charged with 10 counts of manslaughter of Gray and several other patients In September 2012 the case against Baldi drew national attention when he was charged with 10 counts of manslaughter of Gray and several other patients. The case alleged the doctor caused the deaths, one of which was Gray's, by recklessly prescribing large amounts of addictive pills to patients showing clear signs of drug abuse and addiction. During Baldi's 2014 criminal trial Brenna took the stand and testified that the doctor continued prescribing her husband Xanax even though he knew he had a history of abuse and addiction. 'I just knew it was his drug of choice, that he'd struggled with it,' Brenna testified. 'So I just wasn't really sure why he was on it, why he needed it along with the medication he was taking for addiction.' But Baldi's lawyer in that case, Guy Cook, pointed out that the doctor was tapering Gray's Xanax prescriptions. He also noted that Gray died of an overdose of other drugs, including narcotics he seemingly bought on the black market. 'You understand, do you not, ma'am, that if Paul got the morphine and fentanyl on the street somewhere, that it's nobody's fauly except Mr Gray or the person he got it from?' Cook asked Brenna Gray during questioning. 'I don't know where he got them,' she said through tears. 'It's a hypothetical question. It's not fair.' During Baldi's 2014 criminal trial Brenna took the stand and testified that the doctor continued prescribing her husband Xanax even though he knew he had a history of abuse and addiction Baldi could have been sent to jail, but was acquitted in 2014. His license to practice medicine was then reinstated in 2016, and he currently works as an anesthesiologist. Brenna Gray is pictured with Slipknot band member Joey Jordison, right, during a news conference about his death Baldi could have been sent to jail, but was acquitted in 2014. His license to practice medicine was then reinstated in 2016, and he currently works as an anesthesiologist. The Gray family's lawsuit was almost derailed because defenders successfully argued that Brenna Gray waited to long to take the case to court. But in 2016 the Iowa Supreme Court ruled the family could press the case in the name of his daughter October Gray, who had not yet been born when her father passed. Diekema said Monday that all parties are relieved the case is over. 'Dan Baldi did not deserve what he went through,' she told reporters. 'I'm glad it's behind us.' Taxpayers are shelling out 7.5million a day to fund a scheme aimed at first-time buyers that has driven up house prices and earned builders a fortune. Help to Buy offers public money to house-hunters struggling to raise a deposit so they can secure a mortgage, but has also lined developers pockets. Jeff Fairburn, the chief executive of housebuilder Persimmon, has been dubbed Mr 131million over the size of the bonus he is now set to collect as he cashes in from Help to Buy. Critics said taxpayers were effectively subsidising the building industry with bosses such as Mr Fairburn the main beneficiaries while many families continue to struggle to find their dream home. Taxpayers are shelling out 7.5million a day to fund a scheme aimed at first-time buyers that has driven up house prices and earned builders a fortune The Help to Buy equity loan scheme allows families to buy new-builds worth up to 600,000 using deposits of only 5 per cent or 30,000. The Government loans up to another 20 per cent, or 120,000, interest-free for five years. In London, where prices are typically higher, buyers can get a 40 per cent loan worth up to 240,000. Figures from the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government show nearly 7.4billion of taxpayers cash has been lent to 144,826 families since Help to Buy was launched in 2013. That includes more than 2billion in the first nine months of last year alone or 7.5million a day. House prices have risen sharply since the scheme was introduced by then Chancellor George Osborne making it ever harder for first time buyers to get on the ladder. Russ Mould, investment director at savings group AJ Bell, said: Taxpayers pounds have flooded straight from the Help to Buy scheme and into the builders profits. The average price of home bought through Help to Buy has jumped 56 per cent from 170,000 to 264,995 since 2013. At the same time, the size of the typical loan from the taxpayer has risen from 37,000 to 50,062. Paula Higgins, chief executive of the Homeowners Alliance campaign group, added: Help to Buy may be billed as an initiative for first time buyers but as the last few years have shown the main beneficiaries of the scheme are also the housebuilders. Developers are lining their own pockets at the expense of buyers - many of whom are first timers desperate to realise the dream of home ownership. Theresa May has pledged to plough another 10billion into the scheme by 2021. House prices have risen sharply since the scheme was introduced by then Chancellor George Osborne making it ever harder for first time buyers to get on the ladder But the extra cash threatens to drive house prices even higher and push the dream of homeownership further out of reach for millions of savers struggling to raise a deposit. The governments own figures show relatively wealthy families are already taking advantage of the scheme as house prices rise. Four in ten households who have received Help to Buy loans from the government earn more than 50,000 a year. One in ten earns at least 80,000 a year while a total of 5,545 buyers have annual incomes in excess of 100,000. The scheme has also been highly lucrative for developers and their bosses as prices soared. Persimmon, Britains second biggest builder, has seen its profits and shares soar in recent years, thanks in part to the taxpayer subsidy provided by Help to Buy. Around 150 managers at the company are now set to share a windfall of 624million in the biggest bonus pay out in British corporate history. The Help to Buy equity loan scheme allows families to buy new-builds worth up to 600,000 using deposits of only 5 per cent or 30,000 Mr Fairburn, 51, is still in line for 127million even though the Persimmon share price has fallen slightly since his potential bonus was valued at 131million earlier this year. Polly Neate, chief executive of housing charity Shelter, said such huge bonuses cant be right when we are in the midst of a housing crisis with more than 300,000 people homeless in Britain. She added: Help to Buy was supposed to be a lifeline for young people and families looking to get on the housing ladder but it has totally failed. Subsidised by taxpayers money, it has actually inflated house prices - pushing them further out of reach for the very people it was designed to help. At the same time, it has resulted in huge returns for a handful of big developers who specialise in Help to Buy. A Government spokesman said: Our Help to Buy: Equity Loan supports people who want to turn their dream of owning a home into a reality and it has helped over 144,000 households onto the property ladder. The first evaluation of the scheme found little evidence that it has had a significant impact on house prices. Henry Bolton, 54, the sometime Lib Dem ex-Army captain who is the partys latest leader, stood outside the Grand Hotel, Folkestone, and said he was not resigning. No way Good old Ukip once again, heroically, without a thought for its own safety, set about cheering us all up. Just when January was reaching its bleakest, when the nation was about to give up on politics what with Corbyns Labour being so nasty and Mays Government so prosaic, the Kippers dropped an electric prong in the bidet. Brzzzzzzt! Madness. But terrifically enlivening. Henry Bolton, 54, the sometime Lib Dem ex-Army captain who is the partys latest leader, stood outside the Grand Hotel, Folkestone, and said he was not resigning. No way. The partys national executive committee may all, bar one, have voted in protest at his four-month-old leadership (and in case you were wondering who that sole loyalist was, it was Capt Bolton himself). They may have said they had no confidence in him. Well, he had no confidence in them! As the late Arthur Marshall said: The French hate us and we hate them right back. Two can play at this no-confidence game, yknow. Lets see how they like it. Mr Boltons position, if we can call it that, has been imperilled by the fact he has been doing some horizontal jogging with a 25-year-old glamour model with an uncertain gift for diplomacy. Among other things, she tweeted horrible things about Meghan Markle. The Grand Hotel, where Mr Bolton maintains an apartment, has a history of high-profile legover artistes. Edward VII danced there with both his Queen and with his popsy Mrs Keppel, on the same night. Edward VIII stayed there when he was courting Mrs Simpson. The captain may not be in quite their league but his little cameo yesterday will have earned its place in the Grands archives. In the Salon de The, where patrons were at that very hour partaking of their dribbly-buttered crumpets (dread word), the conversation, my dears, will have burned as hot as a cup of fresh-brewed Tung Ting Oolong. That funny little man in the tan macintosh? A sex maniac and the leader of a national political party? Nooooo! Mr Bolton made his appearance just after 4pm, a few moments later than expected. There was a suggestion that he had taken a wrong turn on the hotels ground floor. His military service was in the Royal Hussars, not the Reconnaissance Corps. Mr Boltons position, if we can call it that, has been imperilled by the fact he has been doing some horizontal jogging with a 25-year-old glamour model with an uncertain gift for diplomacy Having eventually found the waiting television news crews, the captain repeated his assertion that he would not be resigning his leadership. Why not? Because, he said, he respected the next steps in the constitutional process of Ukips procedures. He intended to scrap the national executive committee and set up another. He said he was not the first Ukip leader to have had trouble with that committee. They were a blasted nuisance and they should be concentrating on the next set of local elections and on making sure Britain secures proper independence once we leave the European Union. He would be devoting all of my energies in the coming weeks to this agenda. Well thats a relief. When a vigorous swordsman starts talking about his energies, all sorts of frightful images can flicker through ones mind. The insouciance of it was worthy of the one man who turns up at an evening party in black tie and tells the rest of the throng that they mustnt be embarrassed if they feel under-dressed. Blissfully impervious to the fact that he was so outnumbered in the Ukip hierarchy, Mr Bolton declared that he was going to be calling for the coordination and mobilisation of all Leave campaigns. Eisenhower assembling his commanders before D-Day could scarcely have sounded so emphatic. He was going to drain the swamp shades of Donald Trump taking on the bien-pensants in Washington DC. And that was it. With a scrunchy about-turn, Capt Bolton pumped those slightly chapped-looking lips, aimed for an expression of narrow-eyed gravitas and marched back into the Grand Hotel, in search, we can but speculate, of a warm crumpet. A woman won a secret injunction to block her elderly father from marrying his partner of more than 20 years and leaving her the bulk of his 1.7million fortune. The daughter of a retired insurance broker in his 80s went to the High Court last year in search of a secret court injunction that would ban her father from marrying. Her father had given her power of attorney before developing Alzheimer's - but had previously said he wanted to marry his partner. The daughter of a retired insurance broker in his 80s went to the High Court (pictured) last year in search of a secret court injunction that would ban her father from marrying The daughter was set on preventing the marriage which would mean her father's new wife, known only as SD, would inherit most of his money when he died. The father, known as DMM, drew up a will in 2013 leaving 300,000, most of his pension and the right to live in his home for two years to his girlfriend. His three daughters would share the rest of his 1.7million estate. But if he were to marry, his will would become obsolete and, unable to write a new one because of his dementia, his new wife would inherit almost all of his assets. The rules of intestacy dictates his wife would get almost 1million while his daughter's shares would shrink to about 250,00 each. Outraged, his daughter contacted the south of England register office and put a caveat under the Marriage Act 1949. Her father had given her power of attorney before developing Alzheimer's - but had previously said he wanted to marry his partner (stock image) This meant that the pair could not marry, reported The Times. The daughter also called in an independent mental capacity assessor who concluded her father lacked the capacity to make a proper will or to marry. However, a consultant psychiatrist disagreed, saying he had the capacity to marry but not to make a new will. Senior family law judge Stephen Wildblood granted an interim injunction stopping DMM from marrying his partner on July 26 last year. He ordered the case be transferred to the Court of Protection - a court which makes decisions for people who 'lack mental capacity'. That injunction ran out after a week. Now, after a third hearing, Judge Nicholas Marston has ruled the man has the capacity to marry, and urged the other parties involved to 'find a way of moving forward together after this very bitter dispute'. He refused the daughter's permission to appeal. A selection of Galaxy and Maltesers chocolate bars have been pulled off the shelves in Ireland over fears they could put people at risk of salmonella infection. The treats are thought to have been accidentally put on the market and include the Galaxy smooth milk bar and the fun-size bags of Maltesers. Two pallets of the implicated products were awaiting destruction in Ireland but were mistakenly distributed to shops instead. A selection of Galaxy and Maltesers chocolate bars have been pulled off the shelves over fears they could put people at risk of salmonella poisoning There have been no reports of related-illness so far but people are at risk of having salmonella poisoning if they eat the affected chocolate, revealed the Food Safety Authority in Ireland. 'Two pallets of the above implicated products were on hold with an Irish distributor awaiting destruction but were placed on the market accidentally. 'Mars Ireland is recalling the above specific batch of the 42g Galaxy Smooth Milk bar and Maltesers Fun Size bags,' a spokesperson for the Food safety Authority told the Mirror. Businesses selling the chocolate snacks are required to remove the affected batches from sale. They have also been asked to display a clear notice informing customers not to eat the implicated products. Those customers who may have already eaten from the affected selection of bars and feel unwell are told to seek medical advice. Symptoms include diarrhoea, fever, chills, and abdominal pain. On average, it takes between 12 to 72 hours for symptoms to develop after eating any infected food product, advise the NHS. Farages career should repeat should have ended in triumph. After all, he went into politics with just one aim and succeeded spectacularly Enoch Powell said famously that all political careers end in failure. Nigel Farage should have proved him wrong. Farages career should repeat should have ended in triumph. After all, he went into politics with just one aim and succeeded spectacularly. Up to a point. The magnificent Leave victory in 2016 was a vindication of Farages virtually single-handed campaign to get Britain out of the EU. Yes, others can also take credit. But Farage was the figurehead, often a lone voice in the wilderness. No one had to endure the vilification and violence directed at Farage as he took his message around the country year after year, well before Call Me Dave finally buckled and gave the people a long-overdue referendum. Fifteen years ago, when I was presenting a nightly show on Sky News, I was about the only broadcaster who would give him a regular platform. The mainstream media treated him as a pariah at best a circus act, at worst a neo-Nazi. This was around the time that New Labour was almost unanimously agreed to have established a 1,000-year reich and opposition to our glorious future as a European statelet was considered futile. Aside from a few principled players in the Conservative Party former leader and one-time Maastricht rebel Iain Duncan Smith prominent among them the political establishment wholeheartedly embraced the EU project. But Farage kept banging away, making mischief in Brussels, where hed managed to get himself elected as an MEP and used his position to ridicule the pompous panjandrums running the show. Who can forget his wonderful denunciation of the ridiculous Herman Van Rompuy, self-styled former European president? You have the charisma of a damp rag, and the appearance of a low-grade bank clerk . . . Who are you? Id never heard of you. Nobody in Europe had ever heard of you. I would like to ask you, President, who voted for you . . . oh, I know democracys not popular with you lot, and what mechanism do the people of Europe have to remove you? Is this European democracy? You appear to have a loathing for the very concept of the existence of nation states perhaps thats because you come from Belgium, which of course is pretty much a non-country . . . Sir, you have no legitimacy in this job at all, and I can say with confidence that I speak on behalf of the majority of British people in saying: We dont know you, we dont want you, and the sooner youre put out to grass, the better. The Westminster bubble was horrified. How dare this upstart show such a lack of respect to our European masters? But out in the suburbs and the shires, and on the rundown council estates in the North of England, millions of decent British citizens gave a silent cheer. Call Me Dave dismissed Farages Ukip as a collection of fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists. It was a cruel caricature, but partly accurate. Ukips annual conference certainly resembles a roomful of Hyacinth Buckets and men who model themselves on the Major in Fawlty Towers. But Ukip was on a roll and by now Farage was a ubiquitous presence in radio and TV studios, even if he was often only there as an Aunt Sally, to be shouted at by self-righteous presenters and panellists alike. Yet Farage stood up to the verbal slings and arrows, and to the nasty physical abuse he frequently had to endure. Cigarette in one hand, pint of best in the other, he kept on plugging away. In the 2015 General Election, Ukip polled almost four million votes, a large chunk of them in former Labour strongholds in the North, which felt ignored and abandoned and had suffered the greatest impact from mass immigration. Farages fruitcakes didnt make a parliamentary breakthrough but they delivered the Tories their first Commons majority since 1992, simply by denying Labour seats they had taken for granted. Now, Cameron feared, they were coming for the Tories, so he panicked and promised a referendum on EU membership. Say what you like about Call Me Dave, but this was his greatest gift to the people of Britain, an opportunity we seized, asserting our sovereignty and overturning the decades-old project of submerging our country into an anti-democratic United States of Europe. To paraphrase Monty Pythons parrot sketch, Ukip is an ex-party, it has ceased to be Camerons gamble backfired. He resigned immediately and is now reduced to scraping a living on the international lecture circuit, essentially a political end-of-the-pier show. Next week, hes playing a small town theatre in Florida, but has sold fewer seats than its current production, Million Dollar Quartet, a jukebox musical featuring hits by Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Carl Perkins and Jerry Lee Lewis. In the States, where they value national independence, Farage is a folk hero, a bigger draw than our former Prime Minister. And yet. OK, so the referendum wouldnt have been won without Boris, Gove and the brave career politicians who dared to defy the Establishment stitch-up. But without Farage, there would have been no referendum, nor would there have been any Brexit. What kind of Brexit, if any, remains to be seen. Which, presumably, is why Farage is now muttering about making a comeback as part of a Ukip Mark II. The corpse of the old Ukip is still twitching, but without Farage its nothing. The partys on its third post-Farage leader, no one youve ever heard of, and hes on the way out over a few incendiary tweets sent by some dopey bird half his age hes got himself hooked up with. I cant be bothered to go into details, because its a waste of time. To paraphrase Monty Pythons parrot sketch, Ukip is an ex-party, it has ceased to be. One of the reasons Ukip imploded was because those four million voters returned to the two main parties, both of which made manifesto promises to implement Brexit in full, yet now seem hell-bent on either reneging or watering it down so far it becomes meaningless. So I understand and share Farages concern. As Ive said all along, the fix has been in since the result of the referendum was announced. The political class have stolen our biggest vote in history for anything and made it all about them not the people they are paid to serve. Frankly, I dont trust any of them to deliver the Brexit we voted for. If the vast majority of MPs had their way, theyd stop the whole process in its tracks today. When Theresa May succeeded Call Me Dave, she should have established a grand cross-party coalition to negotiate our departure, including heroic Labour figures such as Gisela Stuart and Kate Hoey. But the central player should have been Farage, a man who knows his way around Brussels and scares the EU to death. Hed never have put up with the contemptuous treatment being meted out to Britain by Michel Barnier and his damp-rag, low-grade bank clerk bureaucrats. Instead, were stuck with Mother Theresa, who spent the referendum hiding behind the sofa and still wont say whether shed vote Leave if it was held today. Her new de facto deputy, David Lidington, is a full-on federast, already speculating we could rejoin the EU at some stage. Rejoin? We havent even left yet and never will, other than in name only, if the political establishment prevails. Even David Davis seems to have gone native and Boris has been banished to the outer darkness, certainly when it comes to Brexit. In what kind of Fred Karno government is the Foreign Secretary excluded from the biggest foreign policy issue facing the country in modern history? Never mind Boris, though. Mrs May should be making plans for Nigel, bringing him into the fold, allowing him to be an integral part of the very Brexit process for which he has campaigned so long, so hard and so selflessly. He doesnt need a knighthood, or a sinecure in the Lords each of which would have been a traditional reward for his service to this country. Given the fuss over Mrs Thatchers memorial, I suppose a statue in Parliament Square is out of the question, too. But what is beyond doubt is that, after Thatcher, Farage is the most influential, most significant British political figure since Churchill much more so than the Westminster pygmies and time-servers who treat him with unwarranted disdain. Ukip, the party he led, may be sleeping with the fishes, but if there is any justice, Farages career deserves to end in triumph. Lets hope Enoch was wrong. A 57-year-old California man who worked as an airline pilot will be sentenced after being convicted of traveling to the Philippines to have sex with minors. Michael Carey Clemans was found guilty by a federal jury in Sacramento in September of attempted travel and travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, conspiracy to travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and buying of children, according to a U.S. Attorney's Office news release. The pilot faces life in prison after police found 27,469 images of child pornography. Michael Clemans, a 57-year-old California man who worked as an airline pilot, has been convicted of traveling to the Philippines to have sex with minors (file above) 'Clemans committed unspeakable acts in pursuit of his sexual obsession with children,' said McGregor Scott, U.S. attorney for the Sacramento-based Eastern District of California. 'He is a sophisticated offender who leveraged technology and the economic disadvantages of the Filipino children he targeted to commit his crimes,' according to Sacbee. In court documents filed last week prosecutors argue that Clemans is one of the worst offenders. 'By any standard, Clemans criminal conduct in this case is severe,' assistant U.S. Attorneys Andre Espinosa and Colleen Kennedy said. 'Indeed, only a small number of child exploitation cases in any federal district include conduct and facts as lurid, willful and disturbing as those in this case.' He pleaded guilty to three additional counts on his first day of the trial in September including conspiracy to produce child pornography, attempted production and production of child pornography, and receipt of child pornography. Clemans conspired with a woman in the Philippines to produce child pornography beginning in 2014, according to court documents. At the time he was temporarily living in Bangkok where he worked as an airline pilot. Clemans returned to his Sacramento home in April 2015 and continued the overseas conspiracy using his online Yahoo email account to communicat with the Filipino woman. Authorities say he discussed numerous strategies to obtain minor girls who he could rape and told the woman how to find vulnerable youth - directing her towards orphans and typhoon victims who were young as seven years old. Clemans paid the Filipino woman roughly $6,000 for her to purchase photographic equipment and find locations where they could shoot sexually explicit photos of the victims. The pilot gave the woman specific instructions on how to photograph the children so he could then determine which victim he would travel to the country to rape, authorities say. He was found guilty by in Sacramento of attempted travel and travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct, conspiracy to travel with intent to engage in illicit sexual conduct and buying of children. He also conspired from his Sacramento home (above) to commit crimes Clemans also paid a co-conspirator to obtain temporary custody of the children and produce pornography for him in the Philippines on some occasions. During the trial prosecutors presented evidence showing that Clemans participated in another scheme with other individuals in November 2013 where he traveled from the U.S. to Manila to engage in sexual conduct with minors after requesting pornographic images of them. Clemans will be sentenced on December 12 by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 30 years in prison for the charge of 'buying children,' a maximum statutory penalty of life in prison and a $250,000 fine, authorities say. It's unclear what airline company he flew planes for. The case was brought as part of the Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative launched by the by the Department of Justice in 2006 to combat child exploitation and abuse. Two Filipino women, Lyan Tandeg and Shellina Atad, were arrested back in November 2015 and charged with certified trafficking and syndicated little one pornography, Philippine News Now reported. The two women supplied children from eight to 11 years old for sex with foreigners for 3,000 pesos an evening. They were busted by an undercover broker during a sting operation at an Angeles City espresso store. The older sister of an eight-year-old girl who was allegedly stabbed to death by her father has paid tribute to her sibling in an emotional social media post. Zayna Leigh wrote a moving message for Mylee Billingham on a Facebook page for a church near to where the little girl was found in in Brownhills, Walsall. Ms Leigh wrote: 'She was too young and beautiful, go collect your wings sissy. Love your big sister.' Zayna Leigh wrote a moving message for Mylee Billingham on a Facebook page for a church near to where the little girl was found in in Brownhills, Walsall Bill Billingham, 54, posted this picture of his daughter Mylee Billingham on Facebook eating pizza on a bed with the caption: 'Pitza on bed lv moo x' A friend of the arrested father (pictured) said: 'I just can't believe he would do something like this. It's completely out of character' Neighbours described seeing Mylee's mother Tracey Taundry (pictured) outside the property screaming: 'They stabbed my baby' Yesterday, chilling photos emerged of the inside of the bungalow where Mylee died. Bill Billingham, 54, moved into the housing association property having split from the girl's mother Tracey Taundry. He is suspected of turning the blade on himself after his little girl was knifed at the house. Mr Billingham is believed to have moved to the bungalow in the autumn, from a newbuild flat just a street away. He had posted images of him working on redecorating the property. Writing on his Facebook page on January 5 Mr Billingham wrote: 'Getting there slowly so F it for now!!' He also posted images inside the bungalow which was decorated with pictures of Mylee, including a cushion which had the schoolgirl's face printed on it. The 54-year-old posted a photo online of his eight-year-old daughter eating pizza in bed an hour before he was arrested for stabbing her to death. Mr Billingham - who a friend said had recently been made redundant from a factory job - posted on Facebook a picture of his smiling daughter snuggled under a duvet with two plates of pizza in front of her. He captioned it: 'Pitza on bed lv moo x [sic]'. Miss Taundry had 'liked' the post. Other pictures of his daughter posted on preceding days also referred to the girl as 'moo'. Mylee was taken to Birmingham Children's Hospital with stab injuries after police and paramedics were called to her father's one-bedroom bungalow at 9.15pm on Saturday. She was pronounced dead shortly after arriving. Forensic scientists work outside the home in Valley View, Brownhills, Walsall, where Mylee Billingham was stabbed and later died People lay floral tributes outside the home where eight-year-old Mylee was stabbed Mr Billingham remains in hospital where he is thought to be receiving treatment for stab wounds to the abdomen. West Midlands Police said Mr Billingham is yet to be questioned due to his critical condition. He is expected to undergo surgery. A friend of the arrested father said: 'I just can't believe he would do something like this. It's completely out of character. 'Him and Tracey were split, but he completely doted on all five children. 'I used to drink with him in the pub and he seemed like such a normal person. To do something like that is terrible. 'I just don't understand how it's happened.' Miss Taundry, 33, is being comforted by relatives at her home. A relative said: 'We are not making a statement at this time. We are just shell shocked, we need some time to get our heads around it.' Detective Inspector Jim Colclough, from the homicide unit is leading the investigation, said: 'This is an absolutely tragic set of circumstances and my thoughts are with everyone who has been affected. 'We are still at the early stages of understanding exactly what happened and why - but I can confirm we are not looking for anyone else in connection with this investigation.' The murder suspect's brother Mark Billingham MBE is one of the stars of Channel 4's SAS Who Dares Wins and was once a private body guard for Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and Tom Cruise. Last night Mark Billingham said: 'Please respect my family's privacy. 'There will be no further comment at this time.' Chilling photos have emerged of the inside of the bungalow where eight-year-old Mylee Billingham was allegedly stabbed to death Bill Billingham, 54, moved into the housing association bungalow after his recent break up Television star and SAS hero Mark Billingham MBE, right, and his brother Bill, left, who is understood to be in hospital Harrowing 'high-pitched' screams were heard by neighbours in the street on Saturday night, who described seeing Miss Taundry outside the property wailing: 'They stabbed my baby.' Neighbour Graham Greatrex, 74, said he saw Miss Taundry outside the property wailing after her daughter was stabbed. He offered her a hot drink and said the distraught mother was in a trance-like state and was repeating the fact her daughter had been killed. Mr Greatrex said: 'We heard the commotion and the mother was standing outside our house. I went to talk to her and she said, 'They stabbed my baby'. 'She was hysterical. People were racing around everywhere.' Fellow neighbour David Taylor, 76, added: 'I can't believe what's happened and it being such a young girl is tragic. This is a lovely area and it's so shocking that it's happened here.' The murder suspect's brother Mark Billingham MBE is one of the stars of Channel 4's SAS Who Dares Wins and was once a private body guard for Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and Tom Cruise (pictured with the couple) Mylee died in hospital on Saturday evening and members of the community have been left devastated by the news The family have spoken of their devastation at the loss of the young Ed Sheeran superfan. A family member said: 'We have only just come back home after finding out the news. 'We have hardly slept and are just trying to understand and process what has happened. 'We still don't know exactly what has took place at the this point we are truly devastated.' The picture given to police by the family of Mylee Billingham, eight, dressed in a black and pink fairy dress and holding a pink wand A forensics tent seen outside the property at Valley Views in Birmingham on Monday morning after the harrowing tragedy on Saturday night It is thought Billingham - who a friend said had recently been made redundant from a factory job - remains in hospital with police officers at his bedside. Here he is pictured with Mylee Eight-year-old Mylee has been named as the victim of the stabbing in Brownhills near Walsall. She died after failing to recover from her stab wounds Bill Billingham (pictured), 54, has been named by locals after his eight-year-old old daughter, Mylee, was found with stab wounds on Saturday night in Valley View in Brownhills near Walsall The shocking incident sent shockwaves around the community in Brownhills, with an outpouring of condolences for the family. Andy Nicholls, headmaster of St James Primary School in Brownhills, West Midlands, where Mylee attended, said the 'lovely' girl enjoyed singing and performing and was an active member of her school. Mr Nicholls said in a statement: 'What can I say, we're all numb, we're all in shock. Everyone at the school is completely devastated. 'Mylee was dearly loved by us all, her smile lit up the room, in fact, it never left her face. She was a fun-loving, happy eight-year-old who had her whole life in front of her. 'She took a full part in school life, particularly enjoying singing and performing. She was just a lovely girl. Our hearts go out to her family at this difficult time. Thank you.' A post-mortem examination is scheduled to take place today. The father, pictured, is said to have been taken to hospital with stab wounds to his stomach. He is now in a stable condition and will be questioned in due course The murder suspect's brother Mark Billingham MBE (right) is one of the stars of Channel 4's SAS Who Dares Wins and is an instructor to the recruits Billingham, pictured left with his tongue out, is set to be questioned once he recovers from his stab wounds. It is not clear how he came to be injured The victim of the knife attack has been identified as Bill Billingham's eight-year-old daughter Mylee, pictured here when she was younger Angelina Jolie walks down a gangway from a boat with two of her children with Brad Pitt and Mark Billingham trailing behind Mourners left notes outside the address in Valley View, Brownhills, West Midlands, where Mylee Billingham was stabbed to death Dozens of floral tributes have been placed outside the property this morning, with a heavy police presence in the area A woman has suffered a serious head injury after a giant excavator bucket landed on her Alfa Romeo. Emergency services were called to a serious crash on the M5 at Hammondville in Sydneys south west just after 7am on Tuesday. The bucket of an excavator fell off the back of the truck and landed on the Alfa Romeo, causing the car to roll. A woman suffered a serious head injury after an excavator bucket fell on her car Emergency services were called to a serious crash on the M5 at Hammondville The female driver, in her 20s, was freed and treated for a serious head injury. She was taken to Liverpool Hospital and remains in a stable condition. Police are appealing for any witnesses and the driver of a westbound truck carrying an excavator, who may not have known, to come forward. Officers from Liverpool Local Area Command are investigating the circumstances of the crash. As emergency service crews worked to clear the scene there were traffic delays in the area. Police are speaking to at least one driver of a truck involved in a crash on the M5 at Hammondville this morning. The twin sister of a woman killed in the Bourke Street rampage has revealed her heartache during an emotional service to mark the first anniversary of the tragedy. Emily Mudie addressed a public memorial on Tuesday, one year after her sister Jess, 22, and five others died in the horrific car attack in the heart Melbourne. 'I miss the really small things, like us just watching period dramas together,' Ms Mudie told the gathering. 'She was the most amazing person that I know. She would never ever fail to put a smile on my face and I loved doing anything with her.' Emily Mudie, the sister of 22-year-old Jess Mudie (pictured left and right), has revealed her heartache during an emotional service to mark the first anniversary of the Bourke Street rampage One year after her sister died in the tragedy, Emily Mudie (right) said: 'I loved doing anything with her. I miss the really small things'. Jess' brother Kurt (left) described her as 'an incredible person' Jess Mudie, 22, and five others died in the horrific car attack in the heart Melbourne last year Jess' brother Kurt described her as 'an incredible person whose happiness and confidence projects on to all those around her'. Tony Hakin, the father of 10-year-old victim Thalia, urged parents to embrace their children during a heartfelt speech at Tuesday service. 'She was a heart and soul of our family, this cowardly act has shattered our lives,' Mr Hakin said. 'Go home, pick up your daughter, even if she was naughty, remember she is the reason why we sacrifice. 'This little girl along with five others were heroes in their own way, because they died so we can understand what the risks are.' Tony Hakin (pictured), the father of 10-year-old victim Thalia, urged parents to embrace their children during a heartfelt speech at Tuesday service 'She was a heart and soul of our family, this cowardly act has shattered our lives,' Mr Hakin said after his daughter Thalia (left and right) was killed Emotional emergency workers are pictured at the service in the Melbourne Royal Exhibition building to commemorate the first anniversary of the Bourke Street tragedy Matthew Si's wife Melinda Tan said her 33-year-old husband (pictured) dropped their daughter at day care and never came back Matthew Si's wife Melinda Tan said her 33-year-old husband dropped their daughter at day care and never came back. 'I have had to adjust to a new life that will always be missing a loving husband and father,' Ms Tan said in a video message. The older brother of Japanese man Yosuke Kanno spoke through an interpreter. He said Mr Kanno suffered horrific injuries and that he doesn't know if he can ever accept his death. 'I must say it is regrettable that it all came down to this, despite the fact that the suspect had been held in police custody at one point,' Junpei Kanno added. Premier Daniel Andrews said Victorians won't forget January 20, 2017. 'As one small note left at the scene put it simply, and profoundly, ''We may not have known you but we will always remember you'',' he said. 33-year-old woman Bhavita Patel (pictured) was one of six killed on January 20, 2017 Tearful mourners are pictured at the public memorial service on Tuesday afternoon A plaque is unveiled to mark the one year anniversary of the Bourke Street Mall tragedy Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews spoke during the service at Parliament Gardens Reserve on Tuesday Six people were killed and dozens more injured when a vehicle ran down pedestrians along the city's busy pedestrian mall. Alleged driver Dimitrious Gargasoulas has pleaded not guilty to 39 offences, including six counts of murder and 38 of attempted murder, over the rampage. The victims also included three-month-old Zachary Bryant and 33-year-old Bhavita Patel. More than 150 members of the public made their way to the Royal Exhibition Building in Carlton at midday after undergoing bag checks and sweeps by metal detectors. Six people were killed and dozens more injured when a vehicle ran down pedestrians along the city's busy pedestrian mall Junpei Kanno (pictured), the older brother of Japanese man Yosuke Kanno spoke through an interpreter A sculpture of paper cranes made by families of the victims is seen on the stage at the public memorial service HOW THE SIX VICTIMS OF MELBOURNE'S BOURKE STREET RAMPAGE WERE REMEMBERED ONE YEAR ON FROM THE TRAGEDY The victims of Melbourne's Bourke Street rampage were remembered on Tuesday to mark the one-year anniversary of the tragedy Zachary Bryant, three months 'Zachary was perfect, but he was too perfect for this world ... We choose to focus on these memories and the blessing that was his life, instead of the tragedy event which took it,' dad Matthew Bryant said. Thalia Hakin, 10 Thalia's father, Tony Hakin called her a 'gift from heaven, 10 years old with a smile that could melt a frozen heart and a bright future in front of her'. Matthew Si, 33 Wife Melinda Tan said she'll never forget the day Matthew dropped their daughter at daycare and never came back. 'I have had to adjust to a new life that will always be missing a loving husband and father.' Jess Mudie, 22 'An incredible person whose happiness and confidence projects on to all those around her,' brother Kurt Mudie said. Yosuke Kanno, 25 'He had many friends back in Japan and made many friends here in Melbourne as well, many are still mourning his loss,' brother Junpei Kanno said. Bhavita Patel, 33 Canberra-raised Ms Patel, a finance industry worker, died in hospital 10 days after the rampage. Advertisement A three-month-old baby, Zachary Bryant (right), was among the six who died. His sister Zara (left) was among the injured Police with a man who is alleged to be the driver of a car that has hit pedestrians in Bourke Street Mall Alleged driver Dimitrious Gargasoulas has pleaded not guilty to 39 offences, including six counts of murder and 38 of attempted murder A US ambassador channeled his inner Vladimir Putin when he stripped to the waist to take a dip in a freezing Russian river over the weekend. Ambassador Jon Huntsman Jr. showed he could tough it out with the Russians when he jumped into the icy waters of the Istra River outside Moscow - where temperatures plunged to a chilly 10 degrees Fahrenheit. 'It's definitely an unforgettable experience,' the shivering Huntsman said after dunking himself underwater. US Ambassador Jon Huntsman Jr. channels his inner Putin by taking a dip into icy waters in the Istra River outside Moscow Huntsman's dip came after Russian President Vladimir Putin took the same plunge last week at the frozen Lake Seliger, north of Moscow The former Utah governor was taking part in the Orthodox Christian tradition of Epiphany - to commemorates the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River. Christians all over the world jump into a body of water to celebrate the Epiphany - but the celebrations in Russia - where temperatures remain freezing - are a little more extreme. Of course, that didn't stop Putin, 65, taking the same plunge last week at the frozen Lake Seliger, north of Moscow. The Russian president kept his expression almost as chilly as the water, at around 21 degrees Fahrenheit, not revealing any discomfort or pain at being immersed. The 57-year-old Republican, originally from California, put on a brave face as he walked into the water but couldn't help but reveal his dismay at the unpleasant experience 'It's definitely an unforgettable experience,' the shivering Huntsman said after dunking himself underwater The former Utah governor was taking part in the Orthodox Christian tradition of Epiphany - to commemorates the baptism of Jesus Christ in the Jordan River Ambassador said he hoped his move would help ease tension between the U.S. and Russia, and 'get to know Russia's great culture from the inside' Even when he's not diving into cold water, Putin often finds an excuse to take off his shirt. His recent set of 'macho' vacation photos, published last year, showed him swimming and fishing all while stripped to the waist. Other photos show him horse riding half naked to show off his muscles. Meanwhile, Huntsman told local media that he'd decided to follow in Putin's footsteps to help ease tension between the U.S. and Russia, and 'get to know Russia's great culture from the inside.' He added the was 'confident that this cold tradition can help move Russian-American relations in a warm direction.' The 57-year-old Republican, originally from California, put on a brave face as he walked into the water but couldn't help but reveal his dismay at the unpleasant experience. the Russian president kept his expression almost as chilly as the water, at around 21 degrees Fahrenheit, revealing little discomfort at being immersed A rapist, who was recently linked to the 1980 murder of a 14-year-old girl, had been previously cleared of the killing after taking a polygraph test. Last month, police in Antioch, California, arrested 63-year-old Mitchell Lynn Bacom for kidnapping, raping and killing Suzanne Bombardier 37 years ago. According to recently released court records, investigators at the time cleared Bacom after he took the polygraph with 'inconclusive' results. Bombardier vanished between 1.30am and 4am while she was babysitting her nieces at her sister's apartment in Hudson Court on June 21, 1980. Rapist, Mitchell Lynn Bacom (left), who was recently linked to the 1980 murder of 14-year-old Suzanne Bombardier (right) through DNA, had been previously cleared of the killing after taking a polygraph test Her body was found in the San Joaquin river a week later. She had a single stab wound to the heart. Bacom, who had already been convicted and released from jail for rape, robbery and sodomy, was a suspect at the time. He knew the Bombardier family, though police will not say how, and was feared to have been involved but there was no definitive evidence linking him to the killing. In 2015, the case was revived. In the last year, evidence that was collected at the time was tested using new DNA technology and it returned a match with Bacom. He was arrested on December 11 at his home and is now in custody on charges of kidnapping, rape, oral copulation and murder. Antioch police announced the charges on Facebook and explained how they were able to make the breakthrough after almost four decades. 'When the biological evidence was originally collected in this case, DNA testing did not exist as a method of determining guilt in our justice system. 'Over the years, the Antioch Police Department and the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office have monitored developments in DNA testing in the hopes that advancements would be made allowing this evidence to be processed and a DNA profile developed. Suzanne's body was found five days after she vanished. She had a stab wound in her heart The teenager was babysitting her nieces at her sister's apartment in Antioch (above) when she was snatched between 1.30am and 4am. Police say she knew Bacom but have not revealed how Bacom had already been arrested for rape and robbery before Suzanne's murder. He is pictured in a 1973 mugshot 'In 2015, the decision was made to submit the biological evidence to the San Mateo County Sheriffs Office Forensic Laboratory in an effort to develop a DNA profile. 'This lab was equipped to conduct some of the most advanced available DNA testing. Police in Antioch said they were 'ecstatic' to have finally solved the teenager's murder 'In early 2017, the department was notified that a CODIS hit was made tentatively identifying Mitchell Lynn Bacom as the perpetrator,' their statement said. Bacom had already been incarcerated in 1973 when Suzanne went missing. A year after her murder, he was arrested again for rape and robbery and was jailed for 24 years. In 2002, he was arrested again for failing to register as a sex offender. On the night of her disappearance, Suzanne was babysitting her three young nieces. She was on the phone with a friend until 1.30am. When her sister returned home at 4am, she was gone. Two retired detectives who worked on the case at the time tried to reignite interest in 2014. They contacted Jennifer Kathleen Gibbons, an author who had also expressed an interest in the case after stumbling upon Suzanne's grave. It is not clear if any of their efforts contributed to Bacom's arrest. Cyberbullying will be tackled when Australian leaders gather at next month's Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has welcomed the discussion after Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said cyberbullying should receive the same focus as domestic violence. Ms Palaszczuk said on Monday she had written to the Prime Minister, requesting the issue be put on the COAG agenda following the death of bullied Northern Territory teen Amy 'Dolly' Everett. Mr Turnbull responded on Tuesday, supporting nationwide discussion on the issue. Malcolm Turnbull will welcome national discussion on cyberbullying when Australian leaders gather at next month's Council of Australian Governments meeting It comes after Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk (pictured) said on Monday cyberbullying should receive the same focus as domestic violence Ms Palaszczuk requested the issue be put on the COAG agenda following the death of bullied Northern Territory teen Amy 'Dolly' Everett (pictured) 'It's been the subject of discussion before with premiers,' he said in Brisbane. 'Kids have always said unkind things about each other. I suspect that won't change. But what the internet has done is it enables it to be amplified in a very damaging way.' Cyberbullying has been firmly in the national spotlight since earlier this month, when 14-year-old Dolly took her own life after being tormented by social media bullies. Mr Turnbull said the government had already taken steps to address the behaviour through the appointment of an e-safety commissioner in 2013. 'It is a very, very big exercise, but it's something we all have to be part of,' he said. Mr Turnbull said families, schools, government and the wider community all needed to focus in on a 'zero-tolerance' approach to cyberbullying. Cyberbullying (stock image) has been firmly in the national spotlight since earlier this month, when 14-year-old Dolly took her own life after being tormented by social media bullies 'We can't just overlook it ... I don't think you'll ever eliminate it, but that's got to be the goal,' he said. Ms Palaszczuk said cyberbullying would be the focus of a new Youth Advisory Council and a topic of a statewide Queensland Families and Children Commission survey undertaken between March and June. 'The issue of cyberbullying will be a focus, as will other issues including youth empowerment, out of home care, mental health, youth suicide and disability issues,' she said. Readers seeking support and information about suicide prevention can contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467. A former New York postal worker came clean about stealing gift cards from the mail which were local law enforcement then said she used to buy sex toys. Iesha Conley, 49, was said to have nabbed $100 American Express gift cards in September 2016, according to Brooklyn federal prosecutors. Conley was said to have made three Groupon.com purchases using the card for 'adult' toys. Iesha Conley, 49, was said to have nabbed $100 American Express gift cards in September 2016, according to Brooklyn federal prosecutors 2016 court papers later describe how Conley was seen in a Brooklyn mail-processing center, tearing apart dozens of greeting card enveloped. She was then seen putting their contents inside a sweater asking 'Got Jesus?' Conley pleaded guilty to mail theft by a postal service employee. She told the Magistrate Judge Robert Levy she knew that those cards did not belong to her. Conley was said to have made three Groupon.com purchases using the card for 'adult' toys (stock) The woman will be sentenced in April and while the offense could warrant up to five years, federal guidelines foresee Conley serving maybe six months. Defense attorney Kannan Sundaram shared with the Daily News that he wanted prosecutors to drop the case or knock it down to a misdemeanor - which had been done before. They refused, he added. Sundaram asserted that his client is working and doing well somewhere else. Twelve jurors and four alternates have been selected in the trial of two officers charged in one of the largest scandals in the Baltimore police department's history. The jury was picked from a statewide pool of 75 people on Monday, the trial's opening day. Opening statements are expected Tuesday. Detectives Daniel Hersl and Marcus Taylor are two of eight indicted members of a disbanded police unit called the Gun Trace Task Force. They have pleaded not guilty to racketeering and robbery charges. 12 jurors and four alternates were selected in the trial of two officers charged in one of the largest scandals in the Baltimore police department's history. The jury was picked from a statewide pool of 75 people on Monday, the trial's opening day Detectives Daniel Hersl and Marcus Taylor are two of eight indicted members of a disbanded police unit called the Gun Trace Task Force. They pleaded not guilty Six other indicted Baltimore officers have pleaded guilty. Four of them may testify as witnesses for the government. The first witness prosecutors hope to call to the stands is Detective Maurice Ward. Ward worked with Taylor under Sgt Wayne Jenkins before they were tapped to join the Gun Trace Task Force in June 2016. All eight officers were accused of executing searches without warrants, invading private homes, robbing suspects and innocent citizens of cash, reselling seized drugs on the street, and making fraudulent overtime claim. The first witness prosecutors hope to call to the stands is Detective Maurice Ward (left). Ward worked with Taylor under Sgt Wayne Jenkins (right) before they were tapped to join the Gun Trace Task Force in June 2016 Video courtesy WJZ Thomas Allers, who also oversaw the unit has pleaded guilty along with Momodu Gondo, Jemell Rayam, Evodio Hendrix and Ward. Allers, Rayam, Hendrix and Ward could serve up to 20 years in prison while Jenkins faces up to 30 and Gondo has a maximum sentence of 40 years. Prosecutors have either dropped or plan to drop more than 100 criminal cases that rely on the testimony of the corrupt officers. Thomas Allers (left), who also oversaw the unit has pleaded guilty along with Momodu Gondo, Jemell Rayam (right), Evodio Hendrix and Ward Allers, Rayam, Hendrix (left) and Ward could serve up to 20 years in prison while Jenkins (right) faces up to 30 and Gondo has a maximum sentence of 40 years. 50 adjudicated cases were successfully reopened only to then drop as advised from the defense counsel. A Philadelphia officer who attended the Baltimore Police training academy also has charges brought against them. The trial is expected to last up to four weeks. A Texas man will spend the rest of his life behind bars after being sentenced to life in prison for the murder of a teen girl who was returning a movie to a Redbox machine. Antonio Cochran, 36, was sentenced following his conviction for the murder of 18-year-old Zoe Hastings in 2015. Hastings was returning a movie to a Redbox machine in a Walgreens parking lot in Lake Highlands, Texas when Cochran got into her vehicle, kidnapping her. Cochran also allegedly sexually assaulted Hastings before killing her by slashing her throat. Cochran's DNA was found on a bloody knife recovered at the murder scene. 'There are no words that can express our sorrow to the Hastings family for having to endure such a traumatic and tragic loss. We will continue to pray for them and while we cannot bring Zoe back, we hope this outcome will help them heal,' Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson said in a statement. Hastings father, Jim, had harsh words for his daughters killer, telling him, 'I hope you remember my face.' "I believe if he gets out of prison, he's going to do the same thing to somebody else. I'd hate that my daughter died and he goes and does it to somebody else," he added. Cochran was convicted of his crimes on Saturday. On top of his jail sentence, he received a find of $10,000. Hastings was returning a movie to a Redbox when Cochran kidnapper her outside a Texas Walgreens Hastings, 18, had her throat cut and her body was found near a Texas creek bed The Hastings family (pictured above) has had a hard time dealing with their 18-year old daughters 2015 murder The minivan she was driving when she was abducted and killed was ditched near where her body was found A man led police on a high-speed chase before ramming a their car and the doors of a petrol station - all while three children were in the back seat. Brett Pelling was charged with 23 crimes for his alleged early-morning rampage through North Queensland on Monday. When he was finally caught, three children aged 11, five, and two were discovered in the back seat - earning him child endangerment charges. He was also slapped with three charges of breaching a domestic violence order related to the series of events. Brett Pelling, 36, led police on a high-speed chase before ramming a their car and the doors of this petrol station in North Queensland - all while three children were in the back seat The 36-year-old was allegedly at 2am seen driving on the wrong side of the road down Woolcock Street in Townsville, forcing police to dodge him. He then sped away up the Bruce Highway when police did a U-turn to pull him over, and evaded them until another motorist saw him an hour later. Officers found him parked in front of the police station in Ingham, 90 minutes to the north, before he again sped away despite having a blown tyre. Pelling allegedly pulled into a petrol station on Townsville Road and drove dangerously around its fuel pumps. He then tried to ram the officers' car several times without success before reversing into the petrol station's doors, police alleged. The doors were destroyed but two staff members inside were not injured, and he drove straight at the police car again but missed. After driving back out to the road he allegedly again tried to ram the pursuing police before heading back to the petrol station. Finally he managed to crash into the passenger side of a police car, but the damage to his vehicle was severe enough that police could apprehend him. Officers had to drag him out of the car to be arrested, after he braced himself inside and refused to come out. That was when officers found the three children and took them to hospital for observation. None were physically injured in the rampage. Pelling was denied police bail and remanded in custody to face the Townsville Magistrates Court on Tuesday. He faces 23 charges including dangerous driving, assaulting police, threatening violence, child endangerment, and breaching a domestic violence order. Jared Fogles request for an early release from prison was denied by an Indiana federal judge on Friday Jared Fogles request for an early release from prison was denied by an Indiana federal judge on Friday. The disgraced ex-Subway pitchman, 40, filed the motion for his early release in U.S. District Court in Indianapolis on January 11. Federal Judge Tanya Walton Pratt denied Fogles, who is serving more than 15 years in prison for conspiring to receive child pornography, motion days later. She said 'Fogle again challenges the Courts subject matter jurisdiction over him and requests immediate release from detention. The Motion, Notices and Objection are all DENIED.' Court documents stated that the '7th Circuit Court, failed Fogle in protecting his rights to being illegally charged with "conspiracy" to receive and distribute child pornography.' Scroll down for video Fogle, who is serving more than 15 years in prison for conspiring to receive child pornography, is pictured here with his ex-wife Kathleen McLaughlin who alleged that Subway knew of the former pitchmans sexual interest in children but continued promoting him as its representative regardless In February 2016 he asked Pratt for a shorter prison stay. The investigation against Fogle began in July 2015 after federal law enforcement officials raided his Indianapolis home and confiscated several computers and DVDs. In September of last year the convicted child molester was ordered to pay a $50,000 penalty as part of his high-profile case. He pleaded guilty to trading in child pornography and paying for sex with underage girls and was sentenced in November 2015 to 15 years in a federal prison. As part of the plea deal, Fogle agreed to pay 14 of his victims $100,000 each, for a total of $1.4million. He pleaded guilty to trading in child pornography and paying for sex with underage girls and was sentenced in November 2015 to 15 years in a federal prison Fogle also pledged to hand over another $50,000 to federal authorities so they would not seize vehicles in which he traveled to meet his underage victims. In a lawsuit filed by his ex-wife Kathleen McLaughlin she alleged that Subway knew of the former pitchmans sexual interest in children but continued promoting him as its representative regardless. McLaughlin filed for divorce from Fogle immediately after his arrest. The divorce was finalized just days before his sentencing, ending a six-year marriage where they shared two children. The ex-wife received a $7million settlement package and won sole custody of their two children in the agreement. Fogle became the companys spokesman in 2000 after losing 200lbs, down from a whopping 425lbs which he weighed in college, partly by eating Subway sandwiches McLaughlin alleges the sandwich shop chain received at least three reports indicating Fogle was sexually interested in children but failed to take proper action. Fogle became the companys spokesman in 2000 after losing 200lbs, down from a whopping 425lbs which he weighed in college, partly by eating Subway sandwiches. In 2015, the married-father-of two admitted that he paid for sex at New York City hotels with girls who were 16 or 17 years old and that he had received some child pornography produced by Russell Taylor, the former director of the foundation Fogle started to fight childhood obesity, The Indianapolis Star reported last year. Fogle was hospitalized earlier this year after a prison yard attack. Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton has said it is not the job of Victoria Police to solve Melbourne's African gang crisis. After returning from leave earlier this month amid public outrage about youth crime in the state, Mr Ashton said police could not solve the problem alone. Victoria Police are facing criticism over their handling of a spate of violent incidents linked to African gangs such as Apex and Menace to Society. Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton has said it is not the job of Victoria Police to solve Melbourne's African gang crisis Victoria Police are facing criticism over their handling of a spate of violent incidents linked to African gangs such as Apex and Menace to Society Earlier this month, Ecoville Community Park (pictured) in Tarneit was trashed by African gangs 'If you're looking for police to put it to bed, you're looking in the wrong direction,' Mr Ashton said after being grilled over the gang problem on 3AW. 'We're doing plenty about it but you're talking about bigger social issues than police solve.' Mr Ashton also denied the gang crisis is an African problem, saying youth crime is not limited to one ethnic group. 'It's almost a United Nations of offending,' he said. 'We've certainly had a lot of young Africans, Australian kids offending as well, Islander kids, a lot of indigenous kids we're getting as well.' Mr Ashton said crime was decreasing and police were making more arrests than ever before, but media coverage made Melbourne look like the 'Wild West'. Mr Ashton also denied the gang crisis is an African problem, saying youth crime is not limited to one ethnic group (pictured: a brawl at Highpoint Shopping centre between gangs and police) A policeman was kicked in the face as he crouched down trying to arrest a 16-year-old boy for shoplifting The Chief Commissioner also confirmed he has visited the Ecoville estate in Tarneit, where a community centre was trashed by African gangs. There has since been a large police presence in the area following the damage to the centre. Wyndham Local Area Commander Inspector Mary Allison said police continued to patrol the park, make arrests, and issue infringements. 'Property damage, drug activity and anti-social behaviour at the park have been our main concern. The community deserves to feel safe in their local park,' she said. 'Members will continue to patrol the area and anyone found conducting criminal activity will be held to account for their actions.' Mr Ashton said he was 'saddened' by what he saw when he visited Tarneit, and said he noticed most residents had their blinds and curtains drawn. Australia's oldest surviving rugby union international has rekindled the flame with his childhood sweetheart after 62 years apart. Eric Tweedsdale, 96 and Enid Bradshaw, 94, first met in 1939 at Merrylands RSL club. They were engaged but drifted apart when Mr Tweedsdale served in the navy during World War II. The couple parted ways and both went on to marry and have children with their new partners. It was a complete surprise to see Eric after all those years of having no contact at all. We had a cup of coffee, chatted about the time that had passed and ended up missing our train, Enid Bradshaw said. The pair were reunited in 2004 at a youth group reunion at Merrylands RSL, the place where they first fell in love all those years ago. 'There were six of us left from the youth group and our friends organised for Enid to wait at the big clock at Central Station for someone to meet her to get the train into Merrylands RSL and I offered as I was travelling by train [from the Central Coast],' Mr Tweedsdale recalled. 'We knew each other straight away even after 62 years. She was still a blonde - but a slightly different tone of blonde - and she still had those lovely big blue eyes. She was a beautiful girl and I thought she looked even more beautiful at 80-odd years young.' Following the reunion, Mr Tweedsdale and Mrs Bradshaw were friends for several years before romance blossomed again. Eric and Enid say that they finish each others sentences after being reunited six decades after they last saw each other They now live metres away from one another at Peninsula Village Retirement Village at Umina Beach on the NSW Central Coast. 'Ours is a most unusual story with a happy ending,' Mrs Bradshaw said. We not only spend time reminiscing, but look forward to the days ahead with keen anticipation.' Mr Tweedsdale added: 'We both believe it was just meant to be.' Mr Tweedsdale played 10 Tests for the Wallabies between 1946 and 1949. A father whose eight-year-old child tried to kill himself twice while taking a controversial antidepressant has warned parents of the drug's potential negative side-effects. New South Wales father John* recounted how his eldest son began taking Sertraline - otherwise known as Zoloft - in 2015 to treat his anxiety. He began showing positive signs under the drug and suffered fewer meltdowns, until thoughts of self-harm surfaced about six weeks into treatment, John said. A father has shared the story of how his son, 8, tried to kill himself after taking the drug Zoloft John's son - who was also diagnosed with mild autism - then began to tell his father that he wanted to die at the age of eight. 'It got to the point where you are sitting with him and he is saying, 'Just kill me dad, I want to die', and you are thinking 'Jesus, what am I supposed to do, I can't protect him',' John told 9 News. 'Then he tried to jump out the window and strangle himself. It was just a frightening and really tough time for us when that was happening.' John and his wife took their son to their local hospital's emergency department, where a decision was made to wean him off the medication. But the parents were told they were legally obliged to continue to take him to school, despite him dealing with the effects of being taken off the drug. John said he would take him to school and an ambulance would be called within 20 minutes, followed by the police as his son would run away. 'They were frightful days ... My wife was and still is completely devastated by this. It's been a tough road for us and we are still getting there,' John said. John claimed that doctors told him Zoloft was a 'mild drug' with no 'significant' side effects when prescribing it to his son. Zoloft was subject to a class action law suit over claims that research downplayed suicide risks John's son's medical treatment was investigated by the Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC), who found there was no evidence to suggest his care wasn't of a reasonable standard. The report published in September 2017 revealed the child's psychologist said it was possible Zoloft caused his attempts of self-harm, but could not be confirmed. John and his wife remain certain the drug led to their son's suicide attempts, and claim he hasn't displayed any suicidal thoughts since being taken of medications altogether. 'We are 100 percent in believing that it was the medication. While he was anxious before, he never made any indications or made any attempts to kill himself, he said. Zoloft was subject to a class action law suit in 2017 following claims that it was marketed to doctors on flawed research that downplayed the risk of suicide. *John's name has been changed to protect his son's identity Readers seeking confidential support can call Lifeline on 13 11 14, Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467 or Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800. Just hours after U.S. President Donald Trump approved new tariffs on imports, the leaders of Canada and India come out forcefully Tuesday against a drift toward protectionism in the global economy. While Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said new barriers to trade could pose a danger on a par with climate change and extremist attacks, his Canadian peer, Justin Trudeau, revealed that his country and the ten remaining members of the Trans-Pacific Partnership have revised their trade deal in the wake of the U.S.'s withdrawal. 'Forces of protectionism are raising their heads against globalization,' Modi told a crowd of business and government leaders in the opening address at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. 'It feels like the opposite of globalization is happening.' Modi's message came hot on the heels of Trump's signing off on the new tariffs on imported solar-energy components and large washing machines in a move he hopes will help U.S. manufacturers. Veiled rebukes: Justin Trudeau, the Canadian prime minister, and Narinder Modi, the Indian prime minister, spoke out at Davos for free trade as President Donald Trump imposed tariffs of up to 50 per cent on imported washing machines Common interest: The Canadian and Indian leaders were the star attractions on the opening day of the billionaires' and CEOs' get-together and used it to push for free trade and international agreements Trade barrier: Trump signed an order to slap tariffs on foreign-made washing machines High security in the snow: An armed Swiss police officer stands guard on the roof of a hotel near the congress center as the forum gets under way Without directly referring to Trump or the U.S., Modi said the 'negative impact of this kind of mindset cannot be considered less dangerous than climate change or terrorism.' He urged governments not to turn to isolation, driving home his point by quoting Indian independence leader Mohandas Gandhi: 'I don't want the windows of my house to be closed from all directions. 'I want the winds of cultures of all countries to enter my house with aplomb and go out also.' Modi's speech to the global elite, the first time an Indian prime minister has made the opening address at the WEF, comes a year after Chinese President Xi Jinping laid out his country's credentials as a champion of free trade and stability on the same week Trump was inaugurated president. The forces of globalization, which have driven the world economy for the past couple of decades and that both China and India have benefited hugely from, are perceived to be facing a challenge from Trump who was elected on an 'America First' mandate. Trump, who is due to make his own speech on Friday, argues that a strong U.S. economy is a boon to the wider world. Since taking power, Trump has argued for the renegotiation of the North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and Mexico and pulled the U.S. out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, an initiative ostensibly designed to liberalize and enhance regional trade. Though without its biggest member, the U.S., the remaining members of the TPP are committing to a deal - Trudeau told business leaders in Davos that a revised agreement had been signed in Tokyo after two days of high-level talks. 'This agreement meets our objectives of creating and sustaining growth, prosperity and well-paying middle-class jobs today and for generations to come,' Trudeau said. The deal comes amid worries that Trump will pull the U.S. out of the North American Free Trade deal. Seventy-five percent of Canada's trade goes to the U.S. and Canada is eager to diversify. And in a nod to Trump, Trudeau also said his government is 'working very hard to make sure our neighbor to the south knows how good NAFTA is and that it's benefited not just our economy, but his economy and the world's economy.' Though the possibility of a tit-for-tat trade war between major economies is one of the clouds hanging over the global economy, optimism over the outlook is better than at any time since before the global financial crisis erupted a decade ago. Protests: Security at Davos and its remote location prevents protests turning up there but instead they made their anti-Trump point in the Swiss city of Lausanne Buried in snow: Davos has been hit by massive snowfalls this year, ahead of Trump's arrival later this week The International Monetary Fund, for example, upgraded its global growth forecast for 2018 to a seven-year high of 3.9 percent with India growing at a more-than-healthy 7.4 percent, up from 6.7 percent last year. Canada, though, is projected to see growth slow from 3 percent in 2017 to a still-solid rate of 2.3 percent this year. While Canada is an established member of the Group of Seven major industrial economies, India remains an economy still marked by extreme levels of wealth and poverty. A longtime Hindu nationalist, Modi was swept to power in 2014 by playing up his economic credentials, pointing to the industrial revival of his home state during his tenure there and promising to transform the country's economy. 'The interesting thing is that if you have a prime minister who understands the fundamentals of economics, he does the right reforms and Modi is doing that,' said Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post DHL. Appel is particularly impressed by the reforms to the sales tax system, with a nationwide tax replacing a confusing tangle of state taxes. The changes, he said, will 'pay back to India in a big way.' While Modi has done such things as open more of India's economy to foreign investment, his critics say he has not been averse to protectionism either, with a 'Make in India' program that backs domestic producers, sometimes through tariffs. A Brooklyn construction worker is planning to sue the NYPD and state police for false arrest after they detained him because his car was similar to the one that hit a cop in Times Square, according to lawyers on Monday. Shreaf Taha, 24, headed across the Verrazano Bridge toward Bay Ridge in New York City after seeing 'Jumanji' with his girlfriend on Wednesday. Unbeknownst to him, an eager trooper thought Taha's car was the one used to hit a cop while doing donuts near Time Square on January 13 and followed him from the bridge. With the help of the NYPD, the trooper was able to block Taha from his home. Scroll down for videos Shreaf Taha, 24, headed across the Verrazano Bridge toward Bay Ridge in New York City after seeing 'Jumanji' with his girlfriend on Wednesday when he was followed by troopers who thought his car was the one used to hit a cop while doing donuts near Time Square on January 13 The officers then flashed their lights on him and ordered Taha to the ground while having their guns drawn, he told the New York Daily News. Taha was eventually taken to the 68th Precinct and held for several hours. While he was eventually released, Taha was ticketed for excessive window tinting and excessive exhaust noise. 'He went to a doctor the following day because when the police arrested him they yanked his arms back, they scraped up his elbow,' Taha's lawyer Arthur Hill said Monday. Taha was eventually taken to the 68th Precinct and held for several hours. While he was eventually released, Taha was ticketed for excessive window tinting and excessive exhaust noise Police detained Arfhy Santos, 20, and William Lopez, 24, on Wednesday over the incident in which a New York police officer was carried on the hood of a moving Mercedes-Benz C63 in Times Square on January 13 Hill asserted that the tickets were a whack attempt at a documentation cover up from the police to correct their error. He added: 'The police are making a lot of mistakes. And when they do, they tend to issue a summons after the fact to kind of justify what they did.' The NYPD would eventually arrest Arfhy Santos, 20, and William Lopez, 24, on Wednesday in connection to the assault. Jim Ross, an attorney, claimed that the experience was traumatic for Taha. 'There's emotional pain associated with an event like this and they're going to pay for that,' Ross said. 'If you could just picture yourself in a situation where you have 15 to 20 police officers with guns out approaching you, it's a scary situation.' In the complaint, Taha list false arrest, negligence, false imprisonment, illegal detention and other civil rights violations. A dollar amount hasn't been settled upon yet according to the lawyers. William Thompson, 93, a former New York Supreme Court judge, asserted that incidents like these just bring about more enemies for police. 'What makes these guys go so wrong so often?' he said. 'Let's face it, we need the cops. But this is outrageous. It's your money and my money we're paying these people. It's taxpayer money.' A man is in critical condition after he leaped from the roof of a Manhattan apartment building around 5.15pm on Monday. The unidentified 47-year-old man jumped from the 13th floor of his Stuyvesant Town apartment, New York Daily News reports. He lives on E. 14th St. between Aves. B and C, according to cops. He was rushed to Beth Israel Hospital in critical condition by medics. A man is in critical condition after he leaped from the roof of a Manhattan apartment building around 5.15pm on Monday A man is dead and a gunman is on the loose after a brazen execution-style shooting inside a busy shopping strip in Sydney's west. Bankstown's Old Town Plaza remains locked down after the offender fired at least four shots from handgun at 'Happy Cup Cafe' shortly before 4pm on Tuesday in front of terrified shoppers. One man, believed to be a prominent lawyer aged in his 60s, was shot several times in the pelvic region and died at the scene. Scroll down for video One man, believed to be a prominent lawyer aged in his 60s, was shot several times in the pelvic region and died at the scene (Pictured) Paramedics remain at the scene of the shooting, as the offender remains on the run from the police The shooter has gone on the run with police using sniffer dogs in their hunt for the man NSW Police confirmed the man died of gunshot wounds after they attended the incident. No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight. A witness told Daily Mail Australia she watched as the gunman left his alleged victim lying on the floor of the cafe as he fled towards the station. 'I got out of the car and just saw him on the floor out of breath...' she said. 'The guy that shot him ran towards the station wearing green clothing.' Bankstown City Plaza remains locked down after the offender opened fire on 'Happy Cup cafe' (pictured) shortly before 4pm on Tuesday No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight (Pictured is the victim) The attacker is now on the run and was pictured on CCTV footage (pictured) before the incident CCTV footage captured the alleged killer walking through Bankstown wearing a green shirt just before the shooting. A mother who also witnessed the shooting from a restaurant across the street reported hearing four gun shots before watching cafe patrons flee the scene. 'I was in a restaurant right across from the cafe, heard four gun shots and saw people running away from the scene,' a witness told Daily Mail Australia. 'I ran outside and saw shops closing their doors and people running to the cafe standing around. Called 000, people were saying the guy is dead. My eight-year-old daughter was in hysterics, the poor thing screamed and ran behind the counter.' A mother who also witnessed the shooting from a restaurant across the street reported hearing four gun shots before watching cafe patrons flee the scene (pictured) No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight (Pictured is a map showing the location of the cafe) A gunman has gone on the run after firing shots into a cafe inside a busy shopping strip in Sydney's west Duy Nguyen, who was working across the street, said he heard three shots but thought it was a firecracker. He told AAP the man was sitting with other people at a table outside the Happy Cup cafe. 'At first no one called out for help when he was shot,' Mr Nguyen said. 'From what we were able to see he was on the floor. 'I'm a bit shaken right now, it was scary, it happened opposite us.' Ms Gjorgjieva also said she and other restaurant patrons across the street evacuated the area. 'We evacuated the restaurant through the rear entrance. She [my daughter] was scared that I was so close to the window,' she added. Bankstown City Plaza remains locked down after the offender opened fire on 'Happy Cup cafe' in the shopping complex shortly before 4pm Police officers speak to witnesses outside the Bankstown City Plaza, where a man was shot People gather outside the Bankstown City Plaza after the shock shooting on Tuesday afternoon Paramedics reportedly performed CPR on the man, however they were unable to save him. The shooter has gone on the run with police using sniffer dogs in their hunt for the man. More than 50 police officers responded to the shooting, including riot squads who continue to search for the armed offender. Some buses through Bankstown Railway Station are delayed up to 30 minutes due to the nearby police lockdown. Detectives believe the fatal shooting was the result of a 'targeted attack'. 'We do believe that it is a targeted attack that's how it appears at this stage,' Acting Commander Brad Thorne said. President Donald Trump has said that he wants a 'big win for everyone' at the negotiating table just hours after signing a bill to end the government shutdown. 'Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown. Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security,' Trump tweeted Monday night. 'Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table!' he added. The government shutdown ended earlier on Monday after the president signed a short-term spending bill that will fund the government through February 8. Scroll down for video President Donald Trump has said that he wants a 'big win for everyone' at the negotiating table just hours after signing a bill to end the government shutdown 'Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown. Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security,' Trump tweeted Monday night The three-day government shutdown effectively came to an end Monday after the House passed a resolution to fund the government The deal passed the House easily, with nearly every Republican voting for it and about a third of House Democrats, following a breakthrough in the Senate The three-day government shutdown came to an end after the House passed a resolution to restore funding that had cleared the Senate hours earlier. The deal passed the House easily, with nearly every Republican voting for it and about a third of House Democrats, following a breakthrough in the Senate. The final vote was 266 to 150, effectively ending a three-day shutdown that furloughed workers and closed some government services, even as the Trump administration kept functions deemed vital running. Fourteen House members didn't vote. The key development occurred across the Capitol Monday, after Senate Democrats accepted a deal to reopen the government, after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pledged to take up immigration legislation including a permanent fix for the controversial DACA program in the next three weeks. The key to enactment came when McConnell and Minority Leader Sen Charles Schumer came to an agreement for a debate on immigration within weeks. 'The Republican leader and I have come to an arrangement,' Schumer said on the Senate floor. 'It is a good solution, and I will vote for it,' he said. But Schumer did not obtain anything close to a guaranteed result. The Senate bill had one final test, a fresh vote in the House of Representatives, but quick passage was expected over House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi's objections. 'I refuse to be an enabler to the Republicans' failure any longer,' said Pelosi in a final and futile effort to stop the bill. The final 81-18 tally was a far cry from the crashing failure of a similar measure on Friday that saw handfuls of Senators from both parties crossing the aisle but fall well short of the 60 votes needed for passage. When the dust settled, 33 of the 49 Democrats had voted to turn the lights back on. Republican Sen John McCain, ailing with brain cancer, was absent. 'The Republican leader and I have come to an arrangement,' Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said on the Senate floor, signaling an end to the three-day government shutdown Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Monday that if Democrats agreed to end the shutdown, he would promise to take up immigration legislation by February 8 Democrats, led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, stood their ground and showed no sign of relenting in advance of the noontime vote 'I am pleased that Democrats in Congress have come to their senses and are now willing to fund our great military, border patrol, first responders and insurance for vulnerable children,' President Donald Trump said in a statement. 'As I've always said, once the government is funded my administration will work toward solving the problem of very unfair illegal immigration. We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it's good for our country.' Schumer, however, warned that 'the Republican majority now has 17 days to prevent the DREAMers from being deported'. DACA, the program that protects millions of illegal immigrants from deportation because they were brought to the US as minors, is the sticking point for Democrats who fear Republicans will renege on any promise to save it before it expires in March. 'If an agreement isn't reached by February 8, the Senate will immediately proceed to consideration of legislation dealing with DACA,' Schumer said, describing his understanding of the deal. 'While this procedure will not satisfy everyone on both sides, it's a way forward.' But he blasted the White House for sitting on the sidelines as senators hashed out an agreement. 'Despite all our entreaties, the president was obstinate,' he fumed. White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah said the White House won't accept an immigration bill that doesn't address border security, the diversity visa lottery and chain migration Monday's vote was eagerly awaited and hotly contested but ultimately even a majority of Democrats agreed to support the Republicans' proposal White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah said after the vote on CNN that President Trump won't accept an immigration deal that makes the DACA program permanent without giving him a host of other wins. Shah mentioned 'the issue of border security, and a southern border wall, the issue of ending the visa lottery system, and reforming the chain migration the extended family chain migration system'. 'Those are still the points and the contours of a deal that this president would be open to,' he said. Minutes before the lunchtime vote, Democrats emerged from a caucus meeting and word leaked that enough of them will vote with Republicans to push a short-term funding measure over the finish line. 'It was very positive. I think the government will be back open by 12:10 or 12:15,' West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin said after the Democrats' all-hands meeting. Democrats were looking for a way out of the shutdown, according to people in the room, despite the lack of any assurance of what might happens in the House of Representatives once the Senate ricochets the result to the south end of the US Capitol. 'I'm encouraged by commitments Leader McConnell has made,' Democratic Sen. Chris Coons told reporters as he left the meeting room, adding that he was 'looking forward to the vote and I think it will be important that we take a step forward.' An end to the weekend stalemate looked unlikely just hours earlier in the upper chamber of Congress since Friday. 'It's like a circus without a tent,' Republican Sen John Kennedy of Louisiana told reporters, describing the overall mood in the Senate. McConnell said: 'I hope and intend that we can reach bipartisan solutions on issues such as military spending, immigration and border security, and disaster relief before this February 8 deadline.' McConnell presided over a chaotic chamber where the typical comity dissolved into open warfare over who was to blame for the shutdown 'Should these issues not be resolved by the time the funding bill before us expires on February 8, so long as the government remains open it so long as it remains open it would be my intention to take up legislation here in the Senate that would address DACA, border security, and related issues.' Democrats moved quickly to frame Monday's result as a victory despite the widespread perception that they had caved. 'As recently as Friday night, Leader McConnell refused to commit to taking up the DREAM Act with any urgency,' Virginia Senators Tim Kaine and Mark Warner said in a statement. 'Today, Republican leadership has finally agreed to bring bipartisan legislation to protect Dreamers to the floor in the next three weeks, and both parties as well as the American public will hold them to it.' The White House was having none of it. 'The fact that they're voting in favor of this proposal that they rejected just a few days ago is, sort of, evidence that they blinked,' deputy press secretary Raj Shah said of the Democrats on CNN. Schumer claimed Sunday that he had offered Trump an authorization to build his border wall in exchange for passing a funding measure with a DACA fix attached, but that the president had refused. '[He] can't take "yes" for an answer,' Schumer said on the Senate floor a day ago. But White House budget chief Mick Mulvaney quickly called Schumer's offer a hollow one, saying that the 'authorization' has existed since 2006 something that Schumer himself voted for but the New York Democrat hadn't promised to go along with actually funding it. Democrats showed no sign of budging early Monday but insisted they're not to blame for the government shutdown. 'There's been a lot of positive progress made,' Michigan Democratic Sen Stabenow told Politico. 'No one wants to shut down the government.' Moderate Republican senators Lindsey Graham (left), Susan Collins (center) and Jeff Flake (right) said McConnell should have made a more ironclad pledge The result, said Republican Sen John Kennedy, is 'like a circus without a tent'; Kennedy is pictured at the US Capitol on Friday She wouldn't commit to voting 'yes,' however, despite facing a tough re-election fight this year in a state the Trump won handily in 2016. Montana Democratic Sen Jon Tester, another endangered Democrat representing a deep-red state, initially said he was likely to take McConnell at his word. 'I believe a man's word is his bond, so I'm going to take McConnell the same way,' he said. In addition to a pledge to work on immigration, Tester wants a commitment to fund community health centers. But ultimately, Tester voted 'no.' McConnell said Monday that 'the Senate cannot make progress on any of these crucial matters until the government is re-opened. We need to move forward. The first step is ending this shutdown.' Talking to reporters after McConnell's speech, Republican Sen. Susan Collins said the majority leader should have made a stronger, more iron-clad promise. 'I think it would be helpful if the language were a little bit stronger because the tensions are so high,' Collins said, although she added that Schumer should give McConnell credit for 'moving on the DACA issue.' 'In the end it's going to be up to the two leaders, and I hope that they can come together,' she said. Sen. Lindsey Graham, too, urged McConnell to use stronger language committing to an immigration vote. And he called on Democrats to push the top Republican for a more ironclad promise. 'I can't believe I'm saying this but Rand Paul is right,' he quipped. Graham said he hopes the government reopens by the end of the day. 'If it doesn't, I just don't know where we go from here,' he added. Graham voted against Friday's funding measure whose failure led to the shutdown. Collins voted in favor of it. Both supported Monday's measure. 'Today we've taken a significant step forward,' Collins said after the roll call. President Donald Trump said Monday that Democrats 'are turning down services and security for citizens in favor of services and security for non-citizens' as they demand a DACA fix in exchange for government funding President Trump lashed out at congressional Democrats on Monday morning for refusing to vote in favor of a funding reboot. Republicans, who hold 51 Senate seats, need at least nine Democrats to join them in order to pass a 60-vote threshold for a short-term budget measure. Meanwhile, some military and other national security funding is on hold along with federal spending on social welfare programs like community health centers and children's medical insurance. 'The Democrats are turning down services and security for citizens in favor of services and security for non-citizens. Not good!' Trump tweeted Monday morning. He also suggested that Senate liberals are pulling the strings of centrists who might be leaning toward ending the shutdown. 'Democrats have shut down our government in the interests of their far left base. They dont want to do it but are powerless!' he added in a second tweet. Republicans and Democrats remain at loggerheads and have been unable to strike a deal to fund the government, extending Friday's shutdown to a third day and into an uncertain workweek for federal employees. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders said Democrats, who hold enough votes to block a compromise, must 'stop playing games and come to the table and get serious' Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer assigned blame for the government shutdown to President Trump The lack of a deal meant hundreds of thousands of public sector workers could not show up for work on Monday. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders blasted Democrats Monday on 'Good Morning America,' saying that they're 'playing political games' while soldiers go unpaid and children's health programs are left in the lurch. 'Democrats support everything in this piece of legislation. The fact that they won't simply vote for it, to re-open our government, fund our military, protect the most vulnerable children, is mind-boggling, I think, to everyone across this country,' Sanders said. 'I hope that Democrats will stop playing games and come to the table and get serious about what they were elected to come here and do.' She insisted that the White House stands ready to negotiate on immigration policy the Democrats' chief hang-up as soon as the government is reopened. 'Open the government, then we'll resume negotiations,' House Speaker Paul Ryan said Monday morning. 'It's just that clear, it's just that simple' White House budget chief Mick Mulvaney said Monday morning that 'the government should be open. We should not, however, be negotiating over a non-financial issue, the DACA issue, as part of keeping the government open' WHITE HOUSE VOICEMAIL BLAMES DEMOCRATS FOR SHUTDOWN Americans trying to call the public comments line at the White House cannot get through because of the government shutdown. But the Trump administration has changed the voicemail message callers receive when they dial the number. Anyone calling 202-456-1111 gets the following message: 'Thank you for calling the White House. Unfortunately, we cannot answer your call today because congressional Democrats are holding government fundingincluding funding for our troops and other national security prioritieshostage to an unrelated immigration debate. 'Due to this obstruction, the government is shut down. In the meantime, you can leave a comment for the president at www.whitehouse.gov/contact. 'We look forward to taking your calls as soon as the government reopens.' Advertisement House Speaker Paul Ryan, whose chamber passed a government funding measure on Thursday, said on 'Fox & Friends' that Democrats are wrong to hold the government 'hostage.' 'Open the government. Then we'll resume negotiations. It's just that clear. It's just that simple,' he said. White House budget director Mick Mulvaney said on 'CBS This Morning' that no one at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue wanted to see the government's wheels grind to a halt. 'Everyone admits and acknowledges the president did not want this shutdown [and] actively worked to prevent the shutdown,' Mulvaney said. He also objected to Democrats holding the budget hostage to a permanent DADA solution. 'The government should be open. We should not, however, be negotiating over a non-financial issue, the DACA issue, as part of keeping the government open,' Mulvaney declared. In his tweet on Sunday, Trump said, 'The Dems just want illegal immigrants to pour into our nation unchecked.' Trump's presidential campaign also put out a video that called Democrats 'complicit in all murders' committed by undocumented immigrants. Late Sunday afternoon, his campaign put out a fundraising email again calling the Democrats 'COMPLICIT.' White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders also put out a statement whacking Schumer late Sunday afternoon, suggesting he wasn't being honest about what happened at Friday's White House meeting. 'Sen. Schumer's memory is hazy because his account of Friday's meeting is false,' Huckabee Sanders said in a statement given to reporters. 'And the president's position is clear: we will not negotiate on the status of unlawful immigrants while Sen. Schumer and the Democrats hold the government for millions of Americans and our troops hostage.' The White House has since changed its voicemail message noting that the government has shut down. Anyone calling 202-456-1111 to leave a message with the White House hears a recorded message saying that 'unfortunately we cannot answer your call today because congressional Democrats are holding government funding including funding for our troops and other national security priorities hostage to an unrelated immigration debate.' Released from prison: Anthony 'Tony' Jones, who has been named as a person of interest in the William Tyrrell investigation A paedophile named as a person of interest in the William Tyrrell investigation has been released from jail after serving time for molesting a child. Anthony 'Tony' Jones - originally from Wellington, in the New South Wales central west - was jailed for the aggravated assault of an 11-year-old girl in 2015. The 62-year-old pleaded guilty to two child sex offences, with the District Court hearing his abuse of the girl had gone on for 'some time'. He was sentenced to a total three year sentence but Judge Leonie Flannery ordered he be released on supervised parole after two years behind bars, on September 26, 2016. Jones has denied any involvement following William's disappearance, claiming he was 'out bush' collecting scrap metal the day the toddler vanished. Tony Jones has denied any involvement in the disappearance of little William Tyrrell (pictured), who vanished from his foster grandmother's home in Kendall, on the NSW north coast The little boy in a Spiderman suit is believed to have been abducted from his foster's grandmother yard in Kendall on September 12, 2014. Jones was living in Wauchope, about 20 minutes' drive north of the coastal suburb. Police have identified hundreds of persons of interest in the Tyrrell investigation and Jones is one of only a few to have been publicly named. William, who would be six-years-old, has not been found despite a $1 million reward for information. Jones denied any involvement in William's disappearance, claiming he was 'out bush' collecting scrap metal on the day he vanished It was only revealed last year that the little boy was in foster care at the time he went missing. Police have ruled out the involvement of William's foster or biological parents. Daily Mail Australia contacted Jones's lawyer and Corrective Services NSW for comment. Mississippi GOP Sen. Roger Wicker has been caught on C-SPAN video calling teenage Senate pages 'beautiful girls'. Wicker was chatting to Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), who mentioned a page of the short term spending bill, where it talks about one of the most beautiful places in the country. 'I thought you were going to say this was one of the most beautiful girls,' Wicker told him in the C-SPAN video. Mississippi GOP Sen. Roger Wicker has been caught on C-SPAN video calling teenage Senate pages 'beautiful girls' Wicker was chatting to Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.), when he said 'I thought you were going to say this was one of the most beautiful girls. What about these others?' 'What about these others?' he said, gesturing towards a group of female Senate pages - typically high school juniors who spend a semester interning at Congress - as Booker laughed in response. Wicker insists his off the cuff remark was 'meant as a light-hearted jest,' his spokesperson Ryan Taylor told the New York Daily News. The discussion occurred as Senate passed a short term spending bill to bring an end to the government shutdown. Wicker's comments comes after Washington DC was hit by multiple sex scandals in recent months, in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein allegations. Earlier this month, Sen. Al Franken formally submitted a letter of resignation to his state's governor, Mark Dayton, after multiple women came forward and accused the former Saturday Night Live player of sexually inappropriate behavior. Dozens of Franken's Senate Democratic colleagues had called on the lawmaker to call it quits, including Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Tom Perez, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee. Senator Roger Wicker, a Republican from Missouri, insists his off the cuff remark was 'meant as a light-hearted jest' In total, eight women came forward and said Franken had made inappropriate advances on them, starting with radio personality Leeann Tweeden, who wrote in a blog post on November 16 that Franken forcibly kissed her in 2006 while the two were on a USO tour. Franken was also seen jokingly grabbing at Tweeden's breasts while she slept in a photograph from that trip. Last month, Roy Moore lost the Alabama special election to Democrat Doug Jones - turning the state blue from red for the first time in 25 years - after he was accused of molesting teenage girls in the 1990s. In November, it was revealed that Michigan Representative John Conyers settled a $27,000 sexual misconduct complaint in 2015. Unlike several powerful men who issued mea culpa statements after being confronted with statements by accusers, Conyers, the 88-year-old senior Democrat on the Judiciary Committee, called for 'due process.' He says he made the settlement payment which he called 'severance' came from his taxpayer-funded office budget to avoid 'protracted litigation.' An Australian family are among thousands forced to sleep in Japanese airport terminals after a massive snowstorm smashed the country. The Lombardos were waiting to fly home to Sydney from Tokyo Airport on Monday evening when the blizzard hit, initially confining them to their seats on-board their plane for five hours before they were forced to exit. They were told accommodation would be arranged for them, but instead they and thousands of others were ushered into the terminals and abandoned, only supplied with sleeping bags, water and crackers. 'The airport made no efforts to accommodate the thousands of stranded passengers,' Nick Lombardo told Seven. 'People were just sleeping wherever they could find a spot. There's a bunch of disabled people that have told to go to a certain spot and then they've just been left there.' An Australian family are among thousands forced to sleep in Japanese airport terminals after a massive snowstorm smashed the country Instructions and updates on flights and conditions were regularly read out in Japanese, but never in English, so most people were unaware of progress or changes 'The airport made no efforts to accommodate the thousands of stranded passengers,' Nick Lombardo (pictured) said More than 250 international flights were cancelled out of Tokyo alone after the city was covered in some areas with more than 20 centimetres of snow. The downtown area of the capital city was blanketed by an astonishing 23 centimetres. Passengers complained of a total lack of food and monstrous lines to apply for insurance certificate. Instructions and updates on flights and conditions were regularly read out in Japanese, but never in English, so most people were unaware of progress or changes. Nick Lombardo said he was forced to stay up through the night to protect the family's bags, that his sick father was forced to wait hours in line to find help and the family have since been forced to head two hours back into the city for a night's accommodation before flying home Wednesday. More than 250 international flights were cancelled out of Tokyo alone after the city was covered in some areas with more than 20 centimetres of snow Many more Australians have been experiencing similar ordeals north of Tokyo in the popular snow town of Niseko, with flights unable to operate out of the remote part of the country due to the mass snowfall The downtown area of Tokyo was blanketed by an astonishing 23 centimetres A New Zealand family were stuck on their plane for longer than seven hours and after being told to disembark, the Air New Zealand manager refused to speak to anyone despite the cries of a 'full plane load of disgruntled passengers'. 'Information has not been forthcoming from our national carrier. No representative has been to talk to us and people are being given conflicting information,' Jude Hoolihan told the New Zealand Herald. 'People with no English are receiving updates in a language they don't understand. People are angry about our treatment. There is no food available.'Very frustrating,' she added. Many more Australians have been experiencing similar ordeals north of Tokyo in the popular snow town of Niseko, with flights unable to operate out of the remote part of the country due to the mass snowfall. An Australian mother Sally Quinn and her son have been stranded at the tiny airport, both very unwell. 'This is the last thing we need,' she said. A man was repeatedly kicked in the head while he lay on the ground as two rival gangs brawled outside a public swimming pool. Two groups, believed to be the Crips and Bloods, were seen squaring up outside the Massey Park pool in Papakura, south of Auckland. After facing off for several seconds on either side of the car park as families walked past, a man yelled 'one outs', a Kiwi invitation to fight, and they moved in. A man was repeatedly kicked in the head while he lay on the ground as two rival gangs brawled outside a public swimming pool A pair of fighters traded blows until a man in a red shirt hit him in the side of the head, sending him crashing to the concrete. He was then repeatedly kicked, punched, and stomped in the head as a dozen others fought around them and more joined the fray. Onlookers screamed and cheered on the fighters with some yelling 'f**k them up'. A few young women appeared to be trying to break up the fight and defend the fallen man, but were ignored by the combatants. Finally police arrived to break up the carnage, deploying pepper spray almost as soon as they ran in, sending the gangs fleeing. One of the officers managed to run into a cloud of his own pepper spray and was seen clutching his face, along with one of the well-meaning girls. He was repeatedly kicked, punched, and stomped in the head as a dozen others fought around them and more joined the fray Police arrived and used pepper spray to send the fighters fleeing, but one of the officers managed to run into a cloud of his own spray and was seen clutching his face Police said if the six officers hadn't arrived when they did, the man on the ground could have been killed. No one was arrested at the scene but police believed they got a good look at those involved and expected to track them down. 'The idiot with his shirt off did the cowardly act of kicking someone in the head which is of most concern to us, that's what leads to homicide,' Inspector Dave Glossop said. The brawlers wore the red and blue colours of the two gangs, but he said it wouldn't be clear if they were members until they were caught. President Donald Trump finally admitted to asking former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer to lie about the size of his inauguration crowd, according to a new book. Trump privately admitted to his advisers that he'd crossed a line by asking Spicer to berate reporters, the book says. He was furious over reports and photos that compared crowd sizes at his inauguration to the one either years earlier for President Obama. And at the time Kellyanne Conway attempted to calm the fuming president and keep him from sending Spicer to argue over the crowd size, Fox News' Howard Kurtz wrote in a new book 'Media Madness: Donald Trump, The Press, and The War Over The Truth.' Scroll down for video President Donald Trump (pictured Thursday) finally admitted to asking former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer to lie about the size of his inauguration crowd, according to a new book. Spicer is pictured right during the infamous press briefing He was furious over reports and photos that compared crowd sizes at his inauguration to the one either years earlier for President Obama The book will be released Monday, January 29, but was obtained early by the Washington Post. Conway attempted to use a method she'd used multiple times in the former months to calm down the president, Kurt writes. 'She invoked a line that she often employed when Trump was exercised over some slight,' the book explains. '"You're really big,'" she said. "That's really small."' But her go-to tactic failed and Spicer marched out to his first-ever press briefing to tensely confront reporters for the way the inauguration were covered. Conway famously covered for Spicer after the fact, calling his statements 'alternative facts.' After the confrontational statements, in which Spicer called the inauguration crowd 'largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period,' Trump admitted he'd crossed a line. 'You were right,' Trump allegedly told his advisers. 'I shouldn't have done that.' Spicer also says he wished hadn't made the assertions in an interview with the New York Times in September. He is pictured January 21, 2017, during the infamous first press conference And at the time Kellyanne Conway attempted to calm the fuming president and keep him from sending Spicer to argue over the crowd size, Fox News' Howard Kurtz wrote in a new book 'Media Madness: Donald Trump, The Press, and The War Over The Truth' After the confrontational statements, in which Spicer called the inauguration crowd 'largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period,' Trump admitted he'd crossed a line. He and Melania are pictured at the inauguraiton Spicer also says he wished hadn't made the assertions in an interview with the New York Times in September. Kurtz's book comes just weeks after Michael Wolf's bombshell book 'Fire and Fury: Inside the Trump White House.' Wolff's book threw Washington into a frenzy, unleashing explosive details about the first year of the Trump presidency. Kurt's book is similar in that it describes the White House as a frantic place and Trump's staff as toeing a line and keeping an eye out for any new tweets, the Post reported. He interviewed former White House Chief of Staff Reince Preibus, who left the administration in July, who described the atmosphere after Trump tweeted to accuse Obama of wire tapping his Trump Tower apartment. 'Nobody in the White House quite knew what to do,' Kurt said about the atmosphere there. Kurtz also goes into detail on the battling between Ivanka Trump and former adviser Steve Bannon. 'You love your dad. I get that,' Bannon is quoted as having said to Ivanka during one of their spats. 'But you're juts another staffer who doesn't know what you're doing.' The real Rosie the Riveter, Naomi Parker Fraley, has died at 96 years old. Fraley died on Saturday in Longview Washington. Her daughter-in-law, Marnie Blankenship confirmed her death. Fraley's connection to Rosie, the war worker and cultural icon of World War II, first became public in 2016. Her story had been overshadowed by several other American women who have been identified as the model who inspired Rosie. 'I didn't want fame or fortune,' Fraley told People magazine in 2016. 'But I did want my own identity.' The real Rosie the Riveter, Naomi Parker Fraley (pictured), has died at 96. Fraley died Saturday in Longview Washington, and her daughter-in-law, Marnie Blankenship confirmed her death. Fraley's connection to Rosie, the cultural icon of World War II, first became public in 2016 Rosie the Riveter represented the women who worked in factories and shipyards during World War II, many of whom produced munitions and war supplies. Fraley, who was a waitress in California, had the most legitimate claim of having a connection to Rosie Rosie the Riveter represented the women who worked in factories and shipyards during World War II, many of whom produced munitions and war supplies. Fraley, who was a waitress in California, had the most legitimate claim of having a connection to Rosie, according to The New York Times. Professor, James J. Kimble, began searching for the real Rosie the Riveter in 2010. His search led him to Fraley, who had worked in a Navy machine shop during World War II, according to the Times. It also ruled out, Geraldine Hoff Doyle, a Michigan woman whose claim that she was Rosie was long accepted. Kimble, an associate professor of communication and the arts at Seton Hall University in New Jersey, published his findings about Fraley in 'Rosie's Secret Identity,' an article in the journal Rhetoric & Public Affairs. 'The women of this country these days need some icons,' Fraley said in the People magazine interview. 'If they think I'm one, I'm happy.' Fraley, who is believed to have inspired J Howard Miller's Rosie the Riveter poster, was born on August 26, 1921, in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was the third of eight children born to mining engineer, Joseph Parker, and homemaker, Esther Leis. At different points in her life, Fraley lived in New York, Missouri, Texas, Washington, Utah and California, before her family settled in Alameda, California. When Fraley was just 20 years old, she and her sister, Ada, went to work at the Naval Air Station in Alameda, after the Pearl Harbor attack, according to the Times. When Fraley (left) was just 20 years old, she and her sister, Ada (center), went to work at the Naval Air Station in Alameda, after the Pearl Harbor attack. They were assigned to the machine shop, where they drilled, patched airplane wings and, riveted It was at that Naval Air Station that an Acme photographer captured Fraley (pictured) with her hair tied in a red bandanna They were assigned to the machine shop, where they drilled, patched airplane wings and, riveted. According to the Times, it was at that Naval Air Station that an Acme photographer captured Fraley with her hair tied in a red bandanna. When the photo was published, Fraley clipped the photo from the newspaper and kept it for decades. After the war, she worked as a waitress at the Doll House, a restaurant in Palm Springs, California. She told People in 2016 that she didn't think the poster 'looked like me' because at that time she hadn't connect it with the newspaper photo. It wasn't until 2011 that Fraley realized that Geraldine Doyle was known as Rosie the Riveter. 'I couldn't believe it,' Fraley told The Oakland Tribune in 2016. 'I knew it was actually me in the photo.' Kimble's research through books, old newspapers and photo archives led him to a copy of Fraley's photo from the naval station. The photo had the photographer's original caption: 'Pretty Naomi Parker looks like she might catch her nose in the turret lathe she is operating.' It was also dated for March 24, 1942, in Alameda, according to the Times. Kimble also learned that the lathe photo was published in The Pittsburgh Press, in Miller's hometown, on July 5, 1942. 'So Miller very easily could have seen it,' he said. Fraley is seen working at the Naval Air Station in Alameda, CA Shortly after Kimble's discovery, he visited Fraley in California. That's when Fraley showed him the newspaper photo she had saved. 'There is no question that she is the 'lathe woman' in the photograph,' Kimble said. However, Kimble did emphasize that the connection is not conclusive, but, he says, there is circumstantial evidence. 'The timing is pretty good,' he explained. 'The poster appears in Westinghouse factories in February 1943. Presumably they're created weeks, possibly months, ahead of time. So I imagine Miller's working on it in the summer and fall of 1942.' According to the Times, Kimble also learned that the lathe photo was published in The Pittsburgh Press, in Miller's hometown, on July 5, 1942. 'So Miller very easily could have seen it,' he said. Fraley was married three times. Her first marriage was to Joseph Blankenship. Their relationship ended in divorce. Her second husband was John Muhlig, who died in 1971. Fraley married Charles Fraley in 1979. He died in 1998. Fraley is survived by her son Joseph Blankenship; four stepsons, Ernest, Daniel, John and Michael Fraley; two stepdaughters, Patricia Hood and Ann Fraley; two sisters, Ada Wyn Parker Loy and Althea Hill. She also had three grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and several step-grandchildren and step-great-grandchildren. One of Australia's most popular budget airlines is celebrating Australia Day with new cheap flights between popular destinations that won't break the bank. For those looking to chase the sun and extend their summer, Jetstar are offering flights up to Byron Bay, the Sunshine Coast or the Gold Coast from as little as $45. And for people chasing the true Aussie outback experience, domestic flights to Uluru start at $109 and leave four times a day. The Uluru Airport also puts you in comfortable driving distance from Alice Springs. Summer-lovers can fly up to the Gold Coast pictured) with Jetstar for as little as $45 one way For the outback traveler, the domestic flights to Uluru start at $109 and leave four times a day Travellers can get flights from Sydney to Whitsundays (pictured) from $56 with the cheap sale If you're in the mood for a little island-hopping, a flight to Whitsunday coast will set you back less than $65 while a quick trip up to Hamilton Island is only $85. Or, take advantage of the cheapest flight on offer and pop down to Melbourne to enjoy a little unpredictable weather and deconstructed coffee for only $35. Flights from Sydney to Launceston are going for only $59, or you can travel to Hobart for $65 Sydney to Melbourne is the cheapest domestic flight included in the Jetstra sale at just $35 For those wanting to escape the mainland, flights down to Tassie won't put a huge dent in your wallet either. Flights from Sydney to Launceston are going for only $59, or you can go the extra mile and fly directly into Hobart for $65. The sale comes just in time for people who may be searching for a quick family getaway idea before the kids go back to school in February. The Jetstar Australia Day sale ends on January 29 unless tickets are sold out prior. A senior Al-Qaeda leader has called on Muslims 'everywhere' to rise up and kill Jews and Americans in response to US President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital. Khalid Batarfi said President Trump's move was 'a declaration of a new Jewish-Crusader war', the SITE Intelligence monitoring group reported. Batarfi made the threats in an 18-minute video entitled 'Our Duty Towards Our Jerusalem', released by the terror organisation on Monday. Threats: Al-Qaeda commander Khalid Batarfi said President Trump's decision was 'a declaration of a new Jewish-Crusader war', and urged Muslims to kills Jews and U.S. citizens The Saudi Arabian militant also said every Muslim had a duty to 'liberate' Jerusalem, which is a holy city in Islam as well as Judaism and Christianity. He said; 'No Muslim has the right to cede Jerusalem no matter what happens. Only a traitor would give it up or hand it over. 'Let them (Muslims) rise and attack the Jews and the Americans everywhere.' Breaking with decades of US policy, Trump on December 6 said his administration would recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, and move its embassy from Tel Aviv to the city. On Monday, US Vice President Mike Pence pledged to move the embassy by the end of 2019, in a speech to Israel's parliament that saw Arab lawmakers expelled after they shouted in protest. Batarfi said every Muslim had a duty to 'liberate' Jerusalem, pictured, which is a holy city in Islam as well as Judaism and Christianity Jerusalem is the third holiest city for Muslims, and the first holy city for Jews. The US decision to recognise Jerusalem triggered protests across the Muslim world, and was also criticised by several US allies. In the video, Batarfi dismissed US allies' protests as not genuine and 'nothing but dust thrown in the eyes'. 'The greatest responsibility lies upon the Muslims in America and the Western countries in the world,' he said. 'The Muslims inside the occupied land must kill every Jew, by running him over, or stabbing him, or by using against him any weapon, or by burning their homes.' Batarfi is a senior figure with Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), described by the US as the worldwide jihadist network's most dangerous branch. The group has abducted foreigners and claimed responsibility for the deadly 2015 attack in Paris on French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, targeted for its cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. The United States has intensified its air attacks on AQAP since Trump took office in January. ISIS have used a blind jihadist to make new attack threats just weeks after a one-legged fanatic said having a disability was 'no excuse' for not fighting. The extremist could be seen holding a white cane in a new video filmed in Deir Ezzor, Syria, where ISIS still holds territory. He is shown working at a medical facility with wounded militants limping in the back ground. The video focuses on Kazakh jihadists and emerged days after that country's president met with his US counterpart Donald Trump at the White House. ISIS have used a blind jihadist (pictured) to make new attack threats just weeks after a one-legged fanatic said having a disability was 'no excuse' for not fighting In December, a separate video emerged showing a one-legged ISIS militant with an American accent (pictured) calling for knife and gun attacks A number of Kazakh jihadists feature in the video criticising Nazarbayev's government and calling for attacks in the vast central Asian country, according to PJ Media. In December, a separate video emerged showing a one-legged ISIS militant with an American accent calling for knife and gun attacks. He told fellow extremists that 'one leg or no legs' there is 'no excuse' for not targeting disbelievers. The fighter, using the name Abu Salih al-Amriki, wore khaki fatigues and had a gun strapped to him as he condemned President Trump for playing up a clash of civilizations. 'You entered into the White House on the back of your crusader rhetoric, which the fake media has pressured you to tone down,' he said in the video, speaking in what sounded like a New York City-area accent. The fighter, using the name Abu Salih al-Amriki, wore khaki fatigues and had a gun strapped to him as he condemned President Trump for playing up a clash of civilizations 'Your feelings and hatred towards Islam has already been revealed you are now witnessing your fake victory. 'Your war against Islam has only made your homeland more vulnerable and your society is cracking into chaos.' He referred to President Trump as a 'dog of Rome'. The fighter was shown in the video attaching his prosthetic leg and using crutches to walk through ruins. In 2014, another blind jihadist was pictured fighting alongside ISIS militants in Syria. Taymullah al-Somali, a Dutch national, was photographed numerous times alongside ISIS fighters and was believed to be based in the capital of the self-declared caliphate, Raqqa before it was recaptured last year. The latest video comes a day after pictures emerged of a wheelchair-bound jihadist reportedly carrying out a suicide bombing at a military compound in eastern Syria Terrorists: The man is seen being carried by two other fighters into a nearby vehicle ISIS: The terrorist then makes a hand gesture with his index finger which has become associated with Islamic State The Somalia-born militant was quoted on known Islamist social media accounts urging Muslims to join ISIS, reportedly saying: 'Being blind didn't stop me from coming to #Syria, what's your excuse?' The latest video comes a day after pictures emerged of a wheelchair-bound jihadist reportedly carrying out a suicide bombing at a military compound in eastern Syria. Images released by ISIS show the bomber with his children as he prepared to carry out the attack. The terrorist is seen talking to his son and daughter with a rifle on his lap. The man can then be seen being lifted from his wheelchair into a car, and making a hand gesture with his index finger which has become associated with ISIS over the years. The car is claimed to have been laden with explosives, and the next photo reportedly shows the area where then man is alleged to have blown himself up in a suicide mission. Other images show the suicide bomber making his way to destroy a compound controlled by the Syrian government in Al-Bahrah near Deir Ezzor. It is not known when the bombing itself took place, but the images emerged online this weekend. Deir Ezzor, in eastern Syria, is one of the last areas where ISIS fighters are active. Free influenza immunisations will be available for New South Wales children aged between six months and five years old in the wake of a horror flu season for the state. Two preschoolers were killed and there were more than 12,000 confirmed cases of influenza among children under five in 2017, Sydney Morning Herald reported. The state government announced Tuesday it would invest $3.5 million in 2018 in an effort to avoid a similarly devastating flu season. The virus killed 745 people nationally last year, and almost 300 of those people were from New South Wales. NSW youngsters between the age of six months and five years will have access to free immunisation ahead of winter 2018 in an effort to not repeat last year's horror flu season 'The program will target more than 400,000 children to ensure better protection for them and the wider community,' Premier Gladys Berejiklian said. Double the amount of children were affected by influenza in 2017 compared to the previous year, with 250 admitted to Westmead Children's Hospital for treatment. Ms Berejiklian urged parents to 'take up' the opportunity of free vaccine for their children, saying it would help ensure greater protection for the entire community. The recommended two annual doses of flu vaccine would normally set parents back $50, at $25 each. Almost half of the 88,357 cases recorded in Australia last year were in New South Wales. Two preschoolers were killed and there were more than 12,000 confirmed cases of influenza among children under five in 2017 Western Australian children under five years old have been eligible for free annual flu vaccine since 2008, however less than 10 per cent were immunised. Health Minister Brad Hazzard condemned anti-vaccination groups establishing childcare services for non-immunised children in New South Wales, calling it 'extremely irresponsible.' 'Not only will this free flu jab help keep them safe during winter, but it will also protect their family and friends,' Mr Hazzard said. Double the amount of children were affected by influenza in 2017 compared to the previous year, with 250 admitted to Westmead Children's Hospital for treatment Eight-year-old Rosie Brealey died just days after contracting a deadly flu virus in September, remembered as a 'loving little angel' by her family. 'Words cannot describe the depths of our grief,' her father Christian Brealey said. In the same month, Jennifer Thew, a mother-of-two from Canberra, died after fighting a week-long battle against a deadly flu virus alongside her seven-year-old daughter, Estella. Eight-year-old Rosie Brealey (pictured) died just days after contracting a deadly flu virus in September Young law student Madeline Jones also died from the flu shortly before her 19th birthday this year. Ms Jones fell into a coma and died five days after she started to show mild symptoms. Young father Ben Ihlow also died in September after a week-long battle with the flu, leaving behind his wife, Samantha and 10-month-old son, Andrew. Young law student Madeline Jones (pictured) also died from the flu shortly before her 19th birthday this year A man who was shot and killed in a 'targeted attack' inside a cafe in Sydney's west has been revealed to be a well-known criminal lawyer. Vietnamese-born lawyer Ho Ledinh was killed while dining at the Happy Cup Cafe in Bankstown's Old Town Plaza at 4pm on Tuesday, after a gunman shot him several times in the pelvic region. Mr Ledinh - of Ledinh Lawyers - previously owned the cafe where he was shot and was described by close friend Van Nguyen as 'a wonderful father'. Scroll down for video Vietnamese-born lawyer Ho Ledinh (pictured) was killed while dining at the Happy Cup Cafe in Bankstown's Old Town Plaza at 4pm on Tuesday after a gunman shot him several times in the pelvic region Mr Ledinh (pictured with family) - of Ledinh Lawyers - previously owned the cafe where he was shot and was described by close friend Van Nguyen as 'a great man' 'He was my best friend... like my step brother. We didn't have family here so we were each other's family. He was a wonderful father and had a beautiful wife,' Mr Nguyen told Daily Mail Australia. 'She is 30 and the eldest is five years old. They met in his coffee shop and fell in love when he made her a coffee. This was his second marriage his wife is in Vietnam at the moment. 'He is a true friend, would do anything for us. I couldn't believe he was dead when I got the phone call.' NSW Police confirmed Mr Ledinh died of gunshot wounds at the scene after they attended the incident. Detectives believe the shooting to be a 'targeted attack' as they continue to hunt the offender. Mr Ledinh was a prominent lawyer with offices in Bankstown and he previously represented Phillip Nguyen, who was jailed for the shooting death of policeman Bill Crews in 2010. 'We do believe that it is a targeted attack - that's how it appears at this stage,' Acting Commander Brad Thorne said. One man, believed to be a prominent lawyer aged in his 60s, was shot several times in the pelvic region and died at the scene (Pictured) Mr Ledinh was a prominent lawyer with offices in Bankstown and previously represented Phillip Nguyen, who was jailed for the shooting death of policeman Bill Crews in 2010 Paramedics remain at the scene of the shooting, as the offender remains on the run from the police The shooter has gone on the run with police using sniffer dogs in their hunt for the man Bankstown's Old Town Plaza remains locked down after the offender fired at least four shots from handgun at 'Happy Cup Cafe' (pictured) shortly before 4pm on Tuesday in front of terrified shoppers Mr Ledinh may have sent his wife and children back to his home country of Vietnam just weeks before the shooting. According to a woman from a neighbouring business, who claims to be friendly with the man's wife, the family left recently. Neighbours living next to his home said they have not seen the couple's young children in the yard 'in two weeks'. They said the family kept to themselves and have lived in the property for two years. 'They play in the yard but I haven't seen the lady or kids for two weeks. 'I have only seen the man - he will smile if he sees us but he is very quiet.' The victim (pictured left with his wife and children) was shot execution-style in the cafe he previously owned Mr Ledinh (pictured left) was shot in the pelvic region 'several times', according to witnesses 'He was my best friend... like my step brother. We didn't have family here so we were each other's family. He was a wonderful father and had a beautiful wife,' Mr Nguyen (pictured) told Daily Mail Australia The woman from the business nearby also painted him as a quiet man. 'I would talk to his wife but I would only say hello to him no talking.' From the street the family's suburban duplex looks almost identical to other homes on either side. A box of 'nutrigrain' sits in the window of the front room, with children's toys and and outdoor setting stacked up in the carport. No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight. A witness told Daily Mail Australia she watched as the gunman left his victim lying on the floor of the cafe as he fled towards the station. 'I got out of the car and just saw him on the floor out of breath...' she said. 'The guy that shot him ran towards the station wearing green clothing.' Detectives believe the shooting to be a 'targeted attack' as they continue to hunt the offender A witness told Daily Mail Australia she watched as the gunman left his alleged victim lying on the floor of the cafe as he fled towards the station Bankstown City Plaza remains locked down after the offender opened fire on 'Happy Cup cafe' (pictured) shortly before 4pm on Tuesday No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight (Pictured is the victim) The attacker is now on the run and was pictured on CCTV footage (pictured) before the incident CCTV footage captured the alleged killer walking through Bankstown wearing a green shirt just before the shooting. A mother who also witnessed the shooting from a restaurant across the street reported hearing four gun shots before watching cafe patrons flee the scene. 'I was in a restaurant right across from the cafe, heard four gun shots and saw people running away from the scene,' a witness told Daily Mail Australia. 'I ran outside and saw shops closing their doors and people running to the cafe standing around. Called 000, people were saying the guy is dead. My eight-year-old daughter was in hysterics, the poor thing screamed and ran behind the counter.' A mother who also witnessed the shooting from a restaurant across the street reported hearing four gun shots before watching cafe patrons flee the scene (pictured) No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight (Pictured is a map showing the location of the cafe) A gunman has gone on the run after firing shots into a cafe inside a busy shopping strip in Sydney's west Duy Nguyen, who was working across the street, said he heard three shots but thought it was a firecracker. He told AAP the man was sitting with other people at a table outside the Happy Cup cafe. 'At first no one called out for help when he was shot,' Mr Nguyen said. 'From what we were able to see he was on the floor. 'I'm a bit shaken right now, it was scary, it happened opposite us.' Ms Gjorgjieva also said she and other restaurant patrons across the street evacuated the area. 'We evacuated the restaurant through the rear entrance. She [my daughter] was scared that I was so close to the window,' she added. Witnesses reported hearing several gunshots at the Happy Cup Cafe in Bankstown (pictured) Bankstown City Plaza remains locked down after the offender opened fire on 'Happy Cup cafe' in the shopping complex shortly before 4pm Police officers speak to witnesses outside the Bankstown City Plaza, where a man was shot Paramedics reportedly performed CPR on Mr Ledinh, however they were unable to save him. The shooter has gone on the run with police using sniffer dogs in their hunt for the man. More than 50 police officers responded to the shooting, including riot squads who continue to search for the armed offender. Some buses through Bankstown Railway Station are delayed up to 30 minutes due to the nearby police lockdown. The shooter has gone on the run with police using sniffer dogs in their hunt for the man More than 50 police officers responded to the shooting, including riot squads who continue to search for the armed offender Some buses through Bankstown Railway Station are delayed up to 30 minutes due to the nearby police lockdown A Roman Catholic deacon has gone on trial in Belgium accused of killing at least ten people, including his own mother, by injecting air into their veins. Ivo Poppe, a former nurse dubbed the 'Deacon of Death', would be one of the worst serial killers in Belgian history if convicted in the case in the town of Bruges. The 61-year-old was originally arrested in 2014 after authorities were told that he had confessed to his psychiatrist that he had 'actively euthanised dozens of people.' A Roman Catholic deacon has gone on trial in Belgium accused of killing at least ten people, including his own mother, by injecting air into their veins He made two partial confessions during the inquiry, but later retracted them and has since denied the charges against him. Poppe spent 20 years working as a nurse at a clinic in Menin, near the French border, and another ten as a pastoral visitor after being ordained as a deacon. He is formally accused of killing at least ten people including his mother, three other relatives and two patients. But officials believe the real toll could be much higher, with the inquiry having established a list of at least 50 suspect deaths based on notes in his diary, which included a count of fatalities at the clinic. Most of the suspected victims died from an injection of air into their bloodstream. He claimed during the investigation to have acted 'out of compassion, to spare the physical and mental suffering' of people often nearing the end of their lives. Ivo Poppe, a former nurse dubbed the 'Deacon of Death', would be one of the worst serial killers in Belgian history if convicted in the trial in the town of Bruges The final victim he is accused of killing is his own mother, who died in 2011 aged 89, while she was suffering from depression. Her doctors however denied that she wanted to be euthanised as her son had claimed, Belgian media reported. The trial is set to last two weeks and include testimony from dozens of witnesses, relatives, psychiatrists and officials from the diocese. Cardinal Jozef De Kesel, the head of the diocese at the time of the killings and now the most senior Church figure in Belgium, said in 2014 that he was 'stunned' by the allegations and pledged the full cooperation of the Roman Catholic authorities. Volcanic activity was also detected at Mt. Kusatsu Shirane, northwest of Tokyo Residents have been warned that the volcano could still continue to spew ash Scores of skiers have been stranded at the top of the popular mountain resort A volcano has erupted in Japan, killing one man and leaving several more injured A Japanese soldier was killed on Tuesday after a volcano erupted near a popular Japanese ski resort, sparking an avalanche that left fifteen people injured and scores stranded up a mountain. Footage broadcast on Japanese television showed thick black smoke interspersed with falling rocks sliding down the snow-covered side of the volcano towards a ski slope. 'One of the six members of the Self Defence Forces (injured in the incident) has died after being caught up in an avalanche,' a defence ministry spokesman told AFP. Scroll down for video A volcano erupted near a popular Japanese ski resort, sparking an avalanche on the ski slopes Fire trucks and ambulances are parked at a ski resort in Kusatsu, Japan, after the eruption Emergency services vehicles rush to Mr Kusatsu as a volcano eruption triggered an avalanche The ministry had earlier said that six infantry personnel who had been on a training mission on the mountain were hit by the avalanche but had been rescued. 'Black smoke rose from the top of the mountain and we were told to evacuate inside 30 minutes later,' a man who was at the ski resort told public broadcaster NHK. The falling rocks kicked clouds of snow into the air as they made impact, officials said. A hundred people have evacuated. Japan's Meteorological Agency urged nearby residents to stay away from Mt. Kusatsu Shirane, northwest of Tokyo, after it detected what it said was 'slight volcanic activity.' 'Today an eruption occurred at the mountain', agency official Makoto Saito told reporters, warning that the volcano could still spew more rocks and ash, and that there was a risk of further avalanches. Pictures of black volcanic ash combined with the white snow have been flooding social media Japan Meteorological Agency Volcanology Division Director Makoto Saita warned that the volcano could still spew more rocks and ash, and that there was a risk of further avalanches The volcano-avalanche in Kutastu, Japan has claimed the life of a Self Defence Force member Black ash from Mt A local fire department official told AFP that 10 people had been injured in the incident: 'Five of them were seriously injured. We began sending the injured to a hospital.' Among the injured were four people hurt by shattered glass while on a ropeway gondola at the ski resort in Gunma. The official said an earlier report that one person was missing in the avalanche was not accurate. A local town official said that a total of 78 people, some of them suffering injuries, were stranded at a gondola station at the top of the mountain. The gondola has been stopped because of a power outage, and an official said: 'We're now discussing how we can evacuate them.' NHK said that eight of those stranded had already been rescued. Japan sits on the so-called 'ring of fire' Thick black smoke slides down the snow-covered side of the volcano after a volcanic eruption Japan, with scores of active volcanoes, sits on the so-called Pacific 'Ring of Fire' where a large proportion of the world's quakes and volcanic eruptions are recorded. On September 27, 2014, Japan suffered its deadliest eruption in almost 90 years when Mount Ontake, in central Nagano prefecture, burst unexpectedly to life. An estimated 63 people were killed in the shock eruption which occurred as the peak was packed with hikers out to see the region's spectacular autumn colours. Locals swarmed to clean up the chaotic mess as litres of beer created a golden stream across a roundabout. A ute had dozens of cartons of beer loaded in the back tray when a number of bottles smashed onto the road in Townsville, north Queensland. At least eight people were seen cleaning up the road covered in liquid gold, forcing one lane of traffic to close Tuesday morning. Scroll down for video Locals swarmed to clean up the chaotic mess as litres of beer created havoc on road (pictured) A ute had dozens of cartons of beer loaded in the back tray (pictured) when a number of bottles smashed onto the road in Townsville, north Queensland Dozens took to social media, describing the scene as a 'National Day of Mourning' (pictured) 'Someone's head must roll for this,' another person wrote online after seeing the chaos Much of the beer flowed down the drain after the incident before 8am according to 9 News. Footage shows locals using brooms to sweep up the carnage of brew as cars passed in the other lane. The ute full of beer was reportedly being transported from a nearby hotel. Many people took to social media describing the scene as a 'tragedy'. 'Should be a National Day of Mourning,' one person wrote. 'Why didn't they drink it off the floor?,' another wrote. 'Someone's head must roll for this,' one other said. The spill was cleaned and lanes were reopened shortly after 8am according to the publication. Housing affordability has hit a 'crisis point' with Australia the second most expensive country in the world, according to a global study. Australians are paying nearly 13 times their annual income to buy a house, the 14th Annual Demographia International Housing Affordability Survey found. Sydney was ranked the second least affordable city behind Hong Kong for the third year in a row. Sydney was ranked the second least affordable city behind Hong Kong for the third year in a row Housing affordability has hit a 'crisis point' with Australia the second most expensive country in the world, according to a global study The harbour city was followed by Vancouver, San Jose, California and then Melbourne at fifth least affordable. 'We've got a crisis situation in Australia,'co-author of the study Hugh Pavletich told Domain. 'Prices are way too high, far higher that what they should be, what is (the government) doing to get housing at or below three times the annual income?' The survey blames Australia's lack of affordability on urban containment policies. The policies aim to slow urban sprawl by encouraging people to live in places where housing already exists. Comparing 293 markets, The Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast were among the 20 least affordable areas I the world. Adelaide was ranked 34, Brisbane 38, Hobart 39 and Perth 51. The harbour city was followed by Vancouver, San Jose, California and then Melbourne at fifth least affordable (Melbourne pictured) Theresa May 'bitch slapped' Boris Johnson during a bad-tempered showdown in Cabinet today after he went public with a demand for extra NHS cash, a minister has claimed. A furious Prime Minister reprimanded the Foreign Secretary after his allies briefed that he would seize the floor at Cabinet to demand a 5billion NHS Brexit dividend. She pointedly warned ministers that 'Cabinet discussions should take place in private' at the tense meeting after Mr Johnson led a revolt on the crucial issue. Mrs May also made clear any 'Brexit dividend' for the NHS will not be considered until next year. Some eight ministers are said to have piled in and voiced their anger at Mr Johnson's behaviour during the meeting. Home Secretary Amber Rudd is said to have stressed the need for 'trust' and added: 'I'm talking to you, Foreign Secretary.' But hours after the clash the PM faced further pressure to increase NHS spending when Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt publicly backed Mr Johnson's plea. He told the health select committee: 'I don't think any health secretary is ever going to not support potential extra resources for his or her department.' Boris Johnson (pictured leaving Downing Street today) was ordered to stop airing grievances in public during a tense Cabinet meeting It is understood Mr Johnson (pictured leaving No10 today) stopped short of mentioning figures on NHS funding during the Cabinet meeting, after the PM and allies warned ministers that conversations should be conducted in private Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt gave a presentation on the NHS at the Cabinet meeting today and later backed Boris Johnson's calls for more cash This morning's dramatic Cabinet clash came after arch-Eurosceptic Mr Johnson demanded the substantial cash injection for the health service as soon as we leave the EU. Brexiteer ministers such as Michael Gove, Andrea Leadsom and Penny Mordaunt are keen to demonstrate that the Leave campaign's referendum pledge of significant extra money for the NHS is being kept. But it is understood Mr Johnson stopped short of mentioning figures during the meeting, after the PM and a string of allies told ministers that conversations should be conducted in private. One Cabinet member told ITV that Mrs May 'bitch slapped' Mr Johnson, while Ms Rudd is said to have stressed the need for 'trust' and added: 'I'm talking to you, Foreign Secretary.' However, other sources argued that there had been broad support for his plea for more funding. Arriving for talks in Brussels today, Chancellor Philip Hammond dismissed the extraordinary intervention by Mr Johnson - pointing out that he is the Foreign Secretary rather than the Health Secretary International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt, who backed Brexit in the referendum, arrived at the Cabinet meeting today (pictured) and is thought to be supportive of Mr Johnson Earlier, Chancellor Philip Hammond brutally dismissed Mr Johnson's call by pointing out that he is the Foreign Secretary and insisting he would talk to the Health Secretary about funding. But the revolt underlines mounting Tory disquiet at Theresa May's 'timid' and 'dull' leadership. Labour seized on the split with glee, saying it was unheard of for a Cabinet row to be leaked before it had even happened. Mrs May's spokesman said the Cabinet discussion on the NHS lasted for around an hour. 'The PM and a large number of Cabinet ministers made the point that Cabinet discussions should take place in private,' he said. ITV anonymous Cabinet minister had told him Mr Johnson 'got a complete bitch slap. Not once but twice'. Remainer former minister Anna Soubry said the Cabinet big beast should be sacked for 'incompetence and disloyalty' One Cabinet minister has reported that Boris Johnson received a 'complete bitch slap' from the Prime Minister during today's meeting Boris Johnson (pictured arriving for Cabinet today) used the meeting to demand a funding boost for the NHS Other sources played down claims that Mr Johnson was 'humiliated' by a lack of support in the room, arguing there was 'broad consensus' about the need to divert EU money into the NHS. Mr Gove, Chris Grayling and Jeremy Hunt are said to have made supportive remarks. Mr Hammond missed the meeting in No10 this morning because he is holding talks with EU counterparts. But as he arrived in Brussels he told journalists: 'Mr Johnson is the Foreign Secretary. I gave the Health Secretary an extra 6billion at the recent Budget. 'We will look at departmental allocations again in the spending review when that takes place.' Another Cabinet rival jibed that it was 'not our job to keep Boris's promises for him', while justice minister Philip Lee - a practising GP - delivered a thinly-veiled dig about the need for government members to focus on their 'own jobs'. Allies of the PM, including Trade Secretary Liam Fox (pictured centre today), are said to have echoed her call for Cabinet discussions to be conducted in private Home Secretary Amber Rudd, a long-time adversary of Mr Johnson, was also at the Cabinet meeting today. She is said to have stressed the importance of trust and added: 'I'm talking to you, foreign secretary.' Mr Johnson has raised the issue with Theresa May (pictured at a Burns' Night supper in No10 last night) in private on several occasions since the 2016 referendum Remainer former minister Anna Soubry said Mr Johnson should be sacked for 'incompetence and disloyalty'. Mrs May's former chief of staff Nick Timothy also waded into the row, accusing Mr Johnson of disloyalty. 'Breaching collective responsibility and leaking Cabinet discussions are bad enough but part of political life. But pre-briefing your disagreement with government policy ahead of cabinet?' he said. The Cabinet big beast is said to have raised the NHS issue with the PM in private on several occasions - but Mrs May believes it would be 'premature' to commit cash before the Brexit terms are finalised. Commons leader Andrea Leadsom and new education secretary Damian Hinds were also at the gathering in Downing Street today Justice minister Philip Lee - a practising GP - delivered a thinly-veiled dig about the need for government members to focus on their 'own jobs' The PM's spokesman said: 'The Prime Minister reminded Cabinet the Government has consistently said that we will spend money on our priorities such as housing, schools and the NHS. 'There will also be other calls upon that money but we will discuss those priorities at that time.' Mr Johnson's concerns are understood to have been heightened by a recent visit to a hospital in his Uxbridge constituency, when he was accompanied by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt. Friends of Mr Johnson have complained that his plans to give the health service 100million a week are being delayed to prevent him claiming a political victory. 'We are delivering Brexit and we are going to have to give the NHS more money before the next election, whatever happens,' one said. Business Secretary Greg Hands (left) and Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss were among the ministers at Cabinet today Mr Johnson will use today's meeting of the Cabinet to make the case for using the 'Brexit dividend' to hand the NHS an extra 100 million a week 'Why not link the two and deliver on the promises made to leave voters? The only reason not to is to deny Boris a win.' Another ally of the Foreign Secretary said he would continue to make the argument for more money for the NHS 'until it happens'. 'Boris believes that if the Tories are going to beat Corbyn at the next election they must make the NHS a top priority and deliver new funding,' the source said. BREXIT UNCERTAINTY HITTING ECONOMY, WARNS HAMMOND Chancellor Philip Hammond (pictured in Brussels today) said Uncertainty about Brexit is hitting confidence in the economy Uncertainty about Brexit is hitting confidence in the economy, Philip Hammond warned today. The Chancellor said he hoped to see 'real progress' in the negotiations with Brussels in the coming months to give certainty to businesses. The International Monetary Fund cut the UK's growth outlook from 1.6 per cent to 1.5 per cent for 2019, the year it quits the European Union. Mr Hammond, in Brussels for a summit of European finance ministers, said there was a 'degree of uncertainty about our future direction'. 'Because of the negotiations that are going on there's a degree of uncertainty about our future direction and our future arrangements for trading with our European partners and that's bound to have an impact on thinking about the economy,' he said. 'The sooner we can generate certainty, the better, and that's why we are keen to build on the momentum that we generated in December and get the negotiations moving forward now in a steady way so that we can see real progress over the course of the coming months.' The warning came as it emerged the government is unlikely to reveal its key demands for a financial services deal in Brexit talks. Theresa May had suggested a blueprint of Britain's goals would be published this year. But ministers are now thought to be kicking the plans into the long grass, or even dropping them altogether. Advertisement 'Every poll conducted shows the NHS is top of swing voter concerns and every expert says it needs more money - the Cabinet will have to act and the sooner the better. 'This isn't about the referendum - it's about delivering on the number one concern for the public and beating Corbyn at the next election. 'Boris has a track record of winning and knows the Tories simply cannot afford to concede the NHS to Labour - which is why he will continue to make this argument until it happens.' The PM's chief of staff Gavin Barwell is said to have told Tory MPs there is no point trying to compete with Labour on health, where the Tories trail heavily in the polls. But former Tory vice-chairman Robert Halfon said it would be 'madness' to short-change the NHS for political reasons. He added: 'There's an umbilical cord between the British public and the NHS. They want a government that puts the NHS first and foremost.' During the referendum, Mr Johnson famously campaigned in a red bus emblazoned with a slogan suggesting Brexit would release up to 350million a week to spend on domestic priorities like the NHS. However, a Whitehall source said it was too early to start allocating cash from a Brexit dividend that had yet to be agreed. 'It is premature,' he said. 'Boris has given quite a few figures on this - 350 million a week, 438 million and now 100 million. 'Once we have an idea of the figure we will be saving we will set out what we will do with it. 'In the meantime, we are already getting on with giving the NHS more money such as the 2.8 billion announced in the Budget.' Suspicions are mounting of another coordinated bid by Mr Johnson's supporters to force him into Downing Street. Last week, former planning minister Nick Boles said the government 'constantly disappoints' because of 'timidity and lack of ambition'. Meanwhile, Tory grandee Sir Nicholas Soames yesterday became the latest senior figure to urge No 10 to embrace a more radical agenda. Sir Nicholas branded the government's agenda 'dull, dull, dull' and called for a 'brave and bold' approach. He added: 'It really won't be enough to get people to vote against (Corbyn). They must have really sound reasons to vote Conservative. We really need to get on with this.' Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said: I'm afraid this is all about Boris Johnson. 'He's not really concerned about those patients waiting on trolleys in corridors and those elderly people in the backs of ambulances in the freezing cold waiting to be treated. It's just about Boris Johnson's tedious political games.' A mother has blasted sick suicide websites after her 21-year-old son Google searched how to kill himself before taking his own life. Scottish student Connel Arthur was found dead in his room in Reykjavik, Iceland, hours after he sent a message saying goodbye to his girlfriend. His devastated mother Nathalie has now called on internet giants to ban suicide websites. Connel Arthur, 21, with his mother Nathalie who has called on internet giants to ban suicide websites Ms Arthur said her son had never shown any signs of depression before, but had become concerned about finding accommodation in the Icelandic capital, while he completed an Erasmus year. The mother-of-two, from Bannockburn, wants action to be taken to stop other young people taking the same path. She told the Daily Record: 'Connel was full of life which is why this is all such a shock. 'Why are these suicide websites not talked about and why is it available? It's not okay. This information should not be there for people to access.' Ms Arthur said that concerns over accommodation were weighing heavy on her son's mind and that 'becoming homeless' was a 'massive concern'. However, she added that he 'loved life' which made his death all the more shocking. Mr Arthur was found dead in his room in Reykjavik, Iceland, hours after he sent a message saying goodbye to his girlfriend Mr Arthur, who studied at Glasgow University and was a keen surfer and snowboarder, had been watching unrelated YouTube videos before sending a goodbye message to his girlfriend at about 5:30pm. His girlfriend then raised the alarm and Mr Arthur was discovered by a friend by 8pm, but sadly it was too late. Ms Arthur has now urged parents to reach out to their children if they appear to be depressed. She said: 'Go and talk to yours kids. Get them to talk to their friends. Ask them if they're OK. Send a text, take somebody out for a coffee that can buy precious time.' For confidential support call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details. Police in the Dutch city of Rotterdam will start confiscating clothes and jewellery from young gangsters. The trial scheme will see trained agents approach criminal suspects and ask them to prove how they got their expensive merchandise. If they cannot, police can confiscate the items. The idea is the brainchild of no-nonsense police chief Frank Paauw and specifically targets drug gangs in the west of the city. Police in the Dutch city of Rotterdam (pictured) will start confiscating clothes and jewellery from young gangsters He told Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf: 'Some young people now walk around with jackets costing 1,800 euros. They do not have any income, so the question is how they got them. 'These young people have no income, sometimes even debts from a previous conviction, but also wear an outfit that exceeds 1,500 euros. It undermines the law and sends a false signal to locals. Taking away is therefore important' He added: 'We rarely take clothes from a suspect, more often we might take a Rolex which young people see as a status symbol.' A Rotterdam police spokesman told MailOnline: 'The policy is targeted at a gang which is very, very well known by police officers and people that live there. 'Should a member be arrested for a crime like drug dealing we want to see if we can confiscate an expensive watch, coat or whatever if we think it was bought with the profits of those crimes. 'We do the same with the "big players" who see their Ferraris confiscated on similar grounds after a verdict by a judge.' A truck carrying nearly 34,000 litres of chemicals has been stolen in Belgium sparking a police hunt. The trailer was taken from a transport firm based in Zedelgem overnight on Saturday. Despite initial reports this morning, Interpol say they are not involved in a hunt for the missing vehicle, which is said to contain 33,500 litres of a chemical called radiacid 0254. A truck believed to be carrying nearly 34,000 litres of chemicals has been stolen in Belgium Belgium's Federal Police confirmed to MailOnline that a truck had been stolen in Zedelgem and that it contained a chemical substance. But a spokesman said that 'as far as we know' the substance 'cannot be used as an explosive material'. Prosecutors in Bruges added: 'A transport company in Zedelgem was the victim of a theft of a semi-trailer overnight on January 20 to 21, 2018. 'The semi-trailer was filled with 33,500 litres of radiacid 0254, a fatty acid and is not used as a precursor for explosives.' Interpol, the world's largest international police organisation with 192 members, told MailOnline it 'has not issued any alert in relation to a truck stolen in Belgium'. Italian media have reported that the number plate of the vehicle is 1-QEB-708. It comes a day after Belgium lowered its terror threat level after three years of high alert that included the Brussels bombings. Pictured: Victims of the 2016 ISIS attack on Brussels Zaventem airport It comes a day after Belgium lowered its terror threat level after three years of high alert that included the Brussels bombings. Prime Minister Charles Michel said the OCAM national crisis centre had reduced the level from three to two on a maximum scale of four, with 'occasional exceptions'. But Michel said it was 'not the same level two as before' the attacks, adding that a new and reinforced security culture was now in place in Belgium. Michel's spokesman Frederic Cauderlier told AFP that troops who have been on Belgian streets since 2015 would still be stationed outside sensitive sites. Belgian media said these included nuclear power stations and religious sites such as synagogues. ISIS suicide attacks on Brussels airport (pictured) and a metro station killed 32 people in March 2016 They would also be deployed at major gatherings, for example sporting events, Cauderlier said. The threat has been at level three - 'probable and likely' - or higher since the smashing of a terror cell in the town of Verviers on January 2015 that was planning an attack on police. The Verviers cell also had links to Abdelhamid Abaaoud, the mastermind of the November 2015 ISIS attacks on Paris that killed 130 people. Belgium further raised the terror level to four - signifying a 'serious and imminent threat' - after the Paris attack, and placed the capital Brussels on lockdown for a week. It again raised the threat to four on March 22, 23 and 24, 2016, after ISIS suicide attacks on Brussels airport and a metro station which killed 32 people. Hawaii's governor did not correct a false missile alert sent earlier this month for 15 minutes because he forgot his Twitter username and password. David Ige admitted on Monday he knew within two minutes of the alert being sent to phones at 8.07am on January 13 that it was a false alarm. But it took him 15 more minutes to convey this to the public, leaving millions fearing they were about to be incinerated by a nuclear warhead. David Ige, governor of Hawaii, says he knew within two minutes that the missile alert sent to phones on January 13 was false - but did not tell the public for 15 more minutes Ige admits this was because he did not know the username and login to his own Twitter page and had to contact the staff who run it for him Ige told the Honolulu Star Advertiser this was because he does not know the username and password to his own Twitter account. So instead of being able to reassure the public himself, he was forced to contact the staff who usually run the account and have them do it instead, causing the delay. He said: 'I have to confess that I dont know my Twitter account log-ons and the passwords, so certainly thats one of the changes that Ive made. 'Ive been putting that on my phone so that we can access the social media directly.' With Ige unable to access social media it was left up to Hawaii congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard to correct the alert, which she did at 8.24am. Ige tweeted a minute later, though an alert was not sent to phones until 38 minutes after the first warning. He did not explain this delay when he spoke on Monday. Millions of Hawaiians were left thinking they were going to be incinerated by a nuclear warhead after this alert was sent out by mistake Measures have also been taken to ensure the mistake is not repeated, and the member of staff who sent out the warning has been reassigned. The alert caused widespread panic as tourists and locals fled for their lives, prayed for their sins, and sent 'I love you' texts to family on the mainland. It came just days after Donald Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong Un got into a war of words over who had the bigger nuclear button. Kim's regime regularly threatens the US with nuclear attack, and in a New Year's address, had warned that a nuke button had been placed on his desk. Trump has threatened to 'totally destroy North Korea' should the US or its allies in the region come under attack, promising 'fire and fury the likes of which the world has never seen.' A shocking video of a baby cow walking around on two legs like a person has emerged online. The clip, thought to have been filmed in Indonesia, shows the calf staggering around on its hind legs making it the same height as a human. The cow, which is missing its two front legs, doesn't appear to be in full control as it can be seen wobbling and nearly falling over. The clip, thought to have been filmed in Indonesia, shows the calf staggering around on its hind legs making it the same height as a human The distressed cow somehow manages to stay upright throughout the video. A topless man appears, wearing a robe around his waist and watching the farmyard animal attentively. At one point the calf stumbles over towards him but he pushes it away. As the man goes to collect grass from the middle of the road, the baby cow follows him but he pushes it away again. A topless man appears in the video wearing a robe around his waist while watching the farmyard animal attentively. The calf stumbles over towards him but he pushes it away The cow is missing its two front legs, which is why it's forced to walk around on its hind limbs Social-media users were quick to condemn the video that appeared online in late 2017. Gernaine Louise Thomas wrote: 'I am so heartbroken. Will no-one help? We live in such a selfish world.' Sukairaa Leishman commented: 'Shoot this poor thing and put it out of its misery.' Kaelynn Mara said: 'Why haven't they made the thing some sling with wheels, I'm sad.' A hacking attack capable of crippling energy and banking systems is inevitable and the priority is to be able to 'cauterise' the assault, the UK's cyber security chief warned today. Ciaran Martin said it was a matter of 'when, not if' an assault comes, adding that the UK had been lucky to so far avoid a 'category one' attack crippling infrastructure such as energy or the financial services. His warning comes after the head of the Army said Britain was not immune to a 'hybrid' attack that could use conventional and cyber warfare methods. The most serious cyber attack on the UK to date was the WannaCry ransomware attack on hospitals last May, which was classed as a category two incident because there was no risk to life. Cyber security chief Ciaran Martin said it was a matter of 'when, not if' an assault comes, adding that the UK had been lucky to so far avoid a 'category one' attack crippling infrastructure In an interview with The Guardian, Mr Martin said: 'I think it is a matter of when, not if and we will be fortunate to come to the end of the decade without having to trigger a category one attack.' And he warned: 'Some attacks will get through. What you need to do [at that point] is cauterise the damage.' Mr Martin, Chief Executive Officer of the National Cyber Security Centre, said the WannaCry attack - which was blamed on North Korea - had also highlighted the risk of attack where the perpetrator loses control. 'What we have seen over the past year or so is a shift in North Korean attack motivation from what you might call statecraft - disrupting infrastructure - through to trying to get money through attacks on ransomware, albeit in a way that didn't pan out the way the attackers wanted it to,' he said. The most serious cyber attack on the UK to date was the WannaCry ransomware attack on hospitals last May (pictured) British IT expert Marcus Hutchins who has been branded a hero for slowing down the WannaCry global cyber attack Other intrusions have been blamed on Russia, China and Iran, which Mr Martin said may have been intelligence-gathering on infrastructure for potential attacks in the future. 'What we have seen from Russia thus far against the UK is a series of intrusions for espionage and possible pre-positioning into key sectors but in a more controlled form of attack from others,' he said. The UK is also increasing its capabilities to retaliate to a cyber attack, he said, adding: 'Offensive cyber will be an increasing part of the UK's security toolkit.' Mr Martin said he had not seen any successful attempt to interfere in the UK's democratic process, but said the possibility would likely delay a move to electronic voting in the foreseeable future. The warning comes after head of the Army General Sir Nick Carter said Britain was not immune to a 'hybrid' attack that could use conventional and cyber warfare methods Mr Martin's warnings follow calls by Sir Nick Carter, Britain's defence chief of general staff, for greater defence spending to protect the UK from futuristic 'hybrid' warfare developed by Russia. Sir Nick said on Monday the UK is now vulnerable to both a military and cyber attack executed by Russia and must rapidly update its defence strategy. 'State-based competition is now being employed in more novel and increasingly integrated ways and must be ready to deal with them,' he said. 'The threats we face are not thousands of miles away but are now on Europe's doorstep - we have seen how cyber-warfare can be both waged on the battlefield and to disrupt normal people's lives - we in the UK are not immune from that.' Advertisement Disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinstein has sold his Hamptons mansion at a loss of $1.4million as he faces a huge legal bill over the sex assault scandal. The former Miramax boss who was sacked by his own production company in October last year after being accused sex crimes by dozens of women, bought the mansion in 2014 for $11.4million. He put it back on the market in March last year with an asking price of $13.5million which had slipped to $12.8million by April, and then $12.4million as he struggled to attract a buyer. Harvey Weinstein has sold his seven-bedroom Amagansett mansion for $10million, a loss of $1.4million, as he faces a huge legal bill over the sex assault scandal and a divorce battle with Georgina Chapman Unsurprisingly the home comes with a luxurious cinema suite which is kitted out to play movies in 3D The cinema even has its own reception area, a concessions stand and a bar for guests to peruse on their way inside Weinstein bought the property in 2014 with Chapman for $11.4million before listing it for sale again in May 2016 at $13.5million, with the couple saying they were not able to visit as much as they would like The asking price dropped to $12.8million in April last year before being cut again to $12.4million as Weinstein struggled to attract a buyer for the 9,000sqft home Property records show the home was eventually bought for $10million this month by a legal entity called Taisho Holdings LLC The new owner will get to enjoy the home's waterfront views, including several indoor entertaining areas There is indoor and outdoor dining space, with the home featuring a fully-enclosed two bedroom guest wing The entrance hallway opens on to the two acres of ground around the back of the property, leading down to Gardiner's Bay The huge master bedroom has its own fireplace and a private balcony which overlooks the water To go with its seven bedrooms the home also has seven full bathrooms (pictured) and three half bathrooms Now Newsday reports that he finally got rid of the 9,000sqft home, which features a full home cinema and outdoor pool, for $10million. It was bought via Taisho Holdings LLC, a legal entity registered in New York by real estate lawyer Trevor M. Darrell. It is not known who the new owner is. Weinstein and then-wife Georgina Chapman, who is now in the process of separating from him, spoke to the Wall Street Journal when the property first went on sale. Chapman said they were getting rid of the home because they did not get out to the Hamptons as much as they would have liked. But the sudden deal, coming at a significant loss, almost certainly means the final sale was prompted by Weinstein's legal battles. Chapman is also set to walk away with between $15million and $20million under the terms of a divorce settlement due to be announced in the near future, Page Six reports. The home features seven bedrooms, seven full bathrooms, and three half bathrooms, according to the previous listing by Sotheby's International Realty. Set on two acres of land, there is 260-feet of water frontage on Gardiners Bay, beach access, a waterside heated pool and a screened-in dining porch with water views. It also features a vaulted master suite, a private balcony off the master, a self-contained guest wing with two bedrooms and a separate entrance, and a rooftop deck. Weinstein is also preparing to hand over $15million to $20million of his assets to Georgina Chapman in a divorce settlement finalized last year, it has been reported As well as the master bedroom balcony (far right) there is also a roof deck to soak up the sunshine (center) A heated outdoor swimming pool sits off to one side of the home, alongside an enclosed pagoda-style dining area The property is perfect for entertaining, with lots of communal spaces and a fully-enclosed guest wing with two bedrooms Manicured lawns out the back of the home slope away into Gardiner's Bay, which looks back across to Connecticut One of two covered outside entertaining areas that makes the most of views over Gardiner's Bay A second covered area adjacent to the pool where guests can dine with views over the grounds An investigation has been launched into a suspected dog-baiting incident in north-west Melbourne that killed one beloved family pet and left another fighting for his life. Hume Crime Investigation detectives are appealing for witnesses after seven-year-old Border Collie Rua and two-year-old Belgian Shepard Chance were allegedly poisoned. The two dogs fell violently ill on Sunday night, and were rushed to the vet; Rua tragically died on the way to the animal hospital, but Chance is still clinging to life. Beloved family pets Rua (left) and Chance were allegedly poisoned in their Sunbury backyard Authorities also found six round white pills in the backyard, which are currently being analysed Police believe between 10pm and 11.30pm, an unknown female was seen loitering in the front of a house on Underhill Court at Sunbury. Its believed the heartless woman poisoned the two pets while they were in their own backyard late at night. The woman is perceived to be Caucasian, in her late 30s to early 40s, slim build, wearing white baggy shorts or a skirt and a dark-coloured top. Police have released CCTV footage of a woman they would like to speak to in relation to the incident. The video shows the woman sneaking away from the house only to return an hour later. Two-year-old Chance, a Belgian Shepherd, is fighting for his life after being allegedly baited Seven-year-old Border Collie Rua tragically died on the way to an animal hospital in Melbourne Police and the RSPCA are now appealing for the woman or anyone who recognises her to come forward. Authorities also found six white pills in the dogs' yard, which are currently being analysed. Baiting animals with poisonous or harmful substance is illegal and offenders face 12 months imprisonment and up to $40,000 in fines. Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at online. Chance is still fighting for life in the veterinary hospital two days after being allegedly baited Sherie-Lea James (pictured), 15, took the cocaine and Ecstasy at a party at a flat in South Ockendon, Essex in the early hours of September 1 2016 A dealer has admitted selling Ecstasy to a teenager who beat liver cancer as a baby but died after taking a deadly cocktail of drugs. Sherie-Lea James, 15, took the cocaine and Ecstasy at a party at a flat in South Ockendon, Essex in the early hours of September 1 2016. She was rushed to hospital after having a heart attack, but doctors were unable to save her. Jason Raymond, 21, has now pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply MDMA and will be sentenced later this year. Sherie-Lea, of Basildon, battled liver cancer as a baby after being diagnosed with a six-pound tumour at the age of just 20 months. After a year of chemotherapy, The Billericay School pupil had the UK's fastest-ever liver transplant in July 2002, which lasted just 45 minutes. Raymond, of South Ockendon, appearing in the dock at Basildon Crown Court last week in a white shirt and black tie, asked his defence barrister to 'apologise to the family of Sherie-Lea for his part in this tragedy' who were sat in the public gallery. Her mother Sam (pictured), 44, told of how she only saw her for a few minutes before she said 'love you mum' and went to to the party He will be sentenced later this year after Reamell Sharon , 31, of Manor Park, east London, stands trial for the same charges, as well as possessing cannabis. Sherie-Lea had only been home from a holiday in Cornwall for three days on the day she died. Her mother Sam, 44, told of how she only saw her for a few minutes before she said 'love you mum' and went to to the party. That was the last time she saw her daughter alive. After an inquest into her death at Chelmsford Coroner's Court ruled she died after suffering a cardiac arrest as a result of a fatal mix of Ecstasy and cocaine, Miss James has begged other teenagers to stay away from drugs. She said her life 'will never be the same'. In the wake of the tragedy the carer, said: 'She was lively, amazing, beautiful and popular. 'I think the whole of Basildon is in mourning. Jason Raymond, 21, has now pleaded guilty to possession with intent to supply MDMA and will be sentenced for his part in the teenager's (pictured) death later this year 'When she was born she had cancer, and she had a liver transported from Spain it's a miracle she is here, and I can't believe she would do something as stupid as that. 'I just hope girls don't do silly things like this, and it raises awareness. 'When she was just 20 months she had a liver tumour that was six pounds and she had chemotherapy for a year and a bit and a full transplant. 'It was amazing the RAF flew it over. She's a star. 'To go through all that and to fight every year through illnesses, I don't know what to say. For a girl to be so lucky, it is stupid. 'We don't know what it is she took or to be honest to you with the past illness her heart is weak. 'She has three brothers and they are all in bits.' She continued: 'I had three sons and I always wanted a girl and I got my girl and I almost lost her twice through cancer. 'We were so close. When she was a baby I used to sleep next to her and I'd get tangled in the tubes off her cot. 'My life will never been the same again without my beautiful girl. I just can't see why she ended up in that situation? 'That is the tragedy. I would rather it would have been a car crash because I wouldn't have to go through all of this. 'I haven't been coping with anything since it happened. I can't stop crying, I can't sleep without tablets.' At the time of her death the family were planning a dream trip away to America following Sherie-Lea's GCSEs. Does McDonalds have a secret menu in the UK? is a question that will have crossed most peoples minds, especially at the end of the night when something as familiar as a Big Mac just wont cut it any more. Sites such as hackthemenu.com, that compile lists of all off-menu options in fast food chains including McDonalds, KFC and Burger King seem to suggest the answer is find out for yourself if it's a secret menu or just a simple 'food hack'. Is there a secret McDonalds menu in the UK? Officially, there is no secret menu at McDonalds UK. On its website, the fast food chain says: We do not have a secret menu at McDonalds UK. Thats because we love the food that we serve in our restaurants and we dont want to keep it a secret from our customers! McDonald's UK officially says there is no secret menu but special requests 'may be considered' All is not lost since the company goes on to say that any requests for extra items or changes to our products are considered at the restaurants discretion. There is hope then. All you need are instructions. What are the McDonalds 'secret menu' items in the UK? This is where sites such as hackthemenu.com come in. It compiled a list of the McDonalds secret menu items and how to get them. However, as any frustrated vegans outside Sweden and Finland will know, McDonalds menus differ around the world. While McDonalds in the US has offered All Day Breakfast and the wild secret menu opportunities it offers since 2015, us Brits have yet to experience the joy that is a Double Sausage & Egg McMuffin at 2pm. Bearing that in mind, here are some of the McDonalds secret menu highlights you can get in the UK! The Land, Sea, and Air Burger: There are no two ways about it, this is a monster of a burger. The Land is beef, the Sea is fish and the Air is Chicken, which means you need to order a Big Mac, a Filet-O-Fish and a McChicken, and put the patties of the latter two into the Big Mac. You can also use as many buns as you want (youll have a lot of them!). The Surf 'N' Turf: If the Land, Sea and Air Burger is too much for your constitution, then go for the Surf 'N' Turf, which is basically the same burger with a beef patty and fish fillet, but no chicken. The Mc10:35: Called that because of the very small window of time during which you can get it. Its made up of an Egg McMuffin from the breakfast menu and a Double Cheeseburger (McDonald's UK doesn't serve a McDouble) from the regular menu. All Day Breakfast is still not an option in the UK despite being active in the US since 2015, you can only get a Mc10:35 when both menus are available. However, bear in mind that McDonalds UK says it officially (theres that word again) stops serving breakfast at 10.30am, although it does add the caveat that cut-off times vary from restaurant to restaurant. This unpredictability just makes a Mc10:35 so much more special. The McGangBang: The trailblazer, the gateway McDonalds secret menu burger. The McGangBang is as big as it is famous. Consisting of a McChicken stuffed inside a Double Cheeseburger (a McDouble in the US), you get a wall of meat for 4.50. #McGangbang facts: 800 calories 38g fat 38g protein 75g carbs 12g sugar 1710mg sodium 130mg cholesterol #delicious pic.twitter.com/2DSqKaXSUL Pete Keefe (@Petekeefe) January 25, 2016 Grilled Cheese Sandwich: According to Hack The Menu, this one you just ask at the counter for them to grill some cheese and serve in-between a pair of hamburger buns. The Big McChicken: This one is out there. For the people who don't like buns, the Big McChicken may be the one for you. Consisting of a Big Mac that has had its bread buns replaced with McChicken patties. It's certainly not for the faint-hearted. The Monster Mac: This secret menu item is as brutal as it is simple. All you have to do is order a Big Mac with eight (yes, eight) beef patties. It may be pricey, but it will probably sate your appetite for the foreseeable future. The Neopolitan Shake: All of this meat warrants a substantial dessert, and whats better than a shake that has the best of three worlds: chocolate, strawberry and vanilla? Simply order the three milkshakes and mix them all for Neopolitan madness. Hash Browns McMuffin: Sure, American McDonalds aficionados can get this any time of the day, but were just happy we can get it at all in the morning. Simply order hash browns with your Sausage & Egg McMuffin and then put them in to make a Hash Browns McMuffin. The McKinley Mac: This ones for the protein fiends. Simply order a Big Mac and a Quarter Pounder and insert the patties from the latter into the former. You might want to have a breather afterwards. Toffee Apple Sundae: Not the most complicated order, but that may just make it all the sweeter. Simply order a Toffee Sundae and ask if you could get apple chunks in it. McDonald's sauces: While McDonald's US offers a wide range of dipping sauces such as Spicy Buffalo and Creamy Ranch, the McDonald's UK sauces are slightly different. While they aren't exactly secret, they aren't publicised that much either. According to Burger Lad, sauces available in the UK include: Sweet 'N' Sour, Sweet Curry, Barbecue, Ketchup and Rich Tomato. Can I order from the secret menu in McDonalds UK? There have been instances of people having success ordering off the McDonalds secret menu in the UK and around the world. There are essentially three ways of ordering something off the McDonalds secret menu in the UK. You can ask for the items by name, or if the staff dont know the names, ask them to make a bespoke order. If thats two strikes, the third option is simply order the ingredient meals and create the secret menu items yourself! Robots must be taught morals so they can be trusted to make potentially life and death decisions, Theresa May will say. Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being used to drive cars, diagnose patients and decide on prison sentences around the world. The Prime Minster will warn that as machines swoop in to carry out more jobs they must also be taught how to make ethical decisions. The PM - who was mockingly dubbed the Maybot during the election campaign - will make the warning in a major speech on AI this Thursday in Davos, a summit of political and business leaders. Theresa May (pictured in No10 last night) will warn that as machines swoop in to carry out more jobs they must also be taught how to make ethical decisions. Artificial intelligence (AI) is increasingly being used to drive cars, diagnose patients and decide on prison sentences around the world It comes amid growing fears that as robots are entrusted to carry out ever more tasks they will not make technical decisions as humans do. Cyber criminals have been hacking into everyday household items like baby monitors and smart kettles to spy on people and steal their bank details. A parliamentary debate last week heard that a computers algorithm used in Florida in the US to decide prison sentences was racist and giving black offenders longer terms. Experts have also pointed out that self-driving cars my have to choose between running over a group of pedestrian or causing a deadly crash to avoid them. Mrs May wants Britain to be a world leader in new technology, and in his Budget last year chancellor Philip Hammond announced plans to roll out driverless scars in Britain by 2021. The PM is expected to announce detailed plans to create a National Centre for Data Ethics to provide guidance and consult on the regulation of AI, the Daily Telegraph reported. Lib Dem MP Jo Swinson told the Commons debate on AI last week: It is vital that we address those urgent ethical challenges presented by new technology.' Robots (such as this shopbot called Fabo n Edinburgh) are carrying out an ever increasing number of vital jobs. There are growing fears that as robots are entrusted to carry out ever more tasks they will not make technical decisions as humans do She added: 'How should we react when we hear than an algorithm used by a Florida county court to predict the likelihood of criminals reoffending, and therefore to influence sentencing decisions, was almost twice as likely to wrongly flag black defendants as future criminals?' Margot James, the new Digital Minister, replied: 'We must ensure that these new technologies work for the benefit of everyone: citizens, businesses and wider society. 'We are therefore integrating strong privacy protections and accountability into how automated decisions affect users. 'A strong, effective regulatory regime is vital. Important decisions on everything from autonomous cars to medical diagnosis and decisions on finance and sentencing and indeed applications to defence cannot be delegated solely to algorithms.' 'Dangerous, repetitive or tedious parts of work can now be carried out more quickly, accurately and safely by machines. None the less, human judgment and creativity will still be required to design and manage them.' Advertisement A photographer has captured the abandoned remains of a Soviet missile detection system that lies inside the Chernobyl exclusion zone. The Duga 3 antennas in Ukraine were used by the Russians as part of a missile early-warning network from 1976 to 1989. Now rusting and crumbling, the structures dwarf the remains of an eerie town left abandoned after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 26 April 1986. Left to rust: A photographer has captured the abandoned remains of a Soviet missile detection system that lies inside the Chernobyl exclusion zone Inside the control room: The Duga 3 antennas in Ukraine were used by the Russians as part of a missile early-warning network from 1976 to 1989 Photographer Roman Robroek, 30, from the Netherlands, captured abandoned classrooms (pictured) and houses littered with discarded gas masks Now rusting and crumbling, the structures dwarf the remains of eerie town left abandoned after the Chernobyl nuclear disaster of 26 April 1986 Photographer Roman Robroek, 30, from the Netherlands, captured abandoned classrooms and houses littered with discarded gas masks. He said: 'I decided to take a trip to Ukraine so that I could see the Duga 3 antennas for myself, and I was shocked to discover the town that surrounds them. 'The antennas were very impressive to see, and I'm glad I've seen the system while it is still standing. 'There was a hidden town around the antennas with everything the residents needed: including gyms, schools, a cinema, a fire service and more. This image shows the crumbling remains of the control room. It would have been full of Soviet officials alert for missile warnings The control room: Duga 3 antennas are surrounded by a small town which has been left to rot after the nuclear disaster The gym in the town is left to rot under the shadow of the Duga systems which were extremely powerful, over 10 MW in some cases, and broadcast in the shortwave radio bands This image shows part of the Duga antenna control room which has been left to rot in the wake of the nuclear disaster of 1986 This pictured shows an abandoned classroom in the shadow of the radio masts. There are tables and debris strewn across the room 'When they were active, the antennas were supposed to be kept a secret, so trees were planted to keep the antennas hidden. 'There's a lot of mystery and theories surrounding the connection between the antennas and the Chernobyl disaster. 'I've even heard one theory that the Chernobyl disaster had been caused intentionally by an experiment in an attempt to cover-up the fact that the Duga-3 antennas didn't actually work. 'No information on what was going on there was to be found in any of the remaining buildings - evidence has been removed and relevant part of the buildings have been stripped to the bone. 'I found it incredible fascinating and mysterious, and would love to go back.' The Duga entrance: These are the gates to the complex where the antenna system has been left to crumble The photographer said: 'The antennas were very impressive to see, and I'm glad I've seen the system while it is still standing' Leading retailers have been forced to remove fashion items from their shelves after an investigation revealed products sold as faux fur to be made, shockingly, of real low-cost animal fur instead. The revelation has caused outrage among customers and animal campaign groups, who have condemned the practice of cut-price fur farming, often using animals caged in appalling conditions in China and Poland. In a joint investigation with animal rights charity Humane Society International (HSI), the Mail on Sundays lab tests discovered real fur in products across five British retailers, including major High Street chains Boots, Tesco Direct and FatFace. These hair slides, sold at Boots, with pom poms were advertised as 'faux fur' but found to have mink Boots, which has a strict anti-fur policy, withdrew a 3.99 hair slide featuring a furry pompom after lab tests, however, confirmed the faux fur used was mink. Tesco Direct assured investigators that a biscuit-coloured 16 fur pompom keyring was made of artificial materials, but in the lab it was found to be rabbit fur. Similarly, a pair of 18.99 FatFace gloves which were labelled online as faux fur, were found to have rabbit fur pompoms. A pair of 18.99 FatFace gloves which were labelled online as faux fur, were found to have rabbit fur pompoms Tesco Direct assured investigators that a biscuit-coloured 16 fur pompom keyring was made of artificial materials, but in the lab it was found to be rabbit fur In fact the label inside was confusingly vague, saying they contained non-textile items of animal origin - which means they could contain fur, wool, leather, down, shell or bone. A pair of 119 Kurt Geiger Muffy shoes were described online as feather when in fact they were made of raccoon dog fur. And at Romwe, a fashion retailer popular with teenagers, a pair of 11.50 ($15.99) faux fur shoes were lined with rabbit fur, while a 6.50 ($8.99) hat, labelled as 100 per cent acrylic, featured a fox fur pompom. A 6.50 Romwe hat, labelled as 100 per cent acrylic, featured a fox fur pompom Claire Bass, executive director at HSI said that, such is the scale of fur farming, real fur can now be cheaper than artificial. She said there was a misconception that real fur was still an expensive luxury item. Ms Bass said: Fur farms in China and Poland are able to produce enormous volumes of fur at very cheap prices, even undercutting some fake fur. Low cost very simply means poor animal welfare. We know the vast majority of the British public want nothing to do with the cruel, outdated fur trade, so we believe the fur industry is looking for other ways to shift their products under the radar to unsuspecting retailers. At Romwe, a fashion retailer popular with teenagers, a pair of 11.50 ($15.99) faux fur shoes were lined with rabbit fur Fur farming was banned in the UK in 2000, but it is still legal to import certain furs farmed elsewhere. Mislabelling any item is a criminal offence and can lead to a fine. But the labelling law does not apply to non-textile items such as shoes, bags, hair accessories and keyrings. Most of the retailers we identified as selling real fur said they had been misled by their suppliers and would now withdraw the products. A spokesman from Boots said: We have clear animal welfare standards that we take very seriously. We agreed to stock this product from a trusted supplier after receiving assurances that it was made from faux fur. This diagram shows the differences between faux fur and real fur products Conair, who make the hair grips sold by Boots, said they too were assured by their supplier that the items were made of faux fur. A spokesman for FatFace said it had immediately removed the gloves from sale and customers wishing to return the items would be offered a full refund. Tesco Direct also said it had removed the items in question. HSI is now calling for a complete ban on fur imports and has cross-party support from MPs. Alicia Moran helped herself to US dollars, sterling and euros after uncovering a loophole A mother who embezzled more than 140,000 from Thomas Cook to fund a jet-set lifestyle was jailed yesterday. Alicia Moran helped herself to US dollars, sterling and euros after uncovering a loophole. This allowed her to take as much money as she wanted while altering the accounts so they looked as if no funds were missing. She spent the cash on trips to Florida, New York, Las Vegas, Euro Disney, Spain and Lapland and tried to offer colleagues probing her a handbag full of notes when she was rumbled. Moran, of Greenock, was arrested at Glasgow Airport as she arrived home from a trip to New York and Las Vegas. The 34-year-old had offered to repay the money at 40 a week, which would have taken her 70 years, Paisley Sheriff Court heard. But Sheriff David Pender jailed her for 18 months. He said: 'I can only deal with this by the imposition of a custodial sentence.' Moran showed no emotion as she was taken to the cells. The mother of two had worked as a foreign exchange sales assistant at the branch of Thomas Cook in the Braehead shopping centre near Glasgow between February 2 and August 25, 2015. During that time she processed 140 currency transactions without charging a fee while overriding the computer systems so the tills balanced. She used the cash to go on five holidays as well as paying off her own debts and those of her partner and his mother. Moran pleaded guilty to embezzling 140,000 after the sum was reduced from 241,248 during a hearing in October. Moran, of Greenock, was arrested at Glasgow Airport as she arrived home from a trip to New York and Las Vegas Defence solicitor Terry Gallanagh said Moran, who is also a full-time carer for her grandmother, had capitalised on a better exchange rate she received as a perk for being a Thomas Cook employee. He added: 'This got very much out of control. She started with close family and friends and the matter escalated to pretty much half of Greenock coming to Miss Moran and getting their holiday money. 'The money was paid [to her] but she did not immediately return it and kept it. 'She regrets her conduct and she is under no illusion about what is befalling her.' Sentence had been deferred for background reports and Moran returned to the dock yesterday to learn her fate. Mr Gallanagh had asked for Moran to be spared prison, saying she was 'deeply sorry and her life is in ruins' and that such a punishment would harm her children. A drunk teenage driver has been fined $2000 and lost her license after crashing her car while speeding and using Snapchat at the same time. The 19-year-old from Dennington, Victoria, was videoing her dangerous drive on the photo-sharing app when she veered off the road and crashed while three times the legal alcohol limit, according to 9NEWS. Police used the footage as damning evidence to charge the woman with speeding, careless driving, a blood alcohol reading of 0.164 and using a mobile phone while driving. A teenager from from Dennington, Victoria, was videoing her dangerous joyride on Snapchat She faced Warrnambool Magistrates Court in December and will not be allowed back behind the wheel for 16 months. Victoria Police shared the Snapchat footage from the woman's mobile phone, which had been left with a Mazda symbol imprint from the force of the airbag deploying. 'Oh snap! This is footage of a driver's Snapchat video taken seconds before she ran off the road and crashed, thankfully without serious injury,' the caption read. 'The phone's screen bears the imprint of a Mazda logo which crash investigators believe was caused by the deployment of the airbag.' The cautionary post attracted thousands of reactions from appalled social media users who slammed the woman for her actions. 'She's lucky she didn't end up with the Mazda logo indented in her skull,' one person commented under the video. 'If you don't care about your own life (obviously if you're stupid enough to do this) then find another way of endangering yourself without risking innocent people around you,' another wrote. PresidentSculley didn't understand that there was a difference between a founder and a professional executive when he got to Silicon Valley. "Founders have to be given more tolerance to make mistakes," he said. "Founders are taking big risks."** (( 6))) ((Yes-men step aside as said below: """ "" ("stand up to Jobs" award was given those who can argue with Jobs in those days, an award that's non-officially provided to courageous members of Apple Co. ) Pinterest 530 401 Search by image Apple Computer co-founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak at the White House after receiving the metal When Steve Jobs left Apple cnn.com 1100 619 Search by image Photographer Doug Menuez was given total access to Steve Jobs shortly after Jobs was fired by Apple and started working on the NeXT Computer. President Ronald Reagan awards the first National Medals of Technology. and Innovation. Apple company's Steve Jobs - of 30-year-oldApple Computer co-founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak at the White House after receiving the metal https://www.cultofmac.com/.../john-sculley-on-steve-jobs-the-full-interview-transcript... Cached Here's a full transcript of my interview with John Sculley on the subject of Steve Jobs . It's long but worth reading because there are some awesome insight. John Sculley admits Steve Jobs never forgave him before Jobs died ... www.businessinsider.com/john-sculley-admits-steve-jobs-never-forgave-him-before-j... Cached Similar May 27, 2015 - Former Apple CEO John Sculley is now a backer of a range of different tech companies including the Obi Mobiles Android line and the enterprise company Zeta Interactive, shortly to IPO but he will probably be best known as the man who ousted Steve Jobs from Apple in 1985. Sculley told us recently ... John Sculley - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Sculley Cached Similar John Sculley III is an American businessman, entrepreneur and investor in high- tech startups. Sculley was vice-president (19701977) and president of Pepsi- Cola (19771983), until he became chief executive officer of Apple Inc. on April 8 , 1983, a position he held until leaving in 1993. In May 1987, Sculley was named ... John Sculley III (; born April 6, 1939) is an American businessman, entrepreneur and investor in high-tech startups. Sculley was vice-president (19701977) and president of Pepsi-Cola (19771983), until he became chief executive officer of Apple Inc. on April 8, 1983, a position he held until leaving in 1993. In May 1987, Sculley was named Silicon Valley's top-paid executive, with an annual salary of US$10.2 million. [2] Sales at Apple increased from $800 million to $8 billion under Sculley's management, although many attribute his success to the fact that Sculley joined the company just when Steve Jobs's visions and Steve Wozniak's creations had become highly lucrative. [3] However, his stint at Apple remains controversial due to his departure from founder Steve Jobs's sales structure, particularly regarding Sculley's decision to compete with IBM in selling computers to the same types of customers. [4 ********************** National Medal of Technology and Innovation - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Medal_of_Technology_and_Innovation Cached Similar The National Medal of Technology and Innovation is an honor granted by the President of the United States to American inventors and innovators who have made significant contributions to the development of new and important technology. The award may be granted to a specific person, to a group of people or to an entire ... Prince Andrew has returned to the Queen's Balmoral estate with his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson to allegedly avoid multiple attempts to serve sexual assault papers at his mansion 500 miles away in Windsor, it was claimed today. The Duke of York and Sarah , Duchess of York travelled up to his mother's 50,000-acre Scottish estate where she is staying while on holiday, after they were seen leaving Royal Lodge yesterday, reported The Sun . It comes around a month after 61-year-old Andrew also spent time with Sarah at Balmoral on a previous visit which began on August 10, along with their daughter Princess Eugenie and her husband Jack Brooksbank. Andrew and Sarah divorced in 1996 but they have remained close since - and her recent multiple visits to Balmoral come five months after the death of Prince Philip, who was said to have regarded her as 'simply beyond the pale'. Andrew has not yet responded to the bombshell lawsuit filed in an American court by Jeffrey Epstein 's former sex slave Virginia Giuffre, who claims the Duke sexually abused her when she was 17. Papers have not yet been served on Andrew or his lawyers despite 'multiple attempts' at Royal Lodge in the last fortnight, according to reports - and the Duke is now set to stay at the Queen's estate when the case is heard. The civil suit is due to be heard via a telephone conference in New York on September 13. Ms Giuffre, now 38, claims she was forced to have sex with Andrew three times on the orders of paedophile financier Epstein. Andrew has always vehemently denied the allegations. A British man gave his Danish fiancee the perfect proposal by getting a dolphin to give her the ring before going down on one knee. Phil Fenton, 30, had agonised over how he wanted to propose to then girlfriend Katrine Rehder, 23, after four years together. This is the adorable moment his proposal came together when Hugo the dolphin swims over with a blue container to help Phil pop the question. The couple who were holidaying in Portugal took part in the dolphin experience and with the help of staff the proposal was kept secret. Bar manager Phil, who lives with Katrine in Copenhagen, Denmark, contacted the Zoomarine water theme park in Portugal's southern Algarve region where the couple were staying. On the big day - which happened to Katrines birthday too - he managed to get onto a dolphin experience and Katrine had no idea what was happening when Hugo swims over. Phil Fenton, 30 organised for himself and his girlfriend Katrine Rehder, 23 to go on a dolphin experience while holidaying in Portugal Phil and Amy are the third couple in from the left and the handler carefully works his way down the line with Hugo shaking his head as he reaches each couple. Then when Hugo reaches Katrine and Phil he makes a nodding motion with his head before Phil takes the blue container and opens it getting on one knee with the ring and luckily Katrine said 'yes'. The couple are due to be married on June 22 this year in Santorini, Greece - Phil's birthday. Phil secretly planned with the Zoomarine waterpark to propose to his girlfriend during the experience Katrine had absolutely no idea that the package Hugo the dolphin had a blue container holding her engagement ring inside Phil said: 'Things went wrong from the start, I didn't book the swimming with the dolphins in time so there were no spaces to begin with. 'But I sent an email saying they needed to fit me in because I had the perfect plan, 'dolphin-surprise-restaurant-proposal'. 'Zoomarine were fantastic, and said they would put on an extra time slot and would I like one of the dolphins to help to propose? 'Initially I said no, I'm fairly private and somewhat anxious, did I want a bunch of strangers staring at me when I propose? No sir, I couldn't think of much worse. 'But I couldn't get it out my head for the next week, Katrine would love it, she loves dolphins, loves a bit of showing off. What a story to tell everyone, so I thought I might as give her the best story I can, that's a bit of marriage right there. 'So, I changed my mind and screwed up my courage and told them yes please.' Luckily Phil was right about Katrine loving dolphins and dramatic proposals and she had no problem saying yes to her future husband who had surprised her on her birthday on July 14 last year. Katrine immediately said yes when Phil got down on one knee in the water and asked her to marry him Phil said: 'Turns out I just worry for no reason and everything went perfectly. Katrine tried to throw the container back out because she wanted to play fetch, and we were three hours late for the restaurant I booked. 'But I mean she said yes and I went for the largest beer I could find so that's a solid 10 out of 10 in my books.' Katrine said the couple first got together when Phil was away in Manchester and gave her a spare key to his apartment. She decided to finish building an IKEA cabinet he had not completed as a surprise for when he returned, and the rest is history. She said: 'I was pretty sure he was going to propose to me on that vacation, since we had been talking about getting engaged for some time. Following the beautiful dolphin proposal the couple are due to be married on June 22 this year in Santorini, Greece 'Since we were travelling during my birthday I had narrowed it down to the fact it most likely would be that day. 'Although I had no idea when we went to swim with the dolphins, Phil is a pretty private person, and also very romantic, whenever we are on vacations we like sitting on the beach at night by ourselves in the moonlight with few drinks and just the two of us, so I truly expected him to do it just the two of us in the moonlight next to the ocean. 'When the dolphin chose me with this small package at first I thought I had been chosen to play with him and kind of 'throw it out and Hugo will get it for you'. 'I was seconds from throwing it back out when Phil told me I should open it, by then I still had no idea and thought maybe it was a birthday present. 'It was not until he took out the ring and went down on his knee that I had any idea, and by then I was just overwhelmed with happiness and crying. 'It was not until I later saw the video that I realized people were cheering and that the dolphins were clapping in the water. 'Everyone I have been speaking to has been very impressed, most of my female friends cry when they see the video. My parents of course have been extremely happy for us.' Sir Michael Fallon has demanded a 1billion boost on Britain's defence spending after the head of the Army warned they cannot meet the threat posed by Vladimir Putin. The Tory grandee said the UK will 'drift' towards being a 'bit-part world player' unless it beefs up its military spend. In his first major speech since standing down as Defence Secretary late last year, he said Britain's military should be seen on 'every continent, in every sky, on all seven seas'. Meanwhile, in a rare public intervention the head of the Army Sir Nick Carter warned Britain's military does not match up to Russia's because of under investment. Sir Michael Fallon has demanded a 1billion boost on Britain's defence spending after the head of the Army warned they cannot meet the threat posed by Vladimir Putin (file pic) And he warned that Putin's troops are 'on Europe's doorstep' and 'could initiate hostilities sooner than we expect'. Sir Michael piled more pressure on the Treasury to stump up the money needed to properly fund Britain's Armed forces. He told the Defence and Security Forum, he said: 'If we're happy to retreat from our vision of a confident, outward-looking Global Britain standing up for our people, our values, our allies, then we will drift downwards to being a bit-part world player, a part-time champion of democracy and freedom. 'That would mean walking away from our international obligations, letting down our allies, and in the end leaving us less safe. 'On the contrary, we should be doing more in the world: our troops, planes and ships should be seen on every continent, in every sky, on all seven seas. 'And that ambition needs a fully funded budget to match.' He urged the Chancellor Philip Hammond to find the extra money now Britain's once ballooning deficit has been brought under control. In a rare public intervention the head of the Army Sir Nick Carter (pictured yesterday in London) warned Britain's military does not match up to Russia's because of under investment He said: 'The deficit is coming down. We are increasing spending in other priority areas, like the NHS and schools. 'So let's release an extra 1 billion to fire up the defence budget this year, and set 2.5 per cent of GDP as our new target for the end of the parliament.' Sir Michael was forced to quit from the Cabinet in November at the height of the Westminster sex harassment scandal after being accused of making inappropriate advances on women. Announcing his resignation, he said he conceded that his actions had 'fallen below the high standards required. There is a growing clamour among the Tory ranks for more money to be found to fund Britain's Armed Forces. Chancellor Philip Hammond (pictured in Brussels today) is facing growing pressure to find the extra money to fund Britain's armed Forces New Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has been pressing the Chancellor for more cash amid warnings there will be a backbench Tory revolt unless money is found. Sir Michael said defence is the 'first duty of government', and the 'military can always be more efficient and they should be'. He added: 'Radical ideas like pre-positioning warships in the eastern Mediterranean and the Gulf, and doing more training with allies closer to home, need following through. 'But in the end, defence needs a bigger budget because the threats are real and growing: they are at our borders, across our waters, on our streets and in our homes.' Sir Michael said the threats to Britain have 'intensified' and the current security review 'must recognise that'. An angry mob has surrounded the house of a murder suspect today amid claims he has confessed to raping and killing a six-year-old girl in a case that has shocked Pakistan. The brutal killing of Zainab Ansari, whose body was left in a rubbish dump in Kasur, east Pakistan, after she was snatched while on her way to a class, has unleashed a wave of revulsion around the country. A man, named only as Imran, has been arrested after his DNA matched samples found on her body, according to police sources. He has since confessed to the killing, officials say. The brutal killing of Zainab Ansari, whose body was left in a rubbish dump in Kasur, east Pakistan, after she was snatched while on her way to a class, has unleashed a wave of revulsion around the country. An angry mob has surrounded the house of a man suspected of killing her amid reports he has confessed A man, named only as Imran, has been arrested after his DNA matched samples found on her body, according to police sources. He has since confessed to the killing, officials say. Zainab's father is shown holding up a picture of the youngster This morning, local reports said furious residents had surrounded his house. Police are on the scene and have urged people to remain calm. The suspect arrested today is said to be a resident of the same area where Zainab's house is located, Dawn News reported. Zainab was snatched in early January as she walked to a Koran class. CCTV footage showed her being led away by a suspect five days before she was found raped and strangled on a rubbish pile about a mile from her home in Kasur, east Pakistan. Her parents were away on pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, and the girl and her two sisters and brother were watched over by her aunts and uncles who all live in the same house in an impoverished neighborhood of narrow lanes on the outskirts of the city. A police district official told Al Jazeera: 'The suspect's name is Imran and he lives in the same [area] where Zainab lived. 'He was arrested before, but was released as we did not have evidence. After that he shaved his beard off so that no one could recognise him.' The official said that the suspect has confessed. The horror of Zainab's killing was brought home for Pakistanis by a photo of her that was widely shared on social media, showing the smiling girl in her favorite bright pink coat, with a pink barrette holding back her hair. Thousands attended a funeral for the young Zainab Ansari in Kasur, Pakistan. The brutal rape and murder sent shock waves around Pakistan Nusrat Ansari holds a photo of her daughter, Zainab, who was raped and killed, as her husband, Mohammed Amin in Kasur, sits beside her in Kasur, Pakistan TV channels aired the photo alongside pictures of her lifeless body abandoned on a heap of garbage in her home city of Kasur. There were 4,139 cases of child sexual abuse reported in Pakistan in 2016, according to Sahil, an organization documenting child abuse in the country. It collects its figures by tracking reports in Pakistani media. But most cases go unreported, said Sahil's executive director, Munizae Bano. Across Pakistan, thousands protested, condemning police inaction and blaming the government for failing to protect children. Kasur is a congested district of around 2.5 million people in eastern Pakistan, near the border with India. The city of Kasur is surrounded by brick kilns and tanneries and has hundreds of small factories making shoes and embroideries, all of which employ children - making them vulnerable to abuse. In 2015, an extensive child pornography ring was uncovered in the city; it had been flourishing for nearly a decade and involved nearly 250 children, some of whom were forced at gunpoint to have sex. Fascinating final pictures of Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess have been found and put on sale along with a note to his son about his mysterious flight to Britain to try to end the war. The never-before-seen images show the former deputy Fuhrer as a frail and elderly man in the grounds of the infamous Spandau Prison. Hess spent 41 years in the West Berlin jail after the war, when he was convicted of crimes against peace and sentenced to life behind bars. The Nazi hanged himself aged 93 in 1987 in the summer house that had been built for him in the grounds. The chilling images have been put up for sale alongside a note written to his son Wolf while he was incarcerated saying: 'I made it once to England for you'. Fascinating final pictures of Hitler's deputy Rudolf Hess (pictured in front of the summer house built for him in the grounds of Spandau Prison, Berlin) have been found and put on sale along with a note to his son about his mysterious flight to Britain to try to end the war The never-before-seen images show the former deputy Fuhrer as a frail and elderly man in the grounds of the infamous Spandau Prison The images are accompanied by a note, dated June 27 1983, which refers to Hess' mysterious trip to Scotland in May 1941. Written to his son Wolf it says: 'I made it once to England for you' They have been unearthed by a British prison warden who got to know Hess during his time locked up at Spandau. It is not known exactly when the eerie pictures of him stood next to what was to become his place of death were taken, but they would appear to date to the mid-1980s. The note, dated June 27 1983, refers to Hess' mysterious trip to Scotland in May 1941. He had been Hitler's right-hand man in the Third Reich throughout the 1930s, but was marginalised after the Second World War broke out. So concerned about the risk to Germany's future of Hitler's plans to invade Russia, he taught himself to fly and got on a plane in May 1941. It is thought he flew the Messerschmitt Bf 110 to Scotland in a bid to bring Britain to the negotiating table and put an end to the war. Who was Rudolf Hess? The Nazi who secretly flew to Scotland to try to make peace Rudolf Hess is pictured in the grounds of Spandau prison where he spent 41 years Hess was born the eldest of three children in Alexandria, Egypt in 1897 to ethnically German parents. He was sent to boarding school in 1908 to study and went on to enrol at the University of Munich in 1919, reading history and economics. There he learnt about the concept of Lebensraum, 'living space', which was used by his professor Karl Haushofer as justification for Germany to conquer land in eastern Europe. He would later introduce the concept to Hitler, who made it one of the pillars of Nazi Party ideology. Hess served in the armed forces during the First World War, where his initial posting was against the British at the Battle of the Somme. He was also there for the first Battle of Ypres. He was awarded both the Iron and Military Merit Cross and discharged in 1918. Rudolf Hess is pictured with Adolf Hitler at Party Day in Nuremberg, Germany After hearing Adolf Hitler speak for the first time at a rally in Munich in 1920, Hess became completely devoted to him. He shared Hitler's 'stab in the back' theory, that Germany lost the Great War because the Jews and Bolsheviks conspired. Hess joined the NSDAP in 1920 and worked closer and closer with the leader as time went on. In November 1923 Hitler decided to try to overthrow the Bavarian leader Gustav Von Kahr with the SA. A gun-wielding Hitler interrupted Kahr's speech and called for a national revolution. The following day Hitler and thousands of his supporters marched to the Ministry of War, where shots were fired and 14 marchers and four police officers were killed. Both Hess and Hitler were sent to Landsberg Prison, where the latter wrote his autobiography Mein Kamph. He dictated it to Hess and rewarded him by giving him the job of deputy Fuhrer on the pair's release. Rudolf Hess was Hitler's right-hand man in the Third Reich throughout the 1930s and assumed his position as his deputy in April 1933. He became increasingly marginalised after the Second World War broke out as Hitler became more and more concerned by foreign policy and not internal affairs. Hess was very concerned about Hitler's plans to invade Russia, fearing Germany would face war on two fronts. A young Hess gives the Nazi salute at the opening of the Adolf Hitler Canal in 1939 He was so concerned he taught himself to fly so he could go to Britain and seek a peace deal from the British Government. It is thought he flew the Messerschmitt Bf 110 to Scotland in May 1941 in a bid to bring Britain to the negotiating table and put an end to the war. He ended up running out of fuel and landed in Eaglesham, 10 miles south of Glasgow. He was captured by a local policeman and held in custody. Meanwhile Hitler was furious at the betrayal. The British spent a whole year debriefing him before he was sent to a medical institution in Monmouthshire, Wales for three years. After peace returned in 1945 he was tried for war crimes at Nuremburg and sentenced to life behind bars. Hess is pictured in the height of his power when he was Adolf Hitler's deputy Fuhrer He was found guilty of crimes against peace and conspiring with other German leaders to commit those crimes. He was not convicted of crimes against humanity. During the trial he developed 'amnesia', unable to recall details of what happened during the war. He was eventually declared sane and fit to stand trial and was forced to admit he had faked the amnesia as a defence tactic. It took the court two months to decide on sentencing. Most of the Nazis tried at Nuremburg were given the death penalty. Instead Hess was sentenced to life in prison at Spandau, west Berlin. He spent 41 years there, where he disconnected himself with his family, and often complained about the food and the state of his heath. The six other Nazis housed there were eventually released, leaving him the sole prisoner. He hanged himself in a summer house that had been built for him in the grounds on August 17 1987. After his death Spandau was demolished to prevent it become a shrine for neo-Nazis. The Nazi deputy Fuhrer is pictured in his uniform during the height of his power Advertisement He ended up running out of fuel and landed in Eaglesham, 10 miles south of Glasgow. He was captured by a local policeman and held in custody. Meanwhile Hitler was furious at the betrayal. The British spent a whole year debriefing him before he was sent to a medical institution in Monmouthshire, Wales for three years. After peace returned in 1945 he was tried for war crimes at Nuremberg and put behind bars for life. The court deliberated for over two months before passing sentence. He was found guilty of crimes against peace and conspiring with other German leaders to commit the crimes. He was not convicted of crimes against humanity and not given the death penalty. He hanged himself in a summer house (pictured) that had been built for him in the grounds on August 17 1987 The archive also contains pictures of the prison and a grim and bleak picture showing the cells The whole jail (pictured) was demolished after his suicide in 1987 to prevent it becoming a shrine for neo-Nazis The images of him are believed to have been taken by William Orwin, deputy chief warden at Spandau. They show a grey-haired Hess wearing a blue overcoat and leaning on a walking stick. Also included in the archive is another photo of him walking through the grounds of the prison and a separate shot showing the glass-fronted summer house. Spandau was home to six other high-ranking Nazis, including Karl Donitz - head of the German Navy. All but Hess were released, leaving him the sole inmate. The note Hess wrote to him was written on the back of a postcard Wolf had originally given to his incarcerated father It is not known exactly when the eerie pictures of him stood next to what was to become his place of death were taken, but they would appear to date to the mid-1980s The whole jail was demolished after his suicide in 1987 to prevent it becoming a shrine for neo-Nazis. Since then its name has also been given to new-wave British band Spandau Ballet. Formed a year after the prison was demolished, the band saw the phrase scrawled on the wall of a Berlin nightclub. It was also used as slang by the Allied troops in the trenches to refer to the corpses that hanged on the barbed wire and twitched as they were hit by gunfire on German lines. To this day Hess' death remains shrouded in mystery and conspiracy theories. Some, including his late son Wolf, claimed he was murdered by British Secret Intelligence Service agents to stop him revealing allegations of misconduct by the British in the Second World War. The note Hess wrote to him was written on the back of a postcard Wolf had originally given to his incarcerated father. It never made its way to his son and ended up in archives kept by Mr Orwin. It also contains pictures of Wolf as a child and images of the Hess family. During his time at Spandau he forbade his family from visiting until 1969 when he was treated for a perforated ulcer. By this time his son was aged 32 and his wife Ilse was 69. They hadn't seen him since he left Germany in 1941. The archive also contains pictures of the prison and a bleak picture showing the cells. It never made its way to his son and ended up in archives kept by Mr Orwin. It also contains pictures of Wolf as a child and images of the Hess family (pictured) Among the many documents are written requests from Hess for clothing and toiletries to prison staff. There are also letters sent to him from his family and cover trivial topics like illneses, birthdays and holidays. The mysterious package is being sold at auction by Henry Aldridge and Son of Devizes, in Wiltshire. It is expected to go for 8,000 this Saturday. The seller is a direct descendant of prison guard Mr Orwin. Andrew Aldridge, of Henry Aldridge and Son, said: 'The archive is historically important on many levels, from the unpublished photographs of Rudolf Hess to the emotive words he has written to his son in regard one of the most bizarre episodes of World War Two. 'The archive quite literally shows how far this once powerful man had fallen, from Adolf Hitler's deputy to him asking the prison governor of Spandau for a winter cap and a writing table for his cell. 'The photographic element of the archive consists of eight previously unpublished candid colour photos of Hess at Spandau. 'In addition there are twenty further colour photographs of Spandau.' A rebels bikie member fresh out of jail after he was acquitted of an 'Sons of Anarchy-style' torture attack is celebrating his freedom proudly on social media. High-ranking rebels member Chris Rymer, who walked from Silverwater jail in Sydney in time for Christmas, has wasted no time in resuming his old lavish lifestyle - and has even gotten his girlfriend pregnant. Taking to Instagram to boast of his reclaimed freedom, the bikie shared pictures of himself enjoying shopping trips to Louis Vuitton, visiting theme parks on the Gold Coast and eating delicious cafe food. High-ranking rebels member Chris Rymer, (left) who walked from Silverwater jail in Sydney in time for Christmas, has wasted no time in resuming his old lavish lifestyle - and has even gotten his girlfriend (right) pregnant Taking to Instagram to boast of his reclaimed freedom, the bikie shared pictures of himself enjoying shopping trips to Louis Vuitton, visiting theme parks on the Gold Coast (pictured) and eating delicious cafe food Within weeks of being acquitted for the brutal 36-hour torture of a former gang president, Rymer also shared a snap with his glamorous partner announcing they were expecting a baby. In a crass reveal on Instagram, the heavily-tattooed rebels member told followers: 'Straight out and straight into it. Love my lil fam can't wait till August to meet my new baby Rymer', accompanied by the hashtags #freshouttajailknockingbitchesup and #6monthspregnantnotfunnypete. Rymer's colourful Instagram also contains photographs of a bloodied prison cell and an image of himself and his fellow rebels members in court as they were found not guilty. He even joked about the quality of prison food underneath a photo of him tucking into a large cafe breakfast. 'Mum you should see the feeds me and [redacted] could make with sh***y jail food,' he said. Rymer's colourful Instagram also contains photographs of a bloodied prison cell and an image of himself and his fellow rebels members in court as they were found not guilty Rymer shared photographs of himself enjoying his newfound freedom shopping at Louis Vuitton (pictured) He also posed for a picture with his gang member brother Michael with the caption: 'Not guilty brother I'm not a crim'. Friends of Rymer and the remaining members of the 'Sons of Anarchy Eight' left messages of support and delight at the group's acquittal and Rymer's baby news. The former jailbird also took the opportunity to visit the grave site of slain Rebel Michael 'Ruthless' Davey, who was gunned down in March 2016 while Rymer was incarcerated. Pictured swigging from a bottle, he wrote: 'First visit to my brother MD I f***ing wish I was there next to you brother.'. Friends of Rymer and the remaining members of the 'Sons of Anarchy Eight' left messages of support and delight at the group's acquittal and Rymer's baby news The accused went to trial last year in the NSW District Court but were acquitted after only four months behind bars, news.com.au reports. Jamie Saliba, Chris Rymer, his brother Matthew Rymer, Khaldoun Al-Majid, Zaidoun Al-Majid, Darrell Polgola, Scott Keighran and Lafta Ram were all found not guilty. The men were initially arrested and charged for the 2014 kidnapping and torture of a gang leader which saw him allegedly hog tied with cable leads, burnt with a blowtorch, his nipples sliced open and his right arm shattered. A pardoned former North Korean agent who blew up a plane killing 115 people has told how she carried out the attack by planting an explosive Panasonic radio in the overhead locker and failed to commit suicide afterwards. Kim Hyon Hui was one of two agents behind the bombing of Korean Air Flight 858 from Baghdad to Seoul on 29 November 1987. The Boeing 707 was brought down over the Andaman Sea off the coast of Myanmar two weeks before the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul. All of the passengers and crew, most of whom were South Korean, were killed in the attack ordered by Kim Jong-Il, the son of then-leader Kim Il-Sung. Kim Hyon Hui (pictured in 2009) was one of two agents behind the bombing of Korean Air Flight 858 from Baghdad to Seoul on 29 November 1987 This image shows the wreckage of the plane arriving in South Korea to be investigated in 1990 Now, as North and South Korean athletes prepare to compete in the same team at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Kim has recalled her story to warn of the ever-present threat of North Korea. 'They are using South Korea to overcome their difficulties. To achieve their goals they execute their own people, siblings, families - do not be fooled, North Korea has not changed at all,' she told CNN. Kim was selected aged 18 to join the North Korea secret service due to her ability to speak several languages. After rigorous training she was given her first assignment aged 25. She and her co-agent Kim Seung Il travelled to Austria pretending to be a Japanese couple on holiday. They collected the bomb - a Panasonic radio packed with chemicals - in Vienna and transported it to Baghdad airport. The plan was almost foiled when security guards assessed the device before their flight. One took out the batteries which the bomb needed to explode and said Kim couldn't take them on board. Kim recalled: 'I was very nervous at that time. I picked up the batteries, put them back in the radio and complained to the officials. When I turned on the radio, sound came out so I told them they were making too much of a fuss.' The guard then let her take the radio on. Kim said she had major doubts when boarding the plane: 'For a moment, the thought of "these people will die" crossed my mind,' she said. But she told herself to stop being weak and continue the attack for the sake of her country. Kim (right at a press conference in South Korea in 2009) was selected aged 18 to join the North Korea secret service due to her ability to speak several languages. After rigorous training she was given her first assignment aged 25 Kim collected the bomb - a Panasonic radio packed with chemicals - in Vienna and transported it to Baghdad airport (pictured) Kim then planted the bomb in the overhead locker and got off the plane when it made a stopover in Abu Dhabi. The bomb was detonated during the plane's second leg to Bangkok as the two agents fled before being caught in Bahrain. They had been told to kill themselves if they were caught using cyanide pills hidden in cigarettes they carried. Kim's accomplice died but she survived. She said: 'We were taught that if an agent fails on a mission, he or she needs to commit suicide. We need to swallow the pill to protect the secret... we know very well that our families in the North would be harmed, so naturally we decided to swallow the pills. At the time I thought my 25-year-old life ends like this.' Kim then faced trial in South Korea but was pardoned in 1990 by President Roh Tae-woo who felt she was brainwashed into the crime by North Korea. She said when she found out about her pardon, she instantly thought how happy her mother must be that she was allowed to live. But she knew she was lucky: 'I was a big sinner. I should have died,' said Kim. Now, Kim works for South Korea's National Intelligence Service and is writing her memoirs to warn the world of the threat of North Korea. James Stunt has reportedly stormed out of the High Court this afternoon where he is continuing to fight his ex-wife Petra Ecclestone over their 5.5 billion fortune. Accompanied by Petra's legal team and security detail, the Formula One heiress and her older sister Tamara put on a united front as they made their way into the court in London today as her divorce rumbles on. However according to sources at the scene, Mr Stunt is understood to have stormed from the court room shortly after arriving. Pictured: Petra Ecclestone photographed leaving the Central Family Court this evening after another day of divorce hearings On the move: The 29-year-old cut a glamorous figure after a tense day in court, wearing a white shirt, high-waisted black trousers teamed with a smart jacket James Stunt divorced Miss Ecclestone, 29, following a bitter court battle in October but they have yet to agree a settlement over their 5.5billion joint fortune. Bernie Ecclestones daughter took out a court injunction to force her ex to leave their 68million Grade II-listed mansion in Chelsea. The pair, who have three children, married in a 12million ceremony in 2011. Petra is being represented at the hearing by Baroness Fiona Shackleton who previously acted on behalf of Sir Paul McCartney during his divorce with Heather Mills. This comes amid her billionaire ex-husband James reacting angrily to cynical claims that a 90million burglary at his home was a con. He had previously claimed that he was the victim of Britain's biggest ever burglary with 90million of cash and valuables said to have been stolen from his house in Belgravia, which he moved into after the pair split. James Stunt arrived at the court in London in a chauffeur-driven Rolls Royce Petra and Tamara Ecclestone put on a chic display as they made their way into the High Court in London James Stunt divorced Miss Ecclestone, 29, following a bitter court battle in October but they have yet to agree a settlement over their 5.5billion joint fortune Yesterday, 36-year-old Stunt slammed critics who have accused the burglary of being a fake. He said: 'I've nothing to hide. I'm a victim with no upside to this embarrassment of having no insurance. 'It's disgusting how people are commenting that I'm a criminal. It's not true or fair. I just want whoever did this arrested and my things back.' He went on to say that his dead brother's watch was among the items that were stolen and said he 'wished he had insurance' in a strong condemnation of the claims that the robbery was a con. He told police that thieves had emptied the safe in the basement of his Georgian townhouse in Belgravia last month while he slept upstairs. Cash, gold and diamond jewellery worth up to 90million was stolen in the raid, according to The Sun on Sunday. The billionaire, who left his house flanked by several members of his security detail on Monday, said his property was not insured and updates on the investigation would come from the Metropolitan Police Flying Squad, which is leading the probe. Asked what the latest update was on the investigation, he said: 'You will have to talk to the Flying Squad. I have no insurance. I'm a victim.' He then climbed into the back seat of his luxury custom Rolls Royce before being driven away from the Belgravia townhouse. Accompanied by Petra's legal team and security detail, the pair put on a chic display as they went into the High Court in London Bernie Ecclestones daughter took out a court injunction to force her ex to leave their 68million Grade II-listed mansion in Chelsea. He is pictured here arriving at the court in London on Tuesday Petra Ecclestone's ex-husband James Stunt, 36, has responded angrily to claims that the 90million burglary at his house was a fake Among the items taken from Mr Stunt's home was a number of diamonds, pink, yellow, white and blue ones as well as expensive watches Petra is being represented at the hearing by Baroness Fiona Shackleton, pictured, who previously acted on behalf of Sir Paul McCartney during his divorce with Heather Mills Flanked by some of his bodyguards Stunt felt able to enjoy himself in London on Saturday night despite the reported burglary Mr Stunt also lost some gold bars and cash after the safe containing the valuable was broken into by the thieves Stunt moved into the Belgravia property in December after his expensive divorce taking numerous cars with him Stunt told the police that his house, pictured, had been burgled while he slept with cash, gold and gems stolen A variety of female companions were also seen in Mayfair where Stunt was out on Saturday night Mr Stunt told police that the Belgravia property, where he moved late last year, had been 'cleaned out'. The missing items are said to include Audemars Piguet watches worth up to 500,000 each, including the one that belonged to his late brother, Lee. Other items taken, according to the Sun, include pink, yellow, white and blue diamond rings, as well as cash, gold bars and his passport. It was reported that Stunt, whose six year marriage to Ecclestone ended last year, had not yet installed CCTV cameras in the luxury home. But the businessman still felt able to enjoy himself on Saturday night as he went out in Mayfair surrounded by bodyguards. Stunt, seen leaving C London in Mayfair on Saturday, told police an astonishing 90million had been stolen from a safe in his basement Stunt was out at the Italian restaurant in central London surrounded by nine bodyguards Stunt was seen with an array of female companions as he left the Mayfair restaurant in central London at the weekend A Metropolitan Police statement said: 'Police were called at approximately 7.45am on Thursday December 14, 2017, by a man reporting the burglary of jewellery from a house in Westminster. 'Officers from Westminster attended the scene. The police investigation is being led by officers from the Flying Squad. 'A man, aged in his 20s, was arrested in December 2017 in connection with the investigation. He has been released under investigation.' Police did not confirm the identity of the victim or the amount stolen. Stunt was seen last night leaving the restaurant C London, surrounded by nine bodyguards and accompanied by various female companions. The Italian restaurant is in Mayfair, not far from Stunt's new Belgravia home. He was still wearing his wedding ring as he left the Italian restaurant, despite the break-up of his marriage last year. Stunt and an unknown woman are pictured in the back of a car on their way to The Box in Soho Stunt was still wearing his wedding ring despite an ongoing legal battle surrounding the collapse of his marriage to Petra Ecclestone The billionaire's staff and bodyguards were spotted piling belongings into the expensive property in Belgravia in December Ecclestone and Stunt married in a 12million ceremony in an Italian castle in 2011 (pictured) Last night he was driven by his security people as he and an unknown woman were taken to The Box in Soho UK's biggest raids Great Train Robbery, 1963 - 2.6million The famous heist saw a gang of robbers stop a mail train and steal what would be worth 46million today. Brink's Mat, 1983 - 75million Six burglars stole three tonnes of gold bullion from a Heathrow airport warehouse. They would be worth 75 million at today's prices. Securitas, 2006 - 53million Burglars bound and gagged Securitas staff as they made off with an astonishing 53million in banknotes. Graff Diamonds, 2009 - 40million Two men stole jewellery by posing as potential customers at the shop in New Bond Street, London. Hatton Garden, 2015 - 25million A group of older men drilled through a wall to steal jewellery from safety deposit boxes in a 2015 heist. Source: Latham's Advertisement Stunt moved into the home after the his divorce amid bitter proceedings over the shared 5.5billion fortune of the businessman and Bernie Ecclestone's daughter at stake. The couple also shared a 158million mansion in Los Angeles. Mr Stunt said after the divorce hearing: 'I am devastated that my marriage has broken down. I love Petra and our children.' He said the couple's 'most important responsibility' was now 'being mother and father to our wonderful children'. Speaking after the hearing, Mr Ecclestone told MailOnline: 'I'm just glad it's over. Petra is too. She has been very tolerant and has been concerned about James.' The couple married in a 12million ceremony in 2011, tying the knot in an Italian castle. In the divorce proceedings Ecclestone secured the couple's Grade II-listed mansion in Chelsea, west London, believed to be worth up to 100million. She was flanked by her Formula One tycoon father and her sister Tamara as she attended a hearing in the latest round of the legal battle last year. Tamara Ecclestone had shared an image on Instagram on the day of the hearing, telling her sister: 'Hey little fighter, soon things will be brighter.' The property is located in the heart of Belgravia and is one of London's most prestigious and sought after areas Another of Stunt's expensive vehicles is pictured as he moved into his new Belgravia home in December Stunt, 36, was pictured entering the Italian restaurant weeks after he is claimed to have reported the burglary at his home Stunt was pictured still wearing his wedding ring on his left hand despite his marriage to Petra Ecclestone ending in divorce last year The wife of businessman Jay Rutland, Tamara lives in a 70million home in Kensington, also in west London. Petra launched accessories line Stark in 2011 and is believed to have a property portfolio valued at more than 130million, and also stands to inherit from her father Bernie. The Stunt & Co website says that the billionaire has been involved with 'highly successful ventures in the gambling, art, mining and transcontinental shipping industries'. But despite their divorce, Petra and James have vowed to be 'firm friends'. Stunt, wearing a grey jumper, was seen walking through the revolving doors behind a blonde woman Stunt was wearing a dark jacket as he walked out of the restaurant with a blonde companion The businessman was pictured in Mayfair flanked by nine security guards on all sides Stunt and various other women were seen at the Mayfair address. He moved to a new house nearby Belgravia last year This is the shocking moment a baby appears to be knocked unconscious after being targeted during a violent argument between his stepdad and another man. The eight-month-old was hit with a vicious left hook after the aggressor went to punch his victim but missed. CCTV footage released by the owner of the supermarket where the violence erupted showed the taller of the two men lashing out despite the fact the youngster was in his stepdad's arms. This still frame from the CCTV shows the two men arguing before the fighting broke out The aggressor, named locally as Gustavo Mesa, is now being investigated after the tot's mum filed a formal complaint The baby was thrown around like a rag doll - first to the left as the initial punch appeared to hit him in the head - and then to the right as his desperate stepdad tried to dodge the sudden attack. Amazingly, he disappeared out of the vision of the CCTV cameras to leave the youngster before returning for a full-on punch-up. Staff at the shop in the town of Palmira near the city of Mendoza close to Argentina's border with Chile had to intervene to separate the pair. Local reports initially pointed to the baby's jaw being broken in the horrific attack, although it later emerged the punch had clipped his face and he had not been seriously injured. The aggressor, named locally as Gustavo Mesa, is now being investigated after the tot's mum filed a formal complaint. A source close to the investigation told a local paper: 'Fortunately the baby has only got a bump on his forehead where he received the blow.' State prosecutor Raul Buscema is said to be awaiting a doctor's report before deciding what crime to charge Mesa with. The eight-month-old was hit with a vicious left hook after the aggressor went to punch his victim but missed This is the shocking moment a baby appears to be knocked unconscious after being targeted during a violent argument between his stepdad and another man The man carrying the child in his arms when he was attacked has been identified as Gerardo Gomez Perez. Mendoza-based daily El Sol, among the papers which broadcast the footage, said the pair had a long-standing feud. Investigators refuted rumours the baby had been rushed to intensive care with a broken jaw, saying the blow had 'clipped the right side of his face'. Enraged locals have named and shamed the aggressor on a Facebook page called 'Prison for Gustavo Mesa.' One said: 'I would shot him in both knees so he would have to drag himself around on the ground for the rest of his life.' A nine-months-pregnant mother driving to give birth has been killed and her baby is in critical condition after she hit black ice and flipped her car. Desiree Strout, 27, died in the horror crash near Skowhegan, in Maine, on Monday morning as she drove to be induced at a nearby hospital. Passenger Harry Weeks, 29, believed to be her husband, suffered a punctured lung and lacerated liver. Desiree Strout, 27, died on Monday while driving to hospital to be induced while Harry Weeks, 29 (right), believed to be her husband, suffered a punctured lung and lacerated liver The baby was delivered by emergency c-section at the roadside and is now in critical condition in hospital. Strout and Weeks appear to have at least two other children, both girls, from posts on their social media accounts. Franny MacMichael Clark, a friend of the family, told centralmaine.com that she heard the new baby is a boy. Skowhegan Police Chief David Bucknam told the news site that Strout was driving her 2005 Chevy Trailblazer when she hit black ice just out of town. The vehicle skidded and hit a snow bank sideways, flipping over several times before coming down on the driver's side on a frozen pond. Ambulance workers performed a c-section at the roadside and the couple's baby, believed to be a boy, is now in critical condition. It is thought they had two other children, both girls He said speed was not a factor in the crash, but did not respond to questions over why Strout had been driving instead of Weeks. Heartbroken friends posted tributes online on Monday, with Amber Lynn writing: 'Cant even believe this, doesnt seem real. 'I'm going to miss your beautiful face. RIP angel. Love you Desiree.' Addressing Desiree's mother Andrea, Robin Hubert added: 'Oh my Andrea I'm so so sorry. I love you and my heart aches. Praying for you and family.' The nearly three-week continuing resolution passed by Congress Monday to end a brief government shutdown includes a six-year funding package for the Childrens Health Insurance Program. CHIP covers 9 million children whose families earn too much to qualify for Medicaid, but who cant afford insurance on the open market. Normally that would be seen as good news. But advocates are still questioning why Congress took so long to fund a popular program, forcing some states to send notices to families that they were at risk of losing their coverage. Joan Alker, the executive director of the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University, expressed that combination of relief and frustration earlier on Monday: It looks like a 6 yr extension of CHIP may be done in hours. A huge relief, but it is unacceptable that it took so long. Families experienced needless anxiety for months and states wasted time and money making contingency plans due to the lack of a reliable federal partner. Joan Alker (@JoanAlker1) January 22, 2018 CHIPs popularity may be one factor behind its predicament. The program, created in 1997, has always had support among Republicans and Democrats. CHIP has also cut the uninsured rate for children by more than half, from about 14 percent to 4.5 percent . However, while Congress was debating the budget last year, government analyses suggested there was enough money in the budget for the program to last until the end of 2017, decreasing the urgency to act. The last stop-gap federal funding measure passed in December was supposed to hold states over until March, but some states said that funding would only be available through the end of January. This spending deal doesnt end the threat of another government shutdown; Congress faces yet another deadline to come up with a federal funding deal by Feb. 8. But the money for CHIP is locked in. A British kayaker is missing and two Irish men are dead after a group of five adventurers lost control in flash floods in the Ecuadorian jungle. Adam Vaughan, 22, of Newbury, Berkshire, was part of an expedition that got in to difficulty on the Abanico river in the country's south east. Two men, Irish kayakers David Higgins, 26, and Alexander MacGourty, 19, have been confirmed by the Ecuadorian authorities to have died while local guide Joaquin Meneses, 18, and American Jeremiath Stewart both survived. Mr Meneses later told a press conference that the river was so powerful that 'getting out of the kayak was practically facing death'. British kayaker Adam Vaughan (pictured) is missing and two Irish men are feared dead after a group of five lost control in flash floods in the Ecuadorian jungle Adam Vaughan (pictured), 22, of Newbury, Berkshire, was part of an expedition that got in to difficulty on the Abanico river in the country's south east Franklin Puente, the governor of Morona Santiago province, confirmed that Mr Vaughan was the missing man after flash floods hit Rio Abanico 'The flow of that river was so strong that getting out of the kayak was practically facing death,' he said, according to El Comercio. 'In the canyons there were rapids with waves and hollows of meters of height. Being there was crazy.' Graduate Mr Vaughan, who spent his third year studying in Columbia, was the vice president of Cardiff University kayak club. In a Facebook statement, the group described Mr Vaughan as a 'fantastic teacher, inspiration and vice president'. His parents Christopher and Gillian were being assisted by the Foreign Office as they waited for any updates. Mr Vaughan studied Spanish at Cardiff University and began kayaking when he was just 11. Both Mr Meneses and Mr Higgins were both initially reported as missing but while the Ecuadorian guide was found alive late on Monday, telling rescuers he had survived by eating insects and naranjillo (edible plants), local newspaper El Universo reported that the body of Mr Higgins had been found on Monday night. Franklin Puente, the governor of Morona Santiago province, confirmed that Mr Vaughan was the missing man. Mr Meneses said that all of the kayakers were very experienced but that the high water levels had made the river very powerful. Graduate Mr Vaughan, who spent his third year studying in Columbia, was the vice president of Cardiff University kayak club Mr Vaughan (pictured) studied Spanish at Cardiff University and began kayaking when he was just 11 More than 100 rescuers have been reported to be involved in the search for survivors. The rescue, which is being co-ordinated by a joint committee with the support of an Army helicopter, involves firefighters, Red Cross, police, armed forces, park rangers and the local Kayak Club. Dominique Kennedy, the honorary Irish consul based in Ecuador, told The Irish Independent that the return of Mr Meneces meant there could be still be some hope in the search for the others. 'He was found along the river bank. He had been walking for about 40 hours,' she said. Sligo Kayak Club, where Mr McGourty was a trainee instructor, said he 'died while fulfilling his dreams'. In a statement posted on Facebook the club said they believed the whole team had been caught up in the flood. 'It is with profound sadness that we announce the passing of club member and trainee instructor Alex McGourty. Alex tragically died while fulfilling his dreams, kayaking in Ecuador,' it said. 'The club would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt sympathies to Alex's parents Frankie and Eilish, his family and his friends.' In a self-written post on the British Universities Kayaking Expedition, Mr Vaughan wrote that he studied Spanish at Cardiff University and began kayaking when he was 11. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said: 'We are assisting the family of a British man who has been reported missing in Ecuador, and are in contact with the Ecuadorian authorities.' The ex-husband of nursery paedophile Vanessa George says he is desperate to get out of the home they once shared. Andrew George spoke out amid fears his ex-wife could be latest high-profile criminal released from an 'indeterminate' sentence like that handed to black cab rapist John Worboys. Mr George, who divorced his wife after her sickening crimes emerged, has been stuck in the house in Plymouth from where she sent child abuse images to her internet lover Colin Blanchard. Andrew George has told how his life is still in ruins after his ex-wife Vanessa was exposed as a paedophile, as it emerged she may be the next high-profile criminal released from prison Like Worboys, Vanessa George was given an indeterminate sentence, but has now served the minimum seven-year term. She was turned down for parole last year but is understood to have been moved to an open prison in what is feared to be an indication she may soon be released. Speaking from the home they once shared in Plymouth, Mr George, said: 'I must get out of this place it's killing me.' The 50-year-old ex-gas fitter says he probably has a more difficult life than her inside as he tries to get by on 73-a-week benefits. He added: 'I feel like calling it a day. I've got a mountain of mortgage arrears and I'm too frightened to explain my predicament to the provider. 'Add the fact that I have skin cancer I feel a complete mess and that the world is against me. 'I fear I'm never going to get away from this house, which I realise is seriously affecting me. I need a clean break from these walls but I can't see that happening any time soon.' The couple (pictured on their wedding day) divorced after George's crimes were exposed He survived a previous suicide attempt and has fallen behind on his 60,000 mortgage for his semi-detached property. He said he has struggled to keep work due to his association with his ex. Nursery teacher Vanessa George abused a string of babies and toddlers in her care and was jailed in 2009. George admitted seven sexual assaults of young children and six counts of distributing and making indecent pictures of children and was given an 'indeterminate' sentence of a minimum seven years. Having already served that minimum term, she will be released whenever a parole board believes she is no longer a danger to society. Vanessa George (left, in court sketch) has completed her minimum term and will be released when a parole board believes she is no longer a danger. Rapist Worboys (right) has been approved for release Black-taxi rapist John Worboys has meanwhile been moved to a London jail ahead of his release. Last week Justice Secretary David Gauke stressed that Worboys will not be freed until his licence conditions have been finalised, and victims signed up to a contact scheme have had their say on the restrictions. For confidential support call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details. Emmanuel Macron stepped up his bid to lure businesses away from Britain to France by hosting 140 top executives at the opulent Palace of Versailles last night. The French President spoke in English as he schmoozed with bosses from firms including JP Morgan, Google and Facebook at the famous chateau. The charm offensive - dubbed Operation Seduction - is part of his mission to try to use Brexit to convince businesses to move across the Channel to Paris. The world's corporate elite flocked to Versailles - once home to the French 'Sun King' Louis XIV - to be wined and dined by over a dozen French ministers. They were hosted in the Galerie des Batailles, the grandest chamber in the palace which is lines with paintings glorifying French military victories across the centuries. The French President (pictured at last night's 'choose France' summit) spoke in English as he schmoozed with bosses from firms including JP Morgan, Google and Facebook at the famous chateau. Emmanuel Macron wants to lure business away from Britain to France after Brexit And they feasted on dinner prepared by the top chef Alain Ducasse, who has been dubbed the 'emperor of French cooking' and holds the maximum three Michelin stars. French aides told reporters the lavish gathering was part of their drive to swoop in on businesses based in London after Brexit. It was described as a 'mini Davos' as many of the business chiefs were stopping off on their way to the global business summit in the Swiss Alps. Speaking during his visit to London last week, Mr Macron said France is in a 'competition' with other EU countries to try to swipe business from London. He told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show: 'Sure we want to attract maximum activity, why? Because this decision has an impact for a lot of players. Former CEO of Cisco Systems, John Chambers (pictured left at Versailles last night), France's President Emmanuel Macron (pictured centre), and French Minister of State for the Digital Sector Mounir Mahjoubi (pictured right), attend a signing ceremony at last night's summit John Chambers (pictured left) Emmanuel Macron (pictured centre) and Mounir Mahjoubi (pictured right) dined on food cooked by a Michelin-starred chef during the opulent summit at Versailles 'As a result of the EU referendum they will have to choose between the different cities, so there is a competition between the different cities.' Rival financial centres like Paris, Frankfurt and Amsterdam are desperately trying to attract some of the City of London's booming businesses. France has already offered special tax status for expatriate executives and slashed payroll charges for new employers. And recognising that English is the language of international business, it has proposed a new English-language commercial tribunal. A spokesman for Goldman Sachs told The Times: 'It was a constructive day of meetings to discuss the investment environment in France. 'We welcome the government's determination and ongoing dialogue and President Macron's commitment to continue to strengthen the French economy.' All of the business guests had to bring along a plan for investment in France in order to attend the party. Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg, Goldman Sachs' Lloyd Blankfein and JP Morgan's Jamie Dimon were among those on the guest list. A drug driver who nearly killed a paramedic when he crashed head-on with an ambulance could spend as little as nine months behind bars. Walter Haaf was sentenced to 18 months prison in a Perth court Tuesday after getting behind the wheel while high on methamphetamine in October 2016. The 33-year-old's lawyer said he had taken the drugs to help him stay awake while he worked night shifts to keep his building business afloat, Nine News reported. Walter Haaf crashed into the ambulance while he still had methamphetamine in his system, which his lawyer said he took to stay awake while he worked night shifts Paramedic Wesley Ackerman was trapped inside the wreckage for up to 45 minutes after being struck head on by the Nissan Navara on a Mundijong Road bend in Baldivis, 46 kilometres south of Perth. Mr Ackerman returned to work as a paramedic six month after the incident but still suffered from the injuries he received in the crash. He was in a coma for days afterwards and received spinal injuries, a broken jaw, fractured ribs and internal injuries. Paramedic Wesley Ackerman (pictured) was trapped inside the wreckage for up to 45 minutes after being struck head on by the Nissan Navara and still suffers from his injuries Haaf (centre) was sentenced to 18 months prison in a Perth court Tuesday after getting behind the wheel while high on methamphetamine in October 2016 Haaf pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing grievous bodily harm and was sentenced to 18 months jail, with him eligible for parole in nine. The court heard he was nearly finished the rehab program he checked himself into a week after the crash, and he had been offered a job when he got out. He has been banned from getting behind the wheel for two years. Mr Ackerman was in a coma for days afterwards and received spinal injuries, a broken jaw, fractured ribs and internal injuries A security camera captured the moment a man with an 'abysmal' driving record sends two pedestrians flying into the air while he was distracted. Wesam Hmayden, 24, took his eyes off the road to play with his radio. The victims were struck on a pedestrian crossing in Miller in southwest Sydney last November, 7 News reported. Scroll down for video The shocking moment a man with an 'abysmal' driving record sends two pedestrians flying into the air while he was distracted has been caught on camera Disturbing footage of the incident shows Hmayden driving straight through the crossing, sending the pedestrians metres into the air Disturbing footage of the incident shows Hmayden driving straight through the crossing, sending the pedestrians metres into the air. Hmayden quickly realises what he's done and in a panic gets out of the car. Fortunately the victims have made a full recovery. Lawyer Ahmed Dib told 7 News 'It was a moment of misjudgment,' 'Unfortunately it's resulted in a tragic incident where two people were hit and collided with the vehicle.' But it wasn't the first time Hmayden had been in trouble behind the wheel. He had previously racked up 36 demerit points since getting his licence. In court Magistrate Shane McAnulty told him: 'Your record is abysmal.' Hmayden was handed a three-year bond and banned form driving for 18 months. Hmayden (left) was handed a three-year bond and banned form driving for 18 months Advertisement The well-known criminal lawyer who was shot and killed in a 'targeted attack' in Sydney's west had recently sent his wife and young children to visit family in Vietnam. Ho Ledinh, 65, was gunned down execution-style in front of dozens of horrified witnesses while sitting at the Happy Cup Cafe in Bankstown's Old Town Plaza at 4pm on Tuesday. Police have launched a massive manhunt for the gunman, who fled the scene in a getaway car after shooting Ledinh four times in the pelvic region. The killer was caught on nearby CCTV cameras wearing a hi-vis green jacket, just minutes before he approached Ledinh from behind and shot him with a handgun. Police have formed Strike Force Eugene to investigate the killing and are working to identify the shooter, described as having an olive complexion, possibly of Pacific Islander appearance, and a medium build. Scroll down for video Vietnamese-born lawyer Ho Ledinh (pictured with wife Ngo Thu Huong and their children) was gunned down in broad daylight at a Bankstown cafe, in Sydney's south west Police have launched a massive manhunt for the gunman (pictured in green), who fled the scene in a getaway car after shooting Ledinh four times in the pelvic region The killer (pictured) was caught on nearby CCTV cameras wearing a hi-vis green jacket, just minutes before he approached Ledinh from behind and shot him with a handgun Confronting images of the aftermath of the shooting show Ledinh lying dead outside the cafe after being shot four times A witness told Daily Mail Australia she watched as the gunman left his victim lying bleeding on the floor of the popular cafe The well-known criminal lawyer (pictured) was shot and killed in a 'targeted attack' in Sydney's west on Tuesday afternoon Detective Superintendent Scott Cook said the gunman was last seen running down Stewart Lane, and police are unable to confirm witness accounts of seeing him escape in a getaway car driven by an accomplice. 'At the time of the offence he [the gunman] was wearing a dark-coloured cap, dark sunglasses, high visibility vest, dark pants, dark shoes, grey gloves and a rain coat that was either dark green or black in colour,' he said. Police were looking into Ledinh's clients, and are appealing for witnesses or anyone possessing CCTV, dashcam or other video footage of the area to come forward. 'He was a criminal solicitor in the sense of that was his business, his practice. He had a lot of clients that are engaged in organised crime and other offences,' said Detective Superintendent Cook. A witness told Daily Mail Australia she watched as the gunman left his victim lying on the floor of the cafe as he fled towards the station. 'I got out of the car and just saw him on the floor out of breath,' she said. 'The guy that shot him ran towards the station wearing green clothing.' A mother, who saw the shooting from a restaurant across the street, reported hearing four gunshots before watching cafe patrons flee the scene. A man fitting descriptions of the shooter (pictured in green) was seen running from the scene before being picked up by a waiting car Police were pictured at the scene after the shooting just before 4pm as officers launched a manhunt for the fugitive gunman No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight at a Bankstown cafe Detectives believe the shooting to be a 'targeted attack' as they continue to hunt for the offender who fled the scene on foot She said: 'I was in a restaurant right across from the cafe, heard four gunshots and saw people running away from the scene. 'I ran outside and saw shops closing their doors and people running to the cafe standing around. Called 000, people were saying the guy is dead. 'My eight-year-old daughter was in hysterics, the poor thing screamed and ran behind the counter.' Daily Mail Australia understands the targeted attack comes after Ledinh sent his young wife Ngo Thu Huong and their three children to Vietnam to be with family. His best friend Van Nguyen said Ledinh would usually have gone to Vietnam with his family and he is not sure why they went without him this time. 'They were very precious to him, he was a wonderful father and thought his wife was very beautiful,' he said. Ledinh met his wife after the breakdown of his first marriage in the same coffee shop where he was killed, according to his friend. The well-known lawyer (pictured right) had recently sent his wife and young children (pictured) to visit family in Vietnam His 'best friend' Van Nguyen, pictured, told Daily Mail Australia the Ledinh would usually have gone to Vietnam with his family 'They met in his coffee shop and fell in love when he made her a coffee,' he said. 'I think they were very happy, they got married and had the three children and she got to move to Australia,' he said. The family have lived in a red-brick duplex a short distance from the popular cafe and legal practice for 'about two years' according to neighbours. 'They are a very quiet family sometimes you here the children inside and they play in the yard but I haven't seen the lady or kids for two weeks,' one woman told Daily Mail Australia. 'His wife told me a few weeks ago that she had to go back to Vietnam and didn't know when she would see us next,'a neighbour said Ledinh, his wife and their three children lived in the front of this modest duplex - they would often be seen playing in the yard by neighbours The yard of the home lived in by Ledinh is piled with old toys and cafe-style tables and chairs, as laundry dries on clotheslines 'They are a very quiet family sometimes you here the children inside and they play in the yard but I haven't seen the lady or kids for two weeks,' one woman told Daily Mail Australia The home's yard is piled with old toys and cafe-style tables and chairs. 'I have only seen the man he will smile of he sees us but is very quiet.' The shocked owner of a neighbouring business said she couldn't believe there was a shooting metres from her own front door. The woman said she used to see the slain lawyer 'from time to time' and that he would smile but never talk. 'I would talk to his wife but I would only say hello to him, there was no talking. Police shut off the shopping strip following the brazen shooting, which took place in front of horrified witnesses about 4pm 'His wife told me a few weeks ago that she had to go back to Vietnam and didn't know when she would see us next,' she said. 'Now this has happened I hope she is okay and with her family.' Meanwhile Mr Nguyen, who spent time with the dead man just hours before, couldn't hold back his feelings of disappointment and despair. 'He is a true friend, would do anything for us. I couldn't believe he was dead when I got the phone call. 'He was my best friend... like my step brother. We didn't have family here so we were each other's family. NSW Police confirmed Ledinh died of gunshot wounds at the scene after they attended the incident at Bankstown in Sydney's west 'I could tell him things I could never tell a wife or my mother or father he would always listen and then tell me what I should do.' No one else was injured in the shooting, which happened in front of shocked shoppers in broad daylight. NSW Police confirmed Ledinh died of gunshot wounds at the scene after they attended the incident. 'We do believe that it is a targeted attack - that's how it appears at this stage,' Acting Commander Brad Thorne said. Born in Vietnam, Ledinh was a prominent lawyer with offices in Bankstown and he previously represented Phillip Nguyen, who was jailed for the shooting death of policeman Bill Crews in 2010. Nyugen was jailed for 12 years for manslaughter of Mr Crews, a trainee detective, who died after being hit by bullets fired by Nyugen and a fellow police officer during a drug raid in Bankstown. Thrown into the media spotlight while representing Nguyen, Ledinh well-known and popular in the local area, and is believed to have previously owned the Happy Cup Cafe. Ledinh graduated from the University of New South Wales where he studied law and political science, and authored the English-Vietnanmese book Dictionary of Law. A British father-of-three died when the driver of his car tried to cross a Czech railway line and was hit by a train. Darren Martin, 44, was on his way to work in Pilsen, near Prague, when the motorist ignored flashing lights at a crossing. Mr Martin, who had moved to the Czech Republic to be with his partner, was killed when a train travelling at 45mph hurtled into the vehicle. Darren Martin, 44, was on his way to work in Pilsen, near Prague, when the motorist ignored flashing lights at a crossing (pictured, Mr Martin with his daughter Yazmin) He suffered fatal injuries to his head and chest and died alongside the driver and another passenger in the VW Polo. It would be impossible to ascertain why the driver ignored obvious warning signs in an attempt to travel across the railway line, senior coroner Clare Bailey told an inquest in Teesside. A cyclist and a motorist that had been travelling behind the car said that flashing lights and stop signs had been operational at the time of the crash. Recording the cause of his death as accidental, she offered condolences to Mr Martin's mother, Linda. Ms Bailey said: 'Only the three people that were in the car know what happened. 'There was nothing to suggest it was a deliberate act to drive in front of a train.' Left, Mr Martin with his son Joshua and right, with his son during younger days Speaking after the inquest, Ms Martin paid tribute to her son, who is much missed by family members including his children Joshua, Ellias and Yazmin. She said she accepted that the questions that remain over his death may never be answered, due to the deaths of those in the car. Ms Martin added: 'We will never know why they went over that crossing. 'We went ourselves and it is on a blind corner, it was snowing and foggy so it might have been hard to see there was a train coming. 'Darren was a big part of our lives who brought happiness and love. 'He was a brilliant daddy to three beautiful children and we will always remember him.' A terrified mother screamed in horror as her Candy tumble dryer caught fire mid-spin, filling her home with smoke. Selena Hall, 34, awoke from a nap to a loud bang and found smoke coming from the ground floor of her house in Beckton, east London. Rushing downstairs she discovered it was coming from her tumble dryer that had spontaneously burst into flames mid-cycle. The plumber and mother-of-one managed to pull the clothes out before dialling 999. She filmed the incident as evidence of the terrifying fault, having only bought the machine a year and four months ago to replace her Hotpoint model. The clip sees her shouting in desperation, saying: 'They need to hurry up. 'Oh my god it's on fire. It's caught on real fire. 'Oh my god where are the fire brigade? Oh my god can you call them and tell them to come here.' The flames became so intense she had to run outside to wait for the emergency services to arrive. Ms Hall told the Mirror: 'I was having a nap and was woken up by a bang. Selena Hall (pictured), 34, awoke from a nap to a loud bang and found smoke coming from the ground floor of her house in Beckton, east London 'There was smoke from downstairs and a fire in the bottom of the dryer. I was terrified.' She told the newspaper she contacted Candy Hoover about the incident, who informed her there have been other reports of smoke coming from their dryers. An engineer from the company visited Ms Hall's home to assess the situation after the fire on Saturday and has promised to send her a new one this week. A Candy Hoover spokesman told the newspaper: 'All our products are fully compliant with safety standards. Rushing downstairs she discovered it was coming from her tumble dryer that had spontaneously burst into flames mid-cycle 'We do not have any particular issues of this nature with any of our range. 'Our representative could only think of exceptional cases where machines are overloaded, the seals may rub generating some smoke, but had no experience of a situation that could result in failure as experienced by Ms Hall. 'Hence the matter is in the process of immediate investigation.' A London Fire Brigade spokesman told MailOnline: 'We were called to reports of a tumble dryer alight in Denny Close, Beckton, at 5.28pm on Saturday. 'Two fire engines and 10 firefighters and officers attended the scene. 'It was a very small fire it was dealt with by 1735.' A nightclub tycoon has been arrested for the suspected murder of his wife in a failed suicide bid. Tom Foster has been charged with the murder of his wife of 35 years Donie Vanitzian, 67, at their home in Los Angeles. The 75-year-old reportedly left a suicide note and was found lying semi-conscious beside his wife, a highly-respected Los Angeles Times columnist who was found dead with a gunshot wound to the head on December 28. A former PE teacher, Foster went on to run The Twisted Wheel and Pagoda clubs in Carlisle, Cumbria and was hailed the 'nightclub king' in the 1970s and 80s before he moved to America with his wife. Tom Foster, 75, has been charged by detectives in America, after Donie Vanitzian, 67, was found with a gunshot wound to her head. They are pictured here in 1981 Foster is pictured here with his wife Donna (Donie) Vie Vanizian, centre, and friend Adele Forster on New Year's Eve in 1983 in Carlisle Police were conducting a welfare check at a house in Mar Vista, Los Angeles, when they discovered the couple three days after Christmas. Los Angeles Deputy District Attorney David Berger said Foster faces one count of murder with handgun use allegations. He has pleaded not guilty. His bail is now set at some $3 million and he faces a maximum of 50 years in prison if found guilty of Mrs Vanitzian's murder. Before becoming a club owner, Foster worked as a PE teacher at various schools in Carlisle. He also played saxophone for a successful band called the Cavedwellers. Carlisle guest house owner Adele Forster knew Foster during the 1970s and 1980s. She said: 'Tom was gorgeous. He had big brown cow eyes and all the girls loved him. 'Everyone wanted to marry Tom. He was dead funny and dead clever, but could be really cutting at times.' Police were conducting a welfare check at a house in Mar Vista, Los Angeles, when they discovered the couple three days after Christmas. They are pictured here with Ms Forster (centre) in 1983 Ms Forster added: 'For his 21st birthday, his parents bought him the lease on The Twisted Wheel.' She said he was a devout Catholic, adding: 'In the days when you'd put 10p in the collection, he'd put 10 every week without fail,' said Adele. 'We were all broken hearted when Tom announced he was leaving. He called a group of his close friends together, and announced he'd got married and was moving to America. 'It was like he died when he left Carlisle. The club scene changed overnight: nobody could do it like Tom.' Mrs Vanitzian was a longstanding contributor to the Los Angeles Times, writing a weekly column on homeowners associations for the Sunday Business section. An Australian man appeared in an Indonesian court after allegedly being caught with drugs late last year. Joshua James Baker, 32, was arrested at Bali airport in October after police allegedly found marijuana and anti-depressants in his possession. With the most serious charge holding a 15-year jail sentence, Baker was reportedly unwell during the first day of his trial. Joshua James Baker (right) appeared in an Indonesian court after allegedly caught with drugs The Australian (pictured) was arrested at Bali airport in October 2017 after police allegedly found marijuana and anti-depressants in his possession With the most serious charge holding a 15-year jail sentence, Baker (pictured) was reportedly unwell during the first day of his trial on Tuesday The 32-year-old told judges he was bed bound for the last three days and had a spinning head The 32-year-old told judges he was bed bound for the last three days and had a spinning head, forcing his lawyer, Pande Putu Maya Arsanti, to apply for Baker to be moved from Kerobokan prison to a mental-illness hospital, according to Courier Mail. Ms Arsanti reportedly told the court Baker's condition was 'getting worse' because his medication has increased from 25mg a day to 300mg a day. The Mt Isa man said while the medication helped his head it also made him fatigued and 'forget stuff'. Photos show the 32-year-old arriving to court off a bus from Kerobokan prison dressed in a white shirt, grey trousers and a bright orange head piece covering his face. Baker was apprehended by police at Nghurah Rai airport on October 8 with allegedly 28 grams of marijuana mixed with tobacco and 17 pills of Diazepam anti-depressant pills. Ten Diazepam pills were found in a cigarette box while seven other pills were found in Baker's shoes, according to the publication. Baker's lawyer, Pande Putu Maya Arsanti, applied for the 32-year-old to be moved from Kerobokan prison to a mental-illness hospital The Australian (right) fronted court wearing a white shirt, grey slacks and orange head piece Ms Arsanti reportedly told the court Baker's condition was 'getting worse' because his medication has increased from 25mg a day to 300mg a day The Australian previously evaded Balinese police for 10 hours by allegedly escaping through a toilet window while they watched television before he caught a taxi to a fake home address to throw off authorities. Police quickly tracked Baker down and the Queenslander has been behind bars at Bali's notorious prison since the arrest. Baker is expected to face court again next week. Whenever lawmakers reach a final 2018 budget deal, whether thats before Feb. 8 or after , well finally figure out how much funding there will be for the U.S. Department of Education. Well also get an answer (sort of) to a long-standing fight in Washington: the fate of caps on defense and non-defense discretionary spending, including education. In addition, well find out whether the two pots of money for those areas of the federal budget will be the same size. Thats important to analysts and lobbyists. First: Remember sequestration? In 2011, Congress agreed to annual, automatic cuts to defense and non-defense spending, as a way to force lawmakers to come to a spending deal. That bigger spending deal never happened, but lawmakers come up with temporary agreements to blunt those automatic cuts, which are known as sequestration. That still involves imposing annualalbeit highercaps on both types of spending. The last such deal was for fiscal years 2016 and 2017, which former House Speaker John Boehner pushed through Congress before retiring. In fiscal 2017, the cap is $519 billion for non-defense spending, including for education. That two-year deal doesnt cover the 2018 budget. That means sequestrations spending caps are officially due to kick in again. Technically, the 2018 cap for non-defense discretionary programs, at $516 billion, is a little bit below the 2017 cap. The House GOP appropriations bills passed last year provides only $511 billion for non-defense programs. That serves as a reminder that lawmakers dont have to spend all the way up to the caps if they dont want to. Still, theres a decent chance that in any final spending deal for 2018, the caps for both defense and non-defense spending will go up. But GOP leaders dont want to treat defense and non-defense spending equally. President Donald Trump and others have advocated for more money for the Pentagon. If they simply got rid of the sequester for 2018, the cap on non-defense discretionary spending could rise to $553 billion. Defense discretionary spending, however, could go up to $603 billion. A separate budget blueprint approved by the House, as well as the National Defense Authorization Act, would allow defense spending to rise even more, up to $621 billion. You could argue that advocates for education funding ought to be pleased with, or at least not terribly distressed about, a $37 billion hike in maximum spending on non-defense discretionary programs, especially given that the GOP controls Washington. But they really want something else: They want parity between defense and non-defense discretionary spending. Why does parity matter so much to education funding advocates? First, they believe domestic non-defense spending is just as important as spending at the Pentagon, so the two should get the same amount of money. Second, theyre worried that the $37 billion increase in particular (assuming lawmakers approve it) would be split up between lots of different domestic programs, leaving education itself with a relatively small slice of federal cash, assuming it gets anything at all. . Third, theres also a political angle. If defense discretionary spending outpaces the non-defense sideby up to $72 billion, potentiallyin the next spending deal, then domestic programs like education could be pegged as less important and more vulnerable to potential budget cuts in what will be a Republican-dominated Washington for at least the next year. If we lose the toehold we have with parity ... we wont have the leverage, said Noelle Ellerson Ng, the associate executive director of AASA, the School Superintendents Association. She also noted that any budget deal that involves spending limits will likely cover fiscal 2019 as well as fiscal 2018. Where does the appropriations process for education stand? We mentioned the House appropriations bill above. It would cut $2.3 billion from the departments roughly $68 billion budget . The bill keeps Title I funding flat at $15.4 billion, and eliminates the $2 billion Title II program that funds teachers professional development and helps reduce class size. The Senate appropriations bill, meanwhile, keeps department funding virtually flat theres a relatively small $29 million increase in there. It would also preserve Title II. Both bills ignore the two new school choice initiatives for public and private school choice, respectively, championed by the Trump administration in its 2018 budget proposal. The thing to watch about those two appropriations bills isnt so much the bills themselves, but how the final budget deal treats disparities between them. Among other things, that means watching whether lawmakers meet halfway on Title II funding, which would represent a 50 percent cut to the program, as well as whether the Trump school choice push is officially killed off for fiscal 2018. But more generally, the education department could still see a cut based on how those bills treat the agency, even if other domestic discretionary programs get a slice of that $37 billion increase. Photo: The U.S. Capitol in Washington. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP) Follow us on Twitter at @PoliticsK12 . Two brothers charged with a deadly brawl which broke out an hour before a teenager was struck and killed by a car have been granted bail. Fahed Hishmeh, 35, and his 29-year-old brother Kayed were arrested on serious charges relating to a number of violent incidents stretching across the Perth suburb of Canning Vale on December 7. Both were granted $15,000 bail with the conditions of curfew and are banned from leaving Western Australia, PerthNow reports. Fahed Hishmeh, 35, and his 29-year-old brother Kayed were arrested on serious charges relating to a number of violent incidents stretching across the Perth suburb of Canning Vale (pictured) Both were granted $15,000 bail with the conditions of curfew and are banned from leaving Western Australia The men were allegedly involved in fights outside a McDonald's restaurant at Livingstone Marketplace, where two youths were stabbed. Following the brawl Fahed was charged with intent to cause grievous bodily harm, while Kayed faces a charge of intent to do grievous bodily harm to unlawfully wound another. An hour after the fight escalated outside of the fast food store, 17-year-old Jacob Cummins was hit and killed by a car while waiting at a bus stop. The two violent incidents are believed to be linked. Aya Hishmeh, 20, was charged with murder after she was alleged to have deliberately run down Mr Cummins and four other youths with her car. An hour after the fight escalated outside of the fast food store, 17-year-old Jacob Cummins (pictured left and right) was hit and killed by a car while waiting at a bus stop Aya Hishmeh, 20, (pictured) was charged with murder after she was alleged to have deliberately run down Mr Cummins and four other youths with her car Ms Hishmeh (pictured) faced court last month charged with his murder and four separate counts of attempting to kill Mr Cummins smashed through the windscreen of the red Nissan Skyline after being struck, and was raced to Fiona Stanley Hospital in a critical condition, where he later died of his injuries. Ms Hishmeh faced court last month charged with his murder and four separate counts of attempting to kill. She sobbed as the Magistrate read out her charges and asked her if she understood, according to the ABC. Her family was present in court, and her father yelled 'we love you bubba, we all love you' as she was taken away. She has been remanded in custody, and is scheduled to appear in court in January. CCTV footage has captured the moment a father-of-four 'deliberately' ploughed his rental van into Muslim worshippers near a mosque. Darren Osborne is accused of killing Makram Ali and injuring several others after his hired van mounted a pavement near in Finsbury Park, north London, on June 19. Police have now released footage revealing Osborne's movements in the two days before the incident, including one video that shows his van seconds before it crashes into pedestrians. Two images also show Osborne renting the van from a firm in Cardiff before he drove to London, where he asked for directions to the nearest mosque, prosecutors say. CCTV from later in the day was taken from a pub - where Osborne is said to have 'preached racial hate' - and shows him composing a note that was found in the van. The 'hate letter', written at the Hollybush Pub in Pentwyn, near Cardiff, branded Jeremy Corbyn a 'terrorist sympathiser' and Sadiq Khan a 'disgrace'. Haunting images show Darren Osborne renting the van he used to allegedly plough into Muslim worshippers near a mosque More footage taken from a pub which Osborne is said to have 'preached racial hate' shows him composed a letter to parliament, two days before going to London In more footage, the white van (boxed) driven by Osborne is seen passing Lewisham Islamic Centre CCTV shows a group of Muslim worshippers gathered at the junction of Whadcoat Street and Seven Sisters Road shortly before the incident occured CCTV footage captured the moment just before the father-of-four 'deliberately' ploughed his rental van into Muslim worshippers near a mosque He is seen writing on paper as he sits at a table, before heading back to the bar, where he is later ushered away by the landlord. Jurors then saw footage, recorded a day later, of victim Makram Ali collapsing shortly before a van drives into the group, which had flocked to his aid. In the footage, a white van turns sharply left, mounts the curb and ploughs into the group of people, some of which later spill onto the nearby bus lane. Osborne spoke to several people on his way through London to ask directions to the nearest mosque, claiming he was in the city to attend 'a protest'. Andrew Sutherland explained how he met Osborne outside a co-op in Forest Hill, south east London at about 8pm on June 18. He said Osborne asked him 'where the nearest mosque was located'. Mr Sutherland added: 'Taken aback by the question, I took a step back. 'The male could see I was surprised, and said 'it's okay, I am here for a protest'. I told him there were no mosques in the area. I could see he was very agitated.' Later that night, at 11pm, Osborne met engineer Cecil Pond by the Blackwell Tunnel who gave him directions. In a statement, Mr Pond added: 'He said he wanted directions for Finsbury Park. This male was sweating and he looked nervous.' Osborne followed him, and as they drove through Hackney, Mr Pond indicated where he should go. Mr Pond added: 'I felt very unhappy, because all I had done was give him directions.' After arriving in the area, Osborne asked Jamie Berridge where the Finsbury Park mosque was. Mr Berridge said he asked him why he wanted to go there, adding: 'He said there's going to be some sort of protest.' Woolwich Crown Court today heard how the 48-year-old had received messages from far-right parties in the days and weeks before the incident. Darren Osborne is accused of a van attack on a group of Muslims in Finsbury Park, killing one. A court heard today he received a message from Britain First deputy Jayda Frasen (right) Footage shows Osborne heading into the Hollybush Pub in Pentwyn, near Cardiff, where he bought a drink and wrote a letter Osborne is seen asking a bartender for a pen, before he sits down at a table and writes a letter Osborne is seen crossing the road outside the Lewisham Muslim Centre in the hours before the incident in Finsbury Park Makram Ali was killed in the incident. Osborne, pictured in a court sketch, denies murder Jurors were taken through a timeline of internet activity on two iPhones and Osborne's daughter's iPad, which were seized from his address. In the two weeks before the incident, he carried out searches on Google into Britain First's deputy leader Jayda Fransen, and its leader Paul Golding, including looking at their Twitter accounts, the court heard. Britain First were described in court as a 'far-right, ultra nationalist' organisation. They recently gained publicity when President Trump retweeted three inflammatory videos posted by Ms Fransen. Osborne received an email from Twitter on June 3 to complete his account, and a message from Jayda Fransen the same day, the court heard. What did Darren Osborne write in his 'hate letter'? Darren Osborne stands in court (pictured) Below is a transcript of the letter written by Darren Osborne, read out in court by Jonathan Rees QC: Why are their terrorists on our streets today? Weve had 3 Recent terror attacks, our children splattered against the walls of concerts, part n parcel by all accounts, Mr Sadiq Khan, no it isn't how you can let this happen, terrorists marching through our capital city, you're a disgrace where was the public outrage after 1400 of our white british none muslim girls? Where were you in Rotherham Lily allen Jeremy Corby nowhere to be seen, Just thinking about how many more inbred migrants you can bring into the country, the local harbour map of Rotherham mr Hussain wrote of character Reference For one of the rapists in court, really now, hang on a minute am I missing something here, where was you all, Jez & lil? Don't you fancy getting involved in that the only protest within the muslim community were when taxi drivers were asked to put cctv in their cars, seriously your taking the piss, mr Hussain has been promoted. Don't people get it, this is happening up and down our Green and pleasant land, Ferrel inbred raping muslim men hunting in packs preying on our children, this will be coming to a town near you soon, it most probably has, get back to the desert, you raping inbred bastards & climb back on ya camels. people don't be swayed by corbyn & his Free packed lunch, & uni fees think of your childrens future, islams ideology doesn't belong here & neither does Sharia law. So mr Sadiq Khan how are you this morning? I'd imagine your gonna have a hard job keeping your happy go lucky vibrant city in order, Part n parcel of living in a big city, carry on as normal, bk to ya day Jobs, what about you Jez? Mr terrorist sympathiser, or should I call you harold, "you dirty old man" put that in ya pipe, & have some sympathy for me, well Folkes gotta go busy day today. Remember peaceful vigils only & please dont look back in anger, God Save the Queen. The 'hate letter' branded Labour leader Corbyn a 'terrorist sympathiser' and the Mayor of London Sadiq Khan a 'disgrace' Advertisement Osborne allegedly drove this hired van onto the pavement and into a crowd near the mosque Jonathan Rees QC, prosecuting, said: 'Jayda Fransen sends a direct Twitter message. We can see it's scheduled as from Jayda Fransen to Darren Osborne. 'Hot on the heels of receiving that message from Jayda Fransen on Twitter, there is the London Bridge, Borough Market terrorist attack.' On June 4, he searched for Tommy Robinson, the co-founder and former spokesman of the English Defence League, Woolwich Crown Court was told. Osborne also received a message from former EDL leader Tommy Robinson in the build-up to the alleged attack, a court heard He also searched for Jayda Fransen, including her tweet about the London Bridge attack, as well as researching Mr Golding on 'similar topics'. Articles about Fusilier Lee Rigby's murder and the Manchester bombing had also been looked at. Two days later, there was material accessed about Muslims apparently celebrating an attack, and searches about about Islamic State supporters celebrating the Manchester attack online. He also searched for Alex Jones and his website Infowars, described as a 'conspiracy theory and fake news website', the court was told. That night, there was a search for 'which party wants to bring back the death penalty'. Other topics searched were about Rochdale, including its mayor, local MPs and MEPs, and its former MP Simon Danczuk. Osborne later received a message in the name of Tommy Robinson encouraging him to take part in a rally in Manchester on June 11, it was said. The build-up to the Finsbury Park 'attack' May 16 - Osborne watches Three Girls, a BBC drama about grooming in Rochdale. His ex-partner said the programme was a catalyst for him becoming 'obsessed' with Muslims. June 3 - Osborne set up his Twitter account and on the same day he received a direct message from Jayda Fransen. June 6 - He searched for 'which party wants to bring back the death penalty'. June 9 - Osborne received an email alert from ex-EDL leader Robinson, now a commentator for The Rebel. June 14 - He received another email from Robinson about the case of a woman in Sunderland who Robinson claims was 'raped and beaten by middle eastern migrants'. June 17 - Osborne searched online for Tommy Robinson again. He picks up the van he used in the attack. June 19 - Osborne alleged drove onto a pavement in Finsbury Park. Mr Ali died from multiple injuries at the scene at 1.04am. Advertisement The email in the name of Tommy Robinson referred to the Manchester Arena suicide bombing on May 22, stating: 'What Salman Abedi did isn't the beginning, it won't be the end. 'There's a nation within a nation forming. It's a nation built on hatred, violence, and Islam. 'It's now been left to us, the ordinary people of the UK, to stand against hatred, and with one voice to say no more. 'That's why on Sunday the 11th of June, we will stand together in Manchester in opposition to hate. We will rally to demand action. We will make ourselves impossible to ignore.' He also received a message on June 14 asking, 'Darren, will you help me get justice', about a campaign for a woman said to have been raped 'by a gang of men' in Sunderland. Both ended 'yours truly, Tommy Robinson', the court heard. There were further searches for Tommy Robinson on June 17. Mr Rees said: 'That was the day on which Mr Osborne picked up the van. Having picked up the van, those tweets and web searches follow that. Google searches for Tommy Robinson.' This included a tweet from Mr Robinson replying to someone, saying, 'you anarchist why didn't you point fingers after Manchester. Instead celebrities said let's love each other'. Another of his tweets referred to 'anger when the Muslims bomb our kids, we were told not to look back in anger', the court heard. Osborne also searched for Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, and his comment about being prepared for terror attacks 'part and parcel of living in a major city', it was said. This was the scene in Finsbury Park following the incident after 12.15am on June 19 last year He searched for Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, and references to 'Mr Corbyn's low political ploy of playing on the anger of Grenfell Tower victims', the court heard. Before visiting the Hollybush pub on June 17, he searched for Mr Khan and Mr Robinson. This included looking at a tweet by Mr Robinson saying, 'where was the day of rage after the terrorist attacks? All I saw was lighting candles'. Osborne, of Cardiff, denies murder and attempted murder. The trial continues. A skydiver was killed on Monday after landing on the roof of a home in the city of Perris in Riverside County, California. The wingsuit diver was racing another jumper in midair when he collided, rendering him unconscious and leaving him unable to pull the rip-cord on his chute. The collision sent the parachutist plummeting straight to the ground at more than a hundred miles an hour. There was little chance for his parachute or reserve chute to be deployed before he slammed into the the roof of a house in the town, 70 miles east of Los Angeles. A skydiver was killed after crashing into the rooftop of a house in Perris, southern California Residents witnessed the tragic accident as the man plummeted into the roof at more than a hundred miles per hour The impact was so loud it was heard by a mother and daughter who were in the home at the time of the tragic event. They went outside to see what had happened but were not prepared for what they saw. 'It's just overwhelming. I am going to have dinner but somebody just passed away on my roof! How do you move on from here?' said Ela Cena Blanco trying to hold back tears as she spoke with KCAL9/CBS2. 'I feel for his mom and his dad, his brothers and sisters - and i don't even know him. I pray that he was with God.' she continued. Elicena Blanco, 47, and her daughter, Christina, 20, were both shaken up at the freak accident which occurred when they were both inside their home getting ready for dinner Her 20-year-old daughter Christina also heard the man crash into their rooftop and was shaken up by what happened. 'I was in my room and heard a really loud noise like and earthquake. I was in complete shock. He just passed away on top of our home. I was like, no, this cant be happening!' she said in a state of disbelief. Ali Mahassan saw the tragic crash happen capturing the aftermath with his cellphone 'You know he went out to do something fun with his friends and it ended just like that!' she said. Across the road Ali Mahassan saw the crash with his own eyes and was also disturbed by what he saw. 'He hit that house hard. He was unconscious before he hit the home. He came down vertically and his head was down and his arms were rocking back and forth once he hit.' The skydiver who was from Canada was a 27-year-old man but he has not been officially named. However, he was supposedly one of the best elite jumpers in the world with more than a thousand successful jumps under his belt when the freak accident event occurred. He came to Perris for an international competition that involved wingsuit racing. The home is coincidentally less than a mile away from the so-called California 'house of horrors', where Louise and David Turpin kept captive, starved and tortured their 13 children Police were on scene quickly to try and establish the cause of the accident Paramedics raced to the scene in the hope of saving the man's life, but there was no hope Riverside County Firefighters along with Cal Fire were on the scene quickly according to CBS Los Angeles. The home is coincidentally less than a mile away from the so-called California 'house of horrors', where Louise and David Turpin kept captive, starved and tortured their 13 children. According to officials, the first arriving engine company were met with the gruesome sight of the dead jumper's body which was lying on the roof. Riverside County Sheriff's Deputy Mike Vasquez said he did not know what caused the fall, which skydiving center oversaw the jump or from what altitude the man had jumped. The Sheriff's Department reported the death to the National Transportation Safety Board for investigation, Vasquez said. Skydiving deaths are rare. In 2016, the United States Parachute Association recorded 21 fatal skydiving accidents in the country out of roughly 3.2 million jumps, according to its website. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has accused the Australian court system of going easy on foreign-born criminals so they aren't deported to their home countries. He said 'soft pedaling' was becoming an all too familiar theme in their sentencing, with judges opting to dish out lighter penalties to keep them on Australian soil. The country's tough laws demand foreign offenders be deported if they are sentenced to a year or more in jail. But Mr Dutton claims the courts have been purposely refraining from imposing such penalties, A Current Affair reports. Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton (pictured) accused the Australian court system of going easy on foreign-born criminals so they aren't deported to their home countries His accusation comes as several high profile cases have seen foreign-born criminals walk away with suspended sentences or probation, making them free to stay in the country. 'Some people are getting a soft touch because they are not citizens of this country,' he said. Caleb Maraku was filmed brutally punching a 19-year-old man in Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast on November 27 during last year's Schoolies celebrations. Maraku was handed a 12-month good behaviour bond after pleading guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm, and was seen laughing and joking with reporters as he left court. The Magistrate described Maraku as a 'very lucky man', saying his disgusting attack 'could have ended in this person's death'. Caleb Maraku (pictured) was filmed brutally punching a 19-year-old man in Surfers Paradise on the Gold Coast on November 27 during last year's Schoolies celebrations He was handed a 12-month good behaviour bond after pleading guilty to assault occasioning bodily harm Mr Dutton said across the board something had to change in order for community expectations surrounding sentencing to be met. 'If magistrates are imposing softer sentences because they're worried about somebody being eligible to be deported then that really undermines public confidence in the judiciary and it needs to stop,' he said. Criminal lawyer Bill Potts slammed Mr Dutton's comments, arguing in favour of the country's justice system. 'It's not appropriate for ordinary people in the street to suddenly think that because a minister is criticising the courts, that somehow the system of justice does not work,' he said. Attorney General Jeff Sessions has ordered an investigation into missing text messages exchanged between two Federal Bureau of Investigation staffers accused of expressing views against President Donald Trump, the Justice Department said Tuesday. Texts between FBI agent Peter Strzok and FBI lawyer Lisa Page exchanged between Dec. 14, 2016, and May 17, 2017, are among a broader batch of missing phone messages that the FBI says its system failed to store because of a software upgrade glitch on many Samsung 5 cellphones. The White House called them evidence of potential illegality at a briefing on Tuesday, and said the president believes it is of 'great cause for concern'. Trump earlier tweeted they were 'one of the biggest stories in a long time'. Republicans have said the texts, which referred to Trump as an 'idiot' and a 'loathsome human,' raise concerns the FBI is biased against Trump and may have given Hillary Clinton, his Democratic presidential rival, favorable treatment after deciding not to recommend criminal charges in connection with the investigation of her use of a private email system while she was secretary of state. Strzok and Page were involved in that investigation and were briefly assigned to work with Special Counsel Robert Mueller on the investigation of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election. The White House said Tuesday that a trove of missing messages between two FBI officials who were caught deriding the president before the election may point to 'possibly illegal behavior' and the president believes it is of 'great cause for concern Attorney General Jeff Sessions ordered officials in the Department of Justice to 'leave no stone unturned' in their search for the 50,000 missing texts between the FBI agent and his lawyer lover The Justice Department last week revealed a critical gap in messages between Peter Strzok, a counterintelligence agent who worked on Hillary Clinton's email case, and Lisa Page, an agent who worked with Strzok for a time on the special counsel investigation into Russian election interference President Donald Trump put the spotlight back on the FBI agents he'd previously accused of 'treason' in an early-morning tweet Reports said the texts between them were exchanged on FBI-issued phones during the course of an alleged extramarital affair. Mueller was appointed on May 17, the same day when some of the text messages were not properly stored. 'We will leave no stone unturned to confirm with certainty why these text messages are not now available to be produced and will use every technology available to determine whether the missing messages are recoverable from another source,' Sessions said in a statement. President Donald Trump put the spotlight back on the FBI agents he'd previously accused of 'treason' in an early-morning tweet. 'In one of the biggest stories in a long time, the FBI now says it is missing five months worth of lovers Strzok-Page texts, perhaps 50,000, and all in prime time. Wow!' he said. His press secretary stepped up the assault later, at her daily briefing, after she was asked if the White House believes that the missing messages are part of a cover-up. 'I think he thinks that there's a great cause for concern that five months worth of text messages have gone missing,' Sarah Sanders said, 'particularly given the individual had part of that process has already been shown to be extremely biased against the president and was involved in what seems to be some very inappropriate behavior and that's certainly a great concern.' Sanders said it 'looks like there could be some really inappropriate and possibly illegal behavior' at play. The Justice Department last week revealed a critical gap in messages between Peter Strzok, a counterintelligence agent who worked on Hillary Clinton's email case, and Lisa Page, an agent who worked with Strzok for a time on the special counsel investigation into Russian election interference. Texts the pair sent each other between December 14, 2017 and May 17, 2017 are missing, the department informed Congress. Justice has blamed a glitch in its record-keeping system for the blackout. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that Justice is taking all available actions to recover the missing messages. Not including the missing communications, Fox News reported, the FBI has over 50,000 texts that Strzok, who was removed from special counsel Robert Mueller's team when the original messages were unearthed, and Page, who had already left the investigation, sent to one another. The messages are expected to be made public by Congress, CBS reported. Previously published texts show Strzok suggesting the bureau invest in an 'insurance policy' in case Trump is elected. 'I want to believe the path you threw out for consideration...that there's no way he gets electedbut I'm afraid we can't take that risk. It's like an insurance policy in the unlikely event you die before you're 40,' he told Page in an August 2016 text. Lawmakers said Monday that they were shocked by the incomplete record-keeping. The messages from the period of time that was wiped covers the end of the transition to the time that Mueller was tasked with leading a special probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. House Oversight Committee Chairman Trey Gowdy told Fox News yesterday evening that an exchange between Strzok and Page the day after the election said, ''Perhaps this is the first meeting of the secret society.'' 'So, of course I'm going to want to know: What 'secret society' are you talking about?' the Republican congressman said on 'The Story with Martha MacCallum.' A letter from Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs Stephen Boyd to Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson on Friday said that the Department of Justice had learned 'that many FBI-provided Samsung 5 mobile devices did not capture or store text messages.' The bureau told DOJ that messages were not retained 'due to misconfiguration issues related to rollouts, provisioning, and software upgrades that conflicted with the FBI's collection capabilities.' DOJ's explanation of how the messages disappeared had Republican lawmakers fuming. His press secretary stepped up the assault later, at her daily briefing, after she was asked if the White House believes that the missing messages are part of a cover-up. 'I think he thinks that there's a great cause for concern that five months worth of text messages have gone missing,' Sarah Sanders said 'Unreal. We've been asking for the remaining text messages between anti-Trump FBI agents (and former Mueller team members), Peter Strzok and Lisa Page. The FBI now says the texts are 'missing,' ' Rep. Mark Meadows, leader of a group of conservatives known as the House Freedom Caucus, tweeted. 'If it wasn't already clear we need a second special counsel, it's abundantly clear now'. Flabbergasted, Meadows told Fox, 'They're supposed to be out tracking terrorism and we can't even find our own text messages?' Sessions told congressional committees on Friday that the Department of Justice's Inspector General is looking into the matter. '[A] review is already underway to ascertain what occurred and to determine if these records can be recovered in any other way,' he said. 'If any wrongdoing were to be found to have caused this gap, appropriate legal disciplinary action measures will be taken.' Prior to the revelation that the FBI was missing the large volume of communications, President Trump had attacked Strzok and Page in a Wall Street Journal interview and accused them of 'treason' for the way they spoke about him before the election. 'There was no collusion on our side, the collusion was on the Democrat side with the Russians. And what went on with the FBI, where a man is tweeting to his lover that if she loses, we'll essentially go back to the - we'll go to the insurance policy, which is - if they lose, we'll go to phase two, and we'll get this guy out of office. 'I mean, this is the FBI we're talking about. I think that isthat is treason. See, that's treason right there,' he stated. In December, after Strozk was removed from the special counsel probe because of the text messages, Trump said the FBI's reputation was in 'tatters' because of mismanagement under James Comey, the former director of the bureau the president fired in May. 'But fear not, we will bring it back to greatness,' he pledged. Busy Philipps flew to be with best friend Michelle Williams on the 10th anniversary of her late boyfriend Heath Ledger's death, just as she was by her side in the wake of the tragedy. Heath died from an accidental drug overdose in New York on 22 January 2008 and a number of stars who were close to the Australian actor posted moving tributes to mark his anniversary. But this is the first time Michelle was pictured on what was undoubtedly a sad day for her and daughter Matilda, who is now 12 years old. It's OK: Busy Philipps flew to be by Michelle Williams's side on the 10th anniversary of her late boyfriend Heath Ledger's death, who died of an accidental drug overdose Remember: The best friends looked teary eyed in a video Busy posted to her Instagram story in which they were listening to the Cranberries hit song Linger In love: Michelle and Heath dated for 4 years before his death in 2008. They have one child together, Matilda, who is now 12 years old On Monday evening, Busy posted a series of photos and videos to her Instagram account chronicling the emotional day, at the end of which Michelle can be seen crying on her shoulder. She captioned the photo: 'It's OK.' In a video posted a few minutes later, the pair are listening to Linger by the Cranberries. The band's lead singer Dolores O'Riordan was found dead last week in a London hotel room in circumstances which chillingly echo those of Heath's death. The actor was found by his housekeeper in the bed of his New York apartment. A toxicology report later showed he died accidentally from a mixture of prescription drugs. Busy stayed with Michelle in her Brooklyn apartment in the wake of the 2008 tragedy to offer emotional support and she made sure to be by her side 10 years later. Happy times: Heath was remembered by a number of stars who were close to the actor yesterday, but Michelle Williams only appeared in her friend Busy's Instagram story Tearful: Busy Philipps can be seen crying in her car in an Instagram video while Time to Pretend by MGMT played. She said it reminded her of Heath Ledger who died in 2008 Earlier that day, the Cougar Town actress posted another tearful Instagram video, in which she confessed she was thinking of The Dark Knight star after hearing MGMT's song Time To Pretend on the radio. 'I was just driving and I was thinking about my friend Heath, who died 10 years ago,' she said. 'And this song came on, Time To Pretend, which came out after he had passed away. And I remember when it came out because I thought, it made me think of him. 'I just thought he would have liked this song, you know?' Holding back tears, Busy continued: 'And for some reason I just... every time I... hear this song, I... and I was just... it's weird, that's all.' President Trump said Tuesday that while a deal to save the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program isn't certain, last weekend's government shutdown didn't help to move the ball forward. 'Nobody knows for sure that the Republicans & Democrats will be able to reach a deal on DACA by February 8, but everyone will be trying....with a big additional focus put on Military Strength and Border Security,' Trump tweeted. 'The Dems have just learned that a Shutdown is not the answer!' Donald Trump said Tuesday that a government shutdown wasn't the right way to force Congress into a deal to save the DACA program 'Nobody knows' if lawmakers can pass a DACA fix by their Feb. 8 deadline, Trump tweeted Senators on both sides of the aisle cut a deal Monday that reopened the government through February 8, based on the promise that Republicans would put a measure saving the DACA program to a vote by then. DACA is an Obama-era system that halted the deportation of people brought to the U.S. illegally as minors. The brief shutdown ended Monday night when Trump signed the short-term spending bill after the House passed a resolution to restore funding that had cleared the Senate hours earlier. The key development came when Senate Democrats accepted a deal to reopen the government after Majority Leader Mitch McConnell pledged to take up immigration legislation. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer announced that 'the Republican leader and I have come to an arrangement. It is a good solution.'. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (left) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (right) struck a deal Monday to re-open the government in exchange for a promise to take up an immigration bill in the coming weeks Trump announced in September that he intended to wind down the DACA program, and gave Congress six months to enact a law saving it. That created significant leverage that the president is using to win passage of the rest of his immigration agenda. He wants a guarantee of funding to build his promised wall between the U.S. and Mexico, along with the end of a 'diversity visa lottery' system that awards green cards to people based on their countries of origin. Trump is also demanding the Congress change a 'chain migration' law that permits immigrants to 'sponsor' a wide range of relatives once they're accepted into the U.S. The president has said that he won't consider signing a DACA-fix bill that doesn't include those elements. Six fifth-graders in Albuquerque accidentally ate marijuana-infused candy at school. The candy was handed out at Albuquerque School of Excellence by a nine-year-old female student who brought it from home earlier this month, not knowing it was laced with THC, according to the Detroit Free Press. One student reported feeling dizzy after eating the candy, and another said they couldn't see. Some said they were 'giggly'. A nine-year-old student accidentally brought THC-infused candy to her elementary school, Albuquerque School of Excellence (pictured) earlier this month The student who brought the candy to school ate five pieces and then told the school nurse she thought she had food poisoning. School officials quickly figured out what had happened by looking at the packaging the gummies came in. Dean of elementary students Kristi Del Curto said: 'She thought she was sharing candy, and if you saw the picture on the box, it did look like candy. 'She told the nurse that she was feeling sick and was very dizzy and that she thought she had food poisoning from something she ate in the cafeteria. 'The nurse asked her what else she had eaten, and she said gummies. We asked to see the box, which had been tossed in the trash after it was empty.' Five other students came forward and said they had eaten the candy. Teachers at the state charter school then called the students' parents, authorities and paramedics. The effects of the marijuana did not last. Del Curto told the Detroit Free Press: 'We were very lucky.' Pictured is the brand of marijuana-infused candy the student mistook for regular gummies. Six students tried the candy, but none experienced lasting effects from it Albuquerque School of Excellence called authorities, paramedics and the parents of the students who tried the candy after they figured out what had happened She added that the edibles the student brought in belonged to her grandfather. After the incident the school called a meeting and gave a crash course on the effects of edible marijuana. 'We reminded them that this is why we have a policy of no food or drink from homes,' Del Curto said. She told KRQE-TV: 'As marijuana becomes legal in each state it's going to become more and more of an issue, I believe.' The CDC said: 'Eating foods or drinking beverages that contain marijuana have some different risks than smoking marijuana, including a greater risk of poisoning. It is also important to remember that marijuana affects children differently than adults.' Mr Steley has called for a Royal Commission into the high level of veteran suicide He then slammed the Department for 'cold and uncaring' treatment of veterans When calling up to discuss medical bills, Doug Steley was told he was deceased A man has been mistakenly declared dead by the Department of Veterans Affairs A veteran calling the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) to query his unpaid medical bills has been told by an operator that he is dead. Doug Steley served in the RAAF from 1974 to 1981, and now suffers from PTSD, depression and anxiety caused by his military service. Speaking to 9NEWS, Mr Steley slammed the Department for its 'cold and uncaring treatment' of veterans who 'are already damaged by [their] service to Australia.' Doug Steley slammed the Department of Veterans Affairs for its 'cold and uncaring treatment' Doug Steley served in the RAAF from 1974-1981, and suffers from PTSD, depression and anxiety 'The switchboard operator started asking the usual identity and security questions,' he explained. 'This went on for about 45 minutes with little progress until she finally told me: 'The only Doug Steley we have is dead'.' It wasn't until three months later that he was informed the DVA had confused his records with his Uncle Douglas Steleey's - a World War II veteran who passed away six months beforehand. A letter from the then-Minister for Veterans Affairs went blamed Mr Steley for phoning the wrong number for his query. 'I can see how so many incidents like this can push some of our ex-service men and women over the edge,' said Mr Steley, who is an activist working to reduce veteran suicide rates. 'We protected Australia. We protected the politicians. We need someone to do the same for us now. Eighty five deaths in one year. We need a royal commission into veterans suicides. He pointed out that the government held a royal commission into the four deaths caused by a rood insulation scheme, and 'our ex-service veterans deserve the same respect.' Mr Steley is passionate about veteran suicide awareness and has called for a royal commission Mr Steley has drawn the public attention to veteran suicide with the 'Veteran Chalk Challenge' A spokesperson declined to comment on Mr Steley's case, but acknowledged that some veterans and their families had a 'difficult experience' in dealing with the DVA. The statement said that a 'significant transformation programme' was under way at the department, designed to place veterans and their families 'at the centre of everything we do'. 'In the 201718 Budget the government provided $166.6 million for the first stage of Veteran Centric Reform, which is supporting our efforts to modernise our technology and transform the way we interact with veterans and their families.' Approximately 84 veterans died by suicide in 2017, and Mr Steley has helped draw public attention to the issue of veteran suicide by launching the 'Veteran Chalk Challenge'. The 'legal graffiti' is another call for a royal commission into the cause of veterans' suicides Participants scrawl the 84 figure on public surfaces and post it on Facebook and Twitter with the hashtag #veteranchalkchallenge. The 'legal graffiti' is another call for a royal commission into the cause of veterans' suicides, and into 'what we believe is a link between the Department of Veterans Affairs and these suicides', he told The Age. However, the 84 number is only 'a conservative estimate' since the government does not keep specific records regarding veteran deaths. In January, new information regarding suicides last year came to light, changing the number to 86. A North Carolina mom criticized Twitter and its regulations after she came across a poster promoting abortion with a picture of her severely disabled daughter splashed across it. Natalie Weaver reported the hateful tweet posted by user @OBSIDIANSMOAK this week. The reported message first read: 'It is okay to think that every child matters however a lot of them do not hence the amnio test.' The poster went on to say: '(It) should be a mandatory test and if it proves negative and the woman does not want to abort then all bills accrued after that is on her and the father.' A Twitter user shared a pro-abortion poster with a photo of Natalie Weaver's severely disabled daughter Sophia Natalie Weaver reported the hateful tweet posted by user @OBSIDIANSMOAK this week Twitter at first declined the mother's request to suspend the person's account After her report, Twitter initially declined Weaver's request, and suggested there was nothing wrong with the poster. Weaver received a message that read: 'Hello, thank you for your recent report. We have reviewed your report carefully and found that there was no violation of the Twitter rules against abusive behavior.' Furious, Weaver, the founder of Advocates for Medically Fragile Kids North Carolina, took to her page to share her disapproval over the matter. '@TwitterSupport Just received an email that Twitter doesn't think a person using my child's image as the poster child to ABORT & to weed out all the 'defectives' in utero is a violation. Furious, Weaver took to her social media page to share her disapproval over the matter The mother is also the founder of Advocates for Medically Fragile Kids North Carolina The organization's goal is to 'educate and empower families to advocate for their medically fragile children' and make sure children have all of their healthcare needs met, according to the website 'Why? Bc they won't recognize hate toward ppl w/ disabilities in their regulations/reports,' she wrote. The mother's message instantly went viral - with thousands of people showing their support for Weaver and her concerns. After receiving backlash, Twitter confirmed in a statement that they decided to suspend @OBSIDIANSMOAK's account. The social network company said: 'Our goal is to create a safe environment for everyone on Twitter to express themselves freely. After reviewing your earlier report, it appears as though we missed a violation. After receiving backlash, Twitter confirmed in a statement that they decided to suspend @OBSIDIANSMOAK's account 'We suspended the account you reported as it was found to be participating in abusive behavior. We apologize for this error.' WHAT IS RETT SYNDROME? Rett syndrome is a rare brain disorder that mostly affects girls. It is typically diagnosed in infants and toddlers, according to WebMD Symptoms include slowed brain growth, decline of social and language skills, trouble breathing, problems walking and using hands Advertisement In a Twitter safety statement published last month, the company explained its current code of conduct regarding hate speech and imagery. 'Hateful imagery will now be considered sensitive media under our media policy. We consider hateful imagery to be logos, symbols, or images whose purpose is to promote hostility and malice against others based on their race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, or ethnicity/national origin. 'If this type of content appears in header or profile images, we will now accept profile-level reports and require account owners to remove any violating media.' Weaver's nine-year-old daughter Sophia suffers a rare brain disorder, Rett syndrome, which mostly affects girls and is typically found between the age of 1-2, according to WebMD. Her nine-year-old daughter Sophia suffers a rare brain disorder, Rett syndrome, which mostly affects girls and typically found between the age of 1-2, according to WebMD 'The Hate & Stares I received when Sophia was a baby were painful & made me hide away for 7yrs,' Weaver also said Sunday Symptoms include slowed brain growth, decline of social and language skills, trouble breathing, problems walking and using hands. Weaver shared to her Twitter page that Sophia also suffers from facial deformities. 'The Hate & Stares I received when Sophia was a baby were painful & made me hide away for 7yrs,' she said Sunday, alongside a tearful video message. 'I decided over a year ago to stand up & fight against this! I will not be silenced by hate! Thank you for supporting us!' ACT has added a new, free test-preparation service to its lineup. The Iowa-based testing company announced Tuesday that the ACT Academy, billed as both an online learning tool and test practice, will debut this spring. The new service will let students sign on whenever they want, and use video lessons, interactive practice questions, games, and full-length practice tests. Those items will be customized for them based on diagnostics housed in the ACT Academy, or their scores on the ACT college-entrance exam, the pre-ACT, or official practice ACT exams. ACT Inc. offers a different kind of online test prep for $40. In 2016, the company partnered with Kaplan Test Prep to add live teaching, streamed online, to its online courses . Those are courses given at specified times, and students pay $100 to $250 for them. (Low-income students who sign up for the ACT with a fee waiver can take the courses for free.) In contrast, the ACT Academy can be used anytime, and will be free. ACT Academy is a collection of resources authored by a variety of organizations, including OpenEd, an open-education-resources collection that ACT bought in 2016; the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the Public Broadcasting Service, according to the ACT. It will also link to existing free resources by the Khan Academy, a key partner of the College Board for that companys three-year-old Official SAT Practice . That service is also free and customized based on students performance. ACT Academy will help students improve their readiness for the ACT test and college and career by giving them the resources they need to increase their understanding of core academic skills, Suzana Delanghe, ACTs chief commercial officer, said in a statement Tuesday. And the fact that ACT Academy will be free to all students is yet another way ACT is working to close gaps in equity, opportunity, and achievement for underserved learners. ACT and the College Board are engaged in intense competition for market share , aiming hard for statewide and districtwide testing contracts as a key lever in that battle. Theyve each also taken steps to reach more students with free services such as test prep and free score reports . Get High School & Beyond posts delivered to your inbox as soon as theyre published. Sign up here . Also, for news and analysis of issues that shape adolescents preparation for work and higher education. Sam James, 60, claimed he worked long and hard for his father throughout his career on the 'promise' that one day the hundreds of valuable acres at Pennymore Pitt Farm, near Gillingham, Dorset, would be his A farmer's son who devoted his entire working life to his father's farm has been left with nothing after a court ruled his elderly mother and sisters should have the 3million estate. Sam James, 60, claimed he worked long and hard for his father throughout his career on the 'promise' that one day the hundreds of valuable acres would be his. But when his father Allen James died aged 81 in 2012 he was 'completely cut out' of the will, which instead gave his fortune to his mother Sandra, 79 and sisters Karen James, 58, and Serena Underwood, 58. He contested it, claiming he was promised the land, but the High Court in London has ruled Mr James was well within his rights to leave his son out of his fortune. In a judgement published yesterday, Judge Paul Matthews said: 'In my judgment, Sam's eagerness to inherit the farmland from his father has caused him to persuade himself that he was being promised something when he was not. Allen James did not intend his words in that way, and did not intend them to be relied upon subsequently by Sam. 'It is not consistent with the image of Mr James as someone who kept everything in his own hands and did not confide in others.' The court heard Sam James left school early and worked for the family business on Pennymore Pitt Farm, near Gillingham, Dorset, for nearly 35 years. The court heard Sam James left school early and worked for the family business on Pennymore Pitt Farm (pictured from above), near Gillingham, Dorset, for nearly 35 years He was an 'absolute grafter', who 'worked his socks off', said his barrister, Penelope Reed QC, during the case. He worked increasingly hard as his dad grew older, eventually becoming the 'driving force' of the business, she claimed. Mr James said that in 2004 his father, a 'frugal' man, gave instructions to his solicitor to draw up a will giving the hundreds of acres of lands, cows, sheep and farm buildings to him. But his mother, who lives in a farmhouse on the land, 'took exception to it' and the document was never executed, Miss Reed said. She claimed the farm should have been Sam Allen's due to his father's 'assurances' that he would inherit it. And she said the ultimate will that disinherited him was signed when the elderly farmer lacked the legal capacity to make a valid will. He contested the will inheriting everything to his mothers and sisters, claiming he was promised the land (pictured), but the High Court in London has ruled Mr James was well within his rights to leave his son out of his fortune Dismissing Sam's claims, Judge Matthews said: 'I do not doubt that he believed that he would inherit the farm when his father died. 'I also accept that the defendants were aware, at least in general terms, of Sam's belief, even if they did not agree with it. 'But I am not satisfied that Allen James ever made any promise or assurance to give or leave Pennymore to him. 'On the contrary, as Sam also said, Mr James did not make promises to transfer property.' Mr Allen Jnr had not worked for nothing in the family business, where he was particularly involved in their haulage firm, the judge added. On the contrary, he had been made a partner and, when the partnership ended, he walked away with the haulage business, some land and 200,000 cash. As a younger man, he had also worked on the farm for pay at the 'going rate', the judge continued. When Sam's father Allen James died aged 81 in 2012 he was 'completely cut out' of the will, which instead gave his fortune to his mother Sandra (pictured far left), 79 and sisters Karen James (centre left), 58, and Serena Underwood (right), 58 His father had bought him cars, described in the accounts as 'bonuses' which were several times greater than his annual salary. And he and his family had also been able to live rent-free on part of his father's land, he added. Upholding the will, the judge said the way the estate was divided up was 'rational and balanced'. Sam Allen had already received valuable land and cash from the dissolution of the family partnership and his father 'appreciated that the balance needed to be redressed between the three children'. Judge Matthews added: 'I accept that Allen James suffered from memory loss and confusion from time to time, and even some irrational behaviour. 'But there is also considerable evidence of normal behaviour and rational thought.' The judge dismissed Sam James' claim to the farm and to overturn his father's will. A Danish inventor charged with murdering Swedish journalist Kim Wall tied up and tortured her before killing her, prosecutors allege. Peter Madsen, 46, is accused of using a special tool kit to brutalise Miss Wall on board his home-made submarine before either strangling her or slitting her throat in August last year. He then dismembered her body, wrapped the parts in plastic bags and dumped them into Copenhagen harbour before scuttling his sub, the UC3 Nautilus. Peter Madsen, 46, allegedly tied up and tortured 30-year-old journalist Kim Wall on board his submarine in August last year. He is then accused of strangling her or slitting her throat Miss Wall had agreed to go along on the maiden voyage of Madsen's submarine in Copenhagen for a story, but disappeared. Her dismembered body parts were later found in the harbour Madsen admits abusing her corpse but maintains Miss Wall died by accident after a hatch fell on her head while she was on board. She had agreed to ride along with Madsen for the maiden voyage of his submarine for a story she was writing. The charges were revealed on January 16 but without any additional details. A copy of the charge sheet has since been obtained by the Associated Press. Madsen's trial will begin on March 8, when he will be charged with premeditated murder as well as dismemberment and 'sexual relations other than intercourse of a particularly dangerous nature.' Lawyers will be seeking a life term. Supporters of the inventor have vandalised his submarine which is being held near Copenhagen harbour, Swedish newspaper Afton Bladet reports. Vandals used spray paint to write 'Free Madsen' down the side of the craft, along with the word 'Uskyldig' - which means 'innocent' in Danish. Prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen said the case is 'very unusual and extremely brutal.' Wall was last seen on August 10 boarding Madsen's submarine for a trip around Copenhagen harbour. In the early hours of the following morning Madsen called the coastguard to report the craft was sinking, after which it became apparent Miss Wall was missing. Madsen initially denied any knowledge of her fate, saying he dropped her off on shore before the submarine ran into trouble. But he later changed his account, saying she was killed by accident after a heavy hatch fell on her head. Divers were quickly able to recover the wreck of the Nautilus from the bottom of the harbour, but found no trace of Miss Wall on board except for her underwear. Her torso was discovered almost two weeks after she was last seen, before her head and legs were discovered in October. Police technicians board Peter Madsen's submarine UC3 Nautilus on a pier in Copenhagen harbour, Denmark, in August (file photo) Madsen had initially denied any knowledge of Miss Wall's fate, saying he dropped her off on shore before his submarine sank, but later changed his story (pictured, the pair on board) Crucially, examiners said the skull bore no evidence of a fracture which would corroborate Madsen's account. Two arms were then discovered in the same area in November. All the body parts had been weighted down with metal. Police also found some of Miss Wall's clothes and a knife in one of the bags. Earlier, prosecutor Jakob Buch-Jepsen told a court custody hearing that a hard disk found in Madsen's workshop contained fetish films in which real women were tortured, decapitated and burned. Madsen, who is married, denied the hard drive belonged to him and has denied any sexual relationship between himself and Miss Wall. Prosecutors have previously said they believe Madsen killed Wall as part of a sexual fantasy, and found multiple mutilation wounds to her genitals. Madsen is a self-taught engineer has successfully launched rockets with the aim of developing private space travel. He is known for his occasionally foul temper and fallouts with former colleagues. His homemade submarine Nautilus, launched in 2008, was the biggest private sub ever made when he built it with help from a group of volunteers. But they became engaged in a long-running dispute over the Nautilus, before members of the board decided to transfer the vessel's ownership to Madsen, according to the sub's website. In 2015, Madsen sent a text message to two members of the board claiming: 'There is a curse on Nautilus'. 'That curse is me. There will never be peace on Nautilus as long as I exist,' Madsen wrote, according to the volunteers. Madsen's character is expected to be central to the murder case against him. A verdict is expected on April 25. Choirboy-turned-TV star Aled Jones will return to the BBC after issuing a grovelling apology to the corporation over sexual harassment claims. The 47-year-old presenter disappeared from the airwaves after he was accused of sending inappropriate messages to a female colleague over a decade ago. But it emerged today that he will return to Songs of Praise and his BBC Radio Wales show after vowing never to repeat his 'regrettable' actions. Aled Jones will return to the BBC after he was accused of sending inappropriate messages to a female colleague. His spokesman said he has vowed his actions won't be repeated A spokesman for Mr Jones said in a statement: 'About three months ago, Aled voluntarily agreed to step away from his presenting commitments whilst the organisation conducted a review. 'Aled was devastated to learn that some of his past behaviour outside the BBC had caused distress to others. He deeply regrets this behaviour and is very sorry for the hurt it has caused. 'Aled has given his assurance that it will never be repeated. Aled will now continue with his roles at the BBC. There will be no further comment.' Jones, who found fame at the age of 12 with his top five Christmas hit Walking In The Air, last appeared on the BBC in October, when he presented his BBC Radio Wales show. He had hosted Songs Of Praise from the Welsh town of Pontypridd days before that, but has not presented the show since. The BBC confirmed today he will resume working on TV and radio in the next few weeks. Jones found fame at the age of 12 with the Christmas hit Walking In The Air, which was the soundtrack to The Snowman. He was pictured, right, out in London last month The BBC host, pictured at his wedding to Claire Fossett in 2001, was last seen on TV when he presented Songs of Praise from a town in Wales A BBC spokesman said: 'As Aled has previously confirmed, over recent weeks the BBC has been considering complaints about his past behaviour. During this period, Aled has not been presenting on the BBC. 'While the behaviour under review was not related to his work with the BBC, Aled recognises it was inappropriate and caused real distress to others. 'He has apologised for this and assured the BBC that there will be no repeat of this behaviour in future. 'We can confirm that Aled Jones will be resuming his radio and television presenting roles with the BBC over the coming weeks.' Jones previously said that he had voluntarily agreed not to go on the BBC while the matter was investigated. Jones, pictured with Darcey Bussell and Myleene Klass in 2015, has kept a low profile since the allegations emerged He accepted that his behavour had been 'occasionally juvenile', but strongly denied any 'inappropriate contact'. The BBC star lives in a 1.8million house in south-west London with his wife of 16 years, Claire Fossett, 41, and two children. He received an MBE in 2013 for his services to music and broadcasting. He became a national radio presenter after signing up with Classic FM in 2002 and went on to present a Sunday morning show for BBC Radio 2. Jones, a father of two, was a contestant on Strictly Come Dancing in 2004 and further TV work has included Daybreak, Escape To The Country and Cash In The Attic. At least two students have died and 17 others were injured after a 15-year-old male student methodically opened fire on his classmates in a crowded atrium at his Kentucky high school. The shooting erupted at Marshall County High School in Benton on Tuesday just before 8am when the teenager walked in armed with a handgun. Police were seen leading a teenager away in handcuffs after he was apprehended by a Marshall County Sheriff's Deputy roughly 15 minutes after the shooting broke out. He has not been named and police have not released a motive. The student, who is believed to be in the school band, will be charged with murder and attempted murder. The two fatalities were a 15-year-old girl who was pronounced dead at the scene and a 15-year-old boy who later died after being admitted to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee with a gunshot wound to his head. At least 14 people were taken to hospital, some via helicopter, suffering gunshot wounds. The others were injured trying to get away, but were not shot. All of the victims are believed to be students. Scroll down for video Police were seen leading a teen, believed to be the 15-year-old shooter, away in handcuffs after he opened fire on classmates at Marshall County High School in Kentucky on Tuesday morning At least two people have died and and 17 others were injured after a 15-year-old male student opened fire at Marshall County High School in Caldwell, Kentucky on Tuesday morning Shocked students have described the terrifying moment the shooter opened fire before classes began, forcing nearly 100 children to run out of the school and seek safety. 'He was determined. He knew what he was doing,' a classmate said of the shooter. 'It was one right after another - bang bang bang bang bang. You could see his arm jerking as he was pulling the trigger.' Another student said: 'No one screamed. It was almost completely silent as people just ran. 'He just ran out of ammo and couldn't do anything else. He took off running and tried to get away from the officers.' The school was placed in lock down and the entrances to the school were blocked off by first responders. A half-dozen ambulances and numerous police cars converged on the school. Officers in black fatigues carrying assault rifles showed up as well. Cars lined up on both sides of an adjacent road as parents desperately tried to find their children. Many student fled the school in cars, while others ran down ran down the highway for more than a mile. The mother of one of the students evacuated from the school described the chilling moment she helped the shooter's mom after she learned her son was responsible. Heather Adams told WKMS that her son had already texted her to say he was safe so she was trying to help other parents locate their children. 'I noticed a lady that was distraught and couldn't find her child. I was texting with my son asking 'Do you know where this child is? Is this child safe?',' Adams said. 'I stayed with her while we waited. That was the shooter's mother. 'I held her hair while she threw up... She needed an ambulance. She was going into shock. And I couldn't get an ambulance there. I got yelled at by the police for calling for an ambulance... We got a firefighter's coat to put on her.' Terrified students were later reunited with their parents following the deadly shooting Kentuckty State Police Lt. Michael Webb speaks during a media briefing at the Marshall County Board of Education following the shooting There was a heavy police presence at the school and multiple ambulances and emergency helicopters were on scene to treat the injured Mitchell Garland, who rushed outside of his business when he heard about the shooting, described seeing the students flee the school. 'They was running and crying and screaming,' he said. 'They was just kids running down the highway. They were trying to get out of there.' Garland said he made sure the students were safe. He said his own son, a 16-year-old sophomore, jumped into someone's car and sped away before making his way to his dad's office. 'Everyone is just scared. Just terrified for their kids,' Garland said. 'We're a small town and we know a lot of the kids.' Savana Smothers, the school's assistant girls' soccer coach, scrambled to account for all of her players. All the girls were safe, she told The Associated Press in a Facebook message. She also said she was trying to get a head count for all the students who attend her church. 'You just never think this will happen in a small town like ours,' she said. The school was placed in lock down and the entrances to the school were blocked off by first responders The school was placed in lock down and the entrances to the school were blocked off by first responders Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin confirmed that the suspect in the fatal shooting had been taken into custody Federal authorities joined state and local law enforcement in responding to the shooting. Gov. Matt Bevin ran out a side door at the Capitol in Frankfort, saying he was headed to the school as well. Dusty Kornbacher, who owns a nearby floral shop, said the scene outside the school was chaotic with parents and students rushing around trying to find each other. 'All the parking lots were full with parents and kids hugging each other and crying and nobody really knowing what was going on,' he said. Governor Matt Bevin issued a statement describing the shooting as a 'tremendous tragedy'. 'It is unbelievable that this would happen in a small, close-knit community like Marshall County,' he said. 'As there is still much unknown, I encourage people to love on each other at this time. Do not speculate, but come alongside each in support and allow the facts to come out.' US Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell tweeted: 'Closely tracking reports of the tragedy in Benton, #Kentucky at Marshall County High School and my thoughts are with the students, teachers, faculty, and the entire community. Thank you to the first responders who continue to put themselves in harm's way to protect others. 'This regrettable shutdown reminded all of us that, in United States #Senate, brinksmanship and hostage-taking simply do not work.' The school has an enrollment of 1,146 students in grades 10 through 12. Marshall County has a population of about 31,000 people. Parents were being turned away from the school as students and staff remained locked in classrooms on Tuesday morning High school students were being bused to North Marshall Middle School so they could be safely picked up by their parents Former CIA agents have reportedly found one of drug kingpin Pablo Escobar's cocaine smuggling submarines. Escobar used submarines to transport cocaine from Colombia to Puerto Rico, after which it would be transported to the US mainland. If the submarine is found, it could contain clues which may finally reveal the location of Escobar's rumoured 50bn hidden fortune. Treasure hunt: Former CIA agents are diving for one of Pablo Escobar's cocaine smuggling submarines, hoping it may contain clues to his rumoured 50bn hidden fortune Divers who used to work for the U.S. agency are exploring an unknown location off the coast of Colombia, the Sun reports. A Discovery channel program has been following two former CIA agents on their hunt for Escobar's unconfirmed fortune. In a clip from the show uploaded to Discovery UK's channel on YouTube, ex-CIA agents Doug Laux and Ben Smith are seen diving off the coast, but not digging up anything of value. Underwater cameras show them scouring the seabed and finding metal and a box, but no further clues to the cash. However, the group conclude that the shifting seabed would have moved the wreckage and are still hoping to find it in the vicinity. No luck yet: A video filmed for a Discovery Channel show sees ex-CIA agents Doug Laux and Ben Smith dive for clues off the Colombian coast Still looking: The clip sees the pair conclude that the shifting seabed would have moved the wreckage and they are still hoping to find it in the vicinity Pablo Escobar, whose life is depicted in the popular Netflix show Narcos, led the Medellin Cartel which supplied 80 per cent of the cocaine consumed in the U.S. in the 1980s. Escobar began his criminal career as a teenager selling contraband cigarettes and stealing cars on the streets of Medellin in Colombia. Kingpin: Escobar, who made 300m-a-week in the mid-80s, used submarines to transport cocaine from Colombia to Puerto Rico He moved on to cocaine trafficking in the 1970s and became so successful that he had 15 planes and six helicopters to help smuggle the drugs into the U.S. By the mid-1980s, Pablo Escobar's cartel was bringing in $420m (300m) a week, nearly $22 billion a year. Most of his fortune Escobar stashed in cash in various locations, and reportedly had to spend $2,500 a month, about 1,900, on rubber bands, to keep his notes in order. In 1989, he was listed as the seventh richest man in the world by Forbes Magazine, and had become known locally as a 'Robin Hood' figure, as he gave some of his money to the poor in Colombia and built housing for the homeless. He was shot in December 1993, while trying to escape across nearby roofs with his bodyguard, Alvaro de Jesus Agudelo, who was also shot and killed. However, some people have claimed that Escobar actually committed suicide after hiding the majority of his fortune at unknown locations as most of his money has never been found. In 2009, $8 million (5 million) had been discovered at a hidden complex built in the jungle, where there had been cocaine factories. Christian de Berdouare, a chicken restaurant owner, who bought Escobar's former Miami mansion in 2014 for $10million, believes there could be hidden treasure stashed inside the property. The family of Jeffrey Williams (pictured) settled a wrongful death lawsuit against a Best Western hotel where the 11-year-old died in 2013 for $12million The family of a 11-year-old boy who died from carbon monoxide poisoning at a North Carolina Best Western hotel in 2013 has agreed to settle wrongful death and injury lawsuits. Attorneys for the family of Jeffrey Williams said on Monday that they agreed to settle the suits against the hotel chain and other parties for $12 million. Jeffrey died from carbon monoxide leaking from a swimming pool heating system,the Charlotte Observer reported. His mother, Jeannie Williams, suffered serious injuries. 'I miss Jeffrey ever day,' his mother said in a statement on Monday. 'We hope this lawsuit will continue to shine light on the need for carbon monoxide detectors in every hotel room where there is a source.' Six weeks earlier, Daryl and Shirley Jenkins had died in the same room, but officials didn't immediately identify carbon monoxide as the cause of death. The Jenkins family settled their own wrongful death lawsuit several years ago for a 'substantial' amount, their lawyer said Monday. Jeffrey and his mother Jeannie (pictured together) stopped at the Boone, North Carolina hotel in June 2013, on the way to pick up Jeffrey's sister from camp Jeffrey died in his bed that night, and his mom was seriously injured when carbon monoxide from a pool heater infiltrated the room A police officer at the scene of the hotel after Jeffrey's death in 2013 The pool heater was later taken out and replaced with an electric heater that doesn't use gas A Best Western spokeswoman told the newspaper the chain denies liability, but has thoughts and prayers for the family and friends of those affected. After Jeffrey's death, his family set up a foundation in his name to raise awareness about carbon monoxide poisoning. They say they will use the payout to continue the Jeffrey Lee Williams Foundation's work. With this money, the family 'can continue speaking out and working to make sure this does not happen to another family,' their attorney Robert Marcus said. 'No other parents should have to suffer as (they) have.' Daryl and Shirley Jenkins died in their hotel room at the Boone Best Western in April 2013, while visiting cousins. Six weeks later, Jeffrey died sleeping in his bed in the same room. His mother survived, after spending 14 hours passed out on the floor of the room's bathroom. They were passing through the town on the way to pick up Jeffrey's sister from camp. Just six weeks before, Daryl and Shirley Jenkins (pictured) died in the same room, but the hotel didn't realize the shared cause until the boy's death It was only after young Jeffrey was found dead that authorities finally pieced together what killed the three occupants of Room 225 - a leaking carbon monoxide filter from the pool a floor below. Damon Mallatere, the manager of the hotel, was initially hit with manslaughter charges in the three deaths, but the charges were later dismissed. The company ended up accepting the blame for the deaths, pleading guilty to three counts of manslaughter. The hotel later replaced the heater with an electric one that doesn't require natural gas. Advertisement Russia and China have been named in a report as being among the worst countries in the world for taking away people's freedoms. The annual Freedom in the World report ranks nations according to civil liberties and political rights with each country placed in one of three categories: 'Free', 'Partly free' and 'not free'. Some 88 countries, including Britain and America, were seen as being 'free' while 49 - including the likes of Thailand, Egypt, and Turkey - were deemed to be 'not free'. Each nation is give a score out of 100 with the worst (-1/100) recorded by war torn Syria under the brutal dictatorship of Bashar al-Assad. South Sudan, Eritrea, North Korea and Turkmenistan made up the rest of the bottom five. Russia and China have been named in a report as being among the worst countries in the world for taking away people's freedoms Some 88 countries, including Britain and America, were seen as being 'free' while 49 - including the likes of Thailand, Egypt, and Turkey - were deemed to be 'not free' Each nation is give a score out of 100 with the worst (-1/100) recorded by war torn Syria under the brutal dictatorship of Bashar Al-Assad. South Sudan, Eritrea, North Korea and Turkmenistan made up the rest of the bottom five The Freedom House report found that there had been dramatic declines in freedom observed in regions around the world Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Cuba were also among tightly controlled nations in this category. Russia was 27th from bottom with a score of 20. The number of people living under 'not free' conditions stood at nearly 2.7 billion people. But more than half of this number lives in just one country - China, which was named 19th from bottom on the list after recording a score of 14. At the other end of the spectrum, Scandinavian countries, Finland, Norway and Sweden topped the list of 'free' nations with scores of 100, followed in the top ten by Canada, Netherlands, Australia, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Uruguay and Denmark. Britain was named 27th with a score of 94 - above France but below Spain and Germany. America was 53rd, just above Greece and Mongolia, but below the likes of Italy and Costa Rica. WHICH NATIONS HAVE THE MOST 'FREEDOM'... AND WHERE ARE LIBERTIES MOST RESTRICTED? 'Not free' countries Score / 100 'Free' countries Score / 100 1. Syria -1 1. Finland 100 2. South Sudan 2 2. Norway 100 3. Eritrea 3 3. Sweden 100 4. North Korea 3 4. Canada 99 5. Turkmenistan 4 5. Netherlands 99 6. Equatorial Guinea 7 6. Australia 98 7. Saudi Arabia 7 7. Luxembourg 98 8. Somalia 7 8. New Zealand 98 9. Uzbekistan 7 9. Uruguay 98 10. Sudan 8 10. Denmark 97 11. Central African Republic 9 11. Portugal 97 12. Libya 9 12. San Marino 97 13. Tajikistan 11 13. Andorra 96 14. Azerbaijan 12 14. Barbados 96 15. Bahrain 12 15. Ireland 96 16. Ethiopia 12 16. Japan 96 17. Laos 12 17. Switzerland 96 18. Yemen 13 18. Belgium 95 19. China 14 19. Iceland 95 20. Cuba 14 20. Austria 94 Advertisement The report claims that the last year had brought 'further, faster erosion of America's own democratic standards' which had ended up 'damaging its credibility as a champion of good governance and human rights' The report released a list of trends showing countries where freedom for citizens had improved or been on the decline The nonpartisan organisation Freedom House said of its findings: 'Democracy faced its most serious crisis in decades in 2017 as its basic tenets -including guarantees of free and fair elections, the rights of minorities, freedom of the press, and the rule of law -came under attack around the world. 'Seventy-one countries suffered net declines in political rights and civil liberties, with only 35 registering gains. This marked the 12th consecutive year of decline in global freedom. 'The United States retreated from its traditional role as both a champion and an exemplar of democracy amid an acceler ating decline in American political rights and civil liberties.' The report said that over the period since the 12-year global slide began in 2006, 113 countries have seen a net decline, and only 62 have experienced a net improvement. The number of countries designated as Free stands at 88, representing more than 2.9 billion people or 39 per cent of the global population. The number of Free countries increased by one from the previous year's report, it said. The number of countries qualifying as Partly Free stands at 58, or 30 per cent of all countries assessed, and they were home to nearly 1.8 billion people, or 24 per cent of the world's total. Special Counsel Robert Mueller wants to interview President Trump within weeks, the Washington Post has learned. Mueller, who is in charge of the Russia probe, wants to ask the president about his decisions to oust former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn, who has since been indicted, and former FBI Director James Comey. This news comes after the revelation that Mueller sat down with Trump's attorney general, Jeff Sessions, for hours and, additionally, spent time interviewing the fired Comey last month. President Trump (left) is expected to sit down and talk to Special Counsel Robert Mueller (right) as part of the ongoing Russia investigation, the Washington Post reported Tuesday Also on Tuesday the news broke that Special Counsel Robert Mueller's team had questioned Attorney General Jeff Sessions (pictured) for hours All of these interviews suggest Mueller is looking into the president's actions to handicap the ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, including whether there was collusion with the Trump campaign. The Justice Department on Tuesday confirmed Sessions spoke to investigators. The New York Times reported the interview went on for several hours. For Trump's turn at bat, his legal team would like his testimony to be in hybrid form, with the president appearing for an interview, but also answering questions in writing, the Washington Post learned. Speaking to reporters Tuesday about the Sessions news, Trump said, 'I'm not at all concerned.' He also said he and the nation's top law enforcement officer didn't talk about the probe when they met Monday at the White House. 'No. I didnt but Im not at all concerned,' Trump said. The Times also reported that former FBI Director James Comey came in to talk to Mueller's team late last year. Trump also denied that FBI Director Christopher Wray had threatened to resign over pressure from Sessions to remove Deputy Director Andrew McCabe, who Trump has criticized on Twitter. 'He didn't at all. He did not even a little bit, nope,' Trump said when asked about the reports. Axios, which reported the threat, said Tuesday that it was Sessions who applied the private pressure for McCabe to go. Sessions recused himself from the Russia probe, after it was revealed he had undisclosed meetings with Russia's former ambassador to the U.S. while serving as a U.S. senator and a member of Trump's campaign team. After his recusal, Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein named Mueller as special counsel to head the inquiry. In addition to probing Russian interference in the presidential election, Mueller is investigating whether any obstruction of justice occurred. The line of inquiry has led investigators to reconstruct in detail what led to President Trump's decision to fire Comey. Sessions was an important part of the decision, and the White House released a memo from Sessions justifying the decision. Sessions wrote that a 'fresh start' was needed and recommended Comey's removal. Sessions is believed to be first cabinet member to be called in for an interview. Sessions is the first cabinet member to be called in for an interview. He visited the White House on Monday CNN reported that Sessions visited the White House Monday and met with President Trump. The White House did not immediately respond to questions about whether the two men discussed the case or Sessions' meeting with investigators. On Tuesday morning, Trump unloaded on the FBI, bringing up the case of two FBI officials who disparaged him in text messages during the election. The FBI officials were having an affair, and text messages between them were released although others have gone missing. 'In one of the biggest stories in a long time, the FBI now says it is missing five months worth of lovers Strzok-Page texts, perhaps 50,000, and all in prime time. Wow!' he tweeted. President Donald Trump put the spotlight Tuesday back on two FBI officials who disparaged him in text messages prior to the presidential election and whom he'd previously accused of 'treason' The Justice Department last week revealed a critical gap in messages between Peter Strzok, a counterintelligence agent who worked on Hillary Clinton's email case, and Lisa Page, an agent who worked with Strzok for a time on the special counsel investigation into Russian election interference. Texts the pair sent each other between December 14, 2017 and May 17, 2017 are missing, the department informed Congress. The Associated Press reported that Trump was overstating the number of missing texts between them. The Justice Department says the 50,000 figure refers to the overall number of messages found on FBI servers. The Justice Department last week revealed a critical gap in messages between Peter Strzok, a counterintelligence agent who worked on Hillary Clinton's email case, and Lisa Page, an agent who worked with Strzok for a time on the special counsel investigation into Russian election interference Sessions has been grilled in Congress about his contacts with Russia's former ambassador to the U.S. Mueller's team subpoenaed former chief White House strategist Steve Bannon to appear before a Grand Jury, but Bannon instead negotiated to instead come in for an interview. Sessions testified in November about his meetings with Sergei Kislyak, Russia's former ambassador to the U.S., something he did not list on government forms when he was nominated to be attorney general. 'I did meet once in my office with Kislyak and I do not recall and don't believe I communicated any of that information to [former national security advisor Mike] Flynn,' Sessions said. Sessions has been grilled in Congress about his contacts with Russia's former ambassador to the U.S., Sergei Kislyak Trump was reportedly furious at Sessions' decision to recuse himself from the Russia probe, and publicly went after him on Twitter. Trump tweeted in July: 'Attorney General Jeff Sessions has taken a VERY weak position on Hillary Clinton crimes (where are E-mails & DNC server) & Intel leakers! Trump told the New York Times he would not have nominated Sessions, a key advisor during his campaign, if he had known he would recuse himself. White House spokeswman Sarah Huckabee Sanders told Fox News last year, 'Look, I know that he is frustrated and certainly disappointed in the attorney general for recusing himself.' During an appearance before the House Judiciary Committee last year, Sessions repeatedly said 'I don't recall.' New York Rep. Hakeem Jeffries said Sessions had used a variant of the phrase more than 85 times. Sessions told the panel in November he now recalled meeting former Trump campaign aide George Papadopoulos, was pled guilty to lying to FBI investigators. Sessions has stated emphatically that he did not lie under oath when he said he was unaware of contacts between the Trump campaign and Russians during the campaign. 'I do now recall the March 2016 meeting at Trump Hotel that Mr. Papadopoulos attended, but I have no clear recollection of the details of what he said during that meeting,' Sessions said. Advertisement Record snowfall is causing havoc in the Alps and disrupting the World Economic Forum in Davos. The risk of avalanche is now so high that US President Donald Trump may not be allowed to land his fleet of helicopters when he arrives in the Swiss town on Friday. Last night some pre-summit meetings were canceled or delayed as the first waves of delegates waded through snow-blanketed streets looking for their hotels while some had to wait for road crews to dig their limousines out of drifts. Disruption in Switzerland: A landslide on the A2 highway between the Wilerplanggen and the Ripplistal gallery causes chaos Devastation: The road leading to the Gotthard tunnel toward Italy was temporarily closed in both directions this morning Record snowfall is causing havoc in the Alps and disrupting the World Economic Forum in Davos (pictured) An armed Swiss police officer stands guard on the roof of a hotel near the congress center as the forum gets under way A police officer cleans the roof of a hotel from snow near the congress center where the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum take place in Davos Businessmen slipped over on icy patches as snow plows roamed the streets, with the snow returning as fast as the machines could clear it. World Economic Forum communications chief Adrian Monck said it appeared to be the heaviest snowfall for the four-decades-old summit since 1999-2000, though he described it as more of an inconvenience than a real threat to attendance for the 3,000 delegates. Part of the main train line into Davos had been buried in snow over the weekend, forcing people on to buses, and helicopters were disrupted by poor visibility. Luckily Tuesday's main speakers - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi - arrived without a hitch. German chancellor Angela Merkel and French leader Emmanuel Macron as well as European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker will speak on Wednesday. Today the chaos continued across the Alps as a major Swiss motorway was closed by a mudslide. The road leading to the Gotthard tunnel toward Italy was temporarily closed in both directions. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, right, meets with Ulrich Spiesshofer, president and CEO of the ABB Group in Davos A man shovels snow outside a church on the eve of the 48th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum An armed Swiss police officer stands guard on the roof of a hotel near the congress center where the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum take place in Davos Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau meets with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday 100 evacuated by helicopters after avalanche in Italy Four helicopters evacuated some 100 tourists and hotel workers from a four-star mountainside hotel and a nearby guesthouse in northern Italy after an avalanche overnight, civil protection authorities have said. The Langtauferer Hotel, located near the Austrian border at 1,870 6,135 ft above sea level and some 60 miles north west of Bolzano, was not directly hit, but was in an area of extremely high risk for further avalanches, said Katia Squeo of the civil protection agency in Bolzano. 'The electricity was restored and the guests didn't want to go, so the mayor ordered the evacuation,' Ms Squeo said. 'The avalanche risk is still present.' The evacuation was taking place under clear conditions, with each helicopter ferrying seven people at a time to a school gymnasium in nearby San Valentino, where they were being fed and looked after. A nearby guesthouse was also evacuated, and the whole village was cut off from the nearest major road, some 12 miles away, by the heavy snowfall and avalanche risk. The Langtauferer hotel boasts views of a 3,700-metre summit and advertises itself as being ideal for skiers, who can start their runs right outside the hotel door. Martina Doene, the hotel's manager, said the evacuees remained calm. Four helicopters evacuated some 100 tourists and hotel workers from a four-star mountainside hotel and a nearby guesthouse in northern Italy after an avalanche overnight, civil protection authorities have said The Langtauferer Hotel, located near the Austrian border at 1,870 6,135 ft above sea level and some 60 miles north west of Bolzano, was not directly hit but had to be evacuated Advertisement The whole northern crest of the Alps bordering Austria was under the highest avalanche risk following an extraordinary snowfall of up to two metres, beating record levels dating to the early 1980s in some places, officials said. The civil protection agency said teams also were working to open roads to Val Senales, where thousands of tourists and residents had been isolated since Monday above Merano. The town itself was protected by avalanche barriers and they were at no immediate risk, Ms Squeo said. Heavy snow has created dangerous conditions and disrupted transport across the Alps. In France, the Chamonix ski area at the foot of Mont Blanc was closed due to what officials said was the highest avalanche risk. Several major roads and tunnels in the area were shut down. Heavy machinery was brought in to remove the debris after the mudslide in Switzerland amid chaos across the Alps The road was closed to traffic in both directions while the mud and debris was removed from the road A worker passes the spilled A2 highway between the Wilerplanggen and the Ripplistal gallery, Switzerland An avalanche hit Gurtnellen, Switzerland in the canton of Uri on Tuesday as record snowfall continues to cause disruption Two FBI officials who derided Donald Trump in text messages prior to the presidential election and suggested taking out an 'insurance policy' in case he won were revealed on Monday to have talked about forming a 'secret society' the day after the Republican politician beat Hillary Clinton. The conversation was part of a batch of communications between Peter Strzok and Lisa Page the Department of Justice provided last week to Congress, two members of Congress told Fox News. In an appearance on 'The Story with Martha MacCallum,' Rep. Trey Gowdy said, 'The day after the election, what they really didn't want to have happen, there is a text exchange between these two FBI agents, these supposed to be objective, fact-centric FBI agents saying, "Perhaps this is the first meeting of the secret society." 'So of course I'm going to want to know what secret society you are talking about, because you're supposed to be investigating objectively the person who just won the electoral college. So yeah -- I'm going to want to know.' In an appearance on 'The Story with Martha MacCallum,' Rep. Trey Gowdy said, 'The day after the election, what they really didn't want to have happen, there is a text exchange between these two FBI agents, these supposed to be objective, fact-centric FBI agents saying, "Perhaps this is the first meeting of the secret society."' Standing beside Gowdy in the joint interview was Texas Rep. John Ratcliffe, who the first of the two Republican legislators to mention it. 'We learned today about information that after, in the immediate aftermath of his election, that there may have been a "secret society" of folks within the Department of Justice and the FBI, to include Page and Strzok, that would be working against him,' Ratcliffe said. He added, 'I'm not saying that actually happened, but when folks speak in those terms, they need to come forward to explain the context with which they used those terms.' The Justice Department turned over copies of the communications last week. But it revealed a critical gap in messages between Strzok, a counterintelligence agent who worked on Hillary Clinton's email case, and Page, an agent who worked with Strzok for a time on the special counsel investigation into Russian election interference, as it did. Texts the pair sent each other between December 14, 2017 and May 17, 2017 are missing, the department said. President Donald Trump put the spotlight Tuesday back on the two FBI officials who disparaged him in text messages prior to the presidential election and whom he'd previously accused of 'treason,' this morning The Justice Department last week revealed a critical gap in messages between Peter Strzok, a counterintelligence agent who worked on Hillary Clinton's email case, and Lisa Page, an agent who worked with Strzok for a time on the special counsel investigation into Russian election interference President Donald Trump put the spotlight back on the FBI officials, whom he'd previously accused of 'treason,' on Tuesday over the lapse. 'In one of the biggest stories in a long time, the FBI now says it is missing five months worth of lovers Strzok-Page texts, perhaps 50,000, and all in prime time. Wow!' he tweeted. Justice has blamed a glitch in its record-keeping system for the blackout. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that Justice is taking all available actions to recover the missing messages. Ratcliffe told MacCallum 'perhaps they really were lost' but called it a 'strange coincidence.' 'The problem, Martha, is..it makes it harder and harder for us to explain away one really strange coincidence after another.' Gowdy, the House Oversight chairman, said in the interview that 'either the bureau needs to find them' or 'we need to have someone who has really easy access to these text messages, and it may be law enforcement.' 'What Johnny and I saw today was a text about not keeping texts,' he offered. 'We saw more manifest bias against President Trump all the way through the election into transition.' Not including the missing communications, Fox News reported, the FBI has over 50,000 texts that Strzok, who was removed from special counsel Robert Mueller's team when the original messages were unearthed, and Page, who had already left the investigation, sent to one another. Those messages are expected to be made public by Congress, CBS reported. Previously published texts show Strzok suggesting the bureau invest in an 'insurance policy' in case Trump is elected. 'I want to believe the path you threw out for consideration...that theres no way he gets electedbut Im afraid we cant take that risk. Its like an insurance policy in the unlikely event you die before youre 40,' he told Page in an August 2016 text.' Lawmakers said Monday that they were shocked by the incomplete record-keeping. The messages from the period of time that was wiped covers the end of the transition to the time that Mueller was tasked with leading a special probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. On Fox, Ratcliffe said of the controversy, 'We know that Strzok and Page had an intense anti-Trump bias. And that's OK, so long as they check it at the door and do their job. But we learned today in the thousands of text messages we reviewed, that perhaps they may not have done that. 'We know about this "insurance policy" that was referenced in trying to prevent Donald Trump from becoming president.' A letter from Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs Stephen Boyd to Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson on Friday said that the Department of Justice had learned 'that many FBI-provided Samsung 5 mobile devices did not capture or store text messages.' The bureau told DOJ that messages were not retained 'due to misconfiguration issues related to rollouts, provisioning, and software upgrades that conflicted with the FBIs collection capabilities.' DOJ's explanation of how the messages disappeared had Republican lawmakers fuming. 'Unreal. We've been asking for the remaining text messages between anti-Trump FBI agents (and former Mueller team members), Peter Strzok and Lisa Page. The FBI now says the texts are "missing," ' Rep. Mark Meadows, leader of a group of conservatives known as the House Freedom Caucus, tweeted. 'If it wasn't already clear we need a second special counsel, it's abundantly clear now'. Flabbergasted, Meadows told Fox, 'They're supposed to be out tracking terrorism and we can't even find our own text messages?' Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that Justice is taking all available actions to recover the missing messages. Sessions told congressional committees on Friday that the Department of Justice's Inspector General is looking into the matter. '[A] review is already underway to ascertain what occurred and to determine if these records can be recovered in any other way,' he said. 'If any wrongdoing were to be found to have caused this gap, appropriate legal disciplinary action measures will be taken.' Prior to the revelation that the FBI was missing the large volume of communications, President Trump had Strzok and Page in a Wall Street Journal interview and accused them of 'treason' for the way they spoke about him before the election. 'There was no collusion on our side, the collusion was on the Democrat side with the Russians. And what went on with the FBI, where a man is tweeting to his lover that if she loses, well essentially go back to thewell go to the insurance policy, which isif they lose, well go to phase 2, and well get this guy out of office. 'I mean, this is the FBI were talking about. I think that isthat is treason. See, thats treason right there,' he stated. In December, after Strozk was removed from the special counsel probe because of the text messages, Trump said the FBI's reputation was in 'tatters' because of mismanagement under James Comey, the former director of the bureau the president fired in May. 'But fear not, we will bring it back to greatness,' he pledged. South Carolinas push to bring the century-old Montessori model to public classrooms may be paying off in both student performance and creativity, according to a new longitudinal evaluation . The Riley Institute, a public policy research group at Furman University in Greenville, found public students in Montessori-based schools on average outperformed public students in schools with other pedagogical models in English/language arts and math, and also in a separate measure of creativity. The schools using the Montessori model also had higher attendance and lower suspension rates than other public schools. The study found a higher percentage of students in Montessori programs met or exceeded state performance benchmarks in language arts, math, science, and social studies, and showed faster growth in language arts over the course of the study. That was not equal for all students, though. White students in Montessori schools performed better than those in other public schools in all subjects, and black Montessori students outperformed their peers in other schools in language arts and social studies, but not math and science. Hispanic students performed about the same in both types of schools. I think its definitely something our state should look at very closely, said Brooke Culclasure, the studys lead investigator and research director at the Riley Institutes Center for Education Policy and Leadership. These are very convincing results and it is something that needs to be looked at ... but this is a piece of the puzzle, she said. Public Montessori programs are rising in popularity . Of the more than 500 public Montessori schools nationwide, more than half have been opened in the last 15 years. But there has been less evidence on the effectiveness of the model, which focuses on student-centered learning and multi-age classes, in public schools. South Carolina has more public Montessori programs than any other state but California, and the researchers found white and black tended to attend public Montessori and non-Montessori schools at similar rates, though fewer Hispanic students attended Montessori than non-Montessori public schools. Theres been an open question of whether Montessori, which has been successful in the private sector, would really be as successful in the public sector, said David Fleming, a senior researcher at the Riley Institute, and assistant political science professor at Furman. The study, backed by the Self Family Foundation and the South Carolina Education Oversight Committee, was not a randomized control trial; researchers created matched pools of students based on their prior achievement and characteristics, in line with a statistical method developed by Stanford Universitys Center for Research on Educational Outcomes. Researchers tracked students achievement on state reading, writing, math, science, and social studies tests, as well as their performance on assessments of creativity and executive function, from 2012-13 to 2015-16. The researchers also surveyed principals, teachers, and students during that time, observed more than 120 classes, and analyzed school attendance and discipline data. They found 21 of the 43 Montessori programs that were observed implemented the program with high fidelity in lesson planing, classroom environment, teacher practices, and student learning; only eight implemented the method loosely. However, lower-elementary classes were more likely to follow the model closely than upper-elementary or middle school classes. These schools were very good examples of how the Montessori method could be executed as a program, said Ginny Riga, a Montessori consultant for the South Carolina education department who contributed to the study. Tiffany Jager, right, discovered her mother Lisa's body, left, in her home after she passed away from an overdose in 2011. She was shocked to discover that her mother's boyfriend had evidently been living in the home with her mother's body for several days before Tiffany came to check on her When Tiffany Jager went to check on her mother at her rural Michigan home after she didn't return her calls for several days, she was already expecting the worst. Her mother, 43-year-old Lisa Sassan, was a known heroin user with 96 arrests on her record and had recently been released from jail. Despite that - she couldn't imagine the horror that laid behind her mother's front door. Jager found her mother's boyfriend asleep in one room, and the bedroom door had been shut and sealed with towels. As she shook him awake, she pleaded with him to tell her where her mother was. Her worst nightmare unfolded she was in the bedroom, but she wasn't sleeping. 'He just looked at me as if he were to say she went to the corner store to get some cigarettes or something,' Jager told DailyMail.com. 'And he just said she's dead. She overdosed.' In the tumultuous days that followed, Jager learned the appalling truth that her mother had died in the bedroom five days prior to her body being found. All that time, her mother's boyfriend had been in the home, continuing to do drugs with friends. Heartbroken and angry she attempted to pursue charges against her mother's boyfriend, only to find out that it was not a crime to live with a dead body in Michigan. In fact, in the majority of US states, there are no laws obligating everyday citizens to notify the police abut bodies they discover, or deaths they are aware of. It's created a loophole in the US justice system that has allowed people to live for weeks, months, and in some cases, years, with dead bodies. Lisa Sassan's boyfriend did not face any criminal charges for failing to report her death to the authorities, because a bizarre legal loophole meant it was not illegal for him to live with the body at her Grand Rapids, Michigan home for five days. He later passed away from an overdose as well Tiffany Jager wanted to seek justice for her mother Lisa (pictured) - and was horrified when she learned of the legal shortcomings in her state. She worked with her state senators to implement a law that would fine individuals who didn't report deaths they were aware of The technicality has puzzled lawmakers and legal scholars nationwide. It is a crime not to report abuse, to conceal or move bodies, and to abuse corpses. But research by DailyMail.com shows that in 32 states, there is no law explicitly stating that if you find a body you must report it to law enforcement. In addition, apart from reading state legislation, there is not readily accessible information about where it is and isn't necessary to report a death. An interactive map by the CDC lists investigation requirements for coroners by state but doesn't document every state that requires its residents to report deaths. Dr Kim Collins, President of the National Association of Medical Examiners, told DailyMail.com that the lack of a federal law could be explained by the fact that many would assume it is common sense to report a death There does not appear to be a concrete explanation as to why it is illegal in some states and not others. Many coroners, attorney general's offices, and legal scholars told DailyMail.com they weren't aware that there wasn't a universal law requiring anyone who discovers a dead body to alert the authorities. Dr Kim Collins, President of the National Association of Medical Examiners, told DailyMail.com that the lack of a federal law could be explained by the fact that many would assume it is common sense to report a death. 'Many citizens may be surprised to know that in their state, no such law exists,' Dr Collins said. Other explanations are more complex. She speculated that the decision not to report could be more of a personal or psychological issue - or one with a religious explanation. 'For religious reasons the family would rather conduct their own "ceremony" for the deceased,' she said. 'Fear of law enforcement, fear of involvement in death, 'not my problem', difficulty in parting with a loved one, psychological illness where a person will keep the corpse dressed and refuses to admit the death, lack of money for funeral and burial, fear of accusation,' could all be additional explanations, Dr Collins continued. This gray area, however, has not played out well over the years. Many cases have been documented of family members living in homes with their deceased relatives or partners for shocking amounts of time before eventually being discovered. Lynda Wheaton, left, lived in the home with her sister Hope's (right center) dead body underneath the kitchen table for over a year. It was later revealed that the elderly sisters were hoarders. Both are pictured here in 1966 Last January, in Massachusetts, it was revealed that 74-year-old Lynda Waldman had been living with the dead body of her sister, 67-year-old Hope Weaton, beneath the kitchen table for over a year. Neighbors and family members had expressed concerns about the elderly sisters in the $1.2 million home outside of Boston, and after Weaton's body was found, the two were revealed to have been hoarders. Waldman has never faced any charges, and recently requested that the home be torn down. Robert Keufler, 59, lived in his Minnesota home with the bodies of his mother and twin sister for over a year. He did face charges - but not for failing to report their deaths. He was arrested for moving their bodies (tampering with a corpse), which he said he did because they got 'in the way' In White Bear Lake, Minnesota, a couple living next door to 59-year-old Robert Kuefler alerted police to the possibility of suspicious activity inside the man's home, because they noticed his grass had not been cut recently. They broke down the door and were confronted immediately with the stench of death. Inside, they found the bodies of both Kuefler's mother and twin brother. Police reported that Evelyn Keufler, aged 93, and Richard Kuefler, 59, had been dead for more than a year. In that instance Robert Kuefler did face criminal charges, but not for his failure to report his mother and brother's death. He had moved his brother's body to the bathroom, and his mother's upstairs into the bedroom because they got 'in the way' which constitutes as interfering with a dead body, carrying a misdemeanor charge in Minnesota. At the time, Kuefler said that he was emotional and overwhelmed by his relatives' deaths, which was why he never reported it. 'I was traumatized. What would you do?' he told the Associated Press. 'I am not some nut ball. People think I am, but I'm not. I loved them.' States that do require any individual to report a death are typically listed under the responsibilities of the state coroner, like this statute in Georgia Aside from sparing family members mental anguish there are a number of reasons it's important that dead bodies be dealt with in a timely manner. An obvious side effect, illustrated by the Kuefler case, is the smell. Ray Maddoff, a law Professor at Boston College and author of the book 'Immortality and the Law: The Rising Power of the Dead' weighed in on the other complications created by leaving a body to rot. She said: 'There's a number of reasons why you'd want to have these reporting rules - one of them is to keep track of possible foul play, and the other is for general public health that can be caused by having a dead body around.' Although the idea that decaying corpses can spread infectious diseases has been largely disproved, public health issues such as body fluid leakage and water contamination are still taken into consideration. 'There's always risk of water contamination,' Richard Hawk, a county coroner in Georgia told DailyMail.com. 'Anything that's been in the body you still have your blood components and all, so anything that's been in your body could decompose into the water' he said. Some argue that laws requiring any person that finds a dead body aren't necessary because the experience would be so jarring that it would motivate most to call the police. Others say that because there are laws obligating people who are in charge of bodies, such as hospital workers, to report deaths it should remain a responsibility limited to those who choose it. But the area in between has left a lot to be desired. According to Professor Maddoff, it's a reflection of a societal apathy towards the dead unless they're paying us. Ray Maddoff, a law Professor at Boston College and author of the book 'Immortality and the Law: The Rising Power of the Dead' said that it's shocking how little rights the dead have 'We use the dead where it works for the interests of the living. Where they provide financial interest to the living we pretend to give rights to the dead,' she said. 'Where it doesn't, for example, things like the ability to control your body [after you die] we tend to not give rights to the dead. One of the things that's generally surprising about the rights of people to control their bodies is how little legal protections they have.' Among the most important reasons for people to report bodies immediately is because the quicker a body is discovered, the more effective an investigation can be should it be necessary. The vast majority of states require coroners to investigate deaths under certain scenarios, including suspicion of violence or foul play, suicide, abuse, or in Lisa Sassan's case overdose. Because Ms Sassan had been dead for five days before she was recovered, the toxins in her system had largely dissipated, her daughter Tiffany Jager said. In failing to report her mother's death, her boyfriend had inadvertently destroyed any evidence of foul play making an investigation further into Ms Sassan's death nearly impossible. STATES THAT REQUIRE ANY PERSON TO REPORT A DEAD BODY Alaska: Like many other states, there are 11 scenarios in Alaska in which it is required that an individual report a death. They include suspicious of criminal means, suicide, accident, poisoning, sudden deaths, occupational deaths, deaths that occurred in a jail, medical facility, foster home, or children under the age of 18 in custody of the state Arizona: In Arizona, there are nine scenarios where failure to report a death is illegal Florida: As of 2017, Florida instituted a statute that makes failure to report a death under 12 different scenarios illegal, and is punishable by a misdemeanor Delaware: Any person with knowledge of a death in Delaware must report it Kentucky: Law requires 'any person, hospital, or institution, finding or having possession of the body' to report it to the coroner Massachusetts: There are 18 death scenarios in which individuals must report to law enforcement Michigan: As a result of Tiffany Jager's experience finding her mother's body dead after five days, state senators implemented a law making it illegal not to report a dead body Minnesota: It is against the law not to report a dead body in Minnesota. Keufler, however, didn't face charges for not reporting the deaths of his mother and twin brother - but rather for moving their bodies New Mexico: It is illegal not to report a dead body in New Mexico North Dakota: Anyone who doesn't report a death to proper authorities under the detailed range of circumstances will face a class B misdemeanor Ohio: Residents must 'immediately' report deaths to a physician or nurse whom the person knows to be treating the deceased for a condition from which death at such time would not be unexpected, or to a law enforcement officer, an ambulance service, an emergency squad, or the coroner in a political subdivision Oklahoma: The only state to do so - Oklahoma does not require residents to report dead bodies - rather, only skeletal remains fall under the law Rhode Island: 'Any person having knowledge' of a death must report it Texas: Criminal procedure codes require residents to notify authorities of deaths Utah: 'Person or persons finding or having custody' of a body must report it Washington: 'Every person who knows the existence and location' of human remains is required to notify a coroner, medical examiner, or law enforcement officer as soon as possible West Virginia: It is illegal not to report a dead body in West Virginia Wisconsin: Any person with knowledge of a death in Wisconsin should immediately notify the authorities Advertisement Some states without laws requiring citizens to report deaths have made attempts to change the bizarre blind spot. State Representative Nick Miccarelli introduced legislation last year in Pennsylvania that would classify the failure to report a death as a misdemeanor as it is in some other states like Florida, Rhode Island, and Wyoming. He was motivated to submit the bill after learning that a high school friend died of a drug overdose and his roommate didn't report the death for two weeks. 'I think if anyone puts themselves in the situation of (his high school classmate's) family, they would be so angered and so frustrated that they would want some justice,' he told Philly Voice. That's exactly what Jager wanted after she discovered her mother's body almost exactly seven years ago: justice. Not revenge on her mother's boyfriend, she says, who died of an overdose a year after her mother did. For Jager, the weight of knowing her mother lay dead for days has not gotten lighter. But she takes some comfort in knowing that she has helped prevent the pain she experienced from happening to anyone else 'I felt that she was treated worse than a dog. That's what I stand by. I don't understand how that is okay, you know? 'I really pushed for the press and everything to shed light on this because I just couldn't believe it wasn't [a law]. It blew my mind and it still blows my mind.' In the years since, Jager, a married mother-of-two, has worked to change things herself. With the assistance of Senators David Hildenbrand and Tonya Schuitmaker, a bill became law five months later that makes failure to report a death a crime carrying up to a year in prison and $1,000 fine. Jager said her activism spurned an outpouring of response from other families who had similar experiences of discovering long-deceased loved ones in Michigan. For her, the weight of knowing her mother lay dead for days has not gotten lighter. But she takes some comfort in knowing that she has helped prevent the pain she experienced from happening to anyone else. Speaking of her late mother, Jager said: 'She was a grandmother, she was a sister, she was a friend. It doesn't matter if it was a homeless person or if it was the very scum of the earth they don't deserve to be treated that way.' Megyn Kelly was off the air on Tuesday, one day after she went after Jane Fonda in a headline-grabbing attack. NBC chose to run a taped episode of Kelly's hour of Today, despite the fact that she had managed to grab much public interest on Monday with her criticism of the Oscar-winning actress, who has repeatedly taken the host to task for asking about her plastic surgery in September. The airing of Megyn Kelly Yesterday also coincided with the announcement of the this year's Oscar nominations, an event Today has covered in the past by speaking with the contenders during the 9am hour of the show. It was all planned though, according to a network source who said that it would have been hard to book an audience given the focus of the show on Tuesday - sex trafficking. 'Its a sensitive topic best handled on tape,' added the source, who noted that the decision was made to tape the episode last week. The women on The View discussed the Fonda controversy on Tuesday, and guest host Ann Curry said that she was shocked by Kelly's words. 'We're witnessing what we saw yesterday, a certain amount of meanness that I think is - meanness which we should not tolerate,' said Curry. Joy Behar was a bit more blunt, saying that Fonda's response to Kelly's comment should have been: 'How much work have you had b****?' And Whoopi Goldberg than tried to put everything in perspective by saying: 'If I can forgive you for telling all my friends' black children that Santa is only white, you can step back. Because you made a mistake. You made a mistake. We all make mistakes. You gotta lighten up, babe.' Scroll down for video Megyn Kelly Yesterday: Megyn Kelly (above on Monday in an episode that aired on Tuesday) was off the air on Tuesday, one day after she attacked Jane Fonda Coming for Kelly: Ann Curry said the move was petty and called Kelly 'mean,' while Joy Behar said Fonda should have asked: 'How much work have you had b****?' Curry also noted: 'Journalists are not supposed to be the story and it's a struggle, I think, for everyone to be, but we're supposed to be humble. We're supposed to use whatever time we're given to shine a light on other stories. I mean there are so many stories that we're not covering.' Behar chimed in again as well to dial back on her comment. 'I have the apologize to Megyn Kelly. I didn't mean the call her a b****. I've met her. I like her,' said Behar. 'She's struggling for a persona. Like a comedian is looking for, "who am I on stage?" She doesn't know who she is.' Meghan McCain then noted that it can be hard for people to shift from Fox News to other outlets, citing her own experience coming to ABC. Today has in the past pre-taped interviews with sex trafficking victims, but it is unclear why Kelly and her producers would opt to air that episode on a morning when they could discuss James Franco and Kevin Spacey's sexual misconduct in light of the Oscar nominations. The planned episode received no extra promotion from NBC, getting a brief mention on Today two minutes before air and a taped tease from Kelly at 8am on the morning show. NBC in no way tried to hide the fact that it was airing a taped episode though, with the words 'Previously Recorded' flashing at the top of the screen. Those are words that are seldom seen on the morning show these days, with even the normally taped fourth hour on Friday going live recently as Hoda Kotb is joined by Jenna Bush-Hager in the absence of Kathie Lee Gifford. Kelly's audience on Monday sat through the sex trafficking episode after a very eventful close to episode one. That was when Kelly criticized Fonda for her actions during the Vietnam War four decades ago on her now infamous trip to Hanoi. She also claimed that the actress had yet to apologize for her 1972 tour of North Vietnam. Fonda has stated multiple times that she regrets ever giving off the impression that she did not support US troops. This was all brought on by Kelly's anger at Fonda repeatedly bringing up a question she asked back in September about her plastic surgery. Kelly incensed many from the liberal base, she would often toy with during her years on Fox News, with those comments on Monday, and a host of celebs quickly came to Fonda's defense. 'Megyn Kelly is a moron - spineless wanna be barbie - she sucks and so does her show,' wrote Rosie O'Donnell. 'What a moron this woman is,' noted Rosanna Arquette. And Kelly's very first guest on Today, Debra Messing, said: 'This is disgusting. Shameful.' There was support for Kelly too, with lawyer and columnist Kurt Schlicter responding to Messing's tweet by writing: 'Maybe you should prioritize American heroes, like VADM James Stockdale, who were tortured and sometimes murdered by the communist bastards Hanoi Jane cavorted with, over your Hollywood traitor pal.' This could be just the controversy Kelly wants though as she tries to drive up viewing figures for the show. Burn: 'Megyn Kelly is a moron - spineless wanna be barbie - she sucks and so does her show,' wrote Rosie O'Donnell 'Look at her treatment of our military during the Vietnam war, many of our veterans still call her "Hanoi Jane" ... for shaming troops,' said Kelly (Fonda above in Vietnam) It has been four months since Megyn Kelly earned the wrath and ire of Jane Fonda for asking the 80-year-old actress about her plastic surgery. That moment occurred during Kelly's third episode on September 27 when she asked the Oscar-winner about what work she had done in the past. It prompted a steely Fonda to stare Kelly down and ask: 'We really want to talk about that now?' Since then Fonda has complained about the question to a number of outlets, and even mocked Kelly's question on Today last week during an interview with Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb Fonda was appearing with Lily Tomlin, who said she had known the actress: 'before her first facelift'. To which Fonda shot back: 'Who are you, Megyn Kelly?' 'When she first complained publicly after the program, and repeatedly, I chose to say nothing, as my general philosophy is what other people think of me is none of my business,' said Megyn at the end of her program on Monday. 'However, Fonda was at it again last week, including right here on NBC, and then again elsewhere. So it's time to address the poor-me routine.' 'First, some context. Fonda was on to promote a film about aging. For years she has spoken openly about her joy in giving a cultural face to older women,' Kelly told her studio audience. 'Well, the truth is, most older women look nothing like Fonda, who is now 80. And if Fonda really wants to have an honest discussion about older women's cultural face, then her plastic surgery is tough to ignore.' She continued: 'Fonda herself knows this. She knows this. And that is why, to her credit, she discussed her cosmetic surgery pretty much everywhere before coming on our show.' On the attack: Kelly (above on the live Monday episode) tore into Jane Fonda for repeatedly criticizing her over a plastic surgery question she asked the actress, 80, back in September 'Look, I gave her the chance to empower other women, young and old, on a subject which she purports to know well and she rejected it. Thats okay. But I have no regrets about the question,' explained Kelly. 'Nor am I in the market for a lesson from Jane Fonda on what is and is not appropriate. After all, this is a woman whose name is synonymous with outrage.' That is when Kelly launched into Fox News mode. 'Look at her treatment of our military during the Vietnam war, many of our veterans still call her "Hanoi Jane" thanks to her radio broadcasts which attempted to shame American troops. She posed on an anti-aircraft gun used to shoot down our pilots,' stated Kelly. 'She called our POW's "hypocrites and liars" and referred to their torture as understandable. Even she had to apologize years later for that gun picture - but not for the rest of it.' She then closed out by saying: 'By the way she still says she's not proud of America. So, the moral indignation is a little much. She put her plastic surgery out there. She said she wanted to discuss the plight of older women in America. And honestly she has no business lecturing anyone on what qualifies as offensive.' Kelly's claim is inaccurate however. Fonda apologized directly to a group of Vietnam veterans in 2015 while appearing at an event in Maryland. 'Whenever possible I try to sit down with vets and talk with them, because I understand and it makes me sad,' Fonda told those assembled at the Weinberg Center for Arts according to The Frederick News-Post. 'It hurts me and it will to my grave that I made a huge, huge mistake that made a lot of people think I was against the soldiers.' She later described herself as a 'lightening rod' to many, like to 50 protesters outside the venue that evening who carried signs reading: 'Forgive? Maybe. Forget? Never.' Fonda then explained: 'This famous person goes and does something that looks like Im against the troops, which wasnt true, but it looked that way, and Im a convenient target. So I understand.' She did not say she regretted travelling to North Vietnam. Jane Fonda had quite the response to Lily Tomlin's facelift comment pic.twitter.com/2qUUxReqiy TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 16, 2018 Oh no she did not: Fonda (above in September after being asked about her plastic surgery by Megyn Kelly) recently spoke about the question in an interview with Variety and on Today Going hard: ''She called our POW's "hypocrites and liars" and referred to their torture as understandable,' Kelly said of Fonda (above an image of Fonda on set) Grudge match: Kelly failed to mention that she herself had run multiple segments on her Fox News show The Kelly File which were highly critical on Fonda (pair above in controversial September clash) Viewers of The Kelly File might recognize Megyn's comments from episodes of the host's Fox News program. In at least three videos from 2014, Kelly welcomed guests on her program to trash Jane Fonda while also taking some shots of her own at the Oscar winner. In one interview with Dennis Miller in June of that year, Kelly smiled while saying that 'things went south' for the actress after her role in 'Barbarella.' She continued to laugh as Miller said that Fonda 'made sense' to him when she played the the title character in that film, a voluptuous space traveler from the planet Earth who spent most of her time in little to no clothing. 'She's not beloved by a large portion of Americans,' said Kelly in that interview. Just a few months before Kelly and Miller went after Fonda and the host also called out then-first lady Michelle Obama for saying she admired the actress' for being politically savvy. 'The thing is, if she had just said I want to have a body like Jane Fonda when I'm 76 most women would say, "yeah, me too,'' said Kelly. 'But when she named the political savvy and said she was someone she wanted to live like she crossed over into territory where people would criticize her.' WHY IS JANE FONDA CALLED HANOI JANE? Jane Fonda was one of the most public faces in the anti-war movement throughout the years that the United States was in Vietnam, but drew the outrage of many in 1972 when she traveled to Hanoi in North Vietnam. After touring the area and being heavily photographed with the forces that the US were fighting, Fonda publicly attacked her country for bombing farmland and destroying the dyke system which was crucial to feeding much of the population. The United States denied ever carrying out such an action. Fonda on an antiaircraft gun that would have been used to shoot down and destroy American planes before taking any surviving servicemen captives as POWs It was the photograph of Fonda on an antiaircraft gun that would have been used to shoot down and destroy American planes before taking any surviving servicemen captives as POWs that truly angered millions, and is still a great source of outrage for some veterans. Congress later held hearings to decide if Fonda should be punished for her actions, with many calling her trip an act of treason and the actress a traitor. Fonda recounted the trip in her memoir At the same time, false reports began to surface also claiming that Fonda spoke with POWs in North Vietnam and relayed the information they shared with her to enemy troops. Fonda wrote about the infamous antiaircraft gun photo in her 2005 memoir My Life So Far. 'Someone (I dont remember who) leads me toward the gun, and I sit down, still laughing, still applauding. It all has nothing to do with where I am sitting. I hardly even think about where I am sitting,' said Fonda. 'The cameras flash. I get up, and as I start to walk back to the car with the translator, the implication of what has just happened hits me. Oh, my God. Its going to look like I was trying to shoot down U.S. planes! I plead with him, You have to be sure those photographs are not published. Please, you cant let them be published.' She went on to write: 'I am assured it will be taken care of. I dont know what else to do. It is possible that the Vietnamese had it all planned. I will never know. If they did, can I really blame them? The buck stops here. 'If I was used, I allowed it to happen. It was my mistake, and I have paid and continue to pay a heavy price for it.' Advertisement This hilarious footage shows an Irish woman on a pub-crawl in Prague who got stuck in the loo and had to be rescued by two equally tipsy British men. After a few drinks Shannon Keenan wandered into a cubicle that was out of order without noticing the sign that had fallen off. Moments later she realised she was trapped in the enclosed space and called out for help. Shannon Keenan (both) got stuck in a toilet during a night out in Prague and filmed the hilarious footage on her snapchat In the video Shannon gives a hilarious narration to her panic-fuelled time in the toilet cubicle. She initially shouts out: 'I'm locked in a toilet can anyone help me.' 'Girls.. hello.' When nobody helps her she then says 'the girls over here are f***ing useless'. She said: 'I was there for about five minutes before anyone acknowledged me and to my amazement the girls (in the bathroom) ignored me, where's the girl code?' 'Then two English lads came to my rescue, keep in mind they were drunk too, was like the blind leading the blind.' After shouting for help Shannon was rescued by two British men who she called her 'knights in shining armour' At first the two chivalrous gents tried to pull her over the top and then the management of the pub tried to open the door from the outside. During the video she says ''my knights in shining armour' when two British men try to help her. In the end Shannon had to haul herself over the top of the toilet and the two men stood on the other side had to catch her. For the inconvenience Shannon and her 'saviours' received a free round of tequila from the manager. She said: 'Being Irish and already drunk I was delighted.' Shannon, who received some dutch courage from the alcohol, said: 'If I was sober it probably would have been a different story because I would have been to afraid to climb over. The girlfriend of missing RAF man Corrie McKeague has shared new photos of their baby daughter as his mother goes 'back to the beginning' to work where he is. April-Louise Oliver, posted a photo of their cute baby daughter, Ellie-Louise, sleeping under a blue blanket and another, taken six months earlier shortly after she was born. It comes as Mr McKeague's mother, Nicola Urquhart, said she 'desperately' needs support as she tests out 'every possible scenario' in her efforts to work out what has happened to her son. The girlfriend of missing RAF man Corrie McKeague has shared new photos of their baby daughter as his mother goes 'back to the beginning' to work where he is April-Louise Oliver, posted a photo of their cute baby daughter, Ellie-Louise, sleeping under a blue blanket and another, taken six months earlier shortly after she was born The reward for missing Mr McKeague was doubled last month to 100,000 by Suffolk businessman Colin Davey Miss Oliver captioned the picture: 'Only 6 months between the photos. O how time flys. I love her more and more everyday. 'Watching her personality grow, speak her first words, watch her crawl and eat crumpets like they are going out of fashion. 'Next thing I know she will be 18 and wearing all my cloths. But nothing will stop her being my little princess.' The reward for missing Mr McKeague was doubled last month to 100,000 by Suffolk businessman Colin Davey. The search for him at the Milton landfill site ended in December after police spent 137 days trawling through more than 7,000 tonnes of rubbish. Suffolk Police have now asked the government to cover the 1.6million cost of the investigation. Mr McKeague was last seen in the area of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, known as the 'horseshoe' where there was a bin lorry collection at around 4.15am to 4.20am on Saturday September 24, 2016. The search for him at the Milton landfill site ended in December after police spent 137 days trawling through more than 7,000 tonnes of rubbish April-Louise Oliver, 21, from Fincham in Norfolk, put a photograph on Facebook of their baby daughter Ellie-Louise enjoying a winter walk in a baby carrier and with the words, 'my bean' in December last year In another photo the baby girl is lying asleep on the floor, sucking her dummy and wearing a green jumper Ms Urquhart wrote on Facebook: 'Thank you so very much to all of you for your continued support. 'I apologise for not answering everyone's private messages. I am slowly trying to work my way through them all. 'I know it's Been very quiet recently, please be assured though that my determination to do everything I possibly can to find Corrie is still as strong as ever. 'I am using this time to go over all the information I have to see if there is anything that maybe the police or I didn't feel relevant or important at the time but now may be. Mr McKeague was last seen in the area of Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, known as the 'horseshoe' where there was a bin lorry collection at around 4.15am to 4.20am on Saturday September 24, 2016 'I have so many questions, some I understand I may never get answers to, but there are loads that can be so I will concentrate on making sure I've not missed asking any. 'Just like the police I have gone back to the beginning and am testing every possible scenario I can think of and how we could prove it is or isn't possible. The answer is out there. Just like Corrie is out there somewhere. 'So although I am quiet publicly just now. I still desperately need you all, so thank you from the bottom of my heart for remaining so positively determined.' Senators who cut a deal Monday to reopen the federal government in exchange for action on immigration proposals may be overlooking stiff opposition from the other side of the U.S. Capitol. House Majority Whip Steve Scalise told Politico on Tuesday that the lower chamber of Congress isn't bound by that deal, and might stand in the way of passing whatever Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell brings up for a vote. That could create new tensions with the White House, where President Donald Trump is using the promise of a renewed DACA program s leverage to win funding for his border wall and other priorities. 'The House wasn't part of that deal,' Scalise said, emphasizing that his caucus doesn't have to line up behind Senate Republicans to enforce a deadline for action 16 days from now. 'March is really the timeline,' he said. NOT SO FAST:House Majority Whip Steve Scalise warns that a Senate-brokered immigration deal that reopened the government might die in his chamber of Congress Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (left) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (right) agreed Monday to end a government shutdown by pledging to take up a DACA fix no later than February 8 McConnell and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer agreed to end a three-day government shutdown based on the promise of action on DACA by February 8. DACA, the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, protects hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants from deportation because they were brought to the United States as minors. Trump announced in September that he would end that system in six months, a promise that will ripen on March 5. Senate Democrats will likely hold the February deadline over Republicans' heads, threatening another shutdown if DACA talks stall. But a deal there could be just the first step if House Republicans sit on their hands or demand changes. Scalise said he a big immigration deal would 'excite our base,' but he drew the line at 'amnesty' for illegal immigrants. White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley (right) panned an immigration proposal being crafted by Democrat Dick Durbin and moderate Republican Lindsey Graham, saying it's 'not a serious solution to protect the American people but a giant step in the wrong direction' 'We're not going to pass a bill that has amnesty. There are things that would anger our base that I don't see us passing in the House,' he said. It's unclear if he was talking about DACA beneficiaries or other groups of people who are living in the America without permission. Millions of illegal immigrants are in the U.S. because they overstayed their visas, for instance. Meanwhile, Scalise gave the latest proposal for a grand bargain a thumbs-down, saying a bill reportedly being assembled by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham and Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin won't pass muster. The two senators, along with other members of the so-called 'Gang of Six,' are thought to be crafting a bill that would give Trump funding for his wall but only slightly decrease the number of people who can legally enter the U.S. each year. In exchange, they want a substantial increase in the number of current immigrants both legal and illegal who qualify for permanent legal status. Among the beneficiaries would be the DACA population, along with their siblings and parents. That wrinkle could be the 'amnesty' that Scalise dismissed as off-limits. He said Tuesday that the Graham-Durbin roadmap would never pass 'not in the House.' 'It's good for everybody to put their ideas on paper but ultimately there are things that can and cannot pass in the House,' he said. 'And we have to work through those details and we're working through them.' White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley said Monday that the Graham-Durbin package 'is not a serious solution to protect the American people but a giant step in the wrong direction.' 'Their plan totally fails to secure the border, and includes no legal authorities to stop illegal immigration[,] which ensures a massive wave of new illegal immigration and new chain migration," he added. 'The bill also maintains the visa lottery as another backdoor amnesty,' said Gidley. 'It puts people who are in this country unlawfully ahead of our own American citizens.' Russia has banned the release of British comedy film The Death Of Stalin after labelling it 'offensive' and 'extremist'. The movie, which stars Steve Buscemi and Jason Isaacs , had been due for a limited release on Thursday after it was given an 18+ certificate by the culture ministry. But that certificate has now been withdrawn after a wave of protest from conservative figures who said it 'lampooned the history of our country'. The Death of Stalin, a Franco-British comedy starring Jason Isaacs (pictured here as Georgy Zhukov), has been banned in Russia for being 'offensive' and 'extremist' The ministry said the film's release was cancelled after officials found it contained 'information whose distribution is legally banned in Russia'. Armando Iannucci's comedy, which had a world premiere in September last year, takes a satirical look at the power scramble after Stalin's 1953 death. On Monday, Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky held a private screening for officials and film directors. Yelena Drapeko, deputy head of the lower house of parliament's culture committee, told the RBK news site that she had 'never seen anything so disgusting in my life'. The Armando Iannucci comedy, which was due out Thursday on an 18+ certificate, has now had its licence withdrawn '(The audience), me included, saw elements of extremism in the film,' she said. After the screening 22 people signed a letter urging Medinsky to delay the release and check if the film broke any laws. The signatories included film director Nikita Mikhalkov - who won an Oscar for his 1995 film 'Burnt by the Sun', set during Stalin repressions - and Marshal Zhukov's daughter Era. The letter published on the culture ministry's site slammed the film as 'lampooning the history of our country' and 'blackening the memory of our citizens who conquered fascism'. The film contained elements 'that can be assessed as extremist and aimed at humiliating Russian people,' the letter said. The Russian national anthem was used in an 'offensive way' in the trailer, it added. It also called for the release to be delayed because next month sees the 75th anniversary of Soviet victory against the Nazis in the Battle of Stalingrad in 1943. One of the letter's signatories, the head of a public chamber advising the culture ministry, Yury Polyakov, told TASS state news agency the film is 'part of an ideological battle against our country'. The ban came after a special screening for officials and directors on Monday, who penned an open letter urging Culture Minister Vladimir Medinsky to look again at the licence Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that he was not aware of the controversy and that the matter was the prerogative of the culture ministry. 'The Death of Stalin' became the top trending item on Russian Twitter after the announcement. 'I think Charlie Chaplin would be under house arrest now in Russia,' wrote Alexei Venediktov, editor-in-chief of popular Echo of Moscow radio. The film has prompted a mixed reaction from Russian media, ranging from praise to condemnation. The Komsomolskaya Pravda tabloid slammed it as 'a comedy that could have been filmed by Hitler' and 'possibly the most sickening film about the USSR of recent times'. But critic Andrei Arkhangelsky wrote in Ogonyok magazine that the irreverent comedy is paradoxically able to 'convey the full seriousness of what happened'. A chicken-mad couple love KFC so much they decided to have their wedding reception at a branch of the fast food chain. Edward Simms, 48, and his wife, Cherish, 34, from Worcester, in the West Midlands, tucked into a bargain bucket after saying 'I do' at a nearby register office. Mr Simms, a plant mechanic, and Mrs Simms, a full-time mother, spent less than 100 to feed their 40 guests family-sized sharers, sides and desserts. Mrs Simms was so eager to have her wedding reception at the Finger Lickin' chain she rang every month to make sure all was going to plan. The newlyweds and guests had the restaurant to themselves and it was specially decorated by staff with red KFC balloons. The thrifty couple only spent 500 on the wedding - leaving more money for the honeymoon. Edward Simms, 48, and his wife, Cherish, 34, from Worcester, in the West Midlands, had their wedding reception at KFC after saying 'I do' at a register office Guests tucked into Bargain Buckets and fries at the fast food restaurant in Blackpole The couple share a drink from KFC after having their wedding reception at the fast food chain Mrs Simms, from Holt Heath, said: 'It was a joint decision and we thought it would be a bit of fun. 'We love eating chicken and chips and we probably order food from there around once a week. 'We didn't want a boring reception where we would have to organize everything ourselves so we thought "why not see if it was possible". 'When the guests saw on the invite that the reception would be there, they weren't surprised at all, they know what we are like. 'We got in touch with the manager, who thought it was a bit strange, but was willing to give it a go for us.' Mrs Simms' son Genghis plays with one of the red balloons at the wedding reception at KFC The 34-year-old added: 'We had more than enough to eat and they really had gone town with the decorations. They put balloons up and dressed the tables, we had the whole place to ourselves. 'We didn't even plan anything with them, but they really managed to make our day special. 'It was great value for money and we wanted to spend more money on our honeymoon instead. 'We made sure we kept clean by covering ourselves in napkins. 'All our guests really enjoyed the day, instead of spending the day with people we didn't like, with boring buffet food. 'We wanted everyone to be relaxed and share our day with us.' Chicken, fries and all the sides were dished out to the guests at the KFC wedding reception Despite the whole restaurant being reserved for the wedding, the couple did not have to pay a booking fee, only the cost of the food Mrs Simms said family and friends 'were surprised' when they told them their plan for the wedding The couple invited around 40 guests to their wedding reception at the fast food chain Mrs Simms, full time mother to Jenghis, 10, and Ellie, 11, said Mr Simms, 48, who works for Partexs Direct, had proposed to her on Christmas Day, 'in front of everyone, in my apron, in my Christmas hat'. Following the wedding, the couple headed to Amsterdam for their two-week honeymoon. Mrs Simms said they had initially shopped around for other more traditional wedding reception venues, but their original choice was 3,000 for the basic package. She said she hoped other people might follow suit. 'I recommend it to everyone', she said. 'Why not have something a bit different?' 'The most important thing is to have a bit of fun on your wedding day, and not be uncomfortable and be scurrying around for months and months to get everything done.' A brazen thief has been arrested after CCTV recorded him stealing a car by picking it up using a forklift truck and putting it onto a recovery lorry. The thief stole the Mini Cooper in the city of El Prat de Llobregat in Catalonia, Spain, on January 3. The video has only recently been released after officers of the Catalan police force Mossos D'Esquadra used the footage to track down the culprit. A brazen thief has been arrested after CCTV recorded him stealing a car by picking it up using a forklift truck and putting it onto a recovery lorry In the video, the unnamed man is seen driving the pallet truck on the streets at night. He approaches a parked Mini and positions the forks underneath the vehicle. As the car alarm is set off, the forklift driver wheels backwards and places the Mini on top of a waiting recovery vehicle. The two drivers exchange words before leaving in opposite directions. The owner of the recovery vehicle is not believed to be under investigation. The thief stole the Mini Cooper in the city of El Prat de Llobregat in Catalonia, Spain, on January 3 In the video, the unnamed man is seen driving the pallet truck on the streets at night. He approaches a parked Mini and positions the forks underneath the vehicle Local media reported that the thief is the owner of an illegal scrapyard in the area and that there was another Mini on site with the same specifications as the stolen model. Police believe that the man wanted to use the parts from the stolen vehicle. Inside the wrecking yard, officers found around 20 cars and 25 motorbikes in the process of being scrapped but still registered as roadworthy vehicles with the authorities. The stolen Mini was returned to its owner while the car thief will appear in court soon. It has been reported that the man has a criminal record for similar offences. The Met Police is investigating black cab rapist over a new allegation of sexual assault as prison authorities prepare for his release Scotland Yard is investigating a new sex attack claim made against black cab rapist John Worboys, it emerged today. It is unclear whether the new investigation will affect Worboys' release, but it is thought that he could be kept in custody if the police investigation concludes quickly and new charges are brought. Worboys was jailed indefinitely in 2009, with a minimum term of eight years, for drugging and sexually assaulting women passengers. But a furious row erupted this month when it emerged he had been granted parole after serving his minimum term and will soon be released onto the streets. Today it emerged a new claim, dating back to 1997, has been made to police in London, who have launched an investigation. A spokesman said: 'The Metropolitan Police Service is investigating an allegation of non-recent sexual assault which was reported to police in January 2018. 'The incident is reported to have taken place in 1997. Enquiries by officers from the Child Abuse and Sexual Offences Command are ongoing. 'No arrests have been made. We will not give a running commentary on ongoing investigations.' The Ministry of Justice would not comment when asked by MailOnline if the new investigation could halt Worboys release. Worboys is thought to have many more victims than the 12 who he was convicted of attacking. He gave women drugged champagne in his taxi after telling them he was celebrating Worboys, now 60, was convicted of 19 offences against 12 victims, but has been linked to more than 100 complaints in total. It was reported this morning that the notorious sex offender was transferred from HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire to HMP Belmarsh, south-east London, at the weekend. The news prompted fears he could be released in London, where he carried out his attacks and where many of his victims still live. However, it is understood Worboys's release is not imminent and his transfer does not mean he will necessarily be freed into the capital. Last week, Justice Secretary David Gauke stressed that Worboys will not be released until his licence conditions have been finalised, and victims signed up to a contact scheme have had their say on the restrictions. Police found a rape kit in the back of Worboys' taxi which including sleeping tablets, condoms and an ashtray he used to crush the drugs A group of MPs has called for an 'exclusion zone' to be imposed to ban the former taxi driver from the capital. Richard Scorer, a lawyer at Slater and Gordon, which represented a number of Worboys' victims, said: 'This is extremely distressing for our clients as yet again they have not been informed about developments in the Worboys case. 'It is an insult that they have had to find out from the media of every new development in this case and it is crucial that they are kept updated.' Mr Scorer told MailOnline when asked about the new probe: 'It would be inappropriate to comment while there is an ongoing investigation, but we would urge anyone with any information that may aid the criminal investigation to contact the police.' Tory MP Zac Goldsmith said the proposed release of Worboys has 'absolutely horrified' his victims, who were 'appalled' to learn of his move to Belmarsh. Daily Mail joins calls for Parole Board to say why it ruled attacker could be freed The Daily Mail last night joined demands for the Parole Board to reveal its reasons for approving John Worboys for release. Media groups, including the Mail's publisher Associated Newspapers, have sent a legal letter challenging officials to say why they ruled the black cab rapist can be freed. If the Parole Board refuses to disclose its reasons, the papers have warned they could bring a judicial review. Rule 25 of Parole Board Rules state that information about decisions made on the release of prisoners 'must not be made public'. But the Mail and The Sun are arguing that such is the severity of the crimes for which he was convicted that the normal rules should be set aside. The letter states: 'The public has been prevented from receiving factual information and opinion in respect of the Parole Board's decision. Such information is clearly integral to the debate on a matter of profound public interest. 'The Parole Board's failure to make public its decision is particularly significant in view of the overwhelming public concern that has been generated by the impending release of a person who was convicted of very serious crimes only eight years ago, and who is alleged to have committed many more for which he has not been prosecuted.' A 60-year-old veteran has been choked to death in his home by a drunk neighbor who stumbled into the house after mistaking it for his own and attacked the older man thinking he was an intruder, it has been claimed. Clifton King died after being attacked by neighbor Michael Augustine, 43, in his home at 10.15pm in Raytown, Missouri, on January 19. Police were alerted to the situation when Augustine called them reporting an intruder in his own house. He gave them his own address and said he had the intruder 'pinned down' in his front yard, where he would keep him until officers arrived. Police however arrived at his house to find it empty and no one outside. After patrolling the area, they found both men in King's front yard where Augustine appeared to have him in a choke hold. The 60-year-old was taken to hospital but was later pronounced dead. According to charging documents, Augustine smelled of alcohol and was slurring his speech. In one of his booking photos, he is pictured smiling. Michael Augustine, 43, is pictured smiling in his mugshot (left) after being arrested for the death of Clifton King, 60 (right) King was the man's neighbor. Police found the pair on King's front yard on Saturday at 10.15pm and Augustine had him in a choke hold Augustine told police to go to his house in Raytown, Missouri, claiming he had found an intruder inside and was in the front yard with him. He had actually gone to Clifton King's home 176 yards away (top left) which is where they were found The 43-year-old was charged with first degree involuntary manslaughter. His bond was set at $150,000 which he posted this week. It is not clear what he does for a living. Neighbors say he has since moved out of the street and do not know where he is. Neither the Raytown Police Department nor the Jackson County Prosecutor's Office responded to questions about the case. They would not tell DailyMail.com whether Augustine was remorseful about the killing or if he had given them any statement about it. They did not say when he was next due back in court or if either man lived alone or with relatives. Shocked neighbors have described Clifton as a 'good neighbor who served the country'. 'He served our country and that was not an honorable way to treat him. '"I think that its sad. Its sad! Someone had to give up their life because someone was so messed up they didnt know it wasnt their home,' one woman, who declined to be named, told local Missouri station Fox 4. Others gave similar tributes on social media. The man's grieving family told DailyMail.com they were shocked and saddened by his death. King lived alone in the house after recently separating from his wife-of-30 years. Police found the men outside King's home in Raytown, Missouri. Augustine had arrived there drunk, thinking it was his own house, and attacked the older man. He then called 911 and told police he had returned home to find Augustine's home (above) is 176 yards from the other man's. It is where he told police to go first when he called 911 Until recently, he had been working for Jackson County Parks and Recreations as a groundskeeper but he had to stop due to an illness, his sister-in-law Carla said. She described him as 'quiet and reserved' but said she was not surprised by neighbors' characterizations of him as a good man and neighbor. Augustine is pictured in a second mugshot. He posted his $150,000 bond and has moved out of the area 'Clifton was a good man who loved his family. He was reserved and quiet but could be very outgoing and kinda funny if he was comfortable around you,' she said. None of the family had ever heard of Augustine before. They say they are trying not to be emotional but that his smiling mugshot is a cruel reminder of what they have lost. 'We see no remorse. We feel that that it is very smirkish, it's like "you really don't care if this is the life of an innocent man? 'We're trying to let the justice system work, but it's very difficult. It is very difficult looking at that picture. It's like he's laughing about it,' she said. Before retiring to become a groundskeeper, King was as a sheet metal worker for 20 years. King's family said he was a loving and caring man who was quiet and reserved. He spent much of his life working with horses and was active in the black rodeo, they said He and his wife adopted two young relatives whose own parents could not care for them, but they did not have any biological children of their own. The man's wife and his niece both work for the Kansas Police Department, his sister-in-law said. No one in the family has been told when Augustine is next due in court. King's wife Donna told DailyMail.com that he was a caring man who spent much of his life caring for horses along with her brothers. Together, they took children from the city to rural locations to ride the horses, she said. 'They were active in the black rodeo and local black cowboys, [often] winning awards and recognition,' she said. They are now raising money to pay for his funeral and hope to raise $5,000 on a GoFundMe page. The man's sister said he was kind, loving and would often 'give you whatever he had'. UPDATED The federal government shutdown has come to an end, but the debate on Capitol Hill over the fate of hundreds of thousands of immigrants who were brought to the United States illegally as children has not. Democrats backed plans to reopen the government after Senate Republicans promised to consider legislation that resolves the status of young undocumented immigrants popularly known as Dreamers, who are protected under Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Heading into the shutdown that began early Saturday morning, Democrats wanted to pass permanent protections for immigrants shielded under DACA, an Obama-era program that grants an estimated 700,000 young immigrants permits that allow them to legally work and stay in the country. Because Republicans control both chambers of Congress and the White House, votes on spending bills provide rare opportunities for Democrats to exert leverage. The spending bills require 60 votes to pass the Senate, so the 52 Republicans did not have enough votes to keep the government open, or to re-open it, on their own. Democrats went into the shutdown demanding some sort of immigration deal in exchange for their votes, but eventually backed down as the shutdown moved into a third full day. Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, warned that a prolonged shutdown would lower the prospects of a bipartisan agreement. Its now evident that this filibuster is doing nothing to generate bipartisan progress on issues that Americans care about. Every day we spend arguing about keeping the lights on is another day we cannot spend negotiating DACA, defense, or any of our other shared priorities. Leader McConnell (@SenateMajLdr) January 22, 2018 The chances of such a deal happening without another shutdown should become clear soon. The continuing resolution that Congress passed and allows the government to reopen expires on Feb. 8. The Republican majority now has 17 days to prevent the Dreamers from being deported, said U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, the top Democrat in the Senate. Not all the Democrats are convinced that McConnell will keep his word. The Majority Leaders comments fell far short of the ironclad guarantee I needed to support a stopgap spending bill. I refuse to put the lives of nearly 700,000 young people in the hands of someone who has repeatedly gone back on his word. Kamala Harris (@SenKamalaHarris) January 22, 2018 A Ticking Clock President Donald Trump rescinded DACA in September, ordering Congress to find a legislative solution by March 5 when the program in its current form had been slated to end. In the months since, the White House has rejected several bipartisan proposals from lawmakers. But the March 5 cutoff is not certain at this point. A federal judge in California has temporarily blocked the Trump administrations plan to end DACA. The Trump administration has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to immediately rescind the judges decision to restore the program. Amid the uncertainty, Republican leaders have promised to consider some kind of immigration bill by February 8, the day the continuing resolution expires. Some DACA recipients and immigration advocates are fearful that nothing will happen soon. The potential impact on schools is significant. The Washington-based Migration Policy Institute estimates that about 9,000 undocumented, DACA-protected teachers work in U.S. schools. In addition, millions of U.S.-born students in the nations schools are the children of undocumented immigrants, many of whom are DACA recipients. For the Dreamers, the waiting game continues. The long nights of not knowing what the future holds continue. The job insecurity continues, Gustavo Torres, the executive director of CASA, a Maryland-based immigration advocacy and assistance organization, said in a statement. We will keep up our fight, more resolute than ever, because for all Dreamers this is a fight for their lives. Related Stories After Trump Insult, Educators Rally Around Haitian, African Students Federal Judge Blocks Trumps Decision to End DACA Trump Administration Appeals to High Court on Injunction Restoring DACA Government on Track to Reopen, But for How Long? A Deal on DACA Will Be Key Photo Credit: Alexis Montes Torres, a Houston teacher, is among the more than 700,000 undocumented immigrants currently shielded from deportation and eligible to work legally under the deferred action policy. --Michael Stravato for Education Week Hollywood actress Pamela Anderson has described WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as a 'genius' and called a rape allegation against him a 'setup' in an explosive BBC interview. The former Baywatch star, 50, who visited Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London on Monday, where he has been living since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden, made an impassioned defense of the controversial computer programmer. She spoke of their close relationship in the interview on the BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme on Tuesday, telling her: 'I would rather be a friend to Julian than anybody. Hollywood actress Pamela Anderson has described WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange as a 'genius' and called a rape allegation against him a 'setup' in an explosive interview. Anderson spoke of their relationship in the interview on the Victoria Derbyshire show on Tuesday 'I think he's so full of information, has an incredible perspective and is a genius and is trying to help humanity and I think that the ultimate goal is to stop these senseless wars,' she told Derbyshire. Adding: 'We talk about everything, I always make sure he's OK, make sure he's exercising, make sure he's eating well. 'What he is doing is very, very important and we need to know, we need to have true information.' She said it is 'impossible' for him to leave the embassy after facing a rape allegation, which was dropped last year. Mr Assange, 46, has been living in the London embassy of the south American country for five-and-a-half years after being granted political asylum as he fought sex-related claims in Sweden. Swedish prosecutors have dropped their investigation into allegations against him, but he fears he will be extradited to the United States if he leaves the building and that there is a sealed indictment ordering his arrest. The former Baywatch star, 50, who visited Assange at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London on Monday, where he has been living since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden , made an impassioned defense of the controversial computer programmer Mr Assange, 46, has been living in the London embassy of the south American country for five-and-a-half years after being granted political asylum as he fought sex-related claims in Sweden Anderson said the rape claim was a 'setup' against Mr Assange and continued: 'The best way to discredit somebody is to call them a rapist, or a paedophile, how do you get over that even if it's not true? 'So I think this was a setup, this was not something that was true. It was an idea to discredit him to extradite him to the States.' Speaking about feminism, Anderson told the programme: 'It's complicated, I mean it's great, feminism obviously has come in the last 50 years and has given us so much freedom and so many great things. Anderson expressed reservations about feminism during her appearance on the show 'The best way to discredit somebody is to call them a rapist, or a paedophile,' she said of the allegations against Assange 'But I think that in some cases even progressive countries like Sweden a condom breaks and it's a form of sexual assault - I mean that's just going too far.' WikiLeaks has previously been accused by Hillary Clinton of acting as a 'fully owned subsidiary of Russian intelligence' after it published damaging emails, allegedly stolen by Russian operatives, during the 2016 presidential election campaign. 'I think ... to have true information be a national security threat is bizarre and to be considered radical for exposing truths and just truths in full,' Anderson said. Nicole Erica Wood (pictured), 44, shot two dogs that belonged to her neighbors in 2016. She was sentenced to two days in jail as well as community service and fine of $1,000 An Oregon woman who fatally shot two dogs that belonged to her neighbors has been given a jail sentence of two days. Nicole Erica Wood, 44, also has to finish 200 hours of community service, pay a fine of $1,000 and relinquish the guns she used to kill the dogs. Additionally, Wood will be on probation for 18 months, according to the Oregonian. Wood is trained to be a veterinary technician and is married to veterinarian Steven Wood, who practices in McMinnville, Oregon. She shot the dogs in the fall of 2016 after they wandered onto her property. One was a boxer named Shelby that belonged to Daniel and Hailey Cummins, and the other belonged to Matthew and Melissa Lewis and was a German short-haired pointer called Danner. Both families lived withing one mile of Wood's home when she shot their dogs. Wood said she warned one of the owners before she shot the two dogs, saying that if the dogs were on her property she would kill them. She told the police she believed the dogs killed one of her cats months before the incident. The state prosecutor in charge of the case, Jacob Kamins, said killing another person's dog because of a previous threat is illegal. However, killing another person's dog because it is an immediate threat to livestock is legal. The dogs that Wood killed, Shelby (left) and Danner (right), had separate owners. Both lived within a mile of Wood's home Sheriff Deputy Michael Samerdyke found the bodies of the two dogs 66 feet from Wood's home when he arrived on the scene. According to Wood, she let her own dog inside her home before killing Danner and Shelby. She shot the dogs using a .27-caliber rifle, but it only injured one of them. She then used a pistol to finish killing it. When Wood was sentenced on Monday a statement from Matthew Lewis, the owner of the German short-haired pointer that was killed, was read aloud to Wood by one of Lewis's relatives. This is the road leading to Wood's home where she killed her neighbors' dogs. Sheriff Deputy Michael Samerdyke found the bodies of the dogs Wood shot 66 feet from her home when he arrived at the crime scene The statement explained how Lewis told his distraught daughter someone killed their pet. He said to her: 'Good people make bad decisions.' The statement said: 'I don't think you are a bad person. I know you made a bad decision that day.' Lewis's statement revealed that he forgave Wood and did not want her punishment to be time served in a correctional facility, the Oregonian reported. Wood protested the criminal charges brought against her at her trial, saying she was worried the dogs could kill another one of her cats when she shot them. But she was found guilty on two counts of first-degree animal abuse. Wood did not have a criminal history prior to the incident. A grandmother and godmother were both arrested in Oklahoma the leg of a baby they were supposed to be watching was so badly burned that his leg had to be removed. Cordette and Breanna Cole were arrested on child abuse and child neglect charges. The 11-month old baby was taken into OU Children's Hospital for breathing problems but when doctors examined the child, they discovered the boy had severe burns from above his belly button down to his feet. Furthermore, the pair had waited more than two weeks to take the child to the hospital by which time the baby's leg could no longer be saved. Cordette, left, and Breanna Cole, right, were arrested on child abuse and neglect charges The grandmother and godmother were looking after the baby because the child's mother was already preoccupied looking after a different child An affidavit also revealed that the boy had bruises on his head and neck, a tooth had been knocked out and he had a subdural hematoma - bleeding on the brain. Sadly the burns on the baby's leg were so bad that it had to be amputated. Captain Bo Matthews from the Oklahoma City Police Department said that if the women had brought the child in earlier, the boy's leg could have been saved Oklahoma City Police Department investigators learned that the pair were supposed to be looking after the baby while his mother took care of her other sick child. The women explained to police that the baby accidentally pulled a teapot with boiling water on top of himself when he was having a seizure on December 10. Breanna Cole told the detective they tried to treat the wounds themselves, even after his skin was lifting off of him. Two weeks later, on December 25, she said she brought the baby into the hospital with breathing problems. Police spoke with doctors in an attempt to get a clearer picture of the situation but more discrepancies appeared to be and couldn't be true. According to the affidavit, when these were pointed out, Breanna Cole kept changing her story. A doctor told investigators that if the baby had 'received proper medical treatment immediately, he would have not had to have his leg amputated.' The two women were booked with $1million bond each. A Michigan man fatally shot himself at his birthday party moments after he accidentally shot and killed his best friend while playing with a gun, police said. Zachary Woodcock was celebrating his 21st birthday on Friday at the Bavarian Haus Apartments in Merrill with a group of friends when the incident occurred, the Saginaw County Sheriff's Office said. Lieutenant Mike Gomez told Michigan Live that two men, both 21, had been shot at the apartment. Zachary Woodcock (left) shot and killed himself at his 21st birthday after unintentionally shooting and killing his best friend, Richard Skillman (right) Police said after Woodcock realized he had shot Skillman, he went outside and turned the gun on himself The first victim, Richard Cody Skillman, was pronounced dead at the scene from a gunshot wound to the chest. Woodcock was transported to the hospital, where he died the following day. Investigators said Woodcock and a few friends went back to his bedroom during the party and Woodcock pulled out a handgun. The weapon accidentally went off and struck Skillman in the chest. Skillman, 21, was pronounced dead at the scene Gomez told ABC 12 that as people were tending to Skillman, Woodcock left the apartment. Realizing what he had done, Woodcock turned the gun on himself. 'They heard a shot, walked out and there he was, Gomez said, adding that the two men were best friends and both were gun enthusiasts. According to the lieutenant, about 10 guns were removed from the apartment and Skillman's car, which had been parked outside the complex. Gomez also said both men 'were each armed with multiple guns'. It seems to me that this was an unintentional shooting instead of an accidental shooting,' he told NBC 25. 'Anytime firearms and alcohol are involved in the same incident, bad things are going to happen. A GoFundMe for Woodcock, who worked as a truck driver for Standard Electric, has been set up to raise money for funeral expenses. A funeral for Skillman, also a truck driver, has not yet been announced, according to a Facebook post from his mother, Wanda Peck-Skillman. A man in Michigan was arrested for allegedly making 22 threatening calls to CNN headquarters in Atlanta, including threats to gun down the cast, over the course of two days. Brandon Griesemer, 19, was arrested on Friday in the Novi home he shares with his parents. In the alarming calls, which began on January 9, he allegedly told a CNN operator 'Fake News. I'm coming to gun you all down.' In another call, Griesemer allegedly told the operator: 'I'm coming for you, CNN. I'm smarter than you. More powerful than you. I have more guns than you. More manpower. Your cast is about to get gunned down in a matter of hours.' Brandon Griesemer, 19 (pictured far left with his mother, father and brother) called CNN 22 times in two days, threatening a mass shooting at their Atlanta headquarters Angry: Greisemer allegedly also made threatening calls to a mosque in September but told agents he was just 'angry' at the time Terrifyingly he also claimed to be en-route to the station. 'I am on my way right now to gun the f***ing CNN cast down,' he said. When the operator asked for his name during that call, according to the federal complaint, he responded 'F*** you. I'm coming to kill you,' before hanging up the phone. The complaint said he also used racial and antisemitic slurs during the calls. In a previous incident, the complaint states he called a mosque in September and made derogatory comments about Muslims before hanging up. When Ann Arbor Police spoke with him at the time about the incident he said he was 'angry' when he made the call. In a statement to NBC News, CNN said it takes threats extremely seriously. 'We take any threats to CNN employees or workplaces, around the world, extremely seriously. This one is no exception. We have been in touch with local and federal law enforcement throughout, and have taken all necessary measures to ensure the safety of our people.' The phone numbers were traced to Griesemer's family by an invesigator employed by CNN. Griesemer's father, however, said the whole situation is a misunderstanding. A man who identified himself as Griesemer's father told The Washington Post Monday night that 'this whole thing has been a mistake. He really didn't mean any of it.' Griesemer's father added: 'He didn't know what he was saying, the seriousness of it. We're not even gun owners or anything like that. We don't have any, neither does he.' He added, 'More will come out later. Hopefully, this can be settled.' Meanwhile, the FBI affidavit says Griesemer made interstate threats by phone, in violation of federal law. The threats came shortly after the 'Fake News Awards' were announced on the website of the Republican National Committee. The 'awards' introduction, which listed CNN several times, read: Griesemer made several threats to CNN's Atlanta headquarters, including telling an operator he was 'coming to kill' them Just this morning the president tweeted about 'Fake News CNN' however, he was happy with the reporting, while he called host Jim Acosta 'crazy' he still thanked him for his 'honesty' '2017 was a year of unrelenting bias, unfair news coverage, and even downright fake news. Studies have shown that over 90% of the media's coverage of President Trump is negative.' Donald Trump frequently lashes out at mainstream media and often calls CNN 'fake news,' and he referred to 'Fake News CNN' in a tweet just this morning. However, it was unclear if Griesemer was prompted in part by the president's rhetoric or his dubious 'awards.' Griesemer, a part-time grocery worker, posted his $10,000 bond on a charge of transmitting interstate communications with the intent to extort and threat to injure. He was released the same day. He is represented by a public defender. Jeremy Hunt today insisted that the NHS must not be expected to have EU rules on it imposed after Brexit. The Health Secretary said Brussels must not expect the UK to be 'rule takers and not rule makers' by having health and medicines regulations imposed on us. Although he said that Britain will probably choose to keep close regulatory alignment with the bloc after we leave. He also admitted that our proposed two-year Brexit transition deal may not be fully thrashed out by March this year, as the PM hopes. Speaking to the health select committee today, Mr Hunt said the millions of Britons who voted Leave expect the UK to free itself from the rulings of EU judges. And he backed Boris Johnson's call for extra spending on the NHS after Brexit - despite claims the Foreign Secretary was 'bitch slapped twice' by Theresa May in Cabinet this morning for gong public with his demand. The Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt (pictured in Parliament today)said Brussels must not expect the UK to be 'rule takers and not rule makers' by having health and medicines regulations imposed on us. Mr Johnson was told off in Cabinet this morning for breaking ministerial rules and going public with his demand for another 100m a week for health after Brexit. Hours after the extraordinary row, Mr Hunt faced a grilling by the health select committee about the NHS and Brexit. And in a move that could put pressure on Mrs May to boost NHS spending, Mr Hunt told them: 'I don't think any health secretary is ever going to not support potential extra resources for his or her department.' He also made it plain that he believes Britain must not e given orders from Brussels abut healthcare regulation after Brexit. He said: 'The reason we are not staying in the single market and customs union is that we don't think that would ultimately be compatible with what the British people voted for. 'That is our view that being subject to ECJ (European Court of Justice) rulings - which is what staying in the single market would mean - but not being able to influence those rules, so being a rule taker not a rule maker, is something that many people in the 52 per cent who voted Leave would find totally unacceptable.' He said he has no problem with Britain remaining closely aligned with the remaining 27 member states on regulations. But he warned these rules must not be allowed to be automatically imposed by Brussels. He said: 'I think the issue is the legal underpinnings. 'So if that regulatory alignment is agreed between two sovereign powers the EU and the UK with an international arbitration mechanism... then I think that is completely acceptable I think that's the kind of relationship which could work very well. Boris Johnson (pictured leaving Cabinet at No10 today) was 'bitch slapped twice' by Theresa May after his public demand for more cash for the NHS, it has been claimed. he was giving a ticking off by the PM after making an extraordinary public demand for a 100m a week Brexit HS dividend 'What I think is difficult to square with my view of what people voted for would be an arrangement where we were obliged to change our regulations in response to a unilateral change o regulations made by the EU going forward. 'I don't think that would be compatible with having control of our own destiny.' 'We can have close regulator alignment outside the single market.' Mr Hunt was quizzed by MPs on the select committee about what the impact of Brexit will be on the health sector. During the grilling he admitted that a Brexit transition deal may not be signed off with the EU by March this year - despite Mrs May's big push to get it done by then. He said: 'The reality is these things have to be negotiated. These things have to be negotiated with the EU. 'The truth is we have made it very clear that we want a transition deal, that was agreed with the EU in December in I think a pretty important moment in negotiations. 'But it was also said that as we move on to discussions on the future relationship there is going to be i's that need to be dotted and t's that need to be crossed in terms of how that transitional deal will work.' Akron Public Schools board member John Otterman resigned from the Akron Board of Education Monday after his apparent overdose last week A first-term Ohio school board member resigned Monday after he was found unconscious from an apparent overdose last week. Police in Akron were called to the 200 block of East Cuyahoga Falls Avenue early last Thursday evening, when Akron Board of Education member John Otterman was spotted passed out inside his SUV. 'His car has been on for hours... we shook the car, we beat on the windows and everything. He's not moving,' a witness described while speaking in the emergency call. When police and paramedics arrived, the 57-year-old was administered four doses of the opioid overdose drug, naloxone, to be revived, the police report said. During a vehicle search, authorities found fentanyl - an opioid said to be nearly 50 times stronger than heroin - as well as marijuana in the vehicle. Police in Akron were called to the 200 block of East Cuyahoga Falls Avenue early last Thursday evening, when Otterman was seen passed out in his SUV When police and paramedics arrived, the 57-year-old was administered four doses of the opioid overdose drug, naloxone Otterman was transported to Summa Akron City Hospital shortly after, where he admitted to possessing and using the drugs. He was charged for possessing marijuana, but may be granted immunity under House Bill 110 for fentanyl because of the overdose. The law went into effect in June 2016. It seems the board member and former city councilman has a long history of illicit drug abuse, according to Ohio.com. Otterman, also a former city councilman, holds a long history of illicit drug abuse Last summer Otterman was found by police with glazed eyes while slurring his speech after taking Xanax Last August, he was reprimanded by the school board, who discovered he had been arrested two months prior on charges of disorderly conduct after he abused Xanax pills. Otterman pled guilty to the charge. Akron Public School president Patrick Bravo said in a statement the board's current concern is making sure Otterman is 'OK' He was found by police last June slurring his speech with 'glazed over eyes,' according to the local newspaper. He was arrested in 2001 on five felony charges - which have since dropped - for lying to a doctor in attempts to obtain prescription painkillers. Otterman was also freed from criminal charges back in the late 1980's for trafficking marijuana, according to Ohio.com. He was fired from Loral Defense Systems at the time. Just last year, Otterman pushed to approve the supply of naloxone for Akron public schools - which was ultimately successful. Prior to Otterman's resignation Monday, school board president Patrick Bravo released a public statement on the troubling matter. 'First and foremost, we are very concerned for Mr. Otterman and his family right now,' the board president said 'First and foremost, we are very concerned for Mr. Otterman and his family right now,' Bravo said Saturday. 'That's kind of our focus right now... just making sure he is OK.' Akron Lt. Rick Edwards, who was at the scene last week, told Fox 8 Cleveland he hopes Otterman gets the 'help' he needs. Phone request for further comment by the Daily Mail to Edwards was not immediately returned Tuesday morning. President Donald Trump plans to use the annual billionaires gathering at Davos to extend special hospitality to French President Emmanuel Macron by inviting him to a state visit to the U.S. Trump has hosted numerous foreign leaders but has yet to host an official state visit. He expressed deep appreciation for the red carpet treatment Macron showed him on a visit to France on a visit pegged to Bastille Day. They viewed the Bastille Day parade together and dined with their spouses, First Lady Melania Trump and French First Lady Brigitte Macron, in the Eiffel Tower. The White House would not officially confirm reports about the planned invitation. 'We don't have an announcement to make at this time,' an official told CNN. However, as France 24 noted, Trump didn't get the honor of a state dinner at Elysee Palace. Trump plans to use Davos to invite French President Emmanuel Macron for first state visit Trump and Macron bonded during the visit, despite some policy disputes over a pat to combat climate change that Trump said the U.S. would withdraw from. The successful visit came despite an awkward meeting with a lingering white knuckle handshake as the two men appeared to jockey for dominance. Macron played a key role in persuading Trump to go to Davos, Axios reported. A source said he reminded Trump how many world leaders would be there, and that it would be fun. An official state dinner would be a major undertaking for the White House protocol staff as well as the office of First Lady Melania Trump, which recently announced new staff hires. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron attend the traditional Bastille day military parade on the Champs-Elysees on July 14, 2017 in Paris France. Bastille Day, the French National day commemorated last year the 100th anniversary of the entry of the United States of America into World War I. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron attend the traditional Bastille day military parade on the Champs-Elysees on July 14, 2017 in Paris, France Emmanuel Macron, France's president, center left, and U.S. President Donald Trump, center right, shake hands while posing for photographs at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, on Thursday, July 13, 2017 The first lady notably decided not to accompany the president on his trip to Davos, after her office cited scheduling and logistical concerns. The news comes after days of reports about an affair Trump is alleged to have had with adult film star Stormy Daniels. The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump lawyer Michael Cohen arranged for a $130,000 payment to Daniels weeks before the election. A white supremacist with 'a deep-seated hatred of black, Jewish, Muslim and especially gay people' was planning a 'murderous attack' on a Pride event using a machete and an axe, a court has heard. Ethan Stables, 20, was planning acts of terrorism against groups he hated, prosecutors told Leeds Crown Court. In June last year, he had allegedly assembled a machete, knives, an axe, an air rifle and a ball bearing gun when he became 'enraged' about a planned LGBT Pride event at the New Empire pub in his home town of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria. Jonathan Sandiford, prosecuting, said Stables was arrested as he was on his way to what the prosecution believe was a final reconnaissance visit to the pub before returning to his home his weapons. The jury heard Stables was arrested after sending messages to other far right extremists on a far-right Facebook group saying he would 'slaughter every one' of the people at the LGBT event. Ethan Stables, 20, planned to attack a Pride event at the New Empire pub (pictured) in Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, after seven months of planning, Leeds Crown Court heard One worried member of the private group chat rang the police and posted a warning on Twitter about Stables intentions, the court heard. Police responded with an armed operation to protect the event in Barrow. Mr Sandiford said Stables was a 'white supremacist and Nazi - a supporter of Adolf Hitler, if you will'. 'He had a deep-seated hatred of black, Jewish, Muslim and especially gay people,' the prosecutor said. 'Between 2016 and his arrest in 2017 he was planning and preparing to commit acts of terrorism directed towards members of these groups but, primarily, directed towards people who were lesbian or gay.' Mr Sandiford said Stables spent seven months researching firearms and explosives and had begun to acquire material to build an improvised explosive device. He said: 'His purpose in these acts of preparation was to launch a murderous attack on members of these communities. In particular, the prosecution suggest, people who were gay.' The prosecution claimed Stables was a 'white supremacist and Nazi - a supporter of Adolf Hitler, if you will' with a deep-seated hatred of black, Jewish, Muslim and gay people (file photo) The prosecutor told the jury of seven men and five women how Stables became 'enraged' when he heard about the Pride event planned at the New Empire pub on June 23. He said Stables began to take photographs of the pub 'with a view to launching an attack later that evening.' Unemployed Stables, from Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, had a history of depression, the prosecutor told the court. He allegededly made internet searches related to 'the terrorist group National Action, preparing for a "Race War" and "How to be a terrorist".' The jury heard Stables had also made internet searches for 'n****r jokes', 'setting gays on fire', and 'fascist haircuts'. Prosecutor Mr Sandiford showed the jury photographs recovered from Stables phone which showed him posing in front of a Swastika flag hung on the wall in his flat. The jury also saw a series of other recovered photographs, including a picture with the caption 'n****r lyncher' and a White Wolf with the words 'Keep Britain White'. Stables, of Egerton Court, Barrow, denies one count of preparing terrorist acts and one of making threats to kill. The trial continues. A daughter has released horrifying photos of the fatal head injuries suffered by her father after a single punch from a bouncer. Kirsty Taylor, 23, from Shrewsbury, is furious Neil Hotchkiss received a sentence of just two years for fatally injuring her father Scott after an argument during a night out in August 2012. Mr Taylor, then 41, was left paralysed and reliant on round-the-clock care before dying four years later from the head injury and aspiration pneumonia. Scott Taylor, then 41, was left paralysed and reliant on round-the-clock care before dying four years later from the head injury and aspiration pneumonia. He is pictured in an undated image following the attack in August 2012 This month Hotchkiss, 37, made a last minute plea change to manslaughter and was told he would serve half his two years on licence - having previously been imprisoned for 16 months for GBH over the attack. In her first ever interview, healthcare assistant Ms Taylor said: 'It's disgusting what's happened. Hotchkiss will be out soon, while I'm left with just my dad's graveside to visit. 'I feel sad that this is a closed book now there's nothing more I can do. 'I want people to understand the damage a punch can do. It can change or destroy a life.' The two men had a disagreement over Mr Taylor taking a drink outside at the Station Hotel in Wellington, Shropshire, at around 9pm. Mr Taylor, then 41, was left paralysed and reliant on round-the-clock care before dying four years later from the head injury and aspiration pneumonia. He is pictured in an undated image, left, and after a cranioplasty operation he underwent in 2014 Ms Taylor (pictured with her father in an undated image from hospital) said: 'I want people to think of him as he was before the accident so happy, a lovely family man.' Mr Taylor walked towards the door with a drink in hand - but Hotchkiss challenged him, telling him he had to leave his glass indoors. After asking why and having the reason explained to him, Mr Taylor began to head back inside, then muttering something under his breath possibly a swear word resulting in Hotchkiss deciding to eject him. The two men exchanged words outside but, while Mr Taylor was upset, Shrewsbury Crown Court heard that he was in no way aggressive. Kirsty Taylor, 23, from Shrewsbury, has released disturbing images of her father's images to raise awareness about the damage that single punches can cause Mr Taylor took a step toward Hotchkiss, but is not thought to have touched him. The bouncer, however, reacted furiously, punching him and causing him to fall to the ground, hitting his head. After seeing Hotchkiss thump Mr Taylor, knocking him out, bystanders called an ambulance, which took him to University Hospital of North Staffordshire. Medics managed to save him by removing part of his skull to relieve pressure, later replacing it with stomach fat. Ms Taylor recalled: 'The first I heard there was anything wrong was when police knocked on my door at 4am, telling me to come to hospital quickly. 'It was a miracle he even made it through that night. But he was never the same again. 'At first, we weren't sure exactly which parts of his brain had been damaged, so it was a waiting game. 'The effects were more physical than mental. Though he had problems with short term memory, he could still recall everything before and who all of his family were. 'Dad absolutely loved life but he struggled with how much things had changed.' In March 2014, Hotchkiss was jailed for 16 months after admitting GBH. Ms Taylor took her father along to the hearing, hoping to confront the thug first hand with the consequences of his crime and the damage he had caused. Mr Taylor after having a tracheostomy in 2015 (left) and in hospital after contracting pneumonia in 2013 Mr Taylor (pictured in an undated image taken on a bus) developed epilepsy and suffered a stroke after the incident 'It's one thing to read it all on paper, but I thought if he saw my dad sitting there, in his wheelchair, it'd open his eyes to what he'd done,' she said. For the next two years, Mr Taylor health was turbulent, as he fought off bouts of pneumonia, had a stroke and also developed epilepsy. At first, he had carers call round four times a day, with Ms Taylor popping in between appointments, often taking taxis across town in the small hours. Hotchkiss, 37, (pic in a police mug shot) made a last minute plea change to manslaughter and was told he would serve half his two years on licence - having previously been imprisoned for 16 months for GBH But after Mr Taylor suffered a seizure and fallen off his bed whilst home alone, leaving him trapped and unable to answer the door to her, it was decided 24-hour care was needed. In April 2016, Ms Taylor was Skyping him from a holiday in Mexico, when he mentioned feeling poorly. She said: 'I told him to tell his carers, which he did before eventually going to hospital a few hours later. 'I called him again as he lay on the ward and asked if he wanted me to come home. He said, 'No, I'll be fine.' So I told him I loved him, and he replied, 'Love you more.' That was the last thing he ever said to me.' Just hours later, Mr Taylor died. As second opinions were needed on his post-mortem, to determine if it was the head injury that had killed him - meaning Hotchkiss could be charged again - his body was not released until four months later. By this time it had deteriorated so badly the family could not see him at the chapel of rest. 'At his funeral, we had him cremated in an Armani suit. It's something he always said he wanted to wear, so we made that wish come true for him, in a way,' said Ms Taylor. Mr Taylor, who was described as a 'lovely family man', is pictured here after an operation he underwent two years before he die Ms Taylor Skyping her father just before she went to Mexico when he told her he was feeling unwell Ms Taylor with her father, Scott, pictured in an undated image taken after the incident in August 2012 While Hotchkiss is back behind bars again, Ms Taylor is disgusted by his lack of remorse. She continued: 'Hotchkiss' defence lawyer said he's sorry, but I don't believe that. He changed his plea at the last minute, making us wait and worry for months that we'd have to sit through a trial. 'He wasted our time and the court's time, just to buy a bit for himself. I desperately wish there was something I could do to change the sentence.' Now she is determined to remember her father for the kind, doting man he was, rather than for his horrific death. 'I want people to think of him as he was before the accident so happy, a lovely family man,' she said. 'The family think and talk about him all the time. We've had jewellery made with his cremation ashes, inscribed with his name, birth and death dates. 'We'll never forget him.' Ms Taylor said of her father (pictured in undated images before, left, and after the): 'The family think and talk about him all the time' Posted 1/22/18 The Dallas County University of Missouri Extension Center will offer a program about strategies to improve the reproductive and genetics performance of beef cow herds at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. Belkar Singh (pictured) has been jailed for life after brutally murdered his boss by stabbing him more than 50 times and battering him with a chapatti pan An illegal immigrant who brutally murdered his boss by stabbing him more than 50 times and battering him with a chapatti pan has been jailed for life. Cafe boss Satnam Singh Blugher - who was dubbed the 'Asian Gordon Ramsay' due to his temper - was killed in a 'chilling and cowardly' attack by Belkar Singh on July 25 last year. Following the attack, the 58-year-old kitchen worker then calmly left in a taxi after stealing 47,000 of the grandfather-of-four's life savings from a safe. A court heard how Mr Blugher, 67, who was known as Mr B, had kindly given Singh a job washing dishes at his cafe when he arrived from India 12 years ago. But in a 'premeditated' attack that was motivated by greed, he attacked his boss at Tony's Diner, in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, with a knife and cooking pans. Mr Blugher was found with multiple stab wounds on the floor'of the kitchen in a pool of blood by his son Hardeep the following day. Following the attack, the 58-year-old kitchen worker then calmly left in a taxi after stealing 47,000 of the grandfather-of-four's life savings from a safe Singh was arrested and charged with murder after police found the stolen cash at his property in Handsworth, Birmingham, on July 27. On Tuesday, he was jailed for life to serve a minimum of 27 years after he was found unanimously guilty at Stafford Crown Court. Sentencing, Judge Michael Chambers said: 'The evidence which implicates you is overwhelming. 'Both the devious and manipulative way you have sought to deceive the jury and malign the children of Mr B in the case that was put forward by those who represent you, under your instruction. 'I am afraid it just goes to underline that this was a premeditated murder by a devious man.' The judge added: 'Mr B had worked hard to establish a successful business which benefits not just him and his family. 'Mr B was a man who expected high standards from the staff, but on occasion spoke to them harshly, but that was a world apart from any employee wishing him dead. Singh was arrested and charged with murder after police found the stolen cash at his property in Handsworth, Birmingham, on July 27 'The only person who felt that embittered was you. 'The reality was that he and his son showed you particular kindness, especially you as an illegal immigrant. 'They offered you board and lodgings and helped you to attend appointments in Birmingham. 'In June of last year, you decided to kill him for his money with the intention of disappearing and starting a new life. 'Although this was a premeditated act, it is unclear when precisely you formed that intention.' The judge added that the killer had shown no remorse for his actions, something he described as 'chilling'. The court heard in the period just before the murder, diners reported hearing two men arguing 'in a foreign language'. After a delivery man could not get into the cafe, he called Hardeep on June 26, who arrived at the diner to find his father's body on the floor at around 4.40pm. Hardeep told the court his father had 30 years experience as a chef and was like 'an Asian Gordon Ramsay' with high standards. Singh had claimed two men had come in and murdered his boss as part of a 'revenge killing'. But waitress Christina Maddox recorded a conversation between Singh and her boyfriend Ram Gee, in which he said: 'Boss is no more. He is dead. There was blood everywhere.' Speaking after the sentencing, Detective Inspector Mark Bellamy, from West Mercia Police, said: 'Belkar Singh has today been found guilty of the murder of Satnam Singh Blugher in June last year, and today he has been brought to justice for his actions. 'However, Mr Blugher's family will spend the rest of their lives coming to terms with the loss of a much-loved father and grandfather and my thoughts are with them at what continues to be an exceptionally difficult and distressing time. 'They have supported the investigation throughout and I would like to thank them for their support and dignity throughout the process. 'Although nothing will bring Satnam back to his family and friends, I hope that today's outcome brings them at least a small sense that justice has been done. 'Satnam ran his business in Halfway House for some 15 years, during which time he made many friends in the local community. 'Many people were shocked and appalled when news of his death was announced in summer. 'I would like to thank those who came forward to support our investigation by providing information and statements. 'Finally I'd like to thank all of the officers and staff working on this investigation for their hard work and determination throughout, in order to bring the case to court. 'Although crimes of this nature are thankfully rare within our policing areas, this sentence highlights the complexity of the six-month investigation which took place in order to bring this offender to justice.' While an inquest ruled that Rio Andrew's death could not have been prevented, it said questions still needed to be answered about Davies' qualifications Davies and two trainee ambulance colleagues - both not accused of any crime - treated a teenager dying of an ecstasy overdose at a 2014 Croydon rave He was convicted of two counts of fraud last year at Croydon Crown Court Kevin Davies, 53, was improperly qualified and lied about his training certificates A fraudster who pretended to be an ambulance technician to con students out of money has been jailed for 29 months. Kevin Davies, 53, was caught out and exposed as a conman after his company, Pioneer Medical Solutions, was contracted by the company which organised an illegal rave at the former Royal Mail sorting office in East Croydon in 2014. During the rave 15-year-old schoolboy Rio Andrew collapsed and began frothing at the mouth and shaking. Scroll down for video Kevin Davies' offences only came to light as a result of the investigation into the tragic death of Rio Andrew Rio Andrew took a lethal dose of MDMA - commonly known as ecstasy - an inquest ruled. He was rushed to hospital but died later that night, having taken ecstasy at the party on Cherry Orchard Road. Rio, who died as a result of multiple organ failure and ecstasy intoxication, was treated by Davies and two of his colleagues, who were both trainee ambulance technicians who had to be supervised by a qualified technician. All three men were interviewed by police to clarify the time lapse between Rio becoming unwell to when he was taken out of the venue and handed over to London Ambulance Service (LAS) paramedics. As a result of his deceit, Davies's business partner has lost a large amount of money and more than 1,000 hours of training for his colleagues have been completely invalidated. At an inquest held into Rio's death in January 2016, Davies was asked multiple questions by senior coroner Serena Lynch but responded to all of them with 'no comment'. Ms Lynch said during the hearing that, although Rio's death couldn't have been prevented, questions needed to be answered in relation to the validity of Davies's qualifications and asked for a police probe. Davies was ultimately not able to produce documents proving he had the qualification of an Institute of Health Care and Development (IHCD) ambulance technician - a certificate which is required to train other technicians. Later that month, a search warrant was executed at his home in Birmingham and at the Pioneer Medical Solutions offices. Two certificates were seized by officers, one of which appeared to suggest he had qualified as a West Midlands NHS ambulance technician in July 2002 and the other that he had completed an ambulance driving training course in July 2003. However, the documents were analysed by the head of education for the West Midlands Ambulance Service Trust and both turned out to be fraudulent. Davies's two colleagues, who had paid to train with him, said they were both working under his supervision as they believed he was a qualified ICHD ambulance technician. At the time of the illegal rave, Davies had signed off more than 1,000 hours of their work-based assessments - which could not be validated because he was not qualified. Davies forged a certificate saying he was an IHCD-certified ambulance technician in order to secure a 32,000 investment in his business from Richard How, Croydon Crown Court heard on January 12. Davies did not have the proper qualifications to treat people suffering from ecstasy overdoses (file picture) When the company folded in 2015 after it stopped becoming profitable in the aftermath of the rave, Mr How found out that Davies was lying about his qualification. Lewis Edwards, prosecuting at Croydon Crown Court, said at his trial earlier this month that Mr How would 'never have invested in the business had he known Davies was not qualified'. Davies pleaded guilty to two counts of fraud in November 2017 at the same court. Judge Alice Robinson told the court earlier this month: 'In this case, there was a serious detriment to the victim - his reputation has been irreparably damaged. 'As well as hard cash, there was a substantial loss in the time Mr How gave to this business.' Detective Inspector Helen Barling, the investigating officer in the case, said: 'Davies' offences have come to light as a result of the investigation into the tragic death of Rio Andrew. 'For more than a year, Davies failed to provide police with the correct documentation proving he was a qualified IHCD ambulance technician and expert analysis of certificates seized from his company offices were found to be fake. 'As a result of his deceit, Davies's business partner has lost a large amount of money and more than 1,000 hours of training for his colleagues have been completely invalidated. 'Davies said he did not receive any payment for providing medical care at the illegal rave but, as an unqualified IHCD ambulance technician, he should not have been supervising other's treatment of patients.' Rio Andrew took a lethal dose of MDMA - commonly known as ecstasy - an inquest ruled. The 15-year-old was one of thousands of people at the rave in the derelict Royal Mail sorting office, in Cherry Orchard Road, on June 14, 2014. He was rushed to hospital, unconscious and frothing at the mouth, while some revellers at the rave continued an attack on police officers, throwing metal objects including fire extinguishers from windows. Rio, from west London, died on June 16 from multiple organ failure and acute drug toxicity with his family by his bedside at Great Ormond Street Hospital. The Metropolitan Police said a full investigation was carried out into Rio's death and, based on the evidence at the time, there was no criminal case to answer. They added, if new information does come to light, the matter will be further investigated. Coroner Selena Lynch said at the inquest: 'I'm quite satisfied that Rio took MDMA knowingly or willingly. 'Maybe he wasn't entirely clear what he was taking or the strength of it. That's the danger of illicit drugs.' 'She was unable to say where Rio took the ecstasy, which according to friends was originally believed to be ketamine, another banned substance. The Tory youth Tsar who sparked controversy for saying that 'unemployed wasters' should get vasectomies has issued grovelling apology video saying 'I cocked up'. Ben Bradley urged voters to judge him on his current political work rather than thoughtless remarks he made years ago. Mr Bradley, 28, has faced a storm of criticism after offensive remarks he posted online re-surfaced. In one post he said Britain would drown 'in a vast sea of unemployed wasters' if the poorest families had too many children. And in another he said police brutality 'should be encouraged' in the aftermath of the 2011 riots which swept England. Scroll down for video Tory MP Ben Bradley issued a video apologising for comments he made several years ago (pictured). He urged voters to judge him on his current political work rather than the flippant remarks The remarks surfaced just days after the new MP for Mansfield was promoted by Theresa May in her party reshuffle to become Tory vice chair for the youth. In a video message on his Facebook page, Mr Bradley apologised saying the remarks were the flippant comments of a 21-year-old student 'with no real responsibilities'. He said he had used 'immature' language and wanted to be a journalist so was being 'deliberately provocative'. He said: 'My generation and younger... chances are they've cocked it up. I've cocked it up online for all to see.' He added: 'On the one hand people say you know, "Politicians aren't like me, they're not normal people". But normal people cock things up.' The new MP said he stood by his broad point which was to highlight concerns around the amount of benefits some people could claim at the time. He said: 'People find it frustrating when a small minority of people appear to take advantage of the benefits system.' Calling for a 'discussion about how we deal with this kind of stuff', he said: 'I'm from a generation that has grown up online and clearly has made mistakes online. 'They don't go away, they can't really be deleted. The remarks surfaced just days after the new MP for Mansfield (pictured far right outside No10 with his fellow newly appointed Tory vice chairs) was promoted by Theresa May in her party reshuffle to become Tory youth Tsar 'The truth is normal people make mistakes - and more and more, as my generation and younger get involved in politics I think you'll see this more and more.' He warned that people his age and younger will have their whole lives on social media and be under a level of scrutiny politicians have not endured before. Mr Bradley called for a debate on what this means, warning that if voters want to see real people enter politics they may have to accept remarks like his may exist in the cyber world. And he warned that unless people become more accepting of this he 'I don't know how I can go out there and tell young people that it's a good thing to enter public life'. CIA Director Mike Pompeo said Tuesday that North Korea is moving 'ever closer' to putting Americans at risk and that he believes leader Kim Jong Un won't rest until he's able to threaten multiple nuclear attacks against the U.S. at the same time. 'North Korea is ever closer to being able to hold America at risk.' Pompeo said at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative-leaning think tank in Washington. 'I want everyone to understand that we are working diligently to make sure that a year from now I can still tell you that they are several months away from having that capacity.' Speaking after one year on the job, Pompeo also said the CIA believes Kim would not only use nuclear weapons to stay in power, but to threaten to reunify the divided Korean Peninsula under his totalitarian regime. Lift-off: Kim Jong-Un's pose at the launch of a medium-to-long range Hwasong-12 ballistic missile is part of his build-up to a full-scale nuclear arsenal capable of multiple simultaneous launches, Mike Pompeo, the CIA Director, says Rare appearance: CIA director Mike Pompeo said North Korea's nuclear weapons program has developed at a 'very rapid clip,' but that Kim is hoping for an arsenal of nuclear weapons - 'not one, not a showpiece, not something to drive on a parade route.' The quest for reunification is disputed by some North Korean experts who see Kim's nuclear program as primarily a means of retaining power and don't think he would threaten or forcibly try to take over South Korea. Pompeo said North Korea's nuclear weapons program has developed at a 'very rapid clip,' but that Kim is hoping for an arsenal of nuclear weapons - 'not one, not a showpiece, not something to drive on a parade route.' He wants the ability to deliver nuclear weapons from multiple missiles fired simultaneously. 'That increases the risk to America,' Pompeo said. It's unclear how well the United States could defend against multiple missiles fired from North Korea at the same time. Despite his warning, Pompeo doesn't think a North Korean attack on the United States is imminent. He said the Trump administration is 'laser-focused' on achieving a diplomatic solution to the nuclear standoff. Americans should know that it is working to prepare a series of options so the president has the 'full range of possibilities' to address the threat. Testing times: North Korea released pictures of Kim inspecting the successful test-fire of the intercontinental ballistic missile Hwasong-14 at an undisclosed location in July, which was one of the key escalations of the threat from the regime Inside Kim's garage: Mike Pompeo said the North Korean dictator wanted a full arsenal of nuclear weapons like there inter-continental ballistic missiles he was photographed inspecting in July He wouldn't address the question of whether there are military options available to the U.S. that don't risk an escalation into nuclear war with North Korea. 'There is much effort all across the U.S. government to ensure that Americans don't have to feel at risk,' Pompeo said. 'We saw what happened in Hawaii. It is an imperative - an American, national imperative - that we as an intelligence agency deliver the information to our senior leaders such that they can resolve this issue in a way that works for the American people.' Earlier this month, a false alarm that a ballistic missile was headed for Hawaii sent the islands into a panic, with people abandoning cars and preparing to flee their homes until officials said the cellphone alert was a mistake. President Donald Trump took a swipe at Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer after he withdrew an offer he made the President on Friday to boost funding for the long-promised border wall as part of a broader immigration deal. Trump tweeted Tuesday night: 'Cryin Chuck Schumer fully understands, especially after his humiliating defeat, that if there is no Wall, there is no DACA. We must have safety and security, together with a strong Military, for our great people!' An aide to Schumer told the White House on Monday that Trump will only get $1.6 billion in funding this year for the massive construction project. The New York Democrat had said he pledged to increase that amount significantly, with some reports putting the top-end figure at $25 billion over a number of years. But Schumer 'took it off' the table after the Senate voted to reopen the government on Monday, Illinois Democratic sen. Dick Durbin told Politico. 'He called the White House yesterday and said it's over.' Trump tweeted Tuesday night: 'Cryin Chuck Schumer fully understands, especially after his humiliating defeat, that if there is no Wall, there is no DACA. We must have safety and security, together with a strong Military, for our great people!' Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer has pulled back an offer he made Friday to dramatically increase the money going this year toward construction of President Trump's promised border wall Trump and Schumer met as last week's government shutdown was looming, and the Democrat said he would secure more than the $1.6 billion the White House asked for, if a DACA fix were to become law at the same time The president has ordered the construction of prototypes (pictured) that could serve as a wall along much of the nearly 2,000 miles where Mexico meets the United States The about-face means Senate Democrats are prepared to dig in and deny Trump the extra money as negotiations proceed toward an immigration bill that Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has promised to bring up by February 8. The president has 'missed an opportunity to get the wall,' a Democratic aide said. Schumer's offer on Friday was a deal trading the extra wall funding for a legal path to citizenship for hundreds of thousands of so-called 'DREAMers.' The Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program is protecting hundreds of thousands of the illegal immigrants from deportation because they were brought into the United States as minors. Former White House press secretary Sean Spicer called Schumer 'a sore loser' on Tuesday Sen. Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, told Politico that he doubted Schumer and Trump had reached any sort of agreement at all. 'They claim that some crazy deal was made,' Cotton said, talking about his Democratic adversaries. 'And then when we say no deal was made, they accuse Republicans and the president of reneging.' Schumer himself told reporters on Friday after his 90-minute Oval Office sit-down that he and trump 'made some progress but we still have a good number of disagreements. The discussion will continue.' Senate Republicans want to appropriate significantly more than $1.6 billion this year for building Trump's wall. Sen. Tom Cotton, an Arkansas Republican, said he doubted Schumer reached any deal with Trump, whether or not it included a boost in wall funding That, they believe, would attract the support of conservatives who would otherwise balk at a bill that granted amnesty to DACA beneficiaries. But liberal Democrats could run away if the number were to grow. Many of them view the 16 days before the next shutdown deadline as a chance to clean the negotiating slate and start over. 'Discussions were had coming up to Friday night are interesting for context, said Hawaii Democrat Brian Schatz. But after Monday's compromise, 'we start from a blank sheet of paper.' Senate Democrats angered their liberal, activist political base Monday by yielding on GOP demands to reopen the government without an immigration deal in place. President Trump tweeted Tuesday that 'nobody knows' whether a deal can be achieved in time to keep DACA from withering on the vine. The latest cosmetic trend to hit the Philippines is a vaginal lightening procedure dubbed 'angel whitening.' The procedure which costs PHP50,000 (700) a session is being offered at Belo Medical Group clinics, run by celebrity cosmetic surgeon Vicky Belo. Only licensed practitioners are allowed to perform the treatment, which uses laser technology and takes around 30 minutes, according to local media reports. And according to a television report about the treatment, it is said to not only whiten, but 'tighten, relax and clean' a woman's vagina. The latest cosmetic trend to hit the Philippines is a vaginal lightening procedure dubbed 'angel whitening.' Pictured, a surgeon at Belo Medical Group performs the treatment It's not the only treatment for vaginas offered at Ms Belo's clinics. A tightening procedure called FemiLift has been available for women who want 'to feel like virgins again,' according to Ms Belo. 'Before the fads were facelifts, then came armpit whitening, now we're seeing women caring about how things look and feel even lower,' she told TV5. It comes after a report about a Thai clinic offering penis whitening procedure went viral across the world. Earlier this month, the Lelux Hospital in Bangkok said the craze was sweeping the country and claimed more than 100 men a month visit the clinic for the procedure. Earlier this month, the Lelux Hospital in Bangkok said a penis whitening craze was sweeping the country The clinic said it only began offering the unconventional treatment six months ago, and now has three to four clients per day. The whitening service costs around 480 for five sessions. But television reports about the much-hyped procedure, a laser treatment of the groin, left the public both baffled and alarmed. 'These days a lot of people are asking about it. We get around 100 clients a month, three to four clients a day,' Bunthita Wattanasiri, a manager for the Skin and Laser department at the hospital said. But Thailand's health ministry has since issued a warning over the procedure. It said possible side effects include pain, inflammation or scars and even effects on the reproductive system and having sex. Stopping treatment would cause the skin colour to return to normal and may result in 'nasty-looking spots', the ministry added. Instagram is being used to promote illegal knives disguised as lipstick and combs for young women, it has emerged. Alien Outfitters, a company based in North Carolina, advertises the weapons on the Facebook-owned website and exports them to UK-based buyers. One young British mother bought a 'flick knife' decorated with a mermaid and had it delivered to her home, a breach of this country's strict knife crime laws. Alien Outfitters, a company based in North Carolina, advertises the weapons on the Facebook-owned website and exports them to UK-based buyers. Pictured is a knife disguised as lipstick The Ben Kinsella Trust, a charity set up in memory of a 16-year-old stabbed to death in London in 2008, called Instagram 'represensible' for helping promote the site. 'They are glamorising these knives as fashion accessories,' chief executive Patrick Green told The Telegraph, which uncovered the story. 'This is a forum where young people openly encourage each other to break the law by buying flick knives and concealed knives which are illegal for any age group.' 'From the colours, designs, and model names such as mermaid and fanciful rainbow, they are clearly aimed directly at young women.' Alien Outfitters accompanied some of the knives - which sell for as little as 9 - with images of young women. Users responded with hashtags like #girlpower and #likeagirl. The company warns buyers the knives are only for 'ornamental use' by over 18s and tells buyers to check local laws before acquiring one - yet ships all over the world. Alien Outfitters accompanied some of the knives - which sell for as little as 9 Alien Outfitters accompanied some of the knives - which sell for as little as 9 - with images of young women. Users responded with hashtags like #girlpower Buyers must verify they are over-18, although it is not clear if any other checks are made. Several of the knives on sale by Alien Outfitters are illegal to import, sell or own under British law. These include flick knives, disguised knives and bladed knuckle dusters. Instagram said the @alienoutfitters account had been reviewed and some posts had been blocked for UK users after the Telegraph brought the content to their attention. 'Illegal activity is not allowed on Instagram. Our guidelines clearly state that people must always follow the law when offering to sell or buy goods. 'People can report content they think is against our community guidelines using our in-app tools. 'Our global team of reviewers check these reports 24 hours a day and move quickly to remove any violating content or accounts,' the spokesperson added. MailOnline has contacted Alien Outfitters for comment. Two middle school students in Florida have been charged with cyberstalking weeks after their classmate committed suicide, police said. Gabriella Green, 12, was found dead at her parents' Panama Beach County home on January 10 after complaining to her mother of 'girl drama' and saying she had been getting 'particularly heavy' threatening messages. Panama City Beach officials announced on Monday that two 12-year-old students at Surfside were charged with cyberstalking in connection to the girl's death. Authorities did not release the identities of the children because they are minors. Gabriella Green committed suicide on January 10 at her parents' Panama Beach County home On Monday, police announced that two 12-year-old students at Surfside Middle School had been charged with cyberbullyin in connection to Gabriella's (pictured) death Gabriella's (left) mother, Tanya Green (right), said the 12-year-old middle school student had complained of being bullied online shortly before her death. Gabriella is pictured here on the left with her mother Investigators said they interviewed the children with their parents' permission, after learning of potential cyberbullying against Gabriella. The kids allegedly confessed to sending their classmate harassing messages 'knowing that said conduct would result in emotional distress'. Authorities said cell phones and social media accounts were examined as part of their investigation. Police issued a warning to parents to closely monitor what their kids are seeing and sharing online. 'These specific cell phone applications have been found to be the root of several dangerous and negative situations, such as cyberbullying, sexting and potential access by online predators,' police said in a news release. According to police, their investigation did not reveal cyberbullying was the sole cause of Gabriella's death just that it occurred at the time of the death. The medical examiner is still working to determine the girl's cause of death. Gabriella's mom, Tanya Green, told the Panama City New Herald that the arrests 'were gratifying' but she blames the school for not stepping in when she reported that her daughter was being targeted. 'It's going to help others at her school,' she told the newspaper. 'It's going to start at her school. It's going to help others around the world.' Tanya Green previously told the New Herald that she and her husband, Shane Green, had decided to pull Gabriella out of Surfside the day she killed herself. Tanya Green said they were getting ready for a church event on January 10 when her daughter complained of 'girl drama' saying the messages had been 'particularly heavy' that day. About 40 minutes later, the girl was found dead in a closet at her parents' home. The two students charged allegedly confessed to sending Gabriella (pictured) harassing messages 'knowing that said conduct would result in emotional distress' The medical examiner is still working to determine the girl's cause of death. Gabriella is pictured center with her mother Tanya Green, left, and her father, Shane Green, right 'This is an absolutely tragic situation and our counselors have been at Surfside since we first found out about Gabbie's death, school officials said in a statement Gabriella, who loved softball and wrestling, was home on suspension at the time of her death. Her mother said Gabriella had been acting out in class because of the bullying. Surfside Middle School has not addressed the charges two of their students are facing, but said in a statement that they are mourning the loss of Gabriella. 'Our hearts go out to her family, her friends and to everyone at Surfside Middle School,' Superintendent Bill Husfelt said in a statement on Monday. 'This is an absolutely tragic situation and our counselors have been at Surfside since we first found out about Gabbie's death. The counselors have been, and will continue to be, an invaluable resource for the students, and faculty and staff, at this difficult time and they will be available as long as they are needed.' If you or anyone you know needs to talk, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), and the Trans Lifeline is available at 1-877-565-8860. Ann Curry spoke out about her disgraced former colleague Matt Lauer in appearances on The Late Show and Tuesday morning's The View. Curry, 61, told Stephen Colbert on Monday night that she hasn't publicly celebrated the ousting of the man who reportedly led to her getting the boot at the Today Show in 2012 in part because of a non-disclosure agreement with NBC, but also, because she doesn't want to hurt Lauer's alleged sexual misconduct victims. 'I do [have an NDA], but I can talk. I'm bold. I don't want to cause pain, you guys,' the television journalist told Colbert, 53, while discussing her upcoming PBS series We'll Meet Again, airing Tuesday night. 'The truth is that I was raised Catholic by a Buddhist,' she said. 'So think about the Catholic guilt, mixed with the karma, worries, the intensity of that. It was like, all of a sudden my brain think 'Game of Thrones' the wall, it went up. There was this whole wall of, 'Uh-uh, you can't talk like that. You can't think like that.' So I didn't, actually, get to enjoy it.' Ann Curry said she couldn't publicly celebrate Matt Lauer's firing because she had a non-disclosure agreement with NBC, and also because there are alleged victims behind his axing Curry, pictured wiping away tears during her last taping of the Today Show with Matt Lauer in 2012. It was widely reported that Lauer was the reason for her getting ousted from the show Curry (pictured with Stephen Colbert) said she was worried about karma if she even thought to relish her disgraced former colleague's demise During the interview Colbert lightened the mood with jokes from Twitter users from around the time of Lauer's firing that began 'Somewhere Ann Curry' which got laughs from the journalist and his audience alike. Colbert, however, suggested that it could be actually be karma in the end that saw Lauer get the ax from the Today Show in November after years of alleged sexual misconduct. 'Well, that's a good point,' Curry said, but added she is even more cautious about any sort of 'celebrating' because the allegations that saw Lauer canned involved potential victims of his behavior. 'You have to think about the pain. You know, a lot of people have suffered. So I haven't had a chance to celebrate for a lot of reasons.' 'I think that we're not really done fixing the problem. We are a long way from fixing the problem,' she said of sexual misconduct in the workplace. 'It's more than a conversation. It's about action and it's about not just telling people they can't do certain things. It's about changing the dynamic, the power balance within companies so that women are not seen as people who could never rise to the top. Once we figure that out, we might have a chance to figure this out.' During her Tuesday morning appearance as a guest host on The View, Curry echoed her sentiments on workplace sexual misconduct from the previous night. After a brief commercial break, host Joy Behar, 75, explained to the audience, 'During the break, we were talking about the sexual allegations against Matt Lauer,' Curry, pictured during her final gig on NBC's the Today Show in 2012, spoke about her former employer during appearances promoting her new series with PBS airing Tuesday night The day Matt Lauer was fired from the Today Show, Twitter users were quick to suggest Ann Curry must be somewhere celebrating, as shown by Colbert on Monday night To which Curry jokingly asked, 'Who?' She then said that the Time's Up movement's attention needs to remain on the victims, not the abusers. 'What we are now waking up to is that enough is enough! That we don't need to put up with this...what we really need to focus on is the victims.' The View's Behar also asked about the now infamous button that was supposedly under Lauer's desk to lock women in his office. Curry said, 'I don't know' and responded to a follow up if she had one, to which she said she did not. The journalist also touched on some very new NBC drama regarding Megyn Kelly, who hosts Megyn Kelly Today. Kelly was off the air Tuesday morning- one day after she went after actress Jane Fonda in a headline-grabbing attack. Tight-lipped: Curry tried to steer away from the inevitable questions about her former employment with NBC, which has been mired in controversy over the past months during her appearance on the View on Tuesday (pictured with host Joy Behar) NBC chose to run a taped episode of Kelly's hour of Today, despite the fact that she had managed to grab much public interest on Monday with her criticism of the Oscar-winning actress, who has repeatedly taken the host to task for asking about her plastic surgery in September. The airing of Megyn Kelly om Tuesday also coincided with the announcement of the this year's Oscar nominations, an event Today has covered in the past by speaking with the contenders during the 9am hour of the show. The women on The View discussed the Fonda controversy on Tuesday, and guest host Ann Curry said that she was shocked by Kelly's words. 'We're witnessing what we saw yesterday, a certain amount of meanness that I think is - meanness which we should not tolerate,' said Curry. Joy Behar was a bit more blunt, saying that Fonda's response to Kelly's comment should have been: 'How much work have you had b****?' A new documentary about one of the world's most savage serial killers examines the grisly murders and resurfaces surveillance footage of his jail cell confession. Robert Pickton, a pig farmer from Canada, butchered 49 women on his property and ground their remains into mince which he then sold to customers, some of whom were local policemen, before he was arrested in February 2002. Now 68, he remains behind bars in British Columbia. A new episode of Voice of A Serial Killer which aired on British network CBS Reality in the UK on Wednesday night, examined the killings and footage of Pickton confessing to them in his jail cell. He did not know that he was speaking to an undercover Royal Canadian Mounted Police Officer when he described his goal of wanting to murder 50 victims, and his disappointment that he had become 'sloppy' and missed the target by one. Scroll down for video Robert Pickton is one of the world's worst serial killers who claims to have savaged 49 women, most of whom were prostitutes, by murdering them and then grinding their bodies into mince. He remains behind bars and is seen above in a photograph taken before his 2002 arrest Pickton was arrested in 2002 after police found items that belonged to some of the missing women on his farm. They went to the property by chance to search it for illegal weapons they thought he might have possessed. After arresting him, they discovered DNA traces for 26 missing women, many of whom were prostitutes who he had picked up in Vancouver's Red Light District and brought him to have sex with then kill. His killing techniques varied. In some cases, he injected the women with antifreeze, telling them it was drugs. In other cases, he stabbed them to death. Once in custody in 2002, he was placed in a cell with an undercover police officer who he told about the killings. Irritated at himself, he complained: 'I made my own grave by being sloppy. Doesnt that just kick you in the a** now. 'I was just gonna [expletive] do one more, make it even,. I wanted one more to make the big 5-0,' he said. Pickton lured the women to his farm in Port Coquitlam, British Colombia, where he raped and killed them. He fed some to his pigs and ground others into mince at a meat rendering plant Pickton packaged up some of the women's minced remains and sold them to customers at his farm In 2002, police found belongings of some missing women on Pickton's property in Port Coquitlam. They searched it and found DNA evidence for 26 missing women An aerial view of the large farm is shown. Locals referred to it as the 'Piggy Palace' Inside the Piggy Palace: A water cooler and stuffed horse's were among Pickton's belongings In the documentary, criminal experts analyse his sinister and remorseless confession. It began with Pickton telling his cellmate, the undercover police officer: 'They got me on this one...they've got DNA.' When the undercover police officer suggested that the best way to dispose a body was in the ocean, Pickton replied: 'I did better than that... a rendering plant.' He continued: 'Only I was kinda sloppy at the end, too, getting too sloppy. 'They got me, oh, f***, gettin too sloppy. 'I was gonna do one more, make it an even fifty. Thats why, thats why I was sloppy about. 'I wanted one more, make, make the big five O.' In the documentary, crime author Wensley Clarkson said: 'Robert Pickton was a serial killer who made the Texas Chainsaw Massacre look like an attraction at Disneyland. The rendering plant where Pickton brought some of his victims' remains to be minced is shown Once in custody, Pickton confessed to the killings during a conversation with a man he thought was his cell mate. It was an undercover police officer 'There was nothing about him which made him stand out, he didn't have great personal hygiene and he would hold barn dances with bikers and women and alcohol. 'He was known locally for using prostitutes and had a penchant for indigenous women but when large numbers went missing no one made the connection.' Pickton evaded police for years. Between 1991 and 2002, he is believed to have killed 49 women. That is the number he told his cellmate of. He was only ever charged with six charges and had an additional 20 stayed. Those accounted for the 26 women whose DNA was found on the property which Pickton and local people referred to as Piggy Palace, such was his reputation for booze and drug-fueled parties. After he had killed the women, he took their remains to a meat rendering plant where they were ground down. Pickton then packaged the meat and sold it to local customers of his farm. Men who saw him at the plant later told how he was 'dirty' and handled the barrels of flesh with his bare hands. He fed other victims to his pigs. The dozens of women Pickton is charged with killing had been missing for years before they were found. Many's families and friends said they reported Pickton to police earlier but that they were dismissed because they were deemed incredible as drug addicts or prostitutes The killings shocked the world and led in part to Canada decriminalizing prostitution Despite receiving tips about the man for years, police in Canada never had enough evidence to charge him. In 1997, a woman who he tried to murder escaped from the farm after stabbing him in retaliation. She went to police after fleeing the property naked and having been stabbed herself but they did not arrest him, claiming that the woman was an unreliable witness. By the time he was finally caught, police admitted that they could have caught the man earlier. Many of the women he killed were Native American or Indigenous and some victims' families feared their cases were not taken seriously because of their race. In 2016, Pickton sparked outcry after smuggling memoirs out of his high security prison to sell online. A friend set it up for him. He denied the killings and said he was the victim of a set-up in the book which was briefly sold on Amazon Pickton sparked outrage from prison in 2016 after writing a book in which he claimed to have been set-up. He said he was a scapegoat for police who were desperate to pin the women's disappearances on someone. The book was briefly sold on Amazon but was removed from the site following outrage from the victims' families. It was called Pickton: In His Own Words. Pickton's crimes shocked the world and were credited in part with Canada's decision to decriminalise prostitution in 2010 to try to make the industry safer for workers by bringing it out of the shadows. Posted 1/23/18 Citizens Memorial Hospital recently welcomed a new family nurse practitioner, Meghan Skief, FNP-C, to the medical staff. Skief will provide patient care in CMH family medicine clinics. Skief A cellphone video shot onboard a Greyhound bus last week has sparked outrage after showing Border Patrol agents arresting a grandmother who had overstayed her tourist visa and then ordering all the other passengers to produce proofs of citizenship. The footage was taken at a bus stop in Fort Lauderdale at around 4.30pm on Friday when two uniformed Border Patrol agents boarded a Greyhound bus traveling from Orlando to Miami and announced that they would be performing a 'routine inspection.' As they walked up and down the aisle, the agents demanded that passengers produce a US identification or a passport with a stamp of entrance, according to Raquel Quesada, who told CBS4 she was on the bus. This Jamaican woman named Beverly was arrested on Friday by Border Patrol agents during a 'routine inspection' of passengers' citizenship papers on a Greyhound bus in Florida The woman was found to have overstayed her tourist visa. Family say she had visited her granddaughter for the first time in Virginia and was en route to a friend's house in Miami Viral: The Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) shared this 2-minute cellphone video on Twitter, where it has been viewed 2.35million times The document check revealed that a Jamaican woman named Beverly, who was traveling to Miami after spending time with her granddaughter in Virginia, had overstayed her tourist visa. The woman, dressed in a beanie and a puffer jacket, is seen in the two-minute video briefly talking to the officers before being escorted off the bus with her luggage in tow. Beverly was later arrested and transported to a Border Patrol station before being taken into the custody of the US Immigration and Custom Enforcement for removal proceedings. The Florida Immigrant Coalition (FLIC) shared the video on Twitter, where it has been viewed 2.35million times as of Tuesday afternoon. Beverly was transported to a Border Patrol station before being taken into the custody of the US Immigration and Custom Enforcement for removal proceedings The FLIC, which bills itself as a stateside coalition of organizations working for the fair treatment of all people, including immigrants,' wrote in a tweet accompanying the video: proof of citizenship is NOT required to ride a bus!' WHAT THE LAW SAYS ABOUT BORDER PATROL'S AUTHORITY US Customs and Border Protection's Office of Border Patrol is responsible for securing the US border between the ports of entry. To do this, they use a layered approach that includes patrolling the border itself, (including the use of electronic surveillance devices), patrolling nearby areas and neighborhoods where illegal immigrants can quickly fade into the general population, and conducting checkpoints - both stationary and temporary. The authority for this is based on the Immigration and Nationality Act 287(a)(3) and copied in 8 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 287 (a)(3), which states that Immigration Officers, without a warrant, may "within a reasonable distance from any external boundary of the United States...board and search for aliens in any vessel within the territorial waters of the United States and any railcar, aircraft, conveyance, or vehicle. 8 CFR 287 (a)(1) defines reasonable distance as 100 air miles from the border. Border Patrol checkpoints do not give Border Patrol Agents carte blanche to automatically search persons and their vehicles, other then in the manner described above. In order to conduct a legal search under the Fourth Amendment, the agents must develop particularly probable cause to conduct a lawful search. Probable cause can be developed from agent observations, records checks, non-intrusive canine sniffs and other established means. Motorist's may consent to a search, but are not required to do so. Advertisement A statement posted on the group's site read: 'Passengers were shocked that their citizenship would be questioned and proof of citizenship was being required for a local bus route from Orlando to south Florida, arguing that they did not carry those documents because their travels did not include the crossing of any federal borders.' Border Patrol on Tuesday released a statement to the Miami Herald confirming the incident in Fort Lauderdale, saying that its agents were performing an 'immigration inspection' when they identified a passenger who was 'illegally residing in the United States.' Isabel Sousa-Rodriguez, membership director with the Florida Immigration Coalition, told the Washington Post that the woman, a Jamaican native in her 60s, was planning to stay with a friend in Florida after visiting her daughter-in-law and grandchild in Virginia. The woman is currently being held at the Broward Transitional Center in Pompano Beach, Florida, and her family have been unable to contact her from the time of her arrest. My mother-in-law came to visit me last week, the womans daughter-in-law said in a statement to FLIC. Shes my daughters grandmother and this was the first time meeting each other. I dropped her off at the Greyhound bus stop Friday morning and never got word of her arrival. Im very concerned about these officers questioning her without a lawyer present. The organization also shared the cellphone video from the bus on its Facebook page, calling on Greyhound 'to stand up for its passengers.' 'Incidents like these erode public trust in police and authority figures whose job is to serve and protect our communities,' stated Sousa-Rodriguez. 'Without an official judicial warrant, border patrol agents should not be permitted to board the private property of the Greyhound corporation to harass its customers and violate their civil liberties. 'Floridians deserve to ride a bus in peace without having to carry a birth certificate or passport to go to Disney world, visit family, or commute for work.' Setting the record straight: Customs and Border Patrol sent out this tweet on Tuesday, without directly referencing the Greyhound incident But the bus company explained in a statement that it is required to comply with all laws and to cooperate with law enforcement agencies whenever officers seek to board its vehicles. Unfortunately, even routine transportation checks negatively impact our operations and some customers directly, Greyhound stated. After facing backlash from pro-immigration and civil rights advocates accusing Border Patrol agents of overstepping their authority by conducting citizenship inspections, Customs and Border Patrol sent out a tweet on Tuesday, without directly referencing the Greyhound incident, in an apparent attempt to set the record straight. 'Fact: Immigration law states that Immigration Officers, without a warrant, may "within a reasonable distance from any external boundary of the US...board and search for aliens in any vessel, rail car, aircraft, conveyance, or vehicle, the message read. An FBI agent who ended up on special counsel Robert Mueller's team told a woman he was having an extramarital affair with that he didn't want to join the probe because his gut told him 'there's no big there there.' Peter Strzok, the deputy assistant director of counterintelligence, told fellow FBI agent Lisa Page in texts that he had been asked to be part of Mueller's team but he wasn't sure he'd accept the invitation. 'You and I both know the odds are nothing. If I thought it was likely, I'd be there no question. I hesitate in part because of my gut sense and concern, there's no big "there" there,' he told her in May 19 a message the FBI turned over to Congress. Peter Strzok, the deputy assistant director of counterintelligence, told fellow FBI agent Lisa Page in texts that he had been asked to be part of Mueller's team but he wasn't sure he'd accept the invitation, I hesitate in part because of my gut sense and concern, there's no big "there" there,' he said Lawmakers also revealed on Monday a conversation in which Strzok and Page discussed deleting their text exchanges. Five months of messages later went missing. In messages that were previously revealed the pair derided President Donald Trump and talked about taking out an 'insurance policy' in case he was elected. New messages provided to Congress last Friday revealed their chatter immediately after the election about forming a 'secret society' and referred to 'Our task' with a capital O. Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Ron Johnson read aloud the exchange about Mueller's investigation Tuesday on a radio show. Copies of the exchange that came two days after Mueller was appointed were obtained by the Daily Caller. Johnson told Milwaukee radio host Jay Weber on Tuesday that the message was 'jaw-dropping' considering their previous conversations about Trump. Even 'the man who had a plan to do something because he just couldn't abide Donald Trump being president' had a sense there's no there there, he said. 'I think that's kind of jaw-dropping,' he said. 'And look at what this nation's been put through as a result.' Without seeing the rest of text, it's just smoke, Johnson said, noting that legislators would need to see the rest of the texts to connect the dots. 'They are purposefully it seems like evading, putting some of these work-related messages on a platform that is untraceable,' he said. 'It looks like they're mishandling those federal records.' He made similar comments on Brian Kilmeade's radio show. 'We have just been dragged through months of this special counsel and the FBI Deputy Assistant Director of the Counter-Intelligence Division is saying two days after Mueller has been appointed, his gut sense is there is no big there there it really is pretty jaw dropping.' The FBI officials were revealed Monday to have talked about forming a 'secret society' the day after Trump beat Hillary Clinton by two members of Congress. In an appearance on 'The Story with Martha MacCallum,' Rep. Trey Gowdy said, 'The day after the election, what they really didn't want to have happen, there is a text exchange between these two FBI agents, these supposed to be objective, fact-centric FBI agents saying, "Perhaps this is the first meeting of the secret society." 'So of course I'm going to want to know what secret society you are talking about, because you're supposed to be investigating objectively the person who just won the electoral college. So yeah -- I'm going to want to know.' In an appearance on 'The Story with Martha MacCallum,' Rep. Trey Gowdy said the two agents also discussed deleting their text message history. Five months of their conversations later went missing Standing beside Gowdy in the joint interview was Texas Rep. John Ratcliffe, who the first of the two Republican legislators to mention it. 'We learned today about information that after, in the immediate aftermath of his election, that there may have been a "secret society" of folks within the Department of Justice and the FBI, to include Page and Strzok, that would be working against him,' Ratcliffe said. He added, 'I'm not saying that actually happened, but when folks speak in those terms, they need to come forward to explain the context with which they used those terms.' The Justice Department turned over copies of the communications last week. But it revealed a critical gap in messages between Strzok, a counterintelligence agent who worked on Hillary Clinton's email case, and Page, an agent who worked with Strzok for a time on the special counsel investigation into Russian election interference, as it did. Texts the pair sent each other between December 14, 2017 and May 17, 2017 are missing, the department said. President Donald Trump put the spotlight Tuesday back on the two FBI officials who disparaged him in text messages prior to the presidential election and whom he'd previously accused of 'treason,' this morning President Donald Trump put the spotlight back on the FBI officials, whom he'd previously accused of 'treason,' on Tuesday over the lapse. 'In one of the biggest stories in a long time, the FBI now says it is missing five months worth of lovers Strzok-Page texts, perhaps 50,000, and all in prime time. Wow!' he tweeted. Justice has blamed a glitch in its record-keeping system for the blackout. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that Justice is taking all available actions to recover the missing messages. Ratcliffe told MacCallum 'perhaps they really were lost' but called it a 'strange coincidence.' 'The problem, Martha, is..it makes it harder and harder for us to explain away one really strange coincidence after another.' Gowdy, the House Oversight chairman, said in the interview that 'either the bureau needs to find them' or 'we need to have someone who has really easy access to these text messages, and it may be law enforcement.' 'What Johnny and I saw today was a text about not keeping texts,' he offered. 'We saw more manifest bias against President Trump all the way through the election into transition.' Not including the missing communications, Fox News reported, the FBI has over 50,000 texts that Strzok, who was removed from special counsel Robert Mueller's team when the original messages were unearthed, and Page, who had already left the investigation, sent to one another. Those messages are expected to be made public by Congress, CBS reported. Previously published texts show Strzok suggesting the bureau invest in an 'insurance policy' in case Trump is elected. 'I want to believe the path you threw out for consideration...that theres no way he gets electedbut Im afraid we cant take that risk. Its like an insurance policy in the unlikely event you die before youre 40,' he told Page in an August 2016 text.' Lawmakers said Monday that they were shocked by the incomplete record-keeping. The messages from the period of time that was wiped covers the end of the transition to the time that Mueller was tasked with leading a special probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 election. On Fox, Ratcliffe said of the controversy, 'We know that Strzok and Page had an intense anti-Trump bias. And that's OK, so long as they check it at the door and do their job. But we learned today in the thousands of text messages we reviewed, that perhaps they may not have done that. 'We know about this "insurance policy" that was referenced in trying to prevent Donald Trump from becoming president.' A letter from Assistant Attorney General for Legislative Affairs Stephen Boyd to Johnson on Friday said that the Department of Justice had learned 'that many FBI-provided Samsung 5 mobile devices did not capture or store text messages.' The bureau told DOJ that messages were not retained 'due to misconfiguration issues related to rollouts, provisioning, and software upgrades that conflicted with the FBIs collection capabilities.' DOJ's explanation of how the messages disappeared had Republican lawmakers fuming. 'Unreal. We've been asking for the remaining text messages between anti-Trump FBI agents (and former Mueller team members), Peter Strzok and Lisa Page. The FBI now says the texts are "missing," ' Rep. Mark Meadows, leader of a group of conservatives known as the House Freedom Caucus, tweeted. 'If it wasn't already clear we need a second special counsel, it's abundantly clear now'. Flabbergasted, Meadows told Fox, 'They're supposed to be out tracking terrorism and we can't even find our own text messages?' Attorney General Jeff Sessions said that Justice is taking all available actions to recover the missing messages. Sessions told congressional committees on Friday that the Department of Justice's Inspector General is looking into the matter. '[A] review is already underway to ascertain what occurred and to determine if these records can be recovered in any other way,' he said. 'If any wrongdoing were to be found to have caused this gap, appropriate legal disciplinary action measures will be taken.' Prior to the revelation that the FBI was missing the large volume of communications, President Trump had Strzok and Page in a Wall Street Journal interview and accused them of 'treason' for the way they spoke about him before the election. 'There was no collusion on our side, the collusion was on the Democrat side with the Russians. And what went on with the FBI, where a man is tweeting to his lover that if she loses, well essentially go back to thewell go to the insurance policy, which isif they lose, well go to phase 2, and well get this guy out of office. 'I mean, this is the FBI were talking about. I think that isthat is treason. See, thats treason right there,' he stated. In December, after Strozk was removed from the special counsel probe because of the text messages, Trump said the FBI's reputation was in 'tatters' because of mismanagement under James Comey, the former director of the bureau the president fired in May. 'But fear not, we will bring it back to greatness,' he pledged. Sixty per cent of Americans say they don't trust Donald Trump with nuclear weapons, and more than half are worried he'll needlessly launch one. Overall, just 38 per cent believe the president will appropriately manage his power to let missiles fly toward U.S. adversaries. Among the six in 10 who disagree, 88 per cent are 'very' or 'somewhat' concerned Trump will start an unjustified war with the weapons of mass destruction. Combined, that amounts to 52.8 per cent who see Trump as an irresponsible custodian of the U.S. arsenal who might provoke a nuclear holocaust. 60 per cent of Americans told pollsters that they don't think Trump can be trusted with nuclear weapons The U.S. currently has 6,800 nuclear warheads; 2,800 are retired, 4,000 are stockpiled and 1,800 are actually deployed The startling numbers come from a poll of more than 1,000 American adults conducted by The Washington Post and ABC News. The last military nuclear attack came in 1945 when the U.S. hastened the end of World War II with this explosion above Nagasaki, Japan This month the president sparked global concerns about America's nuclear posture when he attacked North Korea's dictator in a tweet about his 'nuclear button.' 'North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un just stated that the "Nuclear Button is on his desk at all times",' Trump tweeted. 'Will someone from his depleted and food starved regime please inform him that I too have a Nuclear Button, but it is a much bigger & more powerful one than his, and my Button works!' In October 2017 NBC News reported that he told military leaders in July that he wanted to grow America's nuclear capability by 1,000 per cent. Trump immediately cried foul. 'Fake @NBCNews made up a story that I wanted a "tenfold" increase in our U.S. nuclear arsenal. Pure fiction, made up to demean,' he blasted. North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un said this month that he has a nuclear button on his desk Trump responded by saying his button was bigger 'and my button works!' Trump has disputed an NBC News report that claimed he asked his military advisers to boost the nation's nuclear capability by 1,000 per cent The poll also found 70 per cent of Americans think Trump's behavior in office has been 'unpresidential.' Just 28 per cent thought it has been 'fitting and proper.' Americans are split, 48-47, on the question of whether he's 'mentally stable,' with a slight edge going Trump's way. The poll was conducted January 15-18 and has a margin of error of +/- 3.5 percentage points. The US and Britain have both fallen down the list of the World's Best Countries - with Switzerland and Canada remaining the top two nations. Researchers cited a growing lack of economic confidence in the UK following Brexit and awarded the number three spot to Germany - which was recognised for its strong gender equality and government transparency. Brazil is the best country in the world to visit, and Italy ranks highest as the nation with the richest traditions. Respondents to the US News survey were asked their opinions of major world leaders, with Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Angela Merkel viewed as the most respected globally. Researchers cited a growing lack of economic confidence in the UK following Brexit and awarded the number three spot to Germany America fell one place to number eight in the rankings, after Sweden and Australia The highest disapproval ratings were given to US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. America fell one place to number eight in the rankings, after Sweden and Australia. It drops in two key categories - 'open for business' and 'movers', which analyses up-and-coming economies. The reasons for America's fall the second straight year its ranking dipped are fuelled by the world's perceptions of the country becoming less progressive and trustworthy. The highest disapproval ratings were given to US President Donald Trump (pictured left) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (pictured right) Respondents also said the country appeared to be more politically unstable with a president who after just a year in office is far more unpopular than any other head of state or company boss. However, the US remains the top in the world in terms of power for the third year, closely followed by Russia at number two. Despite Britain slipping in the rankings, it leads in education - while Canada is top for quality of life and New Zealand is the favourite destination for retirement. The rankings are based on a study that surveyed global citizens from four regions to assess perceptions of 80 countries on 75 different metrics. Lester Holt managed to achieve a near-impossible feat over the weekend, with the NBC Nightly News anchor obtaining permission to broadcast from North Korea. And on Monday he reported from a ski resort in the totalitarian dictatorship that will soon host athletes ahead of the Winter Games. That segment managed to draw the ire of his critics however, who went after Holt for saying: 'We have all been treated with respect here.' 'Sure is nice of NBC to help North Korea rehab their image from beating and torturing an American citizen to death. Hope Otto Warmbier's family is watching!' wrote Stephen Miller, a Fox News contributor. Miller and Holt's other critics did not think that the human rights violations which led to Warmbier's death after he tore down a poster of the country's ruler or North Korea's notoriously tight control over press broadcasts might be the reason Holt made that comment. Scroll down for video NBC Nightly News anchor Lester Holt has been slammed for his 'cushy' reports from North Korea An @NBCNews exclusive: We have been treated with respect here. @lesterholtnbc is just a few hours outside the capital of Pyongyang with a rare look inside North Korea pic.twitter.com/xTZM6QcLEy TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 22, 2018 Fox News host Eric Boling also chimed in, posting a tweet in which he imagined how he would have responded to Holt's comment. 'Ive been "treated with respect" in North Korea (Lester Holt, NBC),' wrote Bollinh '"Tell that to Otto Warmbiers parents.. see what they say to you Lester" (Me, Eric Bolling)' Bolling, who has never reported from North Korea, did not mention the comments Holt made about his access while in the country. Holt made it very clear that the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs 'crafted much of the itinerary of where we can go and [is] advising us on what they don't frankly want us to shoot'. He also said that North Korean guards thoroughly searched he and his staff's belongings when they entered the country - including inspecting the novels they brought to read and even one staffer's toothbrush. These attacks also came before Holt could report on his trip from American soil, where he would be capable of making critical comments about the regime or Kim Jong-un without risking his life and the life of his crew. Holt came under fire on Monday, when he said he had been 'treated with respect' by the North Koreans Holt filmed part of his report from the North Korean ski resort of Masikryong, where the joint Korean Olympic team plans to train ahead of next month's games in Pyeongchang, South Korea. It's been reported that the state-of-the-art resort cost the Kim regime $35million to build, even with slave labor, while most of the country starved. As DailyMail.com reported last year, the resort has been mostly a ghost town since it was opened in 2013. On the day that Holt visited the resort though, the slopes were bustling with families in eerily similar bright-colored outfits. Holt commented that the resort was 'certainly a part' of North Korea that the regime 'would like us to see'. 'Pro tip for @LesterHoltNBC: when everyone is wearing matching jackets it is a staged event,' Richard Grenell, President Trump's nominee for U.S. Ambassador to Germany, tweeted. Twitter users described Holt's report as 'propaganda' and 'vile and embarrassing' - among other things. North Korea keeps foreign press on a tight leash while visiting the country. Government minders are assigned to all journalists who enter the country, to make sure that the coverage is only positive. But generally journalists get around this censorship by adding comments about the lack of access to their reports in post-production. This is perhaps something that Holt wasn't allowed to do since he was still in North Korea when his first report aired on Sunday. One viewer pointed this out in a tweet. North Korea keeps foreign press on a tight leash while visiting the country - a fact this Twitter user pointed out ''It's super weird to watch Lester Holy sugar coat North Korea in an obvious effort not to piss off the minders and get himself detained. I wonder what he'll say when he comes back?' Twitter user Laury Pflaum wrote. President Donald Trump will meet with the president of Rwanda when he visits one of the world's wealthiest countries, weeks after reports that he railed against immigration from 's***hole' countries in Africa. Trump will meet with President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, who is chair of the African Union, when he jets to Davos, where billionaires and world leaders are gathering in the Swiss Alps. National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster revealed the meeting to reporters Tuesday, hours after the trip got confirmed with the resolution of the government shutdown. Kagame has effectively ruled Rwanda for two decades, and has gotten plaudits from Bill Clinton and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, although he has also been criticized for human rights abuses. President Donald Trump will meet with the president of Rwanda when he visits Davos Rwanda has managed to attain 8 per cent economic growth, but many of its citizens still suffer in extreme poverty. Trump made the comment in an Oval Office meeting with Republicans and Democrats before the shutdown, the Washington Post reported. Homeland Security chair Kirstjen Nielsen, who was there, said she didn't remember Trump saying the phrase but that he did use 'tough language.' Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda addresses the 72nd UN General Assembly on September 20, 2017, at the United Nations in New York In this handout photo provided by the Israel Government Press Office (GPO), Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks with US President Donald Trump prior to the President's departure from Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel Aviv on May 23, 2017 in Jerusalem, Israel HANDS-ON DIPLOMACY: British Prime Minister Theresa May and U.S. President Donald Trump walk along The Colonnade of the West Wing at The White House on January 27, 2017 in Washington, DC Trump also meets with British Prime Minister Theresa May and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Gary Cohn, Trump's chief economic advisor, says the president will hold a dinner with CEOs of European companies in order to 'share our economic success story and to encourage them to continue to invest in America.' The dinner follows French President Emmanuel Macron's effort to woo investors at Versailles in advance of the annual confab. Cohn said Trump would stress 'free and open trade,' then added: 'But it needs to be fair and reciprocal.' The Duke of Cambridge lambasted social media yesterday for turning Britain into a coarser 'silo society'. He warned public debate was becoming more personal and condemned anonymous online trolls who cloak their true identities. It follows remarks last month when the royal father-of-two took aim at social media firms for threatening the 'very nature of childhood'. Continuing his theme in a major speech yesterday, William said: 'We all know that society is becoming, in lots of ways, more atomised and polarised. 'There is no doubt that public debate seems coarser and more personal than ever, fuelled partly by anonymity online and the commercialisation of our news. Scroll down for video The Duke of Cambridge lambasted social media for turning Britain into a coarser 'silo society' 'We are running the risk of a silo society in which we allow differences of opinion to separate us. If you lived your life on Twitter, or on news pages, you could be forgiven for assuming that society is falling apart: natural and man-made disasters, terrorism, economic uncertainty these challenges are all real. 'But they are not the whole story: kindness, compassion, neighbourliness, big and small acts of generosity form the glue of our society.' His latest intervention adds to a torrent of concern about Twitter, Facebook and other online giants which are under the spotlight as never before. This week, Facebook made the admission it is damaging democracy with its 'toxic discourse', as executives at the internet firm finally confessed social media has become a vehicle for fake news and 'dishonest campaigns' designed to drive society apart. They also conceded Facebook had been 'far too slow' to pick up on malicious groups abusing its platform. Prince William made his latest comments during a speech to charity bosses at the Charity Commission's annual public meeting at the Royal Institution in London Children's Commissioner Anne Longfield warned earlier this month that ten-year-olds were becoming dependent on social media for their sense of self-worth. Her study found many youngsters now measure their status by how much public approval they get online, and said social media firms were exposing children to major emotional risks. A survey by marketing firm Edelman this week found only a quarter of Britons trust social media and an overwhelming majority believe social media firms do not do enough to tackle bullying, illegal activities and the spreading of extremist content. Prince William made his latest comments yesterday during a speech to charity bosses at the Charity Commission's annual public meeting at the Royal Institution in London. He praised the British people's generosity towards charities as 'a great antidote' to cynicism. It follows remarks last month when the royal father-of-two took aim at social media firms for threatening the 'very nature of childhood'. Stock photo He also urged delegates to combine forces to increase their impact, rather than establishing new charities all the time. He drew a parallel with the Royals, saying: 'The challenges you face are not dissimilar to those faced by other age-old institutions such as the Monarchy, always seeking to ensure relevance and public service.' The second-in-line to the throne paid tribute to his parents for 'putting charity at the heart' of his life. He pointed out that Princess Diana and Prince Charles had shown him what it meant to have both privilege and responsibilities, saying: 'I remember being taken by my mother to a homelessness shelter at a young age, her explaining to me why the people I met there matter why no society can be healthy unless we take other people seriously.' Prince William warned public debate was becoming more personal and condemned anonymous online trolls who cloak their true identities And he said his father had taught him how charity gave 'his life his sense of purpose', adding: 'I recall evening after evening my father's diligence and compassion as he applied himself to answering thousands of letters and reading endless reports to stay on top of his ambition to do all he could to help the underprivileged.' William also praised the Queen and Prince Philip's own charity work. He hailed his grandfather as 'one of the most tireless public servants of this country'. 'My family have not done this because it looks good they do it because charity is not an optional extra in society,' the Duke said. 'We believe that, above anything else, charities nurture, repair, build and sustain our society. Without the work that charities do, society would be an empty shell.' Discussing social media last month, William said we had reached 'a moment of reckoning', warning: 'I am no Luddite, I believe strongly in the positive power of technology, but I'm afraid I find the situation alarming.' Twitter and Facebook declined to comment last night. The parents who are accused of holding captive their 13 children in their California house of horrors were planning a move to Oklahoma within days of their 17-year-old daughter escaping to call police. The family patriarch, David Turpin, 57, had been approved for a job transfer to Oklahoma with the defense contractor Northrop Grumann. The family was planning to up and move 'within days' of January 14, the day their 17-year-old daughter climbed out the family's Perris home's window and used a deactivated cell phone to dial 911, according to sources who spoke with ABC News. 'There were boxes in the house consistent with moving concentrated in hallways, entryway and bedrooms,' one of the sources said. The parents of 13 children rescued from a California house of horrors (pictured), were readying for a move to Oklahoma within days of their 17-year-old daughter escaping to call police All 13 children, pictured here in 'thing' t-shirts, are being treated for malnutrition, it is unclear if the 17-year-old's escape to alert authorities had anything to do with the impending move The parents are accused of starving, torturing and chaining their 13 children to their beds for years. The police responded quickly, and ended up arresting the parents and taking the 13 children into state custody. It was unclear if the impending move had anything to do with the 17-year-old's escape and subsequent call to authorities. The family had moved several times over the years. They moved twice in Texas, and once in California. Meanwhile new CCTV footage was released Tuesday showing the children being rescued from the home by police. In the dramatic surveillance footage, the children are seen being being escorted from the house by officers after the arrest of their parents David and wife Louise Turpin, 49. The video shows police at the scene after the 17-year-old escaped through a window, enacting a plan she had in the works for two years. Officers escort the youngsters from the home, one of whom is carrying her sibling and another runs to catch up. Dramatic rescue: The video shows police arriving to save the youngsters who can be seen running from the home in which they had been kept chained to their beds and tortured by their parents for years In the grainy footage, one older child can be seen carrying a sibling (pictured in the red circle). Seconds later another child runs behind them appearing to be desperate to catch up. The children are escorted into a police vehicle outside the home Wider view: The full frame of the footage taken from a neighbour's security camera shows the children being escorted from the home, top left Police look on as the children aged from two to 29 flee, and an officer standing on the driveway is seen ushering them to safety in the video. Details of their harrowing plight have started to emerge since the California couple pleaded not guilty on Thursday to nearly 40 counts including torture, false imprisonment, abuse on a dependent, and child abuse. David faces an additional charge of a lewd act on a child under 14. They denied the charges despite evidence showing how they kept their 13 children in locked in their rooms, chained to beds and allowing them to shower no more than once a year. The Turpins also starved their children, their 29-year-old daughter weighed just 82lbs, and taunted them with slices of pie. Among the most shocking claims of abuse are: The children were made to stay awake all night and sleep all day, often going to bed at between 4am and 5am Their only permitted activity was to keep journals - hundreds of which were recovered and will likely be used as evidence David Turpin is accused of a lewd act against one child - one of his daughters, under the age of 14 The children had been planning to escape for two years before they were rescued The 17-year-old daughter who raised the alarm left the house with another sibling but that child became frightened and turned back The parents began using chains and padlocks to tie the children to their beds after one escaped with rope. They would sometimes be chained up for months One of the older boys was allowed out of the home to attend college classes but his mother accompanied him there, waited for him until it finished then accompanied him home The couple's youngest child, a two-year-old, was the only one they did not starve The 29-year-old woman who was rescued weighed just 82 lbs The children were tied up or beaten if they washed their hands 'above the wrist' because the parents said it amounted to them 'playing in the water' The Turpins kept toys that were still in their boxes at the house but never gave any to the children Cadaver dogs are being sent into the home to look for the bodies of any children who did not survive the ordeal and DNA tests are being conducted to determine if any of the children have died and are buried in David and Louise's house of horrors, according to a new report. Under arrest: A clip from the same CCTV video released earlier shows parents David and Louise Turpin in custody and being led from their home All the children, pictured here with their parents, had been subjected to 'prolonged abuse', were not allowed to shower more than once a year, and barred from seeing a dentist or doctor The children will likely need years of therapy, psychological experts said. The couple arrived in court dressed in black with their hands and legs shackled this past Thursday, and were represented by a public defender before bail was set at $12m for each of them. 'If convicted of all charges, they face 94 years up to life in prison,' District Attorney Mike Hestrin told reporters after the hearing. Sheriff's deputies in Perris, a town southeast of Los Angeles, found three of the captives had been shackled with chains and padlocks in their filthy, foul-smelling home Sunday after receiving an emergency assistance call from their teenage sister who had managed to escape. Hestrin said the 17-year-old had been working on a plan to escape for more than two years, and took one of her siblings with her, who became frightened and turned back. David Allen Turpin and Louise Turpinare pictured in court last week. Both pleaded not guilty to the multiple counts of torture The teenager was so emaciated that officers first thought she was a young child. Officers also initially assumed all the other siblings to be children, but were shocked to discover seven ranging in age from 18 to 29. All 13 are being treated for malnutrition and undergoing other diagnostic tests. Hestrin said all the children had been subjected to 'prolonged abuse', were not allowed to shower more than once a year, and barred from seeing a dentist or doctor. 'Circumstantial evidence in the house suggests that the victims were often not released from their chains to go to the bathroom,' he told the press conference. 'If the children were found to wash their hands above the wrist area, they were accused of playing in the water and they would be chained up,' Hestrin said. When they were not chained up, they were locked in different rooms and were not allowed to have toys, although there were many toys found in the house that were in their original package and had never been opened. While the children's ordeal began when the family was living in the Fort Worth region of Texas, it 'intensified over time and worsened' when they moved to California. 'They were fed very little, on a schedule,' Hestrin added. Mark Uffer, chief executive officer at the Corona regional medical center where the adults were being treated, has described their condition as stable. The Turpin family on a day out at Disney World, left, and posing all in light blue polo shirts in the picture on the right. The children's faces have been pixelated to conceal their identity A sister of Louise Turpin, Elizabeth Flores (pictured), stayed with the family while she was at university. She recalled David Turpin watching her in the shower but said she didn't witness any abuse Mugshots of David and Lousie Turpin provided by the Riverside County Sheriff's Department show David Allen Turpin, left, and Louise Anna Turpin, right Neither parent was able to immediately explain why their children were restrained, according to the Riverside County Sheriff's Department. There was no indication that either suffered from mental illness, Perris police chief Greg Fellows said, or that the children's ordeal was linked to the family's religious beliefs. Initial investigations have confirmed that the couple were the biological parents of all 13 siblings. WHAT ARE THE CHARGES AGAINST THE HOUSE OF HORRORS PARENTS On Thursday, January 18, Louise and David Turpin were both formally charged with; 12 counts torture 12 counts of false imprisonment 7 counts of abuse of a dependant adult 6 counts of child abuse or neglect David Turpin faces one charge of a lewd act on a child under 14 by force of fear which prosecutors say was a crime against one of his daughters. If convicted, they face a minimum of 94 years imprisonment each. Bail was set at $13million, $1million for each child they are accused of abusing. Advertisement According to police, the family moved in 2014 from Texas to a middle class neighborhood of Perris, some 70 miles (110 kilometers) southeast of Los Angeles, homeschooling their children in their Spanish-style stucco house. A sister of Louise Turpin, Elizabeth Flores, told ABC the couple kept to themselves. 'This has been going on before they even had children... they were real private, and they didn't come around much,' said Flores. 'We begged to Skype them. We begged to see them.' As a university student Flores lived with the Turpins for a while. 'I thought they were really strict, but I didn't see any abuse,' Flores said. But she said she did have disturbing memories of the husband. 'If I went to get in the shower, he would come in while I was in there and watch me. 'It was like a joke. He never touched me or anything.' Attorney Hestrin described how the abuse allegedly intensified over the last eight years, explaining how the Turpins went from tying the children up with ropes to using padlocks and chains to keep them in one place. 'The victims report that as a punishment, starting many years ago, they began to be tied up first with ropes, one victim at one point was tied up and hogtied and then when that victim was able to escape the ropes, the defendants began using chains and padlocks to chain the victims to their beds,' he said. They were beaten and strangled for reason as trivial as washing their hands 'above the wrist', he alleged. 'One of the reasons for these punishments of being chained up were that, and by the way, the punishments included frequent beatings and even strangulation. They were all fed on a particular schedule and, as a punishment, were made to look at foods their parents left out purposefully to torment them, it was claimed. 'The parents would apparently buy food for themselves and not allow the children to eat it. ' 'Apple pies, pumpkin pies, and leave it on the counter to let the children look at it but not eat it,' he said Some of the children did not know what a police officer was when they were rescued and many are mentally impaired as a result of what prosecutors called 'severe, prolonged and pervasive abuse'. According to Hestrin, the abuse began in 2010 and has intensified ever since. One of the children, a boy, was allowed out of the home to attend college classes but Louise accompanied him. The levels of abuse varied from child to child, with David Turpin accused of sexually abusing a 14-year-old daughter. Only the two-year-old survived malnutrition, but one 22-year-old only weighed 82lbs. The children were made to stay awake through the night and sleep during the day as part of their torment, often going to bed between 4am and 5am. The case recalls previous kidnapping horrors that have made global headlines in recent years. Ariel Castro abducted three young women he repeatedly raped for a decade at his Cleveland home. He was arrested in May 2013 after one of his victims escaped. Jaycee Dugard was kidnapped as an 11-year-old and repeatedly raped over 18 years by convicted sex offender Phillip Garrido in California. She was rescued in August 2009. Austria has seen two high profile kidnaps - Elisabeth Fritzl was imprisoned and raped over a period of 24 years by her father Josef while Natascha Kampusch was held for eight years by Wolfgang Priklopil before her 2006 escape. Tradies hoping to avoid their gear being lifted from their work vehicles are turning to bumper stickers mocking would-be thieves. The signs attached to trailers, utes, and vans carrying equipment appear meant to make criminals think twice about taking what isn't theirs. 'Don't steal my tools, I need them to pay for your benefits,' the signs read, with numerous slight variants around the world. The sticker was spotted on the back of a black trailer hitched to the back of a white 4WD stopped at a Melbourne intersection The point being that if a tradie's tools are stolen, they can't make as much money to pay the taxes that fund unemployment benefits. One of them was spotted on the back of a black trailer hitched to the back of a white 4WD stopped at a Melbourne intersection. Others sightings pop up on social media around the country and overseas from time to time as other motorists find the sentiment amusing. Numerous variants exist, such as this one, warning of consequences for tool thieves The stickers or signs can be bought for as little as $5 each in Australia, with free shipping, and were selling on eBay in Britain for 1.75. 'Let those scum bag tool thieves know why taking your gear is not a good idea!' the description on one tradie-focused site read. But it acknowledged thieves may not be thinking that far ahead: 'It probably wont actually stop them, but it will give everyone else a laugh.' Lukasz Niec, a physician at Kalamazoo's Bronson Methodist Hospital, was arrested Tuesday by ICE agents and jailed. A Polish doctor in Michigan who fled to the US with his family nearly 40 years ago faces deportation because of 18 previous run-ins with the law, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said on Tuesday. Lukasz Niec, who has a permanent green card, was home with his two daughters last Tuesday morning when three ICE agents showed up, placed him in handcuffs and took him to jail. The 43-year-old internal medicine physician at Kalamazoo's Bronson Methodist Hospital has spent the past several days at the Calhoun County jail awaiting his fate. A week after his arrest, ICE said Niec was being processed for removal from the country because of two convictions for misdemeanors back in 1992, according to MLive.com. 'Mr. Niec entered the United States lawfully in 1979. He is amenable to removal proceedings as a result of two 1992 state convictions for malicious destruction of property and receiving stolen property, both of which are crimes involving moral turpitude,' ICE said. 'He most recently came under agency scrutiny as a result of 18 encounters with local law enforcement.' Niec will stay in ICE custody pending the results of removal proceedings. 'As ICE Deputy Director Thomas Homan has made clear, ICE does not exempt classes or categories of removable aliens from potential enforcement,' ICE said. 'All of those in violation of the immigration laws may be subject to immigration arrest, detention and, if found removable by final order, removal from the United States.' Niec pleaded guilty to the charges under the Holmes Youthful Trainee Act, which allows young first time offenders to avoid a criminal record if they never offend again. Scroll down for video The 43-year-old doctor was home when his two daughters when three Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents showed up and placed him in handcuffs. Niec (left) is pictured here with his wife, Rachelle Burkart-Niec, and kids The family said Niec was unaware when he accepted the plea agreement that ICE does not honor it. In 1988, the US Congress passed a law which said that those who have permanent residence in the United States are not subject to deportation unless they commit aggravated felonies or seriously crimes like murder and drug trafficking. After the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, Congress passed more stringent laws which expanded the list of crimes that would give authorities the right to deport immigrants and asylum-seekers. The list of more than 20 crimes includes counterfeit, perjury, obstruction of justice, domestic violence, drug or weapons offenses, and crimes of moral turpitude. According to the Department of Homeland Security, moral turpitude is not defined under federal law. But courts in the US have designated crimes of moral turpitude as an act that is inherently base, vile, or depraved, and contrary to the accepted rules of morality and the duties owed between persons or to society in general. These crimes, which fall under both categories of felonies and misdemeanors, usually include violations against a person, including assault, fraud, perjury, robbery, theft, and bribery. ICE says that any permanent resident convicted of two crimes of moral turpitude would face deportation regardless of how long that person has been in the country. Local authorities say Niec has 22 criminal cases on file against him stemming from 18 contacts with law enforcement. These include no proof of insurance violations, seven speeding tickets, failing to change address on a driver license, causing an accident, careless driving, seat belt violation, driving without due care, and parking near a fire hydrant. In 2008, he pleaded guilty in Kalamazoo County to operating a vehicle while impaired by liquor. As part of a plea agreement, Niec abided by the terms of his probation and the case was subsequently dismissed. In 2013, he was put on trial on a domestic violence charge. The jury found him not guilty. "Almost all the 18 number are traffic violations," his sister, Iwona Niec Villaire, told MLive.com. Niecs employer, Bronson HealthCare, released a statement on Tuesday saying it was working to try and get the doctor released from ICE custody. "We have been in contact with our elected representatives and we have our immigration counsel coordinating with Dr. Niec's attorney to explore all options to secure his prompt release from detention," Bronson said. There are two misdemeanor convictions from 26 years ago that have been cited by ICE to support Dr. Niec's detention, Bronson said. The family believes Niec was arrested because of two misdemeanor convictions from when he was 17 We believe that Dr. Niec's recent history as a contributing member of our community is far more indicative of the type of person he is than the incidents that occurred when he was a teenager. Niec's family told WOOD TV that there's a chance the doctor could be deported to Poland, a country he left with his parents and sister nearly 40 years ago. Iwona Niec-Villaire said her brother is 'shell-shocked' about being arrested and the possibility he may be deported. 'We did go see him on Wednesday, he was shaking,' she said. Niec-Villaire, an attorney, told the outlet that her family left Poland in 1979 for a 'better life'. She said her brother was three years old at the time and this is the only home he's ever known. 'He cannot (go) back to Poland, a country he doesn't know, he has no family at, both our parents passed away in the United States, he doesn't know anyone, he wouldn't know where to go,' she said. 'He doesn't even speak Polish.' Niec and his family fled Poland in 1979, when he was 3, for a better life in the US. The doctor is pictured on the right with his sister, Iwona Niec-Villaire 'Now, they're using this expunged case that's stamped non-public record against him,' Niec-Villaire told WWMT. Niec could get a bond hearing in February but his family thinks a judge will deny bond because of the misdemeanors. If it is denied, Niec will remain in jail until it's decided whether he can return home or be deported. 'Until this gets heard, which could be up to six months, he could be stuck in a prison cell and not helping and being with his family,' Niec-Villaire told WWMT. His wife, Rachelle Burkart-Niec, added: 'He's an excellent physician, he's loving, he's caring, he's an honorable husband and he's always helping others.' The couple has two children. Niec could get a bond hearing in February Niec's colleagues at Bronson are outraged at the situation and are hoping he will not be separated from his family. 'He's exactly the kind of person our immigration policies should be encouraging to prosper here, he's been here for 40 years, this is a ridiculous situation,' Dr. Michael Raphelson said. Marc Asch, an immigration attorney in Kalamazoo, told WWMT in the last year ICE has been going after cases it wouldn't have made a priority in the past. 'These days there's less discretion being exercised in who they go after, they're being more aggressive, generally speaking,' he said. The White House has flatly dismissed an effort by a bipartisan group of a half-dozen senators to reconcile competing immigration proposals, calling it 'dead on arrival' because it doesn't go far enough. The so-called 'Gang of Six' is led by Republicans Lindsey Graham and Jeff Flake, and Democrat Dick Durbin. All three are frequent Trump critics and have felt the sting of his public criticism. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Tuesday that the contours of their as-yet-unseen proposal show that it would fail to meet President Donald Trump's 'benchmarks,' which include 'serious border security, an end to chain migration, the cancellation of the outdated and unsafe visa lottery program, and a permanent solution to DACA.' Their proposal 'would not secure our border, encourage more illegal immigration, increase chain migration and retain the visa lottery system. In short, it's totally unacceptable to the president and should be declared dead on arrival,' she said. Dead on arrival: White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Tuesday that an immigration proposal being crafted by a bipartisan group of six senators won't get any support from President Donald Trump Half the gang: Republican Sens. Lindsey Graham (left) and Jeff Flake (center), and Democratic Sen. Dick Durbin (right) are working on a proposal that the White House says fall short of what it wants in exchange for a DACA fix Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer agreed to end a three-day government shutdown based on the promise of action on DACA by February 8. DACA, the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, protects hundreds of thousands of illegal immigrants from deportation because they were brought to the United States as minors. Trump announced in September that he would end that system in six months, a promise that will ripen on March 5 creating a deadline that the White House is using as leverage to get its other priorities passed into law. Sanders denied on Tuesday that Trump is using DACA as a bargaining chip. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (left) and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (right) agreed Monday to end a government shutdown by pledging to take up DACA no later than February 8 but Trump will demand a host of pot-sweeteners in exchange for his signature 'Not at all,' she said, 'but you can't fix the problem if you just tinker with immigration in a small way.' She argued that combining a DACA fix with a move to strengthen border security would prevent the arrival of additional waves of underage illegal immigrants who might create a new DACA crisis in the years to come. 'The president is willing to sign something to find a permanent solution,' she said, while placing the responsibility for crafting it on Congress. The Gang of Six are thought to be crafting a bill that would give Trump funding for his wall but only slightly decrease the number of people who can legally enter the U.S. each year. In exchange, they want a substantial increase in the number of current immigrants both legal and illegal who qualify for permanent residency. Among the beneficiaries would be the DACA population, along with their siblings and parents. White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley (right) panned the immigration proposal being crafted by Durbin, Flake and Graham, saying it's 'not a serious solution to protect the American people but a giant step in the wrong direction' White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley said Monday that the Flake-Graham-Durbin package 'is not a serious solution to protect the American people but a giant step in the wrong direction.' 'Their plan totally fails to secure the border, and includes no legal authorities to stop illegal immigration[,] which ensures a massive wave of new illegal immigration and new chain migration," he added. 'The bill also maintains the visa lottery as another backdoor amnesty,' said Gidley. 'It puts people who are in this country unlawfully ahead of our own American citizens.' A tiny town in Australia is actually sitting on a 1.7 billion-year-old chunk of North America, according to new research. Scientists found that ancient rocks in the area around Georgetown, 250 miles (400km) west of Cairns, Queensland, were unlike any other rocks in Australia. Instead, they were surprisingly similar to deposits found in Canada today, suggesting the two countries were once stuck together. Australia and North America were once fused as part of of the supercontinent Nuna, separating when the landmass broke up 1.6 billion years ago. Scroll down for video Australia and North America were once fused as part of of the supercontinent Nuna, separating when the landmass broke up 1.6 billion years ago (right). This means that the small settlement of Georgetown, Australia, was actually once part of North America (left) Earth's landmasses have repeatedly created and destroyed supercontinents over the course of the planet's history as part of what experts call the 'supercontinent cycle'. Now a study from experts at Curtin University in Perth suggests Georgetown became a part of Australia when it collided with the landmass during the formation of Nuna, which began around 1.7 billion years ago. When Nuna, also known as Columbia, naturally drifted apart 100 million years later, Georgetown and a chunk of northern Queensland broke off and stuck to Australia, the researchers said. The Perth team compared sediment readings from both Georgetown and nearby Mount Isa as part of their study. Study lead author Adam Nordsvan said: 'Our research shows that about 1.7 billion years ago, Georgetown rocks were deposited into a shallow sea when the region was part of North America. 'Georgetown then broke away from North America and collided with the Mount Isa region of northern Australia around 100 million years later. 'This was a critical part of global continental reorganisation when almost all continents on Earth assembled to form the supercontinent called Nuna.' Since the 1960s, researchers have proposed that Australia and North America were connected as part of Nuna, but the new study provides conclusive evidence that the two were once paired. HOW WAS AUSTRALIA CONNECTED TO CANADA? ROCKS REVEAL THE TIMELINE OF EVENTS 1.7 BILLION YEARS AGO Over the course of geological time, Earth's continents have moved and arranged themselves differently. The movement of the tectonic plates on Earth over time forms part of what experts call the 'supercontinent cycle'. Now, a new study suggests Georgetown, a town 250 miles (400km) west of Cairns, Queensland, in Australia, became a part of Australia when it collided with the North American landmass during the formation of supercontinent Nuna 1.7 billion years ago. The events leading up to this happened as follows. Australia and North America were once fused as part of of the supercontinent Nuna, which formed 1.7 billion years ago. But Australia and North America separated when the Nuna landmass broke up 1.6 billion years ago. When the huge landmass split apart, a small area of what is now Queensland, Australia broke off from northern North America. Georgetown rocks were deposited into a shallow sea when the region was part of North America. When Georgetown broke away from North America, it collided with the Mount Isa region of northern Australia. Since the 1960s, researchers have proposed that Australia and North America were connected as part of Nuna, but the new study provides conclusive evidence that the two were once paired. Advertisement Scientists found that rocks in the area around Georgetown, Queensland, were unlike any other deposits in Australia. Instead, they were similar to deposits found in Canada today, suggesting the town - with a population of roughly 250 - was originally a part of North America (stock) Georgetown broke off from North America and became a part of Australia during the formation of a supercontinent 1.7 billion years ago, researchers said Researchers found that when the supercontinent Nuna broke apart the rock on which Georgetown sits did not drift away and instead became a new piece of Australia The team found that when the supercontinent Nuna broke apart, the rock on which Georgetown sits did not drift away and instead became a new piece of Australia. Co-author Professor Zheng-Xiang Li said the research also revealed new evidence of mountains being built in both the Georgetown region and Mt Isa when Georgetown collided with the rest of Australia. 'Ongoing research by our team shows that this mountain belt, in contrast to the Himalayas, would not have been very high, suggesting the final continental assembling process that led to the formation of the supercontinent Nuna was not a hard collision like India's recent collision with Asia,' Professor Li said. 'This new finding is a key step in understanding how Earth's first supercontinent Nuna may have formed, a subject still being pursued by our multidisciplinary team here at Curtin University.' A centipede's spasm-inducing venom is so powerful, it can rapidly paralyse much larger prey. Now, a new gruesome video shows just how effective its venom is in killing a mouse that is 15 times its size. The footage shows a venomous golden headed centipede murdering the rodent in just 30 seconds. Scientists believe the centipede's deadly venom reduces the mouse's respiratory rate and triggers brain seizures. While the clip doesn't show it eating the prey, mice are a common snack for the predators, who have also been known to feast on small snakes. WHAT IS 'SPOOKY TOXIN' AND HOW DOES IT WORK? 'Spooky Toxin', or Ssm Spooky Toxin, is a new toxin that has been identified in golden head centipedes. The toxin blocks the movement of potassium into and out of mammal cells. Scientists believe the toxin stops blood flow to the heart, leading to heart failure and eventually death. This is because it blocks a set of cellular machinery called KCNQ channels. Cells use these channels to pass salts in and out of vital organs. By blocking these channels, centipedes can kill mice 15 times their size in just 30 seconds. Researchers believe that an epilepsy drug called retigabine could open these channels back up and act as an antidote to the venom. Advertisement The footage was captured by researchers led by Kunming Institute of Zoology in China. They wanted to identify a toxin in centipede venom that wreaks havoc on the cardiovascular, respiratory, and nervous systems of other creatures. They found a substance they called 'Ssm Spooky Toxin' produced by golden head centipedes - also known as the Chinese red-headed centipede. This toxin blocks the movement of potassium into and out of mammal cells, writes Washington Post. The researchers believe this eventually stops blood flow to the heart, leading to heart failure and death. The study, led by Dr Lei Luo from Kunming Institute of Zoology and published in PNAS, says that 'centipedes venom has evolved to simultaneously disrupt cardiovascular, respiratory, muscular, and nervous systems'. Human deaths from centipedes are relatively rare and as of 2006 there have only been three recorded cases. However, the bites can still be incredibly unpleasant. A golden head centipede that weighs 3g is seen setting upon a mouse 15 times its size, killing it with one fatal bite A venomous centipede is seen killing a mouse in just 30 seconds with a spasm-inducing toxin in gruesome new footage (pictured) Researchers believe the centipede's deadly venom reduces the mouse's respiratory rate and triggers hippocampal seizures In Hawaii, between 2007 and 2011 emergency visits classified as having natural causes were caused by centipedes in one in ten cases. That was the same as the number of emergency visits caused by bee and wasp stings. This venom could be the most efficient out there, study co-author Shilong Yang from the Kunming Institute of Zoology told Newsweek. Researchers believe this is because the toxin blocks a set of cellular machinery called KCNQ channels. Researchers led by Kunming Institute of Zoology identified a toxin that gives the centipedes this deadly ability, which they call Ssm Spooky Toxin Cells use these channels to pass salts in and out. Working out how the toxin works has also helped scientists work out how to stop it. They now believe most of the toxin-induced effects could be reversed by retigabine, which is approved for epilepsy treatment. The findings uncover molecular targets of centipede venom and point to an antidote with clinical promise, according to authors of the paper. 'Retigabine, a KCNQ channel opener, neutralises centipede venom toxicity, and thus could be used to treat centipede envenomation', they wrote. Netflix is one of the world's most popular destinations for TV and film lovers, but the service's confusing 'browse' page can be a nightmare to navigate. Now a simple website has made it easier than ever to pick your way through Netflix's vast catalogue of content. 'Flixable' is a Netflix search engine that lets you quickly narrow down your choices by rating, genre and release date. The free site also keeps a detailed log of what's added and removed from the service to make it easier to keep up with newly uploaded titles. Scroll down for video A simple website has made it easier than ever to pick your way through Netflix's vast catalogue of content. 'Flixable' (pictured) is a Netflix search engine that lets you quickly narrow down your choices by rating, genre and release date WHAT IS FLIXABLE? Flixable lets you browse Netflix's impressive range of original content as well as its library of independent and studio-produced TV and film. It has a slide-able date bar to help you narrow down searches, and also lets you hunt by genre and rating. The site has sections dedicated to Netflix originals, titles that will soon leave the platform, and a 'popular' section that reveals the most-watched shows and movies of the day, week and month. It also has a traditional search bar that allows users to hunt by title, actor or keyword. Developed by Finnish programmer Ville Salminen, Flixable works for both the US and UK versions of Netflix. Advertisement Developed by Finnish programmer Ville Salminen, Flixable works for both the US and UK versions of Netflix. He created the site and posted a link on Reddit after a user complained: 'Why doesn't Netflix have a decent way to browse content? I feel like i'm fairly stuck with the 50-100 titles shown to me on the homescreen, why can't I browse their thousands of titles that they do they have outside of a search bar? why do I have to know the shows name to find it?' Within hours of sharing his site, Mr Salminen had attracted three million page hits as users flocked to his site. In a comment under the link, Reddit user StaplerLivesMatter wrote: 'Just spending two minutes with this is enough to show just how unbelievably bloated, slow, and inefficient the Netflix UI has become.' User ScoobySmackz commented: 'Within 1 minute of being on that site I saw movies I had no idea were added that I wanted to see more than the movies Netflix recommends to me...well done sir'. Netflix's 'browse' page is driven by an algorithm that serves you suggestions based on your viewing history. This means it's possible for many users to miss many of the thousands of titles available to them. The site has sections dedicated to Netflix originals (pictured), titles that will soon leave the platform, and a 'popular' section that reveals the most-watched shows and movies of the day, week and month Netflix is one of the world's most popular destinations for TV and film lovers, but the service's confusing 'browse' pages (pictured) can be a nightmare to navigate Flixable fixes this by adding more options to Netflix's browse feature. The site lets you search Netlix's impressive range of original content as well as its catalogue of independent and studio-produced TV and film. It has a slide-able date bar to help you narrow down searches, and also lets you hunt by genre and rating. The site has sections dedicated to Netflix originals, titles that will soon leave the platform, and a 'popular' section that reveals the most-watched shows and movies of the day, week and month. It also has a traditional search bar that allows users to hunt by title, actor or keyword. It has a slide-able date bar to help you narrow down searches, and also lets you hunt by genre and rating. Pictured is a search for British TV shows made between 1900 and 2018 with an IMDB rating above eight and ordered by release year Since the dawn of humanity, men have played a vital role in determining the sex of their offspring. The Y chromosome, carried by roughly half of a man's sperm, dictates whether a child will be male or female. If the Y chromosome is present, a child will develop into a boy, whereas a lack of this strand of DNA will result in a girl. Now scientists think the Y chromosome may disappear in less that five million years, leaving the future of men on planet Earth uncertain. In an article for The Conversation, Dr Peter Ellis and professor Darren Griffin from the University of Kent discuss the implications of this genetic shift. Scroll down for video A man (pictured) possesses XY sex chromosomes and women have XX. The Y chromosome is important in reproduction but has little other function critical for life, as a result the chromosome has become shrivelled and small over many generations WHAT IS THE Y CHROMOSOME AND WHY IS IT DISAPPEARING? The Y chromosome is one of two sex chromosomes found in humans - the other is the X chromosome. It is the only chromosome in an organism that isn't essential for life - women survive just fine without one, after all. In humans, the 22 other pairs of chromosomes - the autosomes - are identical. The Y chromosome spans more than 59 million building blocks of DNA and represents almost 2 percent of the total DNA in cells. But the human Y-chromosome is still one of the smallest in the genome. It is carried by roughly half of a man's sperm, and dictates whether a child will be male or female. Despite this, it carries very little other important information. And researchers think it is quickly disappearing. The number of genes on the Y has dropped from over 1,000 to roughly 50, a loss of more than 95 per cent. If the same rate of degeneration continues, the Y chromosome has just 4.6 million years left before it disappears completely. But the Y chromosome hasn't always been so small. It was once the size of the X chromosome and contained all the same genes. The problem, however, is that Y chromosomes are only ever found as a single copy, passed from fathers to their sons, rather than a pair This means that genes on the Y chromosome cannot undergo something known as 'genetic recombination'. This is switch of genes that takes place in each generation which helps to eliminate damaging gene mutations. Advertisement The Y chromosome may be a symbol of masculinity, but it is becoming increasingly clear that it is anything but strong and enduring. Although it carries the 'master switch' gene, SRY, that determines whether an embryo will develop as male (XY) or female (XX), it contains very few other genes and is the only chromosome not necessary for life. Women, after all, manage just fine without one. What's more, the Y chromosome has degenerated rapidly, leaving females with two perfectly normal X chromosomes, but males with an X and a shrivelled Y. If the same rate of degeneration continues, the Y chromosome has just 4.6 million years left before it disappears completely. This may sound like a long time, but it isn't when you consider that life has existed on Earth for 3.5 billion years. The Y chromosome hasn't always been like this. If we rewind the clock to 166 million years ago, to the very first mammals, the story was completely different. The early 'proto-Y' chromosome was originally the same size as the X chromosome and contained all the same genes. However, Y chromosomes have a fundamental flaw. Unlike all other chromosomes, which we have two copies of in each of our cells, Y chromosomes are only ever present as a single copy, passed from fathers to their sons. This means that genes on the Y chromosome cannot undergo genetic recombination, the 'shuffling' of genes that occurs in each generation which helps to eliminate damaging gene mutations. Deprived of the benefits of recombination, Y chromosomal genes degenerate over time and are eventually lost from the genome. Despite this, recent research has shown that the Y chromosome has developed some pretty convincing mechanisms to 'put the brakes on', slowing the rate of gene loss to a possible standstill. For example, a recent Danish study, published in PLoS Genetics, sequenced portions of the Y chromosome from 62 different men and found that it is prone to large scale structural rearrangements allowing 'gene amplification' the acquisition of multiple copies of genes that promote healthy sperm function and mitigate gene loss. The study also showed that the Y chromosome has developed unusual structures called 'palindromes' (DNA sequences that read the same forwards as backwards like the word 'kayak'), which protect it from further degradation. The Y chromosome is one of the sex chromosomes in animals and is responsible for the sex determination of unborn offspring. The chromosome is shrinking and is at risk of disappearing in the future They recorded a high rate of 'gene conversion events' within the palindromic sequences on the Y chromosome this is basically a 'copy and paste' process that allows damaged genes to be repaired using an undamaged back-up copy as a template. Looking to other species (Y chromosomes exist in mammals and some other species), a growing body of evidence indicates that Y-chromosome gene amplification is a general principle across the board. These amplified genes play critical roles in sperm production and (at least in rodents) in regulating offspring sex ratio. Writing in Molecular Biology and Evolution recently, researchers give evidence that this increase in gene copy number in mice is a result of natural selection. On the question of whether the Y chromosome will actually disappear, the scientific community, like the UK at the moment, is currently divided into the 'leavers' and the 'remainers'. The latter group argues that its defence mechanisms do a great job and have rescued the Y chromosome. But the leavers say that all they are doing is allowing the Y chromosome to cling on by its fingernails, before eventually dropping off the cliff. The debate therefore continues. A leading proponent of the leave argument, Jenny Graves from La Trobe University, in Australia, claims that, if you take a long-term perspective, the Y chromosomes are inevitably doomed even if they sometimes hold on a bit longer than expected. In a 2016 paper, she points out that Japanese spiny rats and mole voles have lost their Y chromosomes entirely and argues that the processes of genes being lost or created on the Y chromosome inevitably lead to fertility problems. This in turn can ultimately drive the formation of entirely new species. As we argue in a chapter in a new e-book even if the Y chromosome in humans does disappear, it does not necessarily mean that males themselves are on their way out. Even in the species that have actually lost their Y chromosomes completely, males and females are both still necessary for reproduction. In these cases, the SRY 'master switch' gene that determines genetic maleness has moved to a different chromosome, meaning that these species produce males without needing a Y chromosome. Japanese spiny rats and mole voles (pictured) have lost their Y chromosomes entirely and the processes of genes being lost or created on the Y chromosome could see the formation of entirely new species However, the new sex-determining chromosome the one that SRY moves on to should then start the process of degeneration all over again due to the same lack of recombination that doomed their previous Y chromosome. However, the interesting thing about humans is that while the Y chromosome is needed for normal human reproduction, many of the genes it carries are not necessary if you use assisted reproduction techniques. This means that genetic engineering may soon be able to replace the gene function of the Y chromosome, allowing same-sex female couples or infertile men to conceive. However, even if it became possible for everybody to conceive in this way, it seems highly unlikely that fertile humans would just stop reproducing naturally. Although this is an interesting and hotly debated area of genetic research, there is little need to worry. We don't even know whether the Y chromosome will disappear at all. And, as we've shown, even if it does, we will most likely continue to need men so that normal reproduction can continue. Indeed, the prospect of a 'farm animal' type system where a few 'lucky' males are selected to father the majority of our children is certainly not on the horizon. In any event, there will be far more pressing concerns over the next 4.6 million years. Skywatchers will be treated to a Supermoon on January 31 that will feature a total lunar eclipse, the first in 150 years, according to NASA . This Supermoon is happening during the second full moon of the month, which is also known as a 'blue moon'. It will occur with a total eclipse so the spectacle can be referred to as a super blue blood moon' or a super red blue moon'. Noah Petro, a Research Scientist from NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center, said that the Supermoons are a great way for people to start taking an interest in the Moon. The lunar eclipse on January 31 will be visible during moonset. Folks in the Eastern United States, where the eclipse will be partial, will have to get up in the morning to see it, Petro explained. Skywatchers will be treated to a Supermoon on January 31 that will feature a lunar eclipse What is a Blue Blood Moon? The Moons orbit around the Earth is usually slightly tilted, or elliptical, and above or below the shadow of our planet. On January 31, 2018, the full moon, or blue moon, will align with the Earth and the Sun so the Earths shadow will block the Suns light to form a total eclipse and what NASA has dubbed 'the Supermoon trilogy'. The Suns light would usually reflect off the Moon, so on this day it is expected to lose its brightness and have a fainter glow. It can often have a reddish hue and this is why totally eclipsed Moons are occasionally called blood moons. So, a super blue blood moon is closer to Earth as it makes its orbit, is the second full moon of the month and will pass through the Earths shadow, creating a total lunar eclipse and giving the Moon a reddish tint. What is a Supermoon? A Supermoon is a rare type of full moon and happens when the Moon reaches its closest distance to Earth during its orbit. This is why Supermoons appear 14 per cent bigger and about 30 per cent brighter in an effect called a moon illusion, where the human brain compares the size of the moon to other objects. According to Business Insider, the Moon takes about 27.32 days to orbit the Earth and on this journey, it passes through two points, 'perigee' and 'apogee'. 'Perigee' is 3,000 miles closer to our planet than 'apogee'. A Supermoon can only occur at 'perigee' and when the moon is full, which is referred to as the 'perigee-syzygy'. As the Earth revolves around the Sun, the Moons orientation to the Earth remains the same, but changes during each full moon with a slight precession. This is why it is often difficult to know the difference between a Supermoon and a full moon, but the best time to see one is when it is low and near the horizon. The name Supermoon was coined by astrologer Richard Nolle in 1979 in Dell Horoscope magazine. His definition was a new or full moon which occurs with the Moon at or near (within 90 per cent of) its closest approach to Earth in a given orbit (perigee). In short, Earth, Moon and Sun are all in a line, with Moon in its nearest approach to Earth. Although first mentioned in 1979, a search on Google Trends revealed that the word Supermoon started being used in 2011 and interest spiked in November 2016 when the Earth experienced the largest Supermoon in 69 years. When is the next Supermoon? January 2018 will go down in history as a big month for Supermoons with two of these rare events happening, one having already occurred on January 2. After this event, the next lunar eclipse won't take place until 21 January 2019 and will be a supermoon, not a blue moon. The Moon was at perigee on December 3 also, causing a Supermoon at the time of the full moon. The November 2016 Supermoon was the closest the Moon got to the Earth since 1948 and it will not get this close until November 25, 2034. Forbes provides a list of astronomical events happening in 2018 which includes a partial solar eclipse on February 15, July 13 and August 11 as well as a 'blue moon' on March 31 and a total solar eclipse on July 27. Can you see the Supermoon in the UK? The January 31 Supermoon will be viewable from western North America across the Pacific Ocean to Eastern Asia. In the UK, the Supermoon will not be visible at its fullest or brightest, but the moon will appear larger than normal. However, UK viewers will be able to see the 'super blue blood moon' thanks to NASAs live stream of the rare event on NASA.gov and on NASA.live. Where can you see the Supermoon in the US? In the US, the West Coast, Alaska and Hawaii will have a total view of the spectacle from start to finish before sunrise, according to NASA. For those in New York or Washington DC, the Moon will enter the outer part of the Earths shadow at 5.51am EST and the reddish tint will appear an hour later at 6.48am EST. Gordon Johnston, Program Executive and Lunar Blogger at NASA Headquarters in Washington, advises heading outside at around 6.45am. Get to a high place to watch the start of the eclipse - make sure you have a clear line of sight to the horizon in the west-northwest, opposite from where the Sun will rise,' Johnston said. Viewing will be much better from the Central Time Zone in places like Kansas City and Chicago and here, the reddish shadow on the Moon will be noticeable from 6.15 CST. Those in California and western Canada will be able to view the full total eclipse from 5am to 6am PST. Where can you see the Supermoon in Australia? For those in Australia, New Zealand, eastern Russia, Asia and the Middle East, the 'super blue moon' will seen during moonrise on January 31. In Melbourne, the full moon is on February 1 at 1.26am AEDT so watchers will technically miss the 'blue moon' by less than two hours. However, in Perth, with the moon rising at 7.09pm AEST, the full moon will be seen at 9.26pm AEST. What are the effects of a Supermoon? With the association between the Moon and oceanic and crustal tides being well researched, this has led to claims that Supermoons are related to earthquakes and volcanic eruptions but no evidence has been found. Although, research has suggested that lunar cycles can have a major impact on sleep and mood. According to Elite Daily, this may mean that the January 31 Supermoon will make it harder to fall asleep and could cause some to feel fatigued or have mood swings. Genes we are born with account for more than half the differences in intelligence between people, a study has shown. The new findings will fuel the 'nature versus nurture' debate over what makes us clever or dumb. As well as genes, environmental factors such as parenting, nutrition and exposure to chemicals in the womb are also thought to have a significant effect. Scroll down for video Genes we are born with account for more than half the differences in intelligence between people, a study has shown. The new findings will fuel the 'nature versus nurture' debate over what makes us clever or dumb (stock image) DO WE HAVE 'INTELLIGENCE GENES'? Scientists know about 52 genes linked to the intelligence trait, 40 of which are relatively new discoveries. An international research team led by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam last year studied genetic data from over 78,000 individuals. The data included information on DNA genotypes and intelligence scores, which led the team to discover new genes and biological routes for intelligence. Scientists found that many people with these genes are more likely to have other traits, including being tall, thin and unlikely to smoke. People who expressed the genes were less likely to suffer from Alzheimer's disease, depressive symptoms, schizophrenia and obesity. In a more recent study, researchers have found genes we are born with account for more than half the differences in intelligence between people. Advertisement The new study, from the University of Edinburgh, highlights the contribution of rare genetic variants which appear to have a disproportionate impact on intelligence. Scientists examined thousands of genetic markers in the DNA of 20,000 people looking for signals associated with IQ. They found that the combined effect of rare and common genetic variants explained at least half of the difference in intelligence between individuals. This matched estimates from earlier twin and family studies that had been suspected to be overestimates, as previous molecular studies of the human genome concluded around 30 per cent. The findings are the first to provide a measure of the influence that rare genetic variants have on intelligence. The team also found that rare genetic variants accounted for a disproportionate amount of intelligence compared to more common genetic variants. Dr David Hill said: 'We used two methods to measure the effect that rare variants had on intelligence. 'By combining the effect of both rare and common variants, more than 50% of the differences in intelligence between people could be traced to their genes.' The study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, is the first to demonstrate the influence rare genetic variants have on intelligence. As well as genes, environmental factors such as parenting, nutrition and exposure to chemicals in the womb are also thought to have a significant effect (stock image) The research follows a major breakthrough last year when scientists uncovered 52 genes linked to the intelligence trait, 40 of which were new discoveries. An international research team led by Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam studied genetic data from over 78,000 individuals. The data included information on DNA genotypes and intelligence scores, which led the team to discover new genes and biological routes for intelligence. Scientists found that many people with these genes are more likely to have other traits, including being tall, thin and unlikely to smoke. People who expressed the genes were less likely to suffer from Alzheimer's disease, depressive symptoms, schizophrenia and obesity. The Falcon Heavy rocket boasts 27 engines and three separate re-usable cores that will return to Earth It was postponed by the government shutdown, further delaying the Heavy's long-awaited maiden voyage SpaceX had scheduled a static fire test on Monday, a crucial step before the Falcon Heavy is ready for liftoff Advertisement Elon Musk's most ambitious rocket yet may finally be moving one step closer to its maiden voyage. The highly anticipated static test fire on SpaceX's Falcon Heavy has been rescheduled following a number of delays, with new plans to conduct the tests 'no earlier than' Wednesday, according to Spaceflight Now. In a static fire test, all of the Heavy's 27 Merlin engines are fired up to make sure they can ignite properly. It will be the first time that all of the Falcon Heavy's engines are fired at once. Scroll down for video Elon Musk has announced SpaceX will launch 'the world's most powerful rocket' in 2018 with his own electric car on board. The Falcon Heavy 'megarocket' (pictured) will fire beyond orbit from the former Apollo 11 moon rocket launchpad at the Kennedy Space Centre near Cape Canaveral, Florida WHAT WILL HAPPEN WHEN SPACEX'S FALCON HEAVY FINALLY LAUNCHES? If all goes according to plan, the Falcon Heavy will off and enter Earth's orbit. 'At liftoff, the boosters and the center core all operate at full thrust,' according to SpaceX. 'Shortly after liftoff, the center core engines are throttled down.' 'After the side cores separate, the center core engines throttle back up,' the firm continued. Eventually, the main module will continue its trajectory into 'deep space', SpaceX founder Elon Musk said, with a destination set for the orbit of Mars 140 million miles (225 million kilometres) away. According to the billionaire tech mogul: 'Destination is Mars orbit. Will be in deep space for a billion years or so if it doesn't blow up on ascent.' Advertisement If all goes according to plan, the Falcon Heavy will be one step closer to liftoff. There's no guarantee the test will actually be completed on Wednesday, but if it does, it will bring an end to months of waiting and delays for the Falcon Heavy. The test was postponed on Monday due to the government shutdown, which ended later on in the day after an 81-8 vote in the Senate. The brief government shutdown not only affected NASA operations, but also SpaceX because it relies on personnel from NASA's Kennedy Space Center and the U.S. Air Force's 45th Space Wing to oversee operations. 'We remain hopeful that the Congress will quickly resolve their differences and put our partners in the Air Force and NASA back to doing their important work as soon as possible,' said SpaceX spokesperson John Taylor in a statement to Engadget at the time. 'This shutdown impacts SpaceX's Falcon Heavy demonstration, which is critical for future NSS missions,' Taylor continued. 'It also impacts critical missions for our customers, including important international allies scheduled to launch shortly from Cape Canaveral and Vandenberg Air Force Base, as well as upcoming missions this spring to resupply the International Space Station.' SpaceX has won two national security space contracts, or 'NSS missions,' so far. The shutdown also impacted NASA operations, as the federal agency has been forced to send some workers home without pay. Spaceflight Now tweeted on Tuesday that SpaceX could schedule its Falcon Heavy test-firing 'no earlier than' Wednesday. The test was previously postponed due to the now-resolved government shutdown The official NASA Twitter and other accounts run by U.S. agencies have tweeted that they're on hiatus during the government shutdown. It's not the first time that the Heavy launch has been delayed. Musk had hoped to launch 'the world's most powerful rocket' by the end of 2017, but now the company is aiming for liftoff sometime in 2018. This week's government shutdown could possibly push back the Heavy launch even further. The Falcon Heavy 'megarocket' will fire beyond orbit from the former Apollo 11 moon rocket launchpad at the Kennedy Space Centre near Cape Canaveral, Florida. Musk said the launch vehicle will blast off at the 'end of the month' on an unmanned mission with a unique payload - the billionaire's cherry red 2008 Tesla Roadster, which will be fired toward Mars. The rocket will use 27 engines and three separate re-usable cores that will return to Earth after liftoff during the test flight, which is set to be one of the firm's most technically complex challenges to date. Before the maiden launch, a full test firing of the rocket's engines is expected next week, Musk said. 'Falcon Heavy now vertical on the former Apollo 11 moon rocket launchpad,' he wrote on Instagram on Thursday. 'At 2,500 tons of thrust, equal to 18 Boeing 747 aircraft at full throttle, it will be the most powerful rocket in the world by a factor of two. Excitement on launch day guaranteed, one way or another. If all goes according to plan, the Falcon Heavy will lift off and enter orbit before two of its booster rockets separate and return to Earth at Cape Canaveral in controlled landings. The centre core of the rocket will then separate from the main module, containing Musk's car, and begin its own controlled descent back to Earth, landing on a drone ship in the Pacific Ocean 'Hold-down test fire next week. Launch end of the month.' When it lifts off for the first time in late January, the Falcon Heavy will become the most powerful rocket in the world thanks to its 5.1 million pounds of thrust generated through 27 Merlin engines. The vast rocket, which is ultimately three Falcon 9 rockets linked together, will have the combined thrust to eventually launch 140,000 pounds (63,500kg) of cargo into orbit. The mission marks SpaceX's most ambitious project to date. Musk founded SpaceX in 2002, with the aim of reducing space transportation costs and enabling the colonisation of Mars. The 46-year-old South African is also the CEO of Tesla, and predicts Falcon Heavy's payload will stay in deep space for a while. Musk said the launch vehicle will blast off at the 'end of the month' on an unmanned mission with a unique payload - the billionaire's cherry red 2008 Tesla Roadster, which will be fired toward Mars. Pictured is the car strapped into the Falcon Heavy's main module A photo of the unusual cargo - Musk's cherry red 2008 Tesla Roadster - was released last month. Images released by SpaceX show an original Roadster perched on a large cone inside the Falcon Heavy on what appears to be a secure mount to keep it stationary as the rocket makes its maiden flight. 'Test flights of new rockets usually contain mass simulators in the form of concrete or steel blocks. That seemed extremely boring,' Musk said in December. THE FALCON HEAVY Height: 70 meters (229.6 feet) Stages: 2 Boosters: 2 Cores: 3 Engines: 27 Payload to LEO: 63,800kg (140,660 lb) Payload to Mars: 16,800kg (37,040 lb) Total width: 12.2m (39.9 ft) Mass: 1,420,788kg (3,125,735 lb) Total thrust at lift-off: 22,819 kilonewtons (5.13 million pounds) Advertisement 'Of course, anything boring is terrible, especially companies, so we decided to send something unusual, something that made us feel. 'The payload will be an original Tesla Roadster, playing Space Oddity, on a billion year elliptic Mars orbit.' If all goes according to plan, the Falcon Heavy will off and enter Earth's orbit. 'At liftoff, the boosters and the center core all operate at full thrust,' according to SpaceX. 'Shortly after liftoff, the center core engines are throttled down.' 'After the side cores separate, the center core engines throttle back up,' the firm continued.' Eventually, the main module will continue its trajectory into 'deep space', the billionaire said, with a destination set for the orbit of Mars 140 million miles (225 million kilometres) away. Musk has said the payload 'will be in deep space for a billion years or so if it doesn't blow up on ascent.' In a Washington, D.C., speech last July the Tesla founder which said Falcon Heavy is one of the most difficult and technically complex projects SpaceX has ever undertaken. 'There's a lot of risk associated with Falcon Heavy,' he said during the 2017 International Space Station Research and Development Conference. The rocket will use 27 engines and three separate re-usable cores that will return to Earth after liftoff during the test flight, which is set to be one of the firm's most technically complex challenges to date The vast rocket, which is ultimately three Falcon 9 rockets linked together, will have the combined thrust to eventually launch 140,000 pounds (63,500kg) of cargo into orbit 'Real good chance that the vehicle doesn't make it to orbit. I want to make sure to set expectations accordingly.' Musk has spent the proceeding months building up hype for the historic launch with a series of social media posts. Last month he posted an image to Twitter of people stoof next to a landed Falcon Heavy rocket to give an idea of the vehicle's scale. He tweeted: 'Falcon Heavy launching from same @NASA pad as the Saturn V Apollo 11 moon rocket. 'It was 50% higher thrust with five F-1 engines at 7.5M lb-F. 'I love that rocket so much.' He also confirmed the rocket will have a 'max thrust at lift-off is 5.1 million pounds or 2300 metric tons,' adding the first mission will run at 92 per cent capacity. 'Falcon Heavy to launch next month from Apollo 11 pad at the Cape. 'Will have double thrust of next largest rocket. Guaranteed to be exciting, one way or another,' Musk originally posted. Once the three main cores (pictured) of the rocket have separated, the main module will continue its trajectory into 'deep space', with a destination set for the orbit of Mars 140 million miles (225 million kilometres) away They're the eligible women set to walk down the aisle on the upcoming season of Married At First Sight. But ahead of the show's premiere, Woman's Day is claiming a number of the beautiful brides have altered their appearances with the help of cosmetic procedures. According to the publication, stunning Tracey Jewel, Sarah Roza and Davina Rankin all look different from previous snaps they have shared on social media. Tracey Jewell Magazine claims: According to Woman's Day, Tracey Jewell (pictured left in 2011 and right in 2015) is one of a number of new Married At First Sight stars who has altered her appearance over the years West Australian Tracey, 34, is a brunette stunner whose good looks have caught the eyes of her famous ex-boyfriends, including The Bachelor's Blake Garvey and AdultShop.com founder Malcolm Day. However, Woman's Day claims the Perth-based beauty 'loves indulging in Botox and has treated herself to a breast enhancement'. Speaking with Daily Mail Australia, Tracey confirmed that she had Botox and a 'boob job' after becoming a mother. 'I'm happier in my own skin and healthier than I've ever been in my life': Stunning Tracey spoke candidly with Daily Mail Australia about beauty treatments (pictured in 2016) 'We do things every single day to change "what we were born with". We cut our hair, our nails, and shave our legs. The list is endless,' Tracey explained. She added: 'Doing beauty treatments feels empowering to me. I'm happier in my own skin and healthier than I've ever been in my life. And adding some boobs to my frame is exciting because I like the curves I see in the mirror'. Tracey further told Daily Mail Australia that she believes 'it's wrong to imply that women only get boob jobs and Botox for vanity reasons... because some do and some don't and our reasons are personal'. No doubt the blushing bride's attractive appearance will delight her mystery groom on their wedding day. Sarah Roza Buxom redhead: Sarah, who once appeared on The Amazing Race Australia, now sports a very plump pout (both pictures taken in 2017) Way back when: Pictured, Sarah when she appeared on The Amazing Race Australia with her younger then-boyfriend back in 2012 Buxom redhead Sarah Roza, 38, is ready to walk down the aisle on Married At First Sight, but it won't be her first foray inon reality TV. She appeared on The Amazing Race Australia several years ago, where she looked a little different. Today, Sarah appears to sport a plump pout and it seems, according to Woman's Day, that she is quite open about cosmetic procedures. The magazine reports that the beauty specialist 'had Botox in her earlobes because they were droopy'. Speaking with Daily Mail Australia, Sarah denied such reports, clarifying: 'I have had dermal filler around the piercing hole to make my earlobes nice and perky so that when I wear heavy earrings they don't drag my earlobes down.' In regards to he youthful visage, the stunner stated: 'I have had Botox on my forehead only... everything else is au naturel baby! I really look after myself with excellent skincare. I stay out of the sun and fake tan it all the way'. She added: 'Plus I don't drink, don't do drugs and I've never smoked'. Davina Rankin What a stunner! Model Davina boasts more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, where she frequently shares bikini photos. Pictured left in 2016 and right in 2017 Glamour model Davina boasts more than 200,000 followers on Instagram, where she frequently shares bikini photos. The 26-year-old is known for her ample assets, which Woman's Day claims are surgically enhanced. The magazine quotes Davina as telling them that her implants were 'a present from my Dad!' 'I was so self-conscious about not having any boobs, he felt sorry for me and bought some!' she is alleged to have said. Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Davina for comment. United States Court of Appeals, First Circuit. CRANSTON FIREFIGHTERS, IAFF LOCAL 1363, AFL-CIO, on its own behalf and on behalf of its members; International Brotherhood of Police Officers, Local 301, AFL-CIO, on its own behalf and on behalf of its members, Plaintiffs, Appellants, v. Gina M. RAIMONDO, in her capacity as Governor of the State of Rhode Island; Seth Magaziner,in his capacity as General Treasurer of the State of Rhode Island; The Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island, by and through Seth Magaziner, in his capacity as Chairperson of the Retirement Board, and Frank J. Karpinski, in his capacity as Executive Director of the Retirement Board; City of Cranston, by and through its Finance Director, Robert F. Strom, and its Treasurer, David Capuano, Defendants, Appellees. No. 17-1293 Decided: January 22, 2018 Before Torruella, Thompson, and Kayatta, Circuit Judges. Elizabeth Wiens, with whom Gursky|Wiens Attorneys at Law, Ltd., Providence, RI, was on brief, for appellants. Nicole J. Benjamin, with whom John A. Tarantino, Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C., Providence, RI, Rebecca Partington, Rhode Island Department of Attorney General, and Michael Field, Rhode Island Department of Attorney General were on brief, for appellees Gina M. Raimondo, in her capacity as Governor of the State of Rhode Island, Seth Magaziner, in his capacity as the General Treasurer of the State of Rhode Island, and the Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island. Nicholas L. Nybo, with whom William M. Dolan III and Adler Pollock & Sheehan P.C., Providence, RI, were on brief, for appellee City of Cranston. In 2011, Rhode Island enacted legislation modifying various state-run pension plans for government employees, including a plan that covered municipal firefighters and police officers. Generally speaking, the modifications reduced the value of the benefits payable under the plan in order to ameliorate what the State perceived to be a serious and growing liability that would be difficult to fund. The unions representing the firefighters and police officers employed by the City of Cranston (the Unions) filed this lawsuit claiming that the modifications unconstitutionally repudiated contractual obligations owed to the Cranston employees. We affirm the district court's dismissal of the complaint. In so doing, we find that the complaint fails as a matter of law to allege that the challenged legislation unconstitutionally impaired any contractual rights of the Unions' members. We also find that federal court is not the proper forum within which to litigate the Unions' undeveloped claims that the City of Cranston is failing to live up to the terms of its ordinances or collective bargaining agreements, and we find that this lawsuit provides no opportunity to challenge the terms of a settlement by other parties in another lawsuit. Our reasoning follows. I. A. Since 1936, Rhode Island has maintained a retirement system for state employees, administered by a retirement board. See Nat'l Educ. Ass'n-R.I. ex rel. Scigulinksy v. Ret. Bd. of the R.I. Emps. Ret. Sys. (NEA), 172 F.3d 22, 24 (1st Cir. 1999). In 1951, the State created a retirement system for municipal employees, including firefighters and police officers. See 1951 R.I. Pub. Laws Ch. 2784 (codified as amended at 45 R.I. Gen. Laws 45-21-1, et seq. (2017)). Seventeen years later, the State created an alternative, dedicated plan for police officers and firefighters (the Optional Police and Fire Retirement System). See 1968 R.I. Pub. Laws Ch. 230 (codified as amended at 45 R.I. Gen. Laws 45-21.2-1, et seq. (2017)). At least one municipality, the City of Cranston, also operated its own municipal retirement system. By the mid-1990s, Cranston was experiencing a severe operating deficit and its municipal pension plan was critically underfunded. The Unions and the City came up with a potential solution: all new hires, and perhaps some recent hires, would transfer to the state retirement system. One significant impediment to this rescue plan stood in the way: the state system provided less favorable benefits. Cranston and the Unions overcame this impediment by convincing representatives from the state retirement board to submit special legislation that would provide certain Cranston police officers and firefighters who joined the state system with benefits in excess of those provided to others under that system. The Rhode Island General Assembly passed the special legislation, which became law on August 9, 1996.1996 R.I. Pub. Laws Ch. 374 (1996 Special Legislation). The 1996 Special Legislation amended state law to allow new members and certain existing members of the Cranston Fire and Police Departments to opt into the state's Optional Police and Fire Retirement System, to provide higher final compensation for purposes of calculating their pension benefits, to provide a higher annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) payment (three percent compounded), and to increase employee contributions from seven percent to ten percent. The statute also provided that Cranston Fire and Police Department enrollees who transferred from the municipal pension plan into the state system would, upon joining, waive and renounce all accrued rights and benefits of any other [municipal] pension or retirement system. Finally, the statute invited the City to approve the changes: This act shall take effect upon passage and be applicable to the City of Cranston upon the affirmative vote of a majority of the City Council adopting the provisions hereof. The Cranston City Council duly enacted two ordinances so providing, the details of which we discuss in a later section of this opinion. B. By 2011, Rhode Island's public employee pension system itself faced dire underfunding, which the state legislature labeled a fiscal peril that threatened the ability of Rhode Island's municipalities to provide basic public services. The legislature passed the Rhode Island Retirement Security Act of 2011 (the 2011 Act), which contained a series of pension reforms designed to bring the state system into financial health. As relevant to the Unions, the 2011 Act added a minimum retirement age of fifty-five where previously none had existed, changed the years of minimum service from twenty to twenty-five, reduced the pension accrual percentage per credited year of service, and made the calculation for workers' final compensation less favorable. These changes applied to future retirees, not those already receiving benefits. The 2011 Act also changed the annual COLA payment from three percent to a variable percentage for current and future pensioners. Overall, the 2011 Act substantially reduced the value of public employee pensions provided by the Rhode Island system. A variety of municipal employee unions and retiree groups sued the State in the wake of the 2011 Act. Eventually, those unions and groups entered into a class settlement with the State. In return for dismissal of the claims against it, the State in 2015 enacted certain additional amendments to its pension laws (the 2015 Amendments). These amendments ameliorated but did not eliminate the changes in the 2011 Act that reduced the value of pensions provided under the state system. A state superior court thereafter entered judgment approving the class settlement. While the Unions' members apparently receive some of the advantages of the 2015 Amendments, they did not participate in the settlement, and their members are not subject to the state court judgment approving the settlement. See R.I. Pub. Emps. Retiree Coal. v. Raimondo, No. PC-2015-1468, 2015 WL 4501873, at *1 (R.I. Super. Ct. July 8, 2015) (final judgment certifying settlement class). The Unions filed this case in March of 2016 on behalf of current Cranston firefighters and police officers, challenging the curtailment of their future pension benefits. Counts I-III of the complaint train exclusively on the enactment of the 2011 Act, as amended in 2015, as the challenged wrongful conduct. The counts assert that the legislation infringed upon the rights of the Unions' members under the Contracts, Due Process, and Takings Clauses of the United States Constitution. The complaint's factual averments seek to portray the 1996 Special Legislation as a contract between the State and those Cranston firefighters and police officers who joined the state retirement system. The complaint also refers to the Unions' collective bargaining agreements (CBAs) with the City and to vested and contractual rights under two Cranston ordinances. The complaint offers no hint as to how or even whether the alleged wrongful conduct (enactment of the 2011 Act, as amended in 2015) impaired or took away any rights under the CBAs or the ordinances. Nor do the Unions' briefs on appeal so clarify. Count IV of the complaint is something of a detour. It seeks to challenge a term of a class settlement that prohibits retired Cranston public safety officers (who are not represented by the Unions) from proposing, supporting, encouraging and/or advocating relief for the unions in this case. The district court dismissed (without prejudice) counts I-III to the extent they depended on the assertion that the 1996 Special Legislation was a contract that was unconstitutionally impaired by the amended 2011 Act to the detriment of the Unions' members in violation of the Contracts, Takings, or Due Process Clauses of the United States Constitution. Cranston Firefighters, IAFF Local 1363 v. Raimondo, No. 16-cv-130-ML, 2017 WL 899948, at *1011 (D.R.I. Mar. 7, 2017). At the same time, the district court apparently viewed that ruling as not eliminating the need to also determine what, if any, contractual rights the CBAs and Cranston City Ordinances confer[red] on the Plaintiffs. Id. at *9. Determining that the likely resolution of that question in a pending state court proceeding would affect the resolution of this case, the district court abstained under the authority of Railroad Commission of Texas v. Pullman Co., 312 U.S. 496, 61 S.Ct. 643, 85 L.Ed. 971 (1941), and dismissed any claims based on the CBAs or the Cranston ordinances without prejudice. Cranston Firefighters, 2017 WL 899948, at *9; see Cranston Police Retirees Action Comm. v. City of Cranston, No. KC-2013-1059, 2016 WL 4059309 (R.I. Super. Ct. July 22, 2016). Finally, the district court dismissed (with prejudice) count IV, finding that the Unions lacked standing to complain about any restrictions assumed by retirees under the class settlement the Unions did not join. Cranston Firefighters, 2017 WL 899948, at *11-12. The Unions timely appealed to this court. II. A. Because the district court dismissed the Unions' challenge to the amended 2011 Act by granting a motion to dismiss the claim as pleaded, our review is de novo. LaChapelle v. Berkshire Life Ins. Co., 142 F.3d 507, 509 (1st Cir. 1998). In conducting this de novo review, we assume all facts pleaded in or reasonably inferred from the complaint to be true. Sepulveda-Villarini v. Dep't of Educ. of P.R., 628 F.3d 25, 30 (1st Cir. 2010). We begin our analysis of the Contracts Clause claim as we have begun such an analysis before in considering whether a state statute constitutes a contract. We need not decide whether the statute ever gives rise to a contractual relationship, Parker v. Wakelin, 123 F.3d 1, 9 (1st Cir. 1997); rather, we can assume without deciding that the 1996 Special Legislation contractually bound the State in some manner to Cranston fire and police members, and ask the narrower, more focused question of whether the State was contractually bound not to make the specific benefit modifications that it made in 2011 and 2015. See Me. Ass'n of Retirees v. Bd. of Trs. of the Me. Pub. Emps. Ret. Sys., 758 F.3d 23, 30 (1st Cir. 2014) ([W]e assume that MePERS creates some contractual obligation and focus instead on whether COLAs are included in that obligation.). The modifications at issue here appear on their face to be material. There is no claim, though, that they apply to persons who had already retired at the time they were made (nor do the plaintiff Unions include any retirees). Importantly, there is no allegation that the value of the benefits as modified falls below the value of the respective employees' contributions to the plan. We therefore read the complaint as challenging a reduction in the amount by which the value of the benefit exceeds the value of any contribution by the employees to fund the benefit. A claim that a state statute creates a contract that binds future legislatures confronts a tropical-force headwind in the form of the unmistakability doctrine. Parker, 123 F.3d at 5. This doctrine precludes finding that a statute creates a binding contract absent a clear and unequivocal expression of intent by the legislature to so bind itself. Nat'l R.R. Passenger Corp. v. Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Ry. Co., 470 U.S. 451, 46566, 105 S.Ct. 1441, 84 L.Ed.2d 432 (1985). The doctrine recognizes that the principal function of a legislature is not to make contracts, but to make laws that establish the policy of the state. Id. at 466, 105 S.Ct. 1441. It also serves the dual purposes of limiting contractual incursions on a State's sovereign powers and of avoiding difficult constitutional questions about the extent of state authority to limit the subsequent exercise of legislative power. United States v. Winstar Corp., 518 U.S. 839, 875, 116 S.Ct. 2432, 135 L.Ed.2d 964 (1996) (plurality opinion). Never once has our court found that state or federal legislation clearly and unequivocally expressed a legislative intent to create private contractual rights enforceable as such against the state. Our discussion in Parker best demonstrates how difficult it is to satisfy this standard in the absence of plain language that the legislature regarded its handiwork as creating a binding, contractual commitment. The Maine statute creating a retirement benefit for public school teachers included a clause stating that no amendment may cause any reduction in the amount of benefits which would be due a member on the date immediately preceding the effective date of the amendment. Parker, 123 F.3d at 8 (ellipses in original). We recognized that one could well read that clause as creating contract rights for a teacher who was in active service long enough to be vested, i.e., due benefits to be paid in the future. Id. at 9. Nevertheless, we also recognized that one might also construe the word due as describing only benefits that were currently payable. Id. at 8. That ambiguity inherent in the conflicting plausible readings meant that the statutory text furnished no unmistakable contractual undertaking. Id. at 9. Similarly, in NEA, the legislature actually labeled, in a heading, the requisite statutory pension benefit a Guaranty by stateAnnual appropriations and provided that the legislature shall make annual appropriations which shall be sufficient to provide for the payment of benefits required of the state. 172 F.3d at 28. Nevertheless, we found that language to fall at least a step short of clearly expressing a contractual commitment not to change benefit levels or other plan variables by legislation. Id. The quite plausible but nevertheless not unmistakable textual commitments that we found to be insufficient in Parker and NEA contrast with the unambiguous text found sufficient by the United States Supreme Court in two cases upon which the parties rely. In Indiana ex rel. Anderson v. Brand, the statutory benefit was literally couched in terms of contract. 303 U.S. 95, 105, 58 S.Ct. 443, 82 L.Ed. 685 (1938). And in U.S. Trust Co. of New York v. New Jersey, 431 U.S. 1, 97 S.Ct. 1505, 52 L.Ed.2d 92 (1977), the intent to contract appeared equally plainly. The legislation expressly stated that New York and New Jersey covenant and agree with each other and with the holders of any affected bonds that the Port Authority would not apply any of the revenues or reserves pledged in whole or in part as security for such bonds, for any railroad purposes whatsoever other than permitted purposes hereinafter set forth. Id. at 910, 97 S.Ct. 1505. In the 1996 Special Legislation at issue here, there is no language that comes remotely close to that found sufficient in U.S. Trust or Brand. We do not even have language that goes as far as the language found insufficient in Parker and NEA. Bereft of language couched in the terms of contract, or of express statements of an intent to create a contract, the Unions point to the statute's clause requiring that those then-current Cranston employees joining the system who had accrued rights and benefits under the Cranston plan were required to waive and renounce[ ] those rights and benefits, and that all Cranston participants must contribute ten percent of their pay. These terms, say the Unions, show that both sides gave something up, and both sides received something in return. Hence there was a bargained-for exchange of binding rights. The conclusory allegation that the state received something in return could be made of every pension program in which there is a contribution requirement (such as federal Social Security). In NEA, for example, the state received payments from joining members who wished to purchase credit for years of service, 172 F.3d at 24, yet we found the state free to repeal the value of the benefits in excess of the payments made, id. at 3031. We observe, too, that the rights Union members gave up were rights against what they themselves viewed as a critically underfunded municipal plan by a city on the edge of financial failure, and not rights against the State. Moreover, the Unions tell us that their retirement benefits are a mandatory subject of collective bargaining under state law, and that they have renegotiated their CBAs with the City of Cranston multiple times since 1996, requiring the City to reaffirm its commitment to substantially the same benefit provisions each time. This suggests both the limited scope of any waiver of ongoing rights against the cash-strapped municipality and the perception of some risk that the State itself might decide to reduce the benefits that it provides, since the Unions appear to have sought the City's commitment as a potential backstop. Our case law does leave open for future consideration the possibility that the mere creation of a retirement plan to which members contribute a portion of their own pay clearly and unequivocally creates a contractual commitment requiring the state to repay member contributions and, perhaps, reasonable interest. See NEA, 172 F.3d at 31; see also Me. Ass'n of Retirees, 758 F.3d at 30. The plan at issue in this case, though, is a hybrid defined benefit and defined contribution plan and there is no allegation, nor any argument either below or on appeal, that the modifications at issue leave or even might leave in place a benefit worth less than the present value of the contributions. So even if we were to place some weight on the give something/get something argument, that weight would have no logical bearing on whether the state clearly and unequivocally precluded itself from modifying the pension scheme in the manner in which it has done so here. Finding no clear markers of a contractual commitment in the statutory text, the Unions argue that the circumstances surrounding the passage of the 1996 Special Legislation supply enough evidence of legislative intent to bind the State notwithstanding the conclusion we would otherwise reach based on the text alone. It is certainly true that courts have looked at circumstances surrounding a law's enactment in the course of determining whether the statute creates a constitutionally-protected contractual entitlement. In all such United States Supreme Court cases (and there are no such First Circuit cases), however, reference to such circumstances served to reinforce a conclusion already made quite clear by the statute's express language. Thus, in U.S. Trust, the circumstances precipitating the bondholder-protection statute's enactment, including a legislative committee's recommendation for legislative text referencing Contracts Clause protections, reinforced the straightforward reading of the text, which itself spoke plainly of the state's intent to covenant and agree. 431 U.S. at 9-10, 97 S.Ct. 1505. And in Brand, the finding that the teacher-tenure legislation, which used language like, such contract shall be deemed to continue in effect for an indefinite period and shall be known as an indefinite contract, 303 U.S. at 101 n.14, 58 S.Ct. 443, created a contractual commitment was supported by circumstances leading up to the law's passage in which teachers possessed no guarantees as to their future employment, even after years of service, 303 U.S. at 104, 58 S.Ct. 443. And even if we were to accept in theory the possibility that extra-textual circumstances by their own might carry the day for the Unions, the circumstances in this case do not provide unequivocal support for the Unions' reading of the 1996 Special Legislation. For starters, because Rhode Island does not record legislative history, the Unions have an uphill battle explaining how the legislature as a whole, Parker, 123 F.3d at 9, was even aware of any particular circumstance to which the Unions point. All the Unions manage to allege is that [r]epresentatives of the City testified before the Senate and House of Representatives in support of the special legislation. Even if we were to ignore this gap, we would find the circumstances themselves to be incapable of serving as the required clear and unequivocal evidence of intent. The principal circumstance to which the Unions point is the fact that, like a party to a contract, they negotiate[d] the benefit levels described in the 1996 Special Legislation. This, though, strikes us as nothing more than saying that the Unions lobbied for the legislation, much like an interest group might lobby to increase Medicare or Social Security benefits. There are other important relevant circumstances, too, that cut strongly against the Unions' reading. Just two years before passing the 1996 Special Legislation, the Rhode Island legislature expressly repealed a prior legislative grant of state pension benefits (described in a different section of the state pension regime) to employees of teachers' unions, and returned member contributions with interest. See NEA, 172 F.3d at 2425. Additionally, the legislature had several times amended the very pension system at issue here, increasing the minimum years of service requirement in 1975, 1975 R.I. Pub. Laws Ch. 153, and raising the mandatory retirement age in 1984, 1984 R.I. Pub. Laws Ch. 13. Given that history, one can hardly say that the 1996 legislature necessarily assumed that a new grant of enhanced benefits could not also be modified at a later date. Nor can one say that any observer of the State's conduct could reasonably assume that state pension legislation was a one-way ratchet. We therefore agree with the district court that, as a matter of law, the 1996 Special Legislation did not constitute a constitutionally binding commitment precluding Rhode Island from making the 2011 and 2015 modifications to the pension plan in which the Unions' members were participants. The lack of any allegation that the current benefits provided by the State fall below the present value of the contributions made by the Union pensioners, coupled with the absence of the alleged contract, also eliminates the basis for a claim under the Takings Clause. See NEA, 172 F.3d at 30. And the use of legislation that is not otherwise constitutionally infirm to reduce a non-mandatory benefit does not violate due process. Hoffman v. City of Warwick, 909 F.2d 608, 61920 (1st Cir. 1990). We therefore affirm the dismissal of counts I-III predicated upon any claim that because of the 1996 Special Legislation, the State could not make the modifications made in the 2011 Act and 2015 Amendments. B. Having disposed of the Unions' claim against the State that the amended 2011 Act impaired a contractual commitment made in the 1996 Special Legislation, we turn to the Unions' arguments that we should vacate the district court's decision to dismiss their claims involving the City. In their briefs on appeal, the Unions never actually say what those claims are, and it remains a mystery to us. The Unions describe this lawsuit as seeking a declaratory judgment that the [2011 Act, as amended] violated the [U.S. Constitution]. In the complaint's summary statement of the pleaded counts, the only alleged wrongful conduct is the enactment of the amended 2011 Act. The City, though, did not enact the 2011 Act or the 2015 Amendments. And because the Unions fail to explain how the actions of a third party, the State, operate to impair the purported contractual obligations promised by the City in its ordinances and in the CBAs, there is no developed claim that the amended 2011 Act impairs any asserted contract other than the 1996 Special Legislation. The complaint does allege that certain Cranston ordinances and the CBAs between the City and the Unions created vested and contractual rights in favor of the Unions' members. It further alleges, without specificity, that the City is violating its ordinances on information and belief. If these allegations are correct, then perhaps the Unions and their members have claims under state law for breach of contract, or for violating the ordinances. And, indeed, the Unions tell us that they have filed arbitrable grievances against the City for violating the terms of the CBAs. The district court apparently gleaned from all of this, with the City's acquiescence, a claim (or rather, an assertion) that the [Unions' members] have contractual and otherwise constitutionally protected rights to certain retirement benefits pursuant to various CBAs, sections of the Cranston Code of Ordinances, and/or R.I. Gen. Laws 45-21.2-1. Pointing to ongoing state court litigation brought by retired Cranston firefighters and police officers challenging specific actions by the City related to benefits described in its ordinances and CBAs, the district court invoked Pullman abstention and dismissed without prejudice all claims dependent upon City-guaranteed contract rights, figuring that the state courts might provide answers that would assist in resolving those claims. The Unions ask that we set aside that ruling. Without any developed explanation by the Unions of what the City has done that violates or threatens an imminent violation of federal law, we can find no coherent basis for litigating any claims against the City in this federal case. If the City has violated the CBAs, then presumably the arbitrator hearing the pending grievances will so rule. And if the City is violating its own ordinances, those ostensible state law claims can be heard in state court. More importantly, there is no independent jurisdictional basis upon which the district court might hear such state law claims between non-diverse parties. And to the extent that supplemental jurisdiction might have otherwise attached to the Unions' undeveloped claims against the City, the early dismissal of the federal claimswhich we now affirmgenerally calls for a refusal to continue exercising jurisdiction over any supplemental claims. Rodriguez v. Doral Mortg. Corp., 57 F.3d 1168, 1177 (1st Cir. 1995). In this case we see no reason that would allow a district court to depart from that general rule. To the contrary, the district court's perception that the state courts should speak first on state issues raised even as part of the federal claims applies a fortiori when there remain no federal claims. For this alternative reason, and without addressing the question of Pullman abstention, we affirm the dismissal without prejudice of any claims against the City. C. We turn, finally, to the Unions' request that the district court declare that retired Cranston police and firefighters are not bound to comply with a provision of the class settlement approved and implemented by the Rhode Island state court. The Unions do not claim to represent any of the retirees. The Unions nevertheless claim standing to challenge the lawfulness and enforceability of the state judgment implementing the class settlement agreement because the judgment prevents Cranston Retirees from presenting the testimony of Cranston retirees, which is extremely relevant to the [Unions'] claims in this case. We see all sorts of potential problems with this claim, from a likely lack of cognizable standing, to the retirees' apparent decision not to challenge the settlement or the judgment approving and implementing the settlement, to an unsupported assumption that A has an ability to prevent B and C from agreeing that they won't talk to A, or to the fact that nothing in the class settlement agreement appears to prevent anyone from testifying in response to a subpoena. The simple answer, though, is that given our disposition of the substantive claims in the Unions' complaint, the Unions are unable to point to any plausibly relevant testimony that retirees might offer that would materially alter the result in this case. Therefore we affirm the dismissal of count IV. III. For the reasons described above, we affirm the dismissal of this complaint. KAYATTA, Circuit Judge. Bronx rapper Cardi Bs 2018 seems to have picked up where 2017 left off. Last year, she signed a record deal with Atlantic Records, whose other artists include Bruno Mars and Ed Sheeran. Cardi Bs Bodak Yellow topped Billboard 100 for three consecutive weeks and her boyfriend, Migos Offset, became her fiance when he proposed to her in October. In January 2018, Cardi B surpassed Beyonce as the first female artist to have five Top 10 singles in the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop chart in the same week. With her star on a stratospheric rise, just what is Cardi Bs net worth? Who is Cardi B? Cardi B, real name Belcalis Almanzar, was born in The Bronx, New York on October 11, 1992. Her mother is Trinidadian and her father is Dominican. Cardi B is the first solo female rapper to top the Billboard 100 chart since Lauryn Hill in 1998 On Twitter and Instagram, Cardi B said she attended Renaissance High School. In an interview, Cardi B said her job as a stripper saved her from a controlling relationship. 'I was dictated to, and had to do things I didnt want to do because I was living under a mans roof, in his moms house, in an apartment with two pitbulls and bedbugs, and I didnt have money. I was living in a space where I couldnt even pay rent and people threw that in your face all the time,' she said. By the age of 21, Cardi B reportedly earned $27,500 (20,000) at the strip club. What followed was a successful foray into Instagram and Vine, with her videos on relationships, growing pains and stripping frequently going viral. She currently has 16.8 million followers on Instagram. Following Cardi Bs Instagram success, the rapper appeared in VH1s Love & Hip Hop: New York, which chronicled the lives of women working in the hip hop industry. She was credited as part of the main cast for seasons six and seven. Cardi Bs first music appearance was in November 2015, on Shaggys Boom Boom remix single. Following two mixtapes, Gangsta Bitch Music, Vol. 1 and Gangsta Bitch, Vol. 2, the rapper signed a record deal with Atlantic Records in February, 2017. In May of the same year, Cardi B was nominated for Best New Artist and Best Female Hip-Hop Artist at the 2017 BET Awards. In June, Cardi Bs Bodak Yellow was released. Two months later, the single entered Billboard Hot 100 chart. In September, with Bodak Yellow claiming top spot on Hot 100, Cardi B became the first solo female rapper to top the Billboard chart since Lauryn Hill in 1998. The single knocked Taylor Swifts Look What You Made Me Do off the top spot. At the beginning of January, Cardi B featured on Bruno Marss Finesse (Remix) and appeared in the accompanying 90s video. Later that month, Cardi B surpassed Beyonce to become the first woman to have five Top 10 singles at the same time in the Billboard Hot R&B and Hip Hop chart. She is currently engaged to Offset, one-third of Migos, the Atlanta hip hop trio. Cardi B is nominated for two Grammys at the 60th Grammy Awards 2018: Best Rap Performance and Best Rap Song, both for 'Bodak Yellow'. What is Cardi Bs net worth? Cardi Bs net worth has accumulated to $4 million (2.87m), according to Celebrity Net Worth. This marks a tenfold increase since 2016, when Cardi Bs net worth was estimated at $400,000 (287,920). In February, 2017, Cardi Bs net worth increased to $1.5 million (1.1m). How did Cardi B make her money? According to the Guardian, Cardi B earned $27,000 (20,000) by the age of 21 through stripping and planned on saving $100,000 (72,000) by the age of 25. Cardi Bs net worth has increased tenfold from 2016, after she signed with Atlantic Records After her appearances on Love & Hip Hop: New York and the release of her mixtapes, the rapper signed a record deal with Atlantic Records in February, 2017, which led to her net worth increasing by $1.1 million that month. At the beginning of December, 2017, Cardi B said that she and her fiance, Offset, plan to spend $1 million on their wedding. 'We're going to spend over a million,' she told BBC Radio Ones Charlie Sloth. He's the comedian married to former The Biggest Loser trainer Tiffiny Hall. And Ed Kavalee became unexpectedly emotional while talking about their early courtship during an interview with News.com.au on Tuesday. The 38-year-old explained that he first met Tiffiny, 33, while he was working for Nova and she was filming the 2008 series of Gladiators. 'I remember where I was when I called her for the first time' Ed Kavalee became unexpectedly emotional while talking about his wife Tiffiny Hall during an interview on Tuesday Ed explained: 'I said, "Can I go and interview the Angel Gladiator because she's so hot?" So we actually met when I interviewed her when she was a Gladiator, but she didn't remember meeting me.' After that first encounter, he was persistent and managed to convince Channel Seven's publicity department to get Tiffiny to do more radio appearances. 'The third time the publicist goes to me, "It's getting a bit ridiculous that you keep asking Tiffiny in". And Tiff turned to me and said, "Yeah, it is ridiculous. When are you just going to ask me out?" And that's how we got together.' 'She's so hot!' The 38-year-old explained that he first met Tiffiny, 33, while he was working for Nova and she was filming the 2008 series of Gladiators (pictured) As Ed reminisced about meeting his wife, he went on to describe a particularly important phone call he made while walking through Sydney Airport. At that moment in the interview, the comedian became visibly emotional and stopped to compose himself. Holding back tears, he added: 'I remember where I was when I called her for the first time. Every time I walk past that spot in Sydney Airport it always reminds me.' Memories: As Ed reminisced about meeting his wife, he went on to describe a particularly important phone call he made while walking through Sydney Airport Last year, Tiffany spoke to The Weekly Review about how they first got together. 'I snobbed him off because I was going out to compete and was in the zone,' she explained. Tiffany also repeated Ed's story that the radio host kept requesting more interviews until they agreed to go out to dinner. 'And we have been inseparable ever since!' she added. The couple married in 2014 and welcomed their first child together, son Arnold, in September 2017. Even when she's dressed for comfort, Dakota Fanning still manages to be stylish. On Monday, the 23-year-old arrived at Los Angeles International Airport wearing a velour tracksuit, a day after her glamorous appearance at the 24th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. While dressed down for her flight, Dakota was still recognised by the waiting fans. Urban chic: Dakota Fanning arrived at Los Angeles International Airport on Monday dressed in casual attire after a glamorous appearance at the 24th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards Elle stepped out in an over-sized red tracksuit while donning white Fila sneakers, red hued round sunglasses, and a small green handbag. The Uptown Girls actress appeared to be confident in her casual attire as she paused and took a moment to sign autographs for fans. Comfortably cool: The actress looked chic in her red velour tracksuit, which she complemented with white Fila sneakers and round metal-rimmed sunglasses. For her fans: Despite the ultra-casual appearance, Fanning stopped to sign autographs for fans at the airport On Sunday, Fanning looked every inch the movie star as she commanded attention on the red carpet at the 2018 SAG Awards in Los Angeles. The 23-year-old acting ingenue wore an elegant pink strapless gown for her entrance at The Shrine Auditorium. The pink hued fabric had a ruched effect as the strapless number highlighted her delicate decolletage. A beaded detail lined her waist and the top of her bodice as the train swept gracefully along the floor. Class act: Daring to impress, the War Of The Worlds alumna looked ravishing in the couture number that flaunted her enviable figure Dakota played with an edgier look on Friday at the Sundance Film Festival red carpet for The Alienist screening in Park City, Utah. The War of the Worlds actress drew a few looks thanks to her distinctive plaid dress, which featured white 'drawn on' style graphics depicting the garment as a wrap-style frock. The Man on Fire starlet opted for a classic black turtleneck to keep warm, which she layered under the dress. She also wore fishnet stockings and knee high leather boots to complete her chic, wintry ensemble. Her HBO series Big Litle Lies was a big winner at the Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday evening. But it was back to business for Reese Witherspoon on Monday. The 41-year-old Oscar winner was spotted heading into the office of her Pacific Standard production company in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. Back on the job: Reese Witherspoon was spotted heading into the office of her Pacific Standard production company in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles on Monday She wore a little black dress buttoned down the front which, for once, wasn't from her Draper James fashion brand. She teamed it with a pair of black suede Gucci Marmont loafers with gold GG buckles, a steal at $690. Reese smoothed her blonde tresses into a jaunty pony tail and she protected her eyes from the bright sushine with a pair of Ray-Ban Wayfarers. The actress accessorized with a large black handbag, with a pink fluffy strawberry bag attached and she carried an animal print clutch. In the old routine: The 41-year-old Oscar winner's return to work comes the day after her HBO show, Big Little Lies, won two honors at the SAG awards on Sunday evening Office chic: She wore a LBD buttoned down the front teamed with a pair of black suede Gucci Marmont loafers with gold GG buckles, a steal at $690 The evening before, the star glowed in an off-the-shoulder, emerald green Zac Posen gown at the SAG gala. She and her Big Little Lies co-stars Nicole Kidman and Laura Dern, both 50, were all up for Outstanding Performance By A Female Actor In A Television Movie Or Miniseries, which Nicole won. Their co-star Alexander Skarsgard, 41, was also nominated, and won, Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Television Movie Or Miniseries. Double duty: Reese in HBO drama Big Little Lies, in which she both starred and produced via her Pacific Standard production company SAG Award winners: Nicole Kidman won Outstanding Performance By A Female Actor In A Television Movie Or Miniseries for Big Litle Lies while co-star Alexander Skarsgard, 41, won Outstanding Performance By A Male Actor In A Television Movie Or Miniseries Based on a 2014 novel by Liane Moriarty, the series - which Reese and Nicole also helped produce - was written by Ally McBeal creator David E. Kelley. On Monday, Reese posted a snap of herself, Laura and Nicole hugging when the Australian was announced as winner. She captioned it: 'Thanks to everyone for your votes and support with #BigLittleLies. 'Our entire team is so grateful and honored to be recognized. We are so excited to bring you season 2!' He has recently been romantically linked to former The Only Way Is Essex star Jessica Wright. But Giovanni Pernice put on a cosy display with a mystery woman outside his hotel in Birmingham on Saturday. The 27-year-old professional dancer appeared close to his female companion during a cigarette break, where they were pictured sharing a cuddle and took delight in a playful discussion. Scroll down for video Playful: Giovanni Pernice, 27, put on a cosy display with a mystery woman outside his hotel in Birmingham on Saturday Clad in a stylish grey ribbed jumper and light wash skinny jeans, the Strictly Come Dancing star engaged in conversation with his female friend, who bundled up against the city's chilly climes in a longline puffer jacket. Stood on trendy Gucci shoes, Giovanni and his associate proceeded to share a hug, before the pair were seen putting on a playfully tactile display. He was also pictured stroking her face before heading back to an accommodation in Birmingham. MailOnline have contacted Giovanni's representatives for comment. Close: Stood on trendy Gucci shoes, Giovanni and his associate proceeded to share a hug Warm embrace: The pair are seen cuddling as they take a cigarette break A little tiff? Giovanni and his female companion put on a playfully tactile display on the weekend Joke? The mystery lady appeared hurt as she looked at her finger in shock Doting display: He was also pictured stroking her face before heading back to an accommodation in Birmingham Casual: The Italian dancer and the mystery woman both went low-key as they dressed in relaxed clothing Heading back? Giovanni appeared to hold onto the woman's hand as they strolled along the streets in the evening These images come amid his alleged romance to media personality Jessica Wright, 32, as reports of their relationship came into light in November last year. The pair were spotted enjoying a drink together before watching Dream Girls last month, with an onlooker telling The Sun: 'It was obvious to everyone it was a date. They were talking really closely, leaning into each other.' As Giovanni and Jess were also seen enjoying some drinks at Soho House a week earlier, a source claim the pair met through her brother and Extra presenter Mark Wright. Alleged love interest: These images come amid his alleged romance with media personality Jessica Wright, 32, as reports of their relationship came into light in November last year They revealed: 'They met through her brother Mark's Strictly connections from when he was on the show and they're getting to know each other.' Insisting it was only the beginning stages of their relationship, they continued: 'They've been on a few dates, but it's early days.' MailOnline has contacted representatives for Jessica and Giovanni for comment. Whilst Giovanni didn't join the series until the year after Mark's dancing stint, Mark is said to have kept in touch with the Strictly family - helping to make the connection. Strong connection: Whilst Giovanni didn't join the series until the year after Mark's dancing stint, Mark is said to have kept in touch with the Strictly family from his dance stint in 2014 Jessica is not the only celebrity the Italian dancer has been linked to, as dance partner and performer Debbie McGee was also a rumored love interest while they shared the dance stage for the latest series of Strictly Come Dancing. Debbie brushed off the claims while speaking to Loose Women, as she explained: 'Theyre totally ludicrous, we do have a special chemistry, hes a very special person to me, Im sure I am to him. 'We love each other to bits, but theres nothing more than a friendship there.' Advertisement Apart from their fame and fortunes, Pippa Middleton, Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom and Cuba Gooding Jr all have one thing in common. When visiting Sydney, each of them made their way to The Cottage Point Inn in the Sydney suburb of Pittwater to indulge in a lavish meal at the picturesque venue. And as the exclusive property hits the market this week, Daily Mail Australia takes a look inside the famous waterfront restaurant that is a magnet for A-Listers. Sweeping views, exclusive seaplane access and a sumptuous seven-course degustation menu: Lavish waterfront Sydney restaurant, The Cottage Point Inn, which is favoured by international celebrities has hit the market this week The stunning secluded property is just 20 minutes by seaplane from Sydney's central business district and has a prime location at the water's edge. Surrounded by lush greenery, The Cottage Point Inn, which served as the honeymoon destination for Pippa Middleton and James Matthews after they tied the knot last year, is in the heart of the scenic Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park. In June, Pippa and James were snapped travelling by seaplane to the inn during their honeymoon, and were later spotted inside as they dined. The private locations means guests can enjoy obstructed pristine views of the water from the restaurant's sprawling deck area. Scenic: The restaurant in situated on the water's edge at Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park and offers spectacular views Famous fans: When he visited Sydney, US actor Cuba Gooding Jr made sure to visit the fine-dining establishment Enjoying a rich and varied history, The Cottage Point Inn was initially a boat shed, general store and post office before undergoing several transformations until its most recent incarnation as a fine dining establishment. The celebrities who visited the venue while holidaying Down Under were treated to an exquisite restaurant with a seven-course degustation menu on offer as well as lunch and dinner options. If guests choose the degustation option, scallops, goats curd, pork jowl and Tajima Wagyu beef a all served over a minimum of three hours. Varied history: The Cottage Point Inn was initially a boat shed, general store and post office before undergoing several transformations until its most recent incarnation as a fine dining establishment Famous visitors! During their honeymoon in Australia, Pippa Middleton and husband James Matthews were photographed travelling to The Cottage Point Inn via seaplane Food fit for royalty: The newlywed couple were spotted inside the lavish eatery, possibly dining on the seven-course degustation menu on offer Set in a community of just 55 houses, the property is away from the hustle and bustle of city life, despite its central location. As well as the restaurant building, two self-contained apartments are also for sale. According to realestate.com.au, The Cottage Point Inn has been on and off the market since 2012. Following reports on Monday that Cameron Cranley had been offered the role of The Bachelor, fans were delighted their favourite firefighter was making a comeback. However, sources close to the production told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday that it's still not a done deal and Cameron has doubts about signing on to the role. As filming is expected to start in a matter of weeks, the Bachelor producers could be left in a nightmare scenario of being without a locked-in lead at the eleventh hour. Scroll down for video Doubts: Sources close to The Bachelor told Daily Mail Australia on Tuesday that Cameron Cranley (right) has doubts about signing on and it's still not a done deal The Bachelor typically begins filming in February and lasts for around 12 weeks. Meanwhile, Warner Bros. Australia has already been casting the female contestants for months. Last weekend was supposedly the 'last chance to apply'. Fans may conclude, therefore, that the Bachelorettes are being signed up for their 'TV value', and not because of their compatibility with the as-yet-undecided Bachelor. Will he take the role? As filming is expected to start in a matter of weeks, Bachelor producers could be left in a nightmare scenario of being without a locked-in lead at the eleventh hour It comes after New Idea magazine broke the story that Cameron had been offered the role of Bachelor alongside his brother Kyle Cranley. While it is unclear how a 'double Bachelor' series would work, a source told the magazine it would make for unmissable TV. 'The two brothers are practically inseparable anyway. They have a great friendship, are always socialising together, making fun of each other and it will work well on television,' said the insider. Fan favourite: Cameron was left heartbroken on Georgia Love's season of The Bachelorette - and many fans are hoping he will be confirmed by Network Ten as the new Bachelor Despite these claims, an insider told Daily Mail Australia that Kyle was 'not keen' and that Cameron was unlikely to take part without his brother. Explaining the decision to pitch a 'double Bachelor' format, the source added: 'The producers are looking to do something offbeat and different this year.' Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Network Ten and Cameron's representative for comment in relation to this story. Is this the most glamorous bachelorette weekend ever? Shanina Shaik certainly made a claim for the title as she wrapped up her pre-wedding holiday in Jamaica on Sunday. In a photo posted to Instagram, the Victoria's Secret beauty posed with her squad of model friends as they celebrated her upcoming nuptials. Girl squad! Shanina Shaik certainly made a claim for the title of 'most glamorous bachelorette party ever' as she wrapped up her pre-wedding holiday in Jamaica on Sunday In the snap, braless Shanina takes centre stage in a 'Wifey' singlet while surrounded by her all-female entourage. They are pictured draped across a white Land Rover. Shanina - who is engaged to Gregory Andrews, a.k.a. DJ Ruckus - wrote in the caption: 'I adore and love these women so much!' 'I will remember this trip for the rest of my life.' Wedding bells: Shanina, an Australian lingerie model, is engaged to DJ Ruckus While she has kept the details of her wedding a secret, it appears as though Shanina will be having three bridesmaids. Taking to Instagram, Nicole Williams shared a selfie alongside Shanina, Angelica Lee and Tamie Tran, captioning the shot '#Bridesmaids.' For her bachelorette weekend, Bob Marley's son Rohan played tour guide for the nine women during their Jamaican adventure. Standing by her side: While she has kept the details of her wedding a secret, it appears as though Shanina will be having three bridesmaids Showing them around! For her bachelorette weekend, Bob Marley's son Rohan played tour guide for the nine women during their Jamaican adventure Cheeky! Throughout their holiday, the Australian model had been regularly sharing sun-kissed photos to Instagram Throughout their holiday, the Australian model had been regularly sharing sun-kissed photos to Instagram. In one memorable snap, the genetically-blessed group put on a cheeky display while posing in matching high-cut swimsuits. 'The future MRS ANDREWS,' Shanina wrote, referencing her personalised one-piece. She's the stunning Biggest Loser trainer who gave birth to her first child four months ago. And sharing her little bundle of joy around, over the weekend, Tiffiny Hall took son Arnold to catch up with his grandmother and aunt on Sunday. Taking to Instagram, the 33-year-old shared a photo of herself posing alongside her sister and age-defying mother. 'CUDDLE PUDDLE!' On Sunday, Tiffiny Hall, 33, shared a photo of herself posing alongside her sister and age-defying mother- who cradled baby Arnold in her arms Looking as though they could have been sisters, the trendy trio beamed from behind sassy sunglasses, while Tiffiny's mother proudly cuddled little Arnold in her lap. 'CUDDLE PUDDLE!' cooed Tiffiny in the caption, adding the hashtags: #tiffxo #cuddlepuddle #fambam #threegenerationsofhalls. Fans immediately flooded the post with well-wishes while some made reference to how astoundingly youthful Tiffiny's mother looked. Genetically blessed! 'Mumma Tiff doesn't look a day over 20,' captioned one fan, while another said they thought all three of the Hall tribe were sisters 'Mumma Tiff doesn't look a day over 20,' captioned one fan, while another added: 'Three generations- I honestly thought all sisters!' And if family time wasn't enough, it seems as though the personal trainer really did have the perfect weekend, heading off to a spa date on Sunday. 'My #selfcaresunday consisted of a very unusual 'me moment' trip to the spa, the occasional indulgent pampers are needed from time to time,' she captioned the mirror selfie. Treating herself: 'My #selfcaresunday consisted of a very unusual 'me moment' trip to the spa, the occasional indulgent pampers are needed from time to time,' she captioned the mirror selfie Family: Since giving birth to her first child last September has won widespread praise for her laid-back approach to weight loss (pictured: Husband Ed Caverly) Looking relaxed, Tiffiny donned a white bathrobe and allowed her makeup free radiant complexion to shine through. Since giving birth to her first child last September has won widespread praise for her laid-back approach to weight loss. Not concerned with snapping back to her post-baby body, the star recently told news.com.au: 'I don't regret a single kilo or sausage roll and I know when the time comes to get fit and be back in shape, I'll be able to do it'. 'I may never get back to my size six hips and my washboard abs, but I'm comfortable with that,' she added. She's amassed a legion of fans thanks to her raunchy portfolio of bikini-modelling photos. And fans of Simone Ormesher, 26, were in for a treat this week as the Bachelor reject channelled Pamela Anderson in another sizzling snap. Taking to Instagram on Tuesday, the former topless waitress shared a generous glimpse of side-boob as she posed in a red Baywatch-inspired swimsuit. Pamela Anderson eat your heart out! Simone Ormesher, 26, shared a generous glimpse of side-boob as she posed in a red Baywatch-inspired swimsuit on Instagram this Tuesday Perched on a sea-side rock formation, Simone thrust one arm behind her head and threw the camera a seductive squint. 'Put your hand up if your excited for Long Weekend', Simone wrote in the image caption. Titillated fans were quick to comment on the sultry post, with one commenting: 'You're so pretty omg.' Iconic: Canadian actress Pamela Anderson famously donned a high-cut , side-boob baring crimson swimsuit in popular TV drama Baywatch Sun-seeker: She's amassed a legion of fans thanks to her raunchy portfolio of bikini-modelling photos Still smiling: She's the failed Bachelor contestant keeping her public profile active on Instagram 'Baywatch!' another delighted fan added. Melbourne-based Simone found fame last year after appearing on The Bachelor. During her stint on reality TV, photos surfaced of the British-born beauty working as a topless waitress. Her past was soon revealed on the show by fellow contestant and former topless waitress Leah Costa without Simone's permission. Enhancement: Simone has previously revealed on The Bachelor she had undergone a breast augmentation when she was 22 The incident led to a bitter feud between the pair, which resulted in Leah being kicked off the show by Matty J. Meanwhile, Simone recently sparked speculation that she may be off the market after being spotted posing with Australian Survivor's Henry Nicholson. The Bachelor babe was seen getting cosy with Henry as they rang in the New Year at a trendy venue in Melbourne's St Kilda. United States Court of Appeals, First Circuit. Robert KANDO, Plaintiff, Appellant, v. RHODE ISLAND STATE BOARD OF ELECTIONS et al., Defendants, Appellees. No. 17-1635 Decided: January 22, 2018 Before Kayatta, Circuit Judge, Souter, Associate Justice,* and Selya, Circuit Judge. Richard A. Sinapi for appellant. Adam J. Sholes, Assistant Attorney General, with whom Kate Brody, Special Assistant Attorney General, was on brief, for appellees. This case begins with a termination. Plaintiff-appellant Robert Kando, a quondam employee of the Rhode Island State Board of Elections (the Board), alleges in relevant part that his constitutional rights were violated by the manner in which his employment was brought to an abrupt end. Concluding that the plaintiff had not shown a deprivation of any constitutionally protected interest, the district court granted the Board's motion for judgment on the pleadings with respect to the plaintiff's claims under 42 U.S.C. 1983. Although our reasoning differs somewhat from that of the district court, we affirm. I. BACKGROUND Since this case was decided on a motion for judgment on the pleadings, see Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(c), we assume the accuracy of the well-pleaded facts adumbrated in the complaint and supplement those facts by reference to documents incorporated in the pleadings, Jardin De Las Catalinas Ltd. P'ship v. Joyner, 766 F.3d 127, 130 (1st Cir. 2014). The plaintiff served as the Board's executive director from 2005 until his dismissal in August of 2016. He asserts that his job performance during the first eight years of his tenure was efficient, effective, and devoid of controversy. As time progressed, personality conflicts with new Board members led to animosity, acrimony, and criticism of the plaintiff's job performance. In the plaintiff's view, this dissatisfaction often stemmed from matters over which the plaintiff had little control. At some point prior to January 11, 2016, the Board tentatively decided to terminate the plaintiff's employment. At its January 11 meeting, though, the Board changed course and voted to treat its previous termination decision as null and void. The Board proceeded to suspend the plaintiff without pay for fifteen days and directed him to enroll in the next three semesters of management courses at an educational facility of his choosing. The Board stated that it would review the plaintiff's role as the Board's executive director and his working relationship with its members at the end of the third semester of coursework. Apart from this statement, nothing in the minutes of the meeting indicates that the Board set a deadline for the plaintiff either to enroll in or to complete the required courses. Eight days later, the Board sent the plaintiff a letter over the signature of its acting chair. The January 19 letter purported to summarize what had transpired at the January 11 meeting and elaborated on the management courses requirement. The letter instructed the plaintiff to take two courses per semester (starting this month), to notify the Board of his chosen courses, and to keep the Board advised of his progress (by, for example, informing the Board of grades received). Among other things, the letter also stated that, after the plaintiff had completed the third semester of management courses, his employment status would be subject to review by the Board. The complaint alleges that, by the time of the Board's next meeting (March 16, 2016), the plaintiff had enrolled in management courses at Johnson & Wales University (JWU). The plaintiff concedes, however, that he did not enroll in these courses prior to the end-of-January deadline limned in the January 19 letter (which he characterizes as arbitrary and unreasonable). Noting that he had failed to enroll by the deadline, the Board suspended him for six weeks without pay. On August 31, 2016, the Board held a special meeting. Without allowing the plaintiff to speak, the Board voted to terminate his employment. At that time, the plaintiff was still enrolled at JWU and had not yet completed the required three semesters of management courses. The plaintiff repaired to the federal district court and brought suit against the Board and its members. His complaint contained an array of claims under both federal and state law, including (as relevant here) claims for alleged deprivation of due process under 42 U.S.C. 1983. After answering the complaint, the defendants moved for judgment on the pleadings. See Fed. R. Civ. P. 12(c). With respect to the section 1983 claims, the defendants argued that because the plaintiff was an at-will employee, the Board had every right to cashier him at the August 31 meeting. The district court agreed, finding that the plaintiff had failed to establish a cognizable property interest in his continued employment and that the absence of such a property interest foreclosed all of his section 1983 claims. See Kando v. R.I. Bd. of Elections, 254 F.Supp.3d 335, 340 & n.4 (D.R.I. 2017). Having granted judgment for the defendants on the plaintiff's federal claims, the court declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the plaintiff's state-law claims and dismissed those claims without prejudice. See id at 341; see also 28 U.S.C. 1367(c). After unsuccessfully moving for reconsideration, the plaintiff now appeals from the entry of judgment on his federal claims. II. ANALYSIS We review the entry of judgment on the pleadings de novo. See Perez-Acevedo v. Rivero-Cubano, 520 F.3d 26, 29 (1st Cir. 2008). In conducting this appraisal, we are not bound by the district court's reasoning but, rather, may affirm the entry of judgment on any ground made manifest by the record. See InterGen N.V. v. Grina, 344 F.3d 134, 141 (1st Cir. 2003). A motion for judgment on the pleadings bears a strong family resemblance to a motion to dismiss under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 12(b)(6), and these two types of motions are treated in much the same way. See Aponte-Torres v. Univ. of P.R., 445 F.3d 50, 54 (1st Cir. 2006). Consequently, we take the well-pleaded facts and the reasonable inferences therefrom in the light most favorable to the nonmovant (here, the plaintiff). See R.G. Fin. Corp. v. Vergara-Nunez, 446 F.3d 178, 182 (1st Cir. 2006). In addition, our review may include facts drawn from documents fairly incorporated in the pleadings and facts susceptible to judicial notice. Id. Withal, any new facts contained in the answer, to which no responsive pleading by the plaintiff is required, are deemed denied. See id. When all is said and done, this standard requires us to separate wheat from chaff; that is, [to] separate the complaint's factual allegations (which must be accepted as true) from its conclusory legal allegations (which need not be credited). Morales-Cruz v. Univ. of P.R., 676 F.3d 220, 224 (1st Cir. 2012). Judgment on the pleadings should be allowed only if the properly considered facts conclusively establish that the movant is entitled to the relief sought. See R.G. Fin. Corp., 446 F.3d at 182. The statutory anchor for the plaintiff's federal claims is 42 U.S.C. 1983, which provides that [e]very person who, under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State , subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured. Refined to bare essence, section 1983 affords a private right of action in favor of persons whose federally assured rights are abridged by state actors. See Evans v. Avery, 100 F.3d 1033, 1036 (1st Cir. 1996). Here, the plaintiff's principal section 1983 claim alleges that the defendants violated the Due Process Clause, see U.S. Const. amend. XIV, 1, by depriving him of his employment without due process of law. His second section 1983 claim alleges that the defendants violated the Due Process Clause by stigmatizing him without providing an opportunity for a name-clearing hearing. We examine these claims sequentially. A. The Loss-of-Employment Claim. We start with the plaintiff's claim that he was deprived of his employment without due process of law. In order to mount a successful due process claim stemming from the loss of public employment, an employee must demonstrate that he has a cognizable property interest in his continued employment. See Bd. of Regents v. Roth, 408 U.S. 564, 570-71, 92 S.Ct. 2701, 33 L.Ed.2d 548 (1972); Perry v. Sindermann, 408 U.S. 593, 599, 92 S.Ct. 2694, 33 L.Ed.2d 570 (1972). That interest must be rooted in state law. See Roth, 408 U.S. at 577, 92 S.Ct. 2701. The Supreme Court has made pellucid that cognizable property interests may come in various shapes and sizes. See id. at 576, 92 S.Ct. 2701; Goldberg v. Kelly, 397 U.S. 254, 262 n.8, 90 S.Ct. 1011, 25 L.Ed.2d 287 (1970). It is, however, a sine qua non that an action for deprivation of property without due process must include a showing that state law protects the identified property right. See Cleveland Bd. of Educ. v. Loudermill, 470 U.S. 532, 538, 105 S.Ct. 1487, 84 L.Ed.2d 494 (1985); Roth, 408 U.S. at 577, 92 S.Ct. 2701. Therefore, an inquiring court must determine whether a particular plaintiff has a constitutionally protected property interest by reference to state law. Bishop v. Wood, 426 U.S. 341, 344, 96 S.Ct. 2074, 48 L.Ed.2d 684 (1976). Even so, whether a given property interest rises to a level sufficient to trigger due process protections remains a federal question. See Acevedo-Feliciano v. Ruiz-Hernandez, 447 F.3d 115, 121 (1st Cir. 2006). Viewed against this backdrop, it is readily apparent that, to prevail on his deprivation-of-property claim, the plaintiff must show that he had a legitimate claim of entitlement to continued employment arising out of Rhode Island law. Ventetuolo v. Burke, 596 F.2d 476, 480 (1st Cir. 1979). Such a claim may be established by reference to a state statute, policy, rule, or contract. Wojcik v. Mass. State Lottery Comm'n, 300 F.3d 92, 101 (1st Cir. 2002). Here, the plaintiff faces a steep uphill climb. Rhode Island law denominates most positions in the state service as either classified or unclassified, and all [e]lection officials and employees are categorized as unclassified employees. R.I. Gen. Laws 36-4-2(a)(12). Making the matter doubly clear, a separate statute, R.I. Gen. Laws 17-7-6, explicitly places the plaintiff's position in the unclassified service. The Rhode Island Supreme Court repeatedly has held that unclassified employees serve at the pleasure of the appointing authority and ordinarily can be dismissed for any reason other than a discriminatory one. See Blanchette v. Stone, 591 A.2d 785, 787-88 (R.I. 1991); Salisbury v. Stone, 518 A.2d 1355, 1359 (R.I. 1986); Lynch v. Gontarz, 120 R.I. 149, 386 A.2d 184, 187 (1978). As a result, an unclassified state employee is generally deemed an at-will employee and, as such, lacks a reasonable expectation of continued employment. See Blanchette, 591 A.2d at 787-88; Salisbury, 518 A.2d at 1360. The plaintiff argues that, notwithstanding his unclassified status, he had a protected property interest in his continued employment. To begin, he asserts that the Board's actions at its January 11 meeting created a contract that guaranteed him continued employment while he was pursing the required management courses. This assertion runs headlong into the pronouncements of the Rhode Island Supreme Court, which has held that alleged promises [of continued employment], even if presumed to have been made, cannot, as a matter of law, expand the limits imposed by the Legislature upon the termination rights of unclassified state employees. Salisbury, 518 A.2d at 1358; accord Donnelly v. Almond, 695 A.2d 1007, 1009 (R.I. 1997); Gibbons v. State, 694 A.2d 664, 665 (R.I. 1997); see also Hawkins v. R.I. Lottery Comm'n, 238 F.3d 112, 114 (1st Cir. 2001). Since any promises made by the Board could not have overridden the statutory designation of the plaintiff's position, his suggestion that the Board somehow modified his at-will status is doomed to failure: even if the Board had meant to offer the plaintiff a contractual guarantee of continued employment, it lacked the authority (actual or apparent) to do so. See Ventetuolo, 596 F.2d at 481; Salisbury, 518 A.2d at 1358. In an effort to blunt the force of this reasoning, the plaintiff serves up a salmagundi of counter-arguments. First, he invokes a statutory provision directed to the Rhode Island Council on Elementary and Secondary Education (the Council), which allows the Council to enter into an employment contract of up to three years with an employee in the unclassified service. See R.I. Gen. Laws 16-60-6. His argument, in effect, is that the Board possesses comparable authority. We have seen this movie before: in Hawkins, 238 F.3d at 114, we rejected an attempt to extend similar statutory provisions to the Rhode Island Lottery Commission. The same result obtains here: section 16-60-6 is employee-specific and is limited to a single position (namely, the Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education). It has no application to other state employees, let alone to employees of the Board. Nor has the plaintiff identified any analogous statute authorizing term contracts for any Board employees. So, too, the plaintiff's attempt to draw sustenance from a line of Rhode Island Supreme Court decisions that includes Castelli v. Carcieri, 961 A.2d 277 (R.I. 2008), and DeCecco v State, 593 A.2d 1342 (R.I. 1991), is unavailing. Those cases involve the employment rights of deputy sheriffs, and deputy sheriffs are sui generis under Rhode Island law: though within the unclassified service, deputy sheriffs have been granted special statutory protections by the Rhode Island General Assembly. See R.I. Gen. Laws 42-29-1; see also Castelli, 961 A.2d at 280-81 (discussing appointment of deputy sheriffs); DeCecco, 593 A.2d at 1343-44 (noting that deputy sheriffs are statutorily entitled to a greater panoply of rights than are most unclassified employees who serve at will). The General Assembly has not enacted any comparable protections for the employment rights of Board employees. Next, the plaintiff suggests that another statute indicates that only employment contracts of more than three years in duration are forbidden for employees in the unclassified service. See R.I. Gen. Laws 36-16-1. In the plaintiff's view, the Board had plenary authority to enter into an employment contract of any shorter length. The statute, though, cannot bear the weight that the plaintiff loads upon it. Section 36-16-1 prohibits state agencies from entering into a contract term in excess of three (3) years with anyone upon termination of employment. This provision, properly read, precludes state agencies (including the Board) from entering into contracts of more than three years in duration with former employees. We have said before that irony is no stranger to the law, Amanullah v. Nelson 811 F.2d 1, 18 (1st Cir. 1987), and that is true here: although this statute might now apply to the plaintiff should he seek future employment with the Board, it has no application to the plaintiff's employment rights before he was cashiered. Consequently, section 36-16-1 offers the plaintiff no hope of sanctuary on the facts of this case. Finally, the plaintiff adverts to dictum that suggests some possible play in the joints with respect to unclassified employees. See Lynch, 386 A.2d at 188 (assumingin case brought by unclassified employeethat a property interest in employment can, of course, be created by an implied contract, but declining to reach implied contract issue because it had not been raised below); see also Ventetuolo v. Burke, 470 F.Supp. 887, 892 (D.R.I. 1978) (assuming, without deciding, that the presumption of at-will employment status for unclassified employees can be rebutted by evidence that a fixed term was intended). The Lynch court's dictum reflects an understandable caution not to prejudge scenarios not squarely presented in a given case. But even though such caution is commendable, a dictum is not a holding. Microsys. Software, Inc. v. Scandinavia Online AB, 226 F.3d 35, 40 (1st Cir. 2000). More to the point, dictum concerning the operation of state law cannot trump explicit holdings of a state's highest court, which have not been overruled, abrogated, or narrowed in any pertinent respect. See id.; see also Arcam Pharm. Corp. v. Faria, 513 F.3d 1, 3 (1st Cir. 2007). The decision in Lynch predated the decision in Salisbury, 518 A.2d at 1355, and the dictum relied upon by the plaintiff is flatly contradicted by the well-reasoned holding in Salisbury. We conclude, therefore, that the Lynch dictum cannot rescue the plaintiff's loss-of-employment claim. The short of it is that the plaintiff, as an unclassified employee simpliciter, served at the pleasure of the Board and had no reasonable expectation of continued public employment. Thus, he has failed to allege facts sufficient to show a constitutionally protected property interest in his job. See Roth, 408 U.S. at 578, 92 S.Ct. 2701. On this record, then, the district court's disposition of the plaintiff's loss-of-employment claim must be upheld. B. The Stigmatization Claim. The plaintiff has a second federal claim. He submits that the Board stigmatized him through public shaming, discipline, and the eventual termination of his employment, without giving him an opportunity for a name-clearing hearing. This conduct, he says, transgressed his rights under the Due Process Clause and, thus, supports a cause of action under section 1983. The district court concluded that the lack of a constitutionally protected property interest frustrated this claim. See Kando, 254 F.Supp.3d at 340 n.4. We do not agree with the district court's rationale. Even where, as here, a public employee has no constitutionally protected property interest in continued government employment, there are circumstances in which his dismissal may so damage his reputation that his liberty interest, separately protected under the Due Process Clause, is infringed. See Paul v. Davis, 424 U.S. 693, 708-09, 96 S.Ct. 1155, 47 L.Ed.2d 405 (1976); Burton v. Town of Littleton, 426 F.3d 9, 14 (1st Cir. 2005). In such instances, the Constitution requires that the employer afford the ex-employee an opportunity to dispute the stigmatizing allegations and clear his name. See Codd v. Velger, 429 U.S. 624, 627-28, 97 S.Ct. 882, 51 L.Ed.2d 92 (1977) (per curiam); Wojcik, 300 F.3d at 103. Despite its imperfect rationale, the district court's conclusion that the plaintiff's complaint did not make out a viable stigmatization claim is unimpugnable. A name-clearing hearing is not available on demand: defamation, even from the lips of a government actor, does not in and of itself transgress constitutionally assured rights. Pendleton v. Haverhill, 156 F.3d 57, 62-63 (1st Cir. 1998); see Bishop, 426 U.S. at 349 & n.13, 96 S.Ct. 2074; Silva v. Worden, 130 F.3d 26, 32 (1st Cir. 1997). A plaintiff who pursues a stigmatization claim against a public employer must satisfy a five-part test. The challenged statements must be false, they must have seriously damaged the employee's reputation and standing in the community, they must have been intentionally publicized by the government employer, they must have been made in conjunction with the employee's termination, and the government must have denied the employee's post-termination request for a name-clearing hearing. See Bishop, 426 U.S. at 348-49, 96 S.Ct. 2074; Buntin v. City of Boston, 813 F.3d 401, 406 (1st Cir. 2015); Wojcik, 300 F.3d at 103. As this case comes to us on a motion for judgment on the pleadings, we turn to the complaint's factual allegations to determine if these five criteria have been met. See Garcia-Catalan v. United States, 734 F.3d 100, 103 (1st Cir. 2013). Two paragraphs of the complaint provide the basis for the plaintiff's deprivation-of-liberty claim. We reprint them in their entirety: 46. At all relevant times, the Board and Defendant Members thereof routinely and regularly portrayed Plaintiff's role and actions in various controversies inaccurately and falsely. 47. Further, after defaming and tarnishing him and his reputation, the Board denied Plaintiff a full and fair opportunity to respond and clear his name and reputation. The complaint does not disclose what statements were actually made. Nor does it say when the challenged statements were voiced. Taken in the light most favorable to the plaintiff, see R.G. Fin. Corp., 446 F.3d at 182, these flimsy averments make out a bareboned allegation that false statements were made. But these averments tell us no more than that the defendants portrayed the plaintiff's role in various controversies in an inaccurate light. Short of sheer guesswork, there is no way for us to glean whether the statements at issue were sufficiently stigmatizing to impact the plaintiff's liberty interest. There must be more meat on the bonesand it was the plaintiff's obligation to put it there. See Bishop, 426 U.S. at 350, 96 S.Ct. 2074; Roth, 408 U.S. at 573, 92 S.Ct. 2701. After all, even statements that suggest that an employee was incompetent, not good at his job, or inattentive to duty do not rise to the level of seriousness sufficient to trigger constitutional interests. See Wojcik, 300 F.3d at 103. At any rate, the plaintiff's claim founders because he never alleged that the challenged statements were intentionally publicized or disseminated by the Board. This omission is fatal: to give rise to a stigmatization claim, the employer must have taken deliberate steps to publicize or disseminate the false statements. See Silva, 130 F.3d at 32-33. Water-cooler gossip, widespread rumors, and random leaks will not suffice to prove the required element. See id. As we have said, it takes a more formal statement to constitute publication. Burton, 426 F.3d at 15; see Beitzell v. Jeffrey, 643 F.2d 870, 879 (1st Cir. 1981) (finding a world of difference between rumors and official charges made publicly). If more were neededand we do not think that it isthe plaintiff's stigmatization claim also fails because his complaint never alleges that the challenged statements were made in conjunction with his termination. Although he alleges that the Board routinely and regularly portrayed him in a false and inaccurate manner, that is not the same as alleging that those depictions were either directly connected to his dismissal or uttered in the course of that dismissal. See Wojcik, 300 F.3d at 103; see also Roth, 408 U.S. at 573, 92 S.Ct. 2701. Such a link between the allegedly defamatory statements and the termination of the plaintiff's employment is a necessary element of a stigmatization claim. See Buntin, 813 F.3d at 407; see also Roth, 408 U.S. at 573, 92 S.Ct. 2701. At the expense of carting coal to Newcastle, we note that a request for a name-clearing hearing is likewise an essential element of a stigmatization claim. See Buntin, 813 F.3d at 407. In this instance, the plaintiff does not allege that he ever asked for a name-clearing hearing. Although the complaint asserts that he was denied a full and fair opportunity to respond and clear his name and reputation, it does not indicate that he requested such a hearing. The plaintiff suggests that we should read between the lines and assume that he can prove the various elements needed for a successful stigmatization claim. But to survive a motion for judgment on the pleadingsjust as to survive a motion to dismissthe allegations of the complaint must be plausible on their face. See Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009). Those factual allegations contained in the complaint cannot be meager, vague, or conclusory, leaving the plaintiff's claim largely within the realm of conjecture. SEC v. Tambone, 597 F.3d 436, 442 (1st Cir. 2010) (en banc). Here, the plaintiff has failed to carry this burden: he has not alleged sufficient facts to make his claim plausible (as opposed to theoretical or speculative). Accordingly, the district court did not err in granting the defendants' motion for judgment on the pleadings. III. CONCLUSION We need go no further. For the reasons elucidated above, the judgment of the district court is Affirmed. FOOTNOTES . We take no view of the plaintiff's state-law claims. The district court dismissed those claims without prejudice, see Kando, 254 F.Supp.3d at 341, and the plaintiff has not argued that we should reverse that dismissal if we do not revive the federal claims. . It is undisputed that the official title of the plaintiff's executive director position is secretary of the Board, and section 17-7-6 refers specifically to this job title. . In all events, the minutes of the January 11 meeting (incorporated by reference in the complaint) are conspicuously silent on the issue of whether the Board intended to alter the plaintiff's at-will employment status for the duration of his college coursework. The minutes merely state that after he has completed his three semesters, the Board will conduct a review of the plaintiff's employment and working relationship with the Board. . If what the plaintiff really is seeking is for this court to blaze a new trail in Rhode Island jurisprudence, he has come to the wrong place. State courts possess concurrent jurisdiction over section 1983 claims, see Felder v. Casey, 487 U.S. 131, 139, 108 S.Ct. 2302, 101 L.Ed.2d 123 (1988), and had the plaintiff desired to effectuate a change in existing Rhode Island law, a state-court forum would have been better-suited to the task. Federal courts have a long history of reluctance to expand the frontiers of state law. See, e.g., Kassel v. Gannett Co., 875 F.2d 935, 950 (1st Cir. 1989) (explaining that when a plaintiff chooses to reject a state-court forum in favor of a federal forum, he is in a perilously poor position to grumble when we follow existing state precedent). . As part of his asseverational array, the plaintiff contends that the district court decided this case on a ground that was neither briefed nor argued by the parties. This contention depends on what the plaintiff perceives to be the district court's reliance on the Board's January 19 letter. Because our reasoning does not rest in any way on that letter, we need not pursue the point. . While a third paragraph (paragraph 50) also relates to this claim, that paragraph is limited to a statement of the damages that the plaintiff allegedly sustained in consequence of the stigmatization. No useful purpose would be served by reprinting those allegations here. . To be sure, the complaint does allege that the plaintiff unsuccessfully requested an opportunity to speak before he was terminated. The complaint does not suggest, though, that he asked for a name-clearing hearing at any time after he was terminated. SELYA, Circuit Judge. They have been in Miami Beach filming the revival of Jersey Shore, the reality show that shot them to infamy. And on Saturday, Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi and Jenni 'JWoww' Farley put their formidable pouts on display as they sat down to an alfresco table with castmates. Snooki, 30, has confessed to getting lip fillers on more than one occasion - while JWoww, 31, has denied claims she had work done on her face. Lippy ladies: On Saturday, Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi and Jenni 'JWoww' Farley put their formidable pouts on display whilst filming the Jersey Shore revival in Miami Beach At Saturday's outdoor confab, returning Jersey Shore stars Pauly D, Deena Cortese and Ronnie Magro were also gathered around the table. A couple of gargantuan stemmed glasses holding pink drinks sat on the table, and Snooki was at one point glimpsed sipping one of the beverages through a straw. On Saturday, Snooki let a bit of her striped swimsuit show beneath a floral robe, which hung slightly open over her bust as she moved. Her wavy highlighted hair hung free, and she accessorized with a leaves-shaped choker, blue-tinted shades and a Louis Vuitton bag. In front of the cameras: On Saturday, Snooki let a bit of her striped swimsuit show beneath a floral robe, which hung slightly open over her bust as she moved Snooki looked in bright spirits as she strolled beside Deena, who had slid herself into a leopard-print cocktail dress with a cleavage-baring V-neck. Meanwhile, JWoww - her black hair slicked back and wound into a ponytail - had pulled on a T-shirt that read: 'HELLO LOVER' on the front. Ronnie showcased his musclebound arms in a red T-shirt, accenting the look with shades and a watch and leaning over toward JWoww at the table. Garnishing the look: Her wavy highlighted hair hung free, and she accessorized with a leaves-shaped choker, blue-tinted shades and a Louis Vuitton bag Pauly D, a gleaming chain necklace dangling round his neck, had opted for a tank top Saturday, and was seen sharing a laugh with Deena and Snooki. Back in 2015, Snooki revealed on Instagram that she had got lip injections, posting a photo of herself posing with Dr. Ramtin Kassir, who'd administered them. 'I've always hated my thin lips and never thought I had the balls to get needles in my lip to perfect them but I did,' she wrote in the caption, over the course of which she also expressed gratitude to Ramtin 'for not killing me'. Side by side: Snooki looked in bright spirits as she strolled beside co-star Deena Cortese, who had slid herself into a leopard-print cocktail dress with a cleavage-baring V-neck Background: Snooki married Jionni LaValle in 2014, having given birth to their two children - Lorenzo, five, and Giovanna, three - during their engagement In August 2016 she had her lips injected again, sharing as much on Snapchat and comparing her look to 'that time I got punched in the face at the bar for protecting my shots' - an incident immortalized on the original run of Jersey Shore. By October 2016, Snooki dished on her web show Moms With Attitude that she had got her breasts surgically enlarged, courtesy another New Jersey doctor. She explained that she 'wanted to have a nice full C,' but 'didn't wanna have JWoww boobs, 'cause she's the porn star and I'm just the regular cute person.' Reality hunk: Co-star Ronnie Magro showcased his musclebound arms in a red T-shirt, accenting the look with shades and a watch and leaning over toward JWoww at the table According to Snooki, 'I'd never really had surgery before. So, you know, I was never under anesthesia, or a knife cutting into me.' Snooki married Jionni LaValle in 2014, having given birth to their two children - Lorenzo, five, and Giovanna, three - during their engagement. Meanwhile, JWoww married her husband Roger Matthews in 2015, and they have two children, three-year-old Meilani and one-year-old Greyson. In 2014 JWoww clapped back at a report that cited doctors who theorized that her transforming visage was due to injections or fillers. Cheery: Pauly D, a gleaming chain necklace dangling round his neck, had opted for a tank top Saturday, and was seen sharing a laugh with Deena and Snooki Sipping: A couple of gargantuan stemmed glasses holding pink drinks sat on the table, and Snooki was at one point glimpsed drinking one of the beverages through a straw Posting a seemingly makeup-free photo of herself to her Instagram page, JWoww countered: 'I'm just a plain jane mom with wrinkles without makeup.' JWoww, who has blogged about her two boob jobs, did tell People in 2014 that while plastic surgery on her face was out, Botox was on the table. Her reaction to the idea of Botox was 'Totally. Im getting up there in age - Im about to be 30. I dont like wrinkles. But I wouldnt go overboard and get that frozen face when youre trying to cry and look like youre smiling.' It appeared she was discussing potential future Botox, rather than admitting to having already had any put into her face. She debuted as the co-host on Today after seasoned journalist Lisa Wilkinson defected to a rival network. And while the show went off without a hitch on Monday morning, Georgie Gardner's appearance didn't make as much of a splash as Channel Nine likely hoped it would. On her first episode starring alongside Karl Stefanovic the show garnered 256,000 viewers across all five major capital cities. Scroll down for video Off to a flailing start? Georgie Gardner's debut as co-host on Today falls short behind regular TV numbers for rival breakfast show Sunrise But Channel Seven's Sunrise with Samantha Armytage and David Koch managed to still beat them overall with 281,000 viewers nationwide. It wasn't all bad news though, with Today pulling rank over Sunrise in Sydney and Melbourne, as well as across the key advertising demographics of 16-39s, 18-49s and 25-54s. Many viewers commented on Georgie's professionalism after the show, but urged the network to think of Karl Stefanovic's position. Still on top! But Channel Seven's Sunrise with Samantha Armytage and David Koch managed to still beat them overall with 281,000 viewers nationwide 'Love Georgie, can't stand Karl,' wrote one viewer. 'Hope Channel Nine wake up, he is not worth the $$. How many more times does he have to appear drunk or hung-over'. While another wrote: 'Don't like Karl, get him off.' Georgie told The Daily Telegraph on Sunday that the pressures of live television in conjunction with the social media age have made her nervous about intense 'scrutiny.' 'There's a part of me that feels wary because we live in a time now where there is just so much scrutiny, we live in this very weird era of clickbait and I just hope with that I don't lose my spontaneity,' she said. It's not true! When asked about rumours of a feud with her co-host Karl, Georgie dismissed it as gossip, saying it's been 'hyped up a fair bit' 'I figure we're all at risk of saying something that we might... regret or feel 'oh gosh I wish I didn't say that.' But I hope that doesn't override the genuine side of me and my authenticity.' When asked about rumours of a feud with her co-host Karl, Georgie dismissed it as gossip, saying it's been 'hyped up a fair bit.' It comes after an insider claimed the Perth-native will face a pressure test in her new role. The breakfast TV host will be getting the 'hard-hitting interviews' on the show to make her mark, while it's been claimed that her and Karl's rumoured tension has been 'overplayed.' Georgie replaced veteran host of 10 years, Lisa Wilkinson, 58, after she made a shock resignation following an alleged pay dispute in October last year. She's known for her raunchy style and very revealing Instagram snaps. Now Imogen Anthony has turned the heat up another notch, posing in a series of near nude photos all in the name of art. In the black-and-white images, a naked Imogen sits upon jagged beach rocks and looks seductively into the camera. Scroll down for video Blonde bombshell: Imogen Anthony has turned up the heat another notch, posing in a series of near-naked photos all in the name of art Barely covering her is a custom made gown from Sarah Joseph Couture - a delicate dress which appears to be just the skeleton of a bustier that has been adorned with pearls and jewels. The bottom of the gown can be seen petering out from below Imogen's waist and has been artfully arranged around her legs. In the photos, the girlfriend of radio shock-jock Kyle Sandilands, 46, has her arms placed strategically over her chest, with one hand coming up to rest on her neck showcasing two large pearl necklaces. Her platinum blond hair appears wet and has been left undone, falling messily across her heavily made-up face. Strategically covered: In the black-and-white images, a naked Imogen sits upon jagged beach rocks and looks seductively into the camera Daring look: In the images, the girlfriend of radio shock-jock Kyle Sandilands, 46, has her arms placed strategically over her breasts, with one hand coming up to rest on her neck showcasing two large pearl necklaces In another image, a naked Imogen stands on her side and appears marginally hunched over, with the pose only working to accentuate her slender physique. Imogen used the photos caption to thank the photographer behind the shots. Dakota has been taking photos of me for over two years now - her visions are always clear and she's the only person I know who gives up her personal aesthetic to please me, though everything we do turns out incredible anyway, she wrote. Turn up the heat: Imogen is known for posting provocative photos to her Instagram account Imogen added that she was happy to take the pair wherever they needed to go to fulfill the vision. The professional shots come just a day after the 26-year-old left fans aghast, posing topless in crotchless jeans that didn't in any way conceal her bare derriere. Is this her most outrageous ensemble? On Monday, Imogen Anthony left little to the imagination after posing topless in denim cut-offs that didn't in any way conceal her bare derriere 'My man's usually pretty lenient (as you know) in fact, very encouraging when it comes to my uhh, eclectic style,' she captioned. '...But God, if I could have recorded the look on his face to show you all when I walked out saying I was wearing these pants like this with nothing else but a g banger (aka 'thong' to the internationals) it was truly hilarious.' Flaunting her washboard abs and ample assets, Imogen left the skirt, which was attached to the jean bottoms, unzipped and rolled out. Risque choice: Flaunting her washboard abs and ample assets, Imogen left the skirt that was attached to the jean bottoms unzipped and rolled out Completing a little bit of DIY herself, the original $130 garment had an extra white cotton piece to ensure modesty - which she removed. The risque shoot also saw Imogen leave her platinum blonde locks cover her face and styled into natural waves. But she eventually compromised and went with Kyle's suggestion, adding some extra garments to her ensemble before hitting the town. Bella Thorne dared to bare despite the snow in Park City, Utah, on Monday. The 20-year-old, who likes to flaunt her figure in eye-catching ensembles, flashed plenty of skin as she posed for photographers. She wore a bright red crop top with low-slung tight bright red lace-up leather trousers. Red hot: Bella Thorne dared to bare despite the snow in Park City, Utah, on Monday, flashing plenty of skin in an eye-catching ensemble as she posed for photographers. She added a pair of black and red snakeskin ankle boots and a fluffy bright red jacket. Thorne certainly stood out in the small town that's hosting the Sundance Film Festival as other members of the public were spotted bundled up in hoodies, beanies and winter coats. She was snapped on a coffee run clutching her joe to go and cell phone. All one color: The 20-year-old wore a bright red crop top with low-slung bright red lace-up leather trousers and a fluffy bright red jacket Strike a pose: She added a pair of black and red snakeskin ankle boots as she flaunted her tummy After donning a black wig for a red carpet screening Sunday night, Thorne was back to her red hair on Monday that she wore in a messy ponytail, She sported temporary tattoos of small stars on the right side of her face and a gold nose ring. Her lipstick matched the color of her outfit and she used silver shimmery shadow on her eye-lids. Thorne found fame as a Disney Channel child star but is best known these days for her social media presence. Distinctive: She sported temporary tattoos of small stars on the right side of her face and a gold nose ring Coordinated: She wore her red hair tied back into a messy ponytail. Her lipstick matched the color of her outfit and she used silver shimmery shadow on her eye-lids Wigging out: Thorne paired a black wig with a white tasseled mini fress and thigh-high black PVC boots for a screening Sunday night at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City She recently reunited with her beau Mod Sun at the festival after he waited for her at the city's terminal with a bouquet of roses. Currently on tour, Mod shared his excitement with being reunited with his other half and took to Insta Story to convey it. He wrote: 'When u really find love it's not a feeling anymore. It takes a while to get to know how that s**t works but once u do, love becomes ur best personality trait + ur best quality. Trust will never arrive uninvited. Reunited: She recently reunited with her beau Mod Sun at the festival after he waited for her at the city's terminal with a bouquet of roses Delighted: Currently on tour, Mod shared his excitement with being reunited with his other half and took to Insta Story to convey it Honest: He wrote: 'When u really find love it's not a feeling anymore. It takes a while to get to know how that s**t works but once u do, love becomes ur best personality trait + ur best quality. Trust will never arrive uninvited Love: Before concluding: 'Welcome that s**t into ur life with opens arms my hippy. Trust me I'm so happy + truly where I've longed to be. Thanks for this movie (sic)' Chemistry: Sparks flew when Bella and Mod started dating in October 2017, with the couple going from strength to strength ever since 'Welcome that s**t into ur life with opens arms my hippy. Trust me I'm so happy + truly where I've longed to be. Thanks for this movie (sic).' Sparks flew when Bella and Mod started dating in October 2017, with the couple going from strength to strength ever since. Prior to the rapper, Bella has been romantically linked to Keeping Up With The Kardashians' Scott Disick and Mod's pal Blackbear. Romance: Prior to the rapper, Bella has been romantically linked to Keeping Up With The Kardashians' Scott Disick and Mod's pal Blackbear Camera ready: Bella posed for photos with her co-stars from Assassination Nation Bill Skarsgard, Hari Nef, Sam Levinson, and Colman Domingo (Pictured L-R) Red alert: She stunned in her eye-catching all red look She's walked the runway for some of the world's most famous fashion brands, including Victoria's Secret and Guess. And after returning to Sydney to relaunch her LUMA cosmetic and skincare line on Monday, Jessica Hart proved she is her own best advertisement. The 31-year-old flaunted her toned physique in a bikini photoshoot at Long Reef Beach, and her skin was positively glowing with the help of her body oil. Scroll down for video She's glowing! After returning to Sydney to relaunch her LUMA cosmetic and skincare line on Monday, Jessica Hart proved she is her own best advertisement 'Glowing summer skin is our thing,' Jessica wrote in Instagram, after re-posting one of the stunning campaign photos. In the shoot, Jessica showcases her flawless figure in an array of stylish swimsuits. Wearing natural-look makeup, she allowed her skin to simply shine while posing in the late afternoon sun. Shining star: The former Victoria's Secret model, 31, flaunted her toned physique in a bikini photoshoot at Long Reef Beach, and her skin was positively glowing After changing from an orange to a black bikini, Jessica posed seductively while sitting cross-legged in the sand. Her flawless complexion took centre stage as she gazed into the camera. Speaking to The Daily Telegraph earlier this month, Jessica's younger sister Ashley, 29, revealed they once had a dream of opening up a modelling school together. Picture perfect: Wearing natural-look makeup, Jessica allowed her skin to simply shine while posing in the late afternoon sun 'I have this vision and dream of a model finishing school,' Ashley said. 'We want to teach women rites of passage, from teenager coming into womanhood,' she added. 'Teaching things that for us are sort of like breathing because we've grown up in the industry.' The legendary actress boasts a fruitful career in the acting business - taking her skilled craft to the big screens for over half a century. And Helen Mirren has proven to sustain her expertise in channeling a range of characters as she takes on the role of a haunted widow in the upcoming supernatural horror film Winchester: The House That Ghosts Built. Putting on a chilling display in the film's latest poster images, the 72-year-old actress stuns in a veiled black gown as she portrays Sarah Winchester, a widow who believes she is cursed by ghosts who died at the expense of her deceased husband's firearms. Scroll down for video Striking: Helen Mirren, 72, has proven to sustain her expertise in channeling a range of characters as she takes on the role of a haunted widow in the upcoming supernatural horror film Winchester: The House That Ghosts Built Held onto a number of rusty keys, Helen scarily gazes at the camera while slightly hid under a semi-sheer veil in the striking poster. The award-winning actress is clad in a 19th century inspired turtleneck gown, which is embroidered with intricate floral detailing throughout the ensemble. Although the Hitchcock star is seen sporting a slash of pink lipstick, her horrifying appearance is showcased through her remarkably pale complexion. In a second photo, the widow - based on the American heiress - is held against a turquoise wall by emerging creepy hands - appeared to represent the spooky ghosts. Haunted! In a second photo, the widow - based on the American heiress - is held against a turquoise wall by emerging creepy hands - appeared to represent the spooky ghosts Chilling co-stars: Dame Helen looks set to dazzle with a role in her first horror film as she plays a haunted widow in Winchester: The House That Ghosts Built alongside Jason Clarke These images follow on from stills from her first horror film, which highlights Dame Helen's mourning state in a black Victorian dress. Meanwhile, Jason takes on the role of Eric Price a psychiatrist who attempts to evaluate Sarah's mental state. Another creepy image shows Jason being followed by a ghostly figure. Spine-tingling: One creepy image from the upcoming supernatural horror shows Jason - who plays a psychiatrist attempting to evaluate Sarah's mental state - being followed by a ghost In the trailer, fans are introduced to Helen's character - Sarah, a historic figure and the resident of the 'Winchester mystery house' found in San Jose, California that is believed to be haunted. The movie tells the story of the property and Sarah's plight to expand it, following the death of her spouse and her child, in an attempt to banish the evil spirits she thinks are locked inside. Sarah is convinced that she was cursed and her home was haunted by the souls of those who had been killed by the Winchester rifle - her family business. She is told by a medium that she will be fine if she moved to California and started construction on a house, but never finished it. It began as a two-story farmhouse and today boasts 160 rooms and a number of nonsensical features including a window fitted into a floor, stairs leading up to the ceiling and doors built into blank walls. Spooktacular: In the pictures, Dame Helen looks haunting in her mourning clothes, clad in a black lace veil teamed with a Victoriana dress Winchester: The House That Ghosts Built is set for release in March 2018 and has been directed by brothers Micheal and Peter Spierig. Others starring in the movie include Sarah Snook, Angus Sampson, Laura Brent, Tyler Coppin and Dawayne Jordan. Filming took place in Australia and some scenes were shot in the actual mansion located in Northern California. She's a successful actress, producer and director. And Emmy Rossum looked every bit the professional on Monday when she stepped out to promote her new film A Stupid And Futile Gesture at Sundance in Park City, Utah. The 31-year-old Shameless star dazzled in an olive suit over a black turtleneck. Scroll down to see video Staying olive! Emmy Rossum looked every bit the professional on Monday when she stepped out to promote her new film A Stupid And Futile Gesture at Sundance in Park City, Utah The Day After Tomorrow actress paired the chic ensemble with a pair of white heels and a red velvet handbag. Rossum wore her wavy brunette tresses held back in a pony tail and a full face of makeup, highlighted by the starlet's strongly defined eyebrows. The Beautiful Creatures star was joined at the event by co-stars Joel McHale, 46, and Domnhall Gleeson, 34 as well as director David Wain, 48. No shame: The 31-year-old Shameless star dazzled in an olive suit over a black turtleneck Isn't she lovely: The Day After Tomorrow actress paired the chic ensemble with a pair of white heels and a red velvet handbag On point: Rossum wore her wavy brunette tresses held back in a pony tail and a full face of makeup, highlighted by the starlet's strongly defined eyebrows A Futile And Stupid Gesture is the story of The National Lampoon founder and Caddyshack screenwriter Doug Kenney, who after quickly rising to the top of the ranks of both publishing and filmmaking, died under mysterious circumstances at age 33. Rossum plays actress and Kenney's partner, Kathryn Walker, in the Netflix film. Kenney is played by The Last Man On Earth star Will Forte, while McHale plays a younger version of his Community co-star, Chevy Chase. True story: Rossum plays actress and Kenney's partner, Kathryn Walker, in the Netflix film A Futile And Stupid Gesture The Beautiful Creatures star was joined at the event by [L-R] Joel McHale, 46, Thomas Lennon, 47, director David Wain, 48 and Domnhall Gleeson, 34 On Monday, Rossum posted a photo to Instagram of herself rugged up against the Utah winter cold in her car, with McHale posing over her shoulder in the back seat. She captioned the post: 'Riding in cars with boys'. A Stupid And Futile Gesture will be available to watch on Netflix on January 26. Hulk Hogan took to social media over the weekend after his son Nick was hospitalized after fainting at home. The 64-year-old retired professional wrestler revealed on Twitter over the weekend that his son Nick, 27, had stayed in hospital for 12 hours last week. He apologized to his followers for not having updated his account in a while. Fainting spell: Hulk Hogan, shown with son Nick Hogan in May 2009 in Las Vegas, took to Twitter over the weekend to give fans a medical update on his son 'Sorry about last week with the shout outs, retweets and bday wishes that didn't go out but with my son in the ER for 12hrs and the ongoing drama family is first,but surprised by some instant attacks by followers,that's cool but it's just not about you all the time,I'm out HH (sic)',' he tweeted. According to The Blast, Nick fainted at his father's home in Clearwater, Florida, last week, and was subsequently rushed to the hospital. One source told the publication: 'He just overdid it with work. [He had] just been training so hard and didn't eat enough that day.' Another insider, however, claimed the fainting incident came after Nick was pushed to the limit by his job. Online apology: The 64-year-old retired professional wrestler apologized on Twitter for his recent absence from social media They said: '[Nick has] been working very hard on his career which has taken him to Dash Radio doing work on the electronic music operation.' The publication reports that Nick was now out of the hospital and resting at home, where he is said to be doing 'much better'. Meanwhile, the wrestling legend - whose real name is Terry Bollea - recently revealed he is confident he would win a political race to become Senator for Florida, but admitted he wasn't overly keen on swapping his sporting career for one in politics. Talking politics: Hogan, shown in March 2016 on The View, recently talked about running for US Senator representing Florida He said: 'Well my reaction is, if I run I will win. Brother, I don't wanna run, OK, I have a great life here on the beach, you know, the only thing I am going to make a run for is the world title again if I do any running. But right now I am just having a blast.' The wrestler was not participating in the 25th anniversary of WWE Monday Night Raw on the USA network. Hogan's bio is still scrubbed from WWE's website in the wake of his 2015 departure and he was not advertised to appear among the list of former WWE champions that include 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin, Ric Flair and Shawn Michaels. Once a household name in wrestling, WWE terminated Hogan's contract in July 2015 on the heels of an audio release that contained him using repeated racial slurs to describe a man his daughter was dating at the time. She became a beauty entrepreneur in 2014, launching her own label The Base. And now Lara Worthington (nee Bingle) has been announced as creative director for Australian brand Zulu & Zephyr's latest campaign. Behind-the-scenes pictures from a recent shoot for the label shows the 30-year-old getting hands on with styling, makeup, photography and artistic direction. What CAN'T she do? Lara Bingle is announced as the creative director for Australian brand Zulu & Zephyr as she flaunts skills as photographer, makeup artist and stylist in latest shoot The Cronulla-native rose to national stardom as a model after appearing in a 2006 Tourism Australia ad, with the catchphrase: 'So where the bloody hell are you?' While she's used to posing up a storm in front of the camera lens, Lara appeared in her element as she held a camera to her eye. The blonde beauty said on Instagram at the time: 'Jane of all trades, master of...some.' While it appears Lara lined up a few photos of her own, the label has credited photographer Darren McDonald for the official campaign imagery taken in the Santa Monica Hills, USA. Strike a pose! While she's used to posing up a storm in front of the cameras, Lara appeared in her element as she held a camera to her eye Work it! While inside, Lara was pictured applying makeup to the brand's stunning blonde model, and is credited in the campaign imagery for the 'hair and makeup' The former reality star cut a casual-yet-chic figure, donning a pair of blue denim jeans and a baggy gray t-shirt with the words 'Femme Fatale' on the back. While inside, Lara was pictured applying makeup to the brand's stunning blonde model Camille Opp. Using a brush to give the model a dewy, tanned look, Lara prepped the stunner for the shoot. She used products, including a bronzer, from her own beauty brand, The Base. 'We used The Base Skin Illuminator on the tops of the cheeks, the bridge of the nose, the cupids bow and a little on the inside of the eyes, the result was glowing, fresh, uncomplicated skin,' Lara said in a joint media release. Only the best? Lara used her own The Base product to achieve a 'glowing, fresh, uncomplicated skin' appearance Not all work! Lara also posed with the model Camille Opp between shots Final touches: In another shot, Lara was seen brushing back the model's hair and retouching her makeup, as she stood in a white floral dress In another shot, Lara was seen brushing back the model's hair, as she stood in a white floral dress. Protecting her fair features, Lara added a black bucket hat to her work ensemble. Model Camille looked comfortable with the media personality's presence, later posing with Lara between shots. 'I loved being there for her and offering advice': She opened up about the shoot to Vogue on Tuesday, claiming working with the 18-year-old model reminded her of her teen modeling past Looking good: It looked as if Lara also help with styling elements, re-arranging a bikini on the model and making final touches to looks between shots It looked as if Lara also help with styling elements, re-arranging a bikini on the model and making final touches to looks between shots. She opened up about the shoot to Vogue Australia on Tuesday: 'Working with Camille Opp whos just 18, reminded me of my time as a teen in the modelling world.' 'I loved being there for her and offering advice. And learning more about Zulu & Zephyr's successful business was inspiring. There are many synergies between our Australia centric brands both founded by women which really resonates with me.' Zulu & Zephyr was founded in 2012. 'There are many synergies between our Australia centric brands both founded by women which really resonates with me': Lara gushed about her partnership with Zulu & Zephyr in her latest interview with Vogue Joel McHale has come to the defense of his fellow comedian and actor Aziz Ansari who's been accused of sexual misconduct. Ansari failed to make an appearance at the SAG Awards on Sunday after being accused of 'repeatedly cajoling' a woman into performing sex acts following a date. McHale, 46, who is in Park City, Utah, for the Sundance Film Festival, told TMZ: 'It sounds like it was consensual.' 'The #MeToo movement is tremendous and is awesome and needs to continue forever,' he went on. 'But if someone had a bad date, it's a bad date.' Scroll down for video Joel McHale has come to the defense of his fellow comedian and actor Aziz Ansari who's been accused of sexual misconduct, saying incident 'sounds like it was consensual' McHale added: 'People will read just the name and just the accusation and they don't find out anything more than that. That's the problem.' Master of None star Ansari has denied the allegations made against him by a 23-year-old woman who detailed her claims to women's website Babe. After a date in New York, the unidentified woman claimed Ansari performed oral sex on her and then asked her to reciprocate, which she did. But then he ignored her 'cues that I wasn't interested' and continued to be intimate with her, she said. Ansari issued a firm denial, saying everything that happened that evening was consensual. 'We went out to dinner, and afterwards we ended up engaging in sexual activity, which by all indications was completely consensual,' Ansari said in a statement to Variety. 'The next day, I got a text from her saying that although "it may have seemed okay," upon further reflection, she felt uncomfortable. It was true that everything did seem okay to me, so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned,' he said. 'I took her words to heart and responded privately after taking the time to process what she had said.' Master of None star Ansari, 34, has denied the allegations made against him by a 23-year-old woman who accused him of 'cajoling' her into sex acts after a date Meanwhile, McHale is gearing up for a new unscripted series for Netflix. The former host of E!'s The Soup has signed on for 13 weekly episodes of The Joel McHale Show Starring Joel McHale. It will feature celebrity guests, skits and his take on news and pop culture events and is slated to premiere on February 18. The GPS Computer Science Club invites middle and high school girls to free coding workshops on Saturday, Jan. 27, and Saturday, Feb. 3, from 9 a.m.-3 p.m., at Girls Preparatory School. Attendees will learn to code LED light-up necklaces and 3-D printed bracelets. Girls will learn Code Academy and TinkerCad to learn coding and 3-D printing basics on Saturday. For the Feb. 3 workshop, girls will use Arduino Gemma Boards to code necklaces to change colors and patterns, and assemble the necklace with the battery and 3-D printed jewel cover. All participants will receive lunch, snacks, and swag on both days. In addition to teaching coding skills, workshop leaders will discuss the importance of safe relationships and participants can donate their TinkerCad bracelets to a local womens shelter. To finish the day on Feb. 3, participants can engage with a panel of college-age girls studying computer science and take on a group engineering challenge. Both workshops will take place in Caldwell Commons on the GPS campus. Students will direct attendees to the space from the parking lot. Registration is requiredplease visit bit.ly/SparkITCHA to register and for more details. The event is made possible by a grant awarded to GPS seniors McKenzie Frizzell and Anne Marie Bonadio from National Center for Women & Information Technology AspireIT program. For more information, contact Pamela Hammonds, senior writer, at 634-7652 or phammonds@gps.edu. Their recent romantic getaway saw them visiting some of Europe's most stunning locations. And with their feet back home at Australia Zoo, Bindi Irwin and Chandler Powell have reacquainted themselves with the locals in a cute snap on Tuesday. Bindi, 19, took to Instagram to share a photo of herself holding a koala, alongside her 21-year-old beau at her family's Sunshine Coast zoo. 'The best way to start the day!' Australia Zoo's golden couple Chandler Powell and Bindi Irwin share a loved up snap as they reacquaint with a cuddly koala She supported the marsupial clutching on to her khaki uniform, while her American boyfriend also held on to her hand. The Wildlife Warrior captioned her loved up post: 'The best way to start the day. Koala cuddles with my love @chandlerpowell @australiazoo.' Fans of the khaki-clad couple gushed over their picture, including one who wrote: 'Gorgeous couple!! Stunning you are!!! I see (an engagement ring) in the near future!!!' Meanwhile, another referred to her father the late Steve Irwin: 'Your dad would be so proud of you.' In love: Fans of the khaki-clad couple gushed over their loved up picture, meanwhile Chandler replied back to his girlfriend's snap, saying: 'Seeing this photo makes me smile every time. I love our cuddly koala mornings' Over the moon! This comes after the Bindi's wakeboard enthusiast beau shared several throwback snaps from his recent trip to the continent with the conservationist Chandler replied back to his girlfriend's snap, saying: 'Seeing this photo makes me smile every time. I love our cuddly koala mornings.' This comes after the Bindi's wakeboard enthusiast beau shared several throwback snaps from his recent trip to the continent with the conservationist. He shared a gallery of 10 photos from their trip to the south of France, with the two appearing in images showcasing the incredible medieval architecture of the region. Taking to Instagram, Chandler first posted an action shot of himself airborne, with his arms spread out and a wide smile on his face. 'Exactly how they were during Medieval Times': He shared a gallery of 10 photos from their trip to the south of France , with the two appearing in images showcasing the incredible medieval architecture of the region The Dordogne river and what looked to be the small village of Beynac, acted as the picturesque background. In a second shot, he held the camera up for a close-up of himself, with Bindi standing on a ledge by the river, as she leaned in while brandishing a wide smile, The tender snaps come after the couple were once again forced to deny persistent engagement rumours last week, with Bindi's representative calling the stories of Chandler popping the question categorically 'false.' On their holiday, speculation has been rife the pair have made things official, particularly after Bindi uploaded a photograph of the pair in Venice and captioned it 'was a magical day.' The couple first met at Australia Zoo in November 2013. She's the Australian media personality who famously graced the cover of Cosmopolitan magazine in October 1978. And nearly forty years on, Deborah Hutton is still turning heads. On Saturday, the 56-year-old presenter and publisher made for an eye-catching figure as she emerged from the crystal clear waters at Sydney's Bronte Beach. She's going swimmingly! Deborah Hutton, 56, looked nothing short of sensational as she emerged from the water of Bronte Beach on Saturday Looking nothing short of sensational, Deborah opted for a black swimsuit which was finished off with stylish white trim. The design of the garment, which was cut low to reveal the beauty's decolletage, highlighted her flawless physique. Slicking back her blonde hair as she emerged from the water, Deborah looked incredibly youthful as she cast her famous visage towards the sun. Fabulous at 56! Deborah looked incredibly youthful as she cooled off on Saturday The stunner then made her away across the sand to dry off with her beach towel. Deborah is famous for living and fit and healthy lifestyle. 'I like to stick to my routine by exercising, drinking lots of water and embracing the day,' she once told told Body & Soul. Media maven: Deborah is famous for living and fit and healthy lifestyle, the benefits of which were on full display during her beach outing 'I go down to the gym and do cardio and weights with my trainer, I go to the gym twice a week and I walk my dog Billie a couple of times a day. I like to mix it up,' she added. However, she also made clear she's not above indulging in the odd treat, citing her weaknesses as champagne, gelato and cheese. One of Australia's most revered media personalities, Deborah was once a high-profile model who went from posing for magazines to being the editor of them. Power player: One of Australia's most revered media personalities, Deborah was once a high-profile model who went from posing for magazines to editing them For a decade she was at the high-powered helm of the Australian Women's Weekly. Additionally, the talented star has hosted a number of hit television programs and has been an ambassador for Myer, Qantas and the Olivia Newton-John Cancer and Wellness Centre. Still at the peak of her powers, the media maven now publishes the Balance By Deborah Hutton website. Still in the public eye: Deborah's storied career spans four decades The busy beauty is also in the midst of renovating a multi-million dollar property in Bronte. Sharing snaps of the progress on her popular Instagram page, the hillside home features coveted water views. Neil Diamond is retiring from touring after he says he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Days shy of his 77th birthday, the rock legend is canceling his tour dates in Australia and New Zealand for March. He was on his 50th anniversary tour. The Rock and Roll Hall of Famer offered his 'sincerest apologies' to those who planned to go to his shows and says he plans to still write, record and work on other projects 'for a long time to come.' Neil Diamond is retiring from touring after he says he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease (File photo February 11, 2017) Diamond's numerous hits include Sweet Caroline, America, Love on the Rocks and Hello Again. Days shy of his 77th birthday, the rock legend is canceling his tour dates in Australia and New Zealand for March. He was on his 50th anniversary tour. (pictured in 1975) Diamond turns 77 on Wednesday and will get the lifetime achievement award at Sunday's Grammy awards. Diamond went on to describe his feelings regarding his stepping down from touring: 'I have been so honored to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years.' 'It is with great reluctance and disappointment that I announce my retirement from concert touring.' 'My thanks go out to my loyal and devoted audiences around the world,' he continued. 'You will always have my appreciation for your support and encouragement. This ride has been "so good, so good, so good" thanks to you,' Diamond said in reference to his 1969 hit Sweet Caroline. The songwriter's most recent album was released in 2016, Melody Road, around Christmas of that year. While at an age when most artists rely on their extensive back catalog, Diamond continued to challenge himself in the studio, and appears to be committed to still writing and recording, health permitting. Diamond has sold well over 125 million records over his 50 year career and is in both the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and the Songwriters Hall of Fame. The hitmaker was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1941 and previously described his upbringing, with a father in the Army, as 'poor'. He got his first guitar at age 16 for his birthday. However, he did not pursue music immediately. It was only after attending New York University as a pre-med student, on a fencing scholarship, that he discovered his true calling. Finding himself bored in class he began cutting school to write music and less than a semester shy of graduating he dropped out of college for a songwriting gig at Sunbeam Music Publishing for $50 a week. She was spotted hiding behind her white Audi in Sydney's Neutral Bay last October after sensationally quitting the Today show. And while hosting a Nutra-Life luncheon on Tuesday, Lisa Wilkinson explained why she was desperate to go unrecognised in the bizarre photographs. 'I really wanted to disappear,' the 58-year-old journalist told the event's guests. 'I really wanted to disappear': Lisa Wilkinson explains those very bizarre photos that saw her hiding behind her Audi after sensationally quitting the Today show 'I think everyone saw that stupid shot of me crouching behind my car. I looked at it and thought "I look guilty",' Lisa, who is now a panellist on Channel Ten's The Project revealed. Lisa admitted that she went to great lengths to exit her driveway with minimal fuss, even considering entering her white Audi via the passenger side. 'You don't want anyone to think you're parading yourself, that you're engaging in this (attention). I really wanted to disappear,' the television personality went on to explain. Going to great lengths: While hosting a Nutra-Life luncheon on Tuesday, Lisa Wilkinson explained why she was desperate to go unrecognised in the bizarre photographs Lisa's remarks were in relation to paparazzi photos which emerged in October last year, where she seemed desperate to go under the radar. Sporting a black blouse, white cropped trousers and huge designer sunglasses, the mother-of-three bizarrely crouched behind her white Audi vehicle in a dramatic fashion while in Sydney's lower North Shore. Lisa kept her head and body down low as she manoeuvred around the car. The former magazine editor was seemingly trying to avoid snappers as she pulled the odd moves outside of her car. Jumping ship: The incident came after Lisa sensationally revealed on Twitter that she was quitting the Today show and defecting to Channel Ten, taking up a role on The Project in 2018 The incident came after Lisa sensationally revealed on Twitter that she was quitting the Today show and defecting to Channel Ten, taking up a role on The Project in 2018. The announcement came just a day after an explosive report claimed her contract negotiations with Nine had been 'stalled.' The Sunday Telegraph alleged that Lisa was holding out on re-signing until she was granted 'pay parity' with co-host Karl Stefanovic, 43. It was suggested the reason Lisa wanted the same money as Karl, was because he was 'rumoured to be on twice as much.' Claims: The announcement came just a day after an explosive report claimed her contract negotiations with Nine had been 'stalled.' The Sunday Telegraph alleged that Lisa was holding out on re-signing until she was granted 'pay parity' with co-host Karl Stefanovic [picture], 43 The Australian reported that Karl earns at least $2 million a year in a three-year contract, with a potential bonus that could take his salary to $3 million if ratings are hit. According to The Daily Telegraph, Lisa was on a $1.1 million a year contract, with Nine only willing to increase the amount to $1.8 million. The amount was claimed to have not been enough for her to stay with the network. Two months after Louis C.K. apologized for his sexual misconduct involving five women dating back a decade, his Baskets co-creator and fellow comedian Zach Galifianakis has broken his silence. 'It was so disruptive in a harmful way to so many people,' the 48-year-old Hangover alum admitted in Monday's edition of New York Magazine. 'We just kind of put our heads down and worked on the new season. This is the poison of celebrity culture: The fact that someone can think that just because they're loved, they can do what they want. It grosses me out. That's all I want to say.' Scroll down for video Pictured in 2016: Two months after Louis C.K. (R) apologized for his sexual misconduct involving five women dating back a decade, his Baskets co-creator and fellow comedian Zach Galifianakis (L) has broken his silence The two-time Emmy winner has 'severed' his relationship with the disgraced 50-year-old, who will have no future involvement with the clown comedy returning for a third season this Tuesday. After confirming allegations from Dana Min Goodman, Julia Wolov, Abby Schachner, and Rebecca Corry - the FX Network also fired Louis from producing Better Things, The Cops, and One Mississippi. A month later, the global distribution deal on the two-time Golden Globe nominee's Woody Allen-inspired pervy drama I Love You, Daddy was also pulled by The Orchard. The 48-year-old Hangover alum admitted in NY Mag: 'It was so disruptive in a harmful way to so many people. We just kind of put our heads down and worked on the new season' (pictured September 17) Galifianakis added: 'This is the poison of celebrity culture: The fact that someone can think that just because they're loved, they can do what they want. It grosses me out' (pictured September 16) Returning this Tuesday! The two-time Emmy winner has 'severed' his relationship with the disgraced 50-year-old, who will have no future involvement with the clown comedy Statement: After confirming allegations from Dana Min Goodman, Julia Wolov, Abby Schachner, and Rebecca Corry - the FX Network also fired Louis from producing Better Things, The Cops, and One Mississippi Yanked: A month later, the global distribution deal on the two-time Golden Globe nominee's Woody Allen-inspired pervy drama I Love You, Daddy was also pulled by The Orchard Taking responsibility: C.K. (born Szekely) expressed remorse for his actions likely because he's the divorced dad of two daughters Kitty, 15; and Mary, 12 (pictured in 2016) C.K. (born Szekely) expressed remorse for his actions - which first surfaced in a 2012 Gawker blind item - likely because he's the divorced dad of two daughters Kitty, 15; and Mary, 12. Fans can catch more of Zach - now married with two sons - on Monday night's episode of ABC late-night show Jimmy Kimmel Live! Aside from his dual role as twin rivals on Baskets, Galifianakis will discuss his part as the Happy Medium in Disney's fantasy epic A Wrinkle in Time hitting US/UK theaters in March. 'Backstage!' Fans can catch more of Zach - now married with two sons - on Monday night's episode of ABC late-night show Jimmy Kimmel Live! She's the AFL WAG, media personality and model who hails from Western Australia. And Rebecca Judd showcased her trim and toned body in a tiny bikini on the beach after returning to Perth on Tuesday. The 34-year-old was back in her hometown with her husband Chris Judd and their young brood. Scroll down for video Not an inch to pinch! AFL WAG Rebecca Judd flaunts her washboard abs and trim legs in a tiny crochet bikini as she returns to her hometown of Perth She took to her Instagram story to share a photo of herself in the barely-there crochet two-piece and a pair of white trimmed retro-style sunglasses. Rebecca sashayed her way to the camera, with hubby Chris likely capturing the moment for her. The active wear entrepreneur captioned her flirty swimwear snap a fun 'yasss' sticker on the post. Poolside: Another snap shows the Perth-born beauty with a spring in her step as she strolled along the edge of the pool But it was her incredibly toned figure and washboard abs that really caught her fans eyes. Another snap shows the Perth-born beauty with a spring in her step as she strolled along the edge of the pool. Inadvertently flaunting her pert behind in the photo, she basked in the sunlight as under her wide brimmed hat. Holiday injuries: But a few hours of fun by the water turned into an emergency for the mother-of-four. She took to Instagram to document one of her twin boys, either Tom or Darcy, wriggling in her arms while waiting to see a doctors after he hurt his chin Family trip! The 34-year-old was back in her hometown with her husband Chris Judd and their young brood (Oscar, six, pictured) But a few hours of fun by the water turned into an emergency for the mother-of-four. She took to Instagram to document one of her twin boys, either Tom or Darcy, wriggling in her arms as they wait to see a doctors after he hurt his chin. Earlier, she took to Instagram to show her arrival in the West Australian capital capturing a Boomerang clip of the Perth Harbour with docked yachts. She's known for keeping active and healthy. And on Tuesday, Fiona Falkiner was at her very best as she turned out for a Vitaco Health event at the Shangri-La Hotel in Sydney. The former Biggest Loser host cut a chic figure as she joined stars including Lisa Wilkinson and Kylie Gillies at the exclusive lunch. Fit and fabulous! Fiona Falkiner looked chic as she turned out for an exclusive lunch at Sydney's Shangri-la Hotel on Tuesday The 34-year-old looked fabulous in a white sleeveless turtleneck tucked into a pair of black flared pants. Parting her golden locks at the middle, the stunner smiled for the cameras as she posed against a media wall, attending the lunch without her new partner, personal trainer Lara Kreber. Fiona's appearance at the health event comes just days after she candidly revealed that she no longer believes that being described as skinny is a compliment. Fashion flair! Fiona opted for a pair of stylish flares as she posed against the media wall Ladies who lunch! Fiona hobnobbed with (from left) Melissa Hoyer, Liesel Jones, Laura Henshaw, Lisa Wilkinson and Kylie Gillies The star revealed the news via Instagram, beneath a photo that showed her stunning in a swimsuit. 'Someone said to me yesterday that I was looking skinny.. its funny I no longer see that as a compliment,' she proclaimed. 'When someone says I look happy, healthy, strong or glowing I take that as a compliment as these are the things I work towards in all aspects of my life,' the personality continued. Inspiring: Fiona's appearance at the health event comes just days after she candidly revealed that she no longer believes that being described as skinny is a compliment Candid: The star revealed the news via Instagram, beneath a photo that showed her stunning in a swimsuit Capping off her body-positive post, she hash-tagged: '#keepingitreal' and '#everybodyisbeautiful'. In the picture, Fiona looked both fit and relaxed as she reclines on the edge of pool in a strapless black and white bikini. Following her upload, the star's devoted fans thanked her for spreading body positivity. 'Yes - here's to changing society's 'norm' for body image. Here's to strong, empowered confident women. Well said - you inspire me,' one follower fawned. Lord Of The Ring's Dominic Monaghan is taking a contractor to task after getting an allegedly less-than-stellar landscaping job. The Lost actor, 41, is suing Bruce De Luis for defective work he did on the star's LA home, according to TMZ. The Englishman claims that after shelling out $53k for the work, he actually ended up with extensive damage to his property, also claiming the Southern California man was not licensed to work as a contractor. Not the job he wanted: Lord Of The Ring's Dominic Monaghan (Above in October 2017) is suing contractor Bruce De Luis for defective work he did on the star's LA home, according to TMZ Monaghan hired De Luis to install steps and a stone patio to his property. He also paid the contractor to take care of general landscaping and other miscellaneous upkeep on the property. But after claiming to spend tens-of-thousands he says the work was still incomplete and he had to go to another contractor for an estimate on repairs. Dominic was told it would take around $21k - a little less than half of the original cost - to fix his property. A job not well done: The Englishman, above last January, claims that though he shelled out $53k for the work Monaghan says he unsuccessfully approached De Luis about the damage incurred but claims the worker would not refund him. The onscreen hobbit is now asking a judge to force Luis to refund Monaghan for his original bill, in addition to handing over money for damages incurred. Middle Earth's finest! Monaghan (far right) is best known for his role as Meriadoc 'Merry' Brandybuck in Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Rings Trilogy, where he played a hobbit besides stars Sean Astin, Elijah Wood, and Bully Boyd (left to right) Monaghan is best known for his role as Meriadoc 'Merry' Brandybuck in Peter Jackson's Lord Of The Rings Trilogy. After his star turn in Middle Earth, the star secured a regular part on the ABC drama Lost, which captivated audiences for six seasons from 2004 to 2010. Nowadays the star spends his time hosting and producing the nature program Wild Things with Dominic Monaghan, which airs on BBC America and the UK's Channel 5. Arie Luyendyk Jr. finally discovered that frontrunner Bekah was just age 22 on Monday's episode of The Bachelor. The 36-year-old former race car driver warned the young hopeful that he feared she was not ready to be his wife. Arie put his hand over his mouth in shock at the revelation and told the Los Angeles nanny that she 'scared' him and he was afraid of setting himself up for heartache. Scroll down for video Age gap: Arie Luyendyk Jr. covered his mouth in shock upon learning that Bekah M. was only age 22 on Monday's episode of The Bachelor The stunning 14-year age gape, however, was not enough to put off Arie who gave her a rose and told her that she 'was the most incredible person I have maybe ever met.' The show kicked off with the 15 remaining women traveling to South Lake Tahoe for a week of outdoor dates and activities. Yale graduate Seinne, 27, was the first woman to get an invite for a one-on-one date with Arie. Incredible person: Bekah M was told by Arie that she was the most 'incredible person' he ever maybe met The commercial real estate manager from Newport Beach, California, admitted she was nervous after Lauren S got sent home the previous week during her date. 'I am confident in myself and who I am as a person and if the date goes anything like the time Arie and I have already spent together, then I think I will be coming back,' she said. Krystal told the cameras happily that Seinne 'was probably going home tonight' and that meant less competition for her. First date: Seinne scored the first one-on-one date with Arie Feeling nervous: The commercial real estate manager from Newport Beach, California, admitted she was nervous after Lauren S got sent home the previous week during her date Arie and Seinne drove to the lake and went parasailing. 'Parasailing is about letting go and seeing where the wind takes you and being open to this relationship is kind of similar to that. It is scary but really exciting and I am hopeful,' said Seinne. 'I just want to enjoy my time with him and see where our connection can grow. I really like Arie. I can't use the L word yet but I really like him and if things keep going the way they are that could be there.' Up there: Arie and Seinne went parasailing above Lake Tahoe Seinne told the cameras she had not 'been in love in a long time' and that she had learned to protect herself from heartbreak. 'I don't want to have any regrets I have to be open to it,' she said as she told Arie she was surprised to get the date. Arie told her that he was 'so interested' in her and was attracted to her education and travels as well as her being 'a damn good kisser.' No regrets: Seinne told the cameras that she didn't want any regrets and was staying open 'I am very happy you are here,' said Arie as the pair kissed again. They later went to a casino for dinner and Seinne spoke to the cameras about race and love. 'I am a black female and they don't tell a lot of stories about girls like me having the fairytale ending. So, we will see if I get that happy ending here,' she said. Fairytale ending: Arie singled out Seinne and told her that he liked her intelligence and kissing ability She then asked Arie why he had not been in love for five years. Arie said he dated women not ready for marriage and had not put himself in the position to meet someone. Seinne told Arie that her parents' relationship had not been 'perfect' and she had grown up thinking that 'love was hard.' Candid conversation: Seinne and Arie continued to open up to each other during dinner 'I know that you said that growing up you did not see many love stories with people who looked like you and I know that I am feeling that this could be the start of something amazing and this could be our love story,' he said. With that Seinne accepted a rose from Arie and they went to a concert by country group Lanco and danced together on stage. Back at the lodge Maquel, 23, received bad news from her mother that her grandfather had died. Something amazing: Arie told Seinne that they could be at the start of 'something amazing' Private concert: Lanco performed for Seinne and Arie Dance magic: Arie and Seinne kissed on the dance floor The photographer from Utah was shocked at the 'unexpected' death and immediately packed her bags to return home. The remaining women - apart from Los Angeles nanny Bekah M - were told they would be on the group date, ruffling some feathers. 'Bekah M was given a one-on-one, I am not sure why as there is a 14-year difference, she is just so young,' said Krystal. Sad moment: Maquel learned from her mother that her grandfather passed away Going home: The Utah photographer packed her bags and left to be with family 'She is definitely still searching for her identity and Arie is looking for a woman not a girl,' Krystal added. The 12 women then met Arie out in the woods. Kendall, 26, a creative director form Los Angeles, told the cameras that she felt the outdoor setting would see her stand out to Arie. Forest setting: Arie took 12 women on a group date in the woods around Lake Tahoe 'There are a lot of girls going on the date and some are going to be more aggressive. But I feel this is where I can stand out and other dates to do with shopping maybe that is the kind of date the other girls will stand out in, but this is where Kendall shines,' said Kendall. The women then met a survival expert for a day of hiking and survival activities. 'I think we might all die today,' said Marikh, 27, as they were all handed bottles to urinate in. Feeling confident: Kendall was feeling in her element during the group date Survival experts: Survival specialist Mykel Hawke and his wife Ruth compared staying alive in the wilderness to successful dating With their canisters full Arie went first, held his nose and drank. And as some of the women prepared to down their own Arie came clean and told them it was just apple juice. 'I would drink my pee for Arie,' said social media manager Jenna, 28, from Raleigh, North Carolina. Good one: Arie pretended to drink his own urine, but it was only apple juice The women were then asked to eat worms and bugs and Arie, Kendall, and Tia quickly downed them. Krystal told the cameras she felt out of her element and branded the other women 'desperate' for Arie's attention. As the snow fell Kendall stole Arie away for a walk and a kiss as Krystal watched on unimpressed. High protein: Arie and Kendall ate bugs as part of the group date Bug breath: Kendall and Arie later kissed in the woods Kind of awkward: Krystal admitted it was hard to watch Kendall kiss Arie 'Good for Kendall, but it is hard to watch,' she admitted. The women then had to navigate through the forest as teams, but most of them were miffed as Arie joined only one of the groups. At the end of the hike the group found a huge hot spring and champagne and quickly stripped to their bathing suits. Forest navigation: Marikh took control and tried to navigate a group to the meeting point Made it: The women made it to the meeting spot and changed into swimsuits and grabbed champagne Shirt off: Arie stripped down to join the women in a hot spring Krystal was not impressed. 'Honestly I feel like I am in a high school camp and everyone loves the camp counselor, and I am almost 30,' she told the cameras. The women later joined Arie as Krystal told the cameras that so many women aggressively courting him had been 'exhausting to watch.' Jumping in: The ladies climbed into the water to spend time with Arie Together again: Arie wrapped an arm around Krystal drawing the attention of the others 'I hope that Arie sees through all the bulls***. My time with Arie is so limited that I am not sure what I am going to say but whatever I do I have a feeling it is going to be perfect,' she said. Arie then took aside Lauren B, a 25-year-old tech salesperson from Dallas, for a fireside chat. She told him that she was trying her best to be open with him although she felt uncomfortable. Fireside chat: Lauren B from Dallas told Arie that she was trying to open up to him He told her he liked 'independent women' and wanted to be a cheerleader for his partner. Lauren agreed and told him that she wanted to grow old with someone and still 'spank their butts and tell dirty jokes, I think that is really cute.' Arie did not waste any time locking lips with the blonde. Moving in: Arie didn't waste much time kissing Lauren B 'I am very attracted to Lauren. We have really good chemistry and tonight I felt she was way more comfortable with me,' he said. Arie and taxidermy-fan Kendall then sat together and talked about their 'gross' bug eating day. She told him she loved the challenge of the date and he told her how she had impressed him. Bug eaters: Kendall and Arie bonded over their bug-eating experience on the group date Kendall then told Arie he had to meet more of her stuffed animals before they kissed. 'She is not like anybody else I have ever met, she is quirky and extremely sexy at the same time. Kendall and I's chemistry has been off the charts and totally unexpected. She has been a surprise every step of the way,' said Arie. Krystal told the group she had struggled in the large date and told the cameras the women were 'obnoxiously overbearing with their need to be seen.' Quirky and sexy: Arie admitted that he found Kendall quirky and sexy As soon as she walked away the other women immediately launched into Krystal's attitude and mocked her. 'It kind of pisses me off that she is here for a competition and we actually have feelings for this dude,' Tia told them. Krystal then took Arie aside and told him that she had 'mixed emotions.' Lightning rod: Krystal told the cameras about her confidence with Arie that was rubbing the others the wrong way She told him that she was 'excited' about their connection but felt that she had a target on her back following their one-on-one date and others 'felt threatened.' Arie told her that it was normal for some of the women to feel that way as they gave her a major cold shoulder when she rejoined the group. 'I am floored with the insecurities and the immaturity here is just baffling. I don't know how I am going to get through the elimination of all these women,' she told the cameras. Mixed emotions: Krystal talked to Arie about feeling like a target among the group Tia and Caroline were taken aside by Krystal and she told them her feelings had been hurt in the hot tub and felt she was being mocked. 'The fact you felt that way with us today is the feeling we have felt with you the whole time. When you feel your feelings are hurt, other people's feeling may be hurt as well,' said Tia. 'It feels awkward and uncomfortable to say it at the time, and it happens all the time. Please do not play the victim Krystal. Feelings hurt: Tia confronted Krystal for hurting feelings 'Do you spend your time talking about us?' Krystal told them that her feelings had been hurt. 'By us? Really, dude?' said Tia as they asked her what she had told Arie about them. Good question: Caroline and Tia asked Krystal if she was talking about them to Arie Krystal denied saying anything else and that she was 'here for Arie.' Tia had enough and walked off and told the cameras that there were 'a lot of insecurities in Krystal's head.' She sought Arie out and told him she did not want to talk to him about the other women and just wanted to concentrate on him. Head case: Tia determined that Krystal had 'a lot' of insecurities in her head Tia told him she was finding the experience 'hard' and 'scared' and asked if he had the same feelings for her as he did the other women. Arie reassured her and the pair kissed. 'He is just a good dude, this is why I am falling for him,' she said. Falling in: Arie comforted Tia who later admitted that she was falling for him At the end of the group date Arie presented Tia with the rose as Krystal watched on. 'It is confusing as to why Tia would get the rose. I thought I was really clear with Arie on things that are going on. I am trusting Arie and opening my heart to him and I feel like a lot of the girls here do not operate on my level,' she said. The next day Arie had a date with Bekah M exploring Tahoe on horseback. Single date: Bekah M scored a single date with Arie Arie said they had a 'great physical connection', but that she also challenged him. 'She seems super mature and has this wisdom and she is a lot deeper than the women I have dated in the past,' he said. Bekah told the cameras that it was a 'big day' for her and Arie and that they still had a 'kissing chemistry.' Good times: Arie and Bekah had fun drinking in the hot tub together Back at the house the women stewed over the age difference between the two and assumed that Arie had no idea about it. After their ride the pair got into a hot tub by the lake where they drank champagne and kissed. Arie explained his previous injuries caused by racing crashes as Bekah caressed him and told the cameras how 'natural' their relationship was . Kissing bandit: The former race car driver kissed Beka in the hot tub 'I see a real future,' she said. 'Bekah is an incredible woman, she is amazing, she is unlike anyone I have ever met,' said Arie as they went for dinner. 'There are so many things I look for in somebody that she has.' Unlike anyone: Arie gushed about Bekah before learning her age Over dinner Arie told her he liked her honesty. 'I want us to be transparent with each other,' she told him. 'That is the best way to be especially as our time is so limited, I want to know everything about you,' he replied. Limited time: Bekah and Arie agreed they had little time to get to know each other He told her that in the beginning he was unsure about her until they kissed. 'There was so much there chemistry wise,' he told her as he asked her if she would be ready for marriage if the time was right and she met the right person. 'I don't think I have ever been in the right time with the right person. How can you know that if you have never been there before?' she said. Not sure: Arie admitted that he wasn't sure about Bekah until after they kissed Arie asked her if she was 'ready in life' for the next step as he had previously known he was not ready to settle down in his 20s. 'My fear with you is that you may be where I was in my 20s. That is a valid fear,' he told her as he admitted he had become 'more boring' as he grew older. Bekah started telling Arie how she liked to get up early on the weekend to go climbing with friends. She stopped herself mid-sentence and said: 'Wait, do you know how old I am?' Age question: Bekah asked Arie if he know how old she was 'No, I don't. How old are you?' asked Arie grinning. Bekah put her hand over her face and blushed. 'I haven't wanted to say as I haven't wanted you to see me through the lens of my age,' she explained. 'Yeah, but I haven't yet, you know?' he said. Drinking age: The nanny at age 22 can legally drink 'Because you haven't known,' she laughed. 'Of course, I haven't asked you because I wanted to get to know you first,' he told her. When he again asked her how old she was, Bekah groaned and owned up: 'I am 22.' Arie put his hand over his mouth and could be heard saying: 'Oh my God.' In shock: Arie was shocked to learn that Bekah was only 22 'Twenty-two? You are so young, gosh,' he said. 'I know,' Bekah groaned again. Arie asked her if she had ever dated anyone as old as him. 'I have dated people in their 30s but I have never had a serious relationship with someone your age,' she admitted. Tough topic: Bekah groaned while talking about her age with Arie 'I mean, I obviously knew you were young, younger than me, that is why I was hesitant. My biggest concern is that you are ready for this, you know?,' Arie said. Arie and Beka then just stared at each other. 'Twenty-two years old is so damn young, I am just thinking of all the problems that could come up,' Arie told the cameras. Really young: Arie thought of all the problems that could come up with the age gap 'I could see myself falling in love with her but I also don't want to get through this whole thing and be at the end and afterward her realize ''I am not ready for marriage.'' 'At 22 does she really know? I think we might be too far apart. Like, what do I do?,' he wondered. Bekah told Arie that the experience also had been 'scary' for her. 'It is so crazy and unexpected to feel that I could fall in love, but I just told Arie I am 22 and I could see the wheels start turning in his head and I think he is thinking a lot more about how age may play into our relationship,' she said. Wheels turning: Bekah said she could see the wheels turning in Arie's head 'I really hope Arie won't break my heart.' Arie told her he knew people could 'love deeply' at that age but that he thought she needed to 'live more life and experience other things.' Bekah then grabbed him around the neck and reassured him. 'Stop looking for me to give you the assurance you are not going to get. You don't get that in love and trust me I want it, too,' she said. She told him not to worry and that she had been 'feeling real things' for him. No worries: Arie was assured by Bekah that he should worry about the age gap 'I know you are not me, you are the most incredible person I have maybe ever met. I just don't know,' Arie said. 'Would it be worth it if that did happen?' she asked him. 'No, because I need a wife. You scare me,' he said. Arie then told the cameras he was 'disappointed' to find out she was 'so young' and doubted she was ready for marriage. 'I want you to be ready as I am so damn ready. I am not here for a 22-year-old girlfriend, I am here for a wife. Everything has flipped upside down and I don't know what to do.' He's ready: Arie said he was on the show for a wife and not a 22-year-old girlfriend The age difference did not stop a 'terrified' and 'fearful' Arie from presenting Bekah with a rose. 'You are incredible and surprising and so much of what I am looking for and this could be the beginning of something amazing,' he said. 'I feel like proceeding with caution is the best course of action and I know that it may bring heartache in the future,' Arie admitted. Rose offered: Bekah was offered a rose despite Arie having some reservations about her age On the evening of the rose ceremony Chris Harrison told the waiting women there would be no cocktail party as Arie knew exactly what he wanted to do. At the ceremony Arie was just about to hand out the first rose when Krystal interrupted and asked to speak to Arie alone to the annoyance of the women. Krystal told him she had felt 'such a connection' with him as the women fumed about the move, particularly Caroline who accused Krystal of playing Arie 'like a fiddle.' Rose ceremony: The cocktail party was scrapped as Arie made up his mind Hold on: Krystal took Arie away at the start of the rose ceremony and whispered that she wasn't there 'to play games' Arie listened as Krystal in a voice barely above a whisper told him she was not there 'to play games' but would respect his decision. Back with the whole group Arie handed out roses leaving it down to Krystal, Brittany T. and Caroline for the final one. And in the end, despite the drama, Arie gave the final rose to Krystal and Caroline and Brittany T. went home. Rose count: Chris Harrison stepped in to state the obvious when there was only one rose left Final rose: Krystal was happy to get the final rose No rose: Caroline and Brittany T. were sent home after failing to get a rose 'Just like I predicted, Arie kept me. The stakes are high, the pressure is on and I need to make sure that it is just Arie and I at the end of this,' said Krystal. The episode arguably saved the best for last as an extra scene showed Marikh accusing Chelsea of 'glam shaming' her after the group date. Marikh was miffed that Chelsea told Arie that she used a mirror on the compass during their outdoors adventure to fix her hair. Glam shaming: Chelsea was accused by Marikh of 'glam shaming' her for telling Arie that she allegedly used a mirror on the compass during the outdoors adventure to fix her hair Chelsea told the cameras that she was a former model and that she had 'never been accused of being anti-glam.' 'For the record I am and have always been pro-glam,' Chelsea clarified. The Bachelor returns next week on ABC. It's been a difficult stretch for Naya Rivera, and perhaps she's making a fashion statement about it. Rivera, 31, was clad in all black as she was snapped visiting an office building in Los Angeles on Monday. The Glee star paired a black leather motorcycle jacket with a black top, black skinny jeans and black and grey Nike hi-tops. She accessorized with dark sunglasses, a black cap, with a backpack on her shoulders. Scroll below for video Out and about: Actress Naya Rivera, 31, was clad in all black as she was snapped visiting an office building in Los Angeles on Monday. Officials recently released a report documenting the November 24 incident that led to her domestic battery arrest, including images of her estranged spouse Ryan Dorsey The Mad Families actress was out days after the Kanawha County Sheriffs released new information about her misdemeanor domestic battery arrest in West Virginia November 24 involving her estranged husband, actor Ryan Dorsey. (The charge was subsequently dropped last week after Dorsey, a 34-year-old actor who's been seen on Pitch, Ray Donovan and The Vampire Diaries, passed on pressing charges.) Police said that the incident unfolded when Santa Clarita, California native told Dorsey she wanted to show 'something cool' to him and their two-year-old son, Josey Hollis Dorsey, despite the fact that it was more than two hours past the tot's bedtime. 'Rivera took the two on a walk to look at the stars in the sky,' authorities said in the report, noting that the toddler was in a stroller at the time. 'Rivera started pushing the stroller up a slight incline where she lets go of the stroller, causing it to roll backward toward Dorsey' about five feet. Dorsey, who told authorities Rivera had been drinking and acting bizarrely, was annoyed by the safety gaffe, and 'continued stating repeatedly how he couldnt believe she had let the stroller go with their child in it,' officials said. Focused: The Hollywood actress was focused on her phone as she made her way down the street Moving forward: Naya last week got a huge relief as Dorsey passed on pressing charges against her in the incident New deal: Naya and Dorsey, who are separated, have a temporary custody arrangement worked out for their son Josey, two At that point, according to authorities, the Devious Maids star 'began using profane language and yelling at' Dorsey, who refused to relinquish control of the stroller to her. Police said an irate Rivera 'began to strike Dorsey, with a closed fist, in the face and back of the head,' at which point he contacted 911. Responding officers said an emotional Rivera 'struggled to keep on track with the questions being asked' and claimed Dorsey 'had been yelling during dinner, walking around the table in an aggressive manner while everyone was sitting,' which his eyewitnesses denied, according to the report. Rivera, who told the police that she had consumed wine during dinner that evening, had 'glassy' eyes and smelled of 'an alcoholic odor,' police said. Documentation: Dorsey, 34, posed for photographs in the wake of the dispute with Rivera Difficult: Dorsey puffed out his lip to display any injuries he might have suffered in the exchange Allegations: Police said that Dorsey claimed Rivera had punched him in the head Authorities ruled out 'any criminal charges of child neglect or child abuse,' adding that the child 'was not injured during the domestic battery incident.' Rivera was subsequently arrested, and later let go, on a personal recognizance bond of $1,000, officials said. Rivera, this past October, looked to eliminate her initial divorce filing from Dorsey from November of 2016, but separated again from the actor, listing the date of the recent confrontation as the date they split. Late last month, they agreed to temporary joint custody of their son, The Blast reported, adding that Dorsey was to confer with Rivera 'on all major decisions related to the childs health, education, and welfare' as part of the arrangement. Four Georgia Northwestern Technical College students have been selected as the colleges semi-finalists for the Georgia Occupational Award of Leadership (GOAL), according to Dione Waddington, coordinator for the colleges GOAL program.Listed are students chosen as semi-finalists for the GOAL award showing (from left to right) the students name, hometown, program of study, GNTC campus, and nominating instructor:Grace Dunnaway, Calhoun, Criminal Justice, Gordon County Campus, Tyler GayanValina Hopson, Dallas, Radiologic Technology, Floyd County Campus, Teresa ReschJill McBee, Fort Oglethorpe, Social Work, Walker County Campus, Pam TurnerMacey Morgan, Business Management and Nursing, Dalton, Floyd County Campus, Lisa RussellThe purpose of the GOAL program is to spotlight the outstanding achievement by students in Georgia's technical colleges and to emphasize the importance of technical education in todays global workforce, said Ms.Waddington.GOAL, a statewide program of the Technical College System of Georgia, honors excellence in academics and leadership among the states technical college students. GOAL winners are selected at each of the states 22 technical colleges as well as one Board of Regents college with a technical education division.According to Ms. Waddington, a screening committee of administrators at GNTC selected the four semi-finalists from a list of students nominated by their instructors.The four semi-finalists will advance to a second round of judging at Rome Floyd Chamber where a panel of business, civic and industry leaders from the community will interview and evaluate the students and select one to be the colleges 2018 GOAL winner. The student judged most outstanding will be announced at the GOAL and Rick Perkins Awards luncheon held Tuesday, Jan. 30, at noon at the Coosa County Club.The GOAL and Rick Perkins Awards luncheon is sponsored by The Seven Hills Rotary Club, Rome Floyd Chamber, and Georgia Northwestern Technical College.All college GOAL winners will compete in regional judging, which will include students from the other 21 colleges of TCSG as well as the Board of Regents college with a technical education division. Three finalists from the region will be named and will compete in the state GOAL competition in Atlanta and vie to be named as the 2017 statewide GOAL winner.The state GOAL winner becomes the student ambassador for the Technical College System of Georgia. They will make many public appearances throughout the year, including addresses to the Georgia General Assembly, the Governor, and other the TCSG functions.As the grand prize, a new automobile provided by Kia Motors Manufacturing Georgia will be awarded to the state GOAL winner. She's currently on holidays with her family in her hometown of Perth. And on Tuesday, Rebecca Judd revealed that one of her twin sons, 16 months, has suffered a holiday injury. The 34-year-old WAG and TV presenter shared an Instagram story, where she was seen doting on her boy who suffered a chin injury. Scroll down for video 'We are in the doctors surgery': Rebecca Judd rushes her injured twin son, 16 months, to a medical clinic on family holiday in Perth 'We're waiting in the doctors surgery trying to kill time before he gets his chin fixed, have a look, yep,' Bec says, as her son sits on her lap. The toddler has a bandage on his chin, with Bec playing with Instagram filters in the video. It is unclear if the injured son is Darcy or Tom. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Bec for comment in relation to this story. Get better soon! He has a bandage on his chin, with Bec playing with Instagram filters in the video Beach babe: Bec - who is based in Melbourne with her clan - is holidaying in her native Perth Bec - who is based in Melbourne with her clan - is currently holidaying in her native Perth. She has shared sizzling bikini snaps from her time away, enjoying the Summer. Expanding brood: Bec is married to former AFL star Chris Judd, and shares twins Tom and Darcy, 16 months, with him, as well as older children, daughter Billie Kate, four, and Oscar Dylan, six One snap, she stands by a luxury pool and writes: 'West is best.' She also shared to her story, a snap of herself in a bikini. Bec is married to former AFL star Chris Judd, and shares twins Tom and Darcy, 16 months, with him, as well as older children, daughter Billie Kate, four, and Oscar Dylan, six. Bec has just returned from a break in Whistler, Canada with her family, where they spent the festive period. Enjoying the sun: One snap, she stands by a luxury pool and writes: 'West is best' White Christmas: Bec has just returned from a break in Whistler, Canada with her family, where they spent the festive period She said she was contemplating booking a trip to Whistler next year for another white Christmas, but admitted the family became sick on the trip. Despite this, she still said that they had a great time. 'I hate germs and believe me when I say that by visiting a place in Winter which is frequented by hundreds of thousands of people from every corner of the globe, you are walking into a melting pot of international bugs,' she explained. 'Bad bugs. Like so bad that despite my best germ evading efforts, two kids went down with gastro and four of us have awful colds. It's been a vomitty (sic) mess but we're fine and it was still a freakin (sic) awesome holiday!' Vanderpump Rules' Stassi Schroeder was applauded by her fans as she proudly displayed her breast reduction scars in an Instagram snap on Monday night. The Bravo star shared a photo of the lower part of her breasts with visible anchor scars to her 1.1 million followers and confessed the procedure is one of the best decisions she's made. Posting the snap right after Vanderpump Rules aired, Stassi, 29, wrote: 'Yup. Tonights episode featured a photo of my body halfway through my breast reduction. Best decision: Stassi Schroeder took to Instagram after Monday night's Vanderpump Rules episode aired and showed off her breast reduction scars 'One of the best decisions Ive ever made. Shout out to @drjimmyfirouz because if you thought I was a narcissist before, well then...' During Monday's episode of Vanderpump Rules Stassi showed boss Lisa Vanderpump a graphic photo of her boobs halfway through her breast reduction operation. The 29-year-old reality star pulled up the shocking picture of herself under the knife with one boob reduced and the other still full sized. It came about after Lisa, 57, asked the blonde beauty to try on skimpy outfits for an upcoming Pride celebration. Surgery photo: During the episode Stassi shared a photo of herself halfway through breast reduction surgery Breast reduction: The 29-year-old reality star showed this snap to her boss Lisa Vanderpump Stassi refused to because of the scarring that she still has from the operation, which Lisa had not heard about. 'I could show you the coolest photo, it is halfway through the surgery when one of my boobs is done and the other isn't,' said Stassi. She then pulled the photo up on her phone and showed it off. 'No way. Which one is the new one?' asked Lisa laughing. 'Mean,' Stassi playfully scolded her. The boss: Lisa checked out the photo and then asked Stassi which was the new one Open book: Stassi whipped out her phone and didn't hesitate to show Lisa the photo The show kicked off with restaurant manager Peter taking the rest of the guys to a Reiki meditation class with instructor Kelsey. Tom Schwartz told the instructor that he had been getting 'too drunk, too frequently' and was told he was 'f***ing things up.' Tom Sandoval said that his 'mind was dulled' while Jax began crying and told them he had a 'lot of things going on.' 'I had a great relationship for the last two years and I f***ed it up,' admitted Jax. 'After the whole cheating thing with Brittany, no one had really asked me how I am doing. It actually feels pretty good,' said Jax as he jokingly asked if he could move in with the cute instructor. Energy healing: Peter took Tom Schwartz, Tom Sandoval and Jax Taylor to a Reiki meditation class Reiki master: Kelsey instructed the guys through the Reiki meditation Brittany Cartwright, Scheana Marie, Lala Kent and Ariana Madix went to a dermatologist together and Brittany said she was pleased Jax was making more of an effort to save their relationship. Scheana again addressed the rumors about boyfriend Rob cheating on her, and told the cameras he had laughed about it when they spoke. But she admitted she had not seen him for a few days and felt 'worried that Rob is going to be like ''I'm done''.' Catching up: Lala Kent and Ariana Madix went on a group dermatologist trip Skin session: Brittany Cartwright and Scheana Marie joined Lala and Ariana Cheating rumor: Scheana was worried that Rob would leave her over a cheating rumor Brittany then spent time with Katie, Kristen and Stassi and the girls all dressed up in primary colors for an outdoor screening of La La Land. Katie told them that Scheana had accused her of spreading rumors about Rob as the girls did shots and Brittany flirted with a server Chris who also hailed from Kentucky. Kristen told the cameras that it was good to see Brittany flirting and that she was hopeful she would dump Jax. Primary colors: Brittany, Katie Schwartz, Kristen Doute and Stassi went to an outdoor screening of LaLa Land Getting flirty: Kentuck server Chris flirted with Brittany 'Jax knows exactly what he is doing, the bare minimum to keep Brittany around,' said Stassi. Lala and James then met up for lunch with his best friend, Logan, and immediately began throwing down shots. 'Obviously I have been trying to control the drinking, but sometimes I have a couple of drinks without thinking and something comes over me,' James told the cameras. Bare minimum: Stassi declared that Jax was doing the bare minimum to keep Brittany around 'However I can stop at any time, easily.' During lunch James told them his girlfriend Raquel was moving in with him and he told them he was 'finally happy' in a relationship. Lala made an offhand comment about eating Raquel's pasta and James lost his cool, calling Lala a 'b****.' Lunch drama: Lala was surprised when James Kennedy suddenly went off on her He told her it was offensive and that she was bullying Raquel before bringing up Lala's secret 'fat f***' boyfriend, which caused her to fly into a rage and storm out of the restaurant. Logan told James to go after Lala but despite his apology Lala was not interested in making nice as James repeatedly screamed, 'It's not about the pasta'. James told the cameras the issue was Lala not showing Raquel enough respect and had nothing to do with her eating her pasta. Pasta incident: James yelled at Lala for not respecting his girlfriend Raquel and screamed it wasn't about the pasta Back at the restaurant, Scheana asked Brittany if the girls had been 'talking s***' about her and told them that she had no interest introducing Rob to the group. 'If it is not true why is she letting it affect her so bad?' asked Brittany. Tom Schwartz and Tom Sandoval headed to Tom Tom to see how construction was getting on at their new bar venture with Lisa and husband Ken Todd. Sweat equty: Tom Sandoval and Tom Schwartz put in some work at their new bar Tom Schwartz admitted he had got drunk the night before and slept at Sandoval's but when he finally got home he and Katie did not fight. 'If Tom would have done this a year ago I would have had his head and insulted his penis, but marriage is good for us,' admitted Katie. When Lisa arrived and heard that Schwartz had been out drinking she told him she would sit him down and take him through his marriage vows. Marriage vows: Lisa offered to take Tom Schwartz through his marriage vows after he crashed on Sandoval's couch instead of going home 'Schwartzy is too old to be getting away with the puppy dog antics. You are married and that comes with responsibility,' she told the cameras. Kristen then told Katie and Stassi that she had been texting with Brittany's mom and planned on flying her in from Kentucky to help Brittany break up with Jax. Scheana and Rob talked at the restaurant and he told her she needed good people in her life and that the drama didn't work for him. Break-up plan: Kristen revealed that she had been texting Brittany's mother Sherri and planned to fly her from Kentucky to hasten a break-up with Jax 'If I lose him because of what these b****es said then there is going to be a f***ing problem,' she said. Stassi during the Pride event took charge of dressing the staff with Tom Sandoval keen to do his own makeup. Jax was not in the mood for Pride and Scheana got a big hug from Lala, and told her that she and Rob had not had sex for a week. Good people: Rob told Scheana that she needed good people in her life Lala was concerned about Scheana's weight-loss and felt it was down to the relationship stress. In the bar, Lisa introduced Billie Lee, the trans hostess, who gave a speech to the crowd about being employed by Lisa and feeling accepted. Billie Lee and Jax then bonded over going through trauma in life. Pride march: Sur hostess Billie Lee joined Brittany, Kristen and Katie in the pride march Bonding time: Jax and Billie Lee bonded over dealing with trauma in life James showed up and hung out with girlfriend Raquel and friend Logan, and tried to explain his relationships with both of them. He told them that while Raquel was his girlfriend and gay Logan was his best friend and 'party side.' Jax was confused by James and Logan's relationship. Best friend: James and his best friend Logan confused Jax 'Watching James and Logan interact for like two seconds, I don't know what is going on. I don't know, it's weird. I don't know who is the top and who is the bottom,' said Jax. James and Logan then embraced and each accused the other of being in love with them. Logan told Raquel that he and James were best friends, but she did not seem convinced. Her too: Raquel also admitted there was something going on between her boyfriend James and his gay best friend Logan 'Yeah, but there is something going on,' she told them and got a cold kiss from James. Lisa noticed Scheana looking 'fragile' and told her she had noticed her rapid weight loss. Scheana told her she had let the other girls impact her relationship and they had been spreading rumors about Rob. Weight loss: Lisa sat down with Scheana who looked frazzled and lost weight after the cheating rumor about her boyfriend 'I am the happiest I have been in my life,' Scheana said as she sobbed unhappily. Lisa told her that since her break-up with Shay she put a lot of pressure on herself and told her to pull herself together as she was not in a fit state to work. The British restaurateur then went into the kitchen and grabbed food for her and made her sit down and eat before going back to work. Work meal: Scheana was given food to eat by Lisa who was worried about her fragile state James took time to apologize to Lala but she tore into him and questioned whether she was safe in her relationship with him. The next day Jax and Brittany were at their apartment when Katie and Kristen stopped by. And much to Jax's shock they were followed into the apartment by Brittany's mom, leaving him with a look of horror on his face. Vanderpump Rules will return next week on Bravo. Surprise visit: Brittany's mom Sherri made a surprise visit to see her daughter and Jax Advertisement She's back in her home country of Australia after a whirlwind overseas promotional tour for I, Tonya. And Margot Robbie did not disappoint in the style stakes on Tuesday night, pulling out all the stops for the movie's Australian premiere in Sydney. The 27-year-old took the plunge in a very low cut gown, the blonde beauty leading arrivals at the star-studded event. Scroll down for video Taking the plunge! Margot Robbie showcases her cleavage in a VERY low cut dress as she leads arrivals at the I, Tonya Sydney premiere Margot looked every bit the movie star as she made her arrival on the pink carpet at the Australian premiere for her critically acclaimed movie. The Wolf Of Wall Street Star showcased her cleavage in a plunging satin gown, the minimalist style dress clinging to her petite figure. Margot accesorised with a diamond bracelet and metallic heels, wearing her blonde locks back from her face in a messy updo. Simply stunning! Margot looked every bit the movie star as she made her arrival on the pink carpet at the Australian premiere for her critically acclaimed movie Hey there! The bubbly blonde actress was all smiles as she posed for photos on the press wall Wow factor! The Wolf Of Wall Street Star showcased her cleavage in a plunging satin gown, the minimalist style dress clinging to her petite figure Keeping her makeup simple, Margot showed off her glowing natural complexion and sported a smoky eye. The movie star showed no signs of tiredness as she mingled on the red carpet, despite jetting into Sydney just hours before her premiere appearance. Margot kept a low profile and appeared tired as she arrived at Sydney airport on Tuesday morning, hiding her eyes underneath a pair of sunglasses. Posing up a storm: Margot smiled and waved as she posed on the pink carpet The bride wore white! Margot, who wed husband Tom Ackerley last year, wore a bridal style white gown Giving the cold shoulder: The back of Margot's dress featured a series of criss-crossing straps Avoiding a wardrobe malfunction: Margot held onto her gown's long train as she arrived at the film premiere The beauty will give her only live TV interview during her whirlwind promotional visit with The Project on Wednesday night. Beside Margot the I, Tonya premiere also played host to an array of Sydney socialites and Australian celebrities. Home and Away star Ada Nicodemou also attended the red carpet event, wearing a feminine pink frock. Brief appearance: The beauty will give her only live TV interview during her whirlwind promotional visit with The Project on Wednesday night Chatting away: Margot appeared in high spirits as she spoke to reporters at the premiere Whirlwind visit: Margot arrived on the red carpet just hours after jetting into Sydney that morning No dark circles here! Margot showed not a hint of tiredness as she made her way along the red carpet Keeping it simple! Margot accesorised with a diamond bracelet and metallic heels, wearing her blonde locks back from her face in a messy updo The printed frock showcased the soap actress' curves, Ada pairing her ensemble with a brown leather YSL clutch and matching heels. Meanwhile Kerri-Anne Kennerley made a statement on the pink carpet wearing an eye-catching red outfit. The queen of daytime TV was all smiles as she modelled her red jumpsuit, which featured cut outs over the shoulders and cape sleeves. You beauty! Margot showed off her glowing natural complexion and sported a smoky eye In high spirits: Margot appeared happy and all smiles as she arrived at the Australian premiere Pretty in pink! Home and Away star Ada Nicodemou also attended the red carpet event, wearing a feminine pink frock Stylish mama: The printed frock showcased the soap actress' curves, Ada pairing her ensemble with a brown leather YSL clutch Stealing the spotlight! Meanwhile Kerri-Anne Kennerley made a statement on the pink carpet wearing an eye-catching red outfit Fiona Falkiner was back on her feet after undergoing foot surgery late last year, the model attending the premiere without her girlfriend Lara Creber. The former Biggest Loser host showcased her hourglass figure in high-waisted black pants and a matching top. Also putting in a solo appearance was The Bachelor's Tim Robards, the fitness fanatic walking the pink carpet without fiancee Anna Heinrich. Lady in red! The queen of daytime TV was all smiles as she modelled her red jumpsuit, which featured cut outs over the shoulders and cape sleeves In high spirits: Fiona Falkiner was back on her feet after undergoing foot surgery late last year, the model attending the premiere without her girlfriend Lara Creber Simple yet stylish: The former Biggest Loser host showcased her hourglass figure in high-waisted black pants and a matching top Going solo: The Bachelor's Tim Robards walked the pink carpet without fiancee Anna Heinrich Tim looked summer appropriate in a button down white shirt which he paired with matching sneakers and skinny jeans. Meanwhile E! Host Ksenija Lukich showed off her trim pins in a pink frock which featured a daring thigh split. The figure-hugging frock also flaunted the TV presenter's cleavage and toned figure, Ksenija wearing her hair out in a styled bob. Resort chic! Tim looked summer appropriate in a button down white shirt which he paired with skinny jeans Thigh's the limit! E! Host Ksenija Lukich showed off her trim pins in a pink frock which featured a daring thigh split You beauty! The figure-hugging frock also flaunted the TV presenter's cleavage and toned figure, Ksenija wearing her hair out in a styled bob Say hi to your mum! Rove McManus also put in a red carpet appearance on Tuesday night Summer appropriate: Chanelling beach vibes were Penny McNamee and Raechelle Banno Also in attendance was Channel Ten's Angela Bishop, the veteran TV reporter all smiles as she posed for photos on the red carpet. Putting on a busty display was Carissa Walford, the former Channel V presenter wearing an unusual blue ensemble. The quirky co-coordinating shirt and trousers combo flaunted the blonde beauty's curves. Lovely ladies: Also putting in an appearance on the pink carpet was former Home and Away star Tessa De Josselin and Casey Burgess All smiles: Also in attendance was Channel Ten's Angela Bishop, the veteran TV reporter all smiles as she posed for photos on the red carpet Busting out: Putting on a busty display was Carissa Walford, the former Channel V presenter wearing an unusual blue ensemble She is worth an estimated $60m thanks to her incredible physique. And Alessandra Ambrosio showed why this is the case as she put on quite the leggy-display while doing some shopping with her mother, Ludilda, on Monday. The 36-year-old Victoria's Secret veteran stepped out in tight-fitting skinny Mother jeans, which hugged her svelte legs as she walked in the Santa Monica sun. Scroll down for video Legs for days! Alessandra Ambrosio showed off her gorgeous figure as she walked in slim-fitting Mother jeans and a light-brown jumper on family shopping trip on Monday The lingerie model was hard to miss as she put her shopping away in her black Range Rover. Walking through the busy car park, Alessandra stood out in her elegant ensemble which saw her in an oversized light-brown jumper that accentuated her slim legs. Her jeans showed off the long limbs which helped propel her to becoming a catwalk favourite. A brown bag sat on one shoulder, and the supermodel accessorised with dark brown sunglasses which matched her flowing locks. Model ready: Walking through the busy car park, Alessandra stood out in her elegant ensemble which saw her in an oversized light-brown jumper that accentuated her slim legs Looking good in any situation: The lingerie model was hard to miss as she put her shopping away in her black Range Rover with her mother Ludilda The Brazilian beauty let her natural beauty shine with minimal make-up, highlighting her chiseled cheekbones and luminous complexion. Alessandra finished off the look with light brown suede ankle boots, which matched her top perfectly and perfected the look. The mother of two is often seen with her children, nine-year-old Anja Louise and five-year-old Noah Phoenix. But for this trip she headed out with her own mother, who helped her get the home essentials and wore an all black outfit which she paired with a bright pink scarf. Wow thing: she showed off the long limbs which helped propel her to becoming a catwalk favourite Mother knows best: For this trip she headed out with her own mother, who helped her get the home essentials and wore an all black outfit which she paired with a bright pink scarf Natural beauty: The Brazilian beauty let her natural beauty shine with minimal make-up, highlighting her chiseled cheekbones and luminous complexion Late last year, Alessandra announced her retirement from the famed Victoria's Secret Fashion Show after having walked with the company for nearly two decades. Taking to Instagram about her last show, she said: 'In my wildest dreams I would have never imagined doing 17 Victorias Secret Fashion Shows. Thank you Ed, and all my Victorias Secret family for making these memories unforgettable. 'Last night was so emotional to say goodbye to my angel sisters but we put on the biggest and best show ever. I could not have done this without all the love and support from my fans.' She took her daughter to China when she walked for the last time in the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show. End of the road: Late last year, Alessandra announced her retirement from the famed Victoria's Secret Fashion Show after having walked with the company for nearly two decades Feeling hot: Earlier this month she shared a sizzling snap by the shore in Brazil as she modeled a red swimsuit, and added the caption 'Summer glow' Earlier this month she shared a sizzling snap by the shore in Brazil as she modeled a red swimsuit. The lean looker added the caption, 'Summer glow,' even though it's the beginning of winter. She also shared an image where she was in a print bikini as she enjoyed an outdoor shower. Her caption for that one read, 'Tropical bliss.' The siren had been in Praia Brava, Brazil for several weeks. Looking good: She also shared an image where she was in a print bikini as she enjoyed an outdoor shower and her caption for that one read 'Tropical bliss' Tearful farewells: After her last she she wrote on Instagram 'Last night was so emotional to say goodbye to my angel sisters but we put on the biggest and best show ever' The now retired angel has been engaged to her children's father, Jamie Mazur, for nine years. The model kicked off her fashion career at the tender age of 12, and went on to appear in her first show for the lingerie brand in 2000. In the 2008 edition of the show, the mother-of-two famously returned to the runway just three months after giving birth to her first child, daughter Anja. Alessandra's perfectly sculpted 5ft9in frame has garnered her nine million followers on Instagram. She's the former Miss Universe Australia who recently finished renovating her Brisbane home with beau Quade Cooper. But it appears Laura Dundovic has put her work boots away, with the 30-year-old taking to Instagram on Tuesday to share a very skimpy selfie. Cutting a glamorous look, the model showed off her generous cleavage in a low-cut black singlet. Busting out! Laura Dundovic showed off generous cleavage in a snap shared to Instagram on Tuesday The model showcased her stunning visage, after having her makeup professionally done. 'YOU CAN PAINT MY FACE ANY DAY. @hairandmakeupbyariela,' the blonde beauty captioned the image. It comes after the 'I'm a Celebrity,' reality star completed the renovations on the Brisbane property she shares with her rugby union playing partner earlier this month. Aesthetic: Taking to Instagram, the television personality shared a snap of her and Quade standing in their newly renovated kitchen, featuring a colour palette of matte black and ice white, with mahogany wood carpentry and state-of-the-art appliances Taking to Instagram again, the blonde beauty captioned a snap of the Bulimba property: 'RENOVATIONS FINISHED. Now time to furnish.' Laura shared a snap of her and Quade standing in their newly renovated kitchen. The television personality looked casual in a yellow T-shirt tucked into distressed Daisy Dukes, as she gazed fondly at her athlete partner. Home, sweet home! Laura Dundovic, 30, and her rugby player beau Quade Cooper, 29, celebrated the completion of their renovated property on Wednesday Quade, 29, perched on the countertop, wore a khaki tank that showed off his bulging biceps, teamed with black workout shorts and a green cap. The newly renovated kitchen features a colour palette of matte black and ice white, with mahogany wood carpentry and state-of-the-art appliances. Laura captioned the image: 'RENOVATIONS FINISHED. Now time to furnish @quadecooper. After months of living in one room through our renovations with no kitchen, or lounge and only takeout and movies on the laptop we are finally done! Ecstatic: Laura captioned the image: 'RENOVATIONS FINISHED. Now time to furnish @quadecooper. After months of living in one room through our renovations with no kitchen, or lounge and only takeout and movies on the laptop we are finally done!' 'Loved it so much and wanting to do it all over again now! Still obsessing over our Silestone Lagoon Suede benchtops.' The Courier Mail reported early last year that renovations on the home, purchased for $1.845 million in 2015, would include a new facade, observation deck and pool. Off-the-market: The brand ambassador went public with their relationship with Quade in 2015, after signing up to take part in the Network Ten reality show I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! Laura and Quade went public with their relationship in 2015, after signing up to take part in the Network Ten reality show I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here! Keeping coy on specifics, the former Miss Universe Australia told The Daily Telegraph in 2016: 'I've travelled to the most amazing places and met incredible people and none of it could have been planned or predicted.' 'I always say to people, you never know what life has in store for you so just enjoy the ride,' Laura added. The blonde beauty added: 'I always say to people, you never know what life has in store for you so just enjoy the ride' She is fresh from her sun-drenched winter trip to the golden beaches of Dubai. But pregnant Helen Flanagan, 27, was back to work on Monday when she filmed the latest scenes of Coronation Street on the cobbles, in Manchester. As Rosie Webster isn't pregnant in Corrie, the actress ditched her character's racy ensembles for a baggy top which only gave a glimpse of her baby bump. Scroll down for video Back to reality: Pregnant Helen Flanagan showed off a hint of her baby bump in baggy top as she filmed Coronation Street scenes on cobbles, in Manchester on Monday Missing the Dubai sunshine, freezing Helen cuddled a hot water bottle and she threw on a furry jacket to ensure she kept warm and comfortable. The Manchester born beauty wore knee-high boots over her maternity leggings to bring a hint of glamour to her casual appearance. Helen polished off her look by pinning her golden fringe back to display her best pout, accentuated by a pop of pink lipstick, when she posed for selfies. Shayne Ward, who plans to leave the soap, later joined the golden-haired beauty on the cobbles to film upcoming scenes. Missing the Dubai sunshine? The pregnant star cuddled a hot water bottle and she threw on a furry jacket to ensure she kept warm and comfortable Coronation Street bosses have purchased a new wardrobe for the star because she can't fit into her racy ensembles anymore, insiders told The Daily Star. The source said: 'Helens bump is growing by the day. Weve had to get an entire new wardrobe for her. There will be no boob tubes or miniskirts for Rosie.' Helen embraced the maternal changes to her body and the challenges she now faced with her wardrobe on set to make it look like she isn't pregnant. Positive vibes: The Corrie beauty displayed her holiday glow as she was back to work in Manchester after her winter getaway to Dubai Dramatically different: As Rosie Webster isn't pregnant in Corrie, the actress ditched her character's racy ensembles for a baggy top which only gave a glimpse of her baby bump She wrote on Instagram in recent weeks: 'Bring on the maternity leggings and baggy tops to hide the bump.' The expectant mum was delighted to announce she will welcome her second child with her Celtic FC winger beau Scott Sinclair. Helen and Scott, who have been going strong ever since 2009, already raise their two-year-old daughter Matilda. Selfie queen: Helen polished off her look by pinning her golden fringe back to display her best pout, accentuated by a pop of pink lipstick, when she posed for snaps But the I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here star's second pregnancy hasn't been plain sailing as she admitted the first five months had been difficult in December. The television personality confessed she suffered with the same severe morning sickness that the Duchess of Cambridge had battled with during pregnancy. Helen, who returned to the soap in 2017 after quitting the cobbles in 2012, was forced to take some time away from filming. Latest look: The Manchester born beauty wore knee-high boots over her maternity leggings to bring a hint of glamour to her casual appearance She told OK! magazine: I have just been really poorly. I couldnt go into work and do any filming. I had hyperemesis gravidarum; it lasted for five weeks. 'It doesnt sound like a long time but I was just so ill. Luckily it cleared up at 10 weeks. I know some women have a horrific time and end up in hospital for nine months, so I was lucky, but it was horrendous. There was some concern that I might be having an ectopic pregnancy, but Id actually got a water infection. Good company: Shayne Ward, who plans to leave the soap, later joined the golden-haired beauty on the cobbles to film upcoming scenes Wrapped up in style! Helen bundled on a red puffer jacket while Shayne wore a grey thick coat to keep warm in the freezing temperatures Her latest cinematic venture, The Silent Child, has landed her in the shortlist for an Academy Award. And while eagerly waiting to hear if it has been nominated, Rachel Shenton, 30, has discussed the heart-breaking personal inspiration behind her short film and her hopes for Oscar glory. The Silent Child - which was directed by Rachel's fiance Chris Overton - tells the tale of a deaf four-year-old girl who lives in a world of silence until a social worker teaches her how to communicate. Scroll down for video Motivation: Rachel Shenton, 30, has discussed the heart-breaking personal inspiration behind her short film and her hopes for Oscar glory (Pictured 2016) Speaking to The Sun, the former soap star - who found fame on Hollyoaks as Mitzeee Minniver - revealed the emotional motivation behind writing the critically acclaimed film came from her late father Geof. He realised he had become suddenly profoundly deaf and lived the last years of his life unable to hear even with the help of hearing aids. Rachel admitted it was difficult as a teenager to see her dad - who ran his own haulage firm - struggling to drive and adapt to the world around him. She shared: 'I witnessed my superhero dad for the first time seem vulnerable and I noticed how easy it was for people to leave him out, not intentionally but in a group conversation made up of speaking and listening. When someone's ears don't work, how included can they be?' Inspiration: The Silent Child tells the tale of a deaf four-year-old girl who lives in a world of silence until a social worker teaches her how to communicate Acclaimed: The ex soap star, 30, wrote and starred in The Silent Child which is battling against 10 other films in the Live Action Shorts category Appearing earlier this month on Good Morning Britain with star Maisie, six and her father Gilson, Rachel said it was 'surreal' to be in the running for an Academy Award nomination and discussed her father's deafness. She said: 'My dad was profoundly deaf. He lived the last two years of his life profoundly deaf. He lost his hearing very suddenly. I saw then the first-hand effects that hearing loss can have. 'That gave me the impetus to then learn sign language, I quickly fell in love with the language and I have been heavily involved in the deaf community ever since. Adding: 'I've seen the needless struggles that deaf children and deaf people face and that gave me the impetus to write. Star: Rachel found fame starring as wannabe glamour girl Mitzeee Minniver in Hollyoaks from 2010-2013 Inspiration: She said: 'My dad was profoundly deaf. He lived the last two years of his life profoundly deaf. He lost his hearing very suddenly. I saw then the first-hand effects that hearing loss can have' (Pictured alongside her co-star Maisie Sly) 'A lot of the struggles are borne from a lack of education from hearing people, people don't know how to deal with it and not knowing the best way to deal with it and that's why access to services is a constant struggle. It doesn't need to be like that.' And while Rachel told The Sun that she 'thinks' she'll be going to the Oscars, she discussed sharing her time between the UK and Los Angeles. While accustomed to the healthy lifestyle, she said admitted that there is a social pressure for women to look a certain way in Hollywood. She shared: 'Healthy food is more accessible there. It's easy to get a smoothie or a really healthy meal. When I come home I invariably put on a few pounds, then run it off again afterwards. Cute couple: The Silent Child was directed by Rachel's fiance Chris Overton 'There can be a social pressure on women to look a certain way, but as long as I'm happy with myself, then it doesn't matter. Like all women, I put on my jeans sometimes and think they're a bit tight, so I go for an extra run.' Late last year, Rachel announced the joyous news that the film had made the shortlist by retweeting a post from the movie's Twitter account. It read: 'Cant believe were saying this - The Silent Child has made it to the Oscar Shortlist - last 10 films #GodBlessAmerica.' She added: 'Very proud of this'. Shock: Late last year, Rachel announced the joyous news that the film had made the shortlist by retweeting a post from the movie's Twitter account Awareness: Rachel's late father became deaf after undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer, and is an ambassador for the National Deaf Childrens Society Rachel's late father became deaf after undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer, and is an ambassador for the National Deaf Childrens Society. Rachel recently returned to Britain after a period of living in Los Angeles to star in White Gold. She will play alpha female saleswoman Joanne Scott in the second series of the BBC Two comedy about an Essex double-glazing showroom in the eighties. The new role will dash fans hopes that Rachel, who has also appeared in Waterloo Road and Holby City, might return to Hollyoaks. She was just seen kissing her rumoured new boyfriend, Ex On The Beach star Joshua Ritchie, in the UK on Saturday. And on Tuesday, Geordie Shore's Charlotte Crosby revealed she had jetted to Australia, and couldn't 'stop smiling'. The 27-year-old reality TV star took to Instagram to share a makeup free snap of herself in a hammock, saying how thrilled she was to be Down Under. Scroll down for video 'Can't stop smiling': Makeup free Charlotte Crosby jets to Australia...after being caught kissing rumoured new flame Joshua Ritchie on a steamy night out 'Massively jet lagged. No makeup. Slightly sunburnt. Should of defo remembered my sunglasses. But cant stop smiling in my favourite place in the world Australia. I cannot wait to meet the Bondi Sands team tomorrow,' Charlotte captioned the snap. In the image, she has her long dark hair out and over her shoulders, and wears a tight black T-shirt, relaxing in the sun. Charlotte will be attending a VIP launch event for the tanning brand on Wednesday, with a host of local Australian celebrities. Smitten? She was just seen kissing her rumoured new boyfriend, Ex On The Beach star Joshua Ritchie, in the UK on Saturday (pictured) Keeping her fans up-to-date! The pair couldn't keep their hands off one another and Charlotte even shared a snap to Instagram of them together, from the night out The guests will cruise around Sydney Harbour on a yacht. Charlotte was seen at the weekend, on a night out in Newcastle with rumoured new beau Joshua Ritchie. The pair couldn't keep their hands off one another and Charlotte even shared a snap to Instagram of them together, from the night out. They were out as Charlotte filmed her new TV series. In December, they were seen together at an MMA fight of a mutual friend. Dating? In December, they were seen together at an MMA fight of a mutual friend Case of the ex: Charlotte - who is the ex of Geordie Shore's Gary 'Gaz' Beadle - has been mending her heartache from her latest split from her turbulent on/off lover Stephen Bear (seen) Charlotte - who is the ex of Geordie Shore's Gary 'Gaz' Beadle - has been mending her heartache from her latest split from her turbulent on/off lover Stephen Bear. Charlotte had brushed off her former flame's desperate attempt to ensnare her heart once again as she ignored his public declaration of love on Instagram. The couple's 11-month romance came to a dramatic end in October, plagued by 'cheating' claims and Charlotte even feuding with Bear's family on Twitter. Despite briefly rekindling their fiery romance, she vowed they had gone their separate ways for good when she appeared on television in early January. The brunette bombshell claimed she has been spurred on to 'look her best' to 'get him back' with an envy-inducing revenge body following their split. Advertisement She made her catwalk debut for Chanel by opening the Spring-Summer 2018 Paris Fashion Week Show in October. And 16-year-old model Kaia Gerber returned with superb style clout on Tuesday, to model the latest Haute Couture collection, imagined by Karl Lagerfeld, at the Grand Palais. Just days after she announced a capsule collection with the German designer, Cindy Crawford's model daughter proved to have firmly risen to the top of his list of famous model muses. Scroll down for video Ballerina pink: Model Kaia Gerber, daughter of Cindy Crawford, looked incredible in her extravagant creation with matching boots - a floral veil covered her face as she walked down the catwalk with ease She was show-stopping in a structured powder pink dress with feathered sleeves and a matching, wide skirt that showcased what Karl is calling the new 'CHANEL Haute Couture silhouettes.' Her dress was adorned with an intricate floral applique design that perfectly matched her see-through pointed booties. Kaia's bridal-inspired couture look was also complete with a black face veil that softened her pretty features with crystals on a pleated mesh. A corsage of pink and white flowers completed the head piece. Whatever the feather: Kaia looked incredible from every angle as she worked her magic on the runway Summer garden: Kaia was surrounded by a series of model wearing different versions of her look which appeared to be bridal in style - no doubt there will be a waiting list for this beauties Now a star in her own right, Cindy's model daughter was the most recognisable face on the catwalk, where fellow model muses Lily Rose Depp, Cara Delevingne and Kristen Stewart were not present. According to a report by WWD last week, Kaia has solidified her fashion future by joining forces with titan Karl, 84, on her first design collaboration, set to launch in the autumn. Named Karl Lagerfeld X Kaia, the capsule collection will be available in Karl Lagerfeld stores and online globally from September. The fashion website reports that the range of ready-to-wear clothing and accessories will comprise sunglasses, jewellery and shoes. Breathtaking: Kaia wore a black veil over her face to soften her pretty features It is expected to blend Chanel boss Lagerfeld's 'Parisian chic aesthetic and Gerber's signature West Coast casual style'. The mini-me daughter of Cindy Crawford and businessman Rande Gerber has quickly risen to prominence in the fashion world since stepping into the spotlight last year. She made her modelling debut at last season's Fashion Week shows, walking for now fewer than 18 designers in a matter of weeks, including Calvin Klein, Prada, Saint Laurent and Versace. Just one of the famous front row faces to see Kaia walk again on Tuesday, was British pop sensation Rita Ora, who stole the show from her seat. The landscape: The Spring/Summer 2018 Haute Couture collection was presented at Paris' Grand Palais The man himself: Designer Karl Lagerfeld walked out after the models presented their design Botanical wonderland: The presentation was set in a botanical garden scene to suit the spring designs Stunning: Once again, the show completely transformed the beautiful space The 27-year-old really made her mark as she posed for photos wearing a light-coloured mini dress which cost 2,200 and had a hood attached and a plunging neckline. She showed off her lean, golden legs in the ensemble which she wore with a pair of designer trainers outside the Grand Palais. Featuring threads of silk, cotton and cashmere, the How We Do hitmaker teased a glimpse of her cleavage in her outfit. She paired the look with a quilted peach bum bag from the label which matched the neon coral flashes on her footwear. Accessorizing with a Chanel padlock necklace and strings of glass beads, Rita had something of a pared back look, with her blonde hair extensions removed. How She Do: Leggy Rita Ora stole the Chanel Haute Couture fashion show as a guest at the Grand Palais showcase High end fashion: Featuring threads of silk, cotton and cashmere, the How We Do hitmaker teased a glimpse of her cleavage in her outfit The singer, 27, dressed head to toe in the designer, showcasing her incredible physique in a embroidered mini-dress All things bright and beautiful: She paired the look with a quilted peach bum bag from the label which matched the neon coral flashes on her footwear All in the details: She hid her long blonde tresses under the hood of the dress and finished off the look with a chain Chanel padlock and several strands of glass beads While Rita had been up until the early hours, you would never know. Her make-up was expertly applied with peach shimmery eyeshadow and matching lip gloss. She added a touch of sass with round lens sunglasses. She hid her long blonde tresses under the hood of the dress and finished off the look with a chain Chanel padlock and several strands of glass beads. Model Stella Tennant, 47, was also present and wore a black sequin dress over a blouse, with a monochrome scarf and Balenciaga sock boots. All eyes were on Kaia Gerber, 16, during the show. The daughter of supermodel Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber is one of Karl Lagerfeld's fashion muses. She effortlessly glided down the runway wearing a stunning light pink creation which consisted of oversized feathers and embellished fabrics. All white: A model wears a creation for the Chanel Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2018 fashion collection alongside a flower boy Spring is in the air: Models looked resplendent in a variety of bold colours and prints as they appeared before an eager audience The look was completed with a pair of matching boots which were delicate in design and covered in yet more crystals. Her headwear was made of a light veil with a floral design on top. Rita appears to be enjoying some time off in Paris, after releasing her eagerly-awaited duet with One Direction heartthrob Liam Payne, 24, for upcoming movie Fifty Shades Freed. The single For You will feature on the soundtrack for the movie starring Jamie Dornan and Dakota Johnson, due for release next month, just in time for Valentine's Day. The track sees Liam and Rita follow in the footsteps of former One Direction star Zayn Malik and Taylor Swift who teamed up for I Don't Want to Live Forever, the track from the most recent film Fifty Shades Darker. On its release it shot straight to the top of the charts, bagging the number one spot in both the UK and the US. Rita has a supporting role in the famously saucy Fifty Shades of Grey series, playing Christian Grey's sister Mia. Work wear chic: Cream and pink suits worn with ankle boots heavily featured on the day, with leather gloves Magic magenta: Bows, sheer fabrics, chiffons and glitter were the key themes on the catwalk Strutting her stuff: Kaia went for a low-key look as she departed the show yet was still clad in head-to-toe Chanel Edgy glasses: The trendy teen wore a pair of super kooky sunglasses - which did little to protect her from the sun but helped add to her funky look Lagerfeld: She was surrounded by minders clutching bags by Karl Lagerfeld Stylish: Her houndstooth coat added a mature touch while her Converse added a youthful feel While her acting career is blossoming, Rita is currently enjoying a return to the charts with two hit singles - Your Song and Anywhere. The Kosovo-born star stepped away from the music scene due to a protracted legal battle with former record label Roc nation - co-owned by rapper Jay Z - which pushed back the release of her forthcoming second album. She recently revealed her next musical offering had been several years in the making and Rita made sure to praise 'the nicest guy in music', Ed Sheeran, for rushing to her aid when her contract dispute was settled last year. 'I just needed to find a team of people who I could be myself with.. I am really grateful for the support,' she told The Sunday Telegraph. She is muse to Chanel designer Karl Lagerfeld, and is often seen on the front row at his Fashion Week presentations. And actress Ellie Bamber, 20, showed off her fashion credentials on Tuesday as she attended the designer's Haute Couture show in Paris. The blonde beauty put on a very leggy display as she slipped her incredible figure into a tweed mini dress and perspex cape. Scroll down for video Wow factor: Ellie Bamber showed off her fashion credentials on Tuesday as she attended the designer's Haute Couture show in Paris wearing a tweed dress with perspex cape and boots Posing up a storm for the cameras, the Nocturnal Animals star made a bold fashion statement as she paired the striking dress with plastic Chanel ankle boots. Featuring a see-through design with a white block heel, the star made sure to turn heads in the edgy ensemble. She paired her striking look with a clunky chain necklace and opted for a bold red smoky eye and a slick of pink lip-gloss. Ellie styled her fiery red locks in loosely tousled waves and tucked her tresses into the collar of her crimped-edge cape. Edgy: The 20-year-old actress put on a very leggy display as she slipped her incredible figure into a tweed mini dress and perspex cape Making a statement: She paired her striking look with a clunky chain necklace and opted for a bold smokey red eye and a slick of pink lipgloss Ellie's career has being going from strength to strength, with the Surrey-born beauty joining the star-studded cast of the TV adaptation of Les Miserables, which includes Dominic West, Lily Collins and Olivia Colman. And the Corporation has broken new ground by casting a black actor, Selma star David Oyelowo, as Javert a part played by Russell Crowe and Geoffrey Rush in recent film versions. It is thought to be the first time a major screen version of Victor Hugos classic nineteenth-century novel will not have a white actor in the joint lead role. Fashion maven: Ellie is a favourite of Karl Lagerfeld, and is often seen on the front row of Chanel's Fashion Week presentations Space age and disco: These glitzy numbers are the perfect party pieces or will also make for alternative bridesmaid's attire Stunning: This silver and pink two-piece was also well-received by the Chanel fans Here comes the bride: This stunning white ensemble is the perfect look for spring/summer weddings Out of this world: A sexy halter-neck design with a sheer train will no doubt be on many a bride's wish list Spring is in the air: Models looked resplendent in a variety of bold colours and prints as they appeared before an eager audience Broadchurch star Miss Colman, whose schedule will soon be dominated by filming for series three of The Crown, in which she will play the Queen, will also join the cast as Madame Thenardier. Yet any fans of the story waiting to hear her singing voice might be disappointed, as award-winning screenwriter Andrew Daviess adaptation will be strictly non-musical, the BBC has announced. The cast are expected to film in Belgium and northern France from later this month, and the six-part series is expected to air early next year. On the final Sunday of Epiphany celebration of the Transfiguration, Nativity Episcopal Church opens the second year of its Rising Artists series with flutist Daniel Esperante performing selections from Telemanns Fantasie No. 10 for solo flute, Bachs g-minor Flute Sonata, Krebss Fantasie for flute and organ in C, Poulencs Flute Sonata and the Reinecke Flute Concerto. This performance is part of the Church of the Nativitys monthly Rising Artists series featuring Chattanoogas most accomplished young musicians performing works for voice or instrument and organ. Nativity also presents a Mini-Concert series with organist and music director Kristopher Schwinn. This performance takes place during the worship service. Childcare is provided. Bio on Daniel Esperante Daniel Esperante is a Junior Music Performance major at Southern Adventist University. Born in Valencia, Spain and raised in Redlands, CA, Daniel began playing the flute at age 7. Currently, he is principle flute of the SAU Symphony Orchestra and studies with Kristen Holritz, Principle Flute of the Chattanooga Symphony and Opera. Daniel is primarily interested in the earliest and most contemporary examples of the flutes repertoire, particularly unaccompanied Baroque sonatas and modern extended techniques, and will be performing the Krebs Fantasie in mean-tone (an old tuning system very different from that used on the modern piano), on his Junior Recital later this spring. Last year, he took the opportunity to study at a university in his birthplace of Valencia and toured Spain with the orchestra throughout the year. Daniel plans to study orchestral conducting at the graduate level and travel internationally, developing music education programs for young children. The internet lit up last week when Chris Hemsworth appeared in a trailer for what was touted as a brand new Crocodile Dundee film. But now speculation is mounting that the movie may not be real at all, and is in fact just part of a marketing stunt to promote Tourism Australia, which Hemsworth is an ambassador for. On Wednesday, The Daily Telegraph raised suspicions that it could even be a commercial for the Super Bowl on February 4. Scroll down for video So, what is the truth? Speculation is mounting that the new Crocodile Dundee movie is actually a fake marketing stunt The publication points out a number of clues that indicate that the movie is a hoax, including the fact that the director Steve Rogers is actually an advertising executive. Various media outlets have also speculated that the new Dundee is 'probably fake,' including Slash Film and Yahoo Movies. Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Chris Hemsworth and Tourism Australia for comment. Clever! The Daily Telegraph suspects that the movie could be part of a Super Bowl commercial to promote Tourism Australia, as Hemsworth is an ambassador for the company The forthcoming film, titled Dundee: The Son of A Legend Returns Home, will reportedly revolve around Crocodile Dundee's American-raised son, Bryan, returning to his father's native Australian outback. American comedian Danny McBride is billed as playing the lead role in the fish-out-of-water comedy. The official trailer shows the comedian disembarking from a bus in the middle of the outback, clearly unprepared for the harsh climes of the Australian outdoors, wearing a bright blue neck pillow and grappling with his luggage. Two worlds collide: Uptight American Bryan (played by Danny McBride) comes face to face with laidback Australian Wally Jr (played by Chris Chris, meanwhile, looks set to play the foil to the uptight American character, with Wally Jr. in possession of both a friendly smile and a dusty four-wheel drive loaded up with outdoor equipment. Chris's character is thought to be the son of the original film's character Wally, who was Crocodile Dundee's business partner. Meanwhile, a poster featuring Chris and Danny in character has also been unveiled on Twitter, where some have speculated the authenticity of the forthcoming project. Is it real? The lack of detail surrounding the project has led some to wonder whether there will be an actual film, or whether the trailer is merely a trick marketing technique meant to spark interest in a separate forthcoming venture Little is known about the film, which currently has no Wikipedia page, IMDB listing or release date. The lack of detail surrounding the project has led some to wonder whether there will be an actual film, or whether the trailer is merely a trick marketing technique meant to spark interest in a separate forthcoming venture. 'Now Chris is in this!? How did this one slip under the radar? Its not just a Super Bowl commercial is it?' one sceptical viewer wrote on Twitter. She's set to bid farewell to the Cobbles this year. But before her swan song from Coronation Street, Catherine Tyldesley arrived to Manchester's Piccadilly station alongside co-star Lucy Fallon as they travelled to London for Tuesday night's National Television Awards. The 34-year-old soap star cut an effortlessly chic figure in a statement plaid knee-length coat as she pulled her large black suitcase behind her with her co-star and on-screen love interest Shayne Ward. Scroll down for video Catherine Tyldesley arrived to Manchester's Piccadilly station with co-star Shayne Ward ahead of Tuesday night's National Television Awards in London The blonde beauty teamed her eye-catching garment with a pair of skintight black denims which highlighted her slender pins. Letting her jacket do the talking, she popped on a simple round neck long-sleeved top underneath the statement piece and added inches to her petite frame with her heeled suede ankle boots. She accessorised her look with a pair of black-framed glasses while draping her large grey tote over her shoulder. Complementing his co-star's low-key appearance, Shane, 33, donned a leather jacket over his grey T-shirt which matched his black jeans. Following suit: Corrie's Lucy Fallon and her beau Tom Leech followed their co-stars Having a laugh: Catherine giggled as Shayne got down on one knee outside their train carriage He carried his suit bag in his free hand while sporting a leather peaked cap while making his way to their train carriage. The soap star announced her exit from Coronation Street at the beginning of December, insisting walking away from the show had been a 'difficult decision' for her to make. Speaking to The Sun, Catherine revealed: 'Coronation Street has been a dream job for me which is why this was such a difficult decision to leave. 'Eva has been such fun to play over the last seven years, and who knows, one day she might storm the cobbles of Weatherfield again. Giggling: The 34-year-old soap star cut an effortlessly chic figure in a statement plaid knee-length coat as she pulled her large black suitcase behind her 'In the meantime Im excited about the future, new acting projects, and spending time with my family.' Catherine has played the role of Eva for seven years, and announced her exit in the same week that her co-star Shayne Ward also announced his departure, with show bosses hinting at an 'explosive exit' for the duo, but not necessarily together. She left the show for a brief stint in 2014/2015 - she took maternity leave whilst pregnant with her first child. She went back to work in July 2015 and Eva reappeared on-screen that September - when she began her tryst with Shaynes Aidan Conner. A Coronation Street spokesperson said: 'We can confirm that Cath Tyldesley will leave Coronation Street at the end of her current contract next year after seven years in the show. Stepping out in style: Showcasing her chic style, Lucy - who plays Bethany Platt on the long-running show - wrapped up in a cosy cream jacket over her cropped denims as she pulled her white cabin bag alongside her boyfriend Tom Hanging on the telephone: She chatted on a phone as she arrived in London's Euston station later in the day Wrapped up: Corrie's Jennie McAlpine, 33, sported a teal-coloured coat as she arrived to the train station with her co-stars Keeping warm: She teamed her look with a camel-coloured scarf with teal detailing Delighted: Make-up free Faye Brookes (L) - who plays Kate Connor - and Sair Khan - who plays Alya Nazir - carried their dress bags in their hands 'Cath's portrayal of Eva Price has made her a firm favourite amongst fans and she will be missed. The producers and writers are currently working on her exit storyline which will be on screen in early summer.' Show bosses have said of her exit: 'Nobody will see this coming. Viewers are going to be absolutely stunned. It's going to be a blow for the fans - but also a massive TV moment.' Showcasing her chic style, Lucy - who plays Bethany Platt on the long-running show - wrapped up in a cosy cream jacket over her cropped denims as she pulled her white cabin bag alongside her boyfriend Tom. The 22-year-old - who is up for Best Serial Drama performance at the NTAs - sent the gossip mill into overdrive with a suggestive Instagram caption and hinted that she was engaged after referring to Tom as her 'to be husband' in December. Red alert: Sair walked to her train with Julia Goulding (L) - who plays Shona Ramsay - in a pair of red boots Catching up: The pair chatted away as they made their way to the train with their bags and ensembles in tow Glam gal: Barbara Knox, 84 - who plays Rita Tanner on the Cobbles - arrived to the station in her finery. The Corrie legend is nominated for Best Serial Drama Performance at this year's NTA's The actress took to the photosharing site to post a snap with her beau and cousin, branding her relative her 'maid of honour' while discussing 'plus ones' in the same caption. Lucy has been dating Tom for nearly two years and in March they took their romance to the next level by moving in together. She recently admitted she was found 'The One' in her handsome beau and confessed they have already started thinking about marriage - which made her hints over the festive period all the more timely. Excitement: Rob Mallard - who plays Daniel Osbourne - arrived solo to the station carrying his Moss Brothers suit bag and covering his blond locks with a black beanie alongside Antony Cotton (R) All smiles: Sam Aston (L) - who plays Chesney Brown - and Andy Wymant _ who plays Kirk Sutherland - walked side-by-side Other Coronation Street stars joining their pals at the train station included NTA nominated Corrie legend Barbara Knox (Rita Tanner), Antony Cotton (Sean Tully) as well as Julia Goulding (Shona Ramsay) and Sair Khan (Alya Nazir). Rob Mallard - who plays Daniel Osbourne - arrived solo to the station carrying his Moss Brothers suit bag and covering his blond locks with a black beanie. The 25-year-old actor is nominated in the Best Newcomer category for his portrayal as Daniel Osbourne in the much-loved ITV soap. Eye-catching: Hollyoaks' Chelsee Healy made sure to command attention in her long red wool coat Pin-flashing: She sported a sensational thigh-grazing mini dress Mane attraction: The soap beauty, 29, worked her brunette locks into curlers Beauty: She gave fans a glimpse of her beauty look for the event as she sported dramatic eye make-up Healthy: Coronation Street's Alison King was spotted in Cheshire grocery shopping while her co-stars travelled to London Rob faces stiff competition in his all male category againts EastEnders' Danny Walters, Emmerdale's Ned Porteous and Hollyoaks' Nathan Morris. Also preparing for tonight's festivities is Loose Women panellist Linda Robson, who hilariously revealed how she was preparing for the award show's red carpet after revealling she lost two-and-a-half stone. The 59-year-old actress made the announcement in a video she posted on Instagram ahead of the glitzy occasion. The Birds Of A Feather said: 'I've given up wine, I've exercised, I've been to a bounce class. I've been to Barry's bootcamp, I've lost two-and-a-half stone. Arrival: Sair arrived in London's Euston station with her bags Glee: She smiled as she waited in the train station to be taken to her hotel Going wild: She wrapped a zebra printed scarf around her frame 'I plucked my chin, I died my eyebrows, I've had my roots done. I've had a spray tan, all in the hope that Loose Women win an NTA tomorrow.' Coronation Street is up for three awards at Tuesday night's 23rd National Television Awards including Best Newcomer, Best Serial Drama and Best Serial Drama Performance - which see's Corrie's Lucy Fallon and Barbara Knox going head-to-head. Meanwhile, double act Ant & Dec will face strong competition from pals Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield to be voted the nation's favourite presenting duo once again at the star-studded ceremony. Not only will the I'm A Celebrity duo have to face their friends, but Holly and Phil will have to face off against each other, as individuals at not a double act. Green with envy: Sam looked casual in a green Polo Ralph Lauren jacket Casual: He teamed his designer number with a pair of grey jeans and white T-shirt Thumbs up: Former Hollyoaks' star and I'm A Celeb alum Jamie Lomas, 42, gave a thumbs up to waiting cameras Prepared: Jamie sported a large overnight bag across his body Glowing: Jennie - who plays Fizz on Corrie - worked her trademark flame-coloured hair into a messy top knot Fur real? Real Housewives of Cheshire star Lauren Simon arrived in London in a statement grey faux fur coat Currently, The Drama gong looks too close to call with infidelity potboiler Doctor Foster and date rape drama Liar up against medical stalwarts Call The Midwife and Casualty. Popular fantasy series Game Of Thrones will also be hoping to take the prize home to Westeros. It is a clash of the acting titans for Drama Performance, with Hollywood actor Tom Hardy from Taboo and Broadchurch's leading man David Tennant tackling actresses Sheridan Smith, Jenna Coleman and Suranne Jones. The Great British Bake Off will be hoping to take home the Challenge Show trophy after its move from the BBC to Channel 4, but faces tough competition from I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here, MasterChef and last year's breakout show Love Island. Showing them how its down: Reality star Ampika Pickston, 36, looked incredibly glamorous as she walked through the train station Keeping it real: Real Housewives of Cheshire star Dawn Ward, 44, arrived into London's Euston station Style savvy: Dawn's daughter Taylor followed her mother's stylish footsteps in an all black look The new Crime Drama category recognises a year when primetime mysteries became the nation's favourite TV genre. The shortlist pits Line Of Duty against Broadchurch, Little Boy Blue and Sherlock. Other categories include Talent Show, Serial Drama, Comedy and Newcomer. This year the NTAs are paying tribute to the late Sir Bruce Forsyth by naming a major prize after him. Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway, The Graham Norton Show, Celebrity Juice and All Round To Mrs Brown's have the honour of competing for the inaugural Bruce Forsyth Entertainment Award. The event will once again be held at The O2 Arena in London and is hosted by Dermot O'Leary. Walk this way: Julia was all smiles as she wandered around in her navy blue converse Keep smiling: Actress Rebecca Ryan arrived in high spirits She's got a successful singing career under her belt, having won The X Factor Australia in 2013. And on Tuesday, Dami Im enjoyed a date night with her husband Noah, at the Australian Open. Cutting a casual figure, Dami and her man watched Rafael Nadal battle Marin Cilic. Game, set, love match! The X Factor's Dami Im cuts a casual figure as she and husband Noah enjoy a date night at the Australian Open Dami looked stylish in ripped black jeans, which she teamed with black heels and a black blouse, which featured cut-out shoulders. Dami had her long locks out and straightened and wore dark tinted shades, with gold hoop earrings. Noah meanwhile, wore a black T-shirt and jeans. Sitting pretty: Dami looked stylish in ripped black jeans, which she teamed with black heels and a black blouse, which featured cut-out shoulders On the night, Dami took to Instagram to share a shot of herself and her man, saying how much they were enjoying being at the event. 'We've always wanted to come and watch the Australian Open and here we are,' Dami captioned the shot. 'It's going to be a good one tonight! Nadal vs Cilic. Thanks for looking after us for our first AO.' Tennis fans! On the night, Dami took to Instagram to share a shot of herself and her man, saying how much they were enjoying being at the event Doing well: Dami - who is known for songs including Sound of Silence and Super Love - has had huge success after her stint on The X Factor. The beauty performed at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2016, coming second place overall Dami - who is known for songs including Sound of Silence and Super Love - has had huge success after her stint on The X Factor. The beauty performed at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2016, coming second place overall. Dami performed in Eurovision in Sweden, performing Sound of Silence. She has yet to confirm reports that she is pregnant with her first child with husband Jesse Plemons. And it looked like Kirsten Dunst still wanted to keep that new under wraps on her latest outing. The 35-year-old actress concealed her belly in a baggy top while arriving for a trip to Ojai, California on Monday. Lovely lady: Kristen Dunst concealed her belly in a baggy top while arriving for a trip to Ojai, California on Monday She rocked a slightly oversized red striped blouse while out and about in the small Ventura County town with her 29-year-old fiance though he was not pictured. Along with the top, she oozed business chic as she sported a black suit with matching leather loafers. Her signature blonde locks were worn down flowing over her shoulders. Out of town: The 35-year-old actress wore a slightly oversized red striped blouse while out and about in the Ventura County town with her fiance Jesse Plemons though he was not pictured Fashion first: Along with the top, she oozed business chic as she sported a black suit with matching leather loafers She accessorized with a pair of black designer shades which were worn over her face which had natural, complimentary make-up on it. While they are yet to confirm the news, UsWeekly reported the pregnancy last week, with a source telling a publication they are expecting their first child. Kirsten, who announced her engagement to Jesse earlier this year, revealed in an interview in Marie Claire UK's July issue that she felt: 'Its time to have babies and chill.' In her insightful interview earlier this year, she continued: 'I wasn't one of those "I need a baby!" people until my goddaughter was born. I love her so much. Loved up: In 2016, Kirsten began dating Jesse and they were engaged within the year, as they are pictured together in New York back in November 'That love is just like you can't experience that unless you have a kid. I put her to bed last night and she woke up this morning and said to her mom, "Where's Kiki?" I just love that love. That's what I want.' In 2016, Kirsten began dating Jesse and they were engaged within the year. Speaking about the moment her Fargo co-star proposed to her, she told Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show: 'I was a little sick when [he proposed], which was funny. 'But that's good. Sickness and in health, you know I was in sweats.' Christopher Plummer, 88, the actor who replaced disgraced Kevin Spacey at the very last minute in All The Money In The World, has become the oldest person ever to receive an acting Oscar nomination after he was listed for Best Supporting Actor. News of his nod was announced on Tuesday, with his nomination being the only the film received, despite great expense incurred for the re-shooting after Kevin was accused of making unwanted sexual advances toward young men. The fallout prompted accusations made against two-time Academy Award winning actor Spacey, who was pulled from the production of one of this year's biggest films, at the eleventh hour. Scroll down for video Got the nod: Christopher Plummer, 88, the actor who replaced disgraced Kevin Spacey at the very last minute, has received a Best Supporting Actor Oscar nomination for his part in All The Money In The World Just weeks before the film was due for release, scenes were completely re-shot by leading actors Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg, with Christopher stepping into Spacey's shoes as J Paul Getty. Christopher was subsequently nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category for his stunning last-minute performance which was filmed in November. The nomination is his third in the category, after winning in 2012 for Beginners and being nominated in 2010 for The Last Station. While the nomination is naturally a huge victory for the star, he has also made history as the oldest star ever nominated for an Oscar having taken over from John Huston, who was given a nod for Prizzi's Honor in 1985 aged 79. Happy days: News of his nod was announced on Tuesday, with his nomination being the only the film received, despite great expense incurred for the re-shooting after Kevin was accused of making unwanted sexual advances toward young men Speaking about the role previously, the octogenarian said: 'It isnt replacing. In a funny way its starting all over again because its going to be different, naturally... 'I think its very sad what happened to him. Kevin is such a talented and a terrifically gifted actor, and its so sad. Its such a shame. His co-star Michelle Williams also spoke out about Spacey, as she said: 'This doesnt do anything to ease the suffering of people who were all too personally affected by Kevin Spacey, but it is our little act of trying to right a wrong. 'And it sends a message to predators you cant get away with this anymore. Something be done.' Departure: The fallout prompted accusations made against two-time Academy Award winning actor Kevin Spacey, who was pulled from the production of one of this year's biggest films All The Money In The World, at the eleventh hour It was announced last week that Spacey is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police over a third alleged sexual assault. The latest accusation against the 58-year-old star relates to an incident in Westminster in 2005. It has brought the total number of Metropolitan Police investigations involving the American Beauty actor to three. Scotland Yard said in a statement: 'On 13 December we received an allegation that the man sexually assaulted a man (Victim 3) in 2005 in Westminster. Officers from the Child Abuse and Sexual Offences Command are investigating.' Speaking out: It was announced last week that Spacey is being investigated by the Metropolitan Police over a third alleged sexual assault. The latest accusation against the 58-year-old star relates to an incident in Westminster in 2005 The Metropolitan Police have also investigated two other allegations made against Spacey from 2005 and 2008. Spacey, who has won two Oscars awards, has been accused of sexual assault by a number of men both in the UK and in the US. The two-time Oscar-winning actor has been accused of sexual assault by numerous men in the U.S. and England. He was one of the first Hollywood stars to face accusations in the fallout of the Harvey Weinstein scandal. The actor was dumped by Netflix's House Of Cards and Sir Ridley Scott erased him from his completed film, All The Money In The World, in re-shoots costing millions. Kim Kardashian welcomed her third child into the world via gestational carrier last week. And the 37-year-old reality TV siren wanted to let her fans know that even though she didn't carry the baby, named Chicago, that doesn't mean she's slacking when it comes to being the best parent she can be. On Tuesday the wife of Kanye West took to her website kimkardashianwest.com to name The Baby Essentials I Can't Live Without for her little girl, who she has nicknamed Chi. Not Chi: Kim Kardashian shared a flashback photo with daughter North to talk about what she has bought for Chicago in a Tuesday web post Kim has yet to share an image of Chicago West. For her Tuesday post, the star shared a sweet flashback image with her eldest child North, who is now aged four. Kim also has son Saint, aged two, with rapper West. The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star began her post: 'With the arrival of our new baby, Chi, there are so many everyday essentials that I can't live without.' The first two: Kim and Kanye already have son Saint, aged two, and daughter North, aged four; seen in December Added the Calvin Klein model: 'Like KicKee pantsmy kids live in these for the first 6 months!' KicKee Pants makes onesies and pajama sets. Kim also listed a Bloom Coco Stylewood Bouncer with Organic Seat Pad and a Comotomo Baby Bottle Pink. She also liked to use the Chenille My First Baby Blanket and Cheengoo Unicorn Ring Rattle. Sweet: On Sunday Miss Kardashian shared a photo of a shirt customized with her daughter's name in cursive, captioning the shot with a simple baby emoji Big news: The star announced the baby was born on January 15 at 12:47 am And she's a fan of Bee Essentials Set of 10 Burp Cloths and Clover & Birch Activity Gym Knit. She swears by the Oli And Carol Brucy the Broccoli Teether and says she likes to use My Best Friend Organic Nursing Pillow. On Sunday Miss Kardashian shared a photo of a shirt customized with her daughter's name in cursive, captioning the shot with a simple baby emoji. The lilac garment featured a soft cotton printed with a faded script reading the geographically named-child's moniker. Good mummy After posting some of Chicago's swag online, the star demonstrated her homemaking skills via social; she made blueberry muffins Chicago was named after dad Kanye's Windy City origins. It appears like the newborn already has a nickname - thanks to auntie Khloe. Kim's little sister - who's currently expecting her first child with beau Tristan Thompson - revealed that her niece was known as Chi, pronounced shy. 'I loooooover her name,' wrote the proud auntie. 'Hey Chi (shy)'. The little one follows in older siblings North, four, and Saint's, two, footsteps. The latest: Kim was seen in a Calvin Klein ad with (from left) Kylie Jenner (who was hiding her baby bump), Khloe, Kourtney and Kendall Kim announced the choice of name on her blog on Friday morning, in the form of a birth announcement. The card also carried the baby's January 15 birth date, alongside her birth weight of 7lbs 6oz. After posting some of Chicago's swag online, the star demonstrated her homemaking skills via social. On her show: The 37-year-old with older sister Kourtney on KUWTK Sunday She shared a photo of some baked goods in her oven with the caption 'Blueberry muffin time' on top. Another snap had the Armenian-American beauty narrarating the scene, as she cooed, 'Look at how delicious you guys' at the goodies. She also praised her state-of-the-art oven, adding: 'In this oven, they cook so fast,' she said, 'Like five minutes.' Kim's newborn isn't the only fresh edition expected for the family. Revenge Body hostess Khloe is also pregnant, which younger half-sister Kylie Jenner has been rumored to be expecting since Fall. Kaley Cuoco sure loves dogs. The star wore a canine on her shirt with her the word Educate emblazoned on Sunday. The Big Bang Theory actress, 32, was getting into her car after buying a beverage at Juice Crafters in Los Angeles. Too bad the drink spilled out of the top, getting all over her hands. Educate! Kaley Cuoco stepped out in Los Angeles in a dog t-shirt on Sunday The newly engaged beauty also wore a pair of sweatpants, Ugg boots and a crossbody purse. She wore her hair up in a loose-fitting bun for the casual day out. Cuoco, a vegetarian and longtime animal activist, has four rescue dogs and horses, including a rescued dwarf mini named Shmooshy. Lazy Sunday: She looked comfortable in sweat pants and Ugg boots ahead of a busy work schedule All I need: The Big Bang Theory star laid in bed with fiance Karl and their rescue dog Ruby Kaley and Karl became engaged in 2017 after dating for two years. The professional equestrian popped the question on her 32nd birthday, November 30. 'Well after nearly two years I finally got up the courage to ask her to marry me, Cook posted on Instagram. 'This is the best night of my life and I think the video shows it is the best night for Kaley as well of she said yes!' Besties: Ruby looks completely at peace in her mother's arms Night out: The newly engaged couple also enjoy dressing up for an important night like the Critics Choice Awards The couple dressed up for a night of fun at the Critics Choice Awards on January 11. She announced to her Instagram followers that her groom-to-be was wearing a suit that night that he designed himself. 'True story. @mrtankcook had informed me for weeks he was wearing a suit he designed himself, to the critics choice awards,' she wrote. 'I was legit concerned because I asked 100 times to see it but he just kept saying "dont worry"! Couldnt love you more , Mr. And yes, I loved the suit too. well done!' She rarely fails to highlight her sophisticated style when either gracing red carpets or taking delight in a relaxed stroll. So it's no wonder Kylie Minogue stunned in a fashion forward jumper cape as she headed to London's new U.S embassy on Tuesday. Due to the building's high level of security the 49-year-old pop legend was escorted by policemen while entering the heavily-mirrored establishment, which opened to the public last week in Nine Elms. Scroll down for video Style savvy: Kylie Minogue, 49, stunned in a fashion forward jumper cape as she headed to London's new U.S embassy on Tuesday She's definitely safe! Opened to the public last week, the pop legend was escorted by policemen due to the building's high level of security while entering the heavily-mirrored establishment in Nine Elms Catching the eye in her dark ensemble, Kylie was accompanied by heavily armed police as she headed to the cutting edge building, designed by architecture firm Kieran Timberlake. The blonde beauty certainly made her entrance as she paired her turtleneck jumper with light grey ripped jeans, brown ankle boots. She tipped gradient coloured cat eye sunglasses on her nose while holding onto a black handbag. While accentuating her lips with a slash of pink lipstick, the Can't Get You Out Of My Head hitmaker swept her platinum tresses in an effortless updo as she entered the 12-story transparent cube. Police escorts: Clad in her dark ensemble, Kylie was accompanied by heavily armed police as she headed to the cutting edge building, designed by architecture firm Kieran Timberlake Stylish: The blonde beauty certainly made her entrance as she paired her turtleneck jumper with light grey ripped jeans, brown ankle boots Blonde beauty: While accentuating her lips with a slash of pink lipstick, the Can't Get You Out Of My Head hitmaker swept her platinum tresses in an effortless updo as she entered the 12-story transparent cube The former Neighbours actress is currently preparing to release her fourteenth album, which she recently admitted helped heal her heartache following her split from Joshua Sasse. Kylie gave her legion of fans a sneak peek by dropping the official track list last month. 'I am SUPER excited to share with you the track listing for #GOLDEN,' she wrote on Instagram. Chic: She tipped gradient coloured cat eye sunglasses on her nose while holding onto a black handbag Busy schedule: The former Neighbours actress is currently preparing to release her fourteenth album, which she recently admitted helped heal her heartache following her split from Joshua Sasse An array of tracks on the album contained her signature titles, including 'Raining Glitter' and 'One Last Kiss.' Discussing the album last month, Kylie admitted working in the studio had been a kind of therapy for her after a difficult 2016 - which saw her split from boyfriend Joshua Sasse. She explained to The Sun: 'The end of 2016 was not a good time for me. So when I started working on the album in 2017 it was, in many ways, a great escape. Teaser: Kylie gave her legion of fans a sneak peek of her latest album by dropping the official track list last month Candid: Discussing the album last month, Kylie admitted working in the studio had been a kind of therapy for her after a difficult 2016 - which saw her split from boyfriend Joshua Sasse 'I was quite fragile when I started work on it but being able to express myself in the studio made quick work of regaining my sense of self writing about various aspects of my life, the highs and lows, with a real sense of knowing and of truth. 'And irony. And joy. If there's one love that will always be there for you, it's music. Well, it is for me, anyway.' Kylie and Joshua announced their split in February last year after three years together. She has arrived in Paris for the Haute Couture Fashion Week. And Portuguese beauty Sara Sampaio looked flawless as she arrived to the Armani Prive Fashion Show on Tuesday. The 26-year-old Victoria's Secret beauty was a vision in a soft pink jumpsuit with satin belt pulling in her waist. Scroll down for video Beauty in blush: Sara Sampaio is pictured arriving at the Armani Prive show during Paris Fashion Week: Haute Couture on Tuesday Peeping out from under the legs of her one-piece were some stylish silver pumps and she accessorized with a patterned white clutch with gold details. Sara's raven tresses fell in glossy gentle waves framing her face and she sported dusky red eyeshadow. While Sara is clearly blessed in the looks department, the model insisted her super-human figure is merely illusion and not how she appears in real life. Model behavior: Portuguese beauty flattered her slender figure a super chic pink jumpsuit Flawless: Sara, 26, looked immaculate in the one-piece which featured split sleeves On point: The brunette beauty teamed the pretty jumpsuit with silver pumps The star candidly told The Edit: 'People need to realize that models get [professional] hair and make-up, incredible lighting, and we know how to pose. 'I've been doing this job for almost 10 years so I know how my body looks good from different angles. But I dont look like that in real life.' Sara is currently dating British millionaire Oliver Ripley who she's been with since 2016. The Oxford graduate was previously in a relationship with Brazillian supermodel Jeisa Chiminazzo, 32, with the pair tying the knot in 2013 before splitting in 2015. Fresh look: Sara's raven locks fell glossy in gentle waves and she complemented her look with dusky red eyeshadow She recently revealed that she is expecting her second child with husband Dan Osborne. And Jacqueline Jossa was a vision of beauty as she attended the National Television Awards at London's O2 Arena on Tuesday. The 25-year-old soap star looked positively radiant on the night as she cuddled up to her husband Dan Osborne ahead of joining her EastEnders co-stars inside the venue. Scroll down for video Cute couple: Jacqueline Jossa was a vision of beauty as she attended the National Television Awards alongside husband Dan Osborne at London's O2 Arena on Tuesday The brunette beauty showcased her blossoming baby bump in a glamorous silver gown with a strapless neckline that flared out into a full skirt. Keeping her accessories simple, the brunette beauty donned a pair of diamond earrings whilst she carried a small clutch bag that complemented her gown. She finished off the look by styling her glossy chestnut locks in loose waves that framed her pretty features, whilst she boasted a healthy pregnancy glow. Dressed to impress: The brunette beauty showcased her blossoming baby bump in a glamorous silver gown with a strapless neckline that flared out into a full skirt National Television Awards 2018 - Who were the winners? BRUCE FORSYTH ENTERTAINMENT AWARD Ant & Dec's Saturday Night Takeaway CRIME DRAMA Broadchurch DRAMA PERFORMANCE Suranne Jones (Doctor Foster) COMEDY Peter Kay's Car Share NEWCOMER Danny Walters (Keanu Taylor, EastEnders) DAYTIME This Morning TV JUDGE David Walliams CHALLENGE SHOW I'm A Celebrity... Get Me Out Of Here DRAMA Doctor Foster TV PRESENTER Ant & Dec TALENT SHOW Strictly Come Dancing SERIAL DRAMA Emmerdale SERIAL DRAMA PERFORMANCE Lucy Fallon (Bethany Platt) FACTUAL ENTERTAINMENT Gogglebox IMPACT AWARD Blue Planet 2 SPECIAL RECOGNITION Paul OGrady: For The Love Of Dogs Advertisement Jacqueline was attending the event to support her EastEnders co-stars, as the BBC soap was up for Best Serial Drama. The gong instead went to Emmerdale. ITV will broadcast the star-studded event, fronted by returning host Dermot O'Leary, live from London's O2 Arena at 7.30pm. Jacqueline's outing came after she admitted to OK! magazine that she is expecing her second child but that the pregnancy was not planned. Jacqueline married the former TOWIE star, 26, last summer, after welcoming their first child Ella in February 2015. 'We both started laughing when the test was positive,' Jacqueline confessed in an interview this weekend. Dan added: 'We hadn't been trying so it was a huge shock. 'I think I'm still getting my head around it. 'Kids are a blessing but having three children is going to be a big responsibility. 'I'm not going to lie, I feel quite scared!' Jacqueline's good news comes as she revealed she was worried about how she would pay her bills after her character Lauren Branning was written out of EastEnders. After seven years on the BBC One soap, the brunette and was concerned when she first heard the news. She confessed to OK! magazine:'When they told me the plans I was really scared. 'Getting a job on a soap is a very comforting thing for an actress because its regular work, so when I realised that was being taken away, it did worry me.' Jacqueline married Dan in June last year and also acts as step-mother to his son Teddy, four. Erlanger Health System is proceeding with the construction of a Radiation Oncology Center on the East Campus. It will include the installation of a linear accelerator at the Erlanger East Medical Office Building that is rising rapidly. Britt Tabor, chief financial officer, said the building was set to be ready this fall. However, he said it is ahead of schedule and should be open this summer. Erlanger is cooperating with Johnson Development on the project on Gunbarrel Road. Erlanger plans to eventually purchase three linear accelerators from Elekta at a cost of $9 million. The other two will be added later to replace current models at the Third Street Campus. The new center will have 80,000 square feet. Erlanger will be occupying 48,500 square feet, while Johnson Development will be renting the remainder. Officials said it is part of the strategy to develop a comprehensive cancer program at Erlanger. Outpatient cancer patients are expected to increase by 13 percent in the next five years and 22 percent in the next 10 years. Police believe there may have been other victims of a group of youths who assaulted a woman in a the lift of a Melbourne apartment early on New Year's Day. The 24-year-old woman was alone in the Southbank apartment lift at about 3.30am when a number of youths got in and tried to stop her getting off on her floor. She suffered bruising and a lump on the head. Police believe two other unidentified women were earlier assaulted by the group in the same building and urge the victims to come forward. A second group of refugees accepted for resettlement in the United States has departed Australia's offshore detention centres. Fifty eight refugees will fly from Port Moresby in Papua New Guinea to New York on Tuesday, joining 54 who have already arrived in the US from Manus Island and Nauru. "I am very happy to be free of the hell that the Australian government made for us on Manus. But we are sad for those who are still waiting so long," one refugee said in an emailed statement. Following last year's horror flu season, NSW children between six months and five years old will be eligible for free flu jabs this winter, the state government has announced. It's part of a $3.5 million influenza vaccination program that was announced by the premier and health minister on Tuesday. "The program will target more than 400,000 children to ensure better protection for them and the wider community," Premier Gladys Berejiklian said. Last year's flu season was the most severe in NSW since the 2009 pandemic, with more than 12,000 confirmed cases of the flu in kids under five. Two 15-year-old boys have been charged over a series of deliberately-lit bushfires in Tasmania's north. Police allege the pair lit seven fires in bushland at Rocherlea near Launceston on Sunday afternoon after being found nearby with a cigarette lighter. The fires were under control on Tuesday morning, but are expected to burn for some time. "They're restricted to old dead tree stumps," inspector Darren Hopkins said, adding the two boys will appear in court at a later date. Investigators believe a separate fire in the same area that forced the evacuation of an RSPCA animal shelter and waste centre was also deliberately lit. It took about 60 firefighters and water-bombing aircraft to control the blaze that sparked on Monday afternoon. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says discussions on Australia returning to multilateral naval exercises are "progressing well". It has been reported in Indian media that Australia will be invited to this year's Malabar naval exercises along with India, the United States and Japan. Mr Turnbull on Tuesday declined to confirm the report but was positive about the idea, which could potentially inflame tensions with China. "The discussions that we're having are progressing very well," Mr Turnbull told reporters in Brisbane. "We participated in those exercises in the past ... and we are always looking forward to working with our partners in the region in exercises of that kind." Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne, who was in India for talks last week, said he had "not caught up on that particular piece of news". "I can't comment until I've seen the detail," Mr Pyne said. In 2007, Australia participated in Exercise Malabar but the Rudd Labor government withdrew after concerns were expressed by China. However talks with India to return to the exercises have been ongoing since 2015. Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull says he would welcome a proposal by Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk to discuss cyberbullying at next month's COAG meeting. Mr Turnbull says the government had already taken steps to address the problem when it appointed an e-safety commissioner in 2013, but the wider community had a responsibility to focus on a "zero-tolerance" approach. "Kids have always said unkind things about each other. I suspect that won't change. But what the internet has done is, it enables it to be amplified in a very damaging way," he said in Brisbane on Tuesday. A man has been arrested after allegedly smashing his car into a North Queensland petrol station and ramming into police with three children, aged 11, 5 and 2, inside the vehicle. Police will allege the petrol station's doors were destroyed when the offender reversed into them at speed before ramming a police car after 3am on Monday on Townsville Road, Ingham. The 36-year-old will appear in Townsville Magistrates Court on Tuesday charged with 23 offences including seven counts of the dangerous operation of a motor vehicle and two counts of endangering children by exposure. WHAT NEXT FOR THE AUSTRALIAN SENATE'S VACANT SEATS COALITION * JIM MOLAN - Incoming Liberal senator and retired major-general is set to be sworn-in on the first sitting day of the year, February 5. Was second in line to take the seat of former Nationals deputy leader Fiona Nash who was disqualified over her UK citizenship. Molan's fellow Liberal, Hollie Hughes, was also struck out by the High Court over her government job. * RICHARD COLBECK - The former tourism minister is expected to re-enter federal parliament, replacing Stephen Parry after the ex-Senate president resigned over dual citizenship. Colbeck has to wait until Jacqui Lambie's potential replacement Steve Martin has his eligibility tested by the High Court in February before his path back to Canberra is confirmed. * GEORGE BRANDIS - Will return to parliament to give his valedictory speech on February 7 before resigning to replace Alexander Downer as Australia's High Commissioner to the UK. The preselection process to replace Brandis is under way in Queensland, with a large field expected to contest the LNP vacancy. LABOR * KATY GALLAGHER - The ACT senator could be forced to wait until March to find out whether the High Court will rule her to be ineligible. She argues she took all possible steps to renounce her British citizenship before the 2016 election. If Gallagher gets the boot, union boss David Smith shapes as her replacement. * KRISTINA KENEALLY - Looks certain to fill the casual vacancy to be created by Sam Dastyari's impending resignation over his links to Chinese political donors. The former NSW premier is likely to get the nod from the ALP's administrative committee on February 2, before being endorsed by a joint sitting of the NSW state parliament. CROSSBENCH * SKYE KAKOSCHKE-MOORE - The former Nick Xenophon Team senator has launched a bid to replace herself after quitting in November over her British citizenship. Her legal team will argue the next candidate on the NXT's 2016 Senate election ticket, Tim Storer, is ineligible because he has quit the party. A directions hearing has been set down for Wednesday. * STEVE MARTIN - Due to replace colourful former Tasmanian senator Jacqui Lambie, Martin faces questions over his eligibility because he is mayor of Devonport. That could be considered an "office of profit under the Crown", ruling him out. The government is in Martin's corner, arguing local councillors are entitled to sit in parliament. The case will be heard on February 6. THE NUMBERS NOW: * Coalition - 27 * Labor - 26 * Greens - 9 * Independents and parties with one senator - 5 * Pauline Hanson's One Nation - 3 * Nick Xenophon Team - 2 * Vacancies - 4 South Australian Skye Kakoschke-Moore is seeking to become the first member of the Senate to return to federal politics after being forced out during the citizenship saga. The former Nick Xenophon Team MP quit the upper house in November after it emerged she held dual citizenship, making her one of seven people to lose their seat in the Upper House during the constitutional scandal. But Ms Kakoschke-Moore is arguing she should return to parliament, with her case due for a directions hearing in the High Court in Melbourne on Wednesday. She was set to be replaced after a special count by the next candidate on the NXT 2016 Senate election ticket, Tim Storer. But Mr Storer has quit the party and Ms Kakoschke-Moore's legal team says this renders him ineligible to take the seat. At a hearing in December, her lawyers argued she should be included in the recount because she renounced her British citizenship and was now eligible for parliament. As it stands, Ms Kakoschke-Moore is one of 14 of the 76 senators elected in July 2016 who will have left their jobs by the end of the first parliamentary sitting week of 2018. Labor's Sam Dastyari is expected to formally quit parliament this week after announcing he would leave late last year amid scrutiny of his dealings with a Chinese businessman and political donor. Former attorney-general George Brandis is due to give his valedictory speech on February 7 before he jets off to the UK to become Australia's high commissioner. Meanwhile, a separate High Court hearing could take the Senate's turnover rate to 20 per cent if Labor's Katy Gallagher is ruled to be ineligible for holding dual citizenship. Senator Gallagher could be forced to wait until March before her fate becomes clearer but is in danger of becoming the ALP's first citizenship casualty in the upper house. Most of the fireworks that will decorate the Perth sky during Australia Day celebrations this week will be unexploded crackers from last year's cancelled show. The Skyworks event was cancelled after experienced pilot Peter Lynch, 52, and his Indonesian partner Endah Cakrawati, 30, died when his seaplane crashed in front of horrified families gathered around the Swan River. About 90 per cent of the more than the 30,000 fireworks have been recycled from the cancelled show, with director of pyrotechnic firm Howard and Sons Andrew Howard saying the display will be Australia's largest. The Hamilton County Schools Opportunity Zone elementary schools are partnering with Read 20 to inspire and celebrate the reading success of children. The new partnership will be kicked off at Orchard Knob Elementary School on Wednesday, at 8:30 a.m. As part of the recognition program, children will receive an I Jumped a Level sticker for moving up a reading level each time the students make sufficient progress to move up another level in the reading program. The children will also get to sign a large I Jumped a Level banner that will hang in the front lobby of each Opportunity Zone school. Community partners and political leaders will join with teachers and administrators to honor the reading success of young children. We want to acknowledge and celebrate the reading progress that is taking place in each of our Opportunity Zone schools due to the hard work of our teachers and the implementation of both guided reading and a new reading intervention model, said Jill Levine, chief of the Opportunity Zone. Read 20s mission as a public/private partnership was born out of the Chattanooga areas efforts to boost education and literacy. Officials said, "The program is dedicated to creating a strong community of readers by promoting literacy skills and the importance of reading with children at least 20 minutes a day or more. Read 20 aims to cultivate a love of reading through working with parents, grandparents, early childhood education professionals and community leaders." Queensland police are hunting a man who assaulted a female officer in Maryborough as she tried to arrest him. The man, believed to be linked to a number of break-ins and stolen vehicle offences, struck the officer several times in the face on Thursday before fleeing on foot. She was treated for face and neck injuries. Police believe the offender remains in the Maryborough region and is sleeping in sheds and under houses. They have released an image of the man to help track him down but are advising people not to approach him and call them immediately. Donald Trump supporter Tennys Sandgren has deleted 18 months worth of tweets after his political views were put under the microscope following his unlikely charge into the Australian Open quarter-finals. After downing No.5 seed Dominic Thiem on Monday to move into the last eight at Melbourne Park, the 26-year-old Sandgren was grilled on his seeming support for the alt-right movement in the United States. Sandgren said he found some of the online content "interesting" but that he did not support the movement. Queensland detectives are hoping to question a convicted rapist and murderer over the 2005 disappearance of a Melbourne mother. Francis John Wark was on Monday convicted of murdering West Australian teenager Hayley Dodd and Queensland officers are in Perth working to set up an interview with the 61-year-old. The investigation into the December 2005 disappearance of Katie O'Shea is ongoing and police believe Wark may be able to shed light into what happened to the 44-year-old after she was last seen in far north Queensland. Despite being born and raised in Sydney, Eddie Woo grew up seeing Australians as other people. So the 2018 NSW Local Hero recipient thought it was a "strange honour" to be chosen to deliver the annual Australia Day address in Sydney on Tuesday. "It's strange for me to be the one standing here today, being a person who was harassed and isolated for not being Australian," Mr Woo told the crowd. "When I was a kid it didn't seem to matter that I was born in Camperdown or that I spent my entire childhood in North Rocks supporting the Parramatta Eels. "What seemed to matter is that I didn't look Australian, or that I didn't fit what my peers thought an Australian was supposed to look like." The son of Chinese-Malaysian parents, Mr Woo told the audience it took him some time to feel true blue. "It took me many years to not just realise that I was genuinely Australian, but to feel that I was, and then it took some more years after that to see how being Australian has fundamentally shaped me as a person." The teacher, best known for taking mathematics to the masses via his popular Youtube "WooTube" channel, said education was the key to breaking down stereotypes and racism. He said mathematics helped teach people to see issues from a different perspective and ultimately made them more empathetic. "Just as mathematics has scientific power, mathematics has social power," Mr Woo said. "Poetry is the art of calling the same thing by different names, but mathematics is the art of calling different things by the same name." Mr Woo said while diversity was what he believed to be Australia's greatest asset, it also provided the country with it's biggest challenge. "I think it's a natural human response to be afraid, uncertain around people who are different and that's why I feel so strongly about schools and parents and educators playing a role in helping our children embrace diversity." While Mr Woo wouldn't be drawn on whether he supported keeping Australia Day on January 26, he said the level of the debate had saddened him. "The way in which we've conducted ourselves and shown that we've been incredibly antagonistic and unkind to each other." Tasmania's two major parties have traded barbs over "meetings" with Jacqui Lambie, whose state party could hold sway at an upcoming election. Liberal Premier Will Hodgman on Tuesday accused Labor opponent Rebecca White of having dinner with the Jacqui Lambie Network (JLN) leader in a bid to secure preferences. The JLN is running candidates in Braddon, Bass and Lyons and is rated by some analysts as a good chance of picking up several seats at an expected March election that could deliver a minority government scenario. At a Liberal housing policy announcement in Hobart, Mr Hodgman drew parallels with the forming of the Labor-Green minority he displaced in 2014. "If people think back to how the last Labor-Green government started, it was just a bike ride up the hill between (then Greens leader) Nick McKim and (Labor leader) David Bartlett," Mr Hodgman said. "Having dinner - that might be the latest version." But Ms Lambie and Ms White dismissed claims of a clandestine preference deal. "That's absolute rubbish," Ms Lambie told local radio. "There has been no talk about anyone going to balance power. "Be brave Will - if you have a problem give me a ring." Ms White said she had dinner with Ms Lambie last year, when she was a senator. "I have had no talks with Jacqui Lambie about minority government," Ms White said. "Since May last year I have only informally bumped into Jacqui Lambie at events we have both attended in the northwest." Mr Hodgman reiterated his party was focused on delivering a majority. He and Minister for Human Services Jacquie Petrusma on Tuesday afternoon announced a $125 million five-year affordable housing re-election package. The second stage of a 10-year plan, it would deliver 1500 affordable homes for Tasmanians and create 900 new jobs. A total of $20 million over three years would be set aside for purpose-built homes for people living with disability. Labor meanwhile announced it would extend the foster care age limit from 18 to 21 if elected to give young people stability as they pursued work or study. The parents of the missing Beaumont children have been told of the latest developments in the case. Nancy and Jim Beaumont are now believed aged in their 90s and police are providing support to help them through "this difficult time", Detective Superintendent Des Bray says. "I just know that every time something comes up and there's speculation about it, it opens up old wounds and it's obviously a terribly difficult time for them on each occasion," Supt Bray told reporters on Tuesday. In the next few weeks, police will conduct a second excavation at a factory site in Adelaide in a search for the children's remains after locating a possible hole dug on the site more than 50 years ago. But they say there's nothing to suggest the children were buried in the hole and have called for people to "temper their expectations". Nine-year-old Jane, Arnna, aged seven, and four-year-old Grant went missing on Australia Day, 1966 after a trip to Glenelg Beach with their disappearance probably Australia's most enduring cold case. The WA Opposition claims the state government is risking investors' dollars with an environmental review into greenhouse gas emissions from the multi-billion dollar Wheatstone natural gas project. Environment Minister Stephen Dawson has asked the Environmental Protection Authority to review annual emissions reporting by Chevron at its Wheatstone project, which came online in October. Opposition leader Mike Nahan says the issue of CO2 emissions had been decided many years ago. "The fact they are reviewing it after the project is done, after $40 billion was invested, is a real attack on the state's sovereign risk," he told reporters on Tuesday. The former Barnett government originally approved the LNG plant in 2011, under the condition it contributed $13 million in environmental offsets and carbon offsets of about 2.6 million tonnes per year of reservoir carbon dioxide emissions. However, the carbon offset was waived in 2013 after Chevron objected that any state conditions would be over-ruled if Commonwealth greenhouse gas arrangements came into effect. Conservation Council of WA director Piers Verstegen said the review would help boost jobs through investment in carbon farming and other technologies. The Wheatstone project was commissioned in October. When fully operational, the plant is expected to emit up to 10.4 million tonnes of CO2 per year. "(That) accounts for nearly 12 per cent of WA's total carbon pollution," Mr Verstegen said. The Opposition spokesperson for Environment Steve Thomas has accused the environment minister of trying to sneak the review through. "His failure to make any public comments explaining the rationale for this review, which has the potential for significant ramifications throughout the mining and resources sector, is alarming," Dr Thomas said. Mr Dawson has been sought for comment. Usman Khawaja's problematic thumb has ruled him out of the Sydney Thunder's must-win Big Bash League match with the Melbourne Renegades on Wednesday night. Khawaja, the Thunder's leading run-scorer in the franchise's history, had an old left thumb injury flare up while batting in Thunder's win over the Melbourne Stars on Saturday. Scans later revealed no fracture, but the bruising and discomfort has been deemed significant enough to rule him out of their last regular season match in Canberra. It comes just days after senior batsman Callum Ferguson was ruled out for the end of the Big Bash season with a hamstring injury. The Thunder have drafted former Test opener Ed Cowan into their 13-man squad for Ferguson, while Aiden Blizzard is also a chance of earning a call up. The Thunder's only hopes of making the finals rest with them beating the Renegades on Wednesday night, and then hoping either the Melbourne outfit or Hobart lose their last match of the regular season. Meanwhile the Renegades confirmed Brad Hodge will captain the side for the final two games of the regular season with Cameron White returning to the Australian one-day camp. Margot Robbie says the release of her latest film I, Tonya is sadly relevant as women around the world are speaking out against abuse. The actress flew home to Australia just a day after her appearance at the SAG Awards to attend Tuesday's Sydney premiere of the film she stars in, and produced, charting the real-life scandal that engulfed figure skater Tonya Harding in 1994. Harding was accused of attacking her competitor Nancy Kerrigan, a crime her ex-husband then confessed to. Delving into Harding's story, the film depicts an abusive relationship between the skater and her single mother, and the class divide painted by the press between her and the more palatable Kerrigan. "We didn't know how relevant it was going to be when it came out, how sadly relevant it became," Robbie told AAP. "Also when Steven (Rogers) wrote the script, Trump wasn't president and there wasn't such a clear divide in America between classes, and this script and film obviously deals with class and the disenfranchised and people feeling frustrated, so it did become relevant in a lot of respects. "Also, of course, dealing with a woman who is abused and speaks out and isn't heard about it." Robbie recently joined with hundreds of other Hollywood women, including Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon, to form the anti-harassment group Time's Up. "Thankfully in this current climate, speaking out is being championed," Robbie said. The actress walked the red carpet in an elegant white dress, along with the film's Australian director Craig Gillespie. She said that ultimately she believed the film would provide some closure for Harding. "I think just to know that her side is also being told and being put out there, I think that means a lot to her," she said. Robbie is expected to be nominated for a Best Actress Oscar for the role. Australia's second-highest ranked player Matthew Ebden has been overlooked for next week's Davis Cup clash with Germany in Brisbane. Nick Kyrgios will spearhead the hosts' World Group first-round tie with Jordan Thompson, John Millman, doubles specialist John Peers and Alex De Minaur named in a five-man team. Ebden beat world No.16 John Isner at the Australian Open last week and world No.6 Marin Cilic at Kooyong earlier this month but that form was not enough to get him the nod over Sydney teenager De Minaur. Instead the 30-year-old will join Alex Bolt as the team's hitting partners. "We have named Alex De Minaur in the five-man team after an impressive couple of weeks on the tour," Australian Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt said. "He has worked hard and we are pleased to give him this opportunity." Thanasi Kokkinakis was not considered after suffering a pectoral injury in his early exit at Melbourne Park. World No.17 Kyrgios will carry the hopes in the singles, after another run into the second week of his home grand slam. "Nick comes off a title win at Pat Rafter Arena and a fourth round appearance at the Aussie Open so we'll be looking to channel his experience when we return to Brisbane," Hewitt said. "Brisbane is also home for Johnny Millman and both Jordan Thompson and John Peers have had success on that court in singles and doubles." Pat Rafter Arena will host a Davis Cup tie for the fourth time with the opening singles on February 2. Of late, theres been a confused clanking in my brain. Perhaps, I can dismantle it in pieces to see what weve got. 1. Things are rotten sometimes. We dwell, as poet Mary Karr graphically insists, in a universe full of loud pigs and shot things you have to take whiffs of while walking around. 2. The rottenness of it all can grind you down. 3. Christians though, have entrusted themselves to a Father they are sure is benevolent. 4. So then, what are we supposed to do when we bump into nastiness and harm that doesnt bear the faintest resemblance to benevolence? Because we Christians are most susceptible to what Kelly Kapic, channeling Puritan John Owen, has taught me to call hard thoughts about God. CS Lewis, in a concussed state in the wake of his wifes death, experienced her absence, as have many before and after him, like the sky, spread over everything. And shivering and stunned before that cold and omnipresent absence, he pinpointed the Christian crises which emerges when loss clubs us, sorrow spears us, or trouble traumatizes us. Its a crises of confusion over whether Gods actually benevolent after all. Heres Lewis sorrow-tinted crystallization of the issue at hand when it comes to any of what Joni Eareckson Tada called the splashovers from hell that drench our lives: Not that I am (I think) in much danger of ceasing to believe in God. The real danger is of coming to believe such dreadful things about Him. The conclusion I dread is not 'So there's no God after all,' but 'So this is what God's really like. Deceive yourself no longer.' What To Do When Hard Thoughts Come And the knotty ball of yarn in my noggin over these things pertains to these sorts of questions: When the hard thoughts of God come, what should one do? What should our tact be when we or the world around us which thanks to the inter-webs and incessant news (quotations intended) has collisions with disastrousness? Whether the dehumanizing horrors of racist disdain or the dismay of a depleting cancer that is chewing you up on the inside, the question looms. If its abuse of someone dear or the ripping from your life of someone near, still the question lingers in the air like stale cigar smoke. When it comes to personally reckoning with such realities, these days I hear a lot about the power and even the required necessity of lament. Like the weeping prophet Jeremiah, theres an appropriateness to wailing the un-wellness around us, and in us. Lament gets a lot of press in certain circles these days as a tact, posture, or tool for the wayfaring people of God. We need more corporate lament for the worlds distressing injuries, say thoughtful commentators. And a host of younger Christians I know, find tremendous resonance in this message. They are comfortable with and welcome the permission, and even insistence, that they not quickly dismiss the sadness on our planet with a glossy coat of sugar. Lament brings solidarity with the suffering, and it brings our suffering before a Savior with scarred palms where nails once penetrated. The older Christians I know would find this emphasis a bit off, determined as they are and have been taught to be, to praise God, EVEN if their teeth be gritted and the pain their knees makes them shriek. They know the caveat with thanksgiving thats attached to praying the worrisome and wearying things. And they were told not to gripe. Like the silly tweet I saw of a daughter who wrote her grandfather, baby was born, weighed in at 7lbs. 4 oz. Delivery was hard. Grandfather responds (presumably, it was a funny tweet), You know what was hard, World War 2! The Greatest Generation doesnt complain. And the most ardent saints I know dont either. They are determined to praise God no matter what happens. And lament sounds a lot like complaining. Wailing before God dont seem too different to some than griping about God. And I am trying to reconcile these differing tacts in my mind. As I ponder, Im not sure the two are actually so much at odds. The praise propped up by painful dismay and the very dismay we weep, wail, spit, cuss, or confusedly argue out before God (i.e. lament), arent coming from all that different a place. Both are tremendous acts of trust. Each is a profound act of confidence. And honest ones at that. The befuddlement comes in seeking to discern the difference between weeping before the Lord and whining against Him, between groaning to God and griping at or about him. Of course the prepositions matter considerably. They reveal our posture, after all. The one, youve noticed if you ever prayed the Psalms, groaning to God or weeping before the Lord is more common than pale orange at a UT game: How long must I wrestle with my thoughts and every day have sorrow in my heart? (Psalm 13:2) And by precept, seems to be encouraged. But the other, (griping at God) can get you killed in the desert. Paul hearkens back to the extreme murmuring and complaining of the wandering people of God in 1 Corinthians 10 (referring to Numbers 16), And do not grumble, as some of them did---and were killed by the destroying angel. Yikes. We are expressly forbidden from grumbling and complaining....and yet our prayerbook, the Psalms is full of complaints, and what could only be categorized as complaint....Why do you stand so far off in times of trouble? (Psalm 10:1) Or to be exact, I pour out my complaint before him; before him I tell my trouble. (Psalm 142:2) So what gives? I am pondering that. I have received a little help from Dan Allender in The Hidden Hope in Lament which you might appreciate. I sure have: To lamentthat is to cry out to God with our doubts, our incriminations of him and others, to bring a complaint against himis the context for surrender. Surrenderthe turning of our heart over to him, asking for mercy, and receiving his terms for restorationis impossible without battle. To put it simply, it is inconceivable to surrender to God unless there is a prior, declared war against him. To lament together also holds forth a vision of what might occur. I spoke about the subject of lament on a live, call-in radio show. I spoke about the rage of Psalm 44 and how it opens the heart to question in ways that most Christians refuse to enter. A 64-year-old black woman called in and told the story of the six months that followed her grandsons murder in a gang-related killing. She spoke about how she prayed the Psalm line by line, day after day. She fought God. She tried to turn her back on him. But day by day her anger rose higher and higher until she came to the last verse of the Psalm: Rise up and help us; redeem us because of your unfailing love (verse 26). She said: How can he rail against God for that long and still come back and say: Because of your unfailing love? When the Psalmist called God good I had to do the same. I wept with her. How could I not? She is a vision of what is possible, very possible for any who passionately seek God. Her loss is more than I have ever experienced, but she calls God good. And so do I. How? After what I have suffered? It seems inconceivable, but to lament together is to hold one another accountable to continue the pursuit of truth until joy dawns. It will. It is crucial to comprehend a lament is as far from complaining or grumbling as a search is from aimless wandering. A grumbler has already reached a conclusion, shut down all desire, and postures with questions that are barely concealed accusations. For example, the husband who says: You never have time for me. You can talk with your friends till all hours of the night, but I ask you to sit with me and youre too busy. Do you want this marriage to work or not? His words may at first sound like lament, but it is not. His grumbling is defensive, hard, and attacks without asking. Dan Allender Lament softens us, complaint hardens. Lament drives us toward God with sorrow, anger, confusion, and despair to seek to understand His rule and care over and for us and his world. And trusts God enough to highlight the dizzying gaps and painful discrepancies between what seems like it ought to be the case and what is actually happening instead. Complaints are a way of rejecting Gods governance, of standing in judgment as his critic, refusing to take our positions as confused, but seeking pupils from our Wise and Benevolent Instructor. Its a worthwhile endeavor to learn not only to praise, but also to lament and groan before God, and how to increase in our capacity to surrender to his desire to spend us in whatever way he wishes...a surrender which smothers soul-staining murmuring. And well likely find, in ways even more potent than a tender-hearted friends empathetic engagement with what is wearing us out, that Gods listening convinces us, eventually, that we are heard AND loved. Turning the Back on or the Face Toward In all, perhaps a good diagnostic query is does our groaning lead us to turn our backs on God? Or our faces toward Him? (Jer. 32:33) Theres no solid help to be had if we insist on moving away from Him in a close-hearted huff. But, theres all the healing and hopeful aid we crave as we turn our faces, tear-soaked as they may be, to the One for whom we were made. We might just discover his tears mingling with ours, and a fresh acquaintanceship with daily-delivered mercies that will keep us from crumpling when affliction seeks to wad us up and discard us like a used candy-bar wrapper. And those whove come to be heard by Christ as they unwind the knotty troubles of their world and heart before him in lament, resonate with the psalmists impulse, because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. While lament and grumbling are mortal enemies. It turns out that lament and praise are rather good friends dwelling at different points on the path to Him who assures, as Julian of Norwich understood, that all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well. ------ Contact Eric Youngblood, pastor of Rock Creek Fellowship on Lookout Mountain, at eric@rockcreekfellowship.org Two young Melbourne boys who have been missing for more than three weeks may be with their parents in Geelong. Police have urged the public to help them find Leyvi Summerscales, four, and his brother Lukah Summerscales, aged one, who were last seen at a Lilydale home on New Year's Day. They believe the boys may be with their parents Broadie Summerscales and Emily Gibson-Williams in the Geelong area and have released images of both the parents and the boys in the hope someone may recognise them and tell authorities. The missing boys' family members and police are concerned about their welfare, given their young ages and the length of time they have been missing. A woman has been found dead after struggling in the water at a creek in Queensland's far north region. She got into trouble at Josephine Falls at Bartle Frere on Tuesday afternoon when emergency services were called to help. They found her but she was swept further downstream sparking another search, a Queensland Police spokesman told AAP. The woman's body was found in the water later on Tuesday night. Police will remain at the scene overnight with recovery efforts to start on Wednesday morning. Start-ups have pumped about $1.6 billion into Victoria in the space of a year but a new report says the state needs more billion-dollar "unicorns". LaunchVic, the state government's start-up agency, says Victoria is home to three "digital marketplaces" worth at least $1 billion each - Carsales.com.au, Seek and REA. Chief executive Dr Kate Cornick said the state wanted to see more start-ups crack the $1 billion "unicorn" mark and then reinvest in the technology economy. "You can imagine this funnel, where you've got a big density of early-stage companies and then some of those companies will go on and become a 'unicorn', become a billion-dollar company," Dr Cornick told AAP. "We have some very successful big businesses where... you're seeing people reinvesting into the ecosystem." An Ernst and Young report on Victoria's digital economy is being released on Wednesday morning showing the state is home to about 190 digital marketplaces, with the sector growing at 11 per cent each year. Those companies made a combined $1.6 billion in profit, with about $630 million created by organisations themselves and $950 million by the platforms' sellers. "The fact that we have three unicorns in this area ... attracts new marketplace businesses and that's why we're seeing this flourishing," Dr Kate Cornick said. She said while these kinds of businesses were regularly criticised for disrupting traditional industries, they are also creating jobs. Australian researchers are about to begin a large-scale test of a drug that could thwart the progression of multiple sclerosis (MS). Monash University researchers believe a small molecule may help protect nerve fibres in the brain, spinal cord and optic nerves, and could even aid their repair. It's hoped the molecule could one day help patients with Secondary Progressive MS, a stage when the disease steadily worsens and can cause muscular spasms and problems with co-ordination, weakness and limb function. MS occurs when the body's immune system attacks its own tissues. In the case of MS, this immune system malfunction destroys myelin - the fatty substance that coats and protects nerve fibres in the brain and spinal cord. Eventually, the disease can cause the nerves themselves to deteriorate or become permanently damaged. But Monash University neuroscientist Dr Steven Petratos believes the molecule - Diiodothyropropionic acid - could prove a game-changer for MS sufferers. He says existing drugs can moderate the disease and treat inflammation associated with it, but they don't address the degenerative aspect of MS. "It has the advantage of being able to cross the blood-brain barrier to target affected cells in the brain, a limitation of existing treatment," Dr Petratos says. "The drug that we've identified may have a significant benefit in changing the course of MS progression primarily from the aspect of protection of the central nervous system, as well as enhancing repair." The study will test for possible side effects of the drug and any toxic outcomes. As for its potential for repair, the drug will need be tested long-term because nerve repair would take years. MS Research Australia has contributed $70,000 towards the study. The molecule has been patented and researchers are already negotiating with a potential commercial partner to further develop and test the drug in clinical trials. Labor has warned it is not reasonable for major global players to impose their will on other countries just because they don't like existing international rules. Shadow foreign affairs minister Penny Wong will deliver a speech to the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy in Singapore on Wednesday, in which she will set out some of the foreign policy priorities of a Labor government. She will say the recent settlement of the seabed boundary dispute between Australia and East Timor was an example of how rules-based agreements can resolve competing claims. "What is not reasonable is for those nations that might be dissatisfied with the current order to change the rules unilaterally, to impose their will rather than reach a negotiated position that meets the needs of all parties," Senator Wong says. "This is part of the problem in the South China Sea, for instance. "Should the ALP form government, we will certainly be advocating resolution of territorial claims and the exploitation of fishing stocks and sea-bed resources through negotiation between claimants, rather than through unilateral action such as the militarisation of artificial islands." Senator Wong threw her support behind ASEAN and other negotiating parties implementing a code of conduct in the South China Sea, which was agreed at last year's East Asia Summit. Senator Wong says ASEAN - the Association of South East Asian Nations founded in 1967 - was central to delivering long-term peace and prosperity in Asia. She says the 10-nation body, which welcomed Australia as its first strategic partner in 1974, stood out in terms of upholding international rules in a world going through a period of economic and political disruption. There has been discussion in diplomatic and strategic policy circles about whether the so-called Quad - the United States, India, Japan and Australia - could undermine ASEAN's position in the region. As well, the institution has been accused of too much talk and not enough action. However, Senator Wong rejected the criticism, saying ASEAN was a "lynch-pin in Asia's role in a globalised economic world". Australia's interests were best served through improvements to existing institutions such as ASEAN and the East Asia Summit. "A future Labor government will offer our ASEAN partners all the support and encouragement we can in order to enhance regional cooperation and harmony," she said. Sydney will host an ASEAN-Australia special summit in March. A prominent lawyer described as a good man by his friends was sitting at a table outside a cafe in Sydney's southwest when he was shot dead in broad daylight. Ho Ledinh, believed to be aged in his 60s, was gunned down in a suspected targeted attack outside the Happy Cup cafe at Bankstown City Plaza on Tuesday afternoon. His attacker remains on the run after fleeing from the area with police interviewing witnesses, and scouring through CCTV footage as they try and track them down, police say. Early investigations suggest it was a targeted attack, Acting Superintendent Brad Thorne said. Mr Ledinh was one of the solicitors who represented Philip Nguyen, the man jailed over the killing of Sydney police officer Constable Bill Crews in 2010. He was present when the NSW Court of Criminal Appeal increased Nguyen's minimum jail sentence by six years in August 2013. Hours before the shooting, Mr Ledinh was reportedly having coffee with his friend of 20 years Van Nguyen. Mr Nguyen said he was shocked when he received a phone call later in the day telling him his friend had been shot dead. "For me he was perfect, he was a very good man and helped people a lot with their families," he told NewsCorp Australia. Mr Ledinh reportedly once owned the Happy Cup cafe and is also the author of an English-Vietnamese book "Dictionary of Law" and studied law and political sciences at the University of New South Wales. On his Facebook profile, he is pictured with NSW Labor politician Shaoquett Moselmane among many happy family photos. This is the latest of several attacks in the area, with a man stabbed in the chest in the same plaza in June 2017. In April 2016, gangland kingpin Walid 'Wally' Ahmad' was killed in a spray of bullets outside a cafe on the rooftop of nearby Bankstown Central shopping centre. The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact, which had been on life support since America's withdrawal, has finally been resuscitated. The 11 remaining countries are expected to sign a tweaked agreement on March 8 in Chile, Trade Minister Steve Ciobo has confirmed. Canada threw a spanner in the works at the APEC summit in Vietnam last year derailing efforts to finalise the deal. Ottawa has since been coaxed back to the fold following lobbying efforts from Tokyo and Canberra. Mr Ciobo said the deal would eliminate 98 per cent of tariffs in a marketplace worth close to $14 trillion. "It hasn't been easy, but we're finally at the finish line and Aussie businesses will be the big winners," he told AAP. Under the deal Australian exporters will benefit from new trade agreements with Canada and Mexico and greater market access to Japan, Chile, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei. There's also a better deal for Australian cheese and beef exports into Japan and new quotas for rice and wheat. Australian sugar will also have better access to Japan, Canada and Mexico's markets. Mr Ciobo, who is at the World Economic Forum in Davos, hailed the Turnbull government's persistence. "Labor and Bill Shorten declared this trade agreement dead and wanted to walk away," he said. "If it was up to them they would shut Australia out of this historic agreement and the big wins it delivers our farmers, manufactures and services providers." He expects other countries may wish to join up once the agreement is in force. There has been ongoing speculation Indonesia may be interested. The agreement was finalised at a meeting of trade officials in Tokyo on Tuesday. FAST FACTS * The TPP 11 is made up of: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore and Vietnam. * US President Donald Trump pulled America out of the deal a year ago after describing it as "a continuing rape of our country". * It was a key policy of the Obama administration's so-called foreign policy pivot to Asia. * Some opponents of the TPP fear it opens doors for companies to sue governments for changing policies if it harms their investments. The deal has a controversial investor state dispute settlement clause. * China is not part of the TPP and is trying to get up a rival deal with seven TPP countries, including Australia, and eight others. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnershp is much narrower and less ambitious. A man convicted of murder in Western Australia could be linked to the 2005 disappearance of a Melbourne mum in far north Queensland, detectives believe. Queensland police are seeking to question Francis John Wark over what he knows about what happened to Katie O'Shea, who was last seen leaving a bottle shop at Atherton with two men. At a 2014 inquest, Coroner Jane Bentley found Ms O'Shea, 44, was likely killed by someone she came into contact with at the Atherton Hotel or soon after. Wark, who has also served time over a 2007 Queensland rape, was on Monday found guilty by WA Supreme Court Justice Lindy Jenkins of the 1999 murder of teenager Hayley Dodd. While delivering an emotional judgment, Justice Jenkins said the 61-year-old was "the type of person who would be likely to pick up a lone female hitchhiker and violently and seriously assault her." "This would be for the purpose of subduing her or overpowering her so that she was incapable of resisting him and so that he could rape her," she said. A Queensland police spokeswoman confirmed detectives were in Perth attempting to schedule and interview Wark, but it was up to him if he wanted to talk. Rural Queensland residents are being urged to take extra care with very high fire danger conditions forecast across the southwest region. The heightened risk of bushfires this week follows a prolonged dry period between Warwick, Stanthorpe and Inglewood. Rural Fire Service director Tim Chittenden says any unnecessary activity that could spark a fire should be avoided. A devastating blaze could be ignited by a spark from a power tool, heat from tractor exhaust or a flicked cigarette butt, he warned. "Any fire that starts when the land is this dry will travel quickly, will be unpredictable and very difficult to control," Mr Chittenden said. Preparations are under way to excavate a section of an Adelaide factory as part of a renewed investigation into the 1966 disappearance of the Beaumont children. Police will converge on the Plympton Park scene within the next few weeks, but are determined not to rush it. Detective Superintendent Des Bray says it's important that detectives get the right people in place to do the job properly if they are to make a significant breakthrough in Australia's most enduring cold case. Attention will be focused on a three metre-deep hole dug on the site at the time the three children, Jane, 10, Arnna, 7, and Grant, 4, disappeared. On Australia Day 1966, the children left their parents' home to spend the day at Glenelg Beach but never returned and have not been seen since. The Plympton factory first came to the attention of police in 2013 after two brothers told of digging a large hole at the request of the then-owner Harry Phipps. An excavation was conducted but nothing was found. Mr Phipps has long been a person of interest in the kidnapping and likely murder of the Beaumonts. But Supt Bray said Mr Phipps, who died in 2004 and was first investigated in 2007, was not yet a suspect. Police were prompted to return to the factory amid concerns the first dig was conducted in the wrong location and after analysis by scientists from Flinders University revealed signs of a hole being dug in another area. Supt Bray said he didn't know what police may find but stressed there was nothing yet to suggest the hole contains the remains of the three children. The East Ridge Police Department is partnering with the Tennessee Highway Safety Office for its annual Seatbelts Are For Everyone (SAFE) campaign. This statewide initiative is designed to increase seatbelt usage and child passenger safety restraint usage through the implementation of occupant-protection programs, public events and checkpoints throughout local communities across Tennessee. The SAFE campaign begins Feb. 1 and concludes on Aug. 1."The East Ridge Police Department believes that seat belts do save lives.We want to remind drivers and passengers to buckle up for themselves, for loved ones for all citizens of East Ridge," officials said.2018 will be the fifth year that the THSO has sponsored the SAFE campaign. Last year yielded the following results:1,480 child restraint violations16,571 seat belt citations835 other seat belt enforcement activitiesIn 2016, Tennessees average seatbelt usage rate was 88.95 percent, said THSO Director Vic Donoho. Last year, the states usage rate decreased to 88.51 percent. Our goal for this year is to achieve 100 percent seatbelt usage across Tennessee through the SAFE campaign and other occupant-protection initiativesIn Tennessee, a disproportionate percentage of unrestrained fatalities tend to occur between the hours of 6 p.m. and 5:59 a.m. Historically, approximately fifty percent of Tennessees traffic fatalities are unbelted. That percentage increases to nearly sixty when nighttime crashes are examined. Therefore, participating agencies will focus special attention toward nighttime seatbelt enforcement during the SAFE campaign this year. A Gold Coast man has been stabbed in the stomach after a long-running dispute with his neighbour erupted in violence. The men, who live opposite each other at a Miami unit complex, got into a physical fight on Tuesday afternoon. One of the men, 51, then retrieved a knife and used it to stab his neighbour in the abdomen, police say. The victim, 54, was taken to hospital but his injuries are not considered life threatening. Police say there's a history of tension between the pair, describing their relationship as volatile, but they are still to determine exactly what sparked the incident. Officers arrested the alleged attacker at the complex. He will face the Southport Magistrates Court on Wednesday, charged with one count of acts intending to maim, disfigure or disable. Protesters climb the building of Turkish Cypriot newspaper "Afrika Gazetesi" as they remove its sign in the northern sector of divided Cyprus Hundreds of protesters Monday demonstrated outside the offices of a Turkish Cypriot newspaper that aroused the ire of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan by slamming Ankara's operation inside Syria as an "occupation". The Afrika newspaper -- which is often anti-Ankara and staunchly critical of Erdogan -- wrote on its front page Sunday: "One more occupation from Turkey." This was an ironic reference to the 1974 Turkish invasion of northern Cyprus which is regarded in Turkey as a "peace operation" but, in the eyes of the international community, led to Turkish troops occupying the northern third of the island. Around 500 protesters, waving Turkish flags and the flag of the breakaway Turkish Cypriot statelet, gathered outside the offices of the paper, throwing eggs, water bottles and stones which smashed the building's windows. "Allahu Akbar! (God is Greatest!)", they shouted. Some unfurled banners saying: "Afrika newspaper must be shut down immediately." Others carried a huge banner of Erdogan. A group climbed a flagpole outside and dismantled the newspaper's main sign on the building's balcony. Police refrained from taking action, an AFP journalist reported. Mehmet Demirci, the Turkish ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) representative in northern Cyprus, said the newspaper had exceeded the limits of criticism. "We condemn those who put such headlines in the Afrika newspaper and who dare to make politics over this headline," he was quoted as saying by the Anadolu news agency. - 'Immoral'- At the weekend, Erdogan had personally taken aim at the newspaper, criticising its headline as "immoral". "They say the Turkish army is carrying out another 'occupation' after Cyprus. How immoral it is, how shameless it is!" he seethed. Erdogan called on the Turkish Cypriots not to remain silent over the newspaper's controversial headline, in what some saw as encouraging the protest. The foreign ministry of the internationally recognised Cypriot government expressed "grave concern" over the events in the north and condemned Erdogan's comments as "incitement to violence." It "is yet another proof of Mr Erdogan's policy to consolidate Turkey's authoritarian policies in the Turkish occupied part of Cyprus, including restrictions on freedom of expression and freedom of the press," it said. Turkish Cypriot leader Mustafa Akinci defended the paper's right to freedom of speech, saying he had often been the target of criticism by Afrika but had never told the paper to be silent. "It is not possible to correct wrong ideas with wrong actions," he said, in reference to the protests, warning against provocations. OSCE representative for media freedom Harlem Desir said on Twitter he condemned "the attack vandalising" the offices of Afrika adding that "media freedom must be protected and respected." The eastern Mediterranean island has been divided since 1974 when Turkish troops invaded the northern third in response to an Athens-inspired coup seeking union between Greece and Cyprus. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) is recognised only by Ankara. Turkey on Saturday launched its operation with Ankara-backed Syrian rebels to root out the Syrian Kurdish Peoples' Protection Units (YPG) militia from Afrin. Turkey views the YPG militia as "terrorists" linked to the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party, which has fought against the Turkish state since 1984 and is designated as a terror group by Ankara and its Western allies. Erdogan has urged national solidarity over the operation and the government has reached out to leaders of the main nationalist and secular opposition parties. But Erdogan warned those who respond to calls for protests in Turkey will have to pay a "heavy price". The authorities on Monday detained 24 people on suspicion of disseminating "terror propaganda" on social media. KPMG agreed to pay $6.2 million to settle SEC charges that its audit of the oil and gas company Miller Energy Resources had left investors "misinformed" about the company's value US authorities on Monday charged six accountants, including former partners from "big four" global auditor KPMG, with using stolen information to cheat on inspections for corporate audits. The charges follow KPMG's decision last year to fire five former partners, including the head of its audit practice, after the company improperly learned which audits government regulators planned to review. Federal prosecutors said the scheme was a fraudulent attempt to interfere with inspections by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, a regulator created in the wake of Enron-era corporate accounting scandals in 2002. US authorities charged the six with fraud and conspiracy. They include three former accountants in KPMG's national office and three former PCAOB employees. Steve Peikin, of the Securities and Exchange Commission, told reporters the defendants' behavior was "shocking and serious." "We allege that this misconduct was motivated by the fact that KPMG had experienced a high and increasing rate of PCAOB audit deficiency findings and had made it a priority to improve its results," he said. Officials did not identify the company or companies under audit by KPMG but said the audits in question, while imperfect, did not pose a danger to the investing public. KPMG is among a group of global accountancies, including Ernst & Young, PWC and Deloitte, which dominate the global auditing industry for major corporations. Their audits act as assurance for investors that company financial results are accurate. One of the defendants, Brian Sweet, a former PCAOB official later hired by KPMG, has pleaded guilty, the US Attorney's office in Manhattan told AFP. Despite the charges, SEC Chairman Jay Clayton said he believed companies and the investing public could continue to rely on KPMG. "I do not expect that these actions will adversely affect the orderly flow of financial information to investors and the US capital markets, including the filing of audited financial statements with the Commission," he said in a statement. In August, KPMG agreed to pay $6.2 million to settle SEC charges that its audit of the oil and gas company Miller Energy Resources had left investors "misinformed" about the company's value. Republicans and Democrats sealed a deal on Capitol Hill to reopen the federal government US federal workers prepared to return to work Tuesday after Congress ended a three-day government shutdown, with President Donald Trump claiming victory in his standoff with Democrats. The House voted 266 to 150 to extend federal funding for another three weeks, hours after Senate Democrats dropped their opposition to the plan after winning Republican assurances of a vote on immigration in the coming weeks. Trump signed the measure into law Monday night and government operations were essentially to return to normal on Tuesday. "I know there's great relief that this episode is coming to an end," House Speaker Paul Ryan told colleagues. "But this is not a moment to pat ourselves on the back. Not even close." The stalemate consumed Washington for the better part of a week, as lawmakers and the White House feuded over immigration policy and the nation's two main political parties exchanged bitter barbs before finally reaching a deal. The shutdown began at midnight Friday and thus affected only one regular workday -- Monday -- but it made both parties look bad. If it had continued, hundreds of thousands of federal employees would have been furloughed. Democrats decided to end the shutdown after making progress with ruling Republicans toward securing the fate of hundreds of thousands of so-called "Dreamers" brought to America as children, many of them illegally. They had been protected from deportation under an Obama-era program known as DACA, which Trumps wants to end. With Democratic support, a bill keeping the government funded until February 8 easily passed the Senate, where different versions of the funding had languished for days. Word of the compromise deal struck in Washington sent US stocks surging to new highs. Earlier, the White House appeared in no mood for bipartisanship or magnanimity after a shutdown that overshadowed Trump's first anniversary in office. Trump moved to undercut Democrats, saying he would only accept a comprehensive immigration reform -- one that notably addresses his demands for a border wall with Mexico as well as the fate of the "Dreamers." "We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it is good for our country," he said in a statement. And in a tweet late Monday, he again cried victory over the Democrats. "Big win for Republicans as Democrats cave on Shutdown," he wrote on Twitter. Trump added: "Now I want a big win for everyone, including Republicans, Democrats and DACA, but especially for our Great Military and Border Security. Should be able to get there. See you at the negotiating table!" In a sign of the poisoned politics of Washington, when top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer announced his party would vote with Republicans to end the shutdown he also pilloried Trump. "The White House refused to engage in negotiations over the weekend. The great deal-making president sat on the sidelines," Schumer said. Trump spent the weekend stewing at the White House when he had planned to be among friends and family at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida for his anniversary bash. And with the fundamental row on immigration and funding of Trump's border wall unresolved, Republicans and Democrats may very well find themselves back in a similar stalemate come February 9. - High-profile holdouts - Schumer told Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that he expected Republicans to make good on a pledge to address Democrats' concerns over the Deferred Action on Child Arrivals (DACA) program. This shields immigrants brought to the country as children from deportation but expires on March 5. There are an estimated 700,000 "Dreamers" whose fates are up in the air. "If he does not, of course, and I expect he will, he will have breached the trust of not only the Democratic senators but members of his own party as well," Schumer said. Top US Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer reached a deal with Republican Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, pictured, on ending the shutdown Trump has staked his political fortunes on taking a hard line on immigrants, painting them as criminals and scroungers. Senator Tim Kaine summed up the view of the more optimistic Democrats: "We got a commitment that I feel very, very good about." But if no progress is made on an immigration bill, Molly Reynolds of the Brookings Institution warned, "Democrats still have the ability to potentially force another shutdown over the issue." The House is under no obligation to pass any Senate bill generated as a result of McConnell's pledge to cooperate with Democrats -- although Speaker Ryan did say his chamber needs to "move forward in good faith" on DACA and immigration. Notably, many of the Senate Democrats who voted against the funding agreement included a litany of potential 2020 presidential candidates, including Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders, Kirsten Gillibrand and Elizabeth Warren. - Dealmaker on sidelines - Ahead of the deal, Trump had goaded Democrats from the sidelines, accusing them of shutting down the government to win concessions on immigration, in service of "their far left base." US government shutdown There have been four government shutdowns since 1990. During the last one, in October 2013, more than 800,000 government workers were put on temporary leave. Essential federal services and the military were operational on Monday. Trucks line up to cross the border with the United States at Otay Mesa Commercial Port of Entry in Tijuana, Mexico Canadian, Mexican and US chambers of commerce urged NAFTA leaders Monday to find common ground to renegotiate the massive free trade deal. Just ahead of the sixth round of negotiations to update the North American Free Trade Agreement, metropolitan chambers of commerce stressed that free trade keeps them prosperous and creating jobs. We "urge our respective governments to come to an agreement to an updated NAFTA, and to maintain it for the future economic success of all three nations," the leaders of 25 metropolitan chambers of commerce said in a statement. The chambers, which represent economic zones with a combined GDP of nearly $3.5 trillion, said they "share a common desire to maintain free trade between the United States, Mexico and Canada." Noting that NAFTA has helped quadruple trade between the tree countries since taking effect in 1994, now reaching $1.5 trillion annually, they also argued that multinational manufacturing value chains could be expensive to break up. US President Donald Trump wants to replace NAFTA with an agreement he says would be more beneficial to the United States. The six days of talks in Montreal come amid high trade tensions between Ottawa and Washington and as Trump insists Mexico will pay for the construction of a controversial wall along America's southern border. Despite significant progress on so-called "bread and butter" issues, Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland says Canada is bracing for "the worst," including a possible US withdrawal from NAFTA that would effectively mean the end of the tripartite trade pact. While often railing against NAFTA, Trump has at times also seemed to soften his view, telling The Wall Street Journal he would be "a little bit flexible" on his threat to withdraw because of the upcoming Mexican presidential election on July 1. Tokyo suffered its heaviest snowfall in four years A rare heavy blanket of snow in Tokyo on Tuesday left thousands of travellers stranded and scores injured, as frozen conditions snarled public transport in the Japanese capital. Japan's weather agency recorded as much as 23 centimetres (9.2 inches) of snow in some parts of Tokyo, the biggest snowfall since February 2014. The weather paralysed Monday evening's commute as millions of workers battled to get home in one of the world's most populous cities. Notoriously hard-working Japanese employees were urged to knock off early but this did not prevent delays and crushes at major stations. Scores were injured on icy roads and there were hundreds of traffic accidents Public broadcaster NHK said at least 180 people had sustained minor injuries on the frozen streets and there had been around 700 traffic accidents, police said. Cars became trapped in a tunnel, sparking a 10-kilometre (6.2 mile)-long tailback from Monday evening through early Tuesday morning, broadcasters said. And for the second day running, dozens of domestic and international flights departing from and arriving at the Japanese capital were scrapped due to the snow, with more than 9,000 people stranded overnight at Narita airport, officials said. Airport officials and airline staff handed out water, snacks and sleeping bags to the unlucky passengers. "I had planned to visit the US after graduating from university but my flight was cancelled. Why today?" an exasperated female student told NHK. Heavy snowfall is common in northern areas of Japan but rare in the capital, which last saw this amount of snow in 2014. Tokyoites got out their shovels for a rare outing The sun was shining brightly on Tuesday morning, but forecasters predict the mercury will stay well below zero this week, causing treacherous roads, and warned of more injuries. The greater Tokyo area will see lows of minus six degrees Celsius (21.2 degree Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, the weather agency said. "It's rare to have sub-zero temperatures for a few days in the Tokyo area, and that would freeze the snow," agency official Kenji Okada told AFP. "In the past, we have seen a lot of injuries caused by slipping and falling. Simply walking can be dangerous," he said. Shiv Yogi Moni Swami is among some 10 million Hindus who participate in the 45-day religious festival Millions of Hindu devotees are gathering in northern India for the Magh Mela -- one of the world's biggest religious festivals involving ritual bathing in the holy waters of the Ganges river. An estimated 10 million Hindus descend on the city of Allahabad every January for the festival staged at the sacred meeting point of the Ganges, Yamuna and mythical Saraswati rivers. The 45-day Mela is currently underway, with pilgrims camping across Allahabad and joining the colourful throngs for dips in the venerated waters. Among them is Shiv Yogi Moni Swami, a holy man smeared in sandalwood paste, carrying a trident and clad in nothing more than beads and a leopard-print wrap around his waist. Swami demonstrates his devotion not by walking to the confluence of the rivers known as the Sangam but by rolling the roughly one-kilometre distance from his tent to the waters. Swami's body collects dust and grime before he arrives at the confluence It is not an easy task, with his body collecting dust and grime before he arrives at the confluence where he submerges himself fully. The act "purifies the soul and washes away all sins", he told AFP, after scattering rose petals to the rising sun and performing his ablutions. "As we bathe on this holy day in the Ganges we are praying not only for peace of our soul but for the welfare of the whole world," Swami added. Fellow pilgrims, impressed by his piety and fortitude, bow to touch his feet and take blessings. Some even lie prostrate before him as he passes in a sign of reverence. Many Indians believe that holy men like Swami possess mystical powers and are capable of curing all manner of illnesses. Many Indians believe that holy men like Swami possess mystical powers and are capable of curing all manner of illnesses For the duration of the Mela, Swami says he eats just one simple meal of fruit a day, apparently enough to sustain him through a busy schedule of chanting prayers and performing yagna, a centuries-old Hindu fire ritual. "I believe that if you all bow before the Ganges you will be blessed with eternal peace and happiness," he said, explaining his devotion to the holiest river in Hinduism. "She (Ganges) is just like a mother. Just like a mother is kind to all, be it a Christian, Buddhist, Muslim or a Jain, the Ganges is all encompassing." The annual ritual has been held in Allahabad for centuries and is a smaller version of the Kumbh Mela, a gigantic event attended by tens of millions that UNESCO describes as the largest peaceful gathering of pilgrims on earth. Gui Minhai, on the right, was one of five booksellers from Hong Kong whose disappearance fuelled fears of an erosion of the city's freedoms Rights campaigners slammed as "appalling" Tuesday the disappearance of dissident publisher Gui Minhai after his daughter revealed he had been snatched again in mainland China, the latest person ensnared in Beijing's crackdown on civil society. Rights have come under increasing pressure since President Xi Jinping took power in 2012, with widespread arrests of lawyers and activists. Gui, a Swedish citizen, was one of five Hong Kong-based booksellers, known for salacious titles about the lives of China's political elite, who went missing in 2015 and resurfaced in detention on the mainland. Chinese authorities said they had released Gui in October, but it was unclear to what extent he was a free man. His daughter Angela Gui told Radio Sweden that since her father's official release from detention, he had been put in a police-managed flat under surveillance. She said that he had then been snatched by plain clothes police on Saturday while on a train to Beijing from the eastern city of Ningbo, where he was living, while accompanied by two Swedish diplomats. Her father had been travelling to Beijing to see a Swedish doctor as he was showing symptoms of the neurological disease ALS -- also known as Lou Gehrig's disease -- she added. "At one of the stops before Beijing there were about 10 men in plain clothes that came in and said they were from the police and just grabbed him and just took him away and after that I have not heard anything," she told Radio Sweden. The New York Times also reported that Gui had been taken in the presence of two Swedish diplomats. The Swedish foreign ministry said it was "fully aware" of what had happened to Gui, without giving further details. Ministry spokesman Patric Nilsson told AFP that "forceful measures have been taken at a high political level". Swedish Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom had summoned China's ambassador to a meeting and had been promised information about what had happened to the publisher, Nilsson added. During a regular press briefing, reporters grilled Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying about the incident, but she declined to directly address the case, saying she was "not aware of the details" and that the issue was out of the agency's "remit." But, she added, "any foreigner must observe Chinese laws and regulations. This is common sense." She also dodged questions about whether China and Sweden had discussed the case. "Communication channels between China and Sweden are smooth and effective. We can exchange opinions on issues of mutual interest." -- 'Wake up call' -- Rights group Amnesty International described the incident as "absolutely appalling" and called for Gui to be released and allowed to seek medical treatment. The fact that he had been snatched in front of diplomats should be a "wake up call" to the international community, said Amnesty's China researcher William Nee. Literary society and activist group PEN Hong Kong expressed "highest concern" over Gui's latest disappearance. "It is now important for foreign governments, particularly the Swedes and the European Union, to respond with strong actions," Human Rights Watch said in a statement to AFP. Chinese authorities were widely criticised after veteran Chinese rights activist and Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo died from liver cancer while on medical parole on the mainland in December last year. Rights groups had pushed for him to be allowed to seek medical treatment abroad. Gui first disappeared in 2015 while on holiday in Thailand and was initially detained at an undisclosed location in China. In February 2016 he appeared on Chinese television, weeping as he confessed to involvement in a fatal car accident years before. In another interview the same year, he also admitted trying to smuggle illegal books into China. The young North Korean soldier made a dash for it in November, and has since been recovering in hospital in South Korea after being shot multiple times A North Korean soldier who defected to the South under a hail of bullets in November has confessed to committing murder in the North, a news report said Tuesday. South Korean officials said they had no comment, noting the questioning of the 24-year-old soldier had not yet wrapped up. Oh, identified only by his surname, has told investigators that he had committed a crime involving murder in the North, the conservative Dong-A Ilbo daily said, citing an unidentified intelligence official. The soldier's defection made headlines worldwide with footage showing him driving to the border at the truce village of Panmunjom in the Demilitarized Zone before dashing across as his comrades tried to kill him. The soldier has been recovering in hospital from multiple gunshot wounds and doctors will decide this week whether to discharge him, Yonhap news agency said, in which case he will be transferred to an adaptation centre for defectors. There is no extradition treaty between North and South Korea. The Manus Island regional refugee processing centre, in Papua New Guinea, from where 40 men departed Tuesday and will travel to the US in the coming weeks before being resettled across the country Dozens of refugees held for years in Australia's remote Pacific detention camps departed for resettlement in the United States on Tuesday, asylum-seeker advocates said. The Sydney-based Refugee Action Coalition said 40 men flew out from Papua New Guinea's capital Port Moresby under a deal struck by Australia with former US president Barack Obama but bitterly criticised by his successor Donald Trump. "It was a bitter-sweet moment for the refugees -- who on the one hand, are happy to be gaining the freedom that Australia denied them more than four years ago; but on the other, they remain extremely concerned for those that are being left behind," the advocacy group said in a statement. The refugees, from camps on Manus Island, flew to Manila from where they will fly on to the US in different groups in the coming weeks before being resettled across the country, it said. The group released photos showing the refugees lining up before dawn to get on buses for the airport, then waiting at the gate to board their flight to Manila. Another 18 men were due to leave Port Moresby in the coming weeks, it said. Australian and US immigration authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the refugees' movements. Canberra sends asylum-seekers who try to reach Australia by boat to detention camps in Manus and the Pacific island of Nauru under a tough policy designed to choke off the flow of refugees to the country. More than 1,000 still remain in limbo in the remote locations. Canberra has strongly rejected calls to move the refugees to Australia and instead has tried to resettle them in third countries, including the United States. But until now only about 50 refugees have been sent to the US, under an agreement President Trump attacked after taking office as a "dumb deal". The Refugee Action Coalition said a further 130 people on Nauru have been accepted by the US and are expected to depart next month. New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has offered to take 150 refugees from Manus or Nauru, but Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has said he will only consider the offer once the US agreement had been fulfilled. At the invitation of council member Russell Gilbert, Girls Inc. elementary students will present to City Council at 6 p.m. today. The invitation was the result of Councilman Gilbert's visit to the girls' end of semester presentation at the Brainerd United Methodist Church this past December. At that presentation, the nine- to 11-year-old girls who had participated in the Girls Inc. Discovery Leadership program presented the results of their study of the needs of the BUMC neighborhood, where they attend programming after school.Mr. Gilbert, who represents District 5 where BUMC is located, said he was impressed with the girls' work and suggested that they make their presentation to the entire council.Discovery Leadership is a Girls Inc. leadership education program for girls, ages nine to 11 that also involves women from their community. Brooke Satterfield from Mayor Berke's office participated with the girls during Discovery, helping them throughout the class, developing their leadership and advocacy skills. The Oscars -- set for March 4 -- are the climax of Hollywood's awards season All eyes will be on Hollywood Tuesday as the Oscars nominees are unveiled, with "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" ahead by a nose in an awards season overshadowed by the industry's war on sleaze. In a departure from previous years, there are very few clear frontrunners for the March 4 gala, making the major categories a genuine sprint to the finish line rather than the perfunctory coronation sometimes inflicted on viewers. The announcements are also being seen as an opportunity for the industry to support female filmmaking, with the #MeToo and Time's Up campaigns against sexual misconduct and gender inequality a mainstay of the 2018 awards circuit. After 12 months of breakthrough movies by women about women -- led by directors such as Dee Rees, Patty Jenkins and Greta Gerwig -- the Oscars could also right the historic wrong of female filmmakers rarely getting acknowledged. "Whatever happens, the #MeToo movement will... play a big part in the event," predicted Tom Wood, a film writer for the millennial-skewing viral content portal Lad Bible. "Hollywood is still being rocked by allegations of historical sexual abuse from some huge names and they will be looking to grow the movement to empower victims to speak out against their abusers and raise awareness." - 'Three Billboards' - The nominated movies, actors and filmmakers will be unveiled at a pre-dawn announcement, with industry watchers placing "Three Billboards" -- buoyed by strong showings at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards -- in pole position for best film. The movie, about a campaign for justice waged by "the Dirty Harry of grieving mothers" -- hat tip to Vanity Fair for a clever turn of phrase -- is also favorite to win best actress (Frances McDormand) and supporting actor (Sam Rockwell). But the movie faces stiff competition from Gerwig's coming-of-age tale "Lady Bird" and Guillermo del Toro's fantasy romance "The Shape of Water." Sam Rockwell (L), Frances McDormand (C) and Woody Harrelson -- the stars of "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," shown at the Screen Actors Guild awards on Sunday -- could earn more laurels when the Oscar nominations are announced In a year when the top awards could be relatively evenly spread, expect same-sex romance "Call Me by Your Name," dark satire "Get Out," tense war movie "Dunkirk" and Pentagon Papers thriller "The Post" all to be in the mix too. Tuesday's nominations follow weekend awards ceremonies hosted by the guilds of both producers and actors -- ceremonies seen as bellwethers for the Academy Awards. "The Shape of Water," a 1960s-set fairy tale about a mute government laboratory janitor falling in love with a merman-like creature, was deemed best movie by the Producers Guild and picked up best director for Del Toro at January's Golden Globes. But the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) gave the victory for best cast -- deemed as encouraging a signifier for the best picture Oscar as the producers' endorsement -- to "Three Billboards." Sunday's SAGs also rewarded Gary Oldman ("Darkest Hour") and Allison Janney ("I, Tonya'), as well as McDormand and Rockwell for "Three Billboards," all of whom took home trophies from the Globes or the Critics' Choice Awards. Janney and Rockwell should expect strong competition in the Oscars supporting acting categories from Globes nominees Willem Dafoe ("The Florida Project") and Laurie Metcalf ("Lady Bird"). - 'A lot can happen' - Oldman -- perhaps the only clear leader in the major categories -- has remained the firm lead actor frontrunner for weeks, while McDormand and Sally Hawkins ("The Shape of Water") face a photo finish in March. Tempting as it always is by late January to view the Oscars race as done and dusted, there are invariably twists in the final weeks as movies lose momentum or are tainted by scandal. Allegations, ranging from harassment to rape, have dogged Hollywood since October, leading to the downfall of numerous powerful figures including Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Jeffrey Tambor and Brett Ratner. James Franco (L) -- shown here with his Golden Globe award and his brother Dave -- may miss out in the Oscar race over lingering allegations of sexual misconduct Figures tainted by the scandal such as James Franco ("The Disaster Artist") have seen their Oscars campaigns badly damaged or, in the case of Spacey -- who was expunged from "All the Money in the World" after filming was completed -- wiped out entirely. Meanwhile, stars attending the various Tinseltown ceremonies -- whether through defiant acceptance speeches at the podium or sober attire on the red carpet -- have been careful to send a message that Hollywood is no longer tolerating sleaze. Roughly 6,000 members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences -- a more diverse bunch than the old white men's club maligned in previous years -- stopped voting for nominees on January 12. "The point is, there's a very long phase two still ahead, two weeks longer than usual due to the Winter Olympics," Variety magazine's awards editor Kris Tapley wrote on Sunday. "A lot can happen. Final Oscar ballots are due in 37 days -- an eternity." Indonesians stand outside office buildings after a strong quake hit Jakarta A strong earthquake rattled Indonesia Tuesday, sparking panic, damaging scores of homes and leaving at least half a dozen students seriously injured. Office workers in the capital Jakarta rushed outside as highrises began swaying, while some riders were thrown off their motorbikes by the force of the 6.0 magnitude rumble. There were no reports of fatalities, but the government said six students were seriously hurt after the roof collapsed at their high school at Cianjur on Java island near the epicentre of the quake. Two other students sustained minor injuries. "I was sitting when the building suddenly started shaking," said Jakarta department store worker Suji, 35, who like many Indonesians goes by one name. "I ran outside the building. It was quite strong and I was afraid." The United States Geological Survey said the 6.0 magnitude quake struck at a depth of 43 kilometres (27 miles). Indonesia quake There was no warning of any tsunami. "So far we have counted at least 115 homes" that have been damaged, Abu Salim, a spokesman for volunteer disaster relief group Tagana, told AFP. "The damage ranges from minor...to serious" cases, including partially collapsed walls. The epicentre was off the coast, about 130 kilometres southwest of Jakarta, a huge city of more than 10 million people. "The epicentre is in an area prone to quakes. More aftershocks are very likely," Indonesia's Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics agency chief Dwikorita Karnawati told Metro TV. "I'm calling on people to be prepared, especially if you are in buildings with a weak structure," he added. The tremor came as US Defense Secretary James Mattis was in Jakarta for an official visit. Indonesia sits on the Pacific "Ring of Fire" where tectonic plates meet, causing frequent seismic and volcanic activity. At least three people were killed following a 6.5-magnitude earthquake just outside the coastal town of Cipatujah on Java island in mid-December. The tremor was felt across the densely populated island, causing damage to hundreds of houses and other buildings. An earthquake struck Indonesia's western province of Aceh in December 2016, killing more than 100 people, injuring many more and leaving tens of thousands homeless. Aceh was one of the areas worst hit by the devastating 2004 tsunami triggered by a magnitude 9.3 undersea earthquake off the coast of Sumatra. The wall of waves killed 220,000 people in countries around the Indian Ocean, including 168,000 in Indonesia. A baby hawksbill turtle at Tanjong Beach in Sentosa island Over 100 baby turtles have hatched on a Singapore beach before being released into the sea, authorities said Tuesday, in a boost for the critically endangered creatures. A nest of Hawksbill turtle eggs was discovered in November on Sentosa, a popular resort island south of Singapore's main island. A barrier was erected to keep the nest safe from predators, and officials carried out regular checks, said Sentosa Development Corporation, which manages the island. On Friday 106 eggs hatched and, after officials carried out tests, the baby turtles were sent off scurrying down the beach and into the sea. It was the third time that Hawksbill turtle eggs had hatched on Singapore's beaches since August and the first time in eight years on Sentosa, the Straits Times newspaper reported. Hawksbills get their names from their narrow pointed beaks and are found throughout the world's tropical oceans, mainly around coral reefs. They are threatened by damage to their natural habitats by pollution and coastal developments, and are also targeted by poachers. Their body parts are used to make turtle soup and shells are crushed into powder for use in jelly dessert. The Hawksbill shell is also used to make products like combs and ornamental hairpins. The Trump administration approved protective tariffs of up to 50% on imported solar panels and washing machines to protect domestic producers President Donald Trump has approved steep tariffs on imports of solar panels and washing machines to protect US producers, triggering an outcry in China and South Korea and even protests at home. Seoul said Tuesday it planned to take the issue to the World Trade Organization while Beijing expressed "strong dissatisfaction". "Together with other WTO members, China will resolutely defend its legitimate interests," its commerce ministry warned, without indicating any specific counteraction. At home in the US, the move was decried by the solar industry, which said the tariffs would create a "crisis" and cost thousands of US jobs and billions in investment without helping domestic suppliers meet rising demand. US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said the tariffs were imposed after an "exhaustive" review by USTR and the independent US International Trade Commission, which determined that US producers were "seriously injured by imports." The administration imposed tariffs of up to 50 percent on imports of large washing machines over three years, and up to 30 percent on solar panels over four years. South Korea, which has signed a free trade deal with the US and is a crucial ally in Washington's confrontation with North Korea, said it would a file a petition at the WTO. Its Trade Minister Kim Hyun-Chong said the tariffs were "excessive" and may constitute a "violation of WTO provisions." Samsung, South Korea's biggest firm, said the tariffs were "a tax on every consumer who wants to buy a washing machine." "Millions of Americans love their LG washers," said another South Korean company, LG Electronics, taking umbrage at the decision. "Consumers should be the ones to decide what washers they want." - Friction with China - Last year Trump launched dozens of trade cases, taking what his commerce department called "unprecedented" action on trade. Many have targeted China, the United States' biggest trade partner, which last year ran a record surplus with the US, inciting new ire from Trump. Targeting Chinese imports can cut both ways for the US. Imports of cheap Chinese panels helped triple US annual solar electricity generation between 2012 and 2016. But they also drove prices down by 60 percent, causing most US producers to stop production or declare bankruptcy, the USTR said. The rising imports were spurred by China's use of state incentives, subsidies and tariffs, and manufacturers have evaded compensatory US tariffs by repeatedly shifting production to new countries, USTR said. Chinese-made washing machine imports led to a "substantial" decline in market share for US producers, according to USTR. The director of the Chinese commerce ministry's trade and remedy investigation bureau said in a statement the US tariffs "not only aroused the concern of many trading partners but were also strongly opposed by many local governments and downstream enterprises in the US". - 'Disappointment' among solar industry - The US investigation into solar imports was launched following complaints from US companies Suniva, a bankrupt Chinese-owned firm, and SolarWorld, owned by a German concern that declared insolvency in May. The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) said its members expressed "disappointment" at the decision. The new tariffs will cause the loss of about 23,000 American jobs and the cancelation or delay of billions of dollars in solar investment, the group said in a statement. The tariffs will not help meet US demand but "will create a crisis in a part of our economy that has been thriving, which will ultimately cost tens of thousands of hard-working, blue-collar Americans their jobs," said SEIA president Abigail Ross Hopper. Ash spews from Mayon, the most active volcano in the Philippines Intense lava fountains shot like fireworks up to 700 metres (2,300 feet) into the air above Mayon, the Philippines' most active volcano, on Tuesday as showering debris turned morning skies dark and spread fear among anxious residents. More than 40,000 people have already fled since smoke and ash started spewing from the mountain, with scientists warning of the danger of an explosive eruption and authorities urging people not to be complacent. Mayon shot out a five-kilometre-high (three-mile) ash column early Tuesday as a rain of fine debris brought daytime darkness in some areas, volcanologists and local authorities said. "People got scared. The kids did not understand what was happening, then suddenly it got dark and you could not see who you were with," Danny Garcia, a spokesman for Albay province, told AFP. Lava spews at night from Mayon The summit of the mountain was shrouded by a dense column of steam and hot rocks, creating fanciful shapes in the sky. "The explosion looks like a cauliflower or an octopus," Ed Laguerta, Mayon's resident volcanologist from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs), told AFP. "Hot ash ascends and since the volcano is conical, the pyroclastic flow seems to be the tentacles," he added, referring to a mix of hot lava, ash and volcanic gas flowing down the volcano's flanks. Mayon, a near-perfect cone located about 330 kilometres southeast of Manila, is considered the most volatile of the Philippines' 22 active volcanoes. Volcanologists on Monday warned of a hazardous eruption within days as Mayon rained ash on communities two weeks after it began showing signs of unrest. Philippines volcano alert Authorities have ordered people to leave a danger zone stretching eight kilometres from the volcano and on Tuesday shut down schools and businesses in Albay province where Mayon is located. Civil aviation authorities have closed airports in the cities of Legazpi and Naga and at the nearby island of Masbate, while small aircraft have been banned from flying near the volcano. Some highways have also been closed, with ash showers making driving in some areas nearly impossible, the provincial government said. Regional disaster officials were monitoring air quality as they advised people to wear face masks, goggles or glasses and to stay indoors to avoid inhaling sulphur dioxide gas. Volcanologists told residents to heed warnings from authorities even in towns not yet affected by ashfalls. "Not all towns will be affected at the same time so people cannot be complacent," Laguerta said. There have been 51 previous eruptions by Mayon in recorded history, the last one in 2014. In 1814 it buried the town of Cagsawa, killing more than 1,000 people. The Philippines is part of the Pacific "Ring of Fire" of islands that were formed by volcanic activity. The most powerful explosion in recent years was the 1991 eruption of Mount Pinatubo, about 100 kilometres northwest of Manila, which killed more than 800 people. An Indian activist holds placards during a protest against a rape Dozens of support centres for women victims of sexual violence are to open across India under an scheme announced Tuesday, as pressure grows on police over their handling of rape cases. Police in four states have signed up to the "Justice For Her" initiative, with Sheffield Hallam University in Britain. Fifty-one centres, which aim to improve access to justice for victims, will be opened in Madhya Pradesh state which has the country's worst record for rape cases. The New Delhi region and the northern states of Haryana and Punjab have also signed up. Lawyer Helena Kennedy, a member of Britain's House of Lords upper chamber, said the initiative could be a "watershed moment" in India. "The first step towards tackling this issue is giving sanctuary for those who have been victims of these terrible crimes, whilst also providing the relevant authorities with the skills and power to address the problem with confidence," Kennedy said when launching the project in New Delhi. India has been in the global spotlight since the 2012 gang rape and murder of a woman on a New Delhi bus sparked angry protests. The number of reported rape cases has grown since then. The government has promised to speed up trials and set up hotlines but rights groups say authorities are still not doing enough. The apathetic response of police after the rape of a 19-year-old student by four men outside a Madhya Pradesh railway station in November sparked a new outcry. Police initially accused the woman of inventing the story and mocked her. Four officers have since been sacked. Madhya Pradesh has the worst record for sexual assaults among India's 29 states, with nearly 5,250 cases reported in 2016 out of the 39,000 nationally. The support centres will provide medical attention, police liaison, legal advice and counselling. A training programme will aim to make police more sensitive in handling sexual assault and improving access to justice. Many victims have complained of being coerced by police, who either urged them not to file cases or refused to register complaints. For many victims, justice remains distant as trials drag on for months and often years. Some accused have bought freedom by bribing officials or threatening victims. Turkey began a military operation at the weekend, supporting Syrian rebels, against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units militia in Afrin in northern Syria. Turkey launched air strikes in northern Iraq on Kurdish militants planning an attack, the army said on Tuesday, just days after Ankara began an offensive against a Kurdish militia in Syria. The strikes took place on Monday in the Zap region of northern Iraq, not far from Turkey's southeastern border, the Turkish military said in a statement. The army said it was targeting members of the "separatist terrorist organisation" -- Turkey's official term for the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). The militants were planning an attack on border security posts and bases, the military said, adding that the strikes destroyed weapons emplacements and shelters. The PKK has been waging an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984, and is blacklisted as a terror group by Ankara and its Western allies. After a two-year ceasefire collapsed in 2015, the Turkish army intensified its military operations against the PKK in the Turkish southeast. The Turkish air force has regularly carried out raids on PKK rear bases around the Qandil mountains in northern Iraq since then. Turkish troops also sometimes stage ground incursions into the area. The strikes in Iraq come four days after Turkey started a military operation, supporting Syrian rebels, against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia in a bid to remove it from its western enclave of Afrin in northern Syria. Ankara views the YPG as an offshoot of the PKK and repeatedly calls them "terrorists". Indian police stand guard outside an Ahmedabad cinema with a Gujarati-language notice board which says "City Gold Motera theatre hereby informs that here we are not displaying poster or trailer of the controversial film 'Padmaavat' India's top court Tuesday rejected a final bid by two states to ban a Bollywood film about a mythical Hindu queen which sparked violent protests by radical groups. Threats by Hindu fringe groups against "Padmaavat", which is to be released Thursday, have forced police to step up security around cinemas intending to show the movie. The Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh state governments asked the country's Supreme Court to retract an earlier ruling stopping states from banning "Padmaavat". "We do not find any merit in the applications," the court said on Tuesday. "What is implicit in your argument is that you are incapable of maintaining law and order in your state," Supreme Court judge A.M Khanwilkar told lawyers for the state governments at the hearing. "You first implement our order and then if there is any violence then we can examine it on case to case basis." The two states were among four which had wanted to stop the film being shown because of the threat of disturbances. Radical groups have blocked roads, and burned buses and toll booths in recent days in protests against the movie. Protesters claim the film falsely depicts a romance between 14th century Hindu queen Padmavati and Muslim ruler Alauddin Khilji. The producers deny this and insist the movie portrays her respectfully. The Supreme Court last Thursday overturned a ban on the release of the film imposed by Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab and other states saying it violated creative freedoms. A caste-based group, the Rajput Karni Sena, has threatened to attack cinemas showing the film. In January last year members attacked the film's director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and vandalised the set during filming in Rajasthan. The leader of the group also offered 50 million rupees ($769,000) to anyone who "beheaded" lead actress Deepika Padukone or director Bhansali. Protesters attacked another set near Mumbai in March, burning costumes and other props. The movie stars Shahid Kapoor as Maharawal Ratan Singh, the husband of Padmavati, and Ranveer Singh as Khilji who leads an invasion to try to capture the queen. Protesters maintain it distorts history, even though experts say the queen is a mythical character. Earlier this month the film censor board cleared "Padmaavat" for release subject to five changes. Vice President Mike Pence (L) embraces Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on January 22, 2018 during a visit to Jerusalem in which he pledged to move the US embassy to the disputed city by the end of 2019 US Vice President Mike Pence visited Jerusalem's Western Wall on Tuesday while Palestinians held a general strike after denouncing his fervently pro-Israel speech the previous day as "messianic". The devout Christian's speech to the Israeli parliament on Monday laden with biblical references was praised by Israelis as perhaps the best they could ever hope for from a US administration, but Palestinians saw it as confirming some of their worst fears. Pence proudly reaffirmed US President Donald Trump's December 6 declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital and pledged to move the embassy to the disputed city by the end of 2019. "The friendship between our peoples has never been deeper," he said. On Tuesday, as he wrapped up his trip, Pence, who was boycotted by the Palestinians, visited one of the holiest sites in Judaism, the Western Wall. The site lies in Israeli-annexed east Jerusalem, the sector the Palestinians want as the capital of their future state, and many Israelis were likely to interpret it as Pence further backing their claim over the entire city. US Vice President Mike Pence touches Jerusalem's Western Wall during his visit to Judaism's holiest prayer site "Very inspiring," Pence said after the visit during which he was not accompanied by Israeli government officials. Pence followed in the footsteps of Trump, who in May became the first sitting US president to visit the Western Wall. In December, a US senior administration official said: "We cannot envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not part of Israel." Pence also toured Jerusalem's Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial accompanied by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday and met President Reuven Rivlin. He said the White House believes the Jerusalem declaration "will set the table for the opportunity to move forward in meaningful negotiations to achieve a lasting peace and end the decades-long conflict". He departed in the late afternoon to return to the United States. - 'Gift to extremists' - The Palestinians face a dilemma over how to deal with what they see as a blatantly biased US administration as they seek to salvage hope of a two-state solution. A top Palestinian official called Pence's parliament speech "messianic" and a "gift to extremists", reiterating the view that the Trump White House is incapable of being an even-handed mediator in peace talks. Pence issued no criticism of Israel's half-century occupation of the West Bank during his visit. Israeli Arab members of parliament scuffle with security officers after they disrupted a speech by US Vice President Mike Pence on January 22, 2018 in protest at Washingtont's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital Around a dozen Arab Israeli lawmakers were expelled from the chamber after shouting as Pence began his speech in parliament. On Tuesday, a general strike was observed in the Palestinian territories, but there were expressions of resignation among some. "It's useless, the strike. Nothing will happen," said Adel Humran, a Palestinian in the West Bank town of Ramallah. "Only the shops will be closed. The people won't benefit from it at all." But a spokesman for Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said the strike was a "message of rejection of the visit and the American position". "Jerusalem is a red line we cannot compromise on," said Nabil Abu Rudeina. A few hundred Palestinians also protested near an Israeli checkpoint in the West Bank, throwing stones at soldiers who occasionally fired back with tear gas, sound grenades and rubber bullets. The Palestinian leadership has sought to look elsewhere for backing, and Abbas met European Union foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday. The 82-year-old urged them to recognise a Palestinian state, but such a move was not forthcoming from the bloc as a whole. Abbas said he was committed to negotiations, but he has sought an internationally-led process. Netanyahu says there is no substitute for US leadership. A senior White House official said on Tuesday that Trump's point men on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict had not spoken to Palestinian leaders since before the December 6 declaration but were open to any approach. "We are here, dedicated and ready to engage whenever they are," he said. The official said there was no timeline for the White House to present its peace plan. "We remain hard at work at it," he said but dismissed the idea of a European alternative. "I don't think anybody believes the US can be replaced in this process," the official said. "Frankly I don't believe the Palestinians believe the US can be replaced in this process." - Deadly unrest - The US move to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital broke with decades of international consensus that the city's status should be settled as part of a two-state peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians. A Palestinian boy tramples on a portrait of US Vice President Mike Pence during a protest against his visit to Israel in the West Bank town of Bethlehem on January 21, 2018 Unrest since the announcement has left 18 Palestinians dead, most of them killed in clashes with Israeli forces. One Israeli has been killed in that time. Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians see the eastern sector as the capital of their future state. In Jerusalem, Pence reiterated Trump's position that the United States would support a two-state solution "if both sides agree". Pence's visit, initially scheduled for December before being postponed after the Jerusalem declaration, was the final leg of a trip that included talks in Egypt and Jordan as well as a stop at a US military base near the Syrian border. Arab outrage over Trump's Jerusalem decision had prompted the cancellation of several meetings planned ahead of the start of Pence's tour. Voice of the People Recently four members of Porter County Board of Zoning Appeals approved to give an Iowa company special exceptions and variances to build a THIRD gas station at U.S. 6 and Indiana 149, on the northwest corner adjacent to Liberty Township. In this growing age of... Voice of the People We havent betrayed the Afghan people; they betrayed us. Monday morning quarterbacks criticizing our government and military are nothing more than cheap shot malcontents. Id like to see or at least hear how, under these same circumstances, they could do better. Joel Sutlin Chesterton September... Voice of the People Chesterton needs an Italian beef place like Portillios or Pops. Next to the new Aldi would be a great location. Please and thank you. Linda Williams Westville Monitor childrens online activity to prevent exploitation Now that the new school year has begun and notwithstanding the increase of in-person classes, our children will likely continue to use their various devices with access to the internet. By doing so, they can unknowingly become the target of online human traffickers and predators,... Rohingya refugees pictured in November at Balukhali refugee camp in Bangladesh Myanmar blamed Bangladesh on Tuesday for delays to a huge repatriation programme for Rohingya refugees, as the deadline passed for starting the return of the Muslim minority to strife-torn Rakhine state. Nearly 690,000 Rohingya escaped to Bangladesh after a brutal Myanmar army crackdown began last August, while a further 100,000 fled an earlier bout of violence in October 2016. Myanmar agreed that from January 23 it would start taking them back from the squalid camps in the Cox's Bazar district of Bangladesh where they have sought shelter. But a Bangladeshi official said Monday the programme would not begin as planned. Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammad Abul Kalam said there was much more work to be done. The complex process of registering huge numbers of the dispossessed has been further cast into doubt by the refugees themselves, who are too afraid to return to the scene of what the UN has called "ethnic cleansing". Mainly Buddhist Myanmar sees the Rohingya in Rakhine as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and denies them citizenship It has been accused of drawing out the repatriation process by agreeing to take back just 1,500 people a week. It has prepared two reception camps on its side of the border. Myanmar officials said that by Tuesday afternoon no Rohingya had crossed back into Rakhine, the scene of alleged widespread atrocities by Myanmar's army and ethnic Rakhine mobs. "We are right now ready to receive... we are completely ready to welcome them according to the agreement," Kyaw Tin, Minister of International Cooperation told reporters in Naypyidaw, Myanmar's capital. "We have seen the news that the Bangladesh side is not ready, but we have not received any official" explanation, he added. National Security Adviser Thaung Tun said "it is our hope that this will commence today as agreed." With hundreds of Rohingya villages torched and communal tensions still at boiling point in Rakhine, rights groups say Rohingya returnees will at best be herded into long-term camps. Those who return must sign a form verifying they did so voluntarily and pledging to abide by Myanmar laws. - Not going back - Myanmar has sent a list of more than 1,000 "wanted" alleged Rohingya militants to Bangladesh, while headshot photos of the suspects have been widely circulated inside the country. In a sign of the tensions surrounding the issue, a second Rohingya leader was killed in Bangladesh camps on Monday -- allegedly after endorsing the returns programme. Many in the camps are fearful of going back. "We won't go there if they try to send us back... kill us here, because we won't go. If we go back, the Burmese (Myanmar) will kill us," 12-year-old Mohammad Ayas told AFP on Tuesday at a camp at Cox's Bazar. Others said repatriation was a pipe dream while people were still trickling into the camps. Mohammad Amin, who arrived just last week, described villages being set ablaze and women assaulted. "Things are not better there (in Myanmar). We managed to stay longer than others but eventually we had to leave," he said. Bangladesh, one of Asia's poorest countries, has been besieged by an influx of Rohingya since communal violence flared in 2016. It has tried to use the global outcry over the crisis to press Myanmar into taking back the refugees before they settle -- joining an estimated 200,000 Rohingya stuck in Cox's Bazar camps since a previous bout of violence in the 1990s. burs-apj/anb/sm Wong meets the press after being granted bail at the High Court Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong was released on bail Tuesday pending appeal against a jail term over pro-democracy protests. Wong was jailed for three months last week, the second time he has received a prison sentence for his involvement in the Umbrella Movement. Campaigners fear political debate in the semi-autonomous Chinese city is being shut down with a series of court cases against activists involved in the mass 2014 protests. Wong, 21, who became the face of the rallies, was jailed on Wednesday last week on a contempt charge for obstructing clearance of a major protest encampment, to which he had pleaded guilty. He was released on bail as a judge acknowledged he had grounds to appeal the sentence. Wong is already on bail pending appeal against a six-month sentence for another protest-related offence. Court of Appeal judge Andrew Cheung said Tuesday the original three-month term had "not given any, or any sufficient consideration" to Wong's age at the time of the offence, when he was a teenager. Fellow activist Raphael Wong, who was jailed for four months and 15 days over the same incident, was denied bail as the judge ruled there were no grounds for appeal on the existing legal points. "Facing uncertainty seems to be what has become normal under authoritarian government suppression," a tired-looking Wong told reporters outside the court as he emerged Tuesday night. He described himself as "lucky" compared with Raphael Wong who is still in custody. Dozens of protesters gathered outside court before the hearing Tuesday chanting "Political persecution! Abusing the courts! Civil disobedience! No fear!" The Umbrella Movement was an unprecedented rebuke to Beijing as tens of thousands of protesters brought some of the city's busiest streets to a standstill. They demanded fully free leadership elections to replace a system under which Hong Kong's chief executive is selected by a pro-Beijing committee. The rallies failed to win concessions and since then leading activists have been charged over their involvement. Beijing has been further incensed by some activists calling for independence for Hong Kong since the Umbrella Movement failed to win reform. Wong's party Demosisto wants only self-determination. Hong Kong has been governed under a "one country, two systems" deal since 1997, when Britain handed the territory back to China. This allows citizens rights unseen on the mainland, including freedom of speech, a partially directly-elected legislature and an independent judiciary, but there are concerns those liberties are being eroded. Wong was jailed for six months in August on unlawful assembly charges for involvement in the storming of a fenced-off government forecourt known as Civic Square in September 2014, which sparked the wider Umbrella Movement rallies. He served over two months behind bars before being granted bail pending an appeal. A woman grieves over the body of her son, a victim of the war on drugs The Philippines Tuesday hailed the retention of duty-free privileges for most of its exports to the European Union despite concerns over alleged "extrajudicial killings" in President Rodrigo Duterte's war on drugs. The European Commission announced on Monday that Philippine shipments worth an estimated 120 billion pesos ($2.35 billion), about 66 percent of annual exports to its number-two trading partner, would carry no duties. The decision followed a fraught review in which the Europeans raised the issue of Duterte's anti-crime crackdown. This has left nearly 4,000 drug suspects dead and drawn criticism from human rights monitors that he was mounting a crime against humanity. "We are elated that GSP (Generalised Scheme of Preferences)+ was retained," Duterte spokesman Harry Roque told AFP on Tuesday. The GSP+ review, held every two years, hinged on Philippine compliance with its obligations under 27 international conventions, including on human rights. The duty-free privileges covered 1.67 billion euros' worth of Philippine exports to the EU in 2016, the commission said. The commission concluded Monday that the Philippines had made progress on labour rights, environmental protection, gender equality, people trafficking, health, education, social-economic rights and the fight against corruption, an EU statement said. "However, extrajudicial killings, in particular in the fight against illegal drugs, related impunity, as well as the possible reintroduction of the death penalty and the lowering of the age of criminal responsibility are of serious concern." Philippine authorities said Monday they had killed 3,987 suspects in anti-drug operations since Duterte came to power in mid-2016. An unspecified number of people had also been killed by unknown suspects in 2,235 "drug-related incidents" that are being investigated by the police. Duterte has also asked Congress to reimpose the death penalty, preferably by hanging, and to lower the minimum age of suspects who can be prosecuted for crimes. Congress has suggested anyone aged nine or older should be prosecuted for violating laws. Duterte is sensitive to foreign criticism of his crackdown, calling then-US President Barack Obama a "son of a whore" in 2016 and threatening to expel European ambassadors last year. Last year the EU delegation in Manila also announced that the Duterte government had formally made it known it would no longer accept new grants from the EU because of its criticism of the crackdown. Asked about the issue of the drug killings raised by the trade review, Roque said: "We will address those concerns." cgm/mm/sm The chemical weapons meeting comes a day after allegations of a fresh chemical attack by the Syrian regime on Douma in the rebel-held region of Eastern Ghouta. Two dozen countries agreed Tuesday to push for sanctions against perpetrators of chemical attacks in Syria, with US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson saying Russia "ultimately bears responsibility" for such strikes. Twenty-four nations approved a new "partnership against impunity" for the use of chemical weapons, just a day after reports they were used in an attack that sickened 21 people in rebel-held Eastern Ghouta, which Tillerson said was suspected to involve chlorine. "Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in East Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons since Russia became involved in Syria," Tillerson said after the international meeting in Paris, and ahead of further talks with ministers from several countries on ending the conflict. "There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments to the US as a framework guarantor" overseeing the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpiles, as agreed in September 2013, he added. The alleged attack on Douma prompted a sharp warning from the US to Russia to rein in its ally, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Despite its pledge to destroy such weapons, the Syrian regime has been repeatedly accused of staging chemical attacks, with the United Nations among those blaming it for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun which left scores dead. There have been at least 130 separate chemical weapons attacks in Syria since 2012, according to French estimates, with the Islamic State group also accused of using mustard gas in Syria and Iraq. - 'Bare minimum' - Russia twice used its UN veto in November to block an extension of an international expert inquiry into chemical attacks in Syria, to the consternation of Western powers. Russia's UN ambassador Vassily Nebenzia Tuesday rejected Tillerson's accusations and instead called for a "truly impartial" international investigation of the chemical attacks. Moscow, backed by Iran and Turkey, has organised talks in the Russian city of Sochi next week aimed at finding a resolution to the brutal and multifaceted civil war. Those efforts are running parallel to talks overseen by the UN, with the latest round due in Vienna on Thursday and Friday. The talks have so far failed to make progress in ending a war that has left more than 340,000 people dead. Tillerson said that "Russia's failure to resolve the chemical weapons issue in Syria calls into question its relevance to the resolution of the overall crisis". "At a bare minimum, Russia must stop vetoing, or at the very least abstain, from future Security Council votes on this issue," he said. Tillerson and his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian will co-host a meeting of ministers ahead of a new round of Syria peace talks in Vienna. At Tuesday's meeting, 24 out of 29 countries attending committed to sharing information and compiling a list of individuals implicated in the use of chemical weapons in Syria and beyond. These could then be hit with sanctions such as asset freezes and entry bans as well as criminal proceedings at the national level. Ahead of the meeting France announced asset freezes against 25 Syrian companies and executives, as well as French, Lebanese and Chinese businesses accused of aiding regime use of chemical weapons. "The criminals who take the responsibility for using and developing these barbaric weapons must know that they will not go unpunished," said French foreign minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, who chaired Tuesday's meeting. "The current situation cannot continue." - 'Worst humanitarian crises' - Tillerson, Le Drian and Britain's Boris Johnson afterwards held a closed-door meeting on Syria with the Saudi and Jordanian foreign ministers. They discussed how best to "provide backing and some concrete reinforcement for UN efforts to advance the political process in Geneva, constitutional reform and the preparation for the holding of elections", ahead of a series of meetings on Syria, a senior US State Department official said, warning that "it's going to take time". Johnson later hosted his US, Saudi Arabian and UAE counterparts at the British Embassy to discuss the Yemen conflict in a whirlwind of Middle Eastern diplomacy. "The conflicts in Syria and Yemen have created two of the worst humanitarian crises of our time," Johnson said said ahead of the meeting. "There can be no military solution to either conflict, only peaceful and carefully negotiated political solutions will truly end the suffering." The Syrian war has grown even more complex in recent days with Turkey launching a new ground operation against Kurdish militia who it considers an offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). Tillerson met with Turkish foreign minister Mevlut Cavusoglu in Paris on Tuesday, though he did not hold a press conference to discuss their talks. Last week Tillerson had warned that the US would remain in Syria until the situation was stable enough to remove President Bashar al-Assad from office. A Syrian girl holds an oxygen mask over the face of a young child at a makeshift hospital in besieged Douma near Damascus, following a reported chemical attack France announced Tuesday that it was sanctioning 25 people and companies over their links to Syria's chemical weapons programme, as diplomats met in Paris to push for action against perpetrators of the deadly attacks. The list published in the government's official gazette gave the names and addresses of traders and businesses based mostly in Beirut, Damascus and Paris, as well as a Chinese businessman from the export hub of Guangdong. The other individuals, who will face asset freezes, were either Syrian, Lebanese or Canadian with companies working in electronics, metal work, logistics or shipping. No member of the Syrian government was targeted, with an aide in the French foreign ministry explaining: "We don't have enough information to enable us to take this up to the political level in Syria." The move by France came as diplomats from 29 countries including US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met in Paris to push for further sanctions and criminal charges against the perpetrators of chemical attacks in Syria. On Monday, rights monitors said 21 people, including children, suffered breathing difficulties after an alleged chemical attack on a besieged rebel enclave outside Damascus. "France is determined to have those responsible for these horrific war crimes held accountable," Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said. - 'Supply networks' - The companies targeted included Electronic Katrangi Trading, Nktronics and ABC Shipping in Beirut, while another was named as Electronic System Group in Damascus. France's foreign ministry said they were part of two "supply networks for the Syrian Research and Study Centre (CERS)," which it describes as the "main laboratory in charge of chemical programmes" for the Syrian government. It added that several CERS scientists are already the subject of sanctions by the EU and other countries. The networks have assured supplies of "equipment used in the production of chemical weapons, in particular for making toxic weapons such as sarin gas," the ministry said. Among the three French companies targeted was Smart Pegasus, traced to an address in the northern 18th district of the capital which was registered in 2014 as an import-export company trading in unspecified goods. - String of attacks - Macron said in June that the use of chemical weapons was a "red line" and warned that France, which is part of the US-led coalition fighting jihadists with air strikes in Syria, would respond. Macron's words echoed a warning by Barack Obama, who as president had said that any chemical weapons use would trigger a shift in his country's position on Syria. After hundreds were killed in attacks near Damascus in August 2013, a landmark deal with Russia was struck to rid Syria of its chemical weapons stash, staving off US air strikes. Despite the disarmament drive, chemical attacks have continued. United Nations investigators have gathered evidence that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad has repeatedly used chemical weapons against rebels and civilians during the civil war since it erupted in March 2011. France estimates that there have been 130 chemical attacks between 2012 and 2017, but the Islamic State extremist group is thought to have used chemical weapons too. Russia and China have blocked Western-backed efforts at the UN to impose sanctions on Damascus over their use. Turkish soldiers are seen around the area of Mount Bersaya, north of the Syrian town of Azaz near the border with Turkey, on January 22, 2018 Qatar has thrown its weight behind Turkey's military offensive against Kurdish militia in Syria, coming to the defence of the "national security" of one of its closest allies. "The state of Qatar reaffirmed its support for the efforts of the republic of Turkey to maintain its national security in the wake of the breaches and terrorist attacks carried out inside Turkish territories," foreign ministry spokeswoman Lolwa Al-Khater said. Speaking to Qatari media on Monday, Khater said Turkey's launch of Operation Olive Branch was "driven by legitimate concerns related to its national security and securing its borders, as well as protecting the territorial integrity of Syria from the danger of secession". Qatar's announcement came as Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed to step up an offensive against Kurdish targets in neighbouring Syria and Iraq. The operation, which includes an air and ground campaign involving Ankara-backed Syrian rebels, aims to oust the People's Protection Units (YPG) from Afrin in northern Syria. Turkey views the YPG as a terror group and an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which has long fought for autonomy. The YPG denies aiming for separatism. Turkey's offensive is complicated by the United States' relationship with the YPG, which it relied on to help oust Islamic State jihadists from their Syrian strongholds. Qatar has grown closer to Turkey since June when Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Bahrain and Egypt cut all relations with Doha, which they accused of ties to Islamist extremists and Shiite Iran. Ankara has since stepped in, providing food imports and political backing to Qatar amid the boycott. The offensive on Afrin has also surfaced as a point of contention among the Gulf states. UAE state minister for foreign affairs Anwar Gargash on Sunday warned that the operation risks further rupturing the unity of Arab states. "The developments around Afrin reaffirm the need to rebuild and restore the concept of Arab national security," Gargash tweeted. "Without that, the Arabs will be marginalised." Turkey has a military base in Qatar and both countries have been unstinting in their opposition to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Qatar's Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani was the first foreign leader to phone Erdogan during Turkey's failed coup in July 2016. Turkish troops and their Syrian rebel allies are pressing an assault launched at the weekend on a border enclave held by Kurdish militia Turkish troops and their Syrian rebel allies pressed an assault on a border enclave held by Kurdish militia on Tuesday but the fighting was more narrowly focused, a monitor said. Turkish warplanes carried out new strikes on the northwest of the Afrin enclave and also hit the outskirts of the mainly Kurdish-held city of Qamishli far to the east, wounding two children, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. "The fighting is fierce but the focus is much narrower than yesterday (Monday)," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman told AFP, adding that it was mainly concentrated in the north and the southwest of the enclave. In the northeast of Afrin, pro-Ankara rebels entered the village of Qastal Jando, the Observatory said. In the same area, Turkish forces and their allies had briefly captured a strategic hill on Monday but it was retaken by the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) in the evening. Barsaya Hill overlooks both the Syrian town of Azaz, which is held by pro-Ankara rebels, and the Turkish town of Kilis just across the border. Ankara sees the YPG as an offshoot of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) which has waged a bloody insurgency in southeastern Turkey since 1984. After months of threats, on Saturday Turkey announced the launch of Operation Olive Branch, an air and ground assault aimed at dislodging the YPG from Afrin. On Sunday its troops crossed the border. But the operation is hugely sensitive as Washington relied on the YPG to oust the Islamic State group from its strongholds in Syria and the Kurdish militia now holds much of the north. Azharuddin (L) exchanges documents with the CEO of Ocean Infinity Oliver Plunkett (R) at a ceremony earlier this month A new hunt for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 using high-tech underwater drones has started, officials said Tuesday, in the latest bid to solve one of the world's greatest aviation mysteries. A ship operated by exploration firm Ocean Infinity arrived at the search area in the Indian Ocean on Monday and launched the drones, said Malaysia's Department of Civil Aviation director-general Azharuddin Abdul Rahman. "The vessel Seabed Constructor has arrived at the search area and commenced the search operation," he said in a statement. The jet disappeared in March 2014 with 239 people -- mostly from China -- on board, en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. No sign of the plane was found in a 120,000 square kilometre (46,000 square mile) sea search zone and the Australian-led hunt, the largest in aviation history, was suspended in January last year. Ocean Infinity struck a deal with the Malaysian government to restart the hunt on a private basis and will only be paid if it finds the jet or its black boxes. It stands to make up to $70 million if successful. The new search zone is an area of about 25,000 square kilometres in the southern Indian Ocean, north of the former search area. The hunt will last a maximum of three months. If the company finds the Boeing 777, the amount it is paid will depend on where it was located. If it is found within the first 5,000 square kilometres, the firm will receive $20 million. The amount rises gradually to a maximum of $70 million if the jet is found outside the 25,000 square kilometre search zone. The ship conducting the hunt is a Norwegian research vessel carrying 65 crew, including two members of the Malaysian navy as the government's representatives. It is using eight autonomous drones, equipped with sonars and cameras, that will scour the waters for wreckage and can operate in depths up to 6,000 metres (20,000 feet). The families of those who were on board will be kept up to date on the hunt, authorities said. Only three confirmed fragments of MH370 have been found, all of them on western Indian Ocean shores, including a two-metre wing part known as a flaperon. Authorities are still investigating how the six militants were able to slip passed Kabul Balkh Safety & Security (KBSS) guards and launch the assault with guns and grenades Visitors to an upmarket Kabul hotel attacked by Taliban gunmen have described glaring security breaches before the assailants went on a bloody rampage targeting guests, in a city constantly under threat. Bags were not checked, scanners did not work and body searches were non-existent, according to witnesses, as the private company providing security to the state-owned Intercontinental Hotel comes under the spotlight. The 12-hour attack overnight Saturday killed at least 22 people, the majority of them foreigners, including citizens from Venezuela, the Ukraine, Germany and Kazakhstan. A number of Americans were also among the dead and wounded, a State Department official said Tuesday. The hotel -- its long white facade blackened by smoke -- was still barred to journalists Tuesday, two days after the assault ended. Authorities are investigating how the six militants were able to slip past Kabul Balkh Safety & Security (KBSS) guards and launch the assault with guns and grenades. A witness and a security source told AFP that at least two of the gunmen were armed and inside the hotel before the attack began, and questions have been raised -- including by the country's interior minister -- over whether the militants had inside help. An AFP reporter and driver visited the landmark 1960s building on a hilltop overlooking the Afghan capital on Saturday, hours before the assault began. They described cursory security checks by KBSS, accounts confirmed by other recent visitors. "We were told the scanning machines were not working today," said telecom executive Aziz Tayeb, who hid behind a pillar during the assault. "I also didn't see any armed guard in the scan room just before you enter the building or inside," he said, adding his bags were not searched. "In the past two weeks, I went to the hotel with my family twice. Out of the three or four checkpoints before the main entrance only one of them checked our car. We were not even body-searched," Ahmad Shafi, a frequent visitor, told AFP. The 12-hour attack overnight Saturday killed at least 22 people, the majority of them foreigners An AFP driver said that when he arrived at the first checkpoint around 9:30 am Saturday, the hotel guard casually asked him: "Do you have a gun?" The driver replied "No" and was waved through. At a second checkpoint, guards looked for magnetic bombs on the car using a mirror and sniffer dog, he said. A few metres from the hotel lobby the AFP reporter was checked with a handheld metal detector. It is unclear if the baggage scanning machine was working at the time. No armed guards were seen in the immediate vicinity of the hotel. - Ongoing investigation - The New York Times quoted a general with the Crisis Response Unit, which responds to frequent Taliban attacks on urban centres, as saying he believed at least three attackers had been inside the hotel for long enough to familiarise themselves with its layout and even bring in equipment. KBSS declined a request for comment. In a statement the company said it would do "everything in its power" to cooperate with the investigation. KBSS, which took over hotel security three weeks ago, was formed in 2004 and lists the United Nations and the European Union as among its clients. The attack on the Intercontinental Hotel followed security warnings in recent days to avoid locations frequented by foreigners in war-torn Kabul A security source told AFP that KBSS has responsibility for protecting the complex only, with its guards not allowed inside the hotel under a contract he said had been signed by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. They were also not allowed to search VIPs, he said. Witnesses have said the guards fled during the attack, though the security source denied that. The attack followed security warnings in recent days to avoid locations frequented by foreigners in war-torn Kabul. emh-us-ach-amj/st/klm Turkey and Ankara-backed Syrian opposition fighters have launched a major offensive targeting Kurdish militia in northern Syria The Turkish army on Tuesday clashed with Kurdish militia in Syria in an operation that has already left three of its soldiers dead, as the United States voiced alarm that the offensive could endanger attempts to end the Syrian civil war. Amid growing international concern over the four-day-old cross-border campaign into Turkey's neighbour, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan vowed that Ankara would emerge victorious. Turkey on Saturday launched operation "Olive Branch" aimed at rooting out the Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) militia, which Ankara sees as a terror group, from its Afrin enclave in northern Syria. The campaign has caused ripples of concern among Turkey's NATO allies, especially the United States which is still working closely with the YPG to defeat Islamic State (IS) jihadists in Syria. In his strongest comments yet on the offensive, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis urged Turkey to show "restraint" and warned it could harm the fight against the jihadists. Fevziye Demir hugs her father after a rocket fired from across the border in Syria hit her house in Kilis in Turkey Mattis, on a visit to Indonesia, warned the offensive "disrupts what was a relatively stable area in Syria and distracts from the international effort to defeat" IS. US President Donald Trump is expected to express America's unease in a call telephone with Erdogan on Wednesday. French President Emmanuel Macron joined in the chorus of concern when he spoke by phone to the Turkish leader on Tuesday. "While recognising Turkey's security needs, Macron "told his Turkish counterpart of his concern over the military intervention," the French presidency said. - 'Until the last terrorist' - Turkish artillery on Tuesday pounded targets of the YPG inside Syria, the state-run Anadolu news agency said. Turkish drones were also carrying out attacks, state television said. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said fighting was "very violent" to the northeast, northwest and southwest of Afrin. As well as the artillery and air strikes, Turkish ground troops and Ankara-backed Syrian rebels have punched over the border several kilometres (miles) into Syrian territory, taking several villages, according to state media. After intense exchanges, Turkey's forces took control of the hill of Barsaya, a key strategic point in the Afrin region. The Observatory said 43 Ankara-backed rebels and 38 Kurdish fighters had been killed in the fighting so far. It has also said 28 civilians have been killed on the Syrian side but this is vehemently rejected by Turkey which says it is targeting militants only. Sergeant Musa Ozalkan, 30, the first Turkish military fatality of the operation, was laid to rest with full honours in a ceremony in Ankara attended by the Turkish leadership Sergeant Musa Ozalkan, 30, the first Turkish military fatality of the operation, was laid to rest with full honours in a ceremony in Ankara attended by the Turkish leadership. "We will win and reach victory in this operation together with our people, together with Free Syrian Army," Erdogan assured mourners, referring to the Ankara-backed rebels. Two more Turkish soldiers -- a first lieutenant and a sergeant -- were killed inside Syria on Tuesday in clashes with the YPG, the military said. The campaign -- which Erdogan has made clear has no fixed timetable -- is fraught with risks for Turkey. Two civilians have been killed inside Turkey in border towns in the last two days by rocket fire from Syria blamed on the YPG. "This operation will continue until the last terrorist is eliminated," Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim said. Cavusoglu said in a television interview Turkey could extend the operation further to target other YPG-held areas in northern Syria including the town of Manbij and even areas east of the Euphrates River. - 'Erdogan, Trump to talk' - Ankara has expressed impatience with Western concern over the operation, arguing that the YPG is the Syrian offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) which has waged a bloody three-decade insurgency against the Turkish state. The foreign ministry of Qatar -- Turkey's closest Gulf ally -- gave its unequivocal backing to the operation. Critical is the opinion of Russia, which has a military presence in the area and a cordial relationship with the YPG but is also working with Turkey to bring an end to the seven-year-old Syrian civil war. Erdogan said Monday that the offensive had been agreed with Russia but this has not been confirmed by Moscow. Cavusoglu denied there had been any "bargain or deal". However many analysts argue that Turkey would never have gone ahead with the offensive without the Kremlin's blessing. Erdogan and Putin late Tuesday discussed the operation by telephone, the Turkish presidency said, but the details of the call were not disclosed. Turkey's previous incursion into Syria was the Euphrates Shield campaign of August 2016-March 2017, targeting both the YPG and IS in an area east of Afrin. Turkey's offensive against Kurdish militia in Syria is the second such operation since the outbreak of civil war there The Turkish security forces have meanwhile imposed a clampdown against anyone suspected of disseminating "terror propaganda" against the operation on social media. Ninety-one people were detained in 13 provinces in Turkey, state media reported on Tuesday, after 24 people were detained in other cities on Monday. burs-raz-sjw/pvh US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, seen here in November 2017 in Washington, urged Turkey to show restraint in its offensive against a Kurdish militia in Syria US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis urged Turkey on Tuesday to show restraint in its offensive against a Kurdish militia in Syria. "We take very seriously Turkey's legitimate security concerns and we are committed to work with our NATO allies on those," Mattis said in Jakarta at the start of an Asian tour. "We urge Turkey to exercise restraint in the military action and the rhetoric." Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has vowed to step up an offensive against Kurdish targets in neighbouring Syria and in Iraq. The operation, which includes an air and ground campaign involving Ankara-backed Syrian rebels, aims to oust the People's Protection Units (YPG) from Afrin in northern Syria. Turkey views the YPG as a terror group and an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers' Party, which has long fought for autonomy within Turkey. The YPG denies aiming for separatism. Turkey's offensive is complicated by the US relationship with the YPG, on which it relied to help oust Islamic State jihadists from their Syrian strongholds. "The violence in Afrin disrupts what was a relatively stable area in Syria and distracts from the international effort to defeat ISIS," Mattis said Tuesday, using another name for the Islamic State. "We are calling all parties to remain focused on defeating ISIS." Rohingya refugee children carry wood at Kutupalong refugee camp in the Bangladeshi district of Ukhia Bangladesh officials said Tuesday a huge fire burned and gunshots were heard in a village across the border in Myanmar's conflict-scarred Rakhine state, where authorities want to return Rohingya refugees. A "big fire" was seen raging late Monday in an abandoned village from Tombru, a frontier post in Cox's Bazar district, a senior Bangladeshi border guard told AFP on condition of anonymity. The fire occurred the evening before Bangladesh was due to start repatriating hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees to Rakhine state under an agreement with Myanmar. The repatriation process was to begin Tuesday and last two years, but was delayed as Bangladesh conceded both sides were not ready for the huge undertaking. It is believed the homes ablaze overnight belonged to Rohingya, the official said. The border region is controlled by Myanmar's forces, he added. Another border official told AFP he heard several gunshots before flames were seen leaping from the village. It was not possible to independently verify the accounts as Myanmar has heavily restricted access to the area. Abul Naser, a 42-year-old Rohingya refugee living near the border, described seeing "flames and clouds of smoke". "They are trying to send us a message, they are trying to scare us so that we never go back," he told AFP, referring to Myanmar forces. Footage of the blaze quickly spread among Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh through social media, with many quick to blame Myanmar's security forces. "The fire is designed to destroy the last remaining traces of Rohingya homes so that none of us can return to our villages," Rafique bin Habib, an activist from the persecuted Muslim minority, told AFP. He said without homes, those Rohingya returned under the controversial repatriation agreement would be denied access to their ancestral lands and forced to live in displacement camps. Displaced Rohingya inside Bangladesh have described homes being razed by Myanmar soldiers and Buddhist mobs during a campaign of violence the UN has likened to ethnic cleansing. Nearly 690,000 Muslim Rohingya have escaped Rakhine state over the border into Bangladesh since August in the wake of a military-led campaign in Rakhine state against the Muslim minority. Rights groups and the UN have said any repatriation must be voluntary. Many refugees have rallied against the prospect of return, fearing repeat persecution and being confined to camps indefinitely. Former Gurkha soldier Hari Budha Magar hopes to overturn a rule which bans him from climbing Everest A former Gurkha soldier who lost both his legs in Afghanistan hit out Tuesday at new rules by the Nepal government that ban double amputees from climbing its mountains, dashing his Everest dreams. Hari Budha Magar, 38, had been training hard in hopes of becoming the first above-the-knee double amputee to scale Mount Everest until his plans were scuppered by the law introduced in December. The rules ban double amputee and blind climbers, a move that has drawn criticism from disability rights groups around the world. Magar slammed the new rules as "unfair" and "discriminatory". "I agree that the government needs to bring rules to minimise risks but such ban is not the answer," he told AFP. Magar lost his legs after he was hit by an improvised explosive device while serving with the Brigade of Gurkhas -- a unit of Nepalis recruited into the British army -- in Afghanistan in 2010. His legs were amputated above the knee and he had to learn how to walk using prosthetics. Magar wears specially designed crampons attached to shortened prosthetics to climb, and has successfully summited Nepal's Mera Peak as well as the highest peak in the Alps, Mont Blanc. The father of three, who wears shorts regardless of the weather to show off his titanium legs, was on a training expedition in remote central Nepal when he heard about the ban. "I had heard rumours but didn't think it would happen. I was very surprised and shocked," he said. Magar grew up in the foothills of the Himalayas in western Nepal and describes summiting Everest as a childhood dream. He has been lobbying the Nepal government to have the ban overturned and is confident he will succeed, paving the way for him to attempt Everest in 2019. "The law could have instead looked into what safety measures such people can take for mountaineering. But you cannot ban and discriminate against anyone like that," said Sudarshan Subedi, president of Nepal's National Federation of the Disabled, which has been supporting Magar in talks with the government. The World Blind Union, which lobbies governments around the world on behalf of blind people, has also called on Nepal to reverse its decision, describing it as arbitrary. New Zealander Mark Inglis became the first double amputee to summit the world's highest peak in 2006. Inglis had his legs amputated below the knee after a climbing accident in 1982. The first blind person to summit Everest was US citizen Erik Weihenmayer in 2001. In 2010 partially-sighted Cindy Abbott also reached the top of the 8,848 metre (29,029-foot) peak and last year Andy Holzer, a blind climber from Austria, successfully summited Everest as well. Sixteen-year-old Palestinian Ahed Tamimi (2-R) stands for a hearing in an Israeli military court charged with 12 counts including assault for slapping and kicking Israeli soldiers near her home in the occupied West Bank Israel's Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Tuesday instructed army radio to censor a prominent author who compared a Palestinian teen facing trial to a Jewish girl murdered in the Holocaust. Ahed Tamimi, 16, was arrested in December for slapping two Israeli soldiers in the occupied West Bank, in an incident caught on video. She has been charged with 12 counts including assault and ordered kept in custody until the end of the legal proceedings. Hailed as a hero by Palestinians who see her as bravely standing up to Israel's occupation, Tamimi has also caught the attention of the Israeli left, including prominent writer and poet Jonathan Geffen, who dedicated an Instagram post to her. "A pretty 17-year-old girl did a terrible thing, and when a proud Israeli officer once again raided her home, she slapped him," he wrote on Monday. "She was born into that, and in that slap there were 50 years of occupation and humiliation," he wrote. "On the day the story of this struggle is told, you, Ahed Tamimi, red-haired like David who slapped Goliath, will be on the same page as Joan of Arc, Hannah Szenes and Anne Frank," Geffen said on Instagram. In posts on his own social media accounts, the outspoken Lieberman lashed out at the writer, whose songs -- for adults and children -- are very popular in Israel. "I've instructed the commander of army radio to stop playing or interviewing Jonathan Geffen in all the station's broadcasts, and I call on all media in Israel to do the same," the defence minister said. "The State of Israel won't give a platform to a drunkard comparing a child (Frank) who was killed in the Holocaust and a hero warrior (Szenes) who fought the Nazi regime to Ahed Tamimi, the brat who attacked a soldier," he said. "Geffen's pursuit of headlines is sickening and infuriating," Lieberman continued, say the Lebanese Hezbollah's Al-Manar television channel would be a more suitable venue for Geffen's "nonsense". Israel's military radio station is under the command of the army chief and ultimately the defence minister -- but not on matters relating to content of what is broadcast. The justice ministry issued a statement reiterating that Lieberman "has no legal authority to intervene in the content of the station's broadcasts". US Vice President Mike Pence visits Jerusalem's Western Wall, one of the holiest sites in Judaism, on January 23, 2018, as he wraps up a trip to the disputed city Washington has declared Israel's capital US Vice President Mike Pence visited Jerusalem's Western Wall, one of the holiest sites in Judaism, on Tuesday as he wrapped up a trip to the disputed city that Washington has declared Israel's capital. Pence and his wife Karen visited the wall separately as required by the ultra-Orthodox Jewish authorities who govern the site under strict interpretation of religious law. The vice president, wearing a black skullcap, inserted a piece of paper inside a crack in the ancient wall's stones in accordance with the tradition of leaving a prayer. He then placed his right hand on the wall before stepping backwards and gazing at the site for a few moments and signing the guest book. No Israeli government officials accompanied Pence on the visit. "It is my great honour to pray here at this sacred place. God bless the Jewish people and God bless the state of Israel always," he wrote. "Very inspiring," Pence said after leaving. After visiting the wall, Karen Pence was seen visiting a shop nearby in Jerusalem's Old City. They were due to depart from Israel at around 5:20 pm (1520 GMT). The Western Wall is among the last remnants of the second Jewish temple destroyed by the Romans in 70 AD. It lies in east Jerusalem, occupied by Israel in the Six-Day War of 1967 and later annexed in a move never recognised by the international community. Many Israelis are likely to interpret the Western Wall visit as Pence further backing their claim over the entire city. Pence followed in the footsteps of Trump, who became the first sitting US president to visit the Western Wall in May last year. Since arriving on Sunday, Pence has repeatedly reaffirmed Trump's December 6 declaration of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, though he has reiterated that final borders must be negotiated. The Palestinians have been deeply angered by the declaration and boycotted Pence's visit. Israel claims all of Jerusalem as its capital, while the Palestinians see the eastern sector as the capital of their future state. The US move to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital broke with decades of international consensus that the city's status should be settled as part of a two-state peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians. As journalists gathered to cover Pence's visit to the wall, women reporters criticised what they called discrimination after being forced to stand behind men under rules enforced by Jewish ultra-Orthodox authorities. The wall's gender separation rule was applied to journalists, effectively forcing women to stand behind men and leaving them with worse access. US Vice President Mike Pence (C) visits Jerusalem's Western Wall Women journalists covering US Vice President Mike Pence's visit Tuesday to the Western Wall criticised what they called discrimination after being forced to stand behind men under rules enforced by Jewish ultra-Orthodox authorities. The Western Wall, one of the holiest sites in Judaism, is governed by the ultra-Orthodox Jewish establishment and women and men must visit it separately. The rule was applied to journalists gathering to cover Pence's visit, effectively forcing women to stand behind men, leaving them with worse access. A podium erected for journalists to cover the visit included a barrier between the male and female sides of the wall, with women journalists forced to stand behind it. After complaints, a tarp covering the podium was removed, allowing women to stand on chairs to be able to see over male journalists. Some women journalists at the site were posting on Twitter about the separation, using the hashtag #PenceFence. "I feel like a second-class citizen," Tal Schneider, a journalist with Israeli paper Globes, told AFP. "We are not allowed to do our work." Schneider said she was told by US officials that the arrangement was at the insistence of ultra-Orthodox Jewish authorities at the site. "Every effort was made to accommodate both female and male journalists while observing the rules in place at the Western Wall," Pence spokeswoman Alyssa Farrah said later. The holy site has long seen controversy over the separation between women and men. Reformist Jewish movements have sought to change the rule, but the ultra-Orthodox authorities have firmly refused, citing Jewish law. An Afghan policeman keeps watch at Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel where 22 people were killed in an attack by Taliban militants Americans were among the dead and wounded in the weekend attack by Taliban gunmen on a Kabul luxury hotel, a State Department official said Tuesday. "We can confirm that there were US citizen fatalities and injuries," the official said, without specifying how many Americans were involved. "We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who were killed and wish for the speedy recovery of those wounded. "Out of respect for the families of the deceased, we have no further comment." At least 22 people were killed in Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel over the weekend as Taliban militants went room-to-room looking for guests. Afghan officials say at least 14 foreigners were among the dead, and Ukraine's ambassador confirmed that at least seven of these were Ukrainians. A German, a Kazakh and two Venezuelans have also been reported dead. Guests hid behind pillars and in rooms as gunmen sprayed bullets and set fire to parts of the six-storey building, witnesses told AFP. Some guests climbed over balconies and used bed sheets in a desperate attempt to escape. A file picture shows a young Palestinian woman using a mobile phone in the West Bank city of Ramallah on November 5, 2014 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank began receiving 3G mobile telecommunications services on Tuesday, after years of wrangling with the Israeli authorities. The Jawwal and Wataniya firms began offering the service to their customers Tuesday morning, with Palestinians seeing the option appear on their phones for the first time. Israel had previously blocked Palestinian mobile companies' access to the necessary frequencies. Third generation services were originally launched in the early 2000s, and much of the world already has 4G technology, while 5G is expected in the next year. Ammar Aker, chief executive of the Paltel communications company which owns Jawwal, told AFP it had been a decade of work to get Israel to agree to 3G. "We launched 3G technically and commercially about midnight on Monday. This is a strategic step we have been waiting for for more than 10 years. We hope it has a positive affect on the national communications (infrastructure) and economy." The launch coincided with a one-day strike across the West Bank in protest at the visit of US Vice President Mike Pence to Jerusalem and the US administration's recognition of the disputed city as the capital of Israel. The Palestinians see at least the eastern part of the city as the capital of their future state and boycotted Pence's visit. A Wataniya spokesman, Shadi al-Qawasmi, said stores were closed because of the strike but that 3G services were still offered on mobile devices. The service will be available only in the West Bank for now and not in the Gaza Strip, blockaded by Israel for more than a decade. The companies say they need Israeli permits to bring in equipment necessary. Egypt has also kept its border with Gaza largely closed in recent years. "The Shape of Water" by director Guillermo del Toro -- shown here at the film's premiere in November -- is leading the race for the Oscars with 13 nominations Fantasy romance "The Shape of Water" topped the Oscars nominations list on Tuesday with 13 nods, one shy of the record, as the Academy also gave a rare nomination to a woman in the directing category. In second place was tense World War II epic "Dunkirk," with eight nods, while crime drama "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," generally thought to be the favorite in the best picture category, picked up seven nominations. But "The Shape of Water," Guillermo del Toro's Cold War-set story of love between a mute cleaning woman and a mystery merman-like creature, dominated the competition. It scored nods for best picture, best director and best actress for its star Sally Hawkins. Richard Jenkins and Octavia Spencer each scored nominations in the supporting acting categories, and the film was also nominated for best original screenplay, with the rest of its nods coming in technical categories. The haul fell one short of the record for most nominations ever, held jointly by "La La Land," "Titanic" and "All About Eve." "This nomination is for every one of us who brought our hearts to this film," Hawkins said in a statement retweeted by the movie's official Twitter account. "I'm here because of the greatness of others. I stand on the shoulders of giants." The 90th Academy Awards -- the climax of Hollywood's awards season, to be hosted by late night funnyman Jimmy Kimmel -- will be held on March 4. Organizers will be looking to rebound after last year's flubbed announcement of the best picture winner -- the trophy was initially given to "La La Land," when the actual winner was "Moonlight." - Women filmmakers recognized - In a departure from previous years, there are very few clear frontrunners, making the race far more interesting. Greta Gerwig is only the fifth woman nominated for best director, for her coming-of-age film "Lady Bird" With the #MeToo and Time's Up campaigns against sexual misconduct and gender inequality dominating the 2018 awards circuit, the Oscars announcement was seen as an opportunity for the industry to support female filmmaking -- snubbed at the Golden Globes. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will be seen as having righted that wrong to some degree, with its nod for Greta Gerwig, the director of "Lady Bird." Before Tuesday, just four women had been nominated for best director since 1927. In the best director category, Gerwig and Del Toro take on Christopher Nolan ("Dunkirk"), Jordan Peele ("Get Out") and Paul Thomas Anderson ("Phantom Thread"). There was also the first nod for a female cinematographer, Rachel Morrison, who shot Dee Rees's racial drama "Mudbound." Gerwig recently told Variety she was "heartened" by "the number of women who are making really interesting films and the desire to shine a spotlight on them." - Streep, Day-Lewis in the hunt - "The Shape of Water" will vie for best picture honors with eight other films, including "Dunkirk," "Three Billboards," coming-of-age movies "Call Me By Your Name" and "Lady Bird," and Winston Churchill saga "Darkest Hour." Others in the coveted top category are dark satire "Get Out," Daniel Day-Lewis's apparent final film "Phantom Thread" -- he has announced his retirement -- and Pentagon Papers thriller "The Post." "Three Billboards" -- buoyed by strong showings at the Golden Globes and Screen Actors Guild Awards -- remains in pole position for the top prize, according to the Gold Derby awards prediction website. Best actor nominees (L to R): Timothee Chalamet, Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Daniel Kaluuya and Daniel Day-Lewis For best actor, Day-Lewis will battle for a golden statuette with Timothee Chalamet ("Call Me by Your Name"), Daniel Kaluuya ("Get Out"), Gary Oldman ("Darkest Hour") and Denzel Washington ("Roman J. Israel, Esq."). "I'm walking around in a daze. I'm so proud of Team Get Out. What a ride. What an experience. What a year. What a team. I'm so happy and proud of King Peele," Kaluuya said in a statement to Entertainment Weekly. In the best actress category, Hawkins has competition from Frances McDormand ("Three Billboards"), Margot Robbie ("I, Tonya"), Saoirse Ronan ("Lady Bird") and Meryl Streep ("The Post"), who notched her record 21st nomination. Best supporting actor pits Jenkins against Christopher Plummer, a last-minute stand-in for Kevin Spacey, who was dropped from "All the Money in the World" after being accused of numerous cases of sexual misconduct. The other nominees were Willem Dafoe ("The Florida Project"), Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell (both "Three Billboards"). Best actress nominees (L to R): Margot Robbie, Sally Hawkins, Meryl Streep, Frances McDormand and Saoirse Ronan The Oscars cap a difficult few months for the film industry, which has faced widespread allegations of sexual harassment and assault, sparking a period of soul-searching that has cast a shadow over the normally joyous awards season. A flood of allegations since October have led to the downfall of numerous powerful figures including Harvey Weinstein, Jeffrey Tambor and Brett Ratner. James Franco ("The Disaster Artist"), a popular contender for best actor, joined Spacey in seeing his Oscar hopes shot down in flames after becoming tainted by scandal. The plight of the abducted Chibok girls, seen here in a picture taken from a Boko Haram video last week, stirred a worldwide campaign for their release Nigerian police on Tuesday briefly detained activists calling for the release of the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapped by Boko Haram jihadists nearly four years ago, campaigners said. Members of the #BringBackOurGirls advocacy group were taken into custody as they held their daily demonstration in the capital, Abuja, said group coordinator Aisha Yesufu. #BringBackOurGirls has been calling on the government to rescue or secure the release of scores of girls abducted from the remote northeastern town of Chibok in April 2014. It also wants the return of thousands of other women, men and children who have been seized during the conflict, which began in 2009 and has killed at least 20,000 people. "The Nigeria police force decided to arrest us, arrest innocent citizens that came out to demand the rescue of girls who have been abducted for almost four years," said Yesufu. About 12 people were taken into custody around 10 am and were held at an Abuja police station for approximately four hours, said group leader Oby Ezekwesili. "At the FCT (Federal Capital Territory) police command I asked why our members were being arrested, and no one could say a thing," Ezekwesili said. But Nigerian police said in a statement released Tuesday evening that they brought the members of the #BringBackOurGirls group to the station because they "reacted violently" during the demonstration. "It is pertinent to state that they were only brought to the command to ensure there was no breakdown of law and order as some members of the group reacted violently and broke down security barriers set up by the police to restrict their protest to Unity Fountain," said police spokesman Anjuguri Manzah. The kidnapping of 276 students from Chibok sparked outrage around the world and brought global attention to the insurgency in Nigeria's northeast. The young captives became the defining symbol of Boko Haram's campaign to establish a hardline Islamic state and cast a spotlight on then-president Goodluck Jonathan's response. Current President Muhammadu Buhari, a former general, swept to power in 2015 on the back of criticism of Jonathan's handling of the violence. He pledged to defeat the jihadists and has since repeatedly announced that Boko Haram is defeated, yet the jihadists still mount regular attacks on civilians and the military. Fifty-seven Chibok girls escaped in the hours after they were kidnapped. Since then, 107 have escaped, been rescued or released in deals struck between the government and Boko Haram. One hundred and twelve are still being held. The talks to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) enter a crucial phase in Montreal this week amid wide differences on key issues and the threat the United States might abandon the free trade deal Canada announced Tuesday it will sign on the Trans Pacific Partnership, moving to diversify its trade relationships as Canadian, US and Mexican negotiators kicked off a sixth round of talks on a 1994 free trade pact that Washington has threatened to dump. Canada had initially balked at joining the proposed TPP last year, acting as the main holdout in negotiations after US President Donald Trump decided in early 2017 to go it alone under his "America First" policy. But with Trump also threatening to pull the United States out of the North American Free Trade Agreement and time running out to reach a deal on NAFTA, Canada found itself on the hot seat. "We're seeing a lot of trade skepticism around the world in general right now," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. "People are worried or become increasingly convinced that trade deals benefit the few, not the many, benefit a country's bottom line, benefit multinationals, but don't benefit ordinary workers," he said. The prime minister described how governments must now "demonstrate convincingly" to workers the merits of free trade. "That is what we're working very hard on in NAFTA and I know that the work we were able to do with our fellow CPTPP partners at this point is going to be good not just for Canadians but citizens of the entire group of 11 countries in Asia that are part of this," he said. Canada's decision to join the TPP, which has been rebranded the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership or CPTPP, came after two days of talks in Tokyo. The parties will aim to sign the deal to create one of the world's largest trading blocs by early March, said officials. The agreement will incorporate all commitments from the original TPP, except for a limited number of provisions suspended temporarily, and some remaining issues to be finalized. China is not included in the TPP, as the pact was initially driven by the former US administration as a counterweight to surging Chinese power in Asia. - NAFTA negotiations - In Montreal, Canada and Mexico, which is also a CPTPP member, signalled their readiness to offer concessions and to propose "creative solutions" to break a deadlock in negotiations and to ultimately convince the United States not to follow through on its threat to withdraw from NAFTA. The pact, which Trump last week derided as "a bad joke," binds nearly 500 million consumers, and provides Canada and Mexico with privileged access to the US market. This sixth round of NAFTA negotiations "will be critical," because the most contentious issues are on the agenda, according to a Mexican government statement. "Everything will be on the table," commented Canadian Trade Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne, noting that 28 of the 30 NAFTA chapters had yet to be revised. In a sign of its hardening protectionist stance, the US administration on Monday imposed duties on washing machines manufactured in Mexico and South Korea, as well as on solar panels imported from China. Trump, however, said Tuesday he believed the NAFTA talks were "moving along pretty well." "I happen to be of the opinion that if it does not work out, we will terminate it... so we'll see how it all works out," Trump said in the Oval Office. The more contentious issues under consideration include adding a "sunset clause" that would automatically repeal NAFTA after five years unless it is renewed by the member countries. Negotiators also will discuss the elimination of bi-national panels to resolve trade disputes, and Washington's demand for stricter "rules of origin" for the automotive industry. The current agreement specifies at least 62.5 percent of vehicle components must be manufactured in one of the three member countries in order to be exempted from customs duties. The Trump administration proposed raising the bar to a minimum North American content of 85 percent and requiring 50 percent US origin. The US-made requirement irritates Mexico and Canada, but a compromise is still possible on the volume of regional content, according to sources. The Trump administration also has called on Canada to abolish its supply-managed dairy and poultry sectors. At the same time, Washington would like to drastically limit foreign access to US government procurement. The Montreal talks are expected to last until January 29, making this the longest bargaining session since the start of the talks six months ago. This undated handout photo, courtesy of Angela Gui on September 22, 2017, shows her as a child with her father Gui Minhai, who disappeared on October 17, 2015, a Hong Kong bookseller known for publishing gossipy titles about Chinese political leaders Stockholm on Tuesday called on Beijing to release dissident publisher Gui Minhai after the Swedish citizen was snatched for a second time in mainland China while being accompanied by Swedish diplomats. "We expect our citizen to be released immediately and be given the opportunity to meet Swedish diplomatic and medical personnel," Foreign Minister Margot Wallstrom said in a statement. One of five Hong Kong-based booksellers known for salacious titles about the lives of China's political elite, 53-year-old Gui first went missing in 2015 while on vacation in Thailand and resurfaced at an undisclosed location in China. Chinese authorities said they had released Gui in October, but it was unclear to what extent he was a free man after serving a jail sentence over "a traffic incident". His daughter Angela Gui told Radio Sweden that he had then been snatched by plain clothes police on Saturday while on a train to Beijing from the eastern city of Ningbo, where he was living, while accompanied by two Swedish diplomats. Police walk past missing person posters of Gui Minhai (left) and Yau Wentian during a 2016 rally outside China's Liaison Office in Hong Kong Gui senior had been travelling to Beijing to see a Swedish doctor as he was showing symptoms of the neurological disease ALS -- also known as Lou Gehrig's disease -- Angela added. "At one of the stops before Beijing there were about 10 men in plain clothes that came in and said they were from the police and just grabbed him and just took him away and after that I have not heard anything," she told Radio Sweden. - 'Strong action'- Wallstrom, who summoned China's ambassador to Stockholm twice within three days, confirmed that Gui was "arrested by Chinese authorities" in the presence of diplomatic staff who were "assisting a Swedish citizen in need of medical care". This photo from January 3, 2016 shows protesters holding up missing person notices of (L-R) Lui Bo and colleagues Cheung Jiping, Gui Minhai, Lee Bo and Lam Wing-kei in Hong Kong She added that international rules give the diplomatic staff the right to provide a Swedish citizen with consular support and raised alarm over his detention, which took place "without further explanation". In February 2016 after his first disappearance, Gui appeared on Chinese television, weeping as he confessed to involvement in a fatal car accident years before. In another interview the same year, he also admitted trying to smuggle illegal books into China. Saturday's incident triggered outrage among human rights groups. Amnesty International described the incident as "absolutely appalling" and called for Gui to be released and allowed to seek medical treatment. The fact that he had been snatched in front of diplomats should be a "wake up call" to the international community, said Amnesty's China researcher William Nee. Since taking power in 2012 President Xi Jinping has come under increasing pressure on rights issues, following widespread arrests of lawyers and activists. Literary society and activist group PEN Hong Kong expressed "highest concern" over Gui's latest disappearance. Placards showing missing bookseller Lee Bo (L) and his associate Gui Minhai (R) are seen left by members of the Civic party outside the China liaison office in Hong Kong on January 19, 2016 "It is now important for foreign governments, particularly the Swedes and the European Union, to respond with strong actions," Human Rights Watch said in a statement to AFP. China was widely criticised after veteran Chinese rights activist and Nobel Laureate Liu Xiaobo died from liver cancer while on medical parole on the mainland in December last year. Rights groups had pushed for him to be allowed to seek medical treatment abroad. Museveni's praise of Trump for his reported remarks is in stark contrast to the anger voiced by other African leaders Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni on Tuesday hailed Donald Trump for speaking "frankly" to Africans, after the US president unleashed a storm by reportedly describing African nations as "shithole countries." "I love Trump because he speaks to Africans frankly. I don't know if he was misquoted or whatever. He talks about Africans' weaknesses frankly," Museveni said in the capital Kampala to members of the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA). Trump reportedly used the language at a private White House meeting on January 12, which led to condemnation in the US and around the world. He has denied using that term, but admitted to using "tough" language at the meeting, and rebutted accusations of racism. Museveni also turned to Twitter to show his appreciation for Trump's use of language. "Donald Trump speaks to Africa frankly. Africans need to solve their problems. You can't survive if you are weak. It is the Africans' fault that they are weak," he wrote. His comments were in stark contrast to the outrage expressed by other African leaders. Ghanaian President Nana Akufo-Addo tweeted that Trump's language was "extremely unfortunate". Namibia said the president's language had "no place in diplomatic discourse" and was "contrary to the norms of civility and human progress". The African Union, which represents African countries, demanded that Trump apologise. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, meanwhile, described the reported comments as "racist", "shocking and shameful". Museveni, 73, has been in power in Uganda since 1986 and could potentially seek a sixth term in office in 2021 if a bill to remove presidential age limits is passed. No stranger to controversy, on Monday he described Uganda as a "pre-industrial society" and said he regretted removing the death sentence, saying the move had been "a recipe for chaos". Former Egyptian armed forces chief of staff Sami Anan (R) meets then US Central Command chief and now Defence Secretary James Mattis in Cairo on March 29, 2011 Another potential challenger to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi appeared in danger Tuesday of dropping out of the election race after he was accused of breaking the law with his candidacy announcement. The allegations against General Sami Anan, a former armed forces chief of staff, mean that Sisi seems to be heading towards the March polls with most of his possible rivals already out of the running. The general command of the Egyptian armed forces, in a video posted on Facebook, accused Anan of crimes including forgery. Anan's campaign team said he had been arrested. While there was no official confirmation of that, the armed forces said in the video that "all legal procedures must be followed regarding infractions and crimes committed that require his appearance before the relevant investigating bodies." Several prominent figures who had been seen as potential challengers to Sisi had already either ruled themselves out or were sentenced to prison even before registrations opened on Saturday. Sisi was elected president in 2014, a year after leading the military ouster of Islamist president Mohamed Morsi when he was himself commander in chief. An election billboard with the image of Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi is seen on January 22, 2018 in Cairo The video accused Anan of announcing his intention to run in the election "without getting the approval of the armed forces or following the required procedures to end his service in the military." It also said Anan's announcement on Saturday "constitutes direct incitement against the armed forces with the intent of causing a rift between it and the great Egyptian people". Anan was accused of forging official documents to erroneously suggest that his service in the armed forces had ended. His candidacy announcement had come just hours after Sisi confirmed he would seek a second term in the March 26-28 election, the third since the 2011 overthrow of strongman Hosni Mubarak. - 'Taken to prosecutors' - One of Anan's top campaign aides, Hisham Geneina, told AFP that the presidential hopeful was arrested on Tuesday morning. His detention came before the armed forces' statement, added Geneina, the former head of the Central Auditing Authority (CAA) who was sacked by Sisi in 2016 after he was accused of exaggerating the cost of corruption. Mustafa Elshall, Anan's campaign manager, also reported the arrest on his Twitter account. Ali Taha, a lawyer, said he was asked by the campaign to defend Anan, who in his announcement speech said he had already put in place a team of civilians to support his bid, including Geneina. Anan served as armed forces chief of staff from 2005 until he was retired by Morsi in 2012. When the longtime strongman was forced to step down by the Arab Spring protests of 2011, he ceded power to the Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF), an interim executive made up of 20 generals in which Anan served as number two. Anan's spokesman Hazem Hosni, a political science professor at Cairo University, said he had been meeting with the presidential hopeful and Geneina for months to discuss the country's situation and potential solutions. "He sees that the state must have space for civil freedoms, political participation, and that killing politics this way in Egypt is not right," Hosni told AFP on Tuesday before the armed forces' video was posted. - Not running - Would-be candidates for the presidency must register with the National Elections Authority by January 29, but some have already stepped aside. Former prime minister Ahmed Shafiq said on January 7 that he would not stand, reversing a pledge he made from the United Arab Emirates in November. Shafiq had disappeared for 24 hours after being deported to Egypt last month following years in exile in the UAE. Last week, Mohamed Anwar Sadat, a dissident and nephew of the late president of the same name, said he too would not run because the climate was not right for free elections. Other potential candidates include Khaled Ali, a rights lawyer and 2012 presidential candidate, and military Colonel Ahmed Konsowa. However, a military court in December sentenced Konsowa to six years in jail after he announced his intention to stand. Ali meanwhile has appealed a three-month sentence in September on charges of offending public decency, in relation to a photograph that Ali says was fabricated and that appeared to show him making an obscene gesture outside a court house. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson speaks during a joint press conference with Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in central London on January 22, 2018 US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Tuesday said Russia bore responsibility for recent chemical attacks by the Syrian government, which Moscow backs in the country's civil war. "Only yesterday more than 20 civilians, most of them children, were victims of an apparent chlorine gas attack," Tillerson said of the reported attack in Eastern Ghouta that left its victims struggling to breathe. "Whoever conducted the attacks, Russia ultimately bears responsibility for the victims in East Ghouta and countless other Syrians targeted with chemical weapons, since Russia became involved in Syria," he told reporters in Paris. "There is simply no denying that Russia, by shielding its Syrian ally, has breached its commitments to the US as a framework guarantor." "At a bare minimum, Russia must stop vetoing, or at the very least abstain, from future Security Council votes on this issue," he added. His comments came as diplomats from 29 countries met in Paris to push for sanctions and criminal charges against the perpetrators of chemical attacks in Syria. Russia and China have blocked Western-backed efforts at the UN to impose sanctions on Damascus over their use. Tuesday's meeting was intended to encourage countries to share information in order to compile a list of individuals implicated in the use of chemical weapons in Syria and beyond. These could then be hit with sanctions such as asset freezes and entry bans as well as criminal proceedings at the national level. Like Tillerson, US under-secretary of state Steve Goldstein lashed out against Moscow on Monday, saying: "Russia had failed to rid Syria of chemical weapons, and they've been blocking chemical weapons organisations." "Enough is enough," he added. Damascus has been repeatedly accused of using chemical weapons, with the United Nations among those blaming government forces for an April 2017 sarin gas attack on the opposition-held village of Khan Sheikhun which left scores dead. There have been at least 130 separate chemical weapons attacks in Syria since 2012, according to French estimates, with the Islamic State group also accused of using mustard gas in Syria and Iraq. The murder of Zainab sparked fury across Pakistan as celebrities, opposition politicians and ordinary citizens demanded action Pakistani police Tuesday arrested the key suspect accused of raping and murdering a young girl in a case that enraged the country and stoked fears a serial killer was preying on children in the city of Kasur. The killing of six-year-old Zainab Fatima Ameen -- the 12th child found raped and murdered in Kasur within a two-kilometre radius in the last two years -- sparked riots, with thousands swarming police stations and setting fire to politicians' homes, accusing authorities of inaction. Shahbaz Sharif, chief minister for Punjab province where Kasur is located, announced the arrest of Imran Ali in a press conference late Tuesday. "The killer of Zainab has been arrested, his name is Imran, he is 24 years old and a resident of Kasur, he is a serial killer," Sharif said. Sharif added that authorities conducted DNA testing of 1150 people and the DNA of Ali "100 percent' matched the evidence collected from the crime scene. "Then in a polygraph test, the culprit confessed all of his wrong doings, we have the video recording," said Sharif. Police said preliminary findings found DNA connecting Ali to Zainab's murder. Investigators also found the same DNA on six of the 12 victims, according to medical officials. "Ali lived on a street next to Zainab," a police official in Kasur told AFP. Another senior police official said Ali had been arrested days after the killing but was later released by authorities after he denied involvement. "The accused was apprehended as a suspect in a door-to-door raids," said the officer who spoke on the condition of anonymity. "He fled the city and went to other cities for some days without knowing he was under observation," he added, confirming his confession. The murder of Zainab sparked fury across Pakistan with two people killed in riots in Kasur and the hashtag #JusticeForZainab trending on social media, as celebrities, opposition politicians and ordinary citizens demanded action. Television stations have repeatedly broadcast chilling CCTV footage purportedly showing the young girl walking hand-in-hand with an unidentified male in what may have been her last moments. Following the murder of Zainab, police rounded up hundreds of people and conducted DNA tests on dozens more in the vicinity, but failed to yield conclusive results, spurring accusations of incompetence. A BBC report last week accused police of the extrajudicial killing of a man wrongfully accused in one of the earlier murder cases. Prior to the recent flood of cases, Kasur was already infamous for sexual abuse, after authorities uncovered a huge paedophilia ring in the city in 2015. At least 280 children were sexually abused on camera by men who later blackmailed their families, threatening to leak the footage. Protests have unfolded across Democratic Republic of Congo in recent months, reflecting rising tensions over President Kabila's future DR Congo's minister for human rights on Tuesday called for the prosecution of police who opened fire on anti-government protestors at the weekend, in a crackdown condemned by the EU and UN. Six people were killed, scores injured and dozens arrested, according to the UN peacekeeping mission MONUSCO, when security forces opened fire on Catholic-organised rallies against President Joseph Kabila on Sunday. The government has put the death toll at two. "Those responsible for these acts must be punished and prosecuted by Congolese justice," Human Rights Minister Marie-Ange Mushobekwa said in an interview with the French station Radio France Internationale (RFI) while on a visit to Paris. Mushobekwa, asked about the particular case of a young girl gunned down at the entrance to a church in Kinshasa's Kintambo district, said: "I have no explanation. I don't understand why the security forces decided to open fire. Those behind these acts will not remain unpunished." She also hit out at abuse of UN observers by the security forces, as reported by the United Nations. "The government cannot tolerate aggression against UN personnel, who are there to support us." In Brussels, the European Union on Tuesday said the "reprehensible acts contrast with the government's declared undertaking to create the right conditions for holding elections." It called for "an effective judicial inquiry" to bring those responsible to book. The statement echoed a similar appeal on Monday by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres. The government on Tuesday blamed "vandals and bystanders" who had attacked the security forces and thrown stones at their vehicles. "Inquiries are underway to establish responsibility in connection with the recorded deaths," according to a government report read by acting spokesman Felix Kabange Numbi. - Contested Kabila - Kabila, 46, has been in power since 2001, at the helm of a regime widely criticised for corruption, repression and incompetence. His constitutional term in office expired in December 2016 but he has stayed on, stoking a bloody spiral of violence. Under a deal brokered by the powerful Catholic Church, he was allowed to stay in office provided new elections were held in 2017. The authorities then postponed the election until December 23 this year, citing what they said were logistical problems in preparing for the vote. Sunday's marches urged Kabila to publicly declare that he would not stand again in December. The delay, coupled with the mounting violence, has placed Kabila on collision course with the church, which has a prominent role in the Democratic Republic of Congo due to its educational and social care work. The archbishop of Kinshasa, Cardinal Laurent Monsengwo, on Tuesday denounced the crackdown, saying the security forces had been "more armed than on a battlefield". "We want the force of the law to reign and not the law of force," the cardinal said in a press conference. In the central city of Kananga, 10 members of a pro-democracy group who had been held since December 29 were ordered released Tuesday by a local court, which said they had been arrested "by mistake," their lawyer, Oscar Mukengeshay, is said. In a separate development, a priest was among three people kidnapped in the restive east of the country, much of which is controlled by rebel militias. Father Robert Masinda and two agricultural engineers were snatched in Beni in North Kivu province on Monday night as they returned from the fields, a statement from the National Episcopal Conference of Congo (Cenco) said. The administrator of Beni territory separately said "a priest and four other people" had been taken. CIA Director Mike Pompeo says North Korea's Kim Jong-Un seeks a reliable "arsenal" of nuclear weapons, not just a few, to threaten the United States CIA Director Mike Pompeo said Tuesday that North Korea is intent on developing a reliable arsenal of nuclear weapons to threaten America, not just "a showpiece" to preserve Kim Jong-Un's regime. "Kim Jong-Un will not rest with a single successful test," Pompeo said in a speech at the American Enterprise Institute. "The logical next step would be to develop an arsenal of weapons that is not one, not a showpiece, not something to drive on a parade route," he said. Kim seeks "the capacity to deliver from multiple firings of these missiles simultaneously," said Pompeo. Moreover, he said, the Central Intelligence Agency believes North Korea wants to go beyond just being a theoretical threat -- where it is now -- to one with certainty. "He is trying to put in our mind the reality that he can deliver that pain to the USA. And our mission is to make the day that he can do that as far off as possible." The goal for Kim is not simply to protect his autocratic regime, Pompeo noted. "We do believe that Kim Jong-Un, given these tool sets, would use them for things besides simply regime protection," he said, pointing to Kim's ultimate goal as "reunification on the peninsula under his authority." US policy towards the North has included tougher sanctions and stepped-up efforts to halt the country's sea-borne trade with ship interdictions. "We are taking the real-world actions that we think will make unmistakable to Kim Jong-Un that we are intent on denuclearization. We are counting on the fact that he'll see it. We are confident he will." That said, Pompeo cast doubt on whether Kim is well-briefed on the situation. "We are concerned that he may not be getting really good, accurate information. It is not a healthy thing to be a senior leader and bring bad news to Kim Jong-Un," Pompeo said, joking that such a person should buy life insurance first. Renowned photographer Nan Goldin, herself a recovering opioid addict, is waging a campaign to hold the family behind painkiller brand OxyContin accountable for its role in the epidemic. The drug is made by one of several companies owned by the Sacklers, who are among the richest families in the US. The family's drug company, Purdue Pharma, has made tens of billions on opioid sales, and the Sacklers have spent some of that money supporting the arts. Now, Goldin, 64, is circulating a petition, already signed by more than 6,000 people, demanding artists boycott the Sackler's money and that Purdue Pharma take responsibility for helping to fuel opioid addiction in America. Celebrated American photographer Nan Goldin survived an opioid addiction and is now spearheading a campaign to hold OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma to account 'I survived the opioid crisis. I narrowly escaped,' she says in a statement accompanying her petition on change.org. After getting treatment, Goldin began researching the opioid epidemic and the mounting deaths. 'I learned that the Sackler family, whose name I knew from museums and galleries, were responsible for the epidemic,' she said. The Sackler family name can be found branded onto countless art institutions, including several particularly prominent ones, such as: Dia Arts Foundation (New York) The Guggenheim (New York) The American Museum of Natural History (New York) A wing at the Louvre (Paris) A wing at the Metroplitan Museum (New York) A wing at the V&A (London) Serpentine Sackler Gallery (London) Sackler Museum at Harvard (Boston) Sackler Gallery (Washington, DC) Sackler Institute at Oxford University (London) Purdue Pharma's cash cow, the opioid painkiller OxyContin (left) was developed under the leadership of former company chairman Richard Sackler (right) WHO ARE THE SACKLERS? The Sackler family's drug company, Purdue Pharma, has made tens of billions on opioid sales, and the Sacklers have spent some of that money supporting the arts. ARTHUR SACKLER Arthur, a doctor and psychiatrist, founded a research laboratory in 1938, but Arthur's real genius was in marketing, and he leveraged it to sell a number of medications, including the anti-anxiety drug, Valium. He owned one-third of Purdue Pharma, which he and his younger brothers Mortimer and Raymond co-founded out of a series of smaller companies they had bought. Arthur remained a relatively silent partner in the old Purdue, and died in 1987 before it became the company we know it as today. He never saw any of Purdue's OxyContin profits. He donated the funds to open a number of medical education programs, libraries and museums. After his death in 1987, his brothers bought Arthur's portion of Purdue and one of his four children, daughter Elizabeth, has largely taken over his philanthropy work. MORTIMER SACKLER Mortimer was an American physician and psychiatrist. He and his brothers, the older Arthur and the younger Raymond published prolific medical research before buying a number of pharmaceutical companies, including, in 1952, Purdue Pharma. After Arthur's death Mortimer and Raymond bought out his descendants' share of Purdue Pharma, and in 1991 they created the company that would become a pain management giant we now know. Mortimer became a lavish arts patron, known for equally extravagant donations and parties, beginning in the 1970s. He died in 2010. RAYMOND SACKLER Raymond was a doctor like his older brothers, and the three were partners in all things until each of their deaths. Together with Mortimer, Raymond found success with their opioid painkiller, OxyContin, which became the Purdue Pharma's signature drug. Raymond was milder and more private than his brother, Mortimer. Raymond had two children, Richard and Jonathan, before his death last year. RICHARD SACKLER Richard Sackler followed in his father's footsteps, getting his medical degree at New York University School of Medicine. He came to Purdue after medical school, leading the research and development that ultimately produced the extended release form of OxyContin that would elevate the family's fortune to previously unfathomable. He became president of Purdue in 1991, pioneering marketing campaigns (in the vein of his uncle, Arthur) that enticed droves of medical professionals to buy Purdue's opioid. Richard became co-chairman in 2003, by which point $1.6 billion in OxyContin had been sold. His marketing schemes sparked suspicion, and in 2015, Richard was deposed before his company paid out a $24 million settlement. The company appealed in 2017, but the case has not moved forward. In addition to his arts philanthropy, Richard's foundations have donated to controversial causes, including anti-Muslim groups. ELIZABETH SACKLER Arthur's daughter has publicly and persistently attempted to distance herself from branch of her family that has profited from OxyContin. Elizabeth is a licensed psychiatrist and well-known philanthropist. She is the founder of an eponymous Center for Feminist Art at the Brooklyn Museum in New York. On Tuesday, she backed Goldin's petition, expressing disgrace for her uncles' business. Elizabeth Sackler is a patron of the arts and has publicly distinguished herself, and her father, from her uncles and their company, Purdue Pharma. Advertisement The Sacklers are descended from three brothers, Arthur, Mortimer and Raymond Sackler, who all three became doctors, entrepreneurs and philanthropists. The oldest, Arthur paved the way for the trio, starting a medical research lab, buying up pharmaceutical companies and their patents and becoming an expert at marketing and advertising drugs. But it was only after Arthur's death in 1987 that his brothers, who had been his business partners, took the name of one of those smaller companies, and formed the Purdue Pharma we know today, in 1991. The already immense drug company reached new heights when a research team under Raymond's son, Richard, developed an extended release form of OxyContin, which, many have argued, has qualities including being crushable that make it a particularly easy drug to abuse. Arguably more importantly, he had inherited his uncle's dangerous knack for marketing. OxyContin became a $1.6 billion drug by 2003. The drug's blockbuster success has raised suspicions, leading to numerous multi-million dollar lawsuits, settlements and fines for misleading branding and accusations, like Goldin's, that the drug is fueling the opioid epidemic. Raymond Sackler (left) and his wife, Beverly, made sizable donations to a number of educational institutions, including the University of California, Berkeley Mortimer Sackler (right) was the more flamboyant of the two Purdue Pharma founders, living abroad in Germany and attending lavish parties with his wife, Theresa Goldin has formed an advocacy group, Prescription Addiction Intervention Now, or PAIN, to pressure the Sackler family and Purdue Pharma to finance treatment and prevention programs, and to re-educate doctors on the dangers of over-prescription of opioids. Her petition, which circulates on Twitter under the hashtag #ShameOnSackler, calls on museums and universities who benefit from Sackler money - including the Metropolitan Museum, the Guggenheim and Harvard - 'to refuse future donations from the Sacklers.' Purdue Pharma, which already faces a string of lawsuits, says in an open letter on its website that it is acting to bring the epidemic under control. 'Our industry and our company have and will continue to take meaningful action to reduce opioid abuse,' it said, adding that it was supporting initiatives to educate doctors and develop non-opioid painkillers. Elizabeth Sackler, a daughter of one of the company's founders, told Hyperallergic that Purdue Pharma's role in the opioid crisis was 'morally abhorrent to me' in a statement. Elizabeth has long distanced herself from Purdue publicly. Her father, Arthur, co-owned the smaller, older Purdue Pharma that he and his brothers purchased in 1952, but died before the other two Sackler doctors incorporated Purdue as we know it, in 1991. Goldin, who lives between New York and Paris, became known in the 1970s with photographs that pushed the boundaries of intimacy and spontaneity, breaking numerous taboos on sexuality. Her work has been exhibited in top museums, including MoMA. UN envoy Horst Kohler (L), seen here meeting with Polisario secretary general Brahim Ghali in October, has called for talks in Berlin on the Western Sahara The UN envoy on Western Sahara talks between Morocco and the Polisario Front has invited the parties and neighboring countries to Berlin for bilateral talks, a UN spokesperson said Tuesday. Former German president Horst Koehler has invited the foreign ministers of Morocco, Algeria and Mauritania, as well as Polisario Front Secretary-General Brahim Ghali, Koehler's spokesman said. No date was given in the statement beyond mention of "this January and February." Koehler was appointed in August as special envoy to lead a new UN push for talks between Morocco and the Algerian-backed Polisario Front on Western Sahara. Morocco and the Polisario fought for control of Western Sahara from 1974 to 1991, with Rabat taking over the desert territory before a UN-brokered ceasefire in the former Spanish colony. Rabat considers Western Sahara an integral part of Morocco and proposes autonomy for the resource-rich territory, but the Polisario Front insists on a UN referendum on independence. The announcement of the Berlin invitation coincides with a rise of tension in the region. Morocco accuses the Polisarios of carrying out raids into the buffer zone on the border with Mauritania. Tensions also increased after the legal advisor to the European Court of Justice in early January said that a European Union fisheries deal with Morocco placed the trade bloc "in breach of its obligation to respect the right of the people of Western Sahara to self-determination." The United Nations opened negotiations between Morocco and the Polisario in 2007 and there have been several rounds since, with the latest held outside of New York in 2012. The US-led coalition has killed as many as 150 Islamic State fighters in an operation in the middle Euphrates River Valley in Syria, officials said Tuesday. According to a coalition statement, the air strikes took place Saturday near Al-Shafah, in Deir Ezzor province, on an IS headquarters where the jihadists appeared to have been 'massing for movement.' 'The precision strikes were a culmination of extensive intelligence preparation to confirm an ISIS headquarters and command and control center in an exclusively ISIS-occupied location in the contested middle Euphrates River Valley,' the statement read. While IS has lost most of the terrain they once controlled in Syria, they still remain entrenched in pockets along the middle Euphrates River Valley. 'There's still have a heavy fight going on,' said US Central Command spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Earl Brown. The US-led coalition has killed as many as 150 Islamic State fighters in an operation in the middle Euphrates River Valley in Syria, officials said Tuesday. A fighter jet is seen flying above Syria in this October 2014 file photo 'We are continuing to go after those guys that are trying to reestablish themselves. It's a hard fight right now.' The coalition said that the Syrian Democratic Forces, a US-backed Arab-Kurdish alliance fighting IS, had assisted in target observation prior to the strike. 'The combination of intelligence and continuous eyes on the target ensured no accidental engagement of non-military personnel,' the statement read. The coalition's highlighting of the SDF's role comes as Kurdish fighters in northern Syria are under assault by Turkey. Washington is treading a fraught line in Syria, on the one hand trying to maintain its relationship with NATO ally Turkey - which views Kurdish fighters as terrorists - while on the other continuing to support Kurdish ground forces that have been critical to the defeat of IS. 'Our SDF partners are still making daily progress and sacrifices, and together we are still finding, targeting and killing ISIS terrorists intent on keeping their extremist hold on the region,' Major General James Jarrard said. Germany's Angelique Kerber swept aside Madison Keys of the US 6-1, 6-2, easily taming the American's big serve to make the semi-finals Angelique Kerber and Simona Halep were in dominant moods Wednesday to race into an Australian Open semi-final showdown, as the dream Grand Slam run of giantkiller Chung Hyeon continued. Germany's Kerber, champion two years ago, swept aside Madison Keys 6-1, 6-2, easily taming the American's big serve and will go into her clash with the world number one on a 14-match win streak. Top seed Halep was equally impressive on Rod Laver Arena in thumping sixth seed Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 6-2, reeling off nine games in a row after going 0-3 behind in the first set. South Korea's Chung battled past unheralded American Tennys Sandgren 6-4, 7-6 (7/5), 6-3 to become the lowest-ranked semi-finalist since Marat Safin in 2004. Ranked 58, the bespectacled 21-year-old, nicknamed "The Professor", proved too hot for his fellow quarter-final rookie, although he needed six match points before claiming victory. Romania's Simona Halep thumped sixth seed Karolina Pliskova 6-3, 6-2, reeling off nine games in a row after going 0-3 behind in the first set "I'm just trying to stay focused, it's my first time in one of these matches," said the delighted Suwon native, who is the first player -- man or woman -- from his country to reach a Grand Slam semi-final. Sandgren, who wiped his Twitter account ahead of the game after being dogged by controversy over his political views, paid tribute to the Korean. "He's a fantastic player," he said, adding that he was also upbeat about his own future after a breakthrough tournament. "I'm excited about that. Hopefully I can keep playing well." South Korea's Chung Hyeon battled past unheralded American Tennys Sandgren 6-4, 7-6 (7/5), 6-3 to become the lowest-ranked semi-finalist since Marat Safin in 2004 Next up for Chung, who has already knocked out six-time winner Novak Djokovic and fourth seed Alexander Zverev, is either defending champion Roger Federer or veteran Czech Tomas Berdych, who play an evening match. Kerber, who won the title in 2016, is in scintillating form after an unbeaten singles campaign in the Hopman Cup and her triumph in the Sydney warm-up. Keys was expected to be a stiff challenge, having not dropped a set en route to the quarters, but she melted under the German's relentless groundstrokes and pinpoint return of serve. "I'm just trying to find the feeling back I had like 2016," said Kerber, who had a forgettable 2017 after winning not only in Australia but also the US Open in 2016. "Madison is a hard hitter, and she served good. So I was trying to playing from the first point aggressive and moving good and also bringing a lot of balls back," she added. - Stay calm - The win ensures Kerber, seeded 21, will move back into the world's top 10. Halep comes next on Thursday, with the nuggety Romanian taming towering Czech Pliskova's serve to scamper into the last four for the first time in Melbourne. "I didn't have the best start, but I restarted after three games. I stopped missing so much and moved better," said the Romanian, who showed no signs of the ankle injury that has been troubling her in previous rounds. Madison Keys melted under Angelique Kerber's relentless groundstrokes and pinpoint return of serve She is wary of Kerber and vowed to "stay calm and play like I did today". Swiss great Federer, zeroing in on a sixth Australian title and a 20th Grand Slam crown, holds a 19-6 lead over 19th seed Berdych dating back to their first meeting in 2004, and is also 4-0 over him in Melbourne. But he is taking nothing for granted. "I'm looking forward to play against him. He seems in good shape and I'm happy he's over his back issues that he also had at the end of last year," said Federer, who is 15 years older than his possible next opponent Chung. US President Donald Trump, with US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, signs orders to impose tariffs on washing machines and solar panels, saying the United States 'will not be taken advantage of anymore' President Donald Trump begins 2018 making good on his aggressive "America First" trade agenda, with China as a primary target. As he prepares to mingle this week with global leaders at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, a traditional cheerleader of free trade, Trump has again ruffled feathers from Beijing to Berlin after imposing steep tariffs on imported washing machines and solar panels. And major decisions are looming on Chinese aluminum, steel and intellectual property. "We are in a particularly dangerous moment," Edward Alden of the Council on Foreign Relations told AFP. "This is a continued escalation by the Trump administration." Trump rose to office on a nationalist economic agenda, vowing to revive the American manufacturing base by punishing unfair trading practices -- pointing the finger squarely at China and Mexico -- and reducing bilateral trade deficits. In signing off on the new tariffs on Tuesday, Trump said the actions "demonstrate to the world that the United States will not be taken advantage of anymore." In reaction to the move, interim German Finance Minister Peter Altmaier said Berlin would "talk to our American colleagues," hoping to make the case for freer trade, while South Korea vowed to bring a case before the World Trade Organization. - 'Pure protectionism' - The latest measures were "pure protectionism" said Scott Miller, a senior adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The US "just decided to protect these firms at the expense of fair competition." US trading partners eager to know just how far Washington will go in erecting new barriers to the prevailing global free trade arrangements will get the answer in the coming weeks, analysts say. "The first year of the administration at least on trade was a lot of barking and not much biting," Miller told AFP. Trump's decisions Monday "are the first actual presidential actions." Analysts say the consequences may be limited for washing machines and solar panels, but they are symbolic. And Trump is poised now to make an array of consequential moves, raising the prospect of damaging Chinese retaliation. The Commerce Department this month has put reports on Trump's desk on Chinese aluminum and steel imports, that examine whether those products jeopardize American defense industries and thus threaten national security. His decision is due within 90 days. Trump also will be in a position soon to decide whether to retaliate against China over the country's treatment of intellectual property rights. American firms have long complained about investment laws that require foreign companies into sharing valuable proprietary information and technology. - Hurting the 'red states'? - Trump also has threatened to pull out of free trade pacts, and the latest moves come as negotiations to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement are at a precarious point with the sixth round of talks underway in Montreal. Those discussions are under the shadow of a trade dispute with Canada over subsidies of Bombardier jets and softwood lumber. As of November, the Trump administration said it had ratcheted up the number of US anti-dumping and improper subsidy cases by 61 percent over the same period in 2016. But Miller said despite its tough talk, the White House will be under pressure to avoid leaving the US over-exposed to damaging countermeasures. "If we did this for aluminum and steel, what would we say when China does it for semi-conductors?" he said. "We'll have nothing say." Beijing could easily decide to retaliate with trade measures targeted to hurt Trump's political base, he added. "China might just follow a strategy of what hurts the red states," he said, possibly blocking US exports of soybeans, wheat or corn. "China can do whatever it wants." MOSCOW (AP) - The head of the Russian television channel RT wants the United States to live up to its ideals of freedom of speech. Yet American journalists attuned to those principles have not defended the former Russia Today network in its fight with the U.S. government. RT editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan said in an interview that the U.S. government's requirement that it register as a foreign agent has damaged RT's reputation and led it to being shut out of events. It runs counter to American values, she said. "The U.S. has now become a beacon, a leader, in this movement to shut everyone up," Simonyan said in an Associated Press interview at RT's Moscow headquarters. "That's so disappointing." In this photo taken on Friday, Jan. 19, 2018, Margarita Simonyan, the head of the Russian television channel RT, listens to a question during her interview with the Associated Press in Moscow, Russia. Simonyan, the head of Russian television channel RT, which U.S. intelligence agencies allege took part in the campaign to influence last year's presidential election, says that having to register as a foreign agent in the United States is already hurting the Kremlin-funded outlet. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko) RT says it is a legitimate news organization, comparable to Britain's government-supported BBC or the U.S.-funded Voice of America. But an expert at George Washington University who has studied RT's content said the network is a propaganda arm of the Russian government designed to make its benefactor look good. "It's not really journalism in the straight-up case," said Robert Orttung, an international affairs professor at George Washington. "So that's why the journalists here don't defend it." Orttung's study illustrates how RT's news coverage tracks Moscow's priorities; for instance, spending much more time on Middle East coverage when Russia was active in the Syrian conflict. Its coverage of the United States focuses on the "chaos" of the democratic system, emphasizing protests about police violence, immigration and refugee issues, for example, he said. "They do everything in their power to make America look bad, even if they have to bend the truth to get there," said Beth Knobel, a journalism professor at Fordham University who reported from Moscow for CBS News and the Los Angeles Times between 1992 and 2006. U.S. government-funded services have procedures in place to prevent government interference and try to make their point by reporting information accurately, the professors said. But Knobel says she knows people in the Russian government and at government-funded news sources whose orders are to give marching orders and to take them. "If RT was a real, free and fair network that was doing quality journalism, people would defend it," Knobel said. "But it's not." Still, Orttung said that it's worthy of debate whether the decision to require RT to register as a foreign agent was heavy-handed. U.S. intelligence agencies say RT and the state-funded Russian news agency Sputnik, which Simonyan also runs, produced biased reports to undermine faith in the 2016 election process, damage Hillary Clinton's candidacy and promote Donald Trump. Given the U.S. tradition of freedom of the press, "it needs to be a more careful and thoughtful response," Orttung said. In the U.S., RT's slickly produced programs can be accessed on some cable services, the internet, on social media and YouTube, and Simonyan says they're no less balanced or impartial than reports of other news organizations. "Listen, your own president thinks that your media is, almost all of it, is fake," she said. She said RT has never made any secret of the fact that it comes from Russia. Since the requirement that RT register as a foreign agent, a Capitol Hill committee decided Nov. 29 to revoke RT's accreditation to cover Congress. Steven Barnett, communications professor at the University of Westminster in London, said he sees some merit in RT's argument that requiring it to register as a foreign agent is infringing on its journalistic rights. While its journalists are unlikely to challenge Russian President Vladimir Putin, they seem to have "a measure of discretion and freedom" when reporting on Russia and the world, Barnett said. "It's conducted along professional journalistic standards. They try to be as accurate as possible and check sources, and they'll try to cover stories from a perspective that is not Western-dominated," Barnett said. He does believe, however, that viewers should be told they are watching a channel funded by the Russian government so they can make their own judgments about the material. ___ Associated Press writer Gregory Katz in London contributed to this report. Bauder reported from New York. In this photo taken on Friday, Jan. 19, 2018, Margarita Simonyan, the head of the Russian television channel RT, smiles during an interview with the Associated Press in Moscow, Russia. Simonyan, the head of Russian television channel RT, which U.S. intelligence agencies allege took part in the campaign to influence last year's presidential election, says that having to register as a foreign agent in the United States is already hurting the Kremlin-funded outlet. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko) KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Survivors of the Taliban attack on Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel gave harrowing accounts on Monday of the 13-hour weekend standoff that claimed 18 lives, including 14 foreigners. The siege ended on Sunday with Afghan security forces saying they had killed the last of six Taliban militants who stormed the hotel in suicide vests late the previous night, looking for foreigners and Afghan officials to kill. More than 150 people were rescued or managed to escape, including 41 foreigners. Eleven of the 14 foreigners killed were pilots and employees of KamAir, a private Afghan airline. A statement by KamAir later said some of its flights were disrupted because of the attack. Burn damage can be seen on the exterior of the Intercontinental Hotel after a deadly attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. Gunmen stormed the hotel and set off a 12-hour gun battle with security forces that continued into Sunday morning, as frantic guests tried to escape from fourth and fifth-floor windows. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini) Six Ukrainians, two Venezuelan pilots for KamAir and a citizen of Kazakhstan were among those killed in the attack. German Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Adebahr confirmed that a German was among those killed, without providing further details. Mohammad Humayun Shams, the telecommunications director of eastern Laghman province, who was visiting Kabul and staying at the hotel, said he was able to escape by jumping into a tree from a hotel window as the attackers roamed the hallways, killing people. "It was the worst night of my life," Shams said, adding that as he ran, he couldn't tell the attackers apart from the police because they were all wearing the same uniforms. Two Greek pilots who were in Afghanistan to train local airline pilots said they survived the attack by hiding in their rooms - one inside a hollow he had cut in his mattress and the other in his bathtub. Vassilis Vassiliou and Michalis Poulikakos were in the hotel restaurant when gunmen burst in through a kitchen service door. They dashed up to their rooms and hid, following emergency instructions they had been given. "We overturned the mattresses and messed up the rooms, then opened the balcony doors to make it look as if we had escaped that way," Poulikakos told Greece's private Skai TV on Monday. "I hid in the bathtub . Nobody entered my room, I was very lucky and it all ended after nine hours," he said. "I was on the fourth floor. Vassilis was on the fifth and he was the only survivor on that floor, there were many more survivors on my floor." Vassiliou said he spent 13 hours hidden under - and inside - his mattress, and managed to stay undiscovered even as gunmen used his balcony as a firing position. "They broke down my door . and burst in. I had managed to slip under the bed. There were three of them in the room, one went onto the balcony, the other shot at the other bed and lifted it up," he said. When the gunmen had used up their ammunition they set fire to the fifth floor and disappeared for about an hour and a half. Vassiliou went out to the balcony and realized that there was no escape there - he even came under fire from forces besieging the hotel. "So I went back into the room and used a small pair of scissors to cut an opening for myself inside the mattress and remained there," he said. That protected him from the heat and the smoke from the fire burning outside his room. "I don't know why but I was very calm . it was as if something told me that I would live," Vassiliou said. He said he had shut down both his mobile phones to avoid being betrayed by their ringing, which led authorities to believe he had been killed. He remained in the room from about 9 p.m. to noon the next day, when the gunmen finally ran out of ammunition and left. "I heard English being spoken and came out of my mattress," he said. Vassiliou added that security forces took an inexplicably long time to reach his floor. "Between 6 and 9 (a.m.) on the fifth floor these four or five people were having fun, joking around," he said, referring to the attackers. "They would open every door, I heard voices, a couple of shots, and then laughter. They were undisturbed, nobody tried to stop them, and I think that was a big mistake." On Monday, Afghan security forces remained positioned on all the roads leading to the hotel, barring everyone from the area. Among Afghans killed in the attack was a telecommunications official from western Farah province, Afghanistan's newly appointed consul general to the Pakistani city of Karachi and an employee of the High Peace Council, a commission created to facilitate peace talks. Friedhelm Kraemer, the head of the Marianne and Emil Lux Foundation, a German charitable group, confirmed in an email that the woman killed was the head of an aid project. German regional newspaper Boeblinger Bote named her as 65-year-old Brigitte Weiler. In an email to AP, Kraemer said she was a former German navy officer and nurse who would travel to Kabul at her own expense to deliver medicine, food and clothes to families in remote mountain villages in northern Afghanistan. "Her tragic death tears a hole in the humanitarian aid work for people whom nobody else is helping," said Kraemer, whose organization supported the project. Along with Shams, five other hotel guests, including a foreigner, managed to jump into the tree. From there, they climbed down to the ground and Shams called the police with his mobile. They were told to stay put until the police came to take them away, hours later. "I am still in shock ... in fact can't believe I am alive" he added. ___ Associated Press writers Amir Shah in Kabul, Afghanistan, Nicholas Paphitis in Athens, Greece, and Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed to this report. Men try to escape from a balcony of the Intercontinental Hotel after an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. Gunmen stormed the hotel and sett off a 12-hour gun battle with security forces that continued into Sunday morning, as frantic guests tried to escape from fourth and fifth-floor windows. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul) Policemen block the road to the Intercontinental Hotel during a deadly attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018. Gunmen stormed the hotel and set off a 12-hour gun battle with security forces that continued into Sunday morning, as frantic guests tried to escape from fourth and fifth-floor windows. (AP Photo/Massoud Hossaini) GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) - The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees on Monday launched an "unprecedented" appeal seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in response to funding cuts by the Trump administration. Last week the State Department notified the U.N. Relief and Works Agency that the U.S. is withholding $65 million of a planned $125 million funding installment. It also made clear that additional U.S. donations will be contingent on major changes by UNRWA, which has been heavily criticized by Israel. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians either fled or were forced from their homes during the war that led to Israel's establishment in 1948. Today, there are an estimated 5 million refugees and their descendants, mostly scattered across the region. UNWRA provides them with education, health and welfare services. Refugee school girls listen to Mr. Pierre Krahenbuhl, Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, during his press conference to launch a global campaign to support UNRWA, at the UNRWA Rimal Girls Preparatory School in Gaza City, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. The main U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees launched Monday the "unprecedented" appeal seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in response to funding cuts by the Trump administration. (AP Photo/Adel Hana) UNRWA's commissioner-general, Pierre Krahenbuhl, on Monday called the decision "abrupt and harmful." He said the agency will create new funding alliances and get the UN secretary-general involved in high-level ministerial meetings to generate donations from countries. The "Dignity is Priceless" campaign aims to raise $500 million to ensure that the agency's core services are unaffected. "We cannot accept that this investment in education, in health care, and in dignity and respect would be interrupted in any way. It's much too risky for the entire Middle East," Krahenbuhl warned. The U.S. is UNWRA's largest donor, supplying nearly 30 percent of its budget. The agency focuses on providing health care, education and social services to Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. In Gaza, more than 1.3 million residents - half the population - rely on food and other services provided by the agency. On Monday, Gaza businesses went on a partial strike to protest the economic situation. Notices on the shuttered doors read "we want to live" and "enough of siege," referring to the blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt after the Islamic militant group Hamas took over the territory in 2007. UNRWA's commissioner-general, Pierre Krahenbuhl, stands with refugee school girls during his press conference to launch a global campaign to support UNRWA, at the UNRWA Rimal Girls Preparatory School in Gaza City, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. UNWRA launched what it is calling an "unprecedented" fund-raising appeal seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in response to funding cuts by the Trump administration last week. (AP Photo/Adel Hana) A Palestinian woman walks next to closed shops during a partial strike to protest a market recession and economic decline, in Gaza City, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. (AP Photo/ Khalil Hamra) Mr. Pierre Krahenbuhl, Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees, waves to refugee school girls on his arrival for a press conference to launch the global campaign to support UNRWA, at the UNRWA Rimal Girls Preparatory School in Gaza City, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. The main U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees launched an "unprecedented" appeal seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in response to funding cuts by the Trump administration. (AP Photo/Adel Hana) Refugee school girls watch as UNRWA's commissioner-general, Pierre Krahenbuhl, gives a press conference to launch a global campaign to support UNRWA, at the UNRWA Rimal Girls Preparatory School in Gaza City, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. UNWRA launched what it is calling an "unprecedented" fund-raising appeal seeking hundreds of millions of dollars in response to funding cuts by the Trump administration last week. (AP Photo/Adel Hana) JERUSALEM (AP) - U.S. Vice President Mike Pence on Monday defended President Donald Trump on his recent comments disparaging immigration from Africa and Haiti, telling The Associated Press that the president's "heart" is aimed at a merit-based system that is blind to immigrants' "race or creed." Pence, in an interview with the AP from Jerusalem, said the president was intent on implementing a merit-based system that encourages immigration by those who will "contribute to a growing American economy and thriving communities." "I know the president's heart and I know that what President Trump wants to do is reform immigration to make our system one that puts the interests of America first," Pence said. He added that immigrants should be considered on their merits, "regardless of what country they come from or what their race and creed is." U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks in Israel's parliament in Jerusalem, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, Pool) Pence did not directly answer a question about whether Trump's language was appropriate, but said the president's intentions have "everything to do with moving our country to a merit-based system." He was responding to reports that Trump, in a private meeting with legislators earlier this month, challenged immigration from "shithole" African countries, disparaged Haiti and said the U.S. should welcome more immigration from countries like Norway. The vice president also dismissed an adult film star's account of a sexual encounter with Trump in 2006, questioning its validity. "I'm just not going to comment on the latest baseless allegations against the president," Pence said. "My focus is on serving the president, advancing the priorities of the administration, advancing American interests and that's where it will stay." The Wall Street Journal last week reported that Trump's personal lawyer brokered a payment to pornographic actress Stormy Daniels in October 2016 to prohibit her from publicly discussing the alleged affair before the presidential election. Daniels' real name is Stephanie Clifford. Trump's attorney, Michael Cohen, has denied there was any relationship. He gave the Journal a statement from a person identified as Stormy Daniels denying receiving "hush money." The AP reported that a tabloid magazine held back from publishing her 2011 account of their relationship after Cohen threatened to sue. Pence, on a four-day visit to the Middle East while Washington grapples with a government shutdown, said in the AP interview that he was "hopeful that Democrats in the Senate will see their way clear to reopen the government." Pence spoke after delivering to the Knesset a major address in which he announced Trump's plans to expedite the move of the U.S. embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem by the end of next year. He was the first sitting American vice president to address the parliamentary body. Pence said he had received no blowback from world leaders after Trump made the immigration comments. "I just think leaders around the world appreciate the president's renewed engagement. He appreciates the relationships that he's forged with them," Pence said. A number of world leaders publicly denounced the comments as racist. LOS ANGELES (AP) - A Mexican man living in the U.S. illegally used his job as an Uber driver to target intoxicated young women and was charged Monday with raping, assaulting and robbing four victims, California prosecutors said. Alfonso Alarcon-Nunez drove women to their homes, assaulted them, and stole property including cellphones, computers and jewelry, officials said. He collected his fare payments through the smartphone app Venmo to disguise his identity and his Uber records. DNA evidence helped lead detectives to Alarcon-Nunez, who was arrested at his Santa Maria home last week, San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow said at a news conference. This undated booking photo provided by the County of San Luis Obispo shows Alfonso Alarcon-Nunez. California prosecutors say Alarcon-Nunez an Uber driver living in the country illegally has been charged with raping, assaulting and robbing young women. San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow said Monday, Jan. 22, 2018, that Alarcon-Nunez's alleged victims are between 19 and 22 years old and three were intoxicated when they were assaulted. (County of San Luis Obispo via AP) The alleged crimes occurred over four weeks starting in mid-December in San Luis Obispo, a city of about 45,000 that is home to California Polytechnic State University. Alarcon-Nunez's victims are between 19 and 22 and three were drunk at the time of the crimes, Dow said. Alarcon-Nunez, 39, faces 10 criminal charges, including rape of an intoxicated victim and first-degree burglary. He pleaded not guilty to all charges at his arraignment and remained held in the San Luis Obispo County Jail with bail set at $1.47 million. His next court date was set for Jan. 29. Detectives are looking for potential witnesses and trying to determine if there are additional victims in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties northwest of Los Angeles, where the Alarcon-Nunez had been driving for Uber since September, Dow said. Alarcon-Nunez has also gone by the name "Bruno Diaz" and his Venmo username was "Brush Bat," prosecutors said. Officials said Alarcon-Nunez was not always driving for Uber when he picked up women. Sometimes, drivers in cars parked outside bars or restaurants "jump in front of the actual Uber driver and they will take someone unsuspecting to their home. And that's a way of putting someone at risk, and in this case that's exactly what's alleged to have happened," Dow said. He said the alleged crimes show that the company should improve its driver screening process, Dow said. Dow urged Uber users to make sure they are getting in the car of the correct driver by verifying the license plate and other information provided to clients. "What police have reported is absolutely horrifying, and something no person should ever have to experience. We have been working with law enforcement to provide them with information for their investigation, and the driver has been permanently removed from the app," Uber spokesman Andrew Hasbun said in a statement Monday. Alarcon-Nunez returned to the U.S. illegally after a voluntary deportation from New Mexico in 2005, officials said. Dow did not have details about why he was deported or whether he has a criminal record in the U.S. California issues driver's licenses to immigrants in the country illegally and Alarcon-Nunez had a valid license since 2015. Alarcon-Nunez's immigration status will not have a bearing on the prosecution, Dow said. He could face life in prison if convicted on all charges. ___ Follow Weber at https://twitter.com/WeberCM . PARK CITY, Utah (AP) - Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg says she has experienced sexual harassment. The 84-year-old told a crowd at the Sundance Film Festival on Sunday that women her age are familiar with sexual harassment but didn't have a name for it. When Ginsburg was a student at Cornell University in the 1950s, she says a professor gave her a practice test that was identical to the real test. Realizing what the professor wanted in return, Ginsburg says she confronted him and "that was the end of it." Asked about the #MeToo movement against sexual misconduct, Ginsburg says, "It's about time." Ginsburg told NPR reporter Nina Totenberg after the premiere of a documentary about the justice's life that with women still coming forward, she's less worried about a backlash against the movement. ___ This story has been corrected to show Ginsburg's name was misspelled in the last paragraph. COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) - Scott Blackmun, the CEO of the U.S. Olympic Committee, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and will not travel to South Korea for the opening ceremony of the Olympics next month. The 60-year-old executive sent an email to staff Monday notifying them of his diagnosis and said he would have surgery later this week. Blackmun is beginning his ninth year as the USOC's leader. He said physicians recommended he start treatment as soon as possible, and the treatment could prevent him from traveling to Pyeongchang at all. NEW HAVEN, Conn. (AP) - A Connecticut theater's artistic director is on administrative leave due to allegations of sexual misconduct. Long Wharf Theatre board chair Laura Pappano says she placed Gordon Edelstein on leave Monday following a report by The New York Times. The newspaper says it interviewed four women on the record who alleged unwanted sexual contact by Edelstein since his arrival in 2002, including one who complained to theater management in 2006. Other former employees alleged the prominent director made sexually explicit remarks at the New Haven theater. Pappano says they knew of no instance in which a complaint was filed and not dealt with. She says many accusations detailed by the newspaper weren't previously reported. Edelstein didn't immediately return messages seeking comment. WASHINGTON (AP) - When the Senate called it quits late Sunday night, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer declared there still was no deal to end the federal government shutdown and address a standoff over immigration. On Monday morning, he and many of his fellow Democrats got to yes fast. Whether it was a fresh offer from Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, moderates' stampede away from the shutdown blowback or a native American "talking stick" wielded by Sen. Susan Collins isn't entirely clear. What is apparent is that Democrats began the morning planning to dig in, and the tide turned fast behind closed doors. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, holds a colorfully beaded 'talking stick' in her office on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. At midmorning, Collins gathered a meeting about two dozen centrists from both parties in her office to try and get a deal to end the federal government shutdown. Collins' office had become known as Switzerland, an essential neutral place for both sides to talk. There was, at times, too much talking, Collins acknowledged. She employed the stick, given to her by her colleague, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., to help bring order out of the chaos. Collins said the centrists agreed they'd support an end to the shutdown if Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell could just slightly sweeten an offer he'd made the night before. (AP Photo/Alan Fram) Midmorning, Collins, R-Maine, gathered a meeting about two dozen centrists from both parties in her office. Collins' office had become known as Switzerland, an essential neutral place for both sides to talk. There was, at times, too much talking, Collins acknowledged. She employed a colorfully beaded stick - given to her by her colleague, Sen. Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D. - to help bring order out of the chaos. "As you can imagine, with that many senators in a room, they all want to talk at once. I know that shocks you," said Collins. She said the stick was handed to whichever senator was talking, "and they were allowed to speak, and then I'd take the stick from them, give it to the next person." The stick wasn't always a positive thing. A GOP aide said that at one point, a nearby glass elephant was chipped and Collins turned to a more manageable rubber ball. Over doughnuts, bagels and muffins, Collins said, the centrists agreed they'd support an end to the shutdown if McConnell could just slightly sweeten an offer he'd made the night before. Sunday night, McConnell, R-Ky., said he wanted Congress to approve legislation reopening government through Feb. 8. He said in return, it would be his "intention" to quickly resolve disputes over immigration, disaster recovery and the budget. And if those issues weren't settled by then, it would be his "intention" to consider legislation addressing them. By Monday morning, McConnell described his plan a bit differently, saying "I hope and intend" to resolve those issues by Feb. 8. If they weren't resolved by that day, he said, it would be his "intention" to take up a measure on those topics. Before McConnell spoke, Democratic leaders were pushing lawmakers to oppose a Republican bill to reopen government in a vote scheduled for noon, according to aides, who asked for anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss strategy. But by the time McConnell had spoken and Democratic senators gathered privately in a meeting room near the Senate floor, that effort had stopped. McConnell was "more specific and more encouraging," said Sen. Christopher Coons, D-Del., entering the meeting among Democrats. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., cited McConnell's "tone" and said, "I'm enormously optimistic that now we have a pathway forward to stop the shutdown." Democrats familiar with the meeting say Schumer told Democrats the offer from McConnell was the best they would get. No. 2 Sen. Democratic leader Dick Durbin of Illinois agreed, and most members agreed it was best to back the leaders. Dissidents, including Sens. Dianne Feinstein of California and Jeff Merkley of Oregon, spoke up. But their remarks were constrained, not heated, and by the time the gathering broke up after around 90 minutes, it was clear that the shutdown was about to end. Shortly after the meeting, two-thirds of the Senate's Democrats voted to advance the plan and end the shutdown. __ Associated Press writer Laurie Kellman in Washington contributed to this report. SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. (AP) - The Latest on an Uber driver accused of rape and other crimes against young women in California (all times local): 6:05 p.m. An Uber driver living in the country illegally has pleaded not guilty to charges of raping, assaulting and robbing young women in California. The San Luis Obispo County district attorney's office says Alfonso Alarcon-Nunez appeared in court Monday and pleaded not guilty to all 10 counts. He remains in jail with bail set at more than $1.4 million. ___ 12 p.m. California prosecutors say an Uber driver living in the country illegally has been charged with raping, assaulting and robbing young women. San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow said Monday that Alfonso Alarcon-Nunez's alleged victims are between 19 and 22 years old and three were intoxicated when they were assaulted. The 39-year-old Mexican citizen faces 10 criminal charges including forcible rape and first degree burglary. It wasn't immediately known if Alarcon-Nunez has an attorney. Dow says detectives are looking for potential witnesses and trying to determine if there are additional victims in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties northwest of Los Angeles. Officials say Alarcon-Nunez returned to the U.S. illegally after a voluntary deportation from New Mexico in 2005. JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis says the Trump administration wants to help Indonesia play a central role in maritime security in the Asia-Pacific region. Mattis spoke briefly to reporters Tuesday after meeting with his Indonesian counterpart. His visit to Jakarta reflects one of the key tenets of the broad national security strategy that he publicly unveiled last Friday in Washington - building partnerships and strengthening alliances. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, center, with his Indonesian counterpart Ryamizard Ryacudu inspects a guard of honor during a welcoming ceremony prior their meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana) Mattis told reporters Tuesday that the U.S. wants to help Indonesia realize its ambition to become a "maritime fulcrum" in the region. He says that, on that basis, the U.S. wants to work together with Indonesia on countering terrorism in the Asia-Pacific. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, front left, walks with his Indonesian counterpart Ryamizard Ryacudu, front right, after their meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana) PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - A northern Maine town manager who espoused white separatist views was fired on Tuesday and is getting $30,000 for agreeing not to sue the town. The selectmen in the rural town of Jackman announced the decision after a closed-door executive session with Tom Kawczynski, the town's top administrator since June. Kawczynski has made comments bashing Islam and called for the preservation of white European heritage in northern New England. He also operates a website that touts racial segregation, describes itself as the internet home of a pro-white group and states that it's time to "admit America was built by white Christian men." This Jan. 23, 2018 photo provided by Tom Kawczynski shows the former Jackman, Maine town manager with the flag of New Albion, a white separatist group he leads. Kawczynski was fired from his job on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Kawczynski has made comments bashing Islam and called for the preservation of white European heritage in northern New England. (Courtesy Tom Kawczynski via AP) Kawczynski told The Associated Press on Tuesday that he's unabashedly pro-white, but he feels his views have been mischaracterized. He vowed to continue making the case for what he called "white civil rights." "I, in conjunction with the Selectboard, agreed to a settlement to remove the good people of Jackman from the unwanted scrutiny, but I do not surrender my right to express my First Amendment rights," Kawczynski said. "Including the right to have controversial opinions." Social media users have been calling for Kawczynski to quit or be fired. A post on the Jackman-Moose River Region Chamber of Commerce's Facebook page stated that its members don't share his views and called on the selectmen "to do what is needed." Kawczynski was paid $49,000 annually, and the town said he is getting $30,000 in severance. He said he signed an agreement to the severance package stipulating that he will not sue. Elected officials in the town voted unanimously to fire him on Tuesday morning. The town said in a statement that its selectmen and Kawczynski have "agreed on the details of ending" his employment. Kawczynski served as town chair in Lisbon, New Hampshire, for President Donald Trump during the 2016 campaign. He told the AP on Tuesday that he had no official role in the campaign, but was a proud supporter of the Republican president because of his pledge to "take care of the American people first." Heidi Beirich, director of the Southern Poverty Law Center's Intelligence Project, said the organization is aware of the New Albion group promoted by Kawczynski, his group and his website. Kawczynski said the group has about 100 members and holds regular meetings in Maine and New Hampshire. Beirich said he should have stepped down before having to be fired. "It's unacceptable to see people in leadership positions espousing white nationalist views," Beirich said. Located along a stretch of road Mainers sometimes call "Moose Alley," Jackman is a town of less than 900 people, nearly all of them white , near northwestern Maine's border with Quebec, about 170 miles (275 kilometers) north of Portland. On its website , the town describes itself as a "tourist friendly region," and some residents have said they feared the controversy over Kawczynski's views could keep people away. The town's statement said elected officials intend to "move forward to do what is necessary to sustain a vibrant, welcoming tourist community such as Jackman." ___ Associated Press writer David Sharp contributed to this report from Portland, Maine. NEW YORK (AP) - The first government shutdown of Donald Trump's presidency spanned 69 hours. That was as long as Democrats could, or would, stand united against a Republican-backed temporary spending bill in pursuit of a plan to protect hundreds of thousands of young immigrants from deportation. When the high-stakes game of chicken ended Monday evening, liberal activists were furious, Republicans were giddy, and vulnerable Senate Democrats were quietly relieved. The episode exposed familiar political vulnerabilities for both parties - although perhaps more painfully for Democrats. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., heads to the chamber with fellow Democrats for a procedural vote aimed at reopening the government, at the Capitol in Washington, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite) "There are no winners. There are absolutely no winners. The question is who lost the most," said Republican pollster Frank Luntz. __ DEMOCRATS' DILEMMA In the short term at least, Senate Democrats - led by Minority Leader Chuck Schumer - were pounded Monday for giving into GOP demands in exchange for a promise from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to address immigration in the coming weeks. After two days of bickering and freezing up the U.S. government, Democrats signed off on a spending bill not dramatically differently from the one on the table Friday. No one was angrier than immigration activists, union officials and other liberal leaders, who, just a few days earlier, had helped rally Senate Democrats to take a risky political stand to protect young immigrants known as "Dreamers" from deportation. "Last week, I was moved to tears of joy when Democrats stood up and fought for progressive values and for Dreamers. Today, I am moved to tears of disappointment and anger that Democrats blinked," said Frank Sharry, the executive director of the immigration advocacy group America's Voice. Far beyond Washington, disappointment and depression rippled through the Democratic universe, which had been filled with excitement and energy just last month after a historic Senate victory in Alabama. "They need to be called out. It was a failure of Democratic leadership," said Christine Neumann-Ortiz, executive director of Wisconsin-based immigrant rights advocacy group Voces de la Frontera. She added, "I do not think the fight is over." If such disappointment persists and deflates enthusiasm in the November midterm elections, it could be a long-standing problem for Democrats. But ultimately Democratic senators bet they had bigger worries, namely turning off disaffected voters in Trump country. For Senate Democrats running for re-election in states Trump won in 2016, the Republican charge that Democrats closed the government for the benefit of "illegal immigrants" was potent. Republicans were unusually disciplined on this messaging and Trump stayed on script. The longer the shutdown went on, the more problematic it would become for those Democrats. "In my focus groups, the public blamed the Democrats, even as they were angry at Donald Trump," Luntz said. __ REPUBLICANS' HARD CHOICES Yet the GOP success may be short-lived. The legislation that ended the shutdown will fund the federal government through Feb. 8 - for less than three weeks. If there is no immigration deal by then, McConnell said he would allow the Senate to bring up legislation addressing the fate of those 700,000 young immigrants in the country illegally who had voluntarily enrolled in the Obama-era Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, which Trump ended last fall. There is no more explosive issue for Republicans than immigration. Many conservatives dismiss any legal protection for the young immigrants as "amnesty." And while some Senate Republicans have promised to support a DACA fix, the issue is far more divisive in the House, where a relatively small group of hard-line conservatives wield significant clout. House conservatives in 2013 helped kill legislation that would have provided a pathway to citizenship for millions of immigrants in the country illegally. The Senate's "Gang of Eight" that crafted the bill - a group that included Republicans Marco Rubio of Florida, Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Arizona's Jeff Flake and John McCain - is still hated by many conservatives, many of Trump's most passionate supporters among them. Long-term, there will be tremendous pressure on Republicans, particularly Trump and House Speaker Paul Ryan, to come to an agreement on behalf of those thousands of Dreamers, said Democratic pollster Paul Maslin. "Trump's been all over the map on this, and Paul Ryan is cowed by his majority," Maslin said, predicting Republicans aren't capable of coming up with a legislative fix for DACA and may think they have no reason to do so. He added, "I'm not sure they are sufficiently nervous about what Latino voters are capable of doing to them in November." "I don't think people in either party do very well in November if they're the party that allows deportations of young people to take place," said Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, one of several Democrats up for re-election this fall in states Trump won in 2016. The GOP risks losing the House and Senate unless they are "thoughtful and compassionate when it comes to these young people," he said. ___ Associated Press writers Todd Richmond in Madison, Wisconsin; John Hannah in Topeka, Kansas; and Bill Barrow in Atlanta contributed to this report. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky., walks back to his office on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais) ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - A federal grand jury has indicted six former employees of an Alaska commuter airline on charges of stealing mail over two years, including 343 computers headed to schools in rural villages. The six ramp agents were employed by Ravn Air. U.S. Attorney Bryan Schroder said the six were charged with stealing Apple computers and other mail, conspiracy and possession of stolen mail. The value of the items stolen from March 2015 to April 2017 was $489,000. Besides computers, the men are suspected of stealing cellphones, cigarettes and chewing tobacco. The six include Congress Lepou, 29, Breadoflife "Presley" Faiupu, 36, Hubert Barte, 37, Paulo Maae, 24, Harold Velicaria, 35, and Rogelio "Roger" Daquis, 49. One suspect was arrested Friday and five others were arrested Monday. All but Maae were in custody Monday afternoon at the Anchorage jail, according to online corrections listings. The indictment did not list their attorneys. Ravn was authorized to pick up mail from the U.S. Postal Service Processing and Distribution Center in Anchorage and move it to Ravn facilities for placement on planes and delivery to villages, including the western Alaska communities of Saint Marys, Mountain Village, Stebbins, Unalakleet, Emmonak, Kotlik, Alakanuk, Aniak, Grayling, Kalskag and Koyuk. Lepou was a lead ramp agent and Faiupu was a ramp agent trainer. Prosecutors said Lepou and Faiupu used a Ravn truck to move items from the post office distribution center to the Ravn employee parking lot, where they were loaded into private vehicles. The four others paid for stolen items or found buyers for stolen items, prosecutors said. The computers included both desktop and laptop models. Some items were sold or given to family members or co-workers. Lepou in April was found with two stolen computers, 667 cartons of cigarettes stolen from the mail and 305 cans of stolen chewing tobacco. He also had eight stolen prepay cellular phones worth $109,000, prosecutors said. Ravn Air said in a statement late Monday that the company acted quickly. "When this matter came to our attention, we immediately cooperated with U.S. Post Office officials, assisted in their investigation, took prompt corrective action, and terminated the employment of the people involved," the statement said. The Postal Service Office of Inspector General and the U.S. Postal inspection Service conducted the investigation. LONDON (AP) - British regulators said Tuesday that 21st Century Fox's takeover of London-based pay TV company Sky is not in the public interest because it would give Rupert Murdoch too much control over the country's news media. But they offered remedies that may pave the way for the deal go ahead. The regulator's preliminary finding is the latest hurdle for Fox's effort to buy the 61 percent of Sky PLC it doesn't already own for 11.7 billion pounds ($16.3 billion). A previous takeover attempt six years ago was derailed by the phone-hacking scandal at Murdoch's British newspapers. The findings of the Competition and Markets Authority will be finalized by May 1, when the regulator will send its report to the government, which will make a final ruling on the Sky deal. That decision may ultimately be a moot point because the Walt Disney Co.'s $52.4 billion bid for most of Fox would give Disney - not Murdoch - full ownership of Sky. FILE - In this Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2017, file photo, Fox News chairman and CEO Rupert Murdoch attends the WSJ. Magazine 2017 Innovator Awards at The Museum of Modern Art in New York. Murdoch says Facebook should pay fees to "trusted" news producers for their content. Murdoch, whose companies own The Wall Street Journal, Fox News, the New York Post and other media properties, said Monday, Jan. 22, 2018, that publishers are "enhancing the value and integrity of Facebook through their news and content but are not being adequately rewarded for those services." (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File) Regulators said the Sky takeover raises concerns about Murdoch's power over British media because his family trust already controls News Corp., which owns newspapers such as the Times and the Sun, and the deal would increase its control of the influential Sky News channel. Even before the Sky bid, liberal politicians claimed Murdoch had too much influence over public debate, with his papers often supporting conservative causes. "The (Murdoch family trust's) news outlets are watched, read or heard by nearly a third of the U.K.'s population, and have a combined share of the public's news consumption that is significantly greater than all other news providers, except the BBC and ITN," the regulator said in a statement. "Due to its control of News Corp., the Murdoch family already has significant influence over public opinion, and full ownership of Sky by Fox would strengthen this even further." But the regulators also offered ways for Fox to remove their objections, including a spin-off of Sky News or "behavioral remedies" that would reduce the Murdoch family's ability to direct the channel's news coverage. Fox said it was "disappointed" by the ruling on media plurality, while Sky took note of the suggested remedies. The authority recognized that the completion of Disney's bid for Fox would weaken concerns about media plurality, because Disney would own Sky. But the authority said there was no way to guarantee when or if Disney's takeover of Fox will be completed so the British government's review of the Sky merger must go forward. "We cannot be sufficiently confident at this stage whether, when, or how the Disney/Fox transaction will complete," the regulator said. Former British Culture Secretary Karen Bradley asked the authority to evaluate the takeover in September, directing it to look at Fox's commitment to broadcasting standards and the deal's impact on media plurality in the U.K. In its decision, the regulator dismissed concerns about broadcasting standards, saying that Fox and Sky had a good record in this area. As part of its investigation, the authority considered allegations of sexual harassment at Fox News in the U.S. "While these are serious, the CMA has provisionally found that these are not directly related to the attainment of broadcasting standards and do not call into question Fox's or the (Murdoch family trust's) commitment to broadcasting standards in the U.K," the authority said. Analysts said the ruling may actually be good news for the takeover because the spinoff of Sky News is workable - while it would have a less clear path for the companies to mitigate concerns about broadcasting standards. Shares of Sky plc rose 2.2 percent in midday trading in London. "It has a path to conclusion," said media analyst Alice Enders of the decision. "That's why the markets are so jolly." Fox is seeking to consolidate its control over Sky as media companies try to combine content creation and distribution channels amid pressure from competitors such as Netflix, Google and Amazon. Sky's European pay TV operation has 22.5 million customers, attracted by offerings such as English Premier League soccer and "Game of Thrones." A previous bid for the whole of Sky foundered amid the 2011 phone-hacking scandal, in which journalists working for Murdoch newspapers were accused of gaining illegal access to the voicemail messages of celebrities, members of the royal family and crime victims. Murdoch's News Corp. withdrew its bid for Sky in 2012. Labour Party Deputy Leader Tom Watson, a long-time opponent of the Murdochs, tweeted that the regulator was "right to say that the Fox takeover of Sky would give the Murdoch family too much power." "This is the right decision for the U.K.," he said. JERUSALEM (AP) - Vice President Mike Pence reiterated to Israeli leaders on Tuesday that the Trump administration plans to pull out of the landmark 2015 Iran nuclear deal unless the pact is amended. The remarks came as Pence wrapped up his visit to Israel. On Monday, he repeatedly referred to Jerusalem as Israel's capital, speaking alongside Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He also used a high-profile speech to the parliament to announce plans to speed up the timing of the opening of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem - moving it from Tel Aviv - by the end of 2019. On Tuesday, Pence met with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin and vowed the United States would counter the Iranian nuclear threat. He then headed to the most emotional part of his visit - a tribute to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and a visit to the Western Wall. He was to depart the Holy Land later in the day. U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, right, shakes hands with Israel President Reuven Rivlin during a formal reception ceremony at the President's residence in Jerusalem, Tuesday Jan. 23, 2018. (Ronen Zvulun/Pool via AP) Rivlin praised Pence's speech to parliament and his role in pushing for the recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital. "You are a mensch," Rivlin told a smiling Pence. Pence also repeated the administration's plan to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal, which has been vociferously opposed by Israel, unless the pact is enforced and amended. He noted U.S. efforts to gain support from European allies to address what he described as flawed parts of the agreement, adding that President Donald Trump "has made clear" the U.S. will leave the nuclear deal if that doesn't happen. "We are sending a signal to our European allies that the time has come for changes in the Iran nuclear deal," Pence said, sitting alongside Rivlin. "Punitive sanctions will be available for many years to come to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and you have our commitment to work closely with our allies around the world to achieve that." Pence's trip to the Middle East also included stops in Egypt and Jordan. Pence aides said the vice president would be making "a personal visit," in the same manner in which Trump prayed at the Western Wall during his visit to Israel last year. But in late 2017, Trump officials said that while the ultimate borders of the holy city must be resolved through negotiations, they could not "envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not be part of Israel." During Pence's speech to Knesset on Monday, several Arab lawmakers shouted and raised signs that said, "Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine" before they were forcibly removed from the plenum. Palestinian leaders have assailed the Jerusalem move and refused to meet with Pence. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas snubbed the vice president by overlapping with Pence in Jordan during the weekend but not meeting with him. The Palestinians have pre-emptively rejected any peace proposal floated by the Trump administration amid concerns it would fall far below their hopes for an independent state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza, lands captured by Israel in the 1967 war. Abbas' ruling Fatah party called for a general strike on Tuesday to protest Pence's visit and Trump's recognition of Jerusalem. The strike is meant to include shops, public transportation, banks and most of the public sector aside from schools and hospitals. Fatah official Jamal Muheisen told the Voice of Palestine that the strike marks "the beginning of our popular peaceful struggle" against the Jerusalem move. Jerusalem's status has been a central issue in the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Trump's announcement in December declaring Jerusalem to be Israel's capital has created reverberations through the region and countered decades of U.S. foreign policy and international consensus that Jerusalem's status should be decided in negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians. Pence again argued that the president's decision would help move the peace process along. "President Trump truly believes that the decision the United States has made to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, we believe, will set the table for the opportunity to move forward in meaningful negotiations to achieve a lasting peace," he said. Rivlin responded in an Arabic expression, "Inshallah," adding that it meant "with God's help." U.S. Vice President Mike Pence speaks during a meeting with Israel President Reuven Rivlin at the President's residence in Jerusalem, Tuesday Jan. 23, 2018. (Ronen Zvulun/Pool via AP) U.S. Vice President Mike Pence, left, and Israel President Reuven Rivlin during a meeting at the President's residence in Jerusalem, Tuesday Jan. 23, 2018. (Ronen Zvulun/Pool via AP) MOSCOW (AP) - Several of Russia's top medal hopes for next month's Olympics, including six-time short-track speedskating gold medalist Viktor Ahn, have been barred from the Pyeongchang Games amid the country's ongoing doping scandal. Already depleted by doping bans and forced to compete under a neutral flag, Russia now faces an Olympics without some of its top skiers, figure skaters and sliders after they failed to pass International Olympic Committee vetting. Five hockey players have also been barred, including former NHL players Sergei Plotnikov, Valeri Nichushkin and Anton Belov. FILE - In this Feb. 15, 2014, file photo, men's 1,000-meter short track speedskating gold medalist Viktor Ahn, of Russia, gestures while holding his medal during the medals ceremony at the Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia. The Russian Olympic Committee says Ahn, a six-time Olympic gold medalist, is among several top Russian athletes barred from the upcoming Pyeongchang Olympics amid the country's ongoing doping scandal. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File) The exclusions stirred renewed talk of a boycott, though Sports Minister Pavel Kolobkov said Tuesday the decision to compete by athletes and officials at a meeting last month remained in force. The chairman of the Russian parliament's sports committee, however, told The Associated Press that the country needed to "defend out honor." "There was an attempt to take the Russian athletes' flag, anthem, to push Russia toward a boycott ... And now this is the second attempt, tyranny, an attempt to drive a wedge between athletes who had managed to keep their good name," Mikhail Degtyarev said. "I'm not personally a supporter of a boycott. I consider it counterproductive, but we need to defend our honor." The Russian Figure Skating Federation said the IOC was trying to provoke Russia into a boycott. The federation said it was "deeply disappointed in this baseless IOC decision which is reminiscent of a provocation with the aim of forcing Russian athletes by any means possible to decline to participate in the games." Besides Ahn, the Russian Olympic Committee said Tuesday that cross-country skier Sergei Ustyugov and biathlete Anton Shipulin had been left out of an IOC pool of eligible athletes. Other officials said five men's hockey players, two-time figure skating medalist Ksenia Stolbova and several other speedskaters were excluded. As punishment for what it termed a sophisticated doping program at the 2014 Sochi Olympics, the IOC has forced all Russians competing in Pyeongchang to do so as "Olympic Athletes from Russia" under the Olympic flag, rather than as an official Russian team. Russian athletes must be vetted by an IOC commission, which will examine their history of drug testing and links to past doping, before they are invited to the games. ROC senior vice president Stanislav Pozdnyakov said he had demanded an explanation from the IOC, adding that Ahn, Ustyugov and Shipulin "have never been involved in any doping cases and all of the many samples they have given during their careers testify that they are clean athletes. Regardless, their names are currently missing from the list of potential participants in the games." Pozdnyakov said he hopes the IOC decisions could be overturned. The Soviet Union boycotted the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics after the United States boycotted the Moscow Games four years earlier. The IOC said it would not comment on individual cases, and has not spelled out why any individual athletes were refused. "By carefully looking at all the evidence available we wanted to be absolutely certain that there was not the slightest doubt or suspicion against any of those athletes who will be invited," said Valerie Fourneyron, who chairs the IOC panel which decides which Russians can compete. "Not being included on the invitation list does not necessarily mean that an athlete has been doped - it should not automatically cast doubt on their integrity. The IOC would like to make clear that there may still be further enquires and further anti-doping procedures coming up against a number of those athletes who have not been included on the pool of athletes considered for invitation." Ahn won three gold medals for South Korea in short-track speedskating at the 2006 Olympics as Ahn Hyun-soo before switching allegiance to Russia in the run-up to the 2014 Sochi Olympics, where he won three more. The Russian Figure Skating Federation said in a statement that Stolbova, who won team gold and pairs silver in 2014, was excluded, as well as ice dancer Ivan Bukin, the son of 1988 Olympic gold medalist Andrei Bukin. The head of the Russian Skating Union, Alexei Kravtsov, told the RIA Novosti state news agency that numerous other speedskaters had been barred. They include world champions Pavel Kulizhnikov and Denis Yuskov, both of whom have previously served doping bans, as well as Ruslan Zakharov, who won an Olympic relay gold medal in short-track speedskating in Sochi in 2014. Russian news agencies reported the IOC still considers all members of the Russian Alpine skiing, freestyle skiing and curling teams to be eligible. On Friday, the IOC said it had cut an initial list of 500 Russian athletes down to a pool of 389, but didn't give any names. Russian officials have expressed hope they could field a team of 200 athletes. That's below the number that competed for Russia in 2014, but above its total from the 2010 Olympics in Vancouver. Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow is waiting for the IOC to clarify the situation. "We have seen those deplorable reports in the media," Peskov said. "We deeply regret if such decisions have indeed been taken. But we hope the situation will clear up because we do have contacts with the IOC. We hope those contacts will help clarify the situation around the aforementioned prominent athletes." ___ Associated Press reporters Nataliya Vasilyeva and Vladimir Kondrashov in Moscow, and AP Sports Writer Graham Dunbar in Geneva contributed to this report. FILE - In this Saturday, Jan. 11, 2014, file photo, Sergei Ustyugov from Russia smiles after their World Cup cross-country skiing sprint in Nove Mesto na Morave, Czech Republic. The Russian Olympic Committee says Ustyugov is among several top Russian athletes barred from the upcoming Pyeongchang Olympics amid the country's ongoing doping scandal. (AP Photo,CTK/Lubos Pavlicek, File) Multiple American citizens were among the dead and wounded in the Taliban's 13-hour siege of an upscale hotel in the capital Kabul over the weekend that left 22 dead, the U.S. State Department said Tuesday. No exact figures were immediately available for either the U.S. fatalities or injuries. The dead included 14 foreigners, Afghan officials said. Eleven of the 14 foreigners had been previously identified as working for the private Afghan airline KamAir. 'We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who were killed and wish for the speedy recovery of those wounded,' the State Department said. 'Out of respect for the families of the deceased, we have no further comment.' Scroll down for video Damage on the exterior of the Intercontinental Hotel after a deadly attack in Kabul, Afghanistan. Pictured Tuesday, January 23 An Afghan police officer stands guard in front of the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan A member of security personnel looks at a bullet mark in the window of a security pointy in front of the main entrance of the Intercontinental Hotel The siege at Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel ended Sunday with Afghan security forces saying they had killed the last of six Taliban militants who stormed the hotel in suicide vests late the previous night, looking for foreigners and Afghan officials to kill. More than 150 people were rescued or managed to escape including 41 foreigners. Some hid in bathtubs or under mattresses as the attackers roamed the hotel's hallways killing people. Afghan's interior ministry said an investigation was underway to find out how the attackers got into the building so easily. Survivors of the Taliban attack on Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel gave harrowing accounts on Monday of the 13-hour weekend standoff Najib Danish, spokesman for the interior ministry, said Tuesday that security forces also defused a vehicle full of explosives near the hotel after the siege ended. The American deaths were the latest reminder of the continuing toll paid by the United States in Afghanistan, where local forces have struggled to fight the Taliban since the U.S. and NATO formally ended their combat mission in 2014. President Donald Trump has pursued a plan that involves sending thousands more U.S. troops to Afghanistan and envisions shifting away from a 'time-based' approach to one that more explicitly links U.S. assistance to concrete results from the Afghan government. The siege ended on Sunday with Afghan security forces saying they had killed the last of six Taliban militants who stormed the hotel in suicide vests late the previous night, looking for foreigners and Afghan officials to kill Afghan security personnel walk past the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan on Tuesday An Afghan security guard stands at the entrance gate of the Intercontinental Hotel Trump's U.N. envoy, Nikki Haley, said after a recent visit to Afghanistan that Trump's policy was working and that peace talks between the government and the Taliban are closer than ever before. It was unclear how seriously the injured Americans were wounded. In addition to the Americans killed in the attack, six Ukrainians, two Venezuelan pilots for KamAir and a citizen of Kazakhstan and a citizen of Germany were also killed, officials have said. An Afghan solder uses a laser sight on his rifle as security forces storm the Intercontinental on Saturday night The Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan was under siege by the gunmen for 13 hours, with six people killed (pictured, Afghan security forces at the scene) Survivors of the attack gave harrowing accounts of the 13-hour standoff. Two Greek pilots who were in Afghanistan to train local airline pilots said they survived the attack by hiding in their rooms - one inside a hollow he had cut in his mattress and the other in his bathtub. 'We overturned the mattresses and messed up the rooms, then opened the balcony doors to make it look as if we had escaped that way,' said one of the pilots, Michalis Poulikakos. HONG KONG (AP) - Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong said a court granted him bail on Tuesday so he can appeal a second prison sentence related to 2014's "Umbrella Movement" protests in the semiautonomous Chinese city. "Hello World. The court approved my bail application," the 21-year-old Wong tweeted after the hearing. Last week he was sentenced to three months in prison after pleading guilty to a contempt charge for failing to obey a court order to leave a protest camp during the 79-day pro-democracy protests that brought parts of Hong Kong to a standstill. A two-judge panel at the High Court agreed with Wong's lawyers that the trial judge failed to consider his young age at the time of sentencing, local broadcaster RTHK reported. In a separate case, Wong has also been granted bail as he appeals a six-month prison sentence at Hong Kong's top court for an unlawful assembly conviction. Wong was the most prominent of the student activists leading the 2014 protests against Beijing's plan to limit elections for the city's top leader. JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) - Turkey's air and ground offensive against Kurds in northwestern Syria has distracted from international efforts to finish off the Islamic State group and has disrupted humanitarian relief work, U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said Tuesday. Mattis raised the matter in an exchange with reporters after unrelated meetings in the Indonesia capital with senior government officials. He made clear that while the U.S. sympathizes with Turkey's concerns about border security, Washington wants the Turks to minimize their military action inside Syria. The Turkish offensive began Saturday, targeting Kurds in an enclave called Afrin. Turkey says it intends to create a 30-kilometer (20-mile) deep "secure zone" in Afrin. Mattis had said Monday that the Turks gave Washington advance notice that their forces were going to strike Kurds in Afrin. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis speaks as his Indonesian counterpart Ryamizard Ryacudu, right, listens during a joint press conference following their meeting in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Mattis said the Trump administration wants to help Indonesia play a central role in maritime security in the Asia-Pacific region. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana) On Tuesday, Mattis's level of concern seemed to have grown as the fighting continued. "The violence in Afrin disrupts what was a relatively stable area of Syria," he said. "It distracts from the international efforts to ensure the defeat of ISIS, and this could be exploited by ISIS and al-Qaida, obviously, that we're not staying focused on them right now." He said work on stabilizing the Afrin area of Syria had reached the point where much-needed humanitarian assistance was flowing and refugees were returning. "This clearly disrupts that effort," Mattis said. "The Turkish incursion disrupts that effort." "So we urge Turkey to exercise restraint in the military actions and the rhetoric and ensure that its operations are limited in scope and duration," he added. The Pentagon chief said the U.S. and its Kurdish partners, known as the YPG, are "on the cusp" of fully defeating IS in Syria. Mattis raised the matter with reporters after a full day of meetings with Indonesian government officials about ways of extending U.S.-Indonesian military ties. His visit to Jakarta is an early demonstration of a key tenet of the new U.S. defense strategy that Mattis announced last Friday, namely that Washington will work to nurture existing alliances and partnerships and build new ones. The U.S. has had a long but sometimes complicated relationship with the Indonesian military. After reported humanitarian abuses in the 1990s by a special operations group known as Kopassus, the U.S. cut off military cooperation. In 2010, the U.S. partially restored military-to-military ties, and Mattis said the Indonesians are eager to further expand cooperation with the U.S. military. Asked whether he believes the Indonesian special forces units have reformed sufficiently to merit resuming U.S. military cooperation, Mattis said, "Yes," adding that the Pentagon will follow established procedures for further easing its restrictions. Indonesia's special forces were accused of major abuses through the 1990s in the provinces of Papua and Aceh and in East Timor, a former province that has gained independence. The U.S. cut ties with the special forces under a 1997 law that banned U.S. training for foreign military units accused of human rights violations. The ban can be lifted if there have been substantial measures to bring culprits to justice. In remarks to reporters after his meeting with Mattis, the Indonesian defense minister, Ryamizard Ryacudu, said Mattis promised he would work to further remove the restrictions. The Indonesia minister expressed optimism that Mattis would prevail, even if President Donald Trump were to resist. "Donald Trump is tough, but Mattis is most heard in the Cabinet there because he is the wisest person, he is a tough soldier but he is wise," Ryamizard said. ___ Associated Press writer Niniek Karmini contributed to this report. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, shakes hands with Indonesian President Joko Widodo before a meeting at Merdeka palace in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Mattis says the Trump administration wants to help Indonesia play a central role in maritime security in the Asia-Pacific region. (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim) U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, left, talks with Indonesian Coordinating Minister for Politics, Security and Law Wiranto in Jakarta, Indonesia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Mattis said the Trump administration wants to help Indonesia play a central role in maritime security in the Asia-Pacific region. (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana) BEIJING (AP) - Chinese authorities are struggling to quell protests following the collapse of an investment scheme police say took as much as $4.7 billion from millions of depositors. The implosion of Qianbao.com adds to a string of failed Chinese financial ventures blamed on fraud or mismanagement that have prompted protests and complaints of official indifference to the suffering of small investors. On Monday, hundreds of people marched in freezing weather in the eastern city of Nanjing shouting for the government to take action. A video shot by a demonstrator showed police carrying some people away. The Xinhua News Agency said in a report on Qianbao, "Don't organize and don't participate in illegal activities." LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) - A man suspected in the rape and killing of a 7-year-old girl has been arrested and has confessed to hers and at least seven other child killings, Punjab province's top official said Tuesday. At a news conference in the provincial capital of Lahore, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif identified the suspect as Mohammed Imran, 24, who was arrested near Kasur. The breakthrough came in what officials are calling a serial murder case and which has stirred outrage across the country. The 7-year-old child, Zainab Ansari, was assaulted and her body thrown in a garbage dump in Kasur early this month. In this Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018 photo, Nusrat holds a photo of her daughter, Zainab Ansari, who was raped and killed, as her husband, Mohammed Amin in Kasur, sits beside her in Kasur, Pakistan. A provincial government official says they have arrested a man they suspect raped and killed 7 year-old Zainab, the child whose horrific death enraged a nation and lifted the silence that surrounds child sexual abuse in Pakistan. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash) Imran did not immediately have legal representation, officials said. Sharif said the provincial forensics lab processed 1,150 samples of DNA before arresting Imran. "The beast has confessed to have committed the past such crimes," he said. "His DNA was matched 100 percent with samples collected from crime scenes." Ansari's killing exposed a string of child abductions and slayings by a suspected serial predator. Sharif appealed to the chief justice of Lahore High Court to ensure a quick trial for Imran. "If the law permits and the court allows, I wish to hang such a beast publicly," said Sharif, adding: "If this is done, there will be no killing of children by any other beast in future." Zainab's father, Mohammed Amin Ansari, sat next to the chief minister at the news conference. He expressed satisfaction with the investigation. PARIS (AP) - France's foreign minister is expressing annoyance that the Trump administration is pressuring European allies to redesign the Iranian nuclear deal to fit U.S. needs. Jean-Yves Le Drian was bracing for tense discussions in Paris on Tuesday with visiting U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson. Speaking to reporters ahead of the meeting, Le Drian said he would underline France's firm commitment to the 2015 accord. Le Drian questioned why the Trump administration is "kicking the ball back to Congress and the Europeans," when Russia and China also signed the deal. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson attends a press conference with Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson in London, Monday Jan. 22, 2018. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said Monday that he sees progress in getting European support for tough new penalties against Iran that could prevent a U.S. withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal. (Toby Melville/Pool via AP) Trump has threatened to abandon the deal this spring unless it is fixed to his liking, and Tillerson is in Europe this week seeking support for tough new penalties against Iran that could prevent a U.S. withdrawal. Your daily look at late-breaking news, upcoming events and the stories that will be talked about today: 1. ALASKA EARTHQUAKE PROMPTS TSUNAMI WARNING The temblor with a preliminary magnitude of 8.2 off Kodiak Island prompts a tsunami warning for a large swath of the state's coast and British Columbia. Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, left, and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., right, clink glasses in a toast to each other as they wait to speak at a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018, after Senators reached an agreement to advance a bill ending government shutdown. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) 2. SENATORS STRIKE DEAL RE-OPENING GOVERNMENT A stop-gap spending measure will keep the government open until Feb. 8, meaning hundreds of thousands of federal workers can return to work. 3. WHO MADE JOKES IN RARE PUBLIC APPEARANCE Bill Cosby quips that he "used to be a comedian" and played with a jazz band in Philadelphia as a retrial looms in his criminal sexual assault case. 4. WHAT HAS PAKISTAN SAYING 'ME TOO' The brutal rape and killing of a 7-year-old Pakistani girl whose body was left in a garbage dump prompts women to come forward with their stories of sexual abuse. 5. TRUMP'S GLOBAL GAG RULE GOES FAR BEYOND ABORTION Health groups say impoverished women around the world are being left without treatment for HIV, malaria and other diseases. 6. GUN SHOW GATHERS JUST A FEW MILES FROM MASS SHOOTING The industry is holding its biggest annual trade show in Las Vegas and what will be on display will be shielded from the public and the general-interest media. 7. MODI GIVES KEYNOTE AT WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM The Indian prime minister says the recent wave of trade protectionism, in which governments raise barriers to free trade between nations, is "worrisome." 8. HOPE, FEAR AS PUERTO RICO MOVES TO PRIVATIZE POWER COMPANY The announcement has many on the island of 3.3 million people asking whether this will finally bring them more affordable electric bills and more reliable service. 9. OSCAR NOMINATIONS SET TO TAKE 'SHAPE' Guillermo del Toro's lavish monster romance "The Shape of Water" has a chance to tie "All About Eve," ''Titanic" and "La La Land" with a record 14 nominations. 10. BRITAIN GETS OPEN SEMIFINALIST NOT NAMED MURRAY There will be a British man in the Australian Open semifinals for the seventh time in nine years, but this time it'll be Kyle Edmund, not Andy Murray. Bill Cosby plays the drums at the LaRose Jazz Club in Philadelphia on Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. It was his first public performance since his last tour ended amid protests in May 2015. Cosby has denied allegations from about 60 women that he drugged and molested them over five decades. He faces an April retrial in the only case to lead to criminal charges. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) BEIRUT (AP) - France's top diplomat and the U.S. defense secretary Tuesday urged Turkey to exercise restraint in its offensive against an enclave controlled by a Kurdish militia in northern Syria, where civilians are reportedly on the run or hunkered down in basements and caves in fear of the advancing Turkish military and allied troops. The calls for restraints come as Turkey pressed ahead with its operations in Afrin for the fourth straight day, meeting stiff resistance from the Kurdish militia that controls the enclave. Encircling Afrin from three areas, Turkish troops and allied fighters have been attempting to push their way into the area while Kurdish fighters push back. Turkish soldiers prepare their tanks to enter combat and join a military offensive on a Kurdish-held enclave in northern Syria, at a staging area in the Hatay province,Turkey near the the border with Syria.Turkey launched an operation, codenamed Olive Branch, last week against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units in Afrin, Syria that it deems a terror group. The operation codenamed Olive Branch is on its fourth day. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) Access to Afrin is restricted and it is difficult to independently verify developments of the battles or the ensuing humanitarian situation. International aid groups also have no presence in Afrin, which is surrounded by Turkey and rival Syrian forces. On Tuesday, the Kurdish militia, known as the People's Defense Units or YPG, regained control of a village breached by the Turkish forces earlier. The Turkish forces were also repelled from a hill they seized a day earlier on the eastern edge of the district. France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said intense fighting between Turkish troops and the U.S.-allied Kurdish militia in recent days is a sign that new conflicts could erupt in the region as the Islamic State group is defeated. He warned that without a political solution to the multi-sided Syrian civil war, the region could again explode with conflicts "just as dramatic" as the war on IS. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis also warned that the fighting was distracting from the war on terror and disrupting humanitarian relief efforts. "The violence in Afrin disrupts what was a relatively stable area of Syria," he said while traveling in Asia. "It distracts from the international efforts to ensure the defeat of ISIS." Turkey's "Operation Olive Branch" against the Kurdish People's Protection Units, or YPG, in north Syria is straining relations with its NATO allies. The U.S. military is a partner of the YPG and operates bases in Kurdish-controlled territory in north Syria but not near or in Afrin. Turkey says it aims to create a 30-kilometer (20-mile) deep "secure zone" in Afrin, a Kurdish-controlled enclave on its border. At least three Turkish soldiers were killed since the offensive began Saturday. Activists say at least 27 civilians were killed in Afrin during the Turkish offensive. Meanwhile, Turkish police have arrested at least 55 people in a sweep against alleged supporters of the YPG inside Turkey, according to Anadolu Agency. Turkey says the YPG - a group it considers a terrorist organization - is an extension of an outlawed Kurdish rebel group that it is fighting inside its own borders, and it has found common cause with Syrian opposition groups who view the YPG as a counter-revolutionary force in Syria's intricate civil war. As Turkey's military and allied Syrian forces pressed their campaign, Turkey shelled a city in northeastern Syria, hundreds of miles away from the Afrin front, said a spokesman for the YPG. Nureddine Mehmud said Turkey fired on Qamishli and other towns along the Syrian-Turkish border on Tuesday, calling it a diversion from the main campaign in Afrin. There were no reported casualties. Mehmud said the YPG and allied militias had managed to prevent the Turkish forces from making "any real progress" in Afrin. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights Monitoring group said at least 27 civilians including eight children and four women were killed. The Observatory said 38 Kurdish fighters and 43 Turkish-backed Syrian militiamen have been killed in the clashes in Afrin since Saturday. Most of the civilians were killed in Turkish airstrikes, which have targeted towns and cities in the enclave. The fighting threatens to destabilize what was once a bastion of stability in a country convulsing with war. There are an estimated 800,000 civilians in Afrin, including many who arrived there after fleeing fighting from other parts of Syria. The Observatory said that thousands of Afrin residents have fled the fighting but have not been able to leave the encircled enclave, including through roads controlled by the Syrian government. Rezan Hiddo, a Kurdish official in the town of Afrin, said people are locked down in their homes because of the offensive. "The strikes are from aircraft, rocket launchers and artillery. There were also a number of attempts to advance on the ground "on a number of fronts," he said. "This is causing townspeople to take cover in basements. People in the villages are hiding in their farms, while those in the mountains are taking cover in caves for protection." Hiddo said since 2012, when Afrin came under control of the YPG, the town has suffered varying degrees of siege, first by opposition fighters, then Islamic State militants who were in north Syria, and then now. "The Turkish army is besieging Afrin from three sides," Hiddo said. "There is only one narrow corridor that links it to Aleppo. The area suffers from lack and shortage of supplies. There are no international aid groups, like in other towns. Afrin has been treated unjustly." The war in Syria has drawn in militaries from around the world as a crackdown against anti-government protests in 2011 spiraled into a conflict with global dimensions. At least 400,000 people have been killed and half the country's population has been displaced by the war. ________ Associated Press writer Zeynep Bilginsoy in Istanbul contributed to this report. A convoy of Turkish Army armoured personnel carriers led by a tank are driven toward the border with Syria, in the outskirts of Hassa, Turkey, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has announced that a second Turkish soldier has been killed in action in Turkey's military offensive on a Kurdish-held enclave in northern Syria. (Ibrahim Mase/DHA-Depo Photos via AP) Turkish Army soldiers form a convoy of armoured personnel carriers near the border with Syria, in the outskirts of Hassa, Turkey, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu has announced that a second Turkish soldier has been killed in action in Turkey's military offensive on a Kurdish-held enclave in northern Syria. (Caglar Ozturk/DHA-Depo Photos via AP) Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, center, prays during the funeral prayers for Sergeant Musa Ozalkan, the first Turkish soldier to be killed in Turkey's cross-border Operation Olive Branch on a Kurdish held enclave in northern Syria, in Ankara, Turkey, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Erdogan, prime minister, top army commanders and family members were among those bidding Sergeant Ozalkan a final goodbye Tuesday in the nation's capital.(AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici) Soldiers carry the flag-draped coffin of Sergeant Musa Ozalkan, the first Turkish soldier to be killed in Turkey's cross-border Operation Olive Branch on a Kurdish held enclave in northern Syria, during a ceremony in Ankara, Turkey, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. Turkey's president, top army commanders and family members were among those bidding Sergeant Ozalkan a final goodbye Tuesday in the nation's capital.(AP Photo/Burhan Ozbilici) Turkish soldiers prepare their tanks to enter combat and join a military offensive on a Kurdish-held enclave in northern Syria, at a staging area in the Hatay province,Turkey near the the border with Syria.Turkey launched an operation, codenamed Olive Branch, last week against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units in Afrin, Syria that it deems a terror group. The operation codenamed Olive Branch is on its fourth day. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) Turkish soldiers take a break as they prepare their tanks to enter combat and join a military offensive on a Kurdish-held enclave in northern Syria, at a staging area in the Hatay province Turkey near the the border with Syria.Turkey launched an operation, codenamed Olive Branch, last week against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units in Afrin, Syria that it deems a terror group. The operation codenamed Olive Branch is on its fourth day. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) Turkish soldiers on an armoured personnel carrier secure a staging area of troops preparing their tanks to enter combat and join a military offensive on a Kurdish-held enclave in northern Syria, in the Hatay province, Turkey near the the border with Syria. Turkey launched an operation, codenamed Olive Branch, last week against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units in Afrin, Syria that it deems a terror group. The operation codenamed Olive Branch is on its fourth day. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) Turkish soldiers, next to empty shells, talk as they prepare their tanks to enter combat and join a military offensive on a Kurdish-held enclave in northern Syria, at a staging area in the Hatay province Turkey near the the border with Syria.Turkey launched an operation, codenamed Olive Branch, last week against the Syrian Kurdish People's Protection Units in Afrin, Syria that it deems a terror group. The operation codenamed Olive Branch is on its fourth day. (AP Photo/Lefteris Pitarakis) CAIRO (AP) - The Latest on events related to Egypt's elections (all times local): 4:25 p.m. A senior worker at the campaign of Egyptian presidential hopeful Khaled Ali says they are holding an emergency meeting to assess their position following the arrest of another hopeful, former military chief of staff Sami Annan. A billboard supporting Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi in the presidential election scheduled for March hangs in downtown Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. El-Sissi is virtually guaranteed to win a second four-year term amid a heavy clampdown on dissent. Arabic reads, "So you can build it." (AP Photo/Amr Nabil) Khaled Abdel-Hameed tells The Associated Press that the campaign's meeting later Tuesday would look at "all options," including quitting the race. Egypt's military earlier Tuesday arrested Annan who was planning to run in the March 26-28 elections against President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, in what appeared to be a calculated move to push him out of the race. With his bid to run now all but dead, Annan becomes the latest in a string of potential competitors to el-Sissi who have dropped out or have been driven out. ___ 3:25 p.m. A statement by the campaign of former military chief of staff and presidential hopeful Sami Annan says it is suspending its activity indefinitely following a statement by the armed forces listing an array of serious allegations against him. Annan was also arrested by the military Tuesday, but his campaign made no mention of that. The statement, posted on the campaign's official Facebook page, says the suspension was decided "out of fear for the safety and security of all citizens who dream of change." __ 2:05 p.m. A top aide to Egypt presidential hopeful Sami Annan tells the AP the former chief of staff has been arrested by the military. Egypt's military announced earlier Tuesday it will investigate Annan for allegedly forging documents and breaching army regulations. In a statement by the armed forces posted on social media, the military also accused Annan of "openly inciting" against the military and seeking to drive a wedge between it and the public. It says Annan also failed to seek clearance from the military before declaring his intention to run in the March 27-28 elections. ___ 1:35 p.m. Egypt's military says it will investigate former chief of staff and presidential hopeful Sami Annan for allegedly forging documents and breaching army regulations. In a statement by the armed forces posted on social media on Tuesday, the military also accused Annan of "openly inciting" against the military and seeking to drive a wedge between it and the public. It says Annan also failed to seek clearance from the military before declaring his intention to run in the March 27-28 elections. The statement has effectively ended Annan's campaign to win the presidency, something he only had an outside chance to do. Annan was chief of staff until 2012, when ousted Islamist president Mohammed Morsi removed him along with his boss at the time, former defense minister Mohammed Tantawi. ___ 11:15 a.m. A senior Muslim Brotherhood leader has written an open letter from exile to a retired Egyptian army general seeking to run for president, listing the outlawed group's conditions for supporting his candidacy. Youssef Nada's letter was posted on his Facebook account on Monday. The letter has provided media loyal to President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi with ammunition to link the would-be candidate, former chief of staff Sami Annan, to the banned Brotherhood. Authorities accuse the group of taking up arms against the government. El-Sissi led the military's 2013 ouster of former president Mohammed Morsi, an Islamist and Brotherhood stalwart. Under el-Sissi, links to the Brotherhood are grounds for prosecution. Nada cited the demand to free Morsi, in jail since 2013, as one of the Brotherhood's conditions for supporting Annan. PARIS (AP) - The Seine River overflowed its banks in Paris on Tuesday, prompting authorities to close several roads and cancel boat cruises. Paris City Hall closed roads along the shores of the Seine from the east of the capital to the area around the Eiffel Tower in the west as water levels rose at least 3.3 meters (nearly 11 feet) above the normal level. Forecasters said Tuesday that the water is expected to keep rising in the coming days. A flooded public park is pictured in Paris, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The Seine River has overflowed its banks in Paris, prompting authorities to close several roads and cancel boat cruises. Paris City Hall closed roads along the shores of the Seine from the east of the capital to the area around the Eiffel Tower in the west as water levels rose at least 3.3 meters (nearly 11 feet) above the normal level. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) Railway company SNCF said that six Paris train stations alongside the Seine will close for several days starting Wednesday. Near some boats moored on the riverbanks, signs written in French, English and Spanish, read: "Due to the high-water level and floods our cruises are completely compromised." Costanza Della Cananea, an Italian tourist visiting Paris, said "we are disappointed because we thought we were going on a cruise on the Seine. It was the first time we were going to do it." "We will do something else," she said. Marina Franchi, a visitor from the French southern city of Marseille, regrets not being able to make a dinner cruise. "It is a part of our heritage. It would have been nice to visit Paris by night on the Seine," she said. Forecasters say that on Friday the Seine may reach its highest level since June 2016, when authorities were forced to close several Parisian monuments including the Louvre museum. Authorities also warned of the risk of flooding along several rivers in eastern France because of heavy rain in recent weeks. ___ Nicolas Garriga contributed in Paris. A flooded tree is pictured in Paris, Tuesday, Jan.23, 2018. The Seine River has overflowed its banks in Paris, prompting authorities to close several roads and cancel boat cruises. Paris City Hall closed roads along the shores of the Seine from the east of the capital to the area around the Eiffel Tower in the west as water levels rose at least 3.3 meters (nearly 11 feet) above the normal level. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) A flooded street lamp is pictured in Paris, Tuesday, Jan.23, 2018. The Seine River has overflowed its banks in Paris, prompting authorities to close several roads and cancel boat cruises. Paris City Hall closed roads along the shores of the Seine from the east of the capital to the area around the Eiffel Tower in the west as water levels rose at least 3.3 meters (nearly 11 feet) above the normal level. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) A man takes pictures near a flooded public park in Paris, Tuesday, JaN.23, 2018. The Seine River has overflowed its banks in Paris, prompting authorities to close several roads and cancel boat cruises. Paris City Hall closed roads along the shores of the Seine from the east of the capital to the area around the Eiffel Tower in the west as water levels rose at least 3.3 meters (nearly 11 feet) above the normal level. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) - One point after his medical timeout in the fourth set, Rafael Nadal went to the rear of the court to squat and do a knee-raise, trying to stretch out his injured right leg. Three games later - one point after his subsequent visit from the trainer - Nadal had to delay Marin Cilic's serve while trying to walk out the pain at the start of the fifth set. After limping and wincing through two more games, and after failing to fend off a sixth break point, the 16-time major champion was out of the Australian Open. Spain's Rafael Nadal, right, walks from Croatia's Marin Cilic after he withdrew injured from their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) The sixth-seeded Cilic advanced to his first semifinal in Australia since 2010 with a 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-2, 2-0 victory Tuesday. He will next play 49th-ranked Kyle Edmund, who beat third-ranked Grigor Dimitrov 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to reach a Grand Slam semifinal for the first time. "Tough moments -not (for) the first time here," Nadal said. "I'm a positive person, but today is an opportunity lost to be in a semifinal for a Grand Slam and fight for an important title for me. "It's really tough to accept." Injuries to star players dominated headlines before the tournament. Five-time Australian Open finalist Andy Murray withdrew so he could have surgery on his hip. Nadal (right knee), six-time champion Novak Djokovic (right elbow) and 2014 champion Stan Wawrinka (left knee) left their fitness decisions to the eve of the tournament - it's no surprise they are all out of the tournament. There are limits to human endurance, and Nadal found his on Tuesday. "Somebody who is running the tour should think (a) little bit about what's going on. Too many people getting injured," said Nadal, who was still limping and grimacing at a post-match news conference. "I don't know if they have to think a little bit about the health of the players. "I don't know if we keep playing in this very, very hard surfaces what's going to happen in the future with our lives." Nadal said the timing and the number of tournaments on the schedule and the proliferation of hardcourts are concerns. Other players have expressed similar views. Last year's Australian Open was one for the ages, with Roger Federer returning from a six-month injury layoff and beating Nadal in five sets in the final, and Serena Williams beating her sister, Venus, for the women's title. Serena opted not to defend her title, deciding she hadn't had enough time to recover from giving birth to her first child in September. Venus Williams lost in the first round. This year's Australian Open is shaping up more as one of discovery. On the women's side, Angelique Kerber was the only major champion to reach the quarterfinals. No. 35-ranked Elise Mertens upset fourth-seeded Elina Svitolina 6-4, 6-0 to extend her winning streak to 10 matches, becoming the first Belgian since Kim Clijsters in 2012 to reach the semifinals. Up next for her is second-ranked Caroline Wozniacki, who finished off a 6-0, 6-7 (3), 6-2 win over Carla Suarez Navarro after 1:30 a.m. Wozniacki, who is still chasing her first Grand Slam title, can also return to No. 1 for the first time in six years depending on results in Melbourne. The second-ranked Federer is still in contention for his 20th major, with a quarterfinal against Tomas Berdych on Wednesday. On Federer's side of the draw, 58th-ranked Hyeon Chung and 97th-ranked Tennys Sandgren are playing for a spot in the semifinals. Cilic against Edmund was an unlikely pairing on the top half of the men's draw. Edmund had never played in a major quarterfinal, had never won five consecutive matches at tour level, had lost both of his previous matches against Dimitrov and had never beaten a top-five player. He checked all those boxes on Rod Laver Arena. "I am loving it right now, just the way I'm playing," Edmund said. "My first Grand Slam semifinal. First time I played on one of the biggest courts in the world. To beat a quality of player like Grigor. They're great feelings. So, yeah, I just try to enjoy it as much as possible." Nadal left dejected. It was the second time he had had to retire during an Australian Open quarterfinal - the previous time was against Murray in 2010. He said he felt muscle pain in his upper right leg in the third set against Cilic but played through it. In the fourth set, chasing a drop shot, he felt the pain get worse "but didn't realize how bad." He had an injury timeout at 4-1 down in the fourth set, and another at the end of the set. After Cilic broke his serve, the 31-year-old Spaniard went to shake hands with the umpire and his opponent, and angrily hurled his headband into his equipment bag. Nadal said he would have medical scans Wednesday to determine the exact location and extent of the injury, which he could only describe as being high on his right leg but not in the hip. Nadal had a delayed start to the season because of an injured right knee but appeared to be in good form through the first four rounds. He now hasn't won back-to-back Australian Open quarterfinal matches since 2008 and '09, the year he won his only Australian title. "Unbelievable performance from both of us and really unfortunate for Rafa," said Cilic, who had only beaten Nadal once in their previous six matches. "He's such an unbelievable competitor. He always gives his best ... it's very unfortunate for him to finish this way." Spain's Rafael Nadal celebrates a point win against Croatia's Marin Cilic during their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian) Croatia's Marin Cilic reacts after winning a point against Spain's Rafael Nadal during their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Andy Brownbill) Britain's Kyle Edmund reacts after defeating Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov in their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) Bulgaria's Grigor Dimitrov falls during his quarterfinal against Britain's Kyle Edmund at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan) Belgium's Elise Mertens celebrates after defeating Ukraine's Elina Svitolina in their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) Belgium's Elise Mertens celebrates after defeating Ukraine's Elina Svitolina in their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) Ukraine's Elina Svitolina waves as she leaves Rod Laver Arena following her quarterfinal loss to Belgium's Elise Mertens at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) Belgium's Elise Mertens hits forehand return to Ukraine's Elina Svitolina during their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara) Ukraine's Elina Svitolina reaches for a return to Belgium's Elise Mertens during their quarterfinal at the Australian Open tennis championships in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (AP Photo/Vincent Thian) NEW YORK (AP) - You've probably heard how all three original stars dropped out of the Metropolitan Opera's new "Tosca" and how the conductor had to be replaced twice. But did you know about the flap over the angel's wings? A replica of the bronze statue of Archangel Michael that stands on the roof of Rome's Castel Sant'Angelo sword in hand was supposed to dominate designer John MacFarlane's third-act set for Puccini's melodrama. But dominate it didn't - at first. This image released by the Metropolitan Opera shows a performance of "Tosca" in New York. The wings in all their glory will be on display in movie theaters around the world on Saturday, Jan. 27, when "Tosca" is broadcast as part of the Met's Live in HD series. (Ken Howard/Metropolitan Opera via AP) "When it came onstage last summer we looked at it and we said, 'Too small!'" MacFarlane said in an interview. "Which was absolutely terrifying considering the costs involved. It was one of these moments where the sweat is coming out of your brow." Rather than rebuild the statue, which had been crafted in the Met's scenic shop out of steel, plywood, foam, fiberglass and aqua resin, MacFarlane decided to amputate the wings and replace them with a larger pair. "They got the angel down on the ground, and I stood on top of the superstructure and laid two pieces of twin wall under the existing sculpted wings," he recalled, "and they drafted it out, and I yelled, 'A bit more, a bit more, now stop!'" In the end, the new, more imposing wings were "about 25 percent bigger" than the originals, MacFarlane said. "It's remarkable that such a small adjustment can make such a monumental difference." The wings in all their glory will be on display in movie theaters around the world Saturday when "Tosca" is broadcast as part of the Met's "Live in HD" series. Bulgarian soprano Sonya Yoncheva stars in the title role, with Italian tenor Vittorio Grigolo as her lover, Mario Cavaradossi, and Serbian baritone Zeljko Lucic as their nemesis, Baron Scarpia. Emmanuel Villaume conducts. MAKING "TOSCA" GREAT AGAIN Ensuring the proper wingspan was just one concern for MacFarlane, who spent a week in Rome doing research to help him recreate site-specific settings for each of "Tosca" three acts. Met General Manager Peter Gelb had told director David McVicar that he wanted sumptuous sets and costumes to replace a grim, revisionist production by Luc Bondy that was disliked by the public and most critics when it premiered in 2009. Many patrons longed for a production on the scale of Franco Zeffirelli's lavish version that had premiered in 1985. And that's just what McVicar and MacFarlane provided. "It's hugely expensive, but I know it's the size it has to be to lay a few ghosts," MacFarlane said. "To give them the 'Tosca' this house needs and wants." When Gelb saw the set models and sketches two years ago he was delighted, and MacFarlane suggested they show them to the Met's board. ("Me and my big mouth!") So in March 2016 he and McVicar appeared in the board room with "three big model boxes, all the drawings, and 60 to 70 costume designs on the wall." The 35 or so people who attended the meeting "loved it and said, 'Oh, thank God, we've got a 'Tosca'!'" MacFarlane said. A LEAP OF FAITH The rooftop setting for Act 3 provides "Tosca" with one of the most famous exits in opera - Tosca leaps to her death from the castle wall after her lover has been executed by a firing squad. In the new production, Yoncheva jumps into a box filled with 2,000 6-inch foam cubes to ensure she won't be hurt. MacFarlane notes that in theory she would land in a courtyard "which is actually where the executions were held, rather than on the roof." Tosca's leap has occasionally proved hazardous. In Vienna in 2015, soprano Martina Serafin broke a leg when she landed awkwardly on a mattress that was supposed to cushion her fall. Bondy's production has the soprano rush up a flight of stairs and disappear from view. A few second later a stunt double attached to wires appeared as if falling through the air. Soprano Montserrat Caballe, known for her large size as well as her incomparable voice, found a different way of avoiding risk when she opened the Met season in the Zeffirelli production in 1985. As described by a New York Times critic: "When it came time for her to leap to her death over the ramparts ... this Tosca simply walked into the wings, looking rather like Queen Victoria out for a stroll." WHERE TO SEE IT "Tosca" will be shown starting at 12:55 p.m. Eastern on Saturday. A list of theaters can be found at the Met's website: www.metopera.org/hd. In the U.S. it will be repeated on Wednesday, Jan. 31, at 1 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. local time. CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) - Spacewalking astronauts gave a hand to the International Space Station's big robot arm Tuesday. As the federal government geared back up 250 miles below, NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei and Scott Tingle successfully installed the new mechanical gripper. Because of the lingering effects of the government shutdown, the spacewalk got started in the morning without coverage on NASA TV. An on-air message simply stated: "We regret the inconvenience." Nearly an hour into the spacewalk, however, NASA TV came alive and began broadcasting the event with typical blow-by-blow commentary. NASA astronauts Mark Vande Hei, left, and Scott Tingle work outside the International Space Station on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, to give the robot arm a new hand. (NASA TV via AP) Space station operations were largely unaffected by the three-day shutdown. Considered essential personnel, Mission Control kept watch as usual at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Vande Hei performed a similar spacewalk last October, when he replaced the first of two original hands on the Canadian-built arm. This second new hand will go on the opposite end of the 58-foot arm, able to move like an inchworm by grabbing hold of special fixtures. The bulky bundle of latches - more than 3 feet, or a meter, long and weighing more than 440 pounds, or 200 kilograms - needed to be replaced because of wear and tear. It's been in orbit, grabbing cargo capsules and performing other chores, since 2001. Tingle had to use extra muscle to release a stubborn bolt securing the spare mechanical arm. "Nice work," Vande Hei said. "And the crowd goes wild," chimed in Mission Control. Next, the spacewalkers wrested the old, degraded hand from the robot arm. Once the new hand was in place, a software issue cropped up briefly. Six hours into the spacewalk, NASA declared victory. The spacewalk lasted 7 1/2 hours. It was the first spacewalk for Tingle, who arrived last month, and the third for Vande Hei. "Make us proud out there," astronaut Joe Acaba told the spacewalkers from inside. "We'll have hot chow for you when you get back." Vande Hei will go back out Monday with another astronaut to finish the job. Then the two Russians on board will conduct a spacewalk Feb. 2 to install a new antenna on their country's side of the outpost. The space station is home to three Americans, two Russians and one Japanese. ___ Online: NASA: https://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil (AP) - Lawyers for Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva asked a group of judges not to arrest the former Brazilian president in case his conviction on corruption and money laundering charges is upheld Wednesday. A defense document filed Monday night and seen by The Associated Press shows da Silva will also appeal to higher courts if his sentence of 9 years in prison is not annulled. "On the off chance that all requests made (to annul the sentence) are rejected, we ask the defendant to be assured of his right to appeal to higher courts in liberty," the document reads. "It is necessary that higher courts discuss the issue and the consequences of the penalty are extracted only then." Former Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva speaks during a meeting with artists and intellectuals in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018. Brazilian judges are scheduled to rule Wednesday on Lula da Silva's appeal of his conviction on corruption and money laundering charges. (AP Photo/Andre Penner) Prosecutors and the head of the court have said da Silva should not be arrested immediately if judges uphold the conviction, which could prevent the former president from running in October's presidential election. Da Silva is currently leading all polls for the vote. Judge Sergio Moro ruled last year that construction company OAS prepared and renovated a beachfront apartment in the city of Guaruja that was intended for da Silva. The apartment was purportedly to be payment for favors, including contracts with state-run oil giant Petrobras. Da Silva denies owning the apartment, saying he never had a key to it, never slept there and visited it only once. He said he will keep abreast of the decision on his appeal from his home in Sao Bernardo do Campo, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo. He is first expected to travel to the southern city of Porto Alegre on Tuesday to thank thousands of people who have set up camp near the courthouse to support his claim of innocence. Thousands of anti-leftist activists are also camped nearby. In an interview with The Associated Press at her home in Porto Alegre, former President Dilma Rousseff said: "Wednesday is not the day that will tell whether Lula will run for office or not." She believes support for the candidacy of her mentor will grow regardless of the result of the ruling. "This is not a mere trial, it is part of the process that started with my illegal impeachment in 2016. Our adversaries could use Congress to show me out. But they couldn't use it on Lula because he was not holding office. So they are using the judiciary," Rousseff said in her library, using a popular name for the ex-president. "What they didn't expect was to see that the more people know about the case, the more Lula's approval grows and his rejection rate falls." Rousseff believes da Silva's adversaries want him out of the running because he could reverse austerity measures imposed by unpopular Brazilian President Michel Temer, the former vice-president who inherited the presidential office after Rousseff was impeached for manipulation of the fiscal budget. Rousseff also thinks upholding Judge Moro's sentence will have international repercussions for Brazil's judiciary. "If this strange sentence is upheld it will be horrible for Brazilian justice. If you can pander with front runner in a presidential election, what does that mean for other business contracts? How can you say they will be respected?" the former president said. Airspace over the Porto Alegre appeals court will be closed as the decision is handed down, and nearby streets will be shut off. Rooftop snipers will also be in position to deal with possible unrest after the ruling. COX'S BAZAR, Bangladesh (AP) - Veteran AP photographer Manish Swarup has been capturing the struggles of the more than 680,000 Rohingya Muslims now living in sprawling refugee camps in Bangladesh. The Rohingya, a long-persecuted minority denied citizenship at home in Myanmar, began pouring across the border in late August after waves of attacks by Myanmar security forces and Buddhist mobs. An agreement signed by Bangladesh and Myanmar is supposed to send the refugees home. According to the deal, those who return will first live in transit camps that the Myanmar government says it has set up before eventually returning to their now-destroyed villages they fled in terror just a few months ago. The gradual repatriations were supposed to begin Tuesday but Bangladesh officials announced a last-minute delay amid fears that the refugees may be forced to return. Bangladesh has not said how long the delay will last. Myanmar is anxious for repatriations to begin, hoping to soften the international condemnation it is facing for the crisis. On Tuesday, Myanmar again said it was ready to begin accepting returning refugees. In this Jan. 14, 2018, file photo, a Rohingya father and son peer out from a bus window as they arrive at the Balukhali refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) Most refugees, though, say they are terrified to return to the place where just a few months ago soldiers and Buddhist mobs shot and killed thousands before setting fires to homes and farmland. They fear more attacks if they return. Tens of thousands of Rohingya Muslims, victims of earlier spasms of violence, already live in squalid displacement camps in Myanmar and have been unable to return to their villages for years. In this Jan. 21, 2018, file photo, a relocated Rohingya boy watches volunteers distribute food at the Balukhali refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Jan. 18, 2018, file photo, a relocated Rohingya boy looks out from a bus window as he arrives at the Balukhali refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Jan. 15, 2018, file photo, a Rohingya boy stands in a queue outside a food distribution center at Balukhali refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Jan. 22, 2018, file photo, a Rohingya refugee checks his mobile in front of newly built shelters at Kutupalong refugee camp near Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Jan. 16, 2018, file photo, a Rohingya man offers afternoon prayers at a make shift Mosque at the Kutupalong refugee camp outside Cox's bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Jan. 15, 2018, file photo, Rohingya women stand with their children as they wait for food at the Balukhali refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Jan. 22, 2018, file photo, Rohingya refugees voice their protest in returning to Myanmar during a demonstration at the Kutupalong refugee gamp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Jan. 22, 2018, file photo, Rohingya women wait for aid at the Kutupalong refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2018, file photo, a Rohingya refugee reacts after seeing the long lines for aid material at Kutupalong refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) In this Tuesday, Jan. 16, 2018, file photo, a Rohingya boy looks up as others study Islam's holy book of Quran in a make shift Mosque at Kutupalong refugee camp outside Cox's bazar, Bangladesh. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File) Reaction to the Oscar nominations announced Tuesday: ___ "When I think about the women who have been writers and directors before me, and watching their work and what they've done, they're the reason I had the courage to do this. When I think about Kathryn Bigelow winning and me sitting there watching it and feeling suddenly like: It's possible. To be nominated as the fifth woman, I hope that what it does is that women of all ages look at it and they also find the spark within themselves that says: Now I have to go make my movie. That's what I want. And I want it selfishly because I want to see their stories." - "Lady Bird" director nominee Greta Gerwig, in an Associated Press interview. This image released by A24 Films shows director Greta Gerwig on the set of "Lady Bird." Gerwig was nominated for an Oscar for best director, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Merie Wallace/A24 via AP) "The real answer in this profession is you celebrate by working. I'm going to have an extra chicken sausage for breakfast. That will be my indulgence for the day." - "The Shape of Water" director Guillermo del Toro on how he will celebrate the film's leading 13 nominations, in an Associated Press interview. "I woke up a few minutes after the announcements were made. I was just getting really great texts from just about everybody I've ever met. And my son, you know, my son slept through the night, so that was also huge, so it was like kind of a party at my house. Yeah, it was great. Both he and I with our greatest accomplishments to date on the same morning." - "Get Out" best director nominee Jordan Peele, of his 9-month-old, in an Associated Press interview. "Wow, what an incredible morning. I'm a bit in shock. ... I am in awe of the pedigree of the Academy. I am truly honored." - "Call Me by Your Name" best actor nominee Timothee Chalamet, in a statement. "I am honored beyond measure by this nomination for a film I love, a film that stands in defense of press freedom, and inclusion of women's voices in the movement of history. Proud of the film, and all her filmmakers. Thank you from a full heart." - "The Post" best actress nominee Meryl Streep, via email. "To have the chance to play an iconic leader like Winston Churchill at this point in my career, was the opportunity of a lifetime .... I am overjoyed to be nominated, and proud to be part of this wonderful thing known as movie making!" - "Darkest Hour" best actor nominee Gary Oldman, via email. "It was quite unexpected but incredibly gratifying. Everything has happened so quickly of late that I am still a trifled stunned but excited by it all." - "All the Money in the World" supporting actor nominee Christopher Plummer, via email. "To still be working and having people appreciate your work at 89, as an artist, is a very good feeling." - "Call Me by Your Name" adapted screenplay nominee James Ivory, on being the second oldest nominee, behind Agnes Varda by a week, in an Associated Press interview. "Oh man I was in my bed and my phone is ringing and blowing up. Anytime I see my publicist's name on my phone, I know something happened. So I answered the phone and she's yelling and screaming and I'm yelling and screaming. It's just so beautiful, yelling and screaming and about to cry." - "Mudbound" supporting actress and original song nominee Mary J. Blige. "What?? This is beyond the realm of imagination." - Basketball great Kobe Bryant, of animated short film nominee "Dear Basketball," via Twitter. "This nomination represents the great work of hundreds of people - from STX and our producers to Jessica Chastain and the entire cast and crew. I couldn't ask for a greater gang of people with whom to share this incredible honor." - "Molly's Game" adapted screenplay nominee Aaron Sorkin, via email. "Films like 'The Shape of Water,' 'A Fantastic Woman,' 'Lady Bird,' and 'Call Me By Your Name' not only have complex, detailed, and moving portrayals, but prove that audiences and critics alike are hungry for stories which embrace diversity." - GLAAD president and CEO Sarah Kate Ellis, via email. "I have been a working actor for a long time and this really means a lot." - "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" supporting actor nominee Sam Rockwell, in a statement. "It is also quite a day for my son Alfie Oldman, having both parents nominated in the same year." - "Phantom Thread" supporting actress nominee Lesley Manville, of her child with former partner "Darkest Hour" best actor nominee Gary Oldman, via email. "It's such great news for us and for Lebanon. It's been a very, very long and difficult road to get where we are. ... It says that in spite of all these things, there is a hope of reconciliation." - Foreign language film nominee "The Insult" director Ziad Doueiri. "I just got to New York last night actually and I'm in this apartment just sort of feeling my way around because I start rehearsal for a play in a couple hours (Edward Albee's 'Three Tall Women'), so this was a big day. ... I will probably order a large pepperoni pizza when I get home from rehearsal." - "Lady Bird" supporting actress nominee Laurie Metcalf, in an Associated Press interview. "This nomination is for every single one of us who brought our hearts to this film. ... I am here because of the greatness of others. I stand on the shoulders of giants." - "The Shape of Water" best actress nominee Sally Hawkins, via email. "I'm so excited and thrilled by the nomination and for 'The Shape of Water' team lead by Guillermo the Great. It is rare and humbling to be part of something so special." - Supporting actor nominee Richard Jenkins, via email. "This is fantastic news! ... I am so thankful for Guillermo, for his humanity and his artistic passion. He truly inspired all of us." - Original score nominee Alexandre Desplat, for "The Shape of Water," via email. "It was a nice surprise this morning to hear of the nomination. This is a testament to and recognition of the work of all the people on this film." - "Blade Runner 2049" best cinematography nominee Roger Deakins, in a statement. "I couldn't be more surprised or thrilled that 'Mighty River' got a nomination. Working with Mary J. Blige and Taura Stinson is always a breeze. They are very talented. I am truly blessed." - Original score nominee Raphael Saadiq, via email. "We are thrilled and honored to be nominated for 'The Big Sick.' ... It was an incredibly unique challenge to take some of the most vulnerable, painful and beautiful moments from our life together and turn it into a movie." - Original screenplay nominees Kumail Nanjiani and Emily Gordon, via email. "Thank you so much to The Academy for recognizing 'This is Me' with a nomination! We are honored to be included in such great company with our fellow nominees." - Original song nominees Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, via email. "We believe that art can change the world for the better. Thank you to the Academy for recognizing our art." - Original song nominee with Diane Warren for "Stand Up For Something" from "Marshall," via email. "At a time when women's voices are coming to the forefront, the story of a young girl using her voice for what she believes in is more relevant than ever." - Animated feature film nominee "The Breadwinner" director Nora Twomey, via email. "I'm thrilled that our film has received seven nominations from the Academy, and that the beautiful work of our editor Jon Gregory, our composer Carter Burwell, my gentle brothers-in-arms Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell, and our fearless leader Frances McDormand, have all been recognized so wonderfully. I can't wait to celebrate with them all come March 4th." - "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" original screenplay nominee Martin McDonagh. "We are immensely proud of this work and grateful to the Academy for recognizing 'War for the Planet of the Apes' with a nomination today. ... We've been really happy to see how audiences have been swept up by the emotional story of Caesar and his fellow ape characters." - Weta Digital senior visual effects supervisor Joe Letteri, in a statement. "I was just going through airport security when my phone started buzzing!! Thankfully they didn't stop me and I was able to celebrate!!! I thought they would arrest me for looking like a crazy man laughing and screaming!!!" - Carlos Saldanha, director of animated feature nominee "Ferdinand," via email. "That such a tender film about the human condition is nominated for an Academy Award - my first film in nearly two decades, and in a year where so many exceptional women are being honored for their work behind-the-camera - humbles me. I am so proud to be representing Hungary in the Oscar race." - Ildiko Enyedi of the foreign language film nominee "On Body and Soul," in a statement. ___ Associated Press writers Sandy Cohen and Lindsey Barr in Los Angeles and Jake Coyle in New York contributed to this report ___ For full coverage of awards season, visit: https://apnews.com/tag/AwardsSeason This image released by Fox Searchlight Pictures shows director Guillermo del Toro on the set of "The Shape of Water." Del Toro was nominated for an Oscar for best director, Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Kerry Hayes/Fox Searchlight Pictures via AP) This image released by Fox Searchlight shows Sam Rockwell, left, and Frances McDormand in a scene from "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri." Rockwell was nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Merrick Morton/Fox Searchlight via AP) FILE - In this Feb. 21, 2015 file photo, an Oscar statue appears outside the Dolby Theatre for the 87th Academy Awards in Los Angeles. Nominations for the 90th Academy Awards were announced on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (Photo by Matt Sayles/Invision/AP, File) In this image released by 20th Century Fox, Tom Hanks portrays Ben Bradlee, left, and Meryl Streep portrays Katharine Graham in a scene from "The Post." The film was nominated for an Oscar for best picture on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Niko Tavernise/20th Century Fox via AP) FILE - In this Feb. 26, 2017 file photo, Oscar statuettes appear backstage at the Oscars in Los Angeles. Nominations for the 90th Oscars will be announced on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (Photo by Matt Sayles/Invision/AP, File) FILE - In this Nov. 11, 2017 file photo, Kumail Nanjiani, right, and Emily V. Gordon arrive at the 9th annual Governors Awards in Los Angeles. The couple were nominated for an Oscar for original screenplay for "The Big Sick," on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File) FILE - In this Feb. 6, 2017 file photo, an Oscar statue is places inside the ballroom at the 89th Academy Awards Nominees Luncheon in Beverly Hills, Calif. Nominations for the 90th Academy Awards were announced on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. (Photo by Danny Moloshok/Invision/AP, File) FILE - In this Sept. 4, 2017 file photo, writer-director Martin McDonagh appears at a press conference for the film 'Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri' during the 74th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy. McDonagh was nominated for an Oscar for best original screenplay on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Photo by Joel Ryan/Invision/AP, File) This image released by Fox Searchlight Pictures shows Richard Jenkins, left, and Doug Jones in a scene from the film "The Shape of Water." Jenkins was nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actor on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Fox Searchlight Pictures via AP) This image released by Netflix shows Mary J. Blige in a scene from "Mudbound." Blige was nominated for an Oscar for best supporting actress on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Netflix via AP) This image released by Sony Pictures Classics shows Timothee Chalamet in a scene from "Call Me By Your Name." Chalamet was nominated for an Oscar for best actor on Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018. The 90th Oscars will air live on ABC on Sunday, March 4. (Sony Pictures Classics via AP) BENTON, Ky. (AP) - The Latest on a fatal shooting at a Kentucky high school (all times local): 6:30 p.m. Police have released the names of the two students killed in a shooting at a Kentucky high school. Emergency crews respond to Marshall County High School after a fatal school shooting Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, in Benton, Ky. Authorities said a shooting suspect was in custody. (Ryan Hermens/The Paducah Sun via AP) Kentucky State Police Commissioner Richard Sanders on Tuesday evening identified the dead students as Bailey Nicole Holt and Preston Ryan Cope. Both were 15 years old. Sanders says the gunman walked into Marshall County High School with a pistol Tuesday morning and immediately opened fire. He says 14 people were shot; Bailey died at the scene and Preston died after being taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, Tennessee. He says five others are still in critical condition. He says the 15-year-old male suspect will be charged with two counts of murder and multiple counts of attempted murder. Assistant County Attorney Jason Darnall says the suspect has been appointed an attorney, but he did not know the name. ___ 4 p.m. The county attorney says he will ask for the teen suspected of a fatal shooting at his Kentucky high school to be tried as an adult. Marshall County Attorney Jeff Edwards said Tuesday that the case will begin in juvenile court but he will request that a judge move it to adult court. Juvenile court is closed to the public and the records sealed under Kentucky law. Once the case is in adult court, it will be presented to a grand jury. If the jury chooses to indict, the charges will move to Circuit Court and the details, including the accused teen's identity, will no longer be secret. The teen is being held at a regional juvenile jail in Paducah, Kentucky, about a half-hour away in the western part of the state. __ 2:55 p.m. Former congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords called for stronger gun laws after a fatal shooting at a Kentucky high school and said schools should be among the safest places in communities. Giffords, an Arizona Democrat, survived being shot in the head while meeting with constituents in a Tucson-area parking lot in 2011. In an online statement, she said it's "horrifying that we can no longer call school shootings 'unimaginable' because the reality is they happen with alarming frequency." The Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School left two students dead and 17 others injured. A 15-year-old male student has been taken into custody and will be charged with murder and attempted murder. ___ 2:45 p.m. An official at Vanderbilt University Medical Center says five people were brought there after a shooting at a high school in southwestern Kentucky. Oscar Guillamondegui (ghil-ah-men-DAY'-ghee) is medical director of trauma at the Nashville hospital and says they treated five males whose ages ranged from 15 to 18. He says one of them, who suffered a gunshot wound to the head, has died. The other four are expected to survive. The Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School left two students dead and 17 others injured. A 15-year-old male student has been taken into custody and will be charged with murder and attempted murder. ___ 12:55 p.m. Gov. Matt Bevin says the fatal shooting at southwest Kentucky high school leaves a wound that will take a long time to heal. Two students were killed Tuesday morning at Marshall County High School when a 15-year-old classmate opened fire. Bevin says 17 other people were injured, 12 of them suffering gunshot wounds. Speaking at a news conference, Bevin says one girl died at the scene. A boy died at a hospital. Kentucky State Police Commissioner Richard Sanders says the shooter was armed with a handgun. The boy will be charged with murder and attempted murder. ___ 12:40 p.m. Kentucky State Police Commissioner Richard Sanders says the suspect in the fatal shooting at a Kentucky high school was armed with a handgun. Sanders says one girl died at the scene Tuesday morning at Marshall County High School. A boy died at a hospital. The shooting began at 7:57 a.m. Sanders says the FBI and the ATF have joined the investigation. A 15-year-old male student has been taken into custody and will be charged with murder and attempted murder in the shooting. ___ 12:35 p.m. Gov. Matt Bevin says two people have been killed and 17 injured in a shooting at a high school in southwest Kentucky. Of the 17 injured, Bevin says 12 of those were gunshot wounds. Speaking at a news conference, Bevin also said the suspect in the Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School is a 15-year-old male student who will be charged with murder. ____ 11:45 a.m. Sen. Mitch McConnell says he's sending prayers of comfort and healing to those affected by a fatal shooting at a high school in his home state of Kentucky. Speaking on the floor of the U.S. Senate, McConnell says his staff in western Kentucky is at Marshall County High School and is in close contact with local officials. The Tuesday morning shooting has left one person dead and others wounded. A suspect has been taken into custody. McConnell also expressed gratitude to first responders. ___ 11:10 a.m. Kentucky State Police spokesman Jody Cash says authorities have no reason to think there are any other suspects in the fatal shooting at a high school. Cash says one victim died at the scene Tuesday morning at Marshall County High School in southwest Kentucky. Others were wounded. A suspect has been taken into custody. ___ 11 a.m. The shooting at a high school in southwest Kentucky marks the first fatal school shooting the nation has seen this year. The Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School in southwest Kentucky has left one person dead and others wounded. A suspect has been taken into custody. According to data compiled by the Gun Violence Archive, there has been one other school shooting this year that resulted in injuries. That one happened Monday when a 15-year-old girl was injured after police say a 16-year-old classmate shot her while they were in the high school cafeteria in Italy, Texas. ___ 10:50 a.m. Authorities say seven people have been taken to hospitals following a fatal shooting at a Kentucky high school. Darlene Lynn of Marshall County Emergency Management tells WDRB-TV that some of the wounded were flown by helicopter for medical treatment. Vanderbilt University Medical Center spokeswoman Tavia Smith says two patients from the shooting were being taken to a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee. The Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School in southwest Kentucky has left one person dead and others wounded. A suspect has been taken into custody. ___ 10:30 a.m. A business owner says he saw nearly 100 students running out of a Kentucky high school seeking safety from a deadly shooting. Mitchell Garland says he rushed outside of his business near Marshall County High School when he heard about the shooting Tuesday morning. He says the students were running, crying and screaming. Garland says his own son, a 16-year-old sophomore, jumped into someone's car and sped away, then made his way to his dad's office. The area's congressman, Republican U.S. Rep. James Comer, is calling the shooting a "senseless and evil attack" that "horrifies us all." ___ 10:05 a.m. Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin is calling the fatal shooting at a high school "a tremendous tragedy" and is calling for people to avoid speculating at this time. The Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School in southwest Kentucky has left one person dead and others wounded. In a statement posted on his Twitter feed, Bevin says it's unbelievable that the shooting would happen in such a small, close-knit community like Marshall County. Bevin said to not speculate but "come alongside each other in support and allow the facts to come out." ___ 9:45 a.m. Kentucky State Police say the suspected shooter at a high school was apprehended by a Marshall County deputy. The Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School in southwest Kentucky has left one person dead and others wounded. State police didn't provide any other immediate details about the shooter or the apprehension. Meanwhile, a soccer coach at the school says all of her players are safe. Savana Smothers is the assistant girls' soccer coach for Marshall County High School. She told The Associated Press in a Facebook message: "You just never think this will happen in a small town like ours." WPSD-TV reports the high school students are being bused to a middle school where parents can pick up them up. ___ 9:25 a.m. Police say they've secured the Kentucky high school where one person was killed and several others wounded in a shooting there. Kentucky State Police Detective Jody Cash says a suspect is in custody following the Tuesday morning shooting at Marshall County High School in southwest Kentucky. Officials say the school is on lockdown. The FBI says it's working with state and local law enforcement in responding to the shooting. ___ 8:50 a.m. Authorities are reporting one person was killed and others were wounded Tuesday morning in a high school shooting in rural Kentucky. In a tweet from a verified account, Gov. Matt Bevin said it happened at Marshall County High School in southwest Kentucky. In the tweet, Bevin says a shooting suspect was in custody. No other details were immediately available. The community is about 120 miles northwest of Nashville, Tennessee. Emergency crews respond to Marshall County High School after a fatal school shooting Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, in Benton, Ky. Authorities said a shooting suspect was in custody. (Ryan Hermens/The Paducah Sun via AP) Shannon Duffy walks her daughter Lyra, center and son Kalessin, right, out of Marshal North Middle School near Palma, Ky., Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, after a school shooting at Marshal County High school. The students of the high school in nearby Draffenville were transported to the middle school to be picked up by family members after a shooting at the high school. (AP Photo/Stephen Lance Dennee) TERRE HAUTE, Ind. (AP) - A juvenile from Maryland who made more than a dozen hoax calls to schools in five states has been sentenced to serve two years in a detention center. The teen was charged with making the hoax call in April 2017 to Terre Haute North High School in Indiana. He must also pay a $10,000 fine and will be supervised by Maryland authorities until he turns 21, the (Terre Haute) Tribune-Star reported . "He got a very serious sentence," Vigo County Prosecutor Terry Modesitt said of the youth. "We insisted on that because we understand the effect this had and the terror this caused to the community." Modesitt said Monday that the plea agreement also resolves 12 similar hoax calls the youth made to schools in Colorado, Vermont, Missouri and Maryland. During the Indiana call, the teen claimed he was inside the school with a gun and explosives, and also demanded ransom money. The school's 1,800 students and their teachers were told to shelter in classrooms while about 50 police officers entered the school. "Other jurisdictions that he had made calls in were satisfied enough with the result we were able to get on this case that they accepted our plea agreement and our resolution of the case as their resolution," Modesitt said. The teen was assisted in the April hoax by a North Vigo student, who also pleaded guilty and received credit for more than two months served in detention and home detention under a plea agreement. The agreement calls for 12 months supervision by probation, community service, home education and the Restorative Justice program in the Indiana Department of Correction. Investigators discovered the two met online through gaming programs. Authorities haven't released the names of the juveniles because of their underage status. ___ Information from: Tribune-Star, http://www.tribstar.com Pastor Calls for Christians to Urge the End of 60 Vote Cloture in Congress Contact: Rev. CJ Conner, 620-255-9597 DODGE CITY, Kan., Jan. 23, 2018 /Christian Newswire/ -- "They call it the 'nuclear' option to strike fear in the hearts of everyday Americans. In reality, when elections are decided by the thinnest of margins and government is intractably divided for the sole sake of personal power rather than the good of American Citizens, the 60 vote Cloture and rules governing filibuster are beyond outdated. Cloture may have worked when politicians were somewhat honorable, but not anymore. The 60 vote cloture rule is dangerous and detrimental to the progress of our great nation. It is time, right now, for the 'nuclear' option." -- Rev. CJ Conner, Director of Aspire Ministries Conner points out that Al Franken of Minnesota beat Norm Coleman after a protracted recount in 2008. "Franken won by 316 votes that were literally found in the trunk of a car. Franken's election gave us socialized medicine, which is a disaster for the average American family and the cause of the opioid crisis. "Chuck Schumer, callously and with utter disregard for American Citizens, shut down the U.S. government last week and indicated again today that another shutdown is on the horizon. "It is irresponsible, destructive, and immoral- a dereliction of duty in the extreme- for Republicans in Congress to keep the 60 vote cloture rule. Any politician who is complicit in this corrupt, unnecessary construct is undermining the will of the Republic reflected in the electoral mandate of President Donald Trump." Rev. Conner says that the American economy is not quite out of the woods yet. "This isn't really about immigration, or a wall, or trade agreements. It is all about the economy. The world finds itself in a tumult of economic change not seen in hundreds of years. Dozens of pieces need to move together to position America for economic growth and strength- to give American children and families a future with hope. What Congress does today on immigration, trade, the wall, health care, and the military may well determine 200 years of our economic future. It may determine whether or not America and our grand, exceptional Christian ideals will still stand in generations to come. "There is very little margin for error and the stakes are high. Christians must reject subversive politics as usual and demand a simple majority rule in Congress. Christians must reject politics that put America last. Chuck Schumer and his corrupt allies on both sides cannot be allowed to finish flushing this country down the toilet." Share Tweet PARIS (AP) - The Latest on U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and chemical weapons in Syria (all times local): 10:55 p.m. Russia's U.N. ambassador says U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is hastily accusing the Syrian government of using chemical weapons this week without any investigation and is "attempting to drag Russia into this as well." U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, second right, and French Foreign Affairs Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, second left, meet in Paris, Tuesday Jan. 23, 2018. Tillerson holds talks on the war in Syria and other regional issues with Le Drian. (Christian Hartmann, Pool via AP) Vassily Nebenzia called it "a strange coincidence" that the allegations of chemical weapons in rebel-held Eastern Ghouta were made on the eve of Tuesday's Paris meeting. That's where the U.S. and 23 other countries launched a new organization aimed at identifying and punishing anyone who uses chemical weapons. Tillerson said Russia is ultimately to blame for any use of chemical weapons in Syria and must stop vetoing U.N. Security Council resolutions on holding offenders accountable. Nebenzia says he is circulating a resolution proposing the establishment of a new international investigative body to identify those responsible for chemical attacks. ___ 5:10 p.m. U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson says that Russia is ultimately to blame for any use of chemical weapons in Syria. He said Tuesday that Russia is in violation of a 2013 agreement it made with the U.S. on the removal of chemical weapons from Syria and is helping the Syrian government to breach the Chemical Weapons Convention, which bans their use. Tillerson told the inaugural meeting of a new organization aimed at ending impunity for the use of chemical weapons that Russia must stop vetoing U.N. Security Council resolutions on holding those who use such weapons accountable. If it cannot support a future Security Council resolution to that end, it should abstain, Tillerson said. ___ 3:15 p.m. The United States and 28 other countries are launching a new plan to better identify and punish anyone who uses chemical weapons, amid new reports of a suspected chemical attack in Syria. The initiative was announced Tuesday in Paris, where U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson met with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian and diplomats from the other signatory countries. The group plans to publish information about chemical attacks to name and shame perpetrators and eventually sanction them. U.N. efforts to punish perpetrators in Syria have failed, repeatedly blocked by Syrian ally Russia. Activists and rescue teams said the Syrian government launched an attack Monday with suspected poisonous gas that affected nearly 20 civilians in a rebel-held suburb near Damascus. The Syrian government denies using chemical weapons. Two 12-year-olds in Florida were arrested for cyberbullying in connection with the death of a middle-school student who police say hanged herself two weeks ago. The circumstances around the death of 12-year-old Gabriella Green on Jan. 10 led to the arrests of the two Surfside Middle School students, Panama City Beach officials said in a news release Monday. Police did not release the names of the two children who were arrested because they are minors. This undated selfie made available by Tanya Green shows her with her daughter Gabriella Green. Gabriella, 12, of Panama City Beach, Fla., killed herself on Jan. 10, 2018. Two 12-year-olds have been charged with cyberstalking in connection with Gabriella's death. (Tanya Green via AP) Investigators were made aware of the potential cyberbullying against the girl while looking into the death, which led them to examine several cellphones and social media accounts, the news release said. They interviewed two suspects with their parents' permission, and say both confessed to cyberbullying. A police report states that one of the suspects told an investigator that she had started rumors about Green in person, and online. "Her actions consisted of starting rumors of the victim having sexually transmitted diseases, vulgar name-calling ... and threats to 'expose' personal and sensitive details of the victim's life," the police report said. The other suspect, a boy, told police he video-chatted with Green after she told him she had attempted to hang herself and had marks on her neck, according to the report. "(He) responded by saying something to the effect of, 'If you're going to do it, just do it,' and ended the call," police wrote. "He immediately regretted that statement, and began calling and text-messaging her, but did not receive a response." Green's cousin, Chad Baker, told police she hanged herself with a dog leash in her closet, the police report said. Police said the suspects did not notify any adult or authority about Green's state of mind. The two children arrested also acknowledged that their conduct was directed at Green "knowing that said conduct would result in emotional distress." Even so, police said the investigation did not reveal that the cyberbullying caused the girl's death, just that it was happening in the days and weeks leading up to it. School officials said they are making counselors available at Surfside for students, faculty and staff. "We continue to mourn the loss of Gabbie and our hearts go out to her family, her friends and to everyone at Surfside Middle School," Superintendent William Husfelt said in a statement. "This is an absolutely tragic situation." Police said that during the investigation, they discovered several middle-school children with unrestricted and unmonitored access to social media apps, and said the department will hold a training in the coming weeks for parents about how to manage this access. Nationally, about 1-in-3 children say they are cyberbullied, and about 12 percent say they have bullied others online, according to Sameer Hinduja, a criminology professor at Florida Atlantic University and co-director of the Cyberbullying Research Center . He said his most recent study of more than 5,000 children ages 12-17 in the U.S. shows that real-world bullying is still vastly more common than online bullying, and that fewer than 1 percent of cyberbullying cases involve suicide. "In many suicide cases the victims were also dealing with atypical stressors, like family issues at home, or they were clinically depressed," Hinduja said. "Many kids are bullied and don't take their lives." The medical examiner is still working to determine Green's cause of death, police said. Gabriella's mother, Tanya Green, told the Panama City News Herald the arrests "were gratifying," but said she blames parents and the school system. She said she hopes the tragedy will help shine light on the issue of cyberbullying. "It's going to help others at her school," Green told the newspaper. "It's going to start at her school. It's going to help others around the world." ___ The headline on this story has been corrected to reflect that the two charged are pre-teens, not teens. In this Monday, Jan. 22, 2018 photo, Kelli Martin, left, holds a sign with "Say No to Bullying" written across it as a school bus drives past during a protest by concerned parents and family members against bullying near Surfside Middle School, in Panama City Beach, Fla. Two 12-year-olds in Florida have been charged with cyberstalking in connection with the death of a student at the middle school, who police say hanged herself two weeks ago. (Patti Blake/News Herald via AP) In this Monday, Jan. 22, 2018 photo, Nicole Ricker, a parent of a Bay District School student, holds a sign to protest bullying at a gathering of concerned parents and family members near Surfside Middle School, in Panama City Beach, Fla. Two 12-year-olds in Florida have been charged with cyberstalking in connection with the death of a student at the middle school, who police say hanged herself two weeks ago. (Patti Blake/News Herald via AP) Star wrestler Enzo Amore has been fired by WWE after a woman alleged on Twitter that he raped her at a hotel in Phoenix. The company said in a statement that it has 'come to terms on the release' of Amore, whose real name is Eric Arndt. Allegations against Amore were made on Monday night by Philomena Sheahan. Star wrestler Enzo Amore has been fired by WWE after a woman alleged on Twitter that he raped her at a hotel in Phoenix. The company said in a statement that they have 'come to terms on the release' of Amore, whose real name is Eric Arndt Allegations against Amore (right) were made on Monday night by Philomena Sheahan (left) on her Twitter account Sheahan claimed on Twitter (pictured) that she was plied with drugs and left alone with the wrestler by his friends in a room at The Clarendon Hotel in Phoenix 'OKAY..its been long enough & I have been so so scared to share this. I was raped in mid October by the WWE Enzo Amore (also known as Eric Arden) & Tyler Grosso & TOOPOOR let it happen as accomplices. I was in a mental hospital for 45 days after it. They ARE NOT good people,' Sheahan wrote in a tweet. Sheahan claimed that she was plied with drugs and left alone with the wrestler by his friends in a room at The Clarendon Hotel in Phoenix. She claimed Amore raped her in a hotel room on October 19. She told TMZ Sports that Amore was hitting on her hard in the hotel room, but she tried to slow him down. 'I want to get to know you first,' Sheahan reportedly told Amore. Sheahan claimed that Amore then became aggressive and allegedly ripped off her tights and raped her in the room. 'I said "no" countless times,' Sheahan told TMZ. 'I just kept saying "No."' Sheahan alleged that she continued to beg Amore to stop but he threw her on a bed, causing her to hit her head so hard, she passed out. She claimed he then pushed forward with the sexual assault. TOOPOOR, who Sheahan claims let the alleged attack happen, responded to the news on Twitter. 'I was horrified to hear about this alleged assault. I have always supported other girls and do not accept this kind of behaviour. I wasnt present when this alleged sexual assault happened,' TOOPOOR tweeted. Sheahan posted these screen grabs on Twitter Monday night detailing the alleged attack A few days later, Sheahan said she reported the alleged attack to the police. Authorities confirmed that Amore is currently being investigated. 'On Monday, October 23, 2017, at around 2.30pm, Phoenix Police responded to a local hospital for a call of a sexual assault that had reportedly occurred on October 19, 2017 at 401 West Clarendon Avenue,' the Phoenix police said in a statement. 'This case is under investigation,' said the report. Police did not release any other details in the case. On Tuesday, WWE said in a statement that it has zero tolerance for matters involving sexual harassment or sexual assault. Amore started working for WWE in 2012. He was a member of NXT, WWE's developmental brand, until 2016. Amore is currently featured on Raw, WWE's Monday night show where he competes as part of the popular tag team 'Enzo and Cass' alongside William Morrissey, a.k.a. Big Cass, from 2013-17. The New Jersey native has held the cruiserweight title since September. Amore was the manager of a Hooters restaurant before he joined WWE in 2012. Amore (pictured in April 2017) started working for WWE in 2012. He was a member of NXT, WWE's developmental brand, until 2016 KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) - Uganda's president says he loves President Donald Trump and that he should be praised for not mincing words. "I love Trump because he tells Africans frankly," President Yoweri Museveni said Tuesday, shortly after the U.S. ambassador apologized for Trump's recent reference to African nations as "shithole countries." "I don't know whether he was misquoted or whatever. But he talks to Africans frankly," Museveni said. "In the world, you cannot survive if you are weak." FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016 file photo, Uganda's long-time President Yoweri Museveni waves to supporters from the sunroof of his vehicle as he arrives for an election rally at Kololo Airstrip in Kampala, Uganda. Addressing members of the regional East African Legislative Assembly Tuesday, Jan. 23, 2018, Museveni said he loves President Donald Trump and that he should be praised for not mincing words. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File) The Ugandan leader was addressing members of the regional East African Legislative Assembly. Several African nations have expressed shock and condemnation at Trump's remark. He has denied using that language while others present says he did. Museveni, one of Africa's longest-serving leaders, also called Trump an honest man during his State of the Nation address on Jan 1. Earlier on Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador Deborah Malac met Uganda's speaker of parliament, Rebecca Kadaga, and described Trump's controversial remark as "obviously quite disturbing and upsetting." DAMASCUS, Syria (AP) - Fadi Khoury was shopping with his wife and three-year-old boy in Damascus when the barrage of mortars crashed around them, severely wounding the couple and killing their only child. Monday's attack on the eastern Bab Touma district, which occurred as children were leaving schools, was one of the deadliest launched in recent weeks by insurgents in the besieged suburbs of the capital. Fighting has intensified in recent days as government forces push into the area known as eastern Ghouta, home to some 400,000 people, which has been besieged for weeks and pounded by airstrikes and artillery. Dozens have been killed on both sides, and the siege has caused severe shortages of food, fuel and medicine. Nayfeh Khoury, 80, grandmother of Elias Khoury, a 3-year-old boy, who was killed by a mortar attack on the Bab Touma district, cries on a hospital bench, in Damascus, Syria, Tuesday Jan. 23, 2018. The mortar attack on the predominantly Christian neighborhood in Damascus has changed the life of the Khoury family forever when it left a man and his wife severely wounded and killed their only son. (AP Photo/Mstyslav Chernov) Health Minister Nizar Yazigi said Monday's shelling killed nine people and wounded 21. He said "terrorists" were seeking to pressure the government by firing shells into "safe areas" as government forces advance, and predicted that the insurgents would soon be defeated. President Bashar Assad has consolidated his control over key areas of Syria in the past few years with the support of Iran and Russia, but has been unable to stop the rebels from striking at his seat of power. Damascus is relatively secure and brimming with life, but the fleeting sense of normalcy can be shattered at any time by the whistle and thud of mortar rounds and rockets. Khoury had brought his wife and child into the city from their village of Maaret Saidnaya for some shopping earlier in the day. Bab Touma, a predominantly Christian neighborhood, is a popular shopping destination and residential district. Just after 2 p.m., insurgents fired several shells into the neighborhood, instantly striking down and killing three-year-old Elias Khoury. His parents were left severely wounded and both are now in intensive care at the nearby French Hospital. "I will not forgive them because of what happened to this child," said Nayfeh Khoury, 80, the child's paternal grandmother, as she sat grieving in the hospital's yard along with other relatives Tuesday, dressed in black and wiping away tears. "There will be no forgiveness." The child's parents, she said, still don't know that their son died and keep asking about him. "We tell them he is in the children's hospital... We are lying to them now but then what? What will we say? What will we do, what can I do?" She says Elias was their only child, born after they had spent four years trying to have a baby. "They have buried us alive," she said, referring to the militants. Munir al-Hosh, Elias' maternal uncle, said his sister suspects that her son was killed because when she was bleeding in the street she asked someone about Elias and was told he was dead. "Still, when she asked us, we told her he is in hospital and will need several operations," he said. Elias' father, Fadi, suffered serious injuries and could lose his right leg. His mother, Manal al-Hosh, was hit by shrapnel in her neck and has broken bones. Pascale al-Khalil, 16, who had just left school with her friend, was also wounded in the attack. She heard a loud explosion, and when she approached a checkpoint to ask what was going on another shell landed, leaving a gash on her forehead. "I fainted and woke up in hospital later," she said from her hospital bed, where she held a wooden cross and a teddy bear. Her father, Marcel, said that when he heard his daughter was wounded, "we went crazy." He choked and barely held back tears, saying "the situation is very dangerous. We will not dare send our kids to school anymore." A 15-year-old girl who was shot in the stomach and neck during a Texas high school shooting on Monday is in 'good spirits'. The victim, identified by her family as Noelle 'Cricket' Jones, is recovering in hospital after a 16-year-old classmate allegedly opened fire in the cafeteria of Italy High School before 8am. School District superintendent Lee Joffre told reporters outside the school that he visited the girl at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Dallas, where she read him a poem and cracked jokes. 'It is an amazing demonstration of her strength that she was able to survive this,' he said of the girl. Jones had a bullet removed from her abdomen, along with a foot of small intestine, and she still has a second bullet lodged in her neck. The teenage suspect was arrested not long after the shooting. He has been charged two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, the Ellis County district attorney's office announced Tuesday. Classmates and their parents at the school said the suspect, who has been charged as a juvenile, had a violent past. At one point he allegedly threw scissors at another girl and made a 'hit list' in the eight grade. Scroll down for video She survived: Family members say Noelle 'Cricket' Jones, 15, is recovering from multiple gunshot wounds after Monday's school shooting in Texas Fighting spirit: Jones is new to Italy High School and is a member of the school's ROTC (pictured in her uniform) In this photo from video by KDFW Fox4, law enforcement personnel gather outside the high school in Italy, Texas, following Jones' shooting on Monday A preliminary hearing in juvenile court is scheduled for Wednesday. He was being held at a juvenile detention center. Police have not released the suspect's name and Italy police Chief Michael Taylor did not respond to a request for comment. According to the description of a GoFundMe campaign launched on behalf of the victims family to help them with her medical expenses, the 15-year-old has had one bullet removed from her abdomen, along with 'a foot of unrepairable small intestine,' and she still has another bullet lodged in her neck. The campaign, which has drawn more than $9,000 in donations, also says that Noelle will have to undergo multiple surgeries, followed by an extended period of physical rehabilitation. This is every parent's worst nightmare, and we feel the Jones' family should not have to worry about the financial burden of this horrendous situation,especially [sic] since they are self employed small business owners, the page reads. Lifesaver: Dallas Fire Captain Charles Hyles (pictured with his three boys) rushed to Noelle's aid on his day off and helped save her life 'Don't let me die': Hyles recounted how Noelle, whom he described as the strongest girl he's ever met, begged him, 'Don't let me die.' Off-duty Dallas Fire-Rescue Capt Charles Hyles has been credited with helping save Noelle's life in the harrowing minutes after the shooting. Hyles recounted to NBC5 that as he was trying to pinpoint the sites of Noelle's injuries, the 15-year-old girl begged him, 'I don't want to die. Don't let me die.' The veteran firefighter, who has three children of his own, described Jones as 'the strongest little girl I've ever met.' He added, 'Twenty-nine years of doing this, and of all the patients, she might have been the toughest.' He carried Jones into the helicopter, planted a kiss on her head and assured her that he would meet her at the hospital in Dallas. When Hyles later came by to check on Jones in the hospital, she broke down in tears, telling him, 'You didn't let me die.' Hyles said in response: 'No, baby. God didn't let you die.' Noelle's father, TJ Jones, spoke to the station WFAA on Tuesday, saying that his daughter is new to Italy High School and is a member of the ROTC. Monday would have been her first drill with Civil Air Patrol and she was excited to wear her uniform to school. Friends or more? A classmate of Jones' said the girl and her suspected attacker had briefly dated, but Noelle's dad said the two were just friends Jones, who works as a locksmith, also said that the 16-year-old suspect had been to his home several times and he did not notice anything amiss about him. But according to other members of the Italy community, the teenage boy had a known history of violent behavior towards his classmates. Cassie Shook, a 17-year-old junior at the school, earlier told The Associated Press that she was driving up to the cafeteria Monday when she saw 'the doors fly open and everyone screaming and running out of the building.' She said she was angry when she learned who the suspect was because she had complained about him at least twice to school officials, including to a vice principal. 'This could have been avoidable,' she said. 'There were so many signs.' Shook said when she and the boy were in eighth grade, the teen made a 'hit list' that included her name on it. Then last year, the suspect picked up a computer and hurled it against a wall, prompting his temporary removal from the school. Tina Haight, whose daughter attends the school, told KDFW-TV in Dallas that she had complained to school administrators after the same boy threw scissors at her daughter in anger. Joffre said Tuesday that he couldn't comment on disciplinary actions involving students, but that the school district adheres to regulations established by the Texas Education Agency. 'I have confidence that our administration always addresses the Texas education code appropriately,' he said. The shooting took place in the school cafeteria before 8am and the male student suspected of pulling the trigger was arrested a short time later and charged with aggravated assault Law enforcement personnel from the Ellis County Sheriff's Office park outside Italy High School after Monday's active shooter incident Shook said Noelle Jones had briefly dated the suspect, but the girl's dad told WFAA as far as he knows, the two were just friends. Ellis County sheriff's Sgt. Joe Fitzgerald said authorities would inquire about any dating history involving the two as part of the investigation. Fitzgerald said officials know where the suspect obtained the .380 semi-automatic handgun used in the shooting but he declined to publicly reveal that information. Agents with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives searched the school for weapons and explosive devices before students arrived Tuesday. Joffre said law enforcement officers would be on campus through the day. 'It was an extra assurance for us to be ready for our students today,' he said. MEXICO CITY (AP) - Amnesty International says a survey of 385 Central American migrants suggests that Mexican authorities routinely force people to return to dangerous conditions in their home countries. The human rights organization reported Tuesday that about 75 percent of migrants said they were not informed by Mexican immigration agents about their right to seek asylum in Mexico. It said that "people seeking asylum whose lives are at risk in Central America are very frequently pressured into signing 'voluntary return' deportation papers." It also reported that a Honduran man was killed three weeks after he was returned to his country. Mexico's National Immigration Institute acknowledged there was room for improvement, but said it had processed 2,000 asylum claims in the last 1 years and uses promotional materials to inform migrants of their rights. The Walt Disney Co. will give more than 125,000 eligible employees a one-time $1,000 cash bonus and invest $50 million in an education funding program. The media company said Tuesday the bonuses will go to all full and part-time non-executive employees, either hourly or salaried, who have been with the company since January 1, 2018, and are based in the U.S. 'We are directing approximately $125 million to our cast members and employees across the country and making higher education more accessible with the launch of this new program,' CEO Bob Iger said in a statement, according to CNBC. The Walt Disney Co. will give more than 125,000 eligible employees a one-time $1,000 cash bonus and invest $50 million in an education funding program Executives are exempt from the bonus. Nearly 88,000 hourly employees will be eligible for the education program which will cover tuition costs. 'Participants can pursue qualifying higher education or vocational training, including courses unrelated to their current responsibilities at Disney,' the company said. 'We are directing approximately $125 million to our cast members and employees across the country and making higher education more accessible with the launch of this new program,' CEO Bob Iger said in a statement Along with the initial $50 million investment, the Burbank, California company will provide up to $25 million annually for the program. Disney has said that both of these initiatives are due to Trump's recent tax reform. The plans will cost about $175 million in the current fiscal year. The company joins other corporations such as AT&T, Bank of America, Boeing and Walmart who offered their employees large bonuses after the tax reform bill passed. However, health care giant Johnson & Johnson posted a rare quarterly loss, a whopping $10.71billion, due to a $13.6billion charge related to last month's US tax overhaul. Disney has said that both of these initiatives are due to Trump's recent tax reform. Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe the bill is designed mostly to help corporations and the wealthy AT&T notified an estimated 600 workers that they were being laid off just a week before the company announced it would hand out $1,000 in bonuses to its employees. The GOP tax cuts are more unpopular than even previous tax hikes. A Quinnipiac University poll found that just 25 percent of voters viewed the plan favorably. Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe the bill is designed mostly to help corporations and the wealthy, according to an NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll. SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal appeals court has tossed out a roughly $210 million deal to compensate owners and leaseholders of dozens of Hyundai and Kia models with overstated gas mileage figures. In a 2-1 ruling, a panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Tuesday that a lower court judge failed to determine whether differences in state consumer protection laws prevented a nationwide settlement. The panel sent the case back down to the judge to conduct that analysis and also exclude used car owners from the deal. Hyundai and Kia announced in 2012 that they were lowering their fuel efficiency estimates for approximately 900,000 vehicles from model years 2011, 2012, and 2013. Emails to company officials for comment on the 9th Circuit decision were not immediately returned. KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) - The Latest on the arrest of a Polish-born Michigan doctor by federal immigration agents (all times local): 3:15 p.m. U.S. immigration officials say a Polish-born Michigan doctor who was arrested last week came under scrutiny after 18 interactions with local law enforcement agencies. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials on Tuesday didn't provide details on those incidents involving Lukasz Niec. He was arrested Jan. 16 for two misdemeanor convictions about 25 years ago, when he was in high school. WOOD-TV reports the 18 interactions came after those convictions, and that all but once incident involved driving infractions. Those included speeding and having no proof of insurance during a traffic stop. Kalamazoo County court records also show he pleaded guilty to an impaired driving offense in 2008. After completing probation, the conviction was set aside and case was dismissed as part of a plea agreement. In the one case not involving a driving infraction, a jury acquitted Niec of a 2013 domestic violence charge. The 43-year-old Kalamazoo doctor came to the U.S. legally as a young child. ___ 1 p.m. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials say a Polish-born Michigan doctor was arrested last week because of two misdemeanor convictions about 25 years ago. ICE officials said in a statement Tuesday that Lukasz Niec was arrested Jan. 16 for "administrative immigration violations." The statement says the 43-year-old can be deported for those 1992 convictions - malicious destruction of property and receiving stolen goods. They date to when he was in high school. Niec came to the U.S. legally as a young child. ICE says he's being jailed until removal hearings are completed. Relatives say he pleaded guilty through a state program designed to help young offenders and was told it wouldn't be used in a deportation. The Kalamazoo doctor and his wife each has a daughter from previous relationships. Adolf Hitler: "Leave the hair-splitting to others. Whether it's the Old Testament or the New, or simply the sayings of Jesus, it's all the same old Jewish swindle. It will not make us free. A German church, a German Christianity is a distortion. One is either a German or a Christian. You cannot be both." (from 'Hitler Speaks: A series of Political Conversations with Adolf Hitler on His Real Aims' by Herman Rausching, 1st edition, 1939) There is brutal persecution of Jews and Christian today embracing the Hitler philosophy to the letter. He lumped Jews and Christians together as 'the same old Jewish swindle.' His agenda is at the heart of Islamic terrorism. "First the Saturday people, then the Sunday people' was published in 2010 by prolific author and writer Lela Gilbert. It quickly appeared as graffiti in Arabicon walls throughout the Middle East.The intent behind those words is clear. First Jews (the Saturday people) and then Christians (the Sunday people) were to be targeted as victims of jihad (holy war) As I witness the unspeakably obscene crimes inflicted around the world I am reminded of John chapter 10, verse 10 "The Devil comes to steal, kill, maim and destroy but Jesus came give life and that life abundantly.' 'Kill, maim and destroy' sums up, the events of today. The Bible speaks about the situation. Saturday People "Then it will happen on that day that the Lord will again recover the second time with His hand the remnant of His people, who will remain, from Assyria, Egypt, Pathros, Cush, Elam, Shinar, Hamath, and from the islands of the sea. and He will lift up a standard for the nations and assemble the banished ones of Israel, and will gather the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth." (Isaiah chapter 11 verses 11-12) 'The banished ones of Israel' are on the move. The Jewish Agency reports 31,000 Jews immigrated to Israel in 2015, a 17 percent increase from 2014. The forecast for 2016 is more than 33,000 people, 20,000 from France alone. The Community Security Trust, which advises Britain's estimated 260,000 Jews on security matters, said 924 anti-Semitic incidents were reported in 2015, including 86 violent assaults. Lori Palatnik is the founder of the Jewish Women's Renaissance Project in the U.S. In a video released this year she spoke about 'the end of days.' She said, she asked 'a very great rabbi' when is it time for Jews to move to Israel. "He said, 'When they start killing Jews in the streets, that's when it's time to get out.' Unfortunately that's what's going on now. France. New York. People are being assaulted and even killed simply because they're Jews," she said. "I hope this is not too apocalyptic to you but history is unfolding before our eyes and we can't turn away," she concludes. Thousands of Jews are taking the current signs of the times very seriously. The Sunday people The crimes against Christians by jihadists have been numerous and brutal. The Bible speaks directly about strong religious resistance. 1 John chapter 3 verse 13 "Do not be surprised brothers, that the world hates you." Psalm 23; 4 "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me, your rod and staff they comfort me." See also Hebrews chapter 12 verse 3; Mark chapter 13 verse 13. The Christian aid group Voice of the Martyrs (VOM) has published a new "Prayer Map" highlighting countries where Christians face violent persecution at the hands of Islamic extremists around the globe. The Christian persecution watchdog group Open Doors, releasing its annual list of countries where Christians face the greatest persecution, has found that 2015 was the worst year in modern history in this regard. Before that, 2014 had held that distinction. More than 7,000 Christians were killed for their faith between 1 Nov 2014, and 31 Oct 2015. Are we living in the end-times? Every generation has heard similar speculation offered 'prophetically.' In 1918 dispensationalist prophecy teacher Clarence Larkin declared 'we are living in 'Perilous Times.' Adolph Hitler was the antichrist of his day. When Israel obtained statehood in 1948 that sparked more end-time energy. Author Michael Brown wrote an article 'Are We Living in the last Days?" In it he quotes his colleague Dr. Josh Brown: "I don't know if this is the last generation, but it's our last generation." There is enough evidence to gain our attention. Consider words of wisdom Paul wrote to the church in Thessalonica. 1 Thessalonians 5: 1-6 "Friends, we do not need to write to you about the dates and times when these things will happen. You know very well about how the day of the Lord's return will happen. That day will surprise people very much, as when someone comes to rob people at night. "At that time, people will say, 'We are safe and there is no trouble for us.' But then, when they are not ready for it, a lot of trouble and pain will happen to them. That trouble will happen to them like the pains of a woman who is giving birth to a baby. And it will be impossible for anyone to get free from that trouble. "But you people, who are like brothers and sisters to us, you know about these things. So, you are not like people who live in the dark. And so the day when the Lord returns should not surprise you. That day will not surprise you as when someone comes to rob people. All of you are people who are the Lord's people. "So, you belong to the light and to the day. We are not people who belong to the night or to the dark. So, we should not be like other people. We should not be like people who are sleeping. Instead, we should be like people who continue to be awake. We should think clearly about what is happening." Ron Ross is a Middle East consultant for United Christian Broadcasters (Vision FM). Previously he was radio news editor for Bridges for Peace in Jerusalem, Israel. His career started at WINTV (Email: ronandyvonne@mac.com) Ron Ross' previous articles may be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/ron-ross.html PHILADELPHIA (AP) - Bill Cosby is suddenly out and about in his hometown of Philadelphia in what legal experts say appears to be an effort by the comedian to rebuild his good-guy image ahead of his retrial on sexual assault charges in the spring. In the past two weeks, the 80-year-old Cosby emerged from a long period of near-seclusion to have dinner with friends at a restaurant and gave his first comedy performance in more than two years. Cosby's publicists turned both nights into media spectacles, letting reporters tag along as he enjoyed penne and sausage earlier this month and inviting cameras in as he told jokes Monday at a jazz club. Legal experts say Cosby's team appears to be orchestrating the public outings and media coverage to influence potential jurors at his April 2 retrial on charges of molesting a Temple University employee at his suburban Philadelphia home in 2004. The former TV star's first trial ended in a hung jury last June. Bill Cosby performs comedy at the LaRose Jazz Club in Philadelphia on Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. It was his first public performance since his last tour ended amid protests in May 2015. Cosby has denied allegations from about 60 women that he drugged and molested them over five decades. He faces an April retrial in the only case to lead to criminal charges. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) "It's the 'Bill Cosby is not a bad guy' defense," said Loyola Law School professor Laurie Levenson. By playing up Cosby's comedic past and Philadelphia roots, Levenson said, his team is attempting to recast his image from that of a predator accused of drugging and molesting about 60 women over five decades. Prosecutors have asked a judge to let 19 of those women testify at Cosby's retrial, which is likely to unfold in a far more hostile climate than his first trial. In recent months, the #MeToo torrent of sexual misconduct allegations has brought down numerous powerful men, including Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey, Matt Lauer and Michigan Rep. John Conyers. "The defense is saying, 'If they're going to try to make this about his reputation, we better start building back up his reputation,'" Levenson said. Cosby's spokesman, Andrew Wyatt, denied the comedian's recent public appearances are aimed at influencing a potential jury. He said that the entertainer gets "hundreds of requests per day" and that he accepted the jazz club invitation because he wanted to honor Philadelphia musician Tony Williams. "Living life is not a strategy," Wyatt said "Mr. Cosby is a human being. When did being a human being become a strategy? He has to live life to the fullest." Cosby's accusers see his re-emergence as a slap in the face. "While he's laughing, they're crying," said Gloria Allred, the lawyer for about 30 Cosby accusers. "Perhaps this is some sort of charm offensive, but I think there are many, many people who believe the accusers, and they are not charmed by what appears to be an act," she added. "It feels manipulative of public opinion." Earlier Monday, Cosby spoke at a star-studded memorial service in New York for choreographer George Faison's longtime partner. Over the weekend, Cosby's social media accounts featured photos of him visiting a Philadelphia barber and a cafe and expressing support for the Super Bowl-bound Eagles. During his hour-long jazz club performance, Cosby appeared at ease at he reminisced about his childhood and pounded the drums. He didn't touch on his criminal case and wouldn't answer reporters' questions about it afterward, saying: "I came here tonight to enjoy being with my friends and the musicians and the people who came." Outside the restaurant where he ate dinner with friends Jan. 10, Cosby shook a reporter's hand and told her: "Please don't put me on MeToo." Wyatt argued Cosby's life shouldn't stop just because he is facing charges. "When you have to go to traffic court, do you stop going to work?" he said. When reminded that the charges against Cosby are more serious and could put him in prison for the rest of his life, the spokesman replied: "People have to go to court every day. They still go out and enjoy life." Wyatt said Cosby has been out in public frequently near his primary home in Massachusetts. The difference now: He is inviting the media. Wyatt issued a press release about Cosby's comedy performance about two hours before he was to take the stage. "By inviting you guys along, it's pretty clear what the motivation is there. I doubt it's because you needed to see another comedy act," Levenson said. "In other words, were you being used and manipulated? I think so." __ Follow Sisak on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mikesisak Bill Cosby plays the drums at the LaRose Jazz Club in Philadelphia on Monday, Jan. 22, 2018 as his spokesman, Andrew Wyatt, and 11-year-old drummer Mekhi Boone look on. It was his first public performance since his last tour ended amid protests in May 2015. Cosby has denied allegations from about 60 women that he drugged and molested them over five decades. He faces an April retrial in the only case to lead to criminal charges. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) Bill Cosby performs comedy at the LaRose Jazz Club in Philadelphia on Monday, Jan. 22, 2018. It was his first public performance since his last tour ended amid protests in May 2015. Cosby has denied allegations from about 60 women that he drugged and molested them over five decades. He faces an April retrial in the only case to lead to criminal charges. (AP Photo/Michael R. Sisak) A shocked mother told neighbours her little girl had been stabbed as they tried to comfort her after the youngster was allegedly attacked by her father. Schoolgirl Mylee Billingham died in hospital after she was found critically injured in Brownhills, near Walsall, on Saturday night. (PA Graphics) Mark Billingham, star of Channel 4s SAS: Who Dares Wins and understood to be Mylees uncle, issued a short statement. A 54-year-old man, reported to be Mylees father Bill Billingham, is fighting for his life in hospital after he was found with stab wounds at a bungalow in Valley View. He was arrested after what West Midlands Police said was a domestic incident. Eight-year-old girl who was stabbed to death at a house in Brownhills last night (20 January) named as Mylee Billingham: https://t.co/3quLUjSrY3 pic.twitter.com/evOlcdQxZQ West Midlands Police (@WMPolice) January 21, 2018 The suspect posted a picture of the eight-year-old girl, who he called Moo, on Facebook on the same night she was found. In it, she was sitting up in bed with two plates of pizza on her lap. Police said they are not looking for anyone else in connection with the investigation. A post-mortem examination will take place on Monday. Bills brother Mark, who appears to have deleted his Twitter and Facebook accounts, said in a short statement: Please respect my familys privacy. There will be no further comment at this time. SAS: Who Dares Wins is currently be shown on Channel 4 (Vance Jacobs/Channel 4/PA Images) Mr Billingham, a former Sergeant Major, was once a bodyguard to A-list stars including Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Tom Cruise and Clint Eastwood. He was in the Special Air Service for 27 years and appeared as an instructor to the recruits on Channel 4s SAS: Who Dares Wins in 2016. He was awarded an MBE in 2005 for leading a mission in Iraq to rescue British hostage Norman Kember. US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has reaffirmed Americas commitment to the special relationship with Britain amid reports of strains between London and Donald Trumps administration. Following talks in London with Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, Mr Tillerson said the US continued to treasure its transatlantic ties with the UK. We also view this as the special relationship. It has been and will be, he said. We spend a lot of time talking about the worlds problems. Sometimes we forget about the importance of our own relationship. We treasure this relationship. I treasure Boriss relationship with me personally. His comments came as Theresa May is expected to meet Mr Trump at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, later this week. Their meeting takes place amid reports that the president is unhappy after the Prime Minister publicly criticised him last year for retweeting inflammatory videos posted by the far-right Britain First group. Prime Minister Theresa May welcomed Mr Tillerson to Downing Street (10 Downing Street/PA) Mr Trump unexpectedly announced that he would not be travelling to London for the opening of the new US Embassy building in February. Mr Johnson echoed Mr Tillersons support for the special relationship. It is always worth saying that the relationship between the US and the UK is absolutely fundamental to our diplomacy but also to our economy, he said. The two men held talks at at Carlton Gardens in, London (Jack Hill/The Times/PA) Both men called for restraint on all sides following the incursion by Turkish forces into northern Syria, where they are attacking Kurdish fighters supported by Britain and the US. Mr Tillerson said: We are concerned about the Turkish incident in the north of Syria. The father of a brain-damaged boy at the centre of a High Court life-support treatment dispute made a racism allegation when talking to a doctor, a judge has been told. A specialist caring for Isaiah Haastrup told Mr Justice MacDonald that Lanre Haastrup made an allegation of racism during a meeting. Specialists at Kings College Hospital say giving further intensive care treatment to Isaiah is futile, burdensome and not in his best interests. Lanre Haastrup, the father of Isaiah Haastrup, arriving at the Royal Court of Justice, London, for a hearing to decide whether doctors should stop providing life-support treatment for the 11-month-old boy. (PA/Yui Mok) Isaiahs mother, Takesha Thomas, and father want treatment to continue. Mr Justice MacDonald is analysing evidence in a trial at the Family Division of the High Court in London. The doctor mentioned the allegation when being asked questions by Mr Haastrup on Monday. Mr Haastrup said another specialist had told him that we are loathed at the hospital an allegation which was denied. He told the judge: We are here because of personal issues. Mr Haastrup also said hospital bosses had accepted that they let Isaiah down at birth. The US Congress is speeding towards reopening the government as Senate Democrats dropped their objections to a temporary funding bill. Democrats objections were dropped in return for assurances from Republican leaders that they will soon address immigration and other contentious issues. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnells commitment to quickly tackle the issue of immigrant Dreamers was contingent on Democrats providing enough votes for a stopgap spending measure lasting a little less than three weeks. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, centre, has assured Democrats that a bipartisan deal on immigration will be struck soon (Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP) As Ive said repeatedly over the past week, shutting down the government is an irresponsible way to do business. All of our important business for the American people had to be put on hold while this manufactured crisis was dealt with. Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) January 22, 2018 The measure needed 60 votes, and Democrats provided 33 of the 81 it got. Eighteen senators, including members of both parties, were opposed. Before the government can reopen the Senate must vote on final passage, the House must approve in turn, and President Donald Trump must sign the measure. Democrats climbed on board after two days of negotiations that ended with new reassurances from Mr McConnell that the Senate would consider immigration proposals in the coming weeks. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer lent his backing to the agreement during a speech on the chambers floor. The GOP Majority now has 17 days to prevent #Dreamers from being deported. In every possible way, urge your Senators to vote yes on our bipartisan compromise to #ProtectDreamers when it comes to the floor. Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) January 22, 2018 Now there is a real pathway to get a bill on the floor and through the Senate, he said of legislation to halt any deportation efforts aimed at Dreamers, who were brought to the country as children and are now here illegally. The White House downplayed Mr McConnells commitment, and said Democrats caved under pressure. They blinked, principal deputy press secretary Raj Shah told CNN. Earlier on Monday, Mr McConnell raised hopes for a quick end to the shutdown, saying I hope and intend to reach agreement soon on immigration and other contentious issues if the Democrats agreed to the stopgap spending measure. A block of liberal Democrats some of them 2020 presidential hopefuls stuck to their opposition. Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Dianne Feinstein of California, Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and Cory Booker of New Jersey voted no, as did Independent Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Ms Feinstein said she was not persuaded by Mr McConnells assurances and did not know how a proposal to protect the more than 700,000 younger immigrants would fare in the House. I want to see the government re-open as much as anyone, but this bill fails to fix the moral issue we must solve. That's why I voted against it. Kirsten Gillibrand (@SenGillibrand) January 22, 2018 House Speaker Paul Ryan told Fox News on Monday that if the Senate approved a temporary spending bill to reopen the government until February 8, the House would approve it, too. The Senate vote came as most government offices cut back drastically or even closed on Monday, as the major effects of the shutdown were first being felt with the beginning of the working week. Mr McConnell said he hoped to reach bipartisan solutions on immigration, border security, disaster aid, military funding and more by February 8. If not, he said it would be my intention to take up legislation addressing those issues. AP It is a just matter of time before the UK suffers a major cyber attack, the head of the National Cyber Security Centre has warned. Ciaran Martin said it was a matter of when, not if an assault comes, adding that the UK had been lucky to so far avoid a category one attack crippling infrastructure such as energy or the financial services. His warning comes after the head of the Army said Britain was not immune to a hybrid attack that could use conventional and cyber warfare methods. The most serious cyber attack on the UK to date was the WannaCry ransomware attack on hospitals last May, which was classed as a category two incident because there was no risk to life. In an interview with The Guardian, Mr Martin said: I think it is a matter of when, not if and we will be fortunate to come to the end of the decade without having to trigger a category one attack. Mr Martin said the WannaCry attack which was blamed on North Korea had also highlighted the risk of attack where the perpetrator loses control. What we have seen over the past year or so is a shift in North Korean attack motivation from what you might call statecraft disrupting infrastructure through to trying to get money through attacks on ransomware, albeit in a way that didnt pan out the way the attackers wanted it to, he said. Other intrusions have been blamed on Russia, China and Iran, which Mr Martin said may have been intelligence-gathering on infrastructure for potential attacks in the future. What we have seen from Russia thus far against the UK is a series of intrusions for espionage and possible pre-positioning into key sectors but in a more controlled form of attack from others, he said. Ciaran Martin, head of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), has said it is only a matter of time before the UK is hit by a major cyber attack (Dominic Lipinski/ PA) The UK is also increasing its capabilities to retaliate to a cyber attack, he said, adding: Offensive cyber will be an increasing part of the UKs security toolkit. Mr Martin said he had not seen any successful attempt to interfere in the UKs democratic process, but said the possibility would likely delay a move to electronic voting in the foreseeable future. Mr Martins warnings follow calls by Sir Nick Carter, Britains defence chief of general staff, for greater defence spending to protect the UK from futuristic hybrid warfare developed by Russia. Sir Nick said on Monday the UK is now vulnerable to both a military and cyber attack executed by Russia and must rapidly update its defence strategy. State-based competition is now being employed in more novel and increasingly integrated ways and must be ready to deal with them, he said. The threats we face are not thousands of miles away but are now on Europes doorstep we have seen how cyber-warfare can be both waged on the battlefield and to disrupt normal peoples lives we in the UK are not immune from that. More Britons feel positive about their personal finances than last year despite concerns over food prices, household bills, the weak pound and Brexit, a survey has found. Three quarters (75%) of UK adults feel positive about their finances this year, up from 41% last year, the survey for VoucherCodes found. A quarter (25%) feel negative about their financial outlook, citing rising food prices (62%), household bills (54%), concerns over the weak pound (38%) and uncertainty around Brexit (30%). Personal finance confidence Some 28% believe their financial outlook will be better than last year. Overall, the survey found workers believe their disposable income will increase by 3% on average from 349 a month last year to 360 this year. Those feeling positive about their financial situation this year say they have had, or are expecting, a pay rise (29%) and are planning to spend it more carefully, either by shopping around for deals (25%) or budgeting in advance (22%). Spending priorities this year are holidays (39%) and house renovations (16%), while 14% are also planning on paying off personal debt. The poll found spending on expensive food is set to drop, with consumers planning to cut out takeaways (26%), meals out (24%) and premium groceries (21%). Britons are also expecting to save more at an average of 221 per month, up 13% on last year. Among savers, 25% are planning on setting aside money for a holiday in 2019 or beyond, 15% are planning on topping up their retirement fund and 10% are saving up to buy a property. Paul Lewis, senior director of marketing at VoucherCodes, said Its reassuring to see the nation feeling positive about their finances for the year ahead, despite ongoing economic uncertainty having an impact on the cost of living for many in the UK. As prices on day to day expenditure continue to rise, we expect to see a rise in Brits shopping around to try and get the best deal for themselves, or indeed making sacrifices and cutting down on smaller indulgences like takeaways and daily coffees to help save up for bigger expenses like holidays. :: Opinium surveyed 2,002 UK adults online between January 11-12. Mothers of young children are losing out on over a billion pounds in earnings each year, according to a charity. Save the Children warned that mothers are missing out on millions daily due to a childcare system that feels stacked against them. The charity used available government figures to look at the employment patterns of women with children aged under five. A charity has claimed that mothers are losing out on over a billion pounds a year due to childcare issues (Dominic Lipinski/PA) It calculated that there are around 450,000 women in this category in England who would like to work, or work more, and of these around a fifth say that childcare is the key factor preventing them from working. The charity used this figure, and data on mothers in work with different levels of qualifications, to estimate how much women who would like to work, or work more, are losing out. It concludes that nationally, they are losing out on 1.2 billion every year. Steven McIntosh, Save the Childrens director of UK poverty policy, advocacy and campaigns said: Mothers describe a childcare system that feels stacked against them. They tell us its nightmare to navigate with barriers to work at every turn. The result is an astounding loss in earnings, hitting families already battling to make ends meet. The financial pressure and stress that creates at home is never good for parents or their children. Its time to make childcare work for families. A Department for Education spokesman said: We have doubled the free childcare available to working parents of three and four year olds to 30 hours a week, saving parents up to 5,000 a year per child, and over 200,000 children have already benefited from a 30 hours place since September. Our independent evaluation of the early rollout of 30 hours free childcare showed that nearly a quarter of mothers and one in 10 fathers increased their working hours as a result. We are tackling the barriers for parents to return to work by introducing shared parental leave, new rights to request flexible working and our 5 million returner programmes that will make it easier for people to get on with their careers after taking time out for caring. Doctors leaders have expressed concern over widespread rota gaps. The British Medical Association said that staffing and financial pressures facing the NHS were leading to delays in treatment and doctors juggling large numbers of patients. The comments came after a poll of 900 doctors from across the UK found many reported rota gaps while large numbers said they believed that care had worsened over the last year. Concern over doctor rota gaps (PA) "Ive come across colleagues in emergency departments exhausted, colleagues in hospital exhausted, GPs exhausted, colleagues elsewhere in the health service exhausted" - Derbyshire GP Peter Holden https://t.co/aGZ4HtBNvx @BMA_GP The BMA (@TheBMA) January 21, 2018 The BMA poll found that: 71% of hospital doctors reported rota gaps in their departments. 47% of GPs reported vacancies in their practice. Two thirds (67%) said that the delivery of urgent and emergency care services have worsened in the last year. 72% believed that mental health care provision had got worse in the last 12 months. Seven in 10 (71%) said that GP access had got worse. Dr Chaand Nagpaul, chairman of council at the British Medical Association, said: These figures highlight doctors concerns about a decline in services and widespread staff shortages. As doctors, we want to be able to provide the best possible care for patients, but access and quality of care are being affected by staffing and financial pressures. The result is delays in patients being treated, and doctors juggling large numbers of patients to compensate for staff shortages. This isnt safe for patients and it isnt sustainable for doctors. With pressures rising year-on-year, we are calling on politicians to act now. We urgently need a long-term solution to the staffing and funding pressures facing the NHS, otherwise it simply wont be able to provide the safe and high-quality care that patients deserve and doctors want to be able to deliver. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said: To put this survey into context there are currently a near-record 109,000 doctors working in the NHS and less than 1% of them responded to this wide-spread survey. We recently announced a huge 25% increase in training places for doctors, underlining our commitment to ensuring the NHS has the staff it needs both now and in the future. A doctors organisation has called on the Scottish Government to take urgent action to review preventable child deaths. Putting in place a robust, consistent system to review child deaths was one of a series of recommendations the Royal College of Paediatric and Child Health (RCPCH) made a year ago in a report on the state of child health in Scotland. The college has now published a new scorecard marking progress 12 months on and has called for urgent implementation of the review system to save lives. A doctors organisation urges the Scottish Government to act on child deaths (David Jones/PA) Dr Steve Turner, Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Healths Officer for Scotland, said: One commitment in particular the creation of a system to ensure child deaths are properly reviewed, requires urgent implementation. Around 450 infants, children and young people die in Scotland each year and many of these deaths are preventable. This system will determine why some of these children are dying unnecessarily and will allow measures to be put in place in order to prevent future fatalities. He praised Scottish Government policies committing to action on obesity and breastfeeding rates, pregnancy health and child poverty but said more work needs to be done. The report highlights progress in these areas, and the Scottish Government outperforms the UK, but notes there has been no action on mandatory child health training for GPs or providing every young person with a long-term condition with a named health professional. Alexander Stewart MSP Thanks for prioritising child health and agreeing to attend our event on Tuesday night. Our children and young people cant wait to meet you and tell you their views on why #childhealthmatters pic.twitter.com/jurYO10nJY RCPCH Scotland (@RCPCHScotland) January 19, 2018 Dr Turner said: Currently Scotland has amongst the worst outcomes for child health in Europe, and its clear much more needs to be done, specifically around ensuring the health system meets children and young peoples needs. Considering only a year has passed since the launch of our State of Child Health report, it is encouraging that so many commitments to child health have been made. The key now is to make sure these commitments are delivered effectively. Green health spokeswoman Alison Johnstone made a fresh call for a 5 top up to child benefit, adding: There is much more we can do to make sure that our health services tackle inequalities and that our social security system gives families the support they need. Minister for Public Health and Sport Aileen Campbell said: I welcome the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health recognition on progress made and that Scotland is leading in UK on child health. Our concerted effort to give every child the best start in life has seen every child born in Scotland receive a baby box of essential items. We are also recruiting 500 more health visitors, and doubling childcare entitlement for three-and-four year olds and vulnerable two-year-olds, thereby helping more parents, particularly mothers, into work. Were committed to ensuring all healthcare professionals receive high quality training and education on the care of children. We will continue to work closely with College so we ensure Scotland is best place for a child to grow up. Rail workers are still in a state of chaos over the collapse of construction giant Carillion, with most unhappy with the way the Government has handled the crisis, a study shows. Research by the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT) union found that few of the affected rail employees had been contacted by the liquidator. A survey of hundreds of RMT members at the end of last week also revealed that most were not satisfied with information they had been given by Carillion and only one in 20 thought the Government had handled the situation well. Comments from Carillion workers included: They have told us to keep working till the end of January but not to look for other positions because they might be all right, and might need us for three months. Apart from that the media knows more than us, the media knew we were liquidated before us, the media knew the fuel cards were cancelled before us. I live hand to mouth and have three children, a wife and a mortgage. If my future isnt decided soon I could end up on the streets. I work hard and havent taken a single days sick pay in the four years at Carillion. The current situation is making me feel stressed and ill. What is the plan going forward? The silence is deafening. Mick Cash has condemned the `chaos sparked by the collapse of Carillion (Nick Ansell/PA) RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: The survey of our members shows that the collapse of privateers Carillion, and the ensuing chaos for the workforce, is further proof that the essential services that the company was responsible for should be in public hands. Our members and all Carillion workers need immediate guarantees from the Government that their employment is ongoing and secure. Carillion employees working on Network Rail projects have been told their wages are guaranteed to mid-April, while those on the HS2 rail project and Smart Motorways scheme in England have been offered the chance to join Kier or Eiffage. Former defence secretary Sir Michael Fallon has called on the Government to spend more on Britains armed forces as he made his first speech since resigning from the Cabinet. Making the case for 1 billion to be injected into Ministry of Defence accounts this year, he said increasing GDP spending on defence to 2.5% would give the military an extra 7.7 billion annually. His comments at the Defence and Security Forum on Monday came after a 20 billion black hole in the budget for the next decade emerged. In recent months there has been widespread speculation about possible cuts to personnel and equipment owing to major pressure on the defence budget, alongside calls from MPs to increase spending to 3% of GDP. Warning that Britains security is at stake without an increased defence budget, Sir Michael said: If were happy to retreat from our vision of a confident, outward-looking Global Britain standing up for our people, our values, our allies, then we will drift downwards to being a bit-part world player, a part-time champion of democracy and freedom. That would mean walking away from our international obligations, letting down our allies, and in the end leaving us less safe. On the contrary, we should be doing more in the world: our troops, planes and ships should be seen on every continent, in every sky, on all seven seas. And that ambition needs a fully funded budget to match. The deficit is coming down. We are increasing spending in other priority areas, like the NHS and schools. So lets release an extra 1 billion to fire up the defence budget this year, and set 2.5% of GDP as our new target for the end of the parliament. The Sevenoaks MP announced his resignation from the Cabinet in November amid allegations of inappropriate behaviour towards female journalists. Admitting his actions had fallen below the high standards required, he was one of the most senior ministers caught in a wave of allegations of improper behaviour around Westminster. General Sir Nick Carter delivered a speech at the Royal United Services Institute (Steve Parsons/PA) Sir Michaels speech marked one of the first times he has spoken with more freedom about the financial affairs of the MoD since his departure from the front bench. Late last year he pledged to MPs in the House of Commons he would find an early opportunity to speak out on the right level of defence spending to meet the threats that our country faces, and to do so more freely than the constraints of government allowed. Speaking at the event in London, the 65-year-old said defence is the first duty of government, and the military can always be more efficient and they should be. Radical ideas like pre-positioning warships in the eastern Mediterranean and the Gulf, and doing more training with allies closer to home, need following through, he added. But in the end, defence needs a bigger budget because the threats are real and growing: they are at our borders, across our waters, on our streets and in our homes. Sir Michael said the threats to Britain have intensified, and that a security review being carried out by the Prime Ministers national security adviser must recognise that. Mirroring concerns voiced by chief of the general staff, General Sir Nick Carter, during a speech at the Royal United Services Institute on Monday, Sir Michael said Vladimir Putins intent to subvert western democracies is evident. Pointing to the fact the Kremlin is spending more than 5% of GDP on defence, he said Russia is investing in conventional and nuclear forces, in hybrid and electronic warfare. Sir Michael said the Nato 2% target of GDP spending is a minimum, and added: Increased threats must mean a bigger defence budget. Our security is at stake. The prisons watchdog has raised the alarm over safety at a womens jail for the first time in years. In a rare finding, HM Inspectorate of Prisons (HMIP) rated the female site at HMP Peterborough as not sufficiently good on safety. Its report said inmates felt intimidated by verbal bullying and anti-social behaviour. Peter Clarke, HM Chief Inspector of Prisons, has published a report on Peterborough womens jail (PA) Safety had been reasonably good at the previous inspection in 2014 but inspectors found a deterioration on the latest visit in September. The inspectorate also said use of force and strip-searching at the jail were too high. Chief Inspector of Prisons Peter Clarke said: While levels of violence at the prison remained relatively low and similar to other womens local prisons, the findings of our survey were far more negative than previously about safety. Overall, this is a more mixed report than when we last inspected this prison. We were particularly concerned about safety and this is the first womens prison in several years to have been assessed as not sufficiently good in this area. Concern over safety in prisons has mainly focused on mens jails following a surge in assaults, self-harm and drug use across the male estate. HMP Peterborough, which is operated by Sodexo, is the only prison in England and Wales that holds both women and men on a single site. HMIP raised concerns that instability on the male side was affecting the establishments ability to focus sufficiently on the relatively more settled female prison. Mr Clarke said: The leadership team at Peterborough were motivated to provide good outcomes for the women but told us they were distracted by some significant challenges in the male prison. A renewed focus on the female prison is now needed to ensure the concerns we have raised at this inspection are addressed. Michael Spurr, chief executive of Her Majestys Prison & Probation Service, said Sodexo has responded swiftly and positively to the inspection report. He added: There is a renewed focus on the specific needs of the women and a dedicated operational manager has been appointed to drive safety improvements. A spokeswoman for the prison said: We are disappointed to receive a lower score for safety. Following the inspection, we have implemented an action plan addressing all recommendations. The plan includes actions which improve our levels of governance around searches and use of force, actions which further explore feedback around perceptions of safety and a robust improvement programme for healthcare provision. The report recognises that early days support for women was good, support for women with complex needs was good and that the prison environment was excellent, the spokeswoman noted. BitFlyer, the worlds largest Bitcoin exchange, has been given the green light for a European launch. The Tokyo-based firm has been awarded a payment institution (PI) licence for the European Union, building on its regulatory approval in the US and Japan. BitFlyer handles about a quarter of the globes Bitcoin exchange volumes, with more than 250 billion US dollars worth of Bitcoin being traded on its platform last year. A Bitcoin ATM, as the operator of the worlds largest Bitcoin exchange looks to launch into Europe (PA) Despite the hysteria surrounding the virtual currency, Bitcoin has endured a choppy ride since the end of 2017. It has fallen from December highs of nearly 20,000 US dollars (14,465) to 10,624.42 US dollars (7,629) on January 22, according to Coindesk data. Yuzo Kano, founder and chief executive of bitFlyer, said: When I set up bitFlyer in 2014, I did so with global ambitions and the belief that approved regulatory status is fundamental to the long-term future of Bitcoin and the virtual currency industry. I am proud that we are now the most compliant virtual currency exchange in the world; this coveted regulatory status gives our customers, our company and the virtual currency industry as a whole a very positive future outlook. BitFlyer is the only exchange licensed in Europe that can give traders access to the globes biggest Bitcoin trading market in Japan. It is estimated that around 10 billion euro (8.7 billion) of Bitcoin is traded worldwide per month, making the euro the third largest Bitcoin market after the Japanese Yen and the US dollar. The exchange received its European PI licence from Luxembourg regulator Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier. Germanys Bundesbank has called for global regulation of Bitcoin, while Frances finance minister wants tougher rules for cryptocurrencies. Meanwhile, US billionaire Warren Buffett has also ruled out a foray into cryptocurrencies, warning that the Bitcoin boom will come to a bad ending. The chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway has joined the chorus of voices criticising the digital currency, which endured a rollercoaster ride at the tail end of 2017. However, JP Morgan chief executive Jamie Dimon said he now regrets calling Bitcoin a fraud. US President Donald Trump has signed a bill reopening the countrys government and ending a 69-hour partial shutdown. Mr Trumps signature drew to a close a near-three day display of partisan dysfunction after Democrats reluctantly voted to temporarily pay for resumed operations. They relented in return for Republican assurances that the Senate will soon take up the plight of young immigrant dreamers and other contentious issues. The shutdown started on Friday night (Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP) The vote set the stage for hundreds of thousands of federal workers to return on Tuesday, cutting short what could have become a messy and costly impasse. The House approved the measure shortly thereafter, and Mr Trump later signed it behind closed doors at the White House. But by relenting, the Democrats prompted a backlash from immigration activists and liberal base supporters who wanted them to fight longer and harder for legislation to protect from deportation the 700,000 or so younger immigrants who were brought to the country as children and now are here illegally. Democrats climbed onboard after two days of negotiations that ended with new assurances from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that the Senate would consider immigration proposals in the coming weeks. After 3 days of a government shutdown, a bipartisan majority has brought the Democratic Leaders extraordinary filibuster to an end. pic.twitter.com/xe2fAdjEaZ Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) January 22, 2018 But there were deep divides in the Democratic caucus over strategy, as red-state lawmakers fighting for their survival broke with progressives looking to satisfy liberals and immigrants demands. Under the agreement, Democrats provided enough votes to pass the stopgap spending measure keeping the government open until February 8. In return, Mr McConnell agreed to resume negotiations over the future of the dreamers, border security, military spending and other budget debates. If those talks do not yield a deal in the next three weeks, the Republican promised to allow the Senate to debate an immigration proposal even if it is one crafted by a bipartisan group and does not have the backing of the leadership and the White House, lawmakers said. Mr McConnell had previously said he would bring a deal to a vote only if President Donald Trump supported it. Sixty votes were needed to end the Democrats filibuster, and the partys senators provided 33 of the 81 the measure got. Eighteen senators, including members of both parties, were opposed. Hours later the Senate passed the final bill by the same 81-18 vote, sending it to the House, which quickly voted its approval and sent the measure on to Mr Trump. White House press secretary Sarah Sanders predicted that operations would return to normal by Tuesday morning. Approximately 1,450 people have been evacuated from a nightclub and a hotel and a major railway station is closed after a gas main ruptured in the Strand, central London. Witnesses described chaos as doormen at the Heaven nightclub ordered them to leave after the alarm was raised at around 2am, while guests at the hotel were moved into emergency accommodation. #CharingCross station is closed & #Strand is shut off due to high levels of natural gas coming off of a ruptured gas main in Craven Street, WC2. Please avoid the area & find alternate travel routes https://t.co/BstLLR9N7Q pic.twitter.com/dAjOBWKpRm London Fire Brigade (@LondonFire) January 23, 2018 London Fire Brigade (LFB) said it was called to the scene at after high levels of natural gas were detected at the scene in Craven Street near Charing Cross station. The Strand, a major route through central London, has been closed entirely and a 150m cordon put in place while National Grid engineers try to isolate the leak. #CharingCross station is currently closed owing to a gas leak in a nearby road. We will reopen the station as soon as we have clearance from emergency services that it is safe to do so. We are sorry for the inconvenience caused. https://t.co/XPLMHD6ze4 Network Rail (@networkrail) January 23, 2018 An LFB spokesman said: We are assisting police on the Strand after a ruptured gas main was discovered using detection equipment and high levels of natural gas were detected in the atmosphere. As a precaution, approximately 1,450 people have been evacuated. They are from a hotel and a night club. The Strand is completely closed and we are asking people to avoid the area. We do not know the cause of the gas leak at this stage. It is ongoing and engineers are down at the scene trying to isolate the leak. There are still high readings of natural gas in the area. We are working to sort it out as quickly as possible. The Strand after a gas leak closed Charing Cross station (Alison Smith) Revellers at the Heaven nightclub described trying to leave as fast as possible Evacuated from heaven because of a gas leak wow. Literally chaos. Crush on the stairs. Security being knocked aside, one wrote on Twitter. Another, Chloe-Mai, said: Lots of people trying to leave at the same time. as soon as the word evacuation was heard from security staff everyone was trying to get out as fast as possible. A Network Rail spokeswoman said: Charing Cross station is currently closed owing to a gas leak in a nearby road. We will reopen the station as soon as we have clearance from emergency services that it is safe to do so. We are sorry for the inconvenience caused. Former Ukip leader Nigel Farage has said a mass meeting of members called to decide the fate of his successor Henry Bolton will now determine whether the party has a future at all. Next months extraordinary general meeting was announced after Mr Bolton refused to accept a vote of no confidence in him by the partys national executive committee following controversy surrounding his ex-girlfriend Jo Marney. Mr Farage said the meeting offers the party a huge opportunity to reform. Nigel Farage (Yui Mok/PA) He told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: This extraordinary general meeting is not actually anymore about Henry Bolton, its about can Ukip survive as a party?. I am not saying that I support Henry Bolton. What I do support is him saying to the NEC Im not going to take your judgment, I will move this on to a full extraordinary general meeting of the Ukip membership. And that gives us a huge opportunity. If there was an EGM tomorrow Henry Bolton would lose it very heavily indeed. But he has a month in which to make his case. If he is able in the space of a month to put together a new constitution, and a new management structure for the party that shows that the leader needs to be able to lead and not be held back by a failed organisation, he might just win the day. The comments came as Mr Bolton also attacked Ukips ruling body and warned the party could not afford another leadership contest. A stream of senior Ukip officials have resigned from their posts in protest at Mr Boltons refusal to step down after it emerged Ms Marney had sent highly offensive messages about Prince Harrys fiancee Meghan Markle. And next is @BBCBreakfast in a minute. At some point I will get that bacon sarnie pic.twitter.com/Ff3kvBlmOb Henry Bolton OBE (@_HenryBolton) January 23, 2018 Mr Bolton said he and Ms Marney could potentially get back together after they split up in the wake of the controversy. He told the BBC: The romantic side of the relationship is on hold. It wont go any further, if indeed that is a problem for the party. Who knows what the future contains? Most probably it will not come back together. Speaking to ITVs Good Morning Britain, Mr Bolton denied that his private life was to blame in the crisis gripping the party. He said: Its the NEC that has failed to address internal disciplinary matters, its failed to unite the party and its full of people who have always backed different people in the party and added to the fractionalisation of the party. Chancellor Philip Hammond has refused to back a call from Boris Johnson for 100 million extra a week for the NHS after Brexit. Mr Johnson is expected to use a Cabinet meeting to press for the funding amid Conservative concerns about the performance of Theresa Mays government. But Mr Hammond pointedly said that Mr Johnson was the Foreign Secretary, not the Health Secretary, and future funding arrangements for the NHS would be set out at the next spending review. The Foreign Secretary made clear last week he thinks the health service should be at the very top of the list when the UK takes back control of money which would have been sent to Brussels as a member. Britain is expected to keep paying into the EU budget until the end of a post-Brexit transition period in around 2021, and Mr Johnson has insisted the Government will save hundreds of millions of pounds afterwards. (PA Graphics) He is set to use Tuesdays Cabinet meeting, when Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt will update ministers on the NHS winter crisis, to demand around 5 billion a year extra for the health service, it is understood. Mr Johnson was rebuked last week after he said the Leave campaign under-estimated when it claimed Brexit would allow an extra 350 million to be spent on the NHS weekly. Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson arrives at 10 Downing Street (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Leading health expert Professor Sir Michael Marmot said the Brexit campaigns highly controversial claim has already been confirmed a lie. Mr Hammond used his autumn Budget to commit 2.8 billion extra to the NHS in England along with 3.5 billion of capital funding. Arriving at a European Union meeting in Brussels, Mr Hammond was asked whether he supported Mr Johnsons call. Mr Johnson is the Foreign Secretary, he said. I gave the Health Secretary an extra 6 billion at the recent Budget and we will look at departmental allocations again at the spending review when that takes place. Arrival and doorstep #UK @PhilipHammondUK at the #ECOFIN Council "I will build on the momentum that we generated in December with the agreement on the completion of phase one discussions" #brexit https://t.co/b6msvErgYO EU Council TV News (@EUCouncilTVNews) January 23, 2018 The Foreign Secretarys move comes as Tories complain about a lack of boldness from Mrs Mays Government amid the electoral threat of Jeremy Corbyns radical Labour. Sir Nicholas Soames is the latest Tory backbencher to voice unease about the style of the Prime Ministers administration, after former minister Nick Boles warned of timidity and lack of ambition. Tory backbencher Sir Nicholas Soames has called on Theresa May to be bolder (Chris McAndrew/UK Parliament) Using one of the extended hashtags which have become his social media trademark, Sir Nicholas asked: Wheres the bold and brave? So far, its dull, dull, dull. It really wont be enough to get people to vote against The Corbini, he warned. They must have really sound reasons to vote Conservative. We really need to get on with this. #wherestheboldandbravesofaritsdulldulldull. It really wont be enough to get people to vote against The Corbini they must have really sound reasons to vote Conservative.We really need to get on with this#wherestheboldandbravesofaritsdulldulldull Nicholas Soames (@NSoames) January 22, 2018 Sir Nicholass comments came just days after Mr Boles warned the PM that it was time to raise your game and claimed her Government constantly disappoints. The Grantham and Stamford MP tweeted at the weekend: There is a timidity and lack of ambition about Mrs Mays Government which means it constantly disappoints. Time to raise your game, Prime Minister. #worboys #HousingCrisis #NHSfunding #etcetc Asked about the concerns expressed by Mr Boles and Sir Nicholas, Mrs Mays official spokesman said on Monday: If you look at action taken by the Government in recent months, you can see it is getting on with the job of building a stronger economy and a fairer society that works for everyone. Australian Open semi-finalist Kyle Edmund will lead Great Britains side for what captain Leon Smith described as the toughest assignment in the Davis Cup. Britain head to Marbella next week for the first-round tie against Spain from February 2-4. There will be no Rafael Nadal but the hosts have seven other players in the top 100 and three in the top 25. Edmunds brilliant form in Melbourne this week is a boon to Britain in the absence of the injured Andy Murray but Smith acknowledges that victory would be little short of a miracle. Kyle Edmund will lead the British team in their Davis Cup clash with Spain (Dita Alangkara/AP) He said: Its the toughest draw. Whoever they pick, its the most difficult team you can get in the draw. We will absolutely give it our best shot but something pretty special would have to happen for us to get through that one. Smith has taken advantage of new rules to name a five-man team, with Edmund joined by Cameron Norrie, Liam Broady and doubles specialists Jamie Murray and Dominic Inglot. Norrie, 22, has made rapid strides since turning professional last May and is on the verge of the top 100 while Broady, 24, is on the rise again after a dip and is ranked 172. But, as well as the obvious ranking gap, neither man has any kind of pedigree on clay. Norrie has only played five senior matches on the surface, all back in 2013, while Broadys last match on clay came in 2016 and his last win in May 2015. Norrie is in pole position to take the second spot but Smith will decide between them after the initial days of practice. The captain knows, though, that if Britain are to cause the most unlikely of upsets then they must rely on Edmund to carry his superb form onto a surface he likes and has had good results on. Smith said: His confidence is going to be in a different place, he is going to feel different about himself. There was a feeling he was going to have a really good year and its started that way. Rafa says hes not playing. Can Kyle beat the other guys? Yes. He would have to play well obviously but I think all of us would think hes got a shot. Victory would see Smiths side qualify for a quarter-final against either Australia or Germany in April, while defeat would mean they face a play-off in September, when Murray could be back, to stay in the World Group. Black-taxi rapist John Worboys has been moved to a London jail ahead of his release. The notorious sex offender was transferred from HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire to HMP Belmarsh, south-east London, at the weekend, it is understood. Both Wakefield and Belmarsh are high-security prisons. The decision to direct the release of John Worboys has sparked controversy (Metropolitan Police/PA) News of the move, first reported by The Sun, follows a furore over the Parole Boards decision to direct Worboyss release after a decade behind bars. The 60-year-old was jailed indefinitely in 2009, with a minimum term of eight years, for drugging and sexually assaulting women passengers. Worboys was convicted of 19 offences against 12 victims but has been linked to more than 100 complaints in total. After the Parole Boards decision was revealed, there were calls for him to be located away from Greater London to reassure terrified victims. A group of MPs called for an exclusion zone to be imposed to ban the former taxi driver from the capital. It is understood Worboyss release is not imminent, while his transfer does not mean he will necessarily be freed into the capital. Last week Justice Secretary David Gauke stressed that Worboys will not be released until his licence conditions have been finalised, and victims signed up to a contact scheme have had their say on the restrictions. When he is released, Worboys is expected to spend several months in a probation hostel. These are staffed 24 hours a day and impose restrictions on residents such as a night-time curfew. There are 101 probation hostels in England and Wales. A potential legal challenge by the Government over Worboyss release was ruled out by Mr Gauke last week, but lawyers for two victims have said they intend to pursue the case in the courts. Worboys was convicted of one count of rape, five sexual assaults, one attempted sexual assault, and 12 of administering a substance with intent. The Ministry of Justice said it does not comment on the location of prisoners. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 23) Rappler CEO Maria Ressa is continuing her campaign against fake news, even amid what she calls harassment from the government. She's ready to be arrested after the Securities and Exchange Commission's (SEC) move revoking the online news agency's articles of incorporation, effectively ordering its closure. The SEC issued a closure order on the news site known for its critical reports for allegedly violating constitutional limits on foreign ownership of local media entities. "I woke up Sunday and I realized I could be arrested any day. I'm a journalist and now it is a crime to be a journalist," Ressa said on the sidelines of an anti-fake news forum held at the Far Eastern University Tuesday. Rappler has been taggged as "fake news" by President Rodrigo Duterte. READ: SEC cancels Rappler's license to do business Thinking ahead, Ressa said once the SEC formally transmits its findings to the Justice Department, which could then forward its recommendations to the National Bureau of Investigation, an arrest may soon be underway. "Anything that authorities do, I appeal that they realize that there are consequences...I'm prepared for anything. Again, it's prudent to be prepared and I appeal to authorities to look at the facts of the case and to realize that intimidation is not going to work with us," Ressa added. Ressa said fake news on social media sites, including Facebook, threatens the country's democracy. "What we can see in the data is it is state-sponsored. Meaning, it's the force. Kasi it's not just one person, eh. Kasi if it's one person, it's easy to deal with. But if it's sytematic and it is meant to mislead you, it is meant to move, to sway the democracy, then that's much more problematic," she said. Ressa called on netizens to help hold Facebook a popular platform for fake news accountable when it is used to spread disinformation. Ressa is referring to Facebook's new policy which will ease out legitimate news articles out of people's feeds. RELATED: Facebook to show more content from friends, less from publishers and brands She said doing so may allow fake news to appear more prominently in users' walls. "Traditional news is essentially going to be eased out of the feed...some of the more propaganda pages because they're personal pages.- that could give them more power. That's one," Ressa said. She added, "We're seeing our democracy eroding in front of our eyes and Facebook is the platform where it's happening." The Far Eastern university hosted Spotted: #FakeNews, a forum where students were taught how to spot and avoid being victimized by fake news. Hollywood actress Pamela Anderson has described Julian Assange as a genius and said a rape allegation against him was a setup. The former Baywatch pin-up, 50, visited the WikiLeaks founder at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London on Monday, where he has been living since 2012 to avoid extradition to Sweden. She spoke of their close relationship in an interview on the BBCs Victoria Derbyshire programme on Tuesday. 'The best way to discredit someone is to call them a rapist,' says @pamfoundation on why she supports Julian Assange. pic.twitter.com/fbX6YQVdBb Victoria Derbyshire (@VictoriaLIVE) January 23, 2018 I would rather be a friend to Julian than anybody, she said. I think hes so full of information, has an incredible perspective and is a genius and is trying to help humanity and I think that the ultimate goal is to stop these senseless wars. She added: We talk about everything, I always make sure hes OK, make sure hes exercising, make sure hes eating well. What he is doing is very, very important and we need to know, we need to have true information. Pamela Anderson has spoken of her close relationship with Julian Assange (Matt Crossick/PA) She said it is impossible for him to leave the embassy after facing a rape allegation, which was dropped last year. Mr Assange, 46, has been living in the London embassy of the south American country for five-and-a-half years after being granted political asylum as he fought sex-related claims in Sweden. Swedish prosecutors have dropped their investigation into allegations against him, but he fears he will be extradited to the United States if he leaves the building and that there is a sealed indictment ordering his arrest. Anderson said the rape claim was a setup against Mr Assange and continued: The best way to discredit somebody is to call them a rapist, or a paedophile, how do you get over that even if its not true? So I think this was a setup, this was not something that was true. It was an idea to discredit him to extradite him to the States. Julian Assange has been living at the Ecuadorian Embassy in London since 2012 (Dominic Lipinski/PA) Speaking about feminism, Anderson told the programme: Its complicated, I mean its great, feminism obviously has come in the last 50 years and has given us so much freedom and so many great things. But I think that in some cases even progressive countries like Sweden a condom breaks and its a form of sexual assault I mean thats just going too far. WikiLeaks has previously been accused by Hillary Clinton of acting as a fully owned subsidiary of Russian intelligence after it published damaging emails, allegedly stolen by Russian operatives, during the 2016 presidential election campaign. I thinkto have true information be a national security threat is bizarre and to be considered radical for exposing truths and just truths in full, Anderson said. US vice president Mike Pence has reiterated to Israeli leaders that the Trump administration plans to pull out of the landmark 2015 Iran nuclear deal unless the pact is amended. The remarks came as Mr Pence wrapped up his visit to Israel. On Monday, he repeatedly referred to Jerusalem as Israels capital, speaking alongside the countrys prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He also used a high-profile speech to the parliament to announce plans to speed up the timing of the opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem, moving it from Tel Aviv, by the end of 2019. On Tuesday, Mr Pence met with Israeli president Reuven Rivlin and vowed the United States would counter the Iranian nuclear threat. US vice president Mike Pence, right, walks alongside Israel President Reuven Rivlin (Ronen Zvulun/AP) The influence of Iran in the region is dangerous. The last thing that we want to see - after driving ISIS out of Iraq & on the cusp of driving ISIS out of Syria - is Iran and the Iranian Revolutionary Guard fill that vacuum. The U.S & our allies are not going to let it happen. pic.twitter.com/p1ATFzsSkf Vice President Mike Pence Archived (@VP45) January 23, 2018 He then headed to the most emotional part of his visit, a tribute to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and a visit to the Western Wall. He was to depart later in the day. Mr Rivlin praised Mr Pences speech to parliament and his role in pushing for the recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital. You are a mensch, Mr Rivlin told a smiling Mr Pence. Mr Pence also repeated the administrations plan to pull out of the Iran nuclear deal, which has been vociferously opposed by Israel, unless the pact is enforced and amended. He noted US efforts to gain support from European allies to address what he described as flawed parts of the agreement, adding President Donald Trump has made clear the US will leave the nuclear deal if that does not happen. We are sending a signal to our European allies that the time has come for changes in the Iran nuclear deal, Mr Pence said, sitting alongside Mr Rivlin. Punitive sanctions will be available for many years to come to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon and you have our commitment to work closely with our allies around the world to achieve that. Mr Pences trip to the Middle East also included stops in Egypt and Jordan. Mr Pences aides said the vice president would be making a personal visit, in the same manner in which Mr Trump prayed at the Western Wall during his visit to Israel last year. But in late 2017, Trump officials said, while the ultimate borders of the holy city must be resolved through negotiations, they could not envision any situation under which the Western Wall would not be part of Israel. Thank you US @VP @Mike_Pence for an inspiring, important speech in the Knesset. Jerusalem eagerly awaits the US Embassy, & I am looking forward to our meeting tomorrow. As you said from the Knesset podium, we are thankful to God that He preserved us & brought us to this moment. pic.twitter.com/czDhXqlqrH Reuven Rivlin (@PresidentRuvi) January 22, 2018 During Mr Pences speech to Knesset on Monday, several Arab politicians shouted and raised signs that said: Jerusalem is the capital of Palestine before they were forcibly removed from the plenum. Palestinian leaders have assailed the Jerusalem move and refused to meet with Mr Pence. Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas snubbed the vice president by overlapping with Mr Pence in Jordan during the weekend but not meeting with him. The Palestinians have pre-emptively rejected any peace proposal floated by the Trump administration amid concerns it would fall far below their hopes for an independent state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza, lands captured by Israel in the 1967 war. Mr Abbas ruling Fatah party called for a general strike on Tuesday to protest against Mr Pences visit and Mr Trumps recognition of Jerusalem. The strike is meant to include shops, public transport, banks and most of the public sector aside from schools and hospitals. The body of a missing Irishman has been found in central Ecuador following a kayaking accident. David Higgins, 26, died after getting into difficulty during a flash flood on the Abanico river, in the south-east of the country. The Kerry native, who lived in Galway, had been kayaking with 19-year-old Alex McGourty, from Sligo, whose body was discovered shortly after the incident, and three other men. A silhouette of a kayaker at sunrise on the river Trent (Neil Squires/PA) Two have been found safe, but one remains missing. US kayaker Jeremiath Stewart was rescued on Saturday, while Ecuadorian Joaquin Meneses was recovered two days later, on Monday. The World Class Kayak Academy in Washington posted a photograph of Mr Meneses on Facebook and said he was safe. The post said: After what has been an unbelievably tragic few days, words cant describe what it feels to see this photo. WCA alum Joaquin Meneses, after missing for two days in the Ecuadorian jungle near the town of Macas, has been found and is safe. The entire community is in our hearts and minds. The fifth member of the group, Englishman Adam Vaughen, is still missing. The team was caught by a flash flood in a very remote part of Ecuador. Mr Higginss body was found at 5pm local time on the banks of the Upano river, about 18.5 miles (30km) south of the Abanico river, the Morona Santiago local government said. Just a few weeks ago Mr Higgins told friends that, while he enjoyed travelling, he missed home. At new year, he wrote on Facebook: Travelling is great, but Snapchat friends and Facebook memories are determined to remind me of the opportunity cost . I miss the MOTHERLAND. Tributes were paid to Mr McGourty on Monday, with friends describing him as an absolute gentleman and an outstanding young man who had the world at his feet. Sligo Kayak Club, where he was a trainee instructor, said he died while fulfilling his dreams, kayaking in Ecuador. In a post on Facebook, the club said it believed the whole team had been caught by a flash flood. It added: It is with profound sadness we announce the passing of club member and trainee instructor Alex McGourty. Alex tragically died while fulfilling his dreams, kayaking in Ecuador. Barry Mottershead wrote: He was a solid guy, raised well, kind and hard working. His energy for life was infectious and its sad to see him gone too soon, but on the up side he spent his life and particularly the last few years living the dream, something we can all aspire to. RIP brother. Martin Duffy said: Very very sad news Alex was a truly outstanding young man a credit to his parents and himself and a huge loss to the paddling community RIP Alex you will be missed. Ursula Gilrane wrote: Such a tragic loss of a young life. What a brave and courageous young man. The Department of Foreign Affairs in Ireland said it was aware of both cases and that consular assistance was being provided. A white supremacist with a deep-seated hatred of black, Jewish, Muslim and especially gay people was planning a murderous attack on a Pride event using a machete and an axe, a court has heard. Ethan Stables, 20, was planning acts of terrorism against groups he hated, prosecutors told Leeds Crown Court. In June last year, he had assembled a machete, knives, an axe, an air rifle and a ball bearing gun when he became enraged about a planned LGBT Pride event at the New Empire pub in his home town of Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, a jury heard on Tuesday. Ethan Stables is on trial at Leeds Crown Court (Anna Gowthorpe/PA) Jonathan Sandiford, prosecuting, said Stables was arrested as he was on his way to what the prosecution believe was a final reconnaissance visit to the pub before returning to his home for the machete, axe and other weapons. Mr Sandiford said the defendant was stopped after he told members of a Facebook group about his plan for a murderous attack on members of the LGBT community and one member was so concerned she called the police and posted a warning on Twitter. Police responded with an armed operation to protect the event in Barrow. Mr Sandiford said Stables was a white supremacist and Nazi a supporter of Adolf Hitler, if you will. He had a deep-seated hatred of black, Jewish, Muslim and especially gay people, the prosecutor said. Between 2016 and his arrest in 2017 he was planning and preparing to commit acts of terrorism directed towards members of these groups but, primarily, directed towards people who were lesbian or gay. Mr Sandiford said Stables spent seven months researching firearms and explosives and had begun to acquire material to build an improvised explosive device. He said: His purpose in these acts of preparation was to launch a murderous attack on members of these communities. In particular, the prosecution suggest, people who were gay. The prosecutor told the jury of seven men and five women how Stables became enraged when he heard about the Pride event planned at the New Empire pub on June 23. He said Stables began to take photographs of the pub with a view to launching an attack later that evening. Stables, of Egerton Court, Barrow, denies one count of preparing terrorist acts and one of making threats to kill. In a statement to the jury, Patrick Upward QC, defending, said his client was not a white supremacist but more a white fantasist. Mr Upward agreed the material outlined by the prosecution was an awful, disgusting, vile series of posts. But he said: He never expected anyone to believe what he had to say. And Mr Upward said his client, who he said has a long history of dealing with Aspergers Syndrome, has a favourite uncle who is openly gay and a best friend who is black. Residents and police have criticised plans for a fish and chip shop to open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Parc Lane Fish and Chips, in Cardiff city centre, currently has a licence to open until 11pm and sell alcohol until that time. It has applied to Cardiff Council to be open to the public 24 hours a day, seven days a week and to serve alcohol until midnight. Stock image of fish and chips (Clive Streeter/MSC/PA) The National Federation of Fish Friers said there are no other 24-hour fish and chips shops in operation that they are aware of. We think it has a great chance of success, president Andrew Crook said. The council has also received an application for the nearby Pulse Nightclub to extend its opening hours. Objections to the plans have been submitted by South Wales Police, hotel chain Jurys Inn and local residents. Chief Inspector Joe Jones, of South Wales Police, wrote that the premises were situated in an area which has high incidents of crime and disorder and incidents associated with alcohol. His letter also highlighted that the premises are situated in an area which have incidents of public nuisance. He wrote that police would object to the plans unless the applicant could demonstrate that there would be no negative cumulative impact. One resident wrote: As a resident of this small area of the city, I do not wish to see an increase in drunkenness, crime and disorder, noise, litter and general disruption. Solicitors for Jurys Inn wrote that the hotel had already received complaints from guests about noise which in some cases has required refunds for customers. The applications will be considered by the council on Tuesday. Marin Cilic will play Kyle Edmund in the semi-finals of the Australian Open after Rafael Nadal retired during the deciding set of their clash with a hip problem. The world number one looked to be on his way to yet another grand slam semi-final when he moved two sets to one in front but he called for the trainer after going a break down in the fourth set. Nadal took a medical time-out but was clearly hampered in his movement and, after limping around the court for two games at the start of the fifth set, he headed to the net to shake hands. Marin Cilic beat an ailing Rafael Nadal to reach the Australian Open semi-finals (Dita Alangkara/AP) Unfortunate scenes here with the world No.1 Rafael #Nadal retiring hurt in the QF @Cilic_Marin progresses through to the SF. #AusOpen pic.twitter.com/IEjPruzvdi #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 23, 2018 The 3-6 6-3 6-7 (5/7) 6-2 2-0 victory gave Cilic a first victory over Nadal since 2009 and sent him through to his first Australian Open semi-final since defeat by Andy Murray in 2010. Cilic said: It was an unbelievable performance from both of us. Its really unfortunate for Rafa. Hes an unbelievable competitor, always gives his best. When youre wounded, sometimes the balls are going in, so I was really paying attention to the first couple of games. It was absolutely important for me to continue with my intensity. Cilic talks through the huge win over Nadal#AusOpen pic.twitter.com/klnBjnQIob Eurosport UK (@Eurosport_UK) January 23, 2018 Cilic and Edmund have played once before, with the Croatian winning in straight sets in Shanghai last October. Hes had an amazing run, said Cilic. A few five setters, tough battles, and then a great match today. Big congratulations to him for making the semi-finals. Kyle is also a big hitter, big serve, big forehand, so I have to take care of my side of the court. Nadal had eased into the fourth round but then had a real battle with diminutive Argentinian Diego Schwartzman lasting nearly four hours. He knew he would have to be more aggressive against Cilic and for a set he was. All looked rosy for Nadal when he broke to lead 3-2 in the second set but there the matched changed. Cilic had allowed himself to be dictated to but the Croatian began to unleash his ferocious groundstrokes and earned his reward, breaking the Nadal serve twice in a row and then serving out the second set. Sad and very unusual image. @RafaelNadal leaving the court without having finished the match. The 10 time RG champion has to retire against @cilic_marin. The Croatian is in the semis/Touche au haut de la cuisse Rafa a abandonne contre Marin #AusOpen Corinne Dubreuil/FFT pic.twitter.com/vl29F1P3SF Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) January 23, 2018 Cilic carried his momentum into the third set and really should have won it but Nadal showed typical powers of resistance before coming through a topsy-turvy tie-break. The Spaniard celebrated exuberantly but his emotions quickly changed and there was no coming back. Former Formula One champion Niki Lauder has secured pole position to buy back the Austrian airline he founded after beating rival bidder and British Airways owner International Consolidated Airlines Group (IAG). IAG said it was disappointed after losing out in the battle to buy Niki founded by Mr Lauder in 2003 from joint administrators in Germany and Austria. IAG was previously picked to acquire insolvent airline Niki for up to 36.5 million euro (32.1 million), but the deal fell through after it was ruled that insolvency proceedings had to switch from Austria to Germany. British Airways owner IAG had previously been chosen by administrators to buy Niki The move threw open the bidding battle, allowing Mr Laudas group Laudamotion to re-enter the fray. The joint administrators of Niki, which was part of failed airline Air Berlin, said Laudamotion emerged as the best bidder in the early hours of the morning. IAG said it was disappointed that Niki will not be able to develop and grow stronger as part of the group. Niki is one of the last assets to be sold out of the failure of Air Berlin earlier this year. Mr Lauder, who had sold Niki to Air Berlin in 2011, reportedly told Austrian broadcaster oe24 that he was delighted to have won the takeover tussle. He said: Theres no doubt that I have always put my heart and soul into Niki. He also told the broadcaster he had secured 15 aircraft and planned to bring Niki back into operation by the end of March, according to Reuters. It is thought all of Nikis 1,000-strong workforce are set to be kept on after the three-times Formula One world champion reportedly improved his earlier offer. IAG previously said it would take on around 740 former Niki employees to run the operation as a subsidiary of low-cost carrier Vueling. Mr Lauda moved into the airline industry in the 1980s as his career in motor racing came to an end. Manchester United are to hold a commemorative service at Old Trafford on the 60th anniversary of the Munich air disaster. The club have announced all supporters will be welcome to attend the service on February 6, with season-ticket holders over the age of 65 being sent invitations. Turnstiles will open at 1.45pm with the event, which will include readings and poems, beginning at 2.45pm. A minutes silence will be held at 3.04pm, marking the time of the fatal plane crash. A service to commemorate the Munich air disaster will be held at Old Trafford (Dave Haworth/PA) Twenty-three people were killed in the disaster, including eight United players and three club officials. The United party were returning from a European Cup match at Red Star Belgrade. United will also hold a minutes silence ahead of the Premier League home game against Huddersfield on February 3. Fans will be invited to pay their respects from 1.30pm on that day under the Munich plaque at the south-east corner of Old Trafford, where their annual event featuring readings and prayers will be held. Paintings from Charles Is art collection, sold and dispersed across Europe following the monarchs execution, have been reunited at the Royal Academy. Described as one of the most extraordinary ever assembled, the works were dismantled by Oliver Cromwell following the kings death in 1649. Now the Royal Academy is displaying what it describes as 140 of the most important works from the Collection, for the first time since the 17th Century. A visitor at The Royal Academy exhibition (Kirsty OConnor/PA) They include over 90 works lent by the Queen, while other paintings have come from the Louvre in Paris, the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid as well as The National Gallery. As well as paintings by Rubens, Holbein and Titian, the exhibition features several of leading court painter Anthony Van Dycks monumental portraits of the king and his family and a spectacular set of tapestries, which were produced in England. Although many works were retrieved by Charles II during the Restoration, others remained dispersed. Items were sold off for as little as six shillings in the Commonwealth sale and labels next to the paintings show who acquired them. The Royal Academys artistic director Tim Marlow said that the exhibition was a dream show for the gallery, displaying art which had a huge impact on taste in Britain. A visitor looks at Charles I In Three Positions by Anthony van Dyck, behind a statue of Charles I by Francois Dieussart (Kirsty OConnor/PA) And curator Per Rumberg said that the exhibition is not really. about Charles Is life. He said that it was remarkable that in very troubled times. Charles I developed this great love of art. He added: He assembled one of the most extraordinary collections of works of art in Europe at the time. Charles I: King And Collector runs from January 27 to April 15 at the Royal Academy Of Arts. Multiple American citizens were killed and injured in the Talibans weekend attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan, US sources said. A State Department official would not give exact figures for either the US fatalities or injuries. The State Department said the United States was sending deepest condolences to the families and friends of those killed and wishing the injured a speedy recovery. The damaged exterior of Kabuls Intercontinental Hotel (Rahmat Gul/AP) The Americans were among 22 people killed in the attack in the Afghan capital. An Afghan interior ministry official has said 14 were foreigners and eight were Afghans. More than 150 people were rescued or escaped. The 13-hour weekend siege started on Saturday when Taliban militants in suicide vests stormed the hotel. It ended on Sunday. Story updated to include list of flight cancellations. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 23) Mayon volcano erupted anew on Tuesday, in addition to spewing two more columns of ash. The volcano spouted a lava fountain measuring around 600 meters at 5:55 p.m. It also emitted a column of ash three kilometers high, the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) said. The eruption lasted around 40 minutes until 6:35 p.m. Earlier, Mayon emitted a giant five-kilometer ash cloud at around 9 a.m., followed by another three-kilometer column of ash past noon. This comes after Mayon emitted another three-kilometer ash plume on Monday. Early Monday night, Mayon was seen spewing a lava fountain estimated to be 500 to 700 meters high. The fountain, which was captured in a time-lapse video from the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS), also produced a four-kilometer ash plume. State volcanologists raised Alert Level 4 over Mayon on Monday with Mt. Mayon's unrest, which meant a hazardous eruption was imminent. READ: PHIVOLCS raises alert level 4 over Mayon Volcano Alert Level 5 means a hazardous eruption is taking place. Extending the danger zone In an interview on CNN Philippines' New Day, Albay Gov. Al Francis Bichara said they are considering extending the radius of the danger zone near Mayon to nine kilometers. "We have to because people are scared already. So they wanted to be evacuated," Bichara said. Bichara added they are expecting an increase of 40,000 to 60,000 evacuees due to the extension. Meanwhile, class suspensions in Albay have been lifted as of 5 p.m. Tuesday, the Albay Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said. However, it added localized suspensions may be issued by local officials if necessary. PHIVOLCS Director Renato Solidum also warned residents not to go near the danger zone, and to prepare for eruptions and ashfall. "What is occurring now in Mayon is an explosive phase or an eruption where a lava fountain would be seen," Solidum said. Solidum said Mayon is undergoing strombolian activity, where frequent and moderate eruptions are expected. Local airline Cebu Pacific has also announced the cancellation of the following Cebu Pacific and Cebgo flights on January 24, Wednesday. 5J 321 Manila-Legazpi 5J 323 Manila-Legazpi 5J 325 Manila-Legazpi 5J 327 Manila-Legazpi 5J 322 Legazpi-Manila 5J 324 Legazpi-Manila 5J 326 Legazpi-Manila 5J 328 Legazpi-Manila DG 6204 Cebu-Legazpi DG 6205 Legazpi-Cebu Speaking to CNN Philippines' News Night, Geologist Maurio Aurelio said there is little chance destructive ashes from the volcano will reach Manila, which is around 400 km away from Mayon. CNN Philippines Correspondent AC Nicholls contributed to this report. James Franco has been snubbed for an Oscar nomination just weeks after he was accused of sexual misconduct by multiple women. The star and director of The Disaster Artist missed out on a best actor nod for his portrayal of The Rooms eccentric filmmaker Tommy Wiseau, despite wins at the Golden Globes and Critics Choice Movie Awards. He was previously nominated at the Oscars in 2011 for 127 Hours and hosted the ceremony with Anne Hathaway in 2011. James Franco (Ian West/PA) While Franco has denied the allegations made by five women in the Los Angeles Times, it is possible they derailed his chances of a nomination, in which Darkest Hour star Gary Oldman is the perceived front runner. Academy members had just eight days to vote for the nominations, ending on January 12, shortly after allegations were published in the Los Angeles Times. The piece was based on interviews with five women, including two who had accused the actor of harassment on Twitter after he won at the Golden Globes on January 7. Oh hi #GoldenGlobes awards. James Franco has picked up the #GoldenGlobe for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture in a comedy or musical. pic.twitter.com/oDhMDtigLU WarnerBrosUK (@WarnerBrosUK) January 8, 2018 Franco won at the Critics Choice Movie Awards but skipped the ceremony after the allegations emerged. He was nominated at the Screen Actors Guild Awards on Sunday but lost out to Oldman. He attended the star-studded bash but dodged the red carpet. Alison Brie, who is married to Francos brother Dave, told E! News: I think that above all, what weve always said is it remains vital that anyone that feels victimised should and does have the right to speak out and come forward. I obviously support my family. Not everything that has been reported is fully accurate, so I think were waiting to get all the information. But of course now is the time for listening and thats what were all trying to do. The Oscars will be hosted by Jimmy Kimmel at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles on March 4. The Justice Secretary would have been failing in his duty had he not asked questions about the decision to reinstate Chief Constable Phil Gormley, MSPs have heard. New Scottish Police Authority (SPA) chair Susan Deacon criticised her predecessor Andrew Flanagan over his handling of the affair saying she had found the process that had been followed to be wanting in many, many ways. Acting chief constable Iain Livingstone also told Holyroods Justice Committee he had effectively been cut out of the decision-making process. Michael Matheson has faced criticism for intervening after the SPA board had agreed to restore Mr Gormley to his role on November 7, resulting in the decision being reversed later that week. Scotlands top police officer is currently on special leave while the subject of four investigations by the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner (Pirc) relating to allegations of gross misconduct, all of which he denies. Justice Secretary Michael Matheson (left) and Police Scotland Chief Constable Phil Gormley attending a community police operation event (David Cheskin/PA) Ms Deacon said she was so concerned about the way the meeting on November 7 and others had been handled that on her very first day she notified SPA board members we simply would not under my watch be handling these matters in the same way in future. She said: Ive looked quite carefully at that particular meeting that has become the matter of considerable public attention and I found it wanting in many, many ways in terms of its process. And I will just add since this is also a matter of some considerable debate that had I been in the cabinet secretarys shoes, and I have walked in these types of shoes in the past, then I would have asked questions about process as to how that decision had been made and personally I think the Cabinet Secretary would be failing in his duty had he not asked those questions. I will also say for the record that if at any stage in my tenure as chair of the SPA the processes that I follow required to be questioned in that way by a Cabinet Secretary then I would regard that I would have failed in my duty as chair. She said she was working to address criticisms of the body as quickly as possible but added, I think it will take many months for the SPA to really be operating in the way both in systems, cultures, practice, governance structures and so on that I think it needs to do. Chair of @ScotPolAuth says that had she been in @MathesonMichael shoes (at time of now infamous decision) she would have asked questions as he did Calum Steele (@CalumA_Steele) January 23, 2018 Meanwhile Mr Livingstone said he had asked for an update from Mr Flanagan after the November 7 meeting and the following day was told that deliberations were ongoing. He said he was then told by Mr Flanagan on November 10 the SPA had taken the decision to extend Mr Gormleys leave. But I wasnt told actually that there had been a decision, a reconsideration and then another decision, he said. He has previously disputed a claim that adequate welfare provisions had been put in place to support the welfare of officers involved in the probes on Mr Gormleys return. He told the committee: There were no welfare or wellbeing steps put in place because I was never told that they were necessary. Mr Livingstone said he could not categorically say that no one else in Police Scotland was aware of Mr Gormleys proposed return but said if they had been it would have been a extremely discourteous breach of protocol that would have left him extremely annoyed and disappointed. He reassured MSPs that despite ongoing issues around governance and accountability there was no crisis in policing and he was confident there was adequate resilience at chief officer level in the force. Black-taxi rapist John Worboys has been moved to a London jail ahead of his release, sparking fresh anger over the case. The notorious sex offender was transferred from HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire to HMP Belmarsh, south-east London, at the weekend, it is understood. Lawyers for victims said the development was extremely distressing for them. John Worboys is understood to have been moved to HMP Belmarsh (Steve Parsons/PA) News of the move, first reported by The Sun, follows a furore over the Parole Boards decision to direct Worboyss release after a decade behind bars. If youre angry about #Worboys case- please follow and support @centreWJ which is doing great work challenging failings by state agencies to prevent violence against women and ensure justice for victims Richard Scorer (@Richard_Scorer) January 9, 2018 The 60-year-old was jailed indefinitely in 2009, with a minimum term of eight years, for drugging and sexually assaulting women passengers. Worboys was convicted of 19 offences against 12 victims, but has been linked to more than 100 complaints in total. After the Parole Boards decision was revealed, there were calls for him to be located away from Greater London to reassure terrified victims. A group of MPs called for an exclusion zone to be imposed to ban the former taxi driver from the capital. Richard Scorer, a lawyer at Slater and Gordon, which represented a number of Worboys victims, said: This is extremely distressing for our clients as yet again they have not been informed about developments in the Worboys case. It is an insult that they have had to find out from the media of every new development in this case and it is crucial that they are kept updated. Tory MP Zac Goldsmith said the proposed release of Worboys has absolutely horrified his victims, who were appalled to learn of his move to Belmarsh. "We call on the Parole Board to exclude Worboys from Greater London. Anything short of this would be a betrayal of his victims." Letter to the Parole Board from London MPs. pic.twitter.com/gza0RYd5qU Zac Goldsmith (@ZacGoldsmith) January 21, 2018 It is understood Worboyss release is not imminent, while his transfer does not mean he will necessarily be freed into the capital. Last week, Justice Secretary David Gauke stressed that Worboys will not be released until his licence conditions have been finalised, and victims signed up to a contact scheme have had their say on the restrictions. When he is released, Worboys is expected to spend several months in a probation hostel. These are staffed 24 hours a day and impose restrictions on residents such as a night-time curfew. There are 101 probation hostels in England and Wales. A potential legal challenge by the Government over Worboyss release was ruled out by Mr Gauke last week, but lawyers for two victims have said they intend to pursue the case in the courts. Worboys was convicted of one count of rape, five sexual assaults, one attempted sexual assault, and 12 of administering a substance with intent. The Ministry of Justice said it does not comment on the location of prisoners. Multiple American citizens were killed and injured in the Talibans 13-hour siege of a hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan, the US State Department said Tuesday. No exact figures were immediately available for either the US fatalities or injuries. In total, 22 people were killed in the attack including 14 foreigners, Afghan officials have said. Eleven of the 14 foreigners had been previously identified as working for the private Afghan airline KamAir. We offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who were killed and wish for the speedy recovery of those wounded, the US State Department said. Out of respect for the families of the deceased, we have no further comment. The American deaths were the latest reminder of the continuing toll paid by the United States in Afghanistan, where local forces have struggled to fight the Taliban since the US and Nato formally ended their combat mission in 2014. A bullet hole near the scene of the attack (Rahmat Gul/AP) President Donald Trump has pursued a plan that involves sending thousands more US troops to Afghanistan and envisions shifting away from a time-based approach to one that more explicitly links U.S. assistance to concrete results from the Afghan government. Mr Trumps UN envoy, Nikki Haley, said after a recent visit to Afghanistan that Mr Trumps policy was working and that peace talks between the government and the Taliban are closer than ever before. The six Taliban militants who stormed Kabuls Intercontinental Hotel on Saturday in suicide vests were looking for foreigners and Afghan officials to kill. Afghan security forces have said the standoff ended on Sunday when they killed the last of the militants. More than 150 people were rescued or escaped during the siege, including 41 foreigners. Some hid in bathtubs or under mattresses as the attackers roamed the hotels hallways killing people. It was unclear how seriously the injured Americans were wounded. In addition to the Americans killed in the attack, six Ukrainians, two Venezuelan pilots for KamAir and a citizen of Kazakhstan and a citizen of Germany were also killed, officials have said. Word of the American deaths came as Afghans interior ministry said an investigation is underway to find out how the attackers got into the building so easily. Najib Danish, spokesman for the interior ministry, said on Tuesday that security forces also defused a vehicle full of explosives near the hotel after the siege ended. Planners have given the green light to a 200 million cross-border electricity connector between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Stormonts Department of Infrastructure has approved the 21-mile northern section of the 400kV overhead electricity line running through parts of Armagh and Tyrone. Approval has already been secured from planning authorities south of the border for the 63-mile section traversing Meath, Cavan and Monaghan. The project has been dogged by controversy since planning permission was first sought eight years ago. Planning permission granted for North South electricity interconnector https://t.co/nWUgRqQH49 Dept Infrastructure (@deptinfra) January 23, 2018 While advocates claim the new link between the electricity grids on both sides of the border is vital for the islands energy market, opponents insist it will have negative environmental and health impacts. Many landowners whose properties lie on the proposed route have been vocal critics. The decision by the Department of Infrastructure was taken by a senior civil servant in the continued absence of an elected minister due to the powersharing crisis in Belfast. Extremely important bit of news for NI Economy and security of supply that NI planning permission has been granted for North South Electricity Interconnector. Still work to be done and further investment in infrastructure needed to remove any threats to supply going forward. Alan Chambers MLA (@alcham49) January 23, 2018 It comes on foot of a recommendation by the Planning Appeals Commission (PAC), which last year held a public inquiry into the application. A departmental spokesman said: In arriving at the final decision, the Department carefully considered and agreed with the independent report and recommendations of the PAC which states there is an urgent and compelling need for the proposed development. The Department considered that it is in the public interest to take this decision, without further delay, given the strategic importance of the project for the region. Planning permission for the longer southern section was approved in 2016. A subsequent legal challenge was dismissed in Dublin High Court. Robin McCormick, general manager of SONI (System Operator for Northern Ireland). (PA/SONI) SONI (System Operator for Northern Ireland) is overseeing the northern half of the project. Robin McCormick, general manager of SONI, said working with landowners and the community remained a priority. The North South Interconnector is undoubtedly the most important infrastructure scheme on the island today and will deliver very real benefits to domestic and commercial consumers, he said. It has received strong support from businesses and employers because of the positive impact it will have on the economy, and from consumer groups as it will help reduce the cost of electricity. While we recognise this project is to the benefit of everyone, we will continue to work to ensure that it is delivered at the least possible impact to the communities and landowners who are hosting it. Retail NI Welcomes Interconnector Planning Approval https://t.co/SffdWk5KRw RetailNI (@retail_ni) January 23, 2018 A number of business representative groups in Northern Ireland, including Retail NI, the CBI and the Institute of Directors, welcomed the planning decision. North Korea could develop weapons within the next two years that may be capable of reaching and striking Britain, MPs have heard. Kim Jong Uns regime in recent months has conducted several increasingly sophisticated nuclear tests as it expanded its missile programme prompting a rise in international tensions. Defence minister Earl Howe told the cross-party Defence Committee that the capability of North Korea has been significantly developed over the past few years. In recent months North Korea has conducted several increasingly sophisticated nuclear tests as it expanded its missile programme (MoD/PA) We judge that they are capable of, certainly now, of reaching targets in the short range by which I mean Japan, South Korea obviously and adjoining territories, he said on Tuesday. Our judgment is it is probably six to 18 months before they will have an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile capability capable of reaching the coast of the United States or indeed ourselves. But he warned that it is important to highlight how it is not deemed to be the case that Mr Kims programme is directed at the UK, adding how the threat to Britain is not significant. Asked whether North Koreas nuclear capability of striking the UK in two years places an additional premium on maintaining Britains nuclear deterrent, Earl Howe agreed it does. I think whenever we debate the issue of the UK deterrent, the North Korean weapons programme is cited as a prime example of why we can never be complacent, he added. Foreign Office minister Mark Field told MPs North Koreas illegal pursuit of nuclear weapons does inevitably pose a serious and growing threat to the international peace and security. He told the committee there is little doubt that the timeline of six to 18 months has drastically reduced over the last year, but stressed that conflict is not inevitable. Mr Field said the UN and international community are continuing to put a huge amount of pressure onto North Korea through all the means that we can. The Tory MP said there is a sense that Mr Kim wants to come out of the shadow of his father and particularly his grandfather. Part of that is to assert himself I am the person who has been able to put us onto the nuclear top table which is obviously where he would hope to be if he is able to get fully fledged nuclear weapons, he added. Mr Field also said the message is loud and clear for any country going forward, that nuclear weapons are the ultimate insurance policy and provide an exemption from being threatened. But Earl Howe stressed: Kim Jong Un knows that any attack by North Korea on South Korea or anywhere else, or use of nuclear weapons in any context, would be met with an overwhelming response. Pressed on whether the UK would support a limited strike by the United States, Mr Field said any direct action would have to be within international law and the UKs support would only be if it had been sanctioned in advance. With many Britons based in the region, both permanently and temporarily, Mr Field confirmed to MPs that an evacuation plan is under constant review. Earlier this month, the American President suggested he has developed a very good relationship with the North Korean leader, despite engaging in a war of sharp words. The pair have traded insults over the last year, as North Korea accelerated weapons tests and appears on the cusp of having a nuclear-tipped missile that could strike the US mainland. President Trump has called Mr Kim Rocket Man on a suicide mission, and the regimes dictator has said the 71-year-old American president is the mentally deranged US dotard. America has publicly blamed the country and said they were directly responsible for the WannaCry cyber attack which hit the NHS and networks around the world last year. But Earl Howe said that the UK was probably not the intended target, which instead was, as he understands it, South Korea. I think that Kim probably didnt care very much who or what was affected, he added when asked if the UK was attacked by accident. The balance of probabilities is that the UK was probably not necessarily a target that was intended in the first instance. Oscars history has been made with the first nomination for a female cinematographer. Rachel Morrisons inclusion in the best cinematography category is the first time a woman has been among the nominees. Rachel Morrison on the set of Mudbound (Steve Dietl/Netflix) She will compete against British cinematographer Roger Deakins, who received his 14th nod for his work on Blade Runner 2049. He has never won the prize. The films director, Dee Rees, missed out on a best director nod but has become the first black woman to direct an Oscar-nominated performance, with Mary J Blige landing a nod for best supporting actress. Dee Rees with Mary J. Blige (Steve Dietl/Netflix) Call Me By Your Name star Timothee Chalamet, 22, is now the youngest best actor nominee since 1939, when Mickey Rooney bagged a nod for Babes In Arms when he was 19. If he wins, he will be the youngest-ever winner in that category, besting Adrien Brody for The Pianist, who was 29. Christopher Plummer, 88, has become the oldest nominee for best supporting actor for his role in All The Money In The World. The previous record holder was Robert Duvall for The Judge in 2014 when he was 84. He is already the oldest winner in the category for Beginners in 2011 when he was 82. James Ivory, 89, who is nominated for best adapted screenplay for Call Me By Your Name, is now the oldest Oscar nominee ever, taking the title from Titanic star Gloria Stuart, who was 87. James Ivory (Yui Mok/PA) Director Agnes Varda collected an honorary Oscar at the age of 89 in 2017. Meryl Streep has broken her own record for the most Academy Award nominations of any actor, having been nominated 21 times since her first nomination in 1979 for her performance in The Deer Hunter. She has picked up another best actress nod for The Post. Greta Gerwig became the fifth woman ever to be nominated for best director, for her film Lady Bird, while Jordan Peele became the fifth black director to be nominated for the prize, for Get Out. Theresa May has warned ministers that Cabinet discussions should remain private as Boris Johnson mounted a fresh push for extra spending for the NHS. The Foreign Secretary let it be known that he intended to use the weekly meeting of the Cabinet to press for an additional 5 billion for the NHS after Britain leaves the EU. But as ministers gathered in No 10, he was pre-empted by the Prime Minister who told the meeting any Brexit dividend would be allocated according to the Governments priorities including schools and housing as well as health. Boris Johnson arrives at Downing Street for the Cabinet meeting |(Stefan Rousseau/PA) In the hour-long discussion that followed, there appeared to be exasperation at Mr Johnsons latest intervention, with ministers backing Mrs Mays view that their talks should stay confidential. But despite frustration at the way Mr Johnsons intentions became public knowledge, it is understood there was some support around the Cabinet for his position. The Foreign Secretarys fellow Vote Leave campaigners Michael Gove and Chris Grayling supported his call for the NHS to benefit from the Brexit dividend, and Health and Social Care Secretary Jeremy Hunt would also welcome extra funding. Downing Street made clear that senior ministers had concerns about the privacy of Cabinet talks. The Prime Minister and a large number of ministers made the point that Cabinet discussions should remain private, the Prime Ministers official spokesman said. The spokesman said that while most members had contributed to the discussion, no minister had mentioned a specific number in relation to NHS funding. Earlier, Mr Johnsons intervention drew a withering rebuke from Chancellor Philip Hammond who made clear the NHS was not his department. Mr Johnson is the Foreign Secretary, he told reporters as he arrived for a meeting of EU finance ministers in Brussels. I gave the Health Secretary an extra 6 billion at the recent Budget and we will look at departmental allocations again at the spending review when that takes place. There was an angry response also from some Tory MPs, with former minister Anna Soubry warning Mrs May he would bring her down unless she sacked him. The row broke out amid signs of growing frustration among some backbenchers at the Governments performance prompting renewed speculation that the Foreign Secretary was on manoeuvres. Last week he again drew attention to his controversial claim during the EU referendum that leaving the bloc would release an additional 350 million a week to spend on the NHS, claiming the figure was actually an underestimate. Ms Soubry, a prominent pro-EU campaigner, said the time had come for the Prime Minister to get rid of him. He had shown longstanding incompetence and disloyalty and unless Mrs May acts now Boris will bring her down, she said. PM shld have sacked #BorisJohnson for longstanding incompetence & disloyalty. Unless TM acts now Boris will bring her down #Godhelpus https://t.co/WXi93tsLP5 Anna Soubry (@Anna_Soubry) January 23, 2018 Mrs Mays former chief of staff Nick Timothy hit out at Mr Johnson. Breaching collective responsibility and leaking Cabinet discussions are bad enough but part of political life, he said. But pre-briefing your disagreement with Government policy ahead of Cabinet? Justice Minister Phillip Lee said now was not the time for such a debate, adding: Im getting on with my own job as should others. Have been asked many times to comment on todays news that a minister might ask for more money for a third ministers dept. Ive got lots to say - but now is not the time to say it. Im getting on with my own job - as should others! #nhs Dr Phillip Lee (@DrPhillipLee) January 23, 2018 Speculation that Mr Johnson was attempting to engineer a row in order to resign or be sacked over a matter of principle were dismissed as utter nonsense by his allies. An unemployed man accused of carrying out a terror attack in Finsbury Park claimed he was a soldier and told pub-goers Im going to kill all Muslims just days before the attack, a court has heard. Darren Osborne, of Glyn Rhosyn in Cardiff, deliberately mowed down worshippers in north London using a van shortly after 12.15am on June 19 last year, prosecutors have alleged. He had received an email warning of the rise of Islam from an account linked to English Defence League founder Tommy Robinson days earlier, the jury at Woolwich Crown Court has been told. The court heard Osborne, 48, spoke loudly about terrorism and Muslims at the Hollybush Pub in Pentwyn, near Cardiff, on the evening of June 17, the day before he allegedly travelled to London. A still from a CCTV showing Darren Osborne at the bar of a pub where he allegedly threatened to kill `all Muslims (Met Police/PA) Soldier Callum Spence said Osborne made comments including Muslims are all terrorists, Im going to kill all Muslims and that he would take it into his own hands. Mr Spence, a Royal Engineer, told the court: He was pretty mumbling, but I heard him saying all our families are going to be Muslim. They are all going to be terrorists. Things like that. The defendant also claimed to be a soldier but did not know the phonetic alphabet used by the military, and was flinging his arms around, Mr Spence added. In a statement read to the jury, Angelo Lamberti, assistant manager of the pub, said Osborne was asked by Mr Spence what regiment he belonged to. He said: I heard the odd male tell the soldier that he was also a soldier. The soldier asked him what regiment he was in, to which he replied, you will find out tomorrow. Osborne, who was asked to leave the Hollybush, is also said to have written a letter to Parliament while at the pub and to have told a member of staff, there is a lot of raping and pillaging out there. The court earlier heard that searches for Britain First leader Paul Golding, his deputy Jayda Fransen, and EDLs Mr Robinson were carried out just hours after the London Bridge terror attack on devices later seized from Osbornes family home. Eight people died in the June knife and van atrocity, which came a few weeks after 22 died when Salman Abedi bombed the Manchester Arena in May. Analysis of the iPad and two iPhones also revealed searches about bringing back capital punishment and about Islamic State supporters said to be celebrating the Manchester attack. A still from CCTV showing Darren Osborne crossing the road opposite Lewisham Islamic in south London (Met Police/PA) Internet history showed that Infowars, described as a conspiracy theorist and fake news website, was also accessed. An email message from Mr Robinsons account was also captured in a screenshot on one device on June 9. It read: What Salman Abedi did is not the beginning and it wont be the end. There is a nation within a nation forming just beneath the surface of the UK. It is a nation built on hatred, on violence and on Islam. Prosecutor Jonathan Rees QC said it was not suggested the message was sent directly from Mr Robinson. Makram Ali died at the scene (Met Police/PA) Just over a week later, Osborne is accused of travelling to London and deliberately ploughing into Makram Ali, 51, and nine other people on a crowded pavement in the Finsbury Park area. Mr Rees told the jury on Monday that the act of extreme violence was considered by the prosecution to be a terrorist attack. His estranged partner Sarah Andrews described him as a total loner who became brainwashed in a matter of weeks after watching a television drama about the Rochdale grooming sex scandal. He had become obsessed with Muslims in the weeks before the attack after watching BBC programme Three Girls, based on testimony from victims of the Rochdale grooming gangs, she said. Osborne denies the the murder of Mr Ali and attempted murder of persons at the junction of Seven Sisters Road and Whadcoat Street, London. Christopher Plummer has been nominated for an Oscar for the role in which he was enlisted at the 11th hour to erase disgraced actor Kevin Spacey from the finished film. The Canadian actor, 88, is in contention for the supporting actor Academy Award for his performance as frugal billionaire J Paul Getty in Sir Ridley Scotts All The Money In The World. Plummer was signed up to replace Spacey in hastily organised re-shoots costing millions less than two months before the films world premiere. Spacey was erased from the film when he became embroiled in Hollywoods sexual harassment scandal (David Cheskin/PA) The South Shields-born director, 80, sacked Oscar-winner Spacey when the actor became embroiled in Hollywoods sexual harassment and abuse scandal. The House Of Cards star was first accused by actor Anthony Rapp, who said that he was 14 when Spacey, then 26, made a sexual advance to him in 1986. Spacey, 58, quickly faced a backlash for coming out as gay in a statement in which he responded to Rapps claim by apologising for any inappropriate drunken behaviour. Many criticised Spacey for conflating his sexuality with alleged abuse, including Gay Times magazine editor Josh Rivers who said the manipulation was a disservice to the gay community. An avalanche of claims followed and the Old Vic theatre, where Spacey was artistic director between 2004 and 2015, found 20 people claimed they had been subjected to inappropriate behaviour from the actor. Scotland Yard is investigating three allegations of sexual assault made against the actor, all said to have taken place against separate men in London between 2005 and 2008. Sir Ridley sacked Spacey (Ian West/PA) Spacey was axed from House Of Cards, which will finish its final season without him in the lead role. Netflix also scrapped the release of Gore, a biopic of the writer Gore Vidal which starred Spacey, who also produced it. Plummers performance as Getty, as he refuses to pay the ransom demands of the kidnappers who snatched his young grandson in 1973, was previously nominated for a Golden Globe and a Bafta. The actor, who won an Oscar for 2010s Beginners, described Sir Ridleys re-shoots as a miraculous feat which he was delighted to have been a part of. A representative for Spacey previously said the actor was taking the time necessary to seek evaluation and treatment. The 90th Academy Awards will be held in Hollywood on March 4. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 23) Solicitor General Jose Calida called on the Court of Appeals (CA) to reverse its decision clearing former Palawan governor Joel Reyes of murder charges against slain broadcast journalist Dr. Gerry Ortega. Calida, through a January 22 motion for reconsideration released Tuesday, asked the appellate court's former Special 11th decision to order Reyes' immediate re-arrest. Reyes was accused of masterminding Ortega's slay in broad daylight in 2011. The journalist had reported on the alleged widespread corruption in the provincial government and misuse of funds in Palawan, which later became part of the Malampaya fund scam. The Solicitor General argued the CA "gravely erred" when it decided on evidentiary matters that should have been and could only be fairly done at a full-blown trial. Calida said the court ruled that Rodolfo Edrad, Jr. a.k.a. "Bumar", who was Reyes' former bodyguard, gave conflicting statements on his former employer's involvement in Ortega's killing. Bumar's statement when he became state witness was nullified by the CA. "This violates the principle that the admissibility of evidence is a matter best resolved at trial and not in the course of determining probable cause," Calida said. Calida added that the CA also imposed its own standard of probable cause which was different from what's required by law and one unwarranted by the circumstances. "This Honorable Court, in finding no probable cause to arrest (Reyes), unfortunately conducted a fragmented analysis of the evidence before it, isolating each piece of evidence and concluding that it alone does not prove probable cause," Calida said. Calida also said Reyes' flight from the country is a strong indication of his guilt that should have been taken into consideration in determining probable cause against him. "It is well-settled that flight is evidence of a guilty conscience, and, at the very least, strongly indicative of a guilty mind," Calida said. Together with his brother Mario, Reyes went into hiding in 2012 but was arrested in Phuket, Thailand in 2015. Mario, also accused of murder, was allowed to post bail when he ran for vice mayor in 2016. CNN Philippines' Correspondent Anjo Alimario contributed to this report. Two former Royal Marines have embarked on a 1,300-mile trek across three countries walking along one of the longest rivers on the African continent. After setting off on Saturday, Glen Steyn and Alex Davidson have begun to make their way through Lesotho, South Africa and Namibia as part of Exped Orange. Following the Orange River from its source in Lesotho, near a small village called Kwazulu Natal, they will walk along its banks for more than 1,367 miles (2200km) to the Atlantic Ocean. Glen Steyn and Alex Davidson will be walking the length of the Orange River Lance Corporal Mr Steyn, who served in the Royal Marines for five years, is leading the trek. The 33-year-old, who is originally from Johannesburg in South Africa, joked that because the Orange River is known for being ferocious, this is why they will be walking next to it and not swimming. Pressed on his reasons for organising the trip, he told the Press Association: Since leaving the corps I havent had anything that has challenged me. I just felt like challenging myself again both mentally and physically, and theres bits of my own country that I havent even seen. The pair are aiming to raise as much as possible through the expedition for the Royal Marines Charity, as well as Veterans for Wildlife, two charities which are important to them. Mr Steyn said they have both discussed the risks involved with Exped Orange, highlighting how one of the biggest dangers posed along the way is from snakes. You get quite a lot of puff adders down that side of the country. They are the largest killer in Africa in terms of snake bites, Mr Steyn added. I am not scared of snakes but I am scared of those snakes, because they dont move out of the way when you walk close to them. Once bitten he said you have around 24 hours to seek medical help, but if you are injected with a lot of venom this can reduce down to just 12. It is a bit of a worry but we are obviously going to stay on terrain as much as possible which doesnt involve them, he added. Other wildlife they may have to contend with along the include leopards, the black cobra, buffalo and baboons. Carrying all their kit with them, they will be undertaking the expedition unsupported and will resupply their stocks of food along the way as required. Afghanistan veteran Mr Steyn said if everything goes smoothly the trip should take around 90 days, and that they are aiming to cover up to 30km (18 miles) a day, and that their Royal Marines training will help with both the physical and mental aspects. Mr Davidson, from Shropshire, who left the Royal Marines last year, said they both knew each other from serving in 42 Commando based in Devon. Leaving the military to become a filmmaker, the 31-year-old said he will be documenting their travels during their self-funded trip over the coming months. He admitted that ignorance is bliss because he does not realise how dangerous some of the wildlife is and will just try not to step on anything. Pressed on whether their military training has prepared them, he said they are both used to having a bit of weight on our back. They will be sleeping outside along the way and carrying up to 100lbs of weight each, with Mr Davidson admitting his family are worried about their adventure. Asked if there is a chance they may fall out given it will be just the two of them, he said it was impossible for Royal Marines to fall out at all or at any point. :: To make a donation visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/expedorange Scott Lawson says he never gave up hope of a Scotland recall after being named in Gregor Townsends NatWest 6 Nations squad. At 36, Lawson could have been forgiven for giving up hope of an international return after almost four years in the wilderness, but he has been offered a fresh chance due to a front row injury crisis. George Turners injury on Saturday provided a fresh blow to Townsend, who now has three hookers unavailable through injury in Ross Ford, Fraser Brown and Turner, but Lawson thinks his performances at club level for Newcastle have merited his inclusion. Scott Lawson has not played for Scotland in four years (Lynne Cameron/PA) The Scotland squad is back out on the indoor pitch at Oriam for our second session of the day #AsOne pic.twitter.com/GRneKafb5H Scottish Rugby (@Scotlandteam) January 22, 2018 When asked if he thought he had been close to selection, he explained: You always look out for it. The competitor in you wants to keep playing and when you pull on the jersey, you do it to play for Scotland. He added: You always keep an eye on things. Playing at Newcastle, playing in the Premiership in a very successful team, youre always working hard and trying to play at as high a level as possible. There have been a couple of key figures injured and you hold out hope and hope the performances youve put in over the past few years have been noted. Thats the most pleasing thing for me, that I have been playing well and been selected. Lawson, along with Neil Cochrane who was called into the squad as a replacement for Turner on Monday, will have a senior role in the squad as two of the more experienced players, but he is not going to settle for a role on the sidelines in the coming weeks. I have been selected because of my performances for Newcastle and have been deemed good enough to play international rugby, so thats why Im here, he said. But its also about helping the group and individuals within the group get better. Everybody can do that in different ways. NEWS | Cochrane called into Scotland's 6 Nations squad https://t.co/wWRwIjqmLx pic.twitter.com/y1rLFfXbSd Edinburgh Rugby (@EdinburghRugby) January 22, 2018 I am looking to call on all the experience Ive gathered throughout the years but we can all learn off each other. Lawson joins a squad that has set their sights high after an impressive autumn, which saw them beat Australia and run New Zealand close and he is excited to join a group of players high on confidence. Results speak for themselves from the autumn, he said. From what Verne (Cotter) did, Gregor has moved the team on with the autumn results. There are some new faces so for me personally I am just delighted to be back and its an exciting time. A partial reunion of The Smiths has been cancelled after the bands former bassist rejected claims he would be taking part. On Monday it was announced Andy Rourke would be joining drummer Mike Joyce and guitarist Craig Gannon as part of a new live concert production called Classically Smiths. Rourke was quoted as saying he was thrilled and excited by the reunion but on Tuesday released a statement claiming he had never agreed to taking part and false statements had been made on his behalf. Andy Rourke (left) and Mike Joyce (right) with former Stones Roses guitarist Aziz Ibrahim (PA) He added: At no time did I give my consent for anyone in connection with this Classically Smiths project to act on my behalf or my name and nothing was ever confirmed, approved or contracted by me or my team. The company behind the event, Bad Production Ltd, said the event had been cancelled following Rourkes comments. In response to recent comments in the press, the planned Classically Smiths events will now, no longer be taking place, they said in a statement. Last week Rourkes bandmate in alternative rock group D.A.R.K and Cranberries frontwoman Dolores ORiordan was found dead in a London hotel room. He said he was deeply saddened that during the week of the death of my dear friend Dolores ORiordan, that false statements are made on my behalf. He added organisers had been advised on multiple occasions that he had not agreed to participate or authorised use of his name, likeness or any personal quotes in connection with the project. Classically Smiths had been billed as a chance to see some of the Manchester bands most memorable songs performed in collaboration with the Manchester Camerata Orchestra. The concerts had been set for the summer across Manchester, London and Edinburgh. In 1989 Joyce and Rourke took Morrissey and Johnny Marr to court over royalties with Rourke settling out of for court for 83,000 while Joyce eventually won a 1 million payout. Neither Morrissey nor Marr had been billed as performing as part of the reunion. Opposition parties have accused the Scottish Government of breaking an election promise and betraying families by approving plans to close the childrens ward at Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley. Health Secretary Shona Robison has agreed NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde can move in-patient and day care services for children to Glasgows Royal Hospital for Children. She told MSPs the decision was one of the hardest she had made during her time in office, but added she believed it was in the best interests of patients. Health Secretary Shona Robison defended her decision to approve the ward closure plans (Jane Barlow/PA) Ms Robison came under fire as she gave a statement on her decision at Holyrood, with her opponents quoting the First Minister who said in 2016 there were no proposals to close the ward. Conservative MSP Miles Briggs said: I believe that today will go down as Nicola Sturgeon and the Health Secretarys Nick Clegg moment in the Parliament. He said Ms Sturgeon had told voters there were no plans to close the ward in May 2016, just before the Holyrood elections, but ministers were now breaking a key election pledge made to families across the west of Scotland. Its more evidence that the SNP simply cant be trusted when it comes to maintaining childrens hospital facilities, he said. This is yet more evidence that the SNP simply cant be trusted when it comes to maintaining childrens hospital facilities. pic.twitter.com/yRjZDoroic Scottish Conservatives (@ScotTories) January 23, 2018 Labours Anas Sarwar said the closure was a result of cuts imposed by this government and a workforce crisis overseen by this government. But not a single MSP on those benches has the backbone to call it out for what it is, he added. This is a betrayal of local people. How can we ever trust a word this government or Cabinet Secretary ever says again. Ms Robison said her decision to approve the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde plan was based on clinical advice. She said the proposals were not approved by the board until October 2016, with the government receiving its submission in March last year. BREAKING: The SNP Government has just confirmed the decision to close the RAH kids ward. This is Sturgeon during the election saying there were no plans to close it. She lied!! What an utter disgrace. Pathetic silence from @GeorgeAdam and @MhairiBlack. #SaveOurNHS pic.twitter.com/SkUvAoxAvc Anas Sarwar (@AnasSarwar) January 19, 2018 Ms Robison: I gave long and hard consideration to this proposal, and it has been one of the most difficult that I have been required to make in my time as Health Secretary. I have carefully considered all of the information available to me, and all of the representations made to me including the boards submissions, advice and evidence provided by officials and expert clinical advice. The board has made a compelling case for these proposals which have attracted overwhelming clinical support. Ms Robison said the board had accepted two conditions, including maintaining and improving community-based paediatric services, and working with families on treatment access plans before the changes take place. With the underpinning conditions that I have put in place, I believe that this decision is in the best interests of children across the Clyde area, she said. In addition to approving plans to close the childrens ward at Royal Alexandra Hospital, Ms Robison rejected proposals to close Lightburn Hospital in Glasgow. Local government employers have made it clear a two-year pay offer is final after union leaders recommended rejection. Unison officials narrowly voted against a proposed deal of a 2% rise for most council and support staff in England, Wales and Northern Ireland from April and a further 2% in April 2019. Lower-paid staff were offered a higher wage rise of up to 16% over the two years. Unison officials narrowly voted against a proposed deal of a 2% rise for most council and support staff (Niall Carson/PA) Unisons head of local government Heather Wakefield said: Unisons national joint council committee has today voted narrowly to reject the local government employers two-year pay offer for council and school support staff. The union will now begin to consult with its members across local government in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to seek their views. That consultation will begin on Monday and end on March 8. Sian Timoney, who chairs the National Employers Side of the National Joint Council for Local Government, said: The employers are extremely disappointed that Unison will be advising its members to reject the pay offer. The employers have been very clear that the pay offer is a final offer. The employers believe that the offer is fair for all staff and includes substantial increases for our lowest paid staff as well as meeting the challenge of the national living wage by introducing a new pay spine in 2019. Unite is recommending rejection of the offer among its members. Germaine Greer has criticised the Me Too movement, claiming women who spread (their) legs for Harvey Weinstein in exchange for film roles should stop whingeing. The noted second wave feminist and author of The Female Eunuch said in the old days, using the Carry On films as an example, women used to outwit leering men. What makes it different is when the man has economic power, as Harvey Weinstein has, she said, as she received an Australian Of The Year award in London. But if you spread your legs because he said be nice to me and Ill give you a job in a movie then Im afraid thats tantamount to consent, and its too late to start whingeing about that. People on Twitter have denounced her as problematic and questioned her feminist credentials. Ah, Germaine Greer, quite the feminist... pic.twitter.com/XYX4JFSr8q Bethany Black twitch.tv/beffernieblack (@BeffernieBlack) January 22, 2018 Germaine Greers feet of clay seem to have finally been uncovered by some of her feminist fans. However, shes been problematic for ages. Her comments about trans women, for example, have been aggressive, wrong-minded and hurtful. Shirley Temple Bar (@shirleybar) January 23, 2018 She said in the interview, reported in the Sydney Morning Herald, that she wanted women to be able to react here and now to inappropriate behaviour. The 78-year-old also dismissed calls to end Woody Allens career given allegations made by his daughter Dylan Farrow that he assaulted her in 1992. Woody Allen has always denied the claims. Greer has expressed controversial opinions in the past (Geoff Caddick/PA) But this is not the first time Greer, who once appeared on Celebrity Big Brother, has disappointed modern feminists. Back in 1997, she objected to a transgender woman remaining a don at a womens only Cambridge college, and has publicly argued against trans womens validity as women ever since. In 2015, after being no-platformed by students at Cardiff University because of her views, she told BBCs Newsnight: Apparently people have decided that because I dont think that post-operative transgender men, ie M to F transgender people, are women, Im not to be allowed to talk. Films about diversity and inclusion have triumphed at the Oscar nominations, where women, people of colour and a host of Brits landed nods. The Shape Of Water, a fantasy love story about a mute woman and a sea monster, directed by Mexican filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro, leads the nominations with 13, while there was also acknowledgement for diverse stories such as race satire and thriller Get Out and Greta Gerwigs directorial debut Lady Bird. Rachel Morrison became the first woman to receive a best cinematography nod for Mudbound, while Gerwig is the fifth woman to receive a best director nomination. The last woman to be nominated was Kathryn Bigelow in 2010 for The Hurt Locker. She is the the only female director to ever win the category. Dont you think maybe theyre the same thing love and attention? Congratulations to Greta, Saoirse, Laurie, and the whole #LadyBird family on a landmark 5 #OscarNoms! #TimeToFly @TheAcademy pic.twitter.com/JT8H1Ru2Vq Lady Bird (@LadyBirdMovie) January 23, 2018 Gerwig will compete against Get Out filmmaker Jordan Peele who is only the fifth African-American to earn a best director nomination in Oscar history. None has won. Mudbound writer and director Dee Rees became the first black woman to receive a nomination for best adapted screenplay. Today, @MaryJBlige becomes a double Oscar Nominee. Help us congratulate her on her Best Supporting Actress and Best Original Song nominations. pic.twitter.com/9hVcIF6MVB Mudbound (@mudboundmovie) January 23, 2018 Just two years after the #Oscarssowhite controversy, a host of non-white faces are included in the acting categories, with best actor nods for Briton Daniel Kaluuya and Denzel Washington and best supporting actress nominations for Octavia Spencer and Mary J Blige. Kaluuya, who is nominated for Get Out, will compete for best actor alongside fellow Britons Gary Oldman and Daniel Day-Lewis for Darkest Hour and Phantom Thread respectively, as well as Call Me By Your Names Timothee Chalamet and Washington for Roman J Israel Esq. The Shape Of Waters Sally Hawkins was nominated for leading actress, as was Irelands Saoirse Ronan for her role in Lady Bird. Hawkins said: This nomination is for every single one of us who brought our hearts to this film. I am here because of the greatness of others. I stand on the shoulders of giants. Guillermo handed me a gift with this role, this film. I am so delighted for us all. To be honoured by the acknowledgement of my colleagues of fellow actors, filmmakers, writers, crew members is truly humbling. It is a privilege to tell such stories and to be able to make films that show there is a life beyond the life that people know one that is not always seen. Lesley Manville was nominated for supporting actress for her role opposite Day-Lewis in Phantom Thread. Lesley Manville was nominated for Phantom Thread (Ian West/PA) Christopher Nolan landed his first best director nod for Dunkirk, which is up for best picture. The war film faces Joe Wrights Darkest Hour and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri by Martin McDonagh, who also got a nod for original screenplay. Oldman was nominated for best actor fresh off his success at the Golden Globes and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards for his portrayal of Winston Churchill in Darkest Hour. Get Outs Kaluuya is a first-time nominee unlike Day-Lewis, who already has three Oscars in his trophy cabinet. Get Outs Kaluuya received his first nomination (Universal/PA) Christopher Plummer was nominated for supporting actor for his role in Sir Ridley Scotts All The Money In The World, in which he was an 11th-hour replacement to scrub disgraced actor Kevin Spacey from the finished film. He is up against Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell, both for Three Billboards, and The Shape Of Waters Richard Jenkins and The Florida Projects Willem Dafoe. Hawkins and Ronan face The Posts Meryl Streep, I, Tonyas Margot Robbie and Three Billboards Frances McDormand, who has already triumphed at the Globes and the SAGs with the role. Manville is up against Mudbounds Blige, Lady Birds Laurie Metcalf, The Shape Of Waters Spencer and Allison Janney in I, Tonya. Blige is also nominated in the best original song category for her track Mighty River. Other Britons to be nominated include Radiohead musician Jonny Greenwood for his original score on Phantom Thread and Roger Deakins for his cinematography on Blade Runner 2049. Gerwig faces Get Outs Jordan Peele, Phantom Threads Paul Thomas Anderson, Nolan and Del Toro. The rest of the best picture nominations went to Call Me By Your Name, Get Out, Lady Bird, Phantom Thread, The Post and The Shape Of Water. Jimmy Kimmel will host the 90th Academy Awards from Hollywoods Dolby Theatre on March 4. Greta Gerwig has described her Oscar nominations as an unbelievable honour as she became only the fifth woman in history to score a best director nod. The Lady Bird filmmaker, the first female director to be nominated in eight years, also picked up a best screenplay nomination for her semi-autobiographical story about a teenage girl growing up in Sacramento and paid tribute to the films stars Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf, who also landed nods. Dont you think maybe theyre the same thing love and attention? Congratulations to Greta, Saoirse, Laurie, and the whole #LadyBird family on a landmark 5 #OscarNoms! #TimeToFly @TheAcademy pic.twitter.com/JT8H1Ru2Vq Lady Bird (@LadyBirdMovie) January 23, 2018 She said: This is an unbelievable honour and I am beside myself with joy and gratitude. Greta Gerwig (PA) The entire team who made Lady Bird poured their heart and soul into it, and I am so deeply grateful to the Academy for their recognition. I couldnt be prouder of my brilliant women who led the cast, Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf, and I am so thrilled that they were nominated for their beautiful performances. I am struggling to find the words to express how much the nomination for best director and best screenplay means to me in a year where there are so many brilliant films by so many of my heroes of cinema all I can say is thank you from the bottom of my heart. Irish actress Ronan, 23, who has received her third Oscar nomination, added: To have been a part of a film like Lady Bird was a true privilege and I am incredibly grateful to the Academy for recognising this wonderful story about the beauty and strength of women. I am especially thrilled to share this moment with Laurie Metcalf and our leader and director Greta Gerwig, who, like Lady Bird, is an incredible woman and a dear friend. Metcalf, who plays Lady Birds mother and is nominated in the best supporting actress category, said: What a morning. Im thrilled to be recognised with the incredible actresses in my category, and am grateful to the Academy for this amazing honor. Congrats to our fearless leader Greta and my Lady Bird Saoirse Ronan for their nominations as well! Ronan is nominated in the same category as Sally Hawkins, who landed a best actress nod for The Shape Of Water. She said: This nomination is for every single one of us who brought our hearts to this film. I am here because of the greatness of others. I stand on the shoulders of giants. Guillermo handed me a gift with this role, this film. I am so delighted for us all. To be honoured by the acknowledgement of my colleagues of fellow actors, filmmakers, writers, crew members is truly humbling. It is a privilege to tell such stories and to be able to make films that show there is a life beyond the life that people know one that is not always seen. To be considered in this category along side these exceptional women is a real honour and gift in itself. Director Jordan Peele said he did an ugly cry after his film Get Out received four Oscar nominations. Peele, who has become the fifth black filmmaker to ever receive a best director nomination, took to Twitter shortly after the nominations were announced to share a gif of the films lead actor Daniel Kaluuya crying. Shortly after, he tweeted: I just spoke to Daniel. You know when youre on the phone trying to disguise the sound of an ugly cry? I failed at that. I just spoke to Daniel. You know when youre on the phone trying to disguise the sound of an ugly cry? I failed at that. Jordan Peele (@JordanPeele) January 23, 2018 He added: Right now Im just thinking about everyone who bought a ticket and told someone else to. You did this. Thank you. Right now Im just thinking about everyone who bought a ticket and told someone else to. You did this. Thank you. Jordan Peele (@JordanPeele) January 23, 2018 Kaluuya was nominated in the actor in a leading role category for his performance in the horror film, which has also received nods for best picture and original screenplay for Peele. Sam Rockwell, who is nominated for best supporting actor for Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri, spoke of his pride in being nominated alongside his co-star Woody Harrelson. Hes said: I am truly humbled and proud to be nominated alongside Willem, Richard, Christopher, and of course Woody. The support for our film has been remarkable and I share this recognition with the entire cast and crew. I have been a working actor for a long time and this really means a lot. Director Edgar Wright shared his delight over his film Baby Driver being nominated in three categories: film editing, sound editing and sound mixing. 'Baby Driver' isn't in a genre that often gets mentioned for awards, so to say that my amazing team and I are thrilled with our three nominations is a huge understatement. Am so happy the hard work by my crew has been recognized. Oh and also... pic.twitter.com/8ToLrb6to0 edgarwright (@edgarwright) January 23, 2018 The British filmmaker tweeted: Baby Driver isnt in a genre that often gets mentioned for awards, so to say that my amazing team and I are thrilled with our three nominations is a huge understatement. Am so happy the hard work by my crew has been recognized. Oh and also Even though I didn't write this with Oscars in mind, I do remember saying in an early pre green light meeting at Sony that 'Baby Driver' was guaranteed a best Sound Editing nomination. True! edgarwright (@edgarwright) January 23, 2018 Even though I didnt write this with Oscars in mind, I do remember saying in an early pre green light meeting at Sony that Baby Driver was guaranteed a best Sound Editing nomination. True! The Government has declined to outline how Northern Irelands voice will be heard in Brexit negotiations if last ditch talks to save Stormont fail. Secretary of State Karen Bradley was pressed on the issue as she appeared before a Westminster committee examining the impact that the UKs exit from the EU will have on the island of Ireland. Mrs Bradley told members of the Lords European Select Committee it was vital devolution was restored to enable an executive to participate in Brexit structures such as the Joint Ministerial Committee alongside the Scottish and Welsh administrations. But she would not be drawn when asked by Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Suttie whether the Government would find a way of letting politicians from the various parties contribute to bodies like the JMC even if devolution does not return. A meeting of the Joint Ministerial Committee meeting in Whitehall, London to discuss plans for leaving the EU (Stefan Rousseau/PA) Mrs Bradley said her sole focus and energy was on making a success of the latest round of powersharing talks which start on Wednesday. It would be wrong for me to start speculating on what might happen as a consequence of other things while my energies are focused on that, she said. The Secretary of State said it was important that executive ministers took their seats on bodies such as the JMC. It is vital for the whole community nationalist and unionist that those voices are heard and they are heard properly in the way that the Scottish government is represented and the Welsh government is represented on those bodies, she said. Getting the Northern Ireland executive up in place needs to be done to make sure Northern Irelands voice is heard and heard loud and clear. Traffic crossing the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland in the village of Bridgend, Co Donegal (Brian Lawless/PA) Earlier, Mrs Bradley said she appreciated the challenges the Irish border presented when it came to striking the final Brexit deal. She highlighted that there were more border crossings in Ireland than there were on the EUs eastern frontier and acknowledged the need for complementary regulations in certain sectors, such as agri-food and energy. There are fields where the border goes through it, she said. If we are talking about agriculture production it simply isnt tenable to have different rules for one side of the field to the other side of the field and we are pragmatic about that. Plans for a statue of Margaret Thatcher in Parliament Square have been rejected over its design and lack of approval from her family. A 1.5-times life-size bronze statue of Margaret Thatcher had been proposed for the site. The square already contains several statues of former prime ministers, including Winston Churchill, David Lloyd George and Sir Robert Peel. We're supportive of the idea of a statue of Baroness Thatcher in Parliament Sq but the committee has turned down the current application due to concerns over its design and lack of family support. We'd welcome future proposals that address these issues. https://t.co/qg4e7gK5sK Westminster Council (@CityWestminster) January 23, 2018 Westminster City Councils planning committee supported the idea for a statue of Baroness Thatcher in principle, but rejected the current proposals. The current plan, showing Baroness Thatcher dressed in her peers robes, was rejected as it was not considered to reflect her role as the UKs first female prime minister. Concern was also expressed for the fact that the statue did not have approval of the Thatcher family. Councillor Richard Beddoe, the chairman of Westminster City Councils planning committee, said: As our countrys first female prime minister Baroness Thatcher is a hugely significant figure in British history and in principle the council is in favour of a statue commemorating her in Parliament Square, but it must be the right statue. I would respectfully suggest a handbag on any future design. Plans for the statue were also modified under guidance of the police to remove any ledges which could be used to climb up. Councillors suggested a statue which reflected Margaret Thatchers role as prime minister might be more appropriate (PA) Other objections to the statue included the councils 10-year rule, where someone has to have been dead for at least 10 years before a statue of them is erected. However, this was rejected as Baroness Thatcher was considered an exceptional case. Another objection, that Parliament Square is a statue saturation zone, was rejected on grounds that it again is an exceptional case. Suffragist leader Millicent Fawcett will be the first woman to be immortalised in the square, while the statues designer, Turner Prize-winning artist Gillian Wearing, will be the first person to produce a statue of a woman subject for it. Statues of other notable women in politics have been suggested for the site, including suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 23) The Philippine National Police (PNP) has released new supplemental operational guidelines for anti-illegal drug operations, including the use of body cameras and other recording devices. "When available, the use of body camera and other gadgets to record all anti-illegal drug operations is encouraged," read the January 19 memorandum signed by PNP chief Dir. Gen. Ronald Dela Rosa. PNP Spokesperson Senior Supt. Dionardo Carlos earlier said wearing body cameras can prevent bloody operations. The Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA) has a similar provision in their guidelines. The new guidelines also require police personnel in drug operations to possess a tickler containing "the unit and individual's functions with daily evaluation and remarks by each PNP personnel." The memorandum states Injured suspects must also be brought to the hospital for immediate medical treatment while those killed should be subjected to onsite inquest proceedings. The PNP was heavily criticized for the alleged abuses during anti-drug operations, which included the killing of teenagers Kian Delos Santos, Carl Arnaiz, and Reynaldo de Guzman. President Rodrigo Duterte had earlier ordered the PDEA to take over the drug war, but eventually allowed the police to once again conduct operations. Official records state that less than 4,000 drug suspects were killed in legitimate police operations: 34 by PDEA agents and 3,933 by the police. Jordan, (Daily Mail), 22 January 2018 -King Abdullah of Jordan has he appealed to US Vice President Mike Pence to rebuild trust and confidence in the possibility of a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Jordans king made the request in the wake of the fallout from the Trump administrations decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israels capital. In response, Pence tried to reassure the monarch that the US was committed to a two-state solution, if both sides agree - the condition a marked contrast to the long-standing US belief that the approach is the only possible outcome of any peace deal. Trumps announcement on Jerusalem last month infuriated the Palestinians, who seek the Israeli-annexed eastern sector of the city as a future capital. They accused the US of siding with Israel and said Washington can no longer serve as a mediator. Jerusalem is the centerpiece of the long-running conflict, and Trumps policy shift set off protests and condemnation across Arab and Muslim countries. THE HINDU, 22nd JANUARY, 2018- Bangladesh said that the repatriation of Muslim Rohingya refugees to Myanmar will not happen on Tuesday as planned because arrangements were incomplete. There are many things remaining, Abul Kalam, Bangladeshs refugee relief and rehabilitation commissioner, told Reuters by phone on Monday. The list of people to be sent back is yet to prepared, their verification and setting up of transit camps is remaining. Under an agreement signed last week, Myanmar is set to receive Rohingya refugees from Bangladesh at two reception centres and a temporary camp near their common border starting on Tuesday and continuing over the next two years. Lakshman Silva CEO DFCC hands over applications to Mr. Hemapriyantha Basnayake and Mr. Nishantha Samarasinghe from the National Eye Bank. DFCC Bank became the first bank in Sri Lanka to partner with the National Eye Bank (NEB) in conducting a successful Eye Donation Campaign, which resulted in 300 donors comprising of DFCC staff and the general public pledging their eyes to the cause of alleviating corneal blindness. The National Eye Bank of Sri Lanka is affiliated to the Asia Cornea Society (ACS), the Association of Eye Banks of Asia (AEBA) and the SightLife USA. NEB plays a major role in eliminating cornea blindness in Sri Lanka. NEB harvests more than 1,500 corneas per year and uses around 93% of them for transplants, providing corneas for Sri Lankans free-of-charge. With collection centers in Colombo, Kandy and Kurunegala, NEB staff is trained by the Singapore National Eye Centre. Commenting on this pioneering initiative, DFCC CEO Lakshman Silva said, We continually encourage all our stakeholders, including customers, employees and service providers to adopt socially responsible practices. We felt that by partnering with NEB on this initiative, DFCC Bank could set the ideal example of undertaking CSR projects that have a tangible impact. Corneal blindness is an urgent problem in Sri Lanka and I am pleased to say that we were able to secure 300 donors through this campaign. There can be no greater legacy than to save a life or eyesight. We are grateful to all the donors for their generous pledge. DFCC Bank PLC is now a fully-fledged Commercial Bank that offers an array of seamless banking solutions. This includes Savings and Deposit products that give customers unmatched value and unique benefits. The Bank has been rapidly growing its footprint across the country with a network of 138 branches and service points. Now connected to the LankaPay Common ATM Switch, all account holders can access over 4000 ATMs island-wide and perform zero cost cash withdrawals and balance inquiries via connected Banks. Unlimited power is apt to corrupt the minds of those who possess it. -William Pitt, the elder Now that the Supreme Court has made a determination on the referral by President Maithripala Sirisena as to whether his term of office is five years or six years, any confusion that may have arisen in his mind must have been removed. The President was eager to reassure the people that it was merely to avoid any confusion regarding the issue that the referral was made. Usually the President is not easily confused, going by his track record; rather an individual with both feet firmly on the ground, practical and obviously shrewd. It is therefore, all the more difficult to fathom what caused the confusion about his term of office in the light of the 19th Amendment, introduced with his aegis by the good governance government. What caused the Confusion? It sounds odd, for a person whose first promise, to the Sri Lankan citizenry, in his historic speech after breaking ranks with the Rajapaksa regime, was that he would not contest for the presidency a second time. Queer indeed, for one who has no desire, or as we sinhalese put it, craving for the seat of the Executive Presidency to allow himself to be troubled by such confusions, culminating in a referral to the Supreme Court. Yet it was Socrates who said that weak minds were preoccupied with individuals and average ones with events while the truly brilliant minds pondered on concepts. So rather than being overtly concerned with the personality, words or actions of the President, let us see what makes those who hold the high office of Executive Presidency say and do things, which are queer, and totally contradictory to what they say before they are perched on that hot seat. The people of this beautiful isle do know by now that the enticement of absolute and unfettered power the seat of Executive Presidency holds for its occupier is simply boundless. To the extent that they would even shamelessly turn back on their promises to the whole nation, i.e. that they would do away with this constitutional leviathan. Chandrika Kumaratunge, Mahinda Rajapaksa and now Maithripala Sirisena have promised in no uncertain terms to do away with this system as their main election promise. Well, what happened with the two former Presidents is common knowledge. What makes these otherwise respected and honoured personalities shamelessly and unethically break the promises? What makes them not only shun the mandate given in this regard but also try and perpetuate their hold on this all-powerful position, as the 18th amendment testifies? The Gyges Ring As Basil Fernando, the renowned human rights activist and lawyer puts it, the Presidency is akin to the mythical Gyges ring which makes the wearer invisible and consequently, invincible; anyone wearing it would grab it for dear life for they know and savour the limitless power it yields. The 1978 Constituiton created a constitutional monster that devoured the entire Constitution in one gulp, making short work of all accepted norms of constitutionalism, separation of powers and checks and balances. Article 32 in its original form made the President simply an entity above the law, militating against Article 12, which states that all are equal before the law, by creating an individual above and unreachable by the law. Many thought that the 19th Amendment has watered down the unbridled and naked power of the one who holds this office; yet the enticement it has for the occupiers remains quite tempting after all, from what can be seen is taking shape in the current political scenario. When Prof. A.J. Wilson called our Executive Presidency, the Gaullist system in Asia, he was obviously referring to the De Gaullean model embraced by France at the expense of a parliamentary system. Prof. Wilson certainly, though not deliberately, downplayed the human factor that would take a queer shape in the Sri Lankan context. In a country without structural tenacity and practical experience in the mode of governance introduced to us by the Europeans, we were sure to go astray with a repository of such massive powers on one individual. In a nation where power has always been conveyed vertically, i.e. from above and no strong examples of civil society standing as a buffer against unbridled power, the system was sure to create a dictatorship. Fatal to democratic norms With the 19th Amendment, some of the sharpest teeth of the executive monster have been removed or blunted, admittedly. Yet it still possesses claws and fangs so potent and fatal to the democratic mode of governance. In any event, that it has a magical and enchanting effect on the person warming the seat is manifest from the sudden confusion that crossed the Presidents mind. Whether it arose from a desire to clear any constitutional crisis that might have ensued at the last minute or it was the same old syndrome that has plagued former office bearers is too early to predict; a clue will be in the modus operandi of the President in the remaining two years in office. As I stated earlier human beings, when saturated with power do funny things with the lure of continued power. They lose their common sense, common touch, self respect, core ethical values that have fashioned their personal and political careers. Yet it was Socrates who said that weak minds were preoccupied with individuals and average ones with events while the truly brilliant minds pondered on concepts The President being relatively an acceptable person as a politician, (I stress the word relative) showed a remarkable degree of incomprehension, at best, in being confused about the tenure of his presidency. As he very recently said, we wish to believe that he does not fall under the 50% of politicians who are there for the plunder at their disposal. We hope his only motive in referring the matter to the Supreme Court was to avoid ambiguity and to ensure that the sovereignty of the people was not undermined. Yet given the history of the lure of the seat that turned people-oriented leaders into despots, intoxicating them with power, apprehensions are only natural. The lure of continued power Many leaders and parties have expressed the dire need to abolish this authoritarian system that has acted as an antidote to good governance; yet once in power, they have tried by whatever means to lengthen their stay on the seat. The current President had as his core policy at the January 2015 election, the abolishing of the executive presidency. We hope he is a person who values his reputation and a person who does not fall under the category of politicians who were intoxicated by the power of his office. All the comments on social media and blogs decrying the referral, imply that it was an immoral and greedy attempt at prolonging the stay in power; yet I hope against hope that it was a genuine effort for avoiding a constitutional crisis. If it was so, the President has nothing to complain and could rest at ease, knowing that he will be letting go of the reins in another two years. In doing so, he will be making history as the first and possibly the only politician not to have fallen prey to the enticement and intoxication of the office of Executive Presidency. Yet, again, it is too early to decide whether he is immune from a syndrome that afflicts all who sit on that coveted seat. REUTERS, 22nd JANUARY, 2018- Catalonias parliament on Monday proposed Carles Puigdemont as its candidate for regional leader, dealing a blow to central government efforts to derail an independence movement that has plunged Spain into crisis. As Puigdemont was named as the sole candidate for a position he was fired from in October, Spains Supreme Court rejected a request from the state prosecutor to reactivate a European arrest warrant to detain him in Copenhagen. Puigdemont, who fled to Brussels in October after Madrid sacked him for spearheading a secessionist drive that culminated in a unilateral declaration of independence, was in Denmark on Monday on his first trip away from Belgium in three months of self-imposed exile. He became the top candidate to lead the region again after elections there last month, called by Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, that gave secessionists a majority. I confirm that the only candidate that has been proposed is Mr. Carles Puigdemont, said Roger Torrent, the Catalan parliaments newly-elected separatist speaker. I am conscious of the warnings that weigh upon him, but I am also conscious of his absolute legitimacy to be candidate, said Torrent, calling for dialogue with Madrid to resolve the situation. Catalonias parliament is due to vote on the regions leadership by Jan 31. Puigdemont argues he could govern from exile abroad, an option that Rajoy has ruled out. A Reuters reporter saw Puigdemont come through customs at Copenhagen airport a little after 0700 GMT and, without being detained, get in a car and leave. The long awaited Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scanner which was purchased by public contribution has arrived in the country, the Kadijah Foundation President and the Fight Cancer Founder Dr. M S H Mohamed said yesterday. It landed in the country on Sunday at 7 PM via Qatar Airways flight QR 8642. The High Tech state of the art machine which costs around Rs. 202 million was a Siemens brand product of Germany with a capacity of performing over 100 scans per month. Dr. Mohamed said it would take nearly a month to install the machine and the patients could receive the service from March. The construction work of the new building in Apeksh Hospital (Cancer hospital) where the PET Scanner would be mounted will be ready by February end. (Thilanka Kanakarathna) The Sri Lankan Government today signed a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Singapore at the Presidential Secretariat. In a statement, the Presidents Media Division said the FTA will boost the trade between the two countries as this would facilitate duty free access to selected goods and services of each other. The signing of the FTA took place following the bilateral discussions between Prime Minister of Singapore Lee Hsien Loong and President Maithripala Sirisena at the Presidential Secretariat. Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama and Trade and Industry Minister of Singapore- S. Iswaran signed the FTA, in the presence f President Sirisena, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. Sri Lanka will sign a free trade agreement with Singapore today, Development Strategies and International Trade Minister Malik Samarawickrama said yesterday. He told Daily Mirror he would be signing the agreement on behalf of Sri Lanka while Singapore Trade and Industry Minister S. Iswaran will sign on behalf of Singapore. He accompanied Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong who arrived in Sri Lanka yesterday. The Singapore media said the FTA would boost trade between the two countries and provide greater access to Singapore firms to the growing market here. It said the FTA was a part of Singapores determination to sign such agreements with the recent developments in the global trade where the entering into multilateral deals such TPPs had taken a back seat because many countries were keen on protectionism. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in one his twitter messages said Sri Lanka had done hard work to finalise the FTA. I led a trade mission to Singapore in 2016 to secure a free trade agreement to boost our economy. We will welcome the Singapore Prime Minister to sign that agreement after much hard work, he said in his message. (Yohan Perera) Another term of Mahinda Rajapaksa and his family would have taken the country towards moral decadence and financial chaos. Indulgence in shortcuts for shortsighted political fame is amateurish and damaging to the coalition that was woven around the UNP and SLFP. They must take a cue from Sajith Premadasa and Navin Dissanayake. Both Navin and Sajith are comparatively young and they too are novices in being Cabinet Ministers. Yet, the bond between the two leaders of the country, Maithripala Sirisena and Ranil Wickremesinghe, is increasingly becoming loose and is on the verge of bursting asunder Sujeewa Senasinghe Infidelity raises profound questions about intimacy. ~Junot Diaz Engaging in vituperative brinksmanship, at best, is amateurish. At worst, it is outright self-destructive and defeats the very purpose of your existence. You have to show them, as Mark Anthony orated about Ambition at the slaying of Julius Caesar, that youre made of sterner stuff. On the other hand, what Ranil Wickremesinghe, the leader of the United National Party (UNP) to which Sujeewa Senasinghe and Marikkar belong, has to contemplate is that the verbal attack aimed today at the President would one day come against him, the Prime Minister. It certainly is no comforting thought for any politician, veteran or novice. A culmination of an explosive process is confronting both the President and Prime Minister. If they are as smart as to defeat the Rajapaksa regime, they sure are smart to avert a crisis at this moment in time. Its also incumbent upon them, Ranil and Maithripala, to show that they too are made of sterner stuff. The main purpose of the combination between Maithripala Sirisena, at the time the Minister of Health in the Rajapaksa-led Government of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA), and the UNP and its leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and other civil organisations, not only to rid the nation of a cancerous political regime, but also to usher in a political system of accountability and transparency. In their rush to entrench themselves in power, Ministers of the new government, it seems, paid scant respect for the purposes for which the new government was elected. S.M. Marikkar This happens to all new Governments. Yet the very ouster of the Rajapaksas from the seat of power was a gigantic step. Another term of Mahinda Rajapaksa and his family would have accelerated the maddening pace at which the Rajapaksas were taking the country towards moral decadence and financial chaos. Equally drastic steps they were taking in order to perpetuate a family bandyism on lines of effecting coronation of a son whose individual achievements were below average at best were apparent to any reasonable man. The 18th Amendment provided for such a radical turn of the democratic rule into a semi-monarchical rule. But all these do not qualify those who ousted that rule to be unruly the way Sujeewa Senasinghe and Marikkar behaved in the last few days. Indulgence in shortcuts for shortsighted political fame is amateurish and damaging to the coalition that was woven around the UNP and SLFP. They must take a cue from Sajith Premadasa and Navin Dissanayake. Both Navin and Sajith are comparatively young and too are novices in being Cabinet Ministers. The exemplary discipline and poise they have been displaying so far speak volumes about their strong character and farsightedness. Especially Navin Dissanayake, the elder son of the late Gamini Dissanayake has shown remarkable ability to present even a very complex issue in understandable language to the ordinary voter. He has also shown a positive image of a strong character and not yielding to pressures of modern day politics. Both allies and adversaries of the UNP-led cabinet would be glad to have a leader who was stable and willing to show the art of instigation towards a perfect union of ideas and action. Both Gamini Dissanayake and Lalith Athulathmudali knew that art and were close disciples of their guru J. R. Jayewardene. That art of instigation towards positive policies of generic liberalism and indispensable conservatism and bring about a harmonious juxtaposition of the two philosophies is extremely difficult. Civility and restraint which are essential characteristics of a reasonable leader in the twenty-first century would be able to achieve such an arduous task. On the one hand, Sajith Premadasa is treading a more conventional path; his attempt at creating an image of a leader of the declasse, the same image that his late father President Premadasa created in the entirety of his life is noteworthy. On the other hand, Navin Dissanayake seems to make a non-doctrinaire approach to modern politics. I will not use this column to back either of these two politicians, Navin and Sajith. Yet, the unreasonably cantankerous tongues of Sujeewa Senasinghe and Marikkar are on display and so is that dangerous breakdown of discipline in some leading spokespersons of the United National Party. A populist-play of politics such as making sensational statements, especially regarding their own Government-leader, and unguarded remarks about their own leader cannot be justified in any context. Living through a cultural-lowering, sustaining an unsustainable system of Government-sponsored programmes and welfare-centred economic structures, a departure from such populist tools of Government has misguided these political amateurs and it shows in abundance. A complete absence of philosophical approach to politics is understandable, as not all politicians have that rare ability to perceive matters of worldly affairs with a sense of aloofness and objectivity and yet be empathetic and sensitive to the nuanced aspects of life. The adverse side of the Sujeewa/Marikkar-verbiage is that close advisers of Maithripala may have told the President that both Sujeewa and Marikkar have done what they had done at the instigation of their Party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. That kind of interpretation could contribute, especially in a dangerously deceptive profession such as politics, to any interpretation on the subject in question an unkind one, against the Party leader of Sujeewa and Marikkar. That is why political podians like Sujeewa and Marikkar should be more careful; they should be able to express their anger and frustration without betraying their inner preferences. The current impasse between President and Prime Minister is causing a tremendous amount of uncertainty among the supporters of the voters. We are on the brink of an election. Whether its a local government or major one, in the context of a coalition government, all partners in the coalition must provide a comforting image to the voters. When that comforting feel is absent among the voters, it could mean either a conversion from one party to another or voter-apathy, which would make him stay at home without going to the polls on the election day. On paper, the UNP should have an easy chance almost in every election district except in the North and East. But elections are not fought on paper. They are battled on gruelling fields of character assassination; they are contested on a hostile terrain of vituperative verbiage; their contestants take no prisoners; its indeed a very intimidating and unfriendly series of mistakes and gaffes, exposures of past political stances taken by the respective contestants. Yet the concept of the party matters and it does matter a lot and in a very decisive way. The voter is waiting to see as to who blinks first; who is advancing and who is retreating. Against such a punishing backdrop, the unity of the political entity, which one contestant represents is of critical value.What Sujeewa Senasinghe and Marikkar have done are immeasurable damage to the UNP and its leader. On another plain, Maithripala Sirisena has an inherent right as President of the country to expect, not unquestioned loyalty but conditional and decent fidelity to the office of Presidency. Sujeewa and Marikkar should have exercised that aspect of decency, propriety and civility. In the context of warfare, political or military, one must never attack his superior unless he is sure of destroying the superior. Because if the superior remains in the arena, though defeated, he still remains the superior and holds sway over the subordinate officer. That is incredible foolhardiness on the part of Sujeewa and Marikkar. They do not learn these nuanced lessons in schools of formal education but the adverse fields of political rivalries. They had better learn these lessons the hard way. Otherwise, they become not even footnotes in the history of Sri Lankan politics; they become trash. Im sure, both Sujeewa and Marikkar dont want to be in that unholy category. Yet, the bond between the two leaders of the country, Maithripala Sirisena and Ranil Wickremesinghe, is increasingly becoming loose and is on the verge of bursting asunder. Such a disintegration of a carefully woven coalition between the two main Sinhala-led political parties would be a tragedy of immeasurable proportions. There is only one way in which this political marriage between Maithripala and Ranil could be salvaged. Both of them must meet without their advisors. Just one to one conversation could save it, provided they sense the need for it. Efforts that were put together to defeat one of the most corrupt and incorrigible regimes headed by the Rajapaksa family should not be allowed to go to waste. The unbelievable lies and half-truths expressed on the Joint Opposition (JO) platforms would not go ignored by the discerning voter. It did not happen in 2015 and wont happen in 2018. Dr DaShanne Stokes, a recognised thought leader and a sociologist of repute wrote thus: When youre dealing with frauds and liars, listen more to what they dont say than what they do. It applies to the Rajapaksas in the most appropriate manner. What the Rajapaksas and their henchmen-parliamentarians thunder from their political platforms can be heard. But what they dont utter, the uncivilised manner in which they treated their opponents, the gross corruption they themselves indulged in cannot be heard because they dont speak about them. That is what the voters need to hear. If they dont hear, they need to fish them out and find them for themselves. The writer can be contacted at vishwamithra1984@gmail.com Another provincial politician has been accused of making a teacher kneel at his feet and apologize, but unlike the first incident, the politician has this time been compelled to resign from one of his portfolios. Earlier it was a member of the North-Western Provincial Council, who had made a teacher kneel for having warned a student on disciplinary grounds. This time it was the Uva Province Chief Minister and former Provincial Education Minister Chamara Sampath Dasanayake, who is alleged to have forced the Badulla Tamil Balika Vidyalaya Principal Bawani Ragunath to apologize to him for not having admitted to the school a child whom he had recommended. It is said that the Principal had refused to admit the child on the grounds that recommendations by politicians should not be entertained. If that was the case, she has to be commended. Neither the chief minister nor the education authorities who had sided with him in this controversy had said that the issue in question was something else. Therefore it is only clear that the first offense committed by the chief minister was to have recommended a child. What right does the chief minister have to direct the Principal to admit a particular student to the school? Admission of students to schools, especially to popular schools has been blatantly riddled with rackets involving millions of rupees. Many school Principals countrywide are known to take parents hostage to plunder money or highhandedly reject the applications for admission. Every year the Central Governments education minister issues directives stating that charging money to admit students is illegal, but these directives are openly ignored by the school authorities. Therefore one can argue that the monitoring of school admissions by the political authority is justifiable. Yet, the chief minister in this case should have complained to the relevant education authorities in case the principal had erred and was unable to handle the matter by himself. It is a well known fact that politicians request principals to admit students to schools and those requests are in many cases well entertained. And education ministers in some provinces even allocate unofficial quotas to provincial councillors for student admission to various schools. In spite of the Badulla School Principal deserving praise for rejecting the chief ministers recommendation, the question remains as to whether this was the first recommendation she had received during her career. If not then what had happened to the earlier recommendations? The chief minister had not denied that he summoned the Principal to his residence in connection with the rejection of his recommendation. That proves the second offence he had committed and led to the third offence that went viral in the media -- making the Principal to apologize to the chief minister. It is not clear whether the CM himself had asked her to kneel down or apologize to him, for that matter. However, it is clear that the implied intimidation by summoning her to his residence might have indirectly pressured her to apologize. When the teacher trade unions went public with the alleged kneeling down and apologizing incident, the CM denied the allegation. The Principal, in the presence of the Provincial Education Secretary who had been already accused of pressuring the principal to deny that the CM compelled her to apologize told the media on Friday that the education authorities in fact pressured her to deny the incident that took place at the CMs residence. Adding insult to injury, the Badulla police on Sunday had taken the Principal to the judicial medical officer, claiming that she had made contradictory statements -- to claim first that she was made to apologize and then to deny it and then again to claim that she denied under coercion. This clearly shows on which side the police are. As public officers they must understand that they too might someday have to kneel down before politicians and apologize for not obeying them. The chief minister, under pressure has stepped down as the Provincial Education Minister until the investigations are over. But he is still the all-powerful chief minister of the province. Whatever the outcome of the investigations over this matter, it has already been proved that the CM had meddled in the schools affairs and intimidated the Principal by summoning her to his official residence. Is the political authority that boasts of good governance prepared to take action against those offences? Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 23) Retired Supreme Court Associate Justice Adolfo Azcuna disputed House Speaker Bebot Alvarez's position on charter change, even as he stopped short of criticizing his former student. "Puwedeng ganung interpretasyon, pero mali at strained. Pilit... Maliwanag na mali dahil hindi maaari House of Representatives lamang ang magpanukala ng susog o panibago," Azcuna told CNN Philippines' The Source on Tuesday. [Translation: You can have that interpretation, but it's wrong and strained. (It's) forced... It's clearly wrong because the House of Representatives cannot be the only (body) that proposes amendments or change.] "Kailangan Kongreso [It has to be congress], and you cannot have a Congress without the Senate," he added. Under Article XVII of the Constitution, any amendment or revision may be proposed by "Congress, upon a vote of three-fourths of all its members; or a constitutional convention." Alvarez argued the House of Representatives can proceed with proposing changes to the Constitution alone, as long as the chamber achieves the required three-fourths vote. Article VI states Congress is composed of the House and Senate. Senators objected to the House proposal for joint voting in a constituent assembly as all 23 of them will be overwhelmed by the more than 290 representatives. Related: No need for Congress to convene as Constituent Assembly - House Speaker Azcuna, who was Alvarez's professor in Ateneo Law School, said he knows where the Speaker will take his argument next. "He's taking one extreme interpretation so the Supreme Court will have an opportunity to rule whether that is correct or not... The Speaker is finding a way by which we can bring this to the Supreme Court so that's all right," said Azcuna. A ruling from the high court could give a formula for future amendments, he added. He also said the final say from the Supreme Court will have to be accepted. Despite difference in their interpretations, Azcuna said he won't call out his former student. "He was a very good student, so I cannot tell him that... I respect his views," he said. Azcuna was among the former justices present at a Senate hearing on charter change last January 19. As a member of the 1986 Constitutional Commission, he was also among the framers of the Constitution. Related: Ideal scenario on Cha-cha is to meet jointly, vote separately - Experts, lawmakers While Azcuna favors a federal form of government, he is for convening a constitutional convention and not a constituent assembly to introduce charter amendments. He also said the shift "should not be hurried." "This is something we have not yet tried. Tingnan natin... bagay ba sa atin?" said Azcuna. "Pag-aralan natin nang husto." [Let's see... does it suit us? We have to study it thoroughly.] President Rodrigo Duterte, who campaigned on a promise to adopt federalism, gave Congress until the end of his term to push for charter change. Azcuna believes this timeline is doable, but suggested laying down a basic framework first. He also suggested testing it on a few autonomous areas, particularly the Bangsamoro and Cordillera regions. "Maybe we can start with a few states that are ready, and bring in the others," he said. Davos, (Compiled from Deutshe Welle), 23 Jan 2018 -Oxfam on Monday detailed how the richest one percent grew its wealth by $762 billion (620 billion) in 2017, which it says was enough to end poverty seven times over. The report was published on Monday, a day ahead of the start of the World Economic Forum in Davos. The Reward Work, Not Wealth report revealed that 2017 saw the biggest increase in the number of billionaires in history, at 2,043, and challenged the narrative that billionaires are created through talent, hard work and innovation, something that is claimed benefits humanity as a whole. Instead, Oxfam said there is growing evidence that the richest often grow much of their wealth by way of inheritance, monopoly or crony connections to government. In its report, Oxfam called for an overhaul of what it described as a warped economy that allows eight billionaires to own as much wealth as half of the worlds population, or 3.6 billion people, combined. The billionaire boom is not a sign of a thriving economy but a symptom of a failing economic system, said Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of Oxfam International. The people who make our clothes, assemble our phones and grow our food are being exploited to ensure a steady supply of cheap goods, and swell the profits of corporations and billionaire investors. Oxfam reported that pay ratios mean the average pay of leading UK company chief executives is 129 times that of the average employee. It was the equivalent of 10,000 people working in Bangladeshi garment factories. Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 23) The long wait is over. After almost two years of withholding the release of the 700,000 license plates, the Supreme Court has finally given the green light for its distribution. In its en banc session Tuesday, the high court lifted the temporary restraining order issued on June 14, 2016. This covers 300,000 license plates for motor vehicles and 400,000 plates for motorcycles. Voting unanimously, the court upheld the constitutionality of the use of the appropriation under Motor Vehicle Registration and Driver's Licensing Regulatory Services in the General Appropriations Act (GAA) of 2014 for the implementation of the Motor Vehicle License Plate Standardization Program (MVPSP) of the Land Transportation Office. "The Court ruled that the 2014 GAA included an appropriation for the program and the use of the appropriation is constitutional," SC Spokesperson Theodore Te said. Former Abakada Party-list Rep. Jonathan Dela Cruz and Paranaque Rep. Gustavo Tambunting asked the Supreme Court to nullify the "application and implementation" of the questionable appropriation for P3.8 billion LTO Motor Vehicle License Plate Standardization Program under the 2014 budget. They wanted to invalidate government's contract with Power Plates Development Concepts, Inc/J. Knieriem B.V. Goes. They argued the petition would prevent the "undue waste of people's money" in implementing the controversial plates modernization program. But the Supreme Court cited the Jacomille vs Abaya case - where it already ruled on the legality of the procurement of the MVPSP. It added "whatever defects attended the procurement had been 'cured' by the appropriation in the 2014 GAA of the full amount." (CNN) The Senate is scheduled to vote Monday on whether to re-open the government following Majority Leader Mitch McConnell's pledge to take up legislation to address an expiring immigration program in hopes of enticing enough Democrats to come on board. The vote was moved from 1 a.m. ET Monday to noon after it became clear Democrats would block the spending bill over disagreements on a variety of issues, most notably what do about young people impacted by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas said he thought Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer agreed to push back the vote to give his caucus "a chance to chew" on a GOP proposal to break the impasse. "It's better to have a successful vote tomorrow at noon than a failed vote tonight," Cornyn told reporters. It's not clear if McConnell's pledge will be enough to win the 60 votes need to pass a continuing resolution, but at least one previous no vote -- Sen. Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican -- said he was now a yes. Republicans only control 51 seats in the chamber and therefore need Democrats to vote to pass it. A top Democratic leadership aide disputed Cornyn's assertion and said unless Republicans make significant changes to their offer, Democrats will likely reject it when the vote comes at noon. The Democratic aide did say, however, that progress was made in the lengthy negotiations that took place late Sunday night. But more talks are needed. RELATED: The lesser-known effects of a government shutdown McConnell said from the Senate floor Sunday night that "should these issues not be resolved by the time the funding bill before us expires on February 8, 2018, assuming that the government remains open, it would be my intention to proceed to legislation that would address (the expiring Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program), border security, and related issues." A meeting earlier Sunday between McConnell and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer did not lead to a spending deal involving when to hold votes on the DACA program and whether to support the three-week funding solution, two sources told CNN. A Senate Democratic source said Sunday that Schumer rejected McConnell's offer because it wasn't a firm commitment to get those measures on the President's desk. At a bipartisan meeting with senators at the office of Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine on Sunday, a sticking point was over the date of when to hold the DACA vote: whether it would occur by the February 8 deadline of when the proposed continuing resolution would expire. The Republicans in the bipartisan group want to wait until after February 8, but Democratic senators want to tie DACA to the next spending bill. Blame game continues McConnell and Schumer each took to the chamber floor on Sunday to trade blame for the shutdown, both accusing the other side of taking hostages. But in contrast to the sharp speeches from the respective party leaders, a few Republican senators sounded somewhat confident that they would receive enough support from Democrats to reopen the government on a short-term basis without a simultaneous deal on immigration. South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham, who voted against the short-term funding plan on Friday, and Cornyn both predicted they could get enough support from Democrats in the vote early Monday to pass a three-week extension. Graham said that the White House was not leading on the situation and that White House staffers were serving the President poorly. Graham specifically slammed White House senior policy adviser Stephen Miller for his influence on the President. "Every time we have a proposal, it's only yanked back by staff members," he told reporters. "And as long as Stephen Miller is in charge of negotiating immigration, we're going nowhere. He's been an outlier for years." White House deputy press secretary Hogan Gidley responded to Graham's comments, calling him the "outlier" in the Senate. "As long as Sen. Graham chooses to support legislation that sides with people in this country illegally and unlawfully instead of our own American citizens, we're going nowhere," he said. "He's been an outlier for years." Also Sunday afternoon, Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois took to the Senate floor to call for a measure in the meantime to assure pay for military personnel and for military families to receive death benefits despite the shutdown. "Let's at least take the simple, commonsense step that we all agree on," Duckworth said. "Let us remove any possibility military pay and even worse, military death benefits will be used and held hostage as political leverage." Dueling speeches During his speech early Sunday afternoon, McConnell said Democratic demands on permanent protections for DACA recipients were not an emergency given that the program is not set to expire until March. He said the expired Children's Health Insurance Program and other government programs were of more immediate concern. "All of these other things are an emergency," McConnell said. "The one non-emergency issue that our friends on the other side are trying to shoehorn into this discussion doesn't reach that status of emergency until March." RELATED: Shutdown drama shows Washington's failure to lead McConnell said he supported the right of the Democratic minority to filibuster "from an institutional point of view," but maintained Schumer's use of it was unproductive and that the Democrats should relent. Schumer, meanwhile, pinned blame for the shutdown on Republicans in general and the President foremost. "Congressional leaders tell me to negotiate with President Trump," Schumer said. "President Trump tells me to figure it out with the congressional leaders." Schumer said he offered Trump a compromise on immigration that included funding his proposed border wall with Mexico, but that ultimately Trump and the Republicans had not moved on his proposal. "Because the President campaigned on the wall, even though he said it would be paid by Mexico, and demands the wall, for the sake of compromise, for the sake of coming together, I offered it," Schumer said. "Despite what some people are saying on TV -- and mind you these are folks not in the room during discussion -- that is exactly what happened. The President picked a number for a wall. I accepted it." The White House in turn denied Schumer's claims about the Friday meeting he had with Trump. "Sen. Schumer's memory is hazy because his account of Friday's meeting is false," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement. "And the President's position is clear: We will not negotiate on the status of unlawful immigrants while Sen. Schumer and the Democrats hold the government for millions of Americans and our troops hostage." She also said Sunday afternoon that Trump had spoken with Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin and Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen about the impact of government shutdown, and that Trump and White House chief of staff had each spoken with members of Republican congressional leadership. White House budget director Mick Mulvaney said in an interview on CNN's "State of the Union" Sunday morning that Schumer had not exactly offered the White House what they wanted on the wall, arguing Democrats had offered "to authorize" the wall, but not to appropriate funds for it. Nuclear option Earlier Sunday, the White House called for Senate Republicans to change the chamber's rules to resolve the funding impasse as the government shutdown continued into its second day. Trump tweeted his call for Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell to invoke the so-called nuclear option and thereby remove leverage for Senate Democrats. "Great to see how hard Republicans are fighting for our Military and Safety at the Border. The Dems just want illegal immigrants to pour into our nation unchecked. If stalemate continues, Republicans should go to 51% (Nuclear Option) and vote on real, long term budget, no C.R.'s!" Trump tweeted. A spokesman for McConnell said in response to the tweet that the Senate Republican Conference does not support changing the 60-vote rule, a reiteration of Republican Senate leadership's already-stated opposition to the move Trump has called for over the past year. RELATED: Why the government shutdown might last longer than you think Senate rules impose a threshold of 60 votes to break a filibuster, and Senate Republicans currently hold a slim majority of 51 votes, meaning even if they can unite their members, they need nine more votes to end debate. The White House is calling for the Senate to change its rules and move the threshold to a simple majority of 51 votes. Eliminating the 60-vote threshold to break a legislative filibuster would remove significant powers for the minority party in the Senate, and party leaders have been reluctant to do so in the past because of the consequences it would pose when their party returns to the minority. During his CNN interview, Mulvaney said eliminating the filibuster would be one avenue they back to ending the shutdown. "There's a bunch of different ways to fix this," Mulvaney said. "We just want it to get fixed." This story was first published on CNN.com, "Senate vote scheduled for Monday to potentially end shutdown." (CNN) A church service begins in Bethlehem's Church of the Nativity. Worshipers descend the stone stairs, worn smooth by millions of pilgrims over the centuries, down into the Grotto -- the spot Christians believe Jesus was born. Incense fills the small stone room, which is noticeably warmed by the multitude of candles. An Armenian Apostolic priest begins to perform sacred rituals as ancient prayers reverberate in harmony. Upstairs in a different room, dozens of Greek Orthodox worshipers receive the holy sacrament. And in the next room over, a Catholic congregation sings hymns of peace. All three denominations share the birthplace of Jesus. After the final prayer, local Christians depart to greet each other as they have for centuries. They are proud to be descendants of the first Christians. The diverse community has stuck it out through war, famine, and disease. The question now, say Christian leaders, is whether their Palestinian community can survive Israel's decades-long occupation. Their fear is that the current exodus of Christians from the region could leave the land without a living church. "Our biggest challenge is to keep them here," says Father Rami Askarian. "You need to build a government, a country, an identity for the people. We pray for that to have peace in this country." Father Askarian fears his flock could be reduced to tourists and pilgrims in a couple of generations. And many church leaders say recent American foreign policy is only making things worse. When US President Donald Trump officially recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in a short speech at the White House last month, the presence of his Vice President Mike Pence, standing just behind his right shoulder, was much remarked upon. Read: Pence announces US embassy to open in Jerusalem 'before end of next year' That's because Pence is an evangelical Christian, a member of a community which has long pushed hard for the United States to make this declaration. But for leaders of the Christian church in the city itself, the announcement was met with dismay. 'Increase hatred' In December, amid reports Trump was planning to change Jerusalem's status, thirteen church leaders from 13 denominations signed an open letter warning of "irreparable harm" to the Holy City if the US implemented the change. "Mr. President, we have been following, with concern, the reports about the possibility of changing how the United States understands and deals with the status of Jerusalem," read the statement they issued. "We are certain that such steps will yield increased hatred, conflict, violence and suffering in Jerusalem and the Holy Land, moving us farther from the goal of unity and deeper toward destructive division. We ask from you Mr. President to help us all walk towards more love and a definitive peace, which cannot be reached without Jerusalem being for all." Before Trump's declaration, Pence was already planning a trip to the Middle East, to take place just before Christmas. Part of his agenda, he said, would be to help embattled local Christians, and focus on relief efforts for persecuted religious minorities. But after Trump made his Jerusalem announcement, local church leaders changed their minds, and canceled their meetings with him. A vote on tax reform in the US Congress moved Pence's office to announce that his trip would be delayed until January. 'Our fear is from America' There is no denying that Christians around the Middle East face the risk of persecution. The terror group, ISIS, has killed many Christians, as well as Muslims, in Iraq, Syria, Egypt, and Libya. In many Middle East countries, Christians are not granted equal rights to Muslims. So, it is arresting to hear one of Jerusalem's highest-ranking Christian figures declare that the most pressing threat facing Christians in the Middle East is not from a terror group, but rather the White House. The former Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, 84-year old Michel Sabbah, says it was the destabilization of the region, resulting from the war in Iraq in 2003, that led to the increase in persecution of Christians from groups like ISIS. "Our fear is not from our people, from Muslims. Our fear is from America," Sabbah tells CNN. "If [Trump] wants to defend Christians in the Middle East, he has to start [by] changing American policy in the Middle East: to [begin] a new vision of politics, built on life and ... not more death or destruction." Driving away Christians from the Holy Land, say local clergy, is the perceived preferential treatment the US shows toward Israel, and the occupation of Palestinian lands, which means restrictions on the lives, movements, and opportunities of Palestinian Christians, as well as Muslims. Israel, which blames Palestinian leaders for the failure of the peace process and says security considerations necessitate its ongoing military presence in the West Bank, says its record on Christianity is exemplary. 'We want to raise our kids' Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made his case recently in a Christmas message, arguing that Israel's Christians enjoy equal opportunities. "I'm proud that Israel is a country [where] not only do Christians survive but they thrive because we believe in this friendship among people and we protect the rights of everyone to worship in the holy shrines [of their various religions]," Netanyahu said in the video message. Read: Palestinian officials slam Trump's threat to cut US aid Morin Butto, a Catholic from Bethlehem, sees things differently, and worries that young people are increasingly looking abroad for a better life. "Sometimes we feel like we can't do [anything]. We just keep hanging onto our land," she says. "We want to raise our kids here, [but] most of our relatives have left the country [because of] this political situation." Sabbah has a piece of advice to the visiting Vice President on how he can help the Holy Land's Christians. "American policy must change in the Middle East," says Sabbah. "If truly the American administration is Christian, go back to the commandment of love. You love Israel. That's very good. But you [should also] love the Palestinians if you're Christian. Jesus said, love everyone." This story was first published on CNN.com, "From pilgrimage to exodus: Is the end nigh for Palestinian Christians?" (CNN) The U.S. will open its embassy in Jerusalem by the end of 2019, U.S. Vice President Mike Pence said Monday in Israel's parliament, confirming that the controversial move is speeding up after officials earlier said it could take three to four years. Pence told Israeli lawmakers that Jerusalem was "the capital of the state of Israel," reiterating President Donald Trump's change of policy last month. At the same time, Trump announced plans to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to the holy city, upending seven decades of U.S. policy. Both Israelis and Palestinians consider Jerusalem as their capital, and Pence's address is likely to further rattle the Muslim world. "In the weeks ahead, our administration will advance its plan to open the United States Embassy in Jerusalem -- and that United States Embassy will open before the end of next year," he said, to rounds of applause. "I am here to convey a simple message from the hearts of the American people -- America stands with Israel." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heaped praise on Pence, thanking him and Trump for their support. "The United States has no greater friend than Israel. And Israel has no greater friend than the United States of America," he said. But not everyone in the Knesset was happy to see Pence. Arab lawmakers staged a protest at the start of his speech and scuffled with security officials before walking out. One of the lawmakers, Ayman Odeh, called Pence on Twitter "a dangerous racist whose whole reason for being here is in order to damage any chance of peace." 'A new era' In comments earlier Monday at the Prime Minister's office, Pence had said that the recognition of Jerusalem as the Israeli capital did not mean the U.S. was abandoning the peace process. "(I am) hopeful that we are at the dawn of a new era, of renewed discussions to achieve a peaceful resolution to the decades-long conflict that has affected this region," he said, later adding that the US was still open to a two-state solution if both Israelis and Palestinians agreed to it. The U.S.' recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has prompted concerns that it could derail any attempts to restart a peace process, and cast further doubt on the likelihood of any two-state solution being reached. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has repeatedly condemned and rejected Trump's decision, saying, among other things, that it would aid extremist organizations to wage holy wars. The United States Congress in 1995 passed a law requiring the US to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. But all US presidents before Trump have resisted acting on the law, signing a waiver in the national interest. Iran nuclear deal a 'disaster' Pence, an evangelical Christian, also used his moment in the Knesset to criticize Iran for being what he called the leading sponsor of terrorism, while also peppering his remarks with passionate biblical references and highlighting Christianity's roots in the region. He lambasted the 2015 Iran nuclear deal brokered by the Obama administration, which has seen the country restrict its nuclear program in exchange for the easing of sanctions. "The Iran nuclear deal is a disaster, and the United States will no longer certify this ill-conceived agreement," Pence said. "Earlier this month, the President waived sanctions on Iran to give the Congress and our European allies time to pass stronger measures. But as President Trump made clear, this is the last time," he said, adding that the US was working on other ways to curb Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program. The U.S. president must sign waivers and certify the deal every few months. Trump signed off on a sanctions waiver earlier this month, essentially keeping the nuclear deal intact, but he has in the past chosen to not certify it, a decision that could lead to new US sanctions on the country. This story was first published on CNN.com, "Pence says U.S. embassy to open in Jerusalem by end of 2019." (CNN) Turkey's military incursion into northern Syria against Kurdish militia opens yet another front in the seven-year Syrian conflict, and risks giving ISIS breathing room just as it was being suffocated. Turkey has long warned that it will not tolerate control of much of its border with Syria by the "terrorist" Kurdish YPG militia even as the U.S. has bolstered its support for the YPG as its proxy in the fight against ISIS. In effect, one NATO member is trying to take down a group which is trained and armed by another and which has done much of the fighting against ISIS while Syrian President Bashar al-Assad fumes on the sidelines. To Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the YPG are indistinguishable from the Kurdish separatist group in Turkey, the Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK. The offensive euphemistically called "Operation Olive Branch" began with dozens of airstrikes Saturday. On Sunday, Turkish troops crossed into Syria, supported by rebel factions. The commander of one rebel group supporting the Turkish offensive said 13,000 fighters were involved. Turkey's operation targets the Kurdish enclave of Afrin, adjacent to the province of Idlib. Turkish forces are deployed in Idlib to police one of the four '"deconfliction zones" designed by Russia to reduce the fighting in Syria. But the Turkish military has opted to use its presence in Idlib to open a new front against the Kurds. The Turkish military said airstrikes had destroyed 45 targets, including barracks and weapon depots. The YPG says airstrikes have targeted at least 100 locations. But it also claims that resistance has blunted the early stages of the ground offensive. Turkey's Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdag says the Turkish border town of Reyhanli was hit by a YPG missile fired from inside Syria, killing one and injuring more than 30. The Turkish border city of Kilis was also hit by rockets fired from Syria on Sunday, according to Turkey's state-run news agency, Anadolu. In statement released Sunday, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), denied it was to blame for the attack on Reyhanli. "Allegations that we have launched attacks across the border are false and a pretext for Turkey to bring its military forces and its extremist opposition groups onto Syrian soil," the statement said. Advance warning Turkey notified both the US and Russia of its intentions. Turkish Chief of the General Staff Hulusi Akar was in Moscow last week to ensure there would be no unintended consequences; Russia has powerful anti-air radar in northern Syria. Some analysts believe Turkey has struck a bargain with the Russians help "deconfliction" in Idlib in return for a free hand in Afrin. Russia withdrew its modest military presence in the area ahead of the Turkish operation. For its part, the YPG says it has been betrayed by the Russians, with whom it has previously cooperated. "We also hold Russia responsible for these attacks, and we hold Russia responsible for any massacre of civilians," it said in a statement Sunday. Now everything depends on how extensive the Turkish operation is. If the goal is a limited buffer zone along the border, conflict may be contained. But if Turkey wants to seize the city of Afrin and then launches a second front to seize the town of Manbij further east, another war within the war in Syria will erupt. Mattis: 'We'll work this out' The U.S. is calling for restraint by all sides but has not (unlike Iran) demanded an end to Turkish military operations. The State Department said Sunday that the U.S. was concerned about "the plight of innocent civilians" and called on Turkey to "ensure that its military operations remain limited in scope." U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, speaking on his way to Asia, said: "We are working now on the way ahead. We'll work this out." Mattis added that "Turkey has legitimate security concerns" in northern Syria. The current evidence suggests Turkey's aims are far from limited. Erdogan has demanded the surrender of Manbij, where U.S. forces are present. The Turkish President insisted Saturday: "Beginning from the west, step by step, we will annihilate the terror corridor up to the Iraqi border." The U.S. has justified its support for the SDF, an umbrella group in which the YPG is the largest player, as a critical part of the strategy to prevent ISIS re-emerging. The dispute has driven relations between Washington and Ankara almost to breaking point. For Ankara, the last straw was a U.S. plan announced earlier this month to train 30,000 SDF troops to patrol the Turkish and Iraqi borders. Erdogan tweeted: "The US has now acknowledged that it has established a terror army along our borders." Provoking a wider war? The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War noted at the weekend that "Turkey's operations threaten to provoke a widening Turkish-Kurdish war that could unravel the US stabilization effort in eastern Syria and force the US to reconsider support for the YPG." For Erdogan, sending in the troops plays well to his nationalist base in Turkey and has won the support of opposition parties. The leader of the right-wing Nationalist Movement, Devlet Bahceli, declared Sunday that "the operational partner of the United States should be rooted out," and that the offensive would counter "the [Western] attempt to reshape the Middle East." The leader of the main opposition Republican People's Party, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, chimed in, saying: "We want the imperialist powers to leave the Middle East." Turkey is one of the "triad" of governments with Russia and Iran that have assumed the task of bringing peace, or at least the end of conflict, to Syria. But the Afrin operation could upend that goal, and allow jihadist groups in Idlib, as well as ISIS, the opportunity to regroup. ISIS fighters made a sudden reappearance in south Idlib last week, killing and capturing a number of regime soldiers. It later published photographs of the execution of three men it said were regime soldiers. After a gradual reduction in violence in Syria last year, and the elimination of ISIS' hold on Raqqa and Deir Ezzour, the new fighting in the north of Syria could quickly ignite a broader conflict, dragging in multiple factions. According to the United Nations, more than 200,000 civilians have fled the regime's offensive in southern Idlib since mid-December, joining more than a million displaced Syrians penned into an ever shrinking patch of rebel-held territory where the former al Qaeda affiliate Hayat Tahrir al Sham holds sway. Any thought those desperate civilians may have had of seeking refuge in Kurdish-held Afrin, already crowded with an estimated 600,000 people, is fast evaporating. This story was first published on cnn.com, "Turkish attack in northern Syria threatens to ignite broader conflict." Posted Saturday, January 20, 2018 7:00 am Lucy Walkup died Monday, Jan. 15, 2018, at the age of 101 in Flagstaff, Arizona. Lucy was born the daughter of John Frances Meloy and Margaret (Temple) Meloy on Nov. 25, 1916, in Benton, Wisconsin. She earned her BA in Secondary Education from Rosary College in River Forest, Illinois. She was subsequently hired by J. Lawrence Walkup, teacher, principal and superintendent, to teach in Sheridan, Missouri. On June 2, 1943, Lucy and J. Lawrence Walkup married. The Walkups moved to Flagstaff, Arizona, in 1948, when Lawrence Walkup accepted the position of assistant professor of education and psychology at Arizona State College. Formerly a music and elementary school teacher, Lucy was a substitute teacher at the ASC Training School and later taught sophomore English at Flagstaff High School while Dr. Walkup served as professor, dean of education and ultimately president of ASC, leading the college to university status as Northern Arizona University in 1966. Lucy earned her MA in Secondary Education from ASC in 1958. When Lawrence Walkup became ASC President in 1957, Lucy became immersed in campus life as campus first lady, serving in this role for 22 years, 1957-1979. The couple had a policy of openness toward students, and the President's Home was site for social functions where students learned to mix comfortably with faculty as well as fellow students. This concern for students as persons and open-door policy toward them helped ASC/NAU avoid some of the campus turbulence of the 60s. The Walkups worked for better facilities and more opportunities for students with direct campus involvement, and growth of the institution resulted. When Dr. Walkup retired in 1979, the couple continued to involve themselves in the community, even while enjoying more leisure and travel. After Lawrence's death in 2002, Lucy continued as an NAU and community volunteer. She donated her time to the American Cancer Society, the Symphony Guild, the NAU Faculty Wives Club and as a volunteer at DeMiguel Elementary School, where she helped second- and third- grade students with their reading skills until retiring from her 9 years of involvement in that activity at age 98. In her lifetime she also was a member of Nativity Church, , PEO, Homemakers Club, , , Assistance Guild of Flagstaff, the chapter of , and , an education honorary. Lucy received a number of honors over the years including Woman of the Year at NAU in 1961 and Platt Cline Award for Humanitarian Service in 2016 from Arizona Daily Sun Citizens of the Year. Lawrence and Lucy Walkup were important extended family for many of their nieces and nephews. Mrs. Walkup is survived by daughter, Susan Walkup, and niece Kathi (Brewer) Hlavac of Flagstaff, sister Loretta Brewer of California, and other nieces, nephews, grandnieces and nephews from the Meloy lineage; and from the Walkup lineage, Starr Walkup of Wheeling, Missouri; Dawn Houk and husband, Bill, of Deepwater, Missouri, and their children and grandchildren; Melody Houk and husband, Jerry, of Meadville, Missouri, and their children and grandchildren; and John Walkup and wife, Crystal, of Ronan, Montana, and their children. Flagstaff Arizona Services will be Saturday, Jan. 20, at Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Chapel: Rosary at 10 a.m., Funeral Mass at 11 a.m. Missouri services will be held at 11 a.m Wednesday, Jan. 24, at Lindley Funeral Home, Chillicothe, with visitation at 10:30 a.m. Burial will be in the Wheeling Cemetery, Wheeling. Memorial contributions may be made to Wheeling Cemetery and may be left at or mailed to Lindley Funeral Home, P.O. Box 47, Chillicothe, MO 64601. Online condolences may be made at www.lindleyfuneralhomes.com. Arrangements are under the direction of Lindley Funeral Home. (Paid Obituary) Posted Monday, January 22, 2018 10:30 am Walter Damon Red Mills of Knob Noster, departed this life on Jan. 20, 2018, at the age of 89, just two days prior to his 90th birthday. He was born in Drexel, on Jan 22, 1928, to Benjamin Maxwell and Olive (Dawson) Mills, the second of seven children. He attended schools in the Drexel area and graduated high school in 1946 in Adrian. To his family and childhood friends, he was known as Damon. He enlisted in the Army in 1946 and was trained as a paratrooper in the 11th Airborne Division. He spent much of his Army enlistment in Japan after WWII. When given the chance to enlist into the newly organized U.S. Air Force, he took the opportunity. Thus began a career that took him abroad and stateside, including two assignments at Whiteman AFB as well as North Carolina, Nebraska and Texas . He retired in 1969 to Knob Noster after working in aircraft maintenance, including as a crew chief, on multiple airframes. Red then went on to join the United States Postal Service as a letter carrier in Knob Noster and Whiteman AFB, where he served his community another 20 years. He married Norma Lee Netz on March 4, 1951, in Adrian, and they were together 65 years until her passing on April 17, 2016. He was a devoted member of the First Christian Church of Knob Noster, serving in many capacities. He was also an active Lions Club member, serving as the club secretary for many years. Red was twice named a Melvin Jones Fellow for humanitarian service. This is the highest form of recognition conferred on an individual by Lions Club International. He was extremely involved in the multiyear project restoring a WWII WACO glider on Whiteman AFB, recalling his own glider experiences and enjoying the comradery of the dedicated team of volunteers. He was known throughout the community, from the concession stand at the ball diamonds to the Commanders Office on base. Red is survived by his children and their spouses, Michael and Carolyn (Leubbering) Mills of Columbia, Kay and Michael Stauffer of Knob Noster, Mark and Olga (Reveles) Mills of Dallas, Ga., and Melody and Ronald Stephan of Lenexa, Kan. He also leaves seven grandchildren, Micah and Caroline Stauffer, Jesse and Lisa Stauffer-Baum, Andrew and Carley Stauffer, Elizabeth and Gregory Stephan and Kendall and Kasey Mills; four great grandchildren, Aliana, Annaliese, Aria Belle and Ariana. He also leaves his sisters, Maxine Rush of Archie, Beverly (Sam) Fuller of Butler and Barbara (Bill) Berrier of Carlsbad, Calif., his sisters-in-law, Shirley Netz Kirby of Murrels Inlet, S.C. and Patty Mills Empson of Independence; and numerous nieces and nephews. Damon was preceded in death by his parents; his wife; an infant sister, Lillis Ann; and two brothers, Robert and Dale Mills. Countless friends, neighbors and acquaintances will recall his many acts of kindness often done with no regard for recognition. His service to this world was the gift of hard work and dedication to the task. Visitation will be from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 23, at Sweeney-Phillips & Holdren Funeral Home in Warrensburg. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 24, at First Christian Church in Knob Noster, with Pastor Mel Johnson officiating. Burial will follow at the Knob Noster Cemetery with military honors. Memorial contributions are suggested to Missouri Veterans Home or First Christian Church of Knob Noster and can be left in care of the funeral home. (Paid Obituary) USDA Creates Better Learning System with Conferencing The Vermont State Colleges System has been awarded a $388,988 grant by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). This grant will help strengthen the current remote learning system, as Anne Hazlett, Assistant to the Secretary for Rural Development announced. The USDA is awarding grants related to broadband projects aiming to further job training and educational/healthcare services in rural areas for 35 states. Distance Learning technology has the potential to close the geographic divide faced by rural America and bring resources to communities that are not readily available, said Acting State Director for Vermont and New Hampshire Jon-Michael Muise. I applaud the leadership at the Vermont State College System and Northern Vermont University for pursuing an innovative solution to extend educational resources to rural communities across the state and the country. With the grant, the Vermont State Colleges System is able to create a remote learning program, connecting with Northern Vermont University as well as 28 high schools within the state. Fixed and mobile video conferencing will be utilized to allow more course access, including dual-credit courses. Professors, educators, and public service people can enhance skills via tele-education. The USDA is giving 72 grants, estimated to be worth $23.6 million through the Distance Learning and Telemedicine (DLT) Grant Program. The money will drive broadband, linking rural communities to higher education and telemedicine. Opioid abuse treatment and mental health counseling were the two areas of focus for 2017, needing top-priority attention. Distance learning is being implemented at many colleges and universities to allow those who cannot attend actual classes the same education. The University of Florida has approximately 200 online programs including bachelors, Masters and PhD programs. Why should a students location dictate the level of education they have access to? Distance learning is the wave of the future so get your books, laptop, and put your thinking cap on. Edited by Maurice Nagle Davos: Prime Minister Narendra Modi told top CEOs that India means business and presents an exciting opportunity for global businesses. Addressing a roundtable before a dinner meet on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) gathering on Monday, Modi narrated India's growth story. He was accompanied by top government officials including Secretary (Economic Relations) at the External Affairs Ministry, Vijay Gokhale, Foreign Secretary Jai Shankar and Secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) Ramesh Abhishek. Under the tagline of 'India Means Business', the roundtable was attended by 40 CEOs of global companies and 20 from India. After the meeting, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted about Modi narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global businesses in India. The spokesperson also tweeted that the prime minister "hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies". The Prime Minister's Office in a tweet said, "In Davos, PM @narendramodi interacted with top CEOs. He spoke about India's economic development and the investment opportunities in the nation". Modi also met Swiss President Alain Berset here on Monday and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties. Berset said the discussions marked the meeting of the biggest and the oldest democracies in the world. Thanking Modi, the Swiss president said he would continue to strengthen "relations" with India. Modi, who arrived in Davos on Monday evening, will deliver the opening keynote address today at the world economic forum annual meeting. Besides, he will also interact with the members of international business community of the WEF. Modi is the first Indian prime minister to attend Davos summit in 20 years. Four years ago, when Sudhir Mishra started filming his take on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyays novel Devdas, he called it Aur Devdas. He cast Rahul Bhatt, Aditi Rao Hydari and Richa Chadha in it. But then the film ran into multiple issues, including financial ones. But with that aspect solved, not only have Mishra and his producers completed the movie and put it up for release, they have also changed its name to Daasdev. Im happy that the film is releasing. All the actors are with me. Everyone has worked hard, including me, Mishra asserts, explaining that he calls his film an Ulatpher Devdas. If youre coming to watch Devdas, dont come at all. Its virtually the opposite. The protagonist moves from a Das to a Dev, and thats the journey, he smiles. Mishra has scheduled the release of Daasdev in the second week of March. The film must get a good chance, he says. March 2 is a good day. Well release then. The movie will clash with John Abrahams Parmanu The Story of Pokhran, which is currently scheduled for the same date too. Sanskriti Media Page Content On 23 January the members of the Commission for Economic Policy (ECON) of the European Committee of the Regions (CoR) presented their local and regional viewpoints on the EU strategy for industry, the EU Defence Fund, and the EU Trade Package. Strengthening Europe's competitiveness in a globalised world is the focus of the three opinions discussed and adopted by CoR members during the ECON commission meeting in Brussels. Cities and regions have important powers and competences in policy areas that are of key importance for industry and trade, such as research and innovation, education and skills, export support, infrastructure, SMEs and regulation. Having cities and regions on board will be vital for Europe's success. A European strategy for industry The aim of an industrial policy strategy at European level is to respond to current and future challenges, opportunities and factors relevant to the competitiveness of European industry. The draft opinion drawn up by Heinz Lehmann (DE/EPP), member of Saxony regional parliament, emphasises innovation, key enabling technologies, important projects of common European interest, digitalisation, SMEs and leadership in a low-carbon and circular economy. Given the centrality of regions and regional ecosystems to industrial modernisation, the rapporteur calls for the EU's strategy to have a strong regional dimension. He further highlights the importance of a well-functioning single market in goods and services to better integration of local and regional companies in global value chains, making it an essential success factor for European industry. His argument is that a deeper and fair European single market would promote the productivity and cost competitiveness of manufacturing industries. Proposal for a European Defence Fund In his draft opinion , Dainis Turlais (LV/ALDE), member of Riga City Council, supports the initiative to set up a European Defence Fund (EDF), as well as the creation of the resulting European Defence Industrial Development Programme to enhance the competitiveness and innovativeness of Europe's defence industry . He points out that not only could SMEs and start-ups make a considerable contribution to technological progress in the defence sector, but their inclusion in European supply chains could also enhance the security and defence of the EU, industrial competitiveness and Europe's strategic autonomy. Trade Package A common framework for screening of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) is the main point of discussion in the draft opinion on EU trade policy drawn up by Micaela Fanelli (IT/PES), mayor of Riccia in the province of Campobasso. The rapporteur welcomes the principle of EU-wide FDI screening, but calls for clearer criteria and more legal certainty when such screening is necessary at EU level. She also stresses that the planned multilateral investment court (MIC) should not be able to bypass domestic legal systems or local government decisions defending the rights of private investors. Contact: Carmen Schmidle Tel. +32 (0)2 282 2366 carmen.schmidle@cor.europa.eu Photo Gallery: https://www.flickr.com/photos/cor-photos/albums/72157662933081027 SC also dismissed applications filed by Shree Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena and Akhil Bharatiya Kshatriya Mahasabha against the release of the movie. (Photo: File) New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to modify its earlier order which had cleared the decks for the nationwide release of 'Padmaavat', saying people must understand that orders of the top court have to be "abided with". A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra made this statement while rejecting pleas filed by Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh seeking modification in its January 18 order. The Supreme Court had paved the way for the nationwide release of 'Padmaavat' on January 25 by staying the ban on the screening in states of Gujarat and Rajasthan. "People must understand that the Supreme Court has passed an order. They must abide by it. It is the obligation of the states to maintain law and order," the bench also comprising Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud said. "We are not inclined to modify our order," the bench said while dismissing the plea. It asked the states to follow its order and gave them the liberty to approach it again "if the situation arises". The bench also dismissed the applications filed by Shree Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena, which has been staging protest in several states against the release of the movie, and Akhil Bharatiya Kshatriya Mahasabha, seeking to stall the exhibition of the Sanjay Leela Bhansali movie. The apex court had earlier restrained other states from issuing any ban orders on the Deepika Padukone-starrer film. Maintaining that states were under constitutional obligation to maintain law and order, the top court said this duty also included providing police protection to persons involved in the film, its exhibition and the audience. The film, starring Deepika Padukone, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh in lead roles, is based on the saga of a historic 13th century battle between Maharaja Ratan Singh and his army of Mewar and Sultan Alauddin Khilji of Delhi. Mumbai: Imagine Shah Rukh Khan in Switzerland. Easy, right? Now imagine him doing his signature pose around the snow-clad mountains. Now thats the real deal! SRK was at the Davos, where he received the Crystal Award. But the superstar couldnt keep himself from doing his signature pose and its the best thing youll see today! Heres Shah Rukhs post: Switzerland main aake yeh na kiya toh kya kiya...?! Loving being at the Davos, now to get ready for the Crystal Award Ceremony. #DavosDiaries pic.twitter.com/c95SwSR0v2 Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk) January 22, 2018 SRK also took a selfie post receiving the award, and this selfie will remind of his son Aryan Khans signature poker face. See the post here: During his acceptance speech, Shah Rukh thanked the women in his life especially sister Shehnaz Lalarukh Khan, wife Gauri Khan and daughter Suhana Khan for helping him see the world in a different way. Shah Rukh said, Actors are renowned narcissists. No matter how much we pretend to not to believe in external beauty, we tend to be obsessed by it, one way or another. Perhaps being surrounded by this obsession of beauty, a few years ago I came across a lady who had been brutalized by an acid attack and it kind of changed my life, or the perspective of it at least. To disfigure a woman by throwing acid on her face, to me, is one of the crudest acts of subjugation imaginable. Shah Rukh also spoke about his interactions with the victims of acid attack and said that he had learnt how courage can catalyse victimhood into heroism, how solidarity rather than charity enables the human will to overcome, how equality is not a concept, but a truth that encompasses all living beings and how the service of others is not a choice anymore for any of us. It is a duty that all of us must fulfill, from them. He also mentioned his youngest son AbRam in the speech and gave an analogy about the need to reverse power. He also added, I want to thank my sister, my wife and my little daughter for bringing me up well and teaching me the value of requesting, sometimes imploring and begging a yes from a woman, instead of forcing it upon her. SRK received the award for "his leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India," the World Economic Forum (WEF) said. This has obviously made his wife Gauri Khan proud of him, who took to Instagram to share a picture of him. Here it is: Anasuya Bharadwaj is all game to make her career graph more interesting. After enthralling audiences on the TV screen, shes set to spring a surprise in her forthcoming film Rangasthalam too. Apparently, the television anchor will be seen playing the role of Rangammatta in the rustic drama. Director Sukumar felt that Anasuya looks authentic, and her role will be synonymous with making village life look exciting. Her outfits, facial expressions, gestures, dialogues, everything is very well-coordinated. And she has played the role of the small-town girl with great conviction, informs a source. Well, isnt it always interesting to take up an offbeat role? It was a cosy wedding attended by close family and friends for actress Bhavana on Monday morning as she tied the knot with Kannada producer Naveen. A reception and lunch for an extended guest list, comprising several stars from South Indian film industries followed the ceremony in Thrissur. On Sunday, a teaser video of Bhavanas mehendi ceremony was widely circulated online, leading to great buzz around the impending wedding. Dressed in a golden sari and traditional temple jewellery with her hair tied in a bun, Bhavana was not a sight to miss. Standing by her side, Naveen sported a dhoti. Soon after the ceremony, which was not open to the media, the duo addressed the press and informed them about the big moment as well as the reception. The couple had got engaged at a private ceremony at the actress house in Thrissur in March last year. Marijuana is one of the most widely used recreational drugs among individuals of reproductive age. (Photo: Pixabay) Findings of a recent study suggest marijuana use does not lower a couple's chances of getting pregnant. It was led by Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) researchers. The study was the first to evaluate the link between fecund ability--the average per-cycle probability of conception--and marijuana use. Marijuana is one of the most widely used recreational drugs among individuals of reproductive age. Previous studies have examined the effects of marijuana use on reproductive hormones and semen quality, with conflicting results. "Given the increasing number of states legalizing recreational marijuana across the nation, we thought it was an opportune time to investigate the association between marijuana use and fertility," says lead author Lauren Wise. In Pregnancy Study Online (PRESTO), a web-based prospective cohort study of North American couples, the researchers surveyed 4,194 women aged 21 to 45 living in the United States or Canada. The study specifically targeted women in stable relationships who were not using contraception or fertility treatment. Female participants were given the option to invite their male partners to participate; 1,125 of their male partners enrolled. The researchers found that during the period from 2013 through 2017, approximately 12 percent of female participants and 14 percent of male participants reported marijuana use in the two months before completing the baseline survey. After 12 cycles of follow-up, conception probabilities were similar among couples that used marijuana and those that did not. The researchers stressed that questions about the effects of marijuana use remain. As one example, they said, classifying people correctly according to the amount of marijuana used, especially when relying on self-reported data, is challenging. "Future studies with day-specific data on marijuana use might better be able to distinguish acute from chronic effects of marijuana use, and evaluate whether effects depend on other factors," they wrote. The findings have been published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health (JECH). The crocodile "has lived here since 2005," a neighbour told local television. "He was little at the time." (Photo: Pixabay) Russian police searching a suspect's home for a weapons stash in the northwestern city of Saint Petersburg were surprised to encounter a large crocodile living in the basement, city police said Friday. Officers were inspecting a property owned by a man suspected in a case of illegal arms possession and trafficking in Petergof, a suburb of Saint Petersburg famous for its tsarist palace. "In the basement of the house, the officers uncovered a crocodile," the police statement said. "No incidents involving the reptile occurred during the search" police said, adding that a veterinary service is now looking for a new home for the animal. Pictures released by police showed the animal sitting in the dark, in a shallow muddy pool. Daytime temperatures in Saint Petersburg hovered around minus seven degrees Celsius (19 Fahrenheit), far below the preferred climate for the species. The crocodile "has lived here since 2005," a neighbour told local television. "He was little at the time." Fontanka local news site reported the animal was a two-metre-long Nile crocodile and said it belonged to a military reenactment enthusiast who ran a youth club in the building. Bengaluru: A pervert, who was working as a housekeeping staffer at a private firm, was arrested after he was caught red-handed taking photos and videos of women in restrooms through a hidden camera. The arrested has been identified as Dharmendra Kumar Yadav, who hails from Uttar Pradesh. He was working at a software firm on the 80-Feet Road in Indiranagar for the last two years. The pervert was, it is learnt, was shooting clips inside the ladies restroom and would upload it on a website. However, the police did not confirm this as they were still interrogating him to find out what he did with the clips. According to the police, Dharmendra entered women's restroom every morning to clean it and hid a camera inside the toilet. "He had access to all the women's restrooms and no one objected to his entry as he was part of the housekeeping staff. We are questioning him to learn since when he was recording such videos and photographs it. We confiscated his mobile phone, but we did not find any clips in it. We have sent it to the Forensic Science Laboratory for investigation," the police said. On the accused uploading the clips on websites, the police are yet to ascertain it as the investigation has just begun. According to the police, the accused was caught red-handed by a woman who entered the restroom and found Dharmendra peeping inside a toilet while taking video on his mobile phone. He was beaten up by the women employees of the firm and handed over to the police. The accused were identified as Mahipal Singh, 33, Sheela Bai, 35, and Raj Kumari, 40, all residents of Mangalhat. (Representational Image) Hyderabad: West Zone Task Force police on Monday nabbed three persons, including two women, and seized 21kg ganja from their possession at Mangalhat. The accused were identified as Mahipal Singh, 33, Sheela Bai, 35, and Raj Kumari, 40, all residents of Mangalhat, said the police, adding that another suspect, Ravi, 25 is absconding. According to the police, Ravi procures the contraband from Warangal and Visakhapatnam and stores it at Mahipals house before selling it. About a week ago, Ravi bought 21kg ganja from Visakhapatnam and handed it over to Mahipal. While Ravi escaped from the scene, the trio were nabbed selling the stash at Mangalhat on Monday, the police added. Hyderabad: Despondent over her daughters ill health, a 30-year-old housewife jumped off the fifth floor of a building along with her sick child in Chandanagar on Monday. The deceased were identified as S. Swathi and nine-month-old S. Sanvi. Police said Swathi married Pradeep Kumar, working for a private firm, in 2011. The couple and their two kids five-year-old son and daughter Sanvi lived at PJR enclave under Chandanagar police station limits. Sanvi, born in May 2017, had some health complications since birth for which she was undergoing treatment. About a month ago, the child was admitted to a private hospital after she fell very sick. She remained in the hospital for about a month before discharge. Her health, however, continued to slide. Swathi jumped off the balcony of their apartment at Sai Pearl Residency with Sanvi in her arms at around 1.30 pm. Passersby who noticed the two lying in a pool of blood immediately rushed them to hospital and alerted the police. Swathi and Sanvi were declared brought dead at the hospital. Their family members said the couple would remain very worried about Sanvis ill health. Police registered a case under Section 174 CrPC. Bengaluru: A habitual offender escaped with an LED TV from a hotel room he was staying in, in the city. The act was caught on a CCTV camera and a case has been registered with the HSR Layout police, who are searching for the accused. The incident took place on January 14, but came to light on Monday. The manager of the hotel, Mohammed Ismail, registered the complaint with the police that the accused had identified himself as Devaraj, a businessman, who was in the city on a business meeting. He submitted his fake IDs and booked a room for a night paying Rs 1,800. After 30 minutes, he left the hotel carrying a big bag in his hand and never returned. Later, the staff who went for room service got to know that he had escaped with the TV. The police suspect that he is involved in four more such cases in Bagalkot and has escaped with eight LED TVs. But this is the first time he has been booked in the city. The police have got the CCTV footage and are searching for the accused. It is understood that the clause has been added in the I-T public advisory in the backdrop of the government notifying the electoral bonds scheme. (Photo: File) New Delhi: The Income Tax Department on Tuesday cautioned people against indulging in illegal cash transactions, including donating more than Rs 2000 to political parties. In a bid to clean up election funding, the government early this year had notified 'electoral bonds' that can be bought from specified branches of the State Bank of India (SBI) and used to donate money to political parties. According to the scheme, no person should make a cash donation of over Rs 2000 to a political party. The tax department, in advertisements issued in leading dailies on Tuesday, said a person should not "donate in excess of Rs 2000 in cash to a registered trust/political party." This is the first public advisory that the department or its policy-making body- the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has issued vis-a-vis political donations. It is understood that the clause has been added in the I-T public advisory in the backdrop of the government notifying the electoral bonds scheme. The department also stipulated some more don'ts for the public like: "Do not accept cash of Rs 2 lakh or more in aggregate from a single person in a day or for one or more transactions relating to one event or occasion." "Do not receive or repay Rs 20,000 or more in cash for transfer of immovable property." The I-T Department also added that one should not pay "more than Rs 10,000 in cash relating to expenditure of business or profession." The taxman asked public to say "no to cash transactions" of all these kinds. It added that contravention of these threshold cash limits "may result in levy of tax/penalty". "Go cashless. Go clean," the advertisement underlined. The department also urged the public to inform it about such violations or any instance of blackmoney or benami assets transaction to it over email "mailto:blackmoneyinfo@incometax.gov.in" or to the jurisdictional Principal Commissioner of the department. The electoral bonds, which are being pitched as an alternative to cash donations made to political parties, will be available at specified branches of the SBI for 10 days each in months of January, April, July and October. The bonds, which would be valid for 15 days, will not carry the donors name even though the purchaser would have to fulfil KYC norms at the bank. Panaji: Goa Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and majority of MLAs on Monday skipped an event organised by the state secretariat to create awareness about the Mahadayi river water sharing dispute. The programme was organised at the secretariat in Porvorim, which was attended by only six out of the total 40 MLAs. However, Goa Assembly Speaker Pramod Sawant said Parrikar had informed him in advance that he would not be able to attend the programme due to his preoccupation. Besides Parrikar, Water Resources Department Minister Vinod Palyekar too gave a miss to the event attended by Mahadayi Bachao Abhiyaan leader Rajendra Kerkar among others. On the occasion, Kerkar made a presentation on the simmering dispute between Goa and Karnataka. Goa and Karnataka have locked horns over sharing of Mahadayi (known as Mandovi in Goa) river water. The issue is currently pending before the Mahadayi Water Dispute Tribunal in Delhi. The speaker, who hosted the programme, expressed displeasure over bulk of MLAs not turning up. We had sent the invite to all the MLAs including ministers. It is unfortunate that majority of them did not turn up for the event, Sawant told reporters on the sidelines of the event. He said Mondays function was held to educate lawmakers on the issue. We wanted all the MLAs to be aware about the seriousness of the issue, Sawant said. Kerkar, who explained in detail the Mahadayi dispute, criticised the absence of MLAs, saying they were not serious about the issue. I would say that the MLAs and MPs in Karnataka are more serious on this issue compared to their counterparts in Goa, said Kerkar who has been spearheading a movement against diversion of Mahadayi river. Davos/New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday told top CEOs in Davos that India means business and presents exciting opportunity for the global businesses. Addressing a roundtable before a dinner meet, Modi narrated India's growth story. The Prime Minister was accompanied by top government officials including Vijay Gokhale, Jai Shankar and Ramesh Abhishek. Under the tagline of "India means business", the roundtable was attended by 40 CEOs of global companies and 20 from India. After the meeting, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted about Modi narrating India's growth story and presenting exciting opportunities for global business in India in Davos. The spokesperson also tweeted that the Prime Minister "hosted a roundtable meeting with CEOs of top global companies". Modi, who arrived in Davos on Monday evening, will deliver opening keynote address on Tuesday morning at the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meeting. Besides, he will also interact with the members of international business community of the WEF. On Monday, India also hosted the welcome reception at the WEF annual gathering with ministers, business leaders and celebrities in attendance. More than 130 participants from India attended the meeting of the rich and the powerful where the official sessions began with the opening plenary address by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Railway Minister Piyush Goyal, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu, industrialist Mukesh Ambani, cine star Shah Rukh Khan and film maker Karan Johar, among others, were present at the reception. After reaching this Alpine town, Modi held a meeting with Swiss President Alain Berset and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties on the sidelines of the summit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Swiss President Alain Berset in Davos and discussed ways to deepen bilateral ties on the sidelines of the WEF annual summit. Berset said the discussions marked the meeting of the biggest and the oldest democracies in the world. Thanking Modi, the Swiss President said he would continue to strengthen "our relations" with India. Modi is also the first Indian Prime Minister to attend the WEF meet in two decades. Over 3,000 world leaders from business, politics, art, academia and civil society would be attending the meeting whose theme is 'Creating a Shared Future in a Fractured World'. In a first at the WEF summit, India would also host yoga training sessions for the entire duration of the meeting, while also showcasing Indian heritage and culture. Narendra Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister to attend the WEF in Davos since Deve Gowda in 1997. (Photo: Twitter | ANI) Davos/ Mumbai: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said, in 1997 when former prime minister of India visited Davos, India's GDP was 400 billion dollars, but after two decades now it is more than six times. Modi is the first Indian Prime Minister to attend the WEF in Davos since Deve Gowda in 1997. Delivering a keynote address at the plenary session of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meet in Davos, Modi said, "I am happy to be in Davos to address the World Economic Forum. This Summit seems to find solutions to the various problems the world faces. I thank the people and Government of Switzerland for the warm welcome here." The Prime Minister said in 1997, Amazon was just a forest and tweet was just about a bird. He said WEF is creating a shared community in a fractured world. Modi said, "Technology is assuming immense importance in this era. We have mountains of data now." He also said, data is a big asset today and is posing a big challenge. Modi further added, "There is lack of consensus between us, but there is a feeling of solidarity between us." The Prime Minister said India has always believed in values of integration and unity, 'Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam' which means the entire world is one family. He added that it is relevant to bridge distances. Modi said the world is facing constant challenges and there are three main challenges in front of the world. Climate change The Prime Minister said the glaciers are receding, the Arctic ice is melting, islands are going under water or are about to. He added: "Heat and cold, excessive rain and drought - effects of extreme weather are seen everywhere. Even here, we are seeing the highest snowfall in 20 years." Modi said concerted action is required to tackle climate change. Care towards the environment is part of Indian culture. "We should have shed our divisions and united to tackle the challenge, but we must ask honestly if we have done so. Everyone says climate emissions must be reduced, But how many developed countries reach out to developing nations with the technology required to do so?" Modi asked. He further added, "Thousands of years ago, our sacred texts, read that we humans are the children of mother Earth. But then why do we see a war between humans and environment?" Recalling the father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi, Modi said, "Mahatma Gandhi always endorsed utilisation based on need, and opposed greed. But we have wandered far from that thought and exploited nature. We must ask ourselves, is this development or is this deterioration?" He said to preserve climate, India has set an ambitious target of 175 GW power from renewable energy and we have already achieved 33 per cent of that target. Terrorism The Prime Minister said the second biggest challenge is terrorism. He said, "Terrorism is a big threat to humanity. We all are aware about the threats of terrorism." Modi said the big threat ahead of our world is artificial creation of good and bad terrorists. It is painful to see some youngsters getting radicalised, he further added. Increased self-centredness Modi said the third challenge is increased self-centredness around the world. He said, Globalisation around the world is shrinking. Every one talks of an inter-connected world but the shine of globalisation is reducing. We must see if the global organisations created after World War II reflects the new dynamics of the world today. Some world powers don't just want to shun globalisation but they want to stall it. An example of this is new tariff barriers. Modi further said that Mahatma Gandhi had said he didnt want the walls and windows of his world be closed from all sides. He said he wanted the air of the world to come in freely but that shouldn't uproot his home. The Prime Minister said India follows the philosophy of Mahatma Gandhi. He said: We Indians understand the value of diversity. We understand the importance of freedom and democracy. Modi further added that in 2014, India's 600 crore voters, for the first time gave a complete majority to one party. He said: We have always strived for 'Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas' (Development for all). And this forms the bedrock of all policies of my government. Be it opening bank accounts for all Indians to ensure financial inclusion, or digital inclusion, or gender justice. Progress is only real when it helps everyone and everyone joins us in the journey. Modi stated the path of Indias progress is reform, perform and transform. He said: This is why investing in India, travelling to India, manufacturing in India has become much easier than before. We have pledged to end license raj, we are removing red tape and laying out the red carpet. New doors for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) are being opened. 1,400 laws that were hurdles to progress have been scrapped. Goods and Services Tax (GST) has been implemented, technology is being used to increase transparency. Democracy, demography and dynamism are shaping our destiny today. Modi said in 3.5 years (after he was voted to power), India has seen massive changes that accept the aspirations of 1.25 billion Indians. The Prime Minister said, Innovation and entrepreneurship are making young Indians job givers, not job seekers. For a shared prosperity, we have to work together, shedding our differences. Modi said the world's economic and security organisations need reforms, and the world's economic progress must be faster. He said, India has always cooperated with the world to tackle challenges. India has been the largest contributor in the UN peacekeeping force in terms of troops. India has always been the first responder to crises in neighbouring and friendly nations. A predictable, stable, transparent and progressive India will continue to be the good news in an uncertain world. Modi added, India will always be a unifying and harmonising force. Rabindranath Tagore had written of a heaven of freedom where the world is not divided by narrow walls. Lets make that a reality. Inviting the CEOs to India the Prime Minister said, I invite you all to come to India - If you want wellness with wealth, come to India; If you want wholeness with health, come to India; If you want peace with prosperity, come to India. Remember, that you will always be welcome in India. The top annual global business is being attended by 70 head of states. 38 heads of major international organisations such as the WTO, the IMF and the World Bank, and nearly 2,000 CEOs including over 100 from India are present at the summit. Fadnavis said Maharashtra Government is making arrangements to send the body of Kerala fisherman back home. (Photo: File) Mumbai: Maharashtra Government is making arrangements for sending the body of a Kerala fisherman, who died on sea off the Maharashtra coast, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis said on Tuesday. "Ratnagiri collector already in touch with Thiruvananthapuram collector since yesterday afternoon. All necessary arrangements being done to transport body of Kerala fisherman," Fadnavis, who is in Davos for the World Economic Forum meet, tweeted. "Total 9 persons were on the boat. One lost life, 5 left with the boat and three (are) with the body," the chief minister said, in response to Congress leader and Thiruvananthapuram MP Shashi Tharoor's tweet seeking help. Tharoor had tagged Fadnavis in his tweet on Monday saying that fisherman Rajumon's boat was near the Maharashtra coast, and sought help to bring the body onshore and transport it by air to Thiruvananthapuram. Tharoor posted an update on Tuesday, saying Rajumon's body has been brought ashore at Ratnagiri and taken to a local government hospital. It will be transported to Thiruvananthapuram after autopsy, he said, thanking the Maharashtra government for co-operation. Rajumon, whose boat was fishing off the Maharashtra coast, died after suddenly taking ill, reports said. After thanking the World Economic Forum for the award, Shah Rukh Khan finished his speech with 'namaskar' and 'Jai Hind'. (Photo: AP) Davos/ Mumbai: Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan received the Crystal award at the World Economic Forum summit in Davos, Switzerland along with Hollywood actress Cate Blanchett and legendary musician Elton John. Shah Rukh expressed his gratitude saying, "Extremely charged that I've had this amazing opportunity, this award, being recognised like this for minuscule work that I did, I'd like to do it with even more fervour. What is even more pleasant is that India is here in full power." The superstar was at his wittiest best in Davos when he asked actress Cate Blanchett for a selfie publicly and immediately quipped that it may leave his children embarrassed, sending the audience into peals of laughter. On receiving the award, Shah Rukh applauded Blanchett -- who was honoured with the award just before him -- for being the queen of billions of hearts, including his own. He then talked extensively about his social initiative, which he has named after his father, and the reason for the same. Shah Rukh Khan with British musician Elton John, Australian actress Cate Blanchett, Hilde Schwab, Chairwoman and Co-Founder of the World Economic Forum's World Arts Forum, and WEF founder Klaus Schwab, from left, wait for the ceremony for the Crystal Awards on the eve of annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. (Photo: AP) The cine star also thanked his late mother, wife and his daughter for inspiring him. After thanking the WEF for the award, Shah Rukh Khan finished his speech with "namaskar" and "Jai Hind". He was presented the award for "his leadership in championing children's and women's rights in India". Earlier on Monday, he also posed in his signature open arm style right after reaching Davos. Click here to listen to Shah Rukh Khan's speech at the WEF. Dhir, who worked at Heathrow Airport, allegedly met Mund and Raizada while they were students in London and had plotted the murder by hiring contract killers since 2015. (Photo: Facebook) London: A London-based Indian-origin woman faces extradition to India for her involvement in the murder of a 12-year-old orphan from Gujarat. Arti Dhir had been arrested in 2017, after an Interpol alert over the murder of the 12-year-old boy in February same year. The 52-year-old appeared before Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on Tuesday for a hearing on her bail application, which remains pending as her family members put together nearly 50,000 pounds as security. "This should be sorted out in a week," Chief Magistrate Emma Arbuthnot told Dhir, who remains in custody until the security is deposited with the court. An investigation by the Gujarat Police has claimed that Dhir and two other accused - Nitish Mund and Kanwaljit Raizada - had hatched a plot to adopt the 12-year-old and then insure him for around Rs 1.3 crores before staging his kidnapping and murder in India to split the life insurance payout three ways. Dhir, who worked at Heathrow Airport, allegedly met Mund and Raizada while they were students in London and had plotted the murder by hiring contract killers since 2015. The 12-year-old and his brother-in-law, Harsukh Patel, were stabbed to death on a road outside Rajkot in February 2017. Interpol issued a "red notice" for Dhir in April 2017, and she was arrested by Scotland Yard in June 2017. Dhir's extradition hearing is scheduled at Westminster Magistrates' Court for April 30. The resolution was passed unanimously in the Shiv Sena's National Executive meet in Mumbai. (Photo: ANI) Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Tuesday passed a resolution not to align with the BJP and go solo in the 2019 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra Assembly polls. The resolution was moved by Shiva Sena MP Sanjay Raut, who said the BJP had been demoralising the party for the last three years. The resolution was passed unanimously in the party's National Executive meet in Mumbai. "I moved the resolution for the Shiv Sena to fight the Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha polls on its own in 2019," Raut said. He said the party will win at least 25 Lok Sabha seats (out of a total 48 in Maharashtra) and 125 Assembly seats (out of a total 288) in the state. "The BJP allied with the Sena in the name of Hindutva and the Sena kept patience for Hindutva. However, the BJP in the last three years has been demoralising the Sena and using power to do so," Raut said. Senior Sena leaders backed Raut's resolution. The Shiv Sena is holding internal polls to elect its party president and other functionaries on Tuesday, the birth anniversary of its founder Bal Thackeray. Sena president Uddhav Thackeray is set to be re-elected as there is no other nomination for the post, party sources earlier said. A meeting of senior Sena leaders was held at Thackeray's 'Matoshree' bungalow in suburban Bandra on Monday to discuss the internal polls. The first World Happiness Report was published in April 2012, in support of the UN High-level Meeting on happiness and well-being. (Representational image) Vijayawada: AP ranked 74 globally with a happiness score of 5.368 while India stood in the 122nd position among 155 nations in the World Happiness Report, 2017. Andhra Pradesh had signed an MoU with the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN), that measures global happiness based on self-evaluations in life. Andhra Pradesh is the only state among the countries that is linked with SDSN and has followed the global methodology to assess happiness levels within the state. The first World Happiness Report was published in April 2012 in support of the UN High-Level Meeting on happiness and well-being. The newborn state of Andhra Pradesh is implementing the best practices and is participating in global competitive affairs. In general, only nations participate in this but Andhra Pradesh has signed an MoU with the global reports agencies and is trying to analyse the states position by providing the necessary information. In the Global Competitiveness Index (GCI) for 2015-2016, AP stood in the 51st position among 140 economies while in 2016-2017 it got 36th rank. In the World Happiness Report, AP bagged the 74th rank in 2017. The state government had mentioned this achievement in the Vision 2029 document and presented it at the Collectors conference. According to the report, SDSN used the effective responses of 16,159 individuals for evaluation. The key indicators to explain happiness are GDP, generosity, social support, corruption in business, corruption in the government, freedom to make life choices etc. The global rankings are decided based on a population-based sample survey of 1,000 persons per country. But the state of Andhra Pradesh has used an effective sample of 16,159 persons for the analysis, a Planning Commission member said. The member said that the sample size has been ascertained after deletion of incomplete responses and duplicate entries. He further shared that the male and female responses were almost equal, thereby proportionate to the states sex ratio. Under conditions of anonymity, he said that levels of happiness in Andhra Pradesh can be assessed using the same parameters that would enable the state to compare itself with the countrys average and other international rankings. When contacted, Panchayat Raj and Rural Development minister Nara Lokesh shared from Davos that happiness of Andhra Pradesh people is the supreme goal of the government and peoples well-being and happiness will top the states efforts. He further shared that the Andhra Pradesh government aims to be among the top three states in the country by the year 2022 and the most developed state by the year 2029. Nethravati was at the pond washing clothes when two boys into the pond. Nethravati jumped in to help even though she didnt know how to swim. Hubballi: At 14, Nethravati was brave enough to dive into a 30-ft deep stone quarry pond in her home village of Vadda Hosur and rescue a drowning boy - eleven year old Muthuraj - and then plunge back in again to rescue another boy, a 10-year- old. But the second attempt cost the young teen, her life and she died trying to save the life of Ganesh. Come January 24 and she will be among those to receive a bravery award posthumously from the Union government. Her 39-year-old father, Mahantesh Chavan, a stone cutter from Vadda Hosur in Hungund taluk of Bagalkot district, is proud to go to Delhi and receive the award on Nethravati's behalf from PM Modi. A school drop-out, Nethravathi was helping her father in stone cutting as he could not afford to educate her. But she wanted to educate her two younger brothers, one of whom is physically challenged. We hardly earn Rs 200 a day in wages in stone cutting. So Nethravathi joined me and my other daughter in doing this work. She was very hard working and we all loved her dearly. We were in shock at her death a few months ago. But it is a proud moment for us to receive the bravery award on her behalf, said Mr Chavan. The family had migrated to Kannur village in Udupi district to earn a living as it had no farmland or property in its native hamlet except a dilapidated house. They had returned to their village only to attend a festival when the tragedy took place at the Vaddar Hosur quarry pond, robbing them of their brave daughter, whom the country is now choosing to salute on the occasion of Republic Day. Nethravati was at the pond washing clothes when two boys related to her Muthuraj(11) and Ganesh (10) slipped and fell into the pond. Nethravati, hearing their screams for help, jumped in to help even though she didn't know how to swim. KOLLAM: In the latest incident of unlawful parading of elephants as part of festivals, an elephant ran amok at Thazhuthala in Kollam last week, and the animal rights activists accuse the organisers of flouting the district collector's order to adhere to rules. "The district elephant monitoring committee meeting should be convened before conducting parades as per a Supreme Court directive," says V.K. Venkitachalam, who heads the Thrissur-based Heritage Animal Task Force. "This has been violated here. The collector should seek a report from tahsildar and fire officer on separate spaces provided for people and animals before deciding on the number of elephants for the parade. Here the organisers have not obtained the legal permission." The elephant that ran amok was tortured by pulling its tail, beating, and even pelting stones at it. In a petition sent to the Union environment, forest and climate change ministry, he accused the police of remaining mute spectators to the torture. Elephant Aayayil Gourinandan was paraded along with 14 others at a local temple festival. "As per rules, police officials have to take control of the area where a dangerous wild animal like elephant ran amok. But they did nothing to control people," he said. "An ambulance of Kollam SPCA was seen here. But they too did nothing to save the elephant from his tormentors. The elephant had also sustained serious wounds at sensitive parts of its chest and right side front leg as a result of the use of banned weapon "thotti" by mahouts and their companions." Actor Kamal Haasan interacts with his supporters at his residence in Alwarpet on Monday (Photo: DC) Chennai: Kick-starting consultations with his supporters ahead of his state-wide tour from February 21, actor-activist Kamal Haasan on Monday identified three key sectors health, education and transport which he hopes to set right through digital technology in his lifetime. Kamal had a very tight schedule on Monday during which he inaugurated digital banking branch of Canara Bank in Velachery and held back-to-back interactions with his supporters from Madurai, Dindigul and Ramanathapuram districts on his state-wide tour. Addressing his supporters gathered outside his Alwarpet residence, Kamal said his political journey would set new precedents for social work and hoped to find new friends and brothers during his journey. The actor also scotched speculation about a grand public meeting in Madurai on February 24 after his visit to A. P.J. Abdul Kalam's residence in Rameswaram. There is no public meeting scheduled for February 24 in Madurai. We are concentrating only on the tour for now, Kamal said. At the Canara Bank event, the actor stressed the importance of digital technology and emphasised on Tamil Nadu embracing the technology to scale new heights. Tamil Nadu has always been a pioneer in digital technology and I wish the state's villages and are connected digitally and I hope to see them get to reality in my life time. The three areas which need to tap digital more are health, education and transport, the actor said. The actor's comments come days after he made his intentions clear of his political plunge. Kamal will begin his political journey on February 21 from Rameswaram, located in his home district of Ramanathapuram, and launch state-wide tour to meet the people. The actor has promised that his politics will usher in a new era in Tamil Nadu. He has already announced that his mobile application would be launched soon that would enable common man air their grievances. Hyderabad: The BJP has called Pawan Kalyans Jana Sena party the B team of the ruling TRS. BJP spokesperson Krishna Saagar Rao said on Monday that its quite evident that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and his government do not allow any leader or any party to reach out to the masses in this state. To have allowed Pawan Kalyans yatra speaks volumes of a possible deal between the two. Addressing media at the BJP headquarters on Monday, Mr Rao said that the people of Telangana dont suffer from memory loss and understand that Pawan Kalyan was dead against the formation of a separate Telangana state and had even abused those who fought and died for separate statehood. His package politics in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana will be rejected by the people. Continuing his attack on the Jana Sena, Mr Rao said the party is bereft of ideology, leaders, cadre and sincerity. He said Pawan Kalyan, who kept promising the people of Andhra Pradesh that he will be a questioner, has clearly turned into a full time eulogiser of both the chief ministers. Users can now download WhatsApp Business app for free from Google Play store and a version for iOS will soon be available. WhatsApp business app, which aims at functioning as a platform through which small scale businesses communicate with their customers in an efficient manner, has finally arrived in India. The app was initially tested in the country and Brazil before its public release and is now available in Indonesia, Italy, Mexico, the UK, and the US. Even though the app had plans to launch this feature last September and has even launched a pilot by collaborating with companies like BookMyShow, Netflix, and MakeMyTrip. The WhatsApp Business app allows businesses to set their profile photo, provide a short information about themselves, and a status to accompany it. It also allows them to block their contacts and enable read receipts. The companies can also share their live locations with their contacts. Users can now download WhatsApp Business app for free from Google Play store and a version for iOS will soon be available. Click on Deccan Chronicle Technology and Science for the latest news and reviews. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter. State security spokesman Roberto Alvarez confirmed later that the woman's 'dismembered' remains had been found on Monday inside pots atop a stove. (Photo: Fe | Representational) Mexico City: The remains of a young woman who disappeared over a week ago in southern Mexico were discovered on Monday by authorities who said she is believed to have been slain, dismembered and cooked on a stove. Her ex-husband is suspected in what is being investigated as a femicide, or the killing of a woman when the motive is directly related to the victim's gender. Guerrero state prosecutors said in a statement that the woman left her home in the city of Taxco on the morning of Jan 13. She later said that she would pick up her children at her ex-husband's home in the afternoon, but was not heard from again, it said. State security spokesman Roberto Alvarez confirmed later that the woman's "dismembered" remains had been found on Monday inside pots atop a stove. "It is presumed that she was cooked," he said. Alvarez said the divorced husband is the chief suspect. According to a report in December, 2017 by the Mexican government and the UN Women agency, murders of women in Mexico rose sharply over the last decade following two decades of decline during which the rate had fallen by half. Narendra Modi told Trump in an Oval Office meeting in June, 2017, 'Never has a country given so much away for so little in return' as the United States in Afghanistan, The Washington Post quoted sources as saying. (Photo: AP) Washington/ New Delhi: US President Donald Trump has reportedly used an Indian accent to imitate Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his conversations about US policy in Afghanistan, according to a report in a leading American daily on Tuesday. Modi, during his visit to the US in 2017, held talks with Trump on a number of issues including the situation in war-torn Afghanistan. Modi told Trump in an Oval Office meeting in June, 2017, "Never has a country given so much away for so little in return" as the United States in Afghanistan, The Washington Post quoted sources as saying. To Trump, Modi's statement was proof that the rest of the world viewed the United States as being duped and taken advantage of in Afghanistan, the Post said. "Senior administration officials said that the president has been known to affect an Indian accent and imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," the Post reported. The White House did not immediately respond to a question on the Post's assertion that Trump has been imitating Modi in Indian accent. Democratic Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi condemned Trump's reported habit of affecting an Indian accent to imitate Modi. "I was appalled to read that President Trump reportedly affected an Indian accent to imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said. "In the wake of the President's recent comments disparaging entire regions of the world while we still face such division at home, behaviour that belittles our allies and 'otherises' entire communities of Americans is one of the last things we need. Americans are not defined by their accents, but by their commitment to this nations values and ideals," Krishnamoorthi said. Multiple times in the past, the White House has denied such reporting from the Post including his alleged "shithole" remarks during a meeting with lawmakers early in January. Trump has quite often accused the Post of circulating "fake news". According to the daily, Trump has made it clear to senior Pentagon officials that he wants to see a quick return on the increased US investment in troops and money in Afghanistan. Pentagon officials are also under pressure to keep troop numbers from growing significantly, it said, adding that up to 1,000 more US troops could be headed to Afghanistan this spring. Washington: A powerful earthquake of magnitude 8.2 struck off the southern coast of Alaska early Tuesday, prompting tsunami warnings. The quake struck at 0931 GMT in the Gulf of Alaska, 280 kilometers (175 miles) southeast of the town of Kodiak, the US Geological Survey said. The epicenter was 10 kilometers under the seabed. Tsunami warnings were issued for Alaska and the west coast of Canada, the National Tsunami Warning Center said. Less-ominous tsunami watches were issued for the US west coast - the entire coasts of California and Oregon and part of Washington state. In Alaska, authorities urged coast dwellers to seek safety. "If you are located in this coastal area, move inland to higher ground," the Anchorage Office of Emergency Management said. "Tsunami warnings mean that a tsunami with significant inundation is possible or is already occurring. Tsunamis are a series of waves dangerous many hours after initial arrival time. The first wave may not be the largest, it added. The case against Arthur Rathburn is part of a growing national investigation by federal authorities into the largely unregulated market for body parts in the United States. (Photo: AP) Washington: A Detroit businessman who sold and leased donated body parts for two decades was convicted on Monday of defrauding medical customers by selling them diseased human remains. The case against Arthur Rathburn is part of a growing national investigation by federal authorities into the largely unregulated market for body parts in the United States. Federal agents found a grisly scene when they raided Rathburn's warehouse in 2013, including remains frozen together flesh on flesh. Current US laws only regulate body parts intended for transplant, such as hearts and livers. The buying and selling of body parts for research and education - Rathburn's line of business - is legal under US law. He was charged with defrauding clients by selling them body parts infected with HIV and hepatitis without their knowledge. Rathburn's ex-wife and business partner, Elizabeth, testified that they bought body parts from companies that encourage people to donate their bodies to science. In an effort to boost profits, she testified, the Rathburns sometimes bought infected bodies and parts, which are sold at discount because few medical entities want them for training or education. Elizabeth Rathburn pleaded guilty to fraud, and she cooperated with the prosecution. During testimony before the federal jury in Detroit in January, she said that she expects her sentence will be between four and 10 months. Arthur Rathburn, who did not testify at trial, faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, although the US sentencing guidelines the judge must consider generally call for a shorter term. Both are expected to be sentenced in the spring. Rathburn was convicted on seven counts of fraud and acquitted of two counts of fraud. His lawyers had contended that the case focused on contract disputes with his customers over the quality of his products and ought to be brought in civil court, not criminal court. "There are no industry regulations regarding the business Arthur Rathburn was engaged in," his defence lawyers argued in a court filing. "Industry standards and what constitutes a 'clean' environment are subjective matters, not a matter for criminal prosecution." Reuters reported in December 2017 that authorities found four foetuses, each in its second trimester, during the warehouse raid. It is illegal to sell foetuses. Rathburn was not charged with doing so, and it's unclear how the foetuses were acquired. Officials and defence lawyers have declined to comment on the matter. The discovery of the foetuses, however, may be raised during the sentencing phase. The government's failure to stop Rathburn sooner, despite a decade of warning signs, was one in a series of stories Reuters published last year about the industry. As part of the series, a reporter purchased two human heads and a spine from a broker in Tennessee, deals made with just a few emails at a cost of USD 900, plus shipping. The series also profiled two Phoenix brokers - one who earned at least USD 12 million from the sale or use of donated body parts and one who pleaded guilty to defrauding customers. The latter, Steve Gore, cooperated with the government and testified against Rathburn in the Detroit trial. He told the jury that he "made mistakes" while operating a business that harvested 5,000 bodies in a decade, but said that he had no state or federal regulations to guide him. A Reuters story in December described how Gore's technicians dismembered bodies with construction saws purchased from Home Depot. Under cross-examination, Gore was asked if he used the construction saw instead of a proper medical instrument because it was cheaper. Yes, Gore nodded, adding, "and effective." It is not the first time L'Oreal advertising campaign to promote diversity has foundered because of controversial social media comments by a model. (Photo: Instagram/amenaofficial) Paris: British model Amena Khan, who had been chosen by L'Oreal to appear in an advertising campaign in Britain, has pulled out over accusations that she made anti-Israeli comments in a series of old tweets. The French cosmetics giant last week selected her to be the first woman in a hijab for a mainstream shampoo campaign. Khan's messages, posted on Twitter in 2014, have since been deleted. "I deeply regret the content of the tweets I made in 2014, and sincerely apologise for the upset and hurt that they have caused," she said on Twitter on Monday. "With deep regret, I've decided to step down from this campaign because the current conversations surrounding it detract from the positive and inclusive sentiment that it set out to deliver." L'Oreal group, contacted by AFP, said it "approved" her decision. "We appreciate the fact that Amena has apologised for the content of her tweets and for the reactions they may have aroused," it said. It is not the first time L'Oreal advertising campaign to promote diversity has foundered because of controversial social media comments by a model. Last summer the group dropped British black transgender model Munroe Bergdorf over Facebook comments that she made accusing all whites of racial violence. Congress put the US government back in business Monday by voting to end a three-day shutdown, as President Donald Trump claimed victory in his standoff with Democrats in Washington. The House voted 266 to 150 to extend federal funding, hours after Senate Democrats dropped their opposition to the plan after winning Republican assurances of a vote on immigration in the coming weeks. "I know there's great relief that this episode is coming to an end," House Speaker Paul Ryan told colleagues on the House floor. "But this is not a moment to pat ourselves on the back. Not even close." The stalemate consumed Washington for the better part of a week, as lawmakers and the White House feuded over immigration policy and the nation's two main political parties exchanged bitter barbs before finally reaching a deal. "I am pleased Democrats in Congress have come to their senses," Trump said in a defiant statement, as lawmakers moved to get hundreds of thousands of federal government employees back to work. Trump was expected to sign the measure into law later Monday, with government operations essentially returning to normal on Tuesday. Democrats decided to end the three-day shutdown after making progress with ruling Republicans toward securing the fate of hundreds of thousands of so-called "Dreamers" brought to America as children, many of them illegally. With Democratic support, a bill keeping the government funded until February 8 easily passed the Senate, where different versions of the funding had languished for days. Word of the compromise deal struck in Washington sent US stocks surging to new highs. But the White House appeared in no mood for bipartisanship or magnanimity after a shutdown that overshadowed Trump's first anniversary in office. Trump moved to undercut Democrats, saying he would only accept a comprehensive immigration reform -- one that notably addresses his demands for a border wall with Mexico as well as the fate of the "Dreamers." "We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it is good for our country," he said. Top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer earlier announced his party would vote with Republicans to end the shutdown, but in a sign of the poisoned politics of Washington, he pilloried Trump in the process. "The White House refused to engage in negotiations over the weekend. The great deal-making president sat on the sidelines," Schumer said. Trump spent the weekend stewing at the White House when he had planned to be among friends and family at his home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida for his anniversary bash. And with the fundamental row on immigration and funding of Trump's border wall unresolved, Republicans and Democrats may very well find themselves back in a similar stalemate come February 9. Schumer told Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that he expected Republicans to make good on a pledge to address Democrat concerns over the Deferred Action on Child Arrivals (DACA) program that shields immigrants brought to the country as children from deportation, but expires on March 5. There are an estimated 700,000 "Dreamers" whose fates are up in the air. "If he does not, of course, and I expect he will, he will have breached the trust of not only the Democratic senators but members of his own party as well," Schumer said. Trump has staked his political fortunes on taking a hard line on immigrants, painting them as criminals and scroungers. Senator Tim Kaine summed up the view of the more optimistic Democrats: "We got a commitment that I feel very, very good about." But if no progress is made on an immigration bill, Molly Reynolds of the Brookings Institution warned, "Democrats still have the ability to potentially force another shutdown over the issue." The House is under no obligation to pass any Senate bill generated as a result of McConnell's pledge to cooperate with Democrats -- although Speaker Ryan did say his chamber needs to "move forward in good faith" on DACA and immigration. Notably, many of the Senate Democrats who voted against the funding agreement included a litany of potential 2020 presidential candidates, including Kamala Harris, Bernie Sanders, Kirsten Gillibrand and Elizabeth Warren. Ahead of the deal, Trump had goaded Democrats from the sidelines, accusing them of shutting down the government to win concessions on immigration, in service of "their far left base." There have been four government shutdowns since 1990. During the last one, in October 2013, more than 800,000 government workers were put on temporary leave. Essential federal services and the military were operational Monday, but even active-duty troops will not be paid until a deal is formally sealed. Ahead of the ASEAN-India commemorative summit, New Delhi on Monday came under pressure from the South-East Asian nations to soften its stand in negotiations for the 16-nation Regional Comprehensive Economic Agreement. The trade ministers of the South-East Asian nations attending the ASEAN-India Business and Investment Meet and Expo called upon New Delhi to ease its stand so that the RCEP negotiations could be concluded this year. New Delhi, however, remained non-committal with Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu saying that India would continue to seek a balanced outcome of the negotiation on the RCEP, covering not only goods, but also services and investment. He, however, said that India would work with ASEAN and other proposed RCEP members for "early conclusion" of the negotiation. The Ministry of Commerce and the Ministry of External Affairs are holding the ASEAN-India Business and Investment Meet and Expo in New Delhi in partnership with the Confederation of Indian Industries. It is being held as a prelude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting with leaders of all the 10 South-East Asian nations. Modi and the South-East Asian leaders will on Thursday hold a special ASEAN-India summit to mark the 25th anniversary of New Delhi's partnership with the 10-nation bloc. "I believe India will not disappoint ASEAN. I believe India will stand with ASEAN to conclude the negotiation for the RCEP this year," Enggartiasto Lukita, Minister of Trade of Indonesia, said, speaking in the inaugural ceremony of the conclave. Lim Jock Seng, Second Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Brunei Darussalam, too echoed him, tacitly nudging New Delhi to help expedite the negotiation. The RCEP is a proposed agreement between the ASEAN nations a Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines a and the six other countries, which already have separate trade deals with the 10-member South East Asian bloc. Prabhu, who also spoke in the conclave, said that New Delhi was of the view that the RCEP would be a logical extension of the Act-East policy of India. He also said that New Delhi recognized the centrality of the ASEAN in the RCEP negotiations. "It is important to address the sensitivity and aspirations of all the member-nations to add momentum to the negotiations," he said. India has been resisting pressure from China and the other RCEP nations to bring down or eliminate the tariff on 90% of the traded items. New Delhi is ready to give higher tariff concession to 10 South-East Asian nations as it already has free trade agreements in both goods and services with the ASEAN. India, however, is reluctant to open up its market so much for China in view of the growing deficit in its bilateral trade with the communist country. New Delhi is cautious about committing higher tariff concession for Australia and New Zealand. India is also concerned over the reluctance of the other countries to make commitments for substantially opening up the services sector under the proposed RECP agreement. "We would all aim to achieve an RCEP that results in the realisation of the potential of the three pillars of RCEP a goods, services and investments and in a manner that is balanced and collectively satisfying," Prabhu said in an apparent response to ASEAN trade ministers' call to New Delhi to help speed up the negotiations. If signed, the RCEP would cover 16 Asia-Pacific nations with a total population of 3.4 billion people and a total Gross Domestic Product of $ 49.5 trillion. The proposed deal seeks to bring together the economies that account for 39% of the world's GDP. The negotiation for the RCEP was launched in November 2012, as a potential counterweight to the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership, which was initiated by the US, but excluded China and India. The negotiation for the TPP, however, suffered a setback earlier this year after the US withdrew from it soon after the change of guard in Washington. Prabhu on Monday admitted that the negotiations on the RCEP had been rather slow, but added: "It is only natural given the diversity of the economies of the member countries." US President Donald Trump has reportedly used an Indian accent to imitate Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his conversations about US policy in Afghanistan, according to a report in a leading American daily today. Prime Minister Modi, during his visit to the US last year, held talks with President Trump on a number of issues including the situation in war-torn Afghanistan. Modi told Trump in an Oval Office meeting in June: "Never has a country given so much away for so little in return" as the United States in Afghanistan, The Washington Post quoted sources as saying. To Trump, Modi's statement was proof that the rest of the world viewed the United States as being duped and taken advantage of in Afghanistan, the Post said. "Senior administration officials said that the president has been known to affect an Indian accent and imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," the Post reported. The White House did not immediately respond to a question on the Post's assertion that Trump has been imitating Modi in Indian accent. Democratic Indian-American Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi condemned Trump's reported habit of affecting an Indian accent to imitate Modi. "I was appalled to read that President Trump reportedly affected an Indian accent to imitate Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said. "In the wake of the President's recent comments disparaging entire regions of the world while we still face such division at home, behavior that belittles our allies and 'otherizes' entire communities of Americans is one of the last things we need. "Americans are not defined by their accents, but by their commitment to the values and ideals of this nation," Krishnamoorthi said. Multiple times in the past, the White House has denied such reporting from the Post including his alleged "shithole" remarks during a meeting with lawmakers early this month. Trump has quite often accused the Post of being a "fake news". According to the daily, Trump has made it clear to senior Pentagon officials that he wants to see a quick return on the increased US investment in troops and money in Afghanistan. Pentagon officials are also under pressure to keep troop numbers from growing significantly, it said, adding that up to 1,000 more US troops could be headed to Afghanistan this spring. A South Korean appeals court today jailed former culture minister Cho Yoon-Sun for two years for her role in drawing up a blacklist of 10,000 artists seen as critical of ousted president Park Geun-Hye's government. Cho had initially been acquitted in July and given only a suspended sentence on a minor related charge, prompting prosecutors to appeal. The higher court in Seoul also extended the prison term of Park's ex-chief of staff Kim Ki-choon from three years to four. State BJP President B S Yeddyurappa's right hand man Manjunath Gowda, who lost the last election from Thirthalli by a narrow margin of 600 votes, defected and joined JD(S) on Tuesday. He joined JD(S) at the party's National President H D Deve Gowda's house in Padmanabhanagar, Bengaluru. Manjunath Gowda joined JD(S) in the presence of MLA Madhu Bangarappa, Shivamogga district JD(S) president Srikanth, district leader Madan, former MLA Nada Gowda, Annadani and others. DC's transfer irks Gowda Speaking to reporters at his house in Bengaluru, Deve Gowda expressed discontentment over the transfer of Hassan deputy commissioner Rohini Sindhuri. "The government has transferred an honest officer. It has been no more than six months since her taking charge as Hassan DC. The government had done the same to the previous DC as well," Gowda said. "The Maha Mastakabhisheka arrangements are going on. Sindhuri did not allow dishonest politicians to make money. So she was transferred. Do these people need to make a percentage out of a pious occasion such as this too?" Gowda questioned adding that the transfer order was issued overnight. Gowda to boycott President's function Former Prime Minister Deve Gowda said that he would boycott the President's function in Hassan February 7 in protest of the Congress government's style of functioning. He added that he would write about it to the President. "I will not share the dais with Siddaramaiah," Gowda stated. JD(S) won't support bundh He categorically stated that JD(S) will not support the bandh call on January 25 and February 4. Pro-Kannada organisations have called for a Karnataka bandh on January 25 and Kalasa-Banduri Horata Samanvaya Samiti has called for a Bengaluru bundh on February 4 (the day Prime Minister Narendra Modi visits the city). "These bundhs are government sponsored," alleged Gowda. The triple talaq bill is a conspiracy against Muslims and a move to punish men from the community, AIMIM president Asaduddin Owaisi has alleged. A committee was constituted to look into the row over the film "Padmaavat" but no such step was taken on the triple talaq issue, said the Lok Sabha member from Hyderabad as he launched a scathing attack against the Centre. "The triple talaq bill is a conspiracy against the Muslim community. It a tactic to bring out the women of the community on roads and send the men to prison," the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader said at a public meeting last night. At the same time, he asked the Muslim community to socially boycott those who take the instant triple talaq route to divorce. He said Rs 2,000 crore should be allocated for Muslim women in the budget. The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2017 was passed by the Lok Sabha in the recently concluded winter session, but could not be passed in the Rajya Sabha with the opposition demanding that it be sent to a Select Committee for a detailed scrutiny. "The BJP wants a Muslim-free India and this would not happen," he said and urged the people from his community and the Dalits to wake up and raise their voice against injustice. The Kaggalipura police have arrested four people in connection with the murder of a daughter by her own father, for money. Those arrested have been identified as Chikkabyatappa alias Sampangi of Kaggalipura, Bengaluru rural district, and his accomplices Lakshmi, Ismail Khan and Muniraju. Chikkabytappa's murdered daughter is Veena (24). Police said that Veena was married to Partha and the couple had a four-month-old child. She was staying in her parent's house for postnatal care. Chikkabyatappa had recently sold his land for Rs 2 crore and had given his daughter Veena Rs 1 crore. He had given the other Rs 1 crore to Lakshmi, his mistress. In order to get back the money he had given to his daughter, Chikkabyatappa along with his accomplices fed and injected poison to Veena. The foursome then made it appear like suicide. Ramangaram Superintendent of Police B Ramesh to reporters in a press meet that investigations later revealed that Veena's death was murder and not suicide. Dozens of support centres for women victims of sexual violence are to open across India under a scheme announced Tuesday, as pressure grows on police over their handling of rape cases. Police in four states have signed up to the "Justice For Her" initiative, with Sheffield Hallam University in Britain. Fifty-one centres, which aim to improve access to justice for victims, will be opened in Madhya Pradesh state which has the country's worst record for rape cases. The New Delhi region and the northern states of Haryana and Punjab have also signed up. Lawyer Helena Kennedy, a member of Britain's House of Lords upper chamber, said the initiative could be a "watershed moment" in India. "The first step towards tackling this issue is giving sanctuary for those who have been victims of these terrible crimes, whilst also providing the relevant authorities with the skills and power to address the problem with confidence," Kennedy said when launching the project in New Delhi. India has been in the global spotlight since the 2012 gang rape and murder of a woman on a New Delhi bus sparked angry protests. The number of reported rape cases has grown since then. The government has promised to speed up trials and set up hotlines but rights groups say authorities are still not doing enough. The support centres will provide medical attention, police liaison, legal advice and counselling. A training programme will aim to make police more sensitive in handling sexual assault and improving access to justice. IMF chief Christine Lagarde today said India must continue with reforms especially in the financial services sector and should urgently focus on broad-based and true inclusion of women in its economy. Addressing a press conference here as part of the all-women co-chairs of the World Economic Forum (WEF) annual meet, Lagarde said IMF research has shown that raising women's participation in the workforce to the level of men can boost Indian economy by 27 percent. She also expressed concern over the high level of discrimination faced by women in rural India and emphasised that there is an urgent need to address this issue. Lagarde reiterated IMF's forecast of 7.4 percent growth for India and said it is obviously one of the fastest growing large economies in the world. According to her, future growth would depend on how the country carries forward the reform process. Lagarde said India must continue with its reforms, especially in the financial services sector and the one area that needs special focus is gender equality. "I genuinely hope there will be a focus on inclusion of Indian women in the economy. We have research to show that India's GDP can grow by 27 percent if the women are brought to the same level of men in terms of economic and workforce participation," she said. In its latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) update released here on Monday, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected India growing at 7.4 percent in 2018 as against China's 6.8 percent, making it the fastest growing country among emerging economies. The Indian economy is estimated to expand 7.8 percent in 2019, as per the IMF. Apparently feeling humiliated and frustrated by police inaction, two sisters, one a rape victim and another a victim of harassment, have written letters in their blood to prime minister Narendra Modi and UP chief minister Yogi Adityanath seeking justice. The sisters, residents of state's Raebareli district, have stopped going to their respective colleges following threats from the culprits. According to the police sources, the elder sister, who was a student of engineering at a college in state's Barabanki district, had allegedly been raped by two students of the same institution in March last year. Though an FIR had been lodged against them they continued to roam freely. The alleged culprits threatened the victim with dire consequences if she did not withdraw the case. The duo allegedly posted obscene messages on the social networking sites after making a fake ID of the younger sister. A complaint in this regard was registered with Raebareli police in November last year but no action was taken. Sources said that the sisters stopped going to their respective colleges after they were threatened with kidnapping and were confined to the four walls of their home for the past several months. In their frustration and feeling humiliated the two wrote letters in their blood to Modi and Adityanath seeking justice. Police sources here said that the culprits had obtained a stay order from the court in the rape case registered against them in Barabanki. ''We have sought help of the social networking site in the harassment case,'' said a police official in Raebareli. Two police constables had been deployed at the home of the victims in Raebareli, sources said. The Shree Rajput Karni Sena said today that a 'Janta curfew' will be imposed on cinema halls across the country if Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Padmaavat' was released on 25 January. "We will go among public now. Janta curfew will be imposed on film halls across the country when the film is released," Lokendra Singh Kalvi, chief patron of the group said. He added a 'janta' curfew on cinema halls meant the public will stop the film from being exhibited. We have asked the cinema hall owners and distributors to support us, he said. Kalvi said he had visited various states and sought support from chief ministers against the film. The organisation, which is opposing the film, said that it had asked distributors to not purchase rights of the movie. Leader of the Opposition in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly Jagadish Shettar said that Rs 5800 crore was being misappropriated by the ruling Congress, in the name of sand imports from Malaysia. Speaking at a press meet here on Tuesday, Shettar said MSIL was buying 36 lakh tons of sand each year and the agreement with the exporters is to import 180 lakh tons in three years. The tender had been called in May he revealed. "Purchases are being made in the name of 'Poseidon FZE', a company that does not exist. This company does not figure in any of the documentation pertaining to the time when the tender was called," Shettar added. Mysore Sales International Limited (MSIL) "MSIL Managing Director Prakash and General Manager Mahaveer are running this racket". The dubious company is registered from June 18, 2017. The tender has been awarded to a bogus company. MD Prakash and IAS officers in the chief minister's office are directly involved in the illegal procurement of sand," Shettar alleged. Shettar demanded that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah should turn over the entire deal to the CBI for investigation. "If he fails to do so, then we will assume that the CM too has a hand in the sand purchase racket," he added. Shettar accused that a false address has been provided by the company that bagged the tender, that too by providing guarantee of a Singaporean bank. "In reality, the bank is not located in Singapore at all," Shettar revealed. He added that neighbouring Tamil Nadu was importing sand from Malaysia at cheaper rates as compared to Karnataka's. Karnataka government was paying Rs 2300 for a ton of Malaysian sand along with Rs 1100 to package it in bags. A total of Rs 3400 is being paid per ton, Shettar stated. Opposition Congress and NCP today scoffed at the Shiv Sena's announcement to go it alone in the 2019 Lok Sabha and state Assembly polls, asking why it continues to be in the BJP-led government even now. Maharashtra Congress spokesperson Sachin Sawant termed the Shiv Sena's decision as "laughable" and "illogical". "The Sena remains an ally in the government and continues to be critical of its policies. The party has scored a century of announcements to pull out of the government which it has not done so far. The people do not take the Sena seriously," he said. NCP spokesperson Nawab Malik demanded the Sena withdraw from the BJP-led state government and face mid-term polls. "We are ready for elections," he said. The fear of defection from its ranks is stopping the Shiv Sena from pulling out of the government, Malik alleged. "The party is unable to come to terms with being the younger brother in the alliance with the BJP," the NCP leader said. The Shiv Sena, at a meeting to re-elect Uddhav Thackeray as party president and complete the procedure of organisational polls, resolved to go solo in the 2019 elections. The party, with 63 MLAs and 18 MPs, is an ally of the BJP in the state and Centre. The eleventh edition of Jaipur Literature Festival is all set to begin from Thursday amid tight security owing to the threats issued by Rajput Karni Sena over the release of movie 'Padmaavat'. A team of senior police officials on Tuesday visited, Diggi Palace, the venue for the festival. Jaipur Police Commissioner Sanjay Agarwal has assured the organisers that the fest will go hassle. "More than 500 security personnels will be deployed at the venue. We are doing an assessment of threats given to Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) chief Prasoon Joshi and screen play writer Javed Akhtar to find out the quantum and kind of security needed for them at the Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF)" Sanjay Agarwal , Police Commissioner of Jaipur said. A few days ago Shree Rajput Karni Sena had threatened that they will not let Prasoon Joshi enter the venue. As per the organisers Prasoon Joshi has not pulled out from the festival "We haven't heard from him or his office. As of now he is coming to Jaipur and will attend the festival as per the previous schedule", Sonjoy Roy organiser of JLF told DH. Joshi is a regular participant at JLF and always pulls crowd through his sessions, he will speak at a session 'Main Aur Woh' on January 28 (Sunday), the fourth day of the festival, which witnesses a huge footfall every year. Featuring more than 240 authors the upcoming Jaipur Literature Festival 2018 will be a culmination of diverse literary, artistic, and discursive forms that will feature Indian and global perspectives. Popular authors including Sir Tom Stoppard, the great British playwright, Instagram phenomenon Rupi Kaur, author of a book of poetry for short attention spans, Michael Ondaatje, Peter Bergen, travel writer Pico Iyer and many more. The Festival will also witness former Afghanistan president Hamid Karzai, Nobel laureate Muhammad Yunus and award-winning investigative journalist Michael Rezendes. Interestingly from Bollywood, noted actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui and film maker Anurag Kashyp will also enthrall the audience. The CBI has begun a probe into an alleged scam of Rs 487 crore related to over-valuation of inferior quality of coal imported from Indonesia which was passed on to NTPC and Aravali Power Corporation as superior quality in collusion with officials. The action of the agency came on the basis of a Directorate of Revenue Intelligence investigation which had shown over-invoicing in the imports between 2011-12 and 2014-15, officials said today. The CBI FIR is against Ahmed A R Buhari, promoter of Coastal Energy Private Limited, Chennai and unidentified officials of National Thermal Power Corporation, Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation, Aravali Power Company Pvt Ltd. The agency booked them under the charges of criminal conspiracy cheating and provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act, the officials said. According to the modus operandi given in the FIR, the NTPC and Aravali Power Corporation Limited had floated global tenders for the supply of imported coal of a certain grade and quality. The grade and quality of the coal are crucial for achieving certain levels of power plant operations. The MMTC, a PSU and Chennai-based Coastal Energy Private Limited, emerged successful bidders for the supply of coal. The CEPL instead of importing coal from Indonesia directly, routed their supply through Dubai-based sister concerns, enabling them to manipulate invoiced and quality certification. It is alleged that they entered into a criminal conspiracy to cheat the government by importing coal of Indonesian origin by fraudulently showing inferior quality coal as that of superior quality, officials said. NTPC, MMTC and Arvarli Power Company Ltd, a joint venture company of NTPC Haryana and Delhi governments operate coal-based thermal power plants for which they import coal through global tenders. CEPL was a successful bidder for supply of coal to NTPC and APCL after which it entered into agreements with its sister concerns in Dubai. When MMTC was a successful bidder, it entered into tripartite agreements with CEPL and its sister concerns in Dubai. The Dubai-based companies entered into agreements with Indonesian exporters for inferior quality coal, officials said. The coal procured by Dubai-based intermediaries was supplied to CEPL or to MMTC through CEPL on the basis of inflated invoiced and manipulated test reports like the certificate of sampling and analysis as coal of higher grade, they said. Once imported, these consignments were provided to NTPC and APCPL as coal of higher grade with higher prices, they said. In order to conceal the original grade of the coal, the importing companies allegedly did not avail duty concessions offered by the government of India for coal imports originating from Indonesia, they further said. To avail such duty concessions, the importers would have to submit factual documents from Indonesian exporters which would have exposed the actual value of the imports, it is alleged. The officials of NTPC did not press for fulfilling duty exemption requirements which they did not do and accepted the consignments of coal, they said. "The fraudulent modus operand adopted by CEPL had resulted in the supply of coal of inferior quality to the said power generation companies, as coal of higher grade with the active criminal participation of public servants concerned of NTPC, APCPL and MMTC by way of misuse of their official position," the FIR said. It is alleged that MMTC and CEPL imported 90 and 57 consignments respectively between 2011-12 and 2014-15 for supplying to NTPC which received 143 of them and APCPL which received four. MMTC and CEPL provided inflated values for these imports. According to DRI probe, over-invoicing of Rs 363 crore was done by the MMTC while Rs 124 crore was done by CEPL. "Thus a total excess amount of more than Rs 487 crore was paid by NTPC and APCPL to CEPL/MMTC in the import of coal..." it alleged. Amid the cries from the Rajput outfits to ban screening of 'Padmaavat', the descendants of Malik Mohammad Jaisi, the sufi poet, who authored the epic with the same title in 1540, have accused Sanjay Leela Bhansali of ''stealing'' the story and have demanded royalty. The descendants of Jaisi, who hailed from a small town Jais in Uttar Pradesh's Amethi district, were also contemplating to move the court if their demand was not conceded. ''Bhansali had said after the protests that the film was not not based on historical facts but was based on the epic Padmavat....it is quite clear that he stole the story without taking our prior consent,'' said Mohammad Nizam Khan, one of the descendants of Jaisi. Speaking to Deccan Herald over phone from Jais, Khan said that the producers of the movie must part with a share of the income for the ''development'' of Jais and renovation of Jaisi Research Institute in the town besides Jaisi's descendants. ''Jaisi's ancestral house has almost disappeared....only the boundary walls remain...the building of the Research Institute after him is also in a very bad shape....the money can be used for their renovation and maintenance,'' Khan said. He said that former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, who represented Amethi Lok Sabha seat, had established the Institute and declared Jaisi's house a monument. Khan said that the people of the town had no ''problems'' with the film. The descendants plan to see the movie as and when it was screened at the nearest cinema hall in Raebareli town, about 30 kilometres away. ''After all the film is not historical...it is based on the story of Padmavat,'' he remarked. Malik Muhammad Jaisi, who died in 1542), was an Indian Sufi poet and pir (a Muslim saint or holy man). He wrote in the 'Awadhi' language, and originally in the Persian 'Nasta' script. His most notable work is the epic poem 'Padmavat'. Jaisi, who belonged to the 'Bhakti Kal' (period) of Hindi literature, is known for promoting communal amity and love. The CPM is reaching out to Opposition parties for initiating a process to bring an impeachment motion in the coming Budget Session against Chief Justice Dipak Misra, who is facing charges of selective allocation of cases among others from brother judges. So far, the CPM had not called for impeaching the Chief Justice over the charges made by four senior Supreme Court judges. "It looks like the crisis is not resolved yet. So, there is a need to intervene. We are discussing with the Opposition parties on the possibility of an impeachment motion against the Chief Justice in the Budget session ", the CPM's general secretary Sitaram Yechury said. The Budget Session of Parliament is set to commence on January 29 and the Union Budget for 2018-19 will be presented on February 1. The first phase of the session will be from January 29 to February 9. After a recess, Parliament will meet again from March 5 to April 6. The Opposition would need signatures of at least 50 MPs in the Rajya Sabha or 100 MPS in the Lok Sabha to set in motion the process of impeachment of a judge. Earlier, parties like the Congress, CPI and CPM had demanded that there is a need for a probe into the issues flagged by the judges. Demanding a check on the wild elephant menace, the coffee growers and labourers staged a roadblock and later attempted to lay siege to the police station urging the police to file an FIR against forest officials, on Tuesday. On Monday, Coffee grower Mohandas had lost his life after an elephant attacked him at Karadigodu. The protesters shouted slogans against the government and blocked the road. They alleged that the Centre and state governments have not taken any concrete steps to check the menace. Cheranda Nanda Subbaiah said, "the forest department pays a meagre amount of Rs 5 lakh for the loss of life in an elephant attack. The government should fix at least Rs 2 crore as compensation for loss of life." Former MLC Arun Machaiah welcomed the court order to relocate wild elephants in Hassan. However, the forest department has failed to implement the court order, he said. Bowing to pressure from the protesters, the police filed an FIR against forest officials. The Human Resource Development (HRD) ministry has decided to roll out a special drive in September to bring out-of-school children back to formal education. "We are formulating an action plan to identify out-of-school children and bring them back to schools across the country. The special drive will be rolled out in September. The plan is being given a final shape," HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar said. The nationwide exercise, to be carried out jointly with the respective state governments, will put special focus on identifying out-of-school children in rural areas. "Such an exercise (survey of out-of-school children) has been done on papers. It is not going to happen this time. Community participation in the nationwide exercise will ensure that a survey of out of school children will not just remain a paperwork," Javadekar added. Several reports indicate that at least 70-80 lakh children are still out-of-schools and a majority of them are in rural areas. Officials said that the number of out of school children may go up if a proper survey is done across the country. "The issue was discussed at length at a recent meeting of the Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE). All the states agreed to support the ministry in carrying out a ground level survey for identification of the out of school children to bring them back to formal schooling," an official said. On the basis of the findings of the field survey, to be conducted under the districts collectors, a record of the out-of school children will be updated with Aadhaar and other details in all districts. "Once the database is ready, tracking of the school children is expected to be an easy affair. With the help of local community and other resources, parents will be motivated to send their wards back to school," an official said. A subcommittee of the CABE, headed by Union Minister of State for HRD Upendra Kushwaha, has recommended in its report recently that children from marginalised sections should be "incentivised" for their attendance in schools to ensure that they do not drop out midway to completion of their 12 years of schooling. "The committee has made several good suggestions on bringing out-of-school children back to schools. It's report is under consideration of the ministry," the official added. Dalit Sangharsha Samithi regional convener N Veerabhadrayya has condemned Union Minister for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Anantkumar Hegde's statement on barking dogs. Briefing reporters he said, "the minister had compared Dalits to barking dogs. Union ministers should see all equally. He should not divide the society through provocative and controversial statements. The comparison has hurt the sentiments of the Dalits." DSS district convener H L Diwakar flayed the ZP CEO who had allegedly slapped a technical assistant at Somwarpet. Action should be initiated against the CEO, he said. The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked Aadhaar challengers to explain how asking citizens to cite the 12-digit number made any difference, as people were otherwise living in a networked world and sharing all their personal details with other entities. A five-judge constitution bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra observed that all other personal data of citizens was with private entities and asked the petitioners how insertion of Aadhaar number would make any change. "Our personal data is anyway with private entities. So, does interpolation of Aadhaar number make any difference," the bench asked senior advocate Shyam Divan, who is appearing for some of the petitioners. The bench, which also comprised Justices A K Sikri, A M Khanwilkar, D Y Chandrachud and Ashok Bhushan, told the lawyer that citizens were living in a networked world now. Citizens' consent Divan said since private entities were part of the enrollment process for Aadhaar, the data collected by them could be "completely compromised". "Democracy, after all, entails choices. Is there any request by citizens or consent on their part for massive profiling? Is it permissible under the Constitution to have a complete surveillance society," he asked. During the hearing, the court observed that biometric information, which was collected during the process of Aadhaar enrollment, was deposited in a central database and citizens were required to only give their 12-digit unique number for the purpose of identification. The bench is hearing a clutch of petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the government's flagship Aadhaar programme and its enabling act of 2016. Divan, for his part, said around 49,000 private agencies involved in the process of enrollment for Aadhaar, were blacklisted last year by the government, which has raised a serious question mark over the sanctity of data, including biometrics of citizens, collected by them. Army soldiers will carry the flags of ten ASEAN nations while school kids will perform skits at Rajpath on the cultural heritage of these South East Asian nations, whose heads of the states will be the chief guests at the 69th Republic Day. Breaking away from the tradition of having a single leader attending the R-Day as its chief guest, India would roll out the red carpet for the top leadership of Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia, Laos and Brunei. For the first time, the entire ASEAN block has been invited for the national parade to commemorate 25 years of India-ASEAN relations. At the beginning of the parade, a Mi-17 chopper will carry the ASEAN flag in its under-sling. The helicopter will be a part of an Indian Air Force's five aircraft group that would also carry the national ensign as well as the flags of the three services. The Ministry of External Affairs will showcase the salient features of the ASEAN in two tableau and school children will present a short kaleidoscope of the rich heritage of these South East Asian nations. Other highlights of the parade will be a thrilling display of dare-devil biking skills of 111-member strong all women team of the Border Security Forces, said Maj Gen Raj Pal Punia, a senior officer from Indian Army's Delhi area. The full dress rehearsal occurred Tuesday. In the previous editions. the biking shows that impressed even former US President Barak Obama, were conducted exclusively by the menfolk of the BSF. Within months of the Doklam standoff where border guarding troops from India and China had a face-off for 72 days, the government has decided to showcase the peaceful ways of guarding India's contentious border with China. A tableau from Indo-Tibetan Border Police will showcase its border guarding skills. Its the second ITBP tableau in two decades as the last one happened in 1998. There would be 23 tableau from central government and state governments including Karnataka, which will focus on the wildlife of the state. Indian Army soldiers from the regiments of Punjab, Maratha Light Infantry, Dogra and Ladakh Scouts, and Madras Regimental Centre will be parading on the central boulevard, in addition to the Navy, Air Force and Coast Guard contingents. The 90-minute parade will be led by General Officer Commanding Delhi Area, Lt Gen Asit Mistry and culminate with a flypast. With the help of an NGO, the Birur Police on Tuesday rescued five people who were victims of human trafficking and were working on a borewell, at K Chattanahalli in Tarikere taluk. The rescued victims are from Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra. It was said that Sanjay of Madhya Pradesh had sold seven youths including a minor after taking Rs 10,000 each to Manoj, with a promise to offer a job in a solar firm in Karnataka. They were first taken to Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh and were later sent to Karnataka. Having realised that they were cheated, two youths namely Mangal and Ramdas had escaped and returned to their native. On reaching their native, they had complained to Jansahayog, an NGO and had appealed to rescue the remaining five youths. After accepting the complaint, the NGO had sought help from the International Justice Mission in New Delhi, who in turn contacted Vikasana Seva Samsthe in Tarikere. Labourer Subhash Parate's brother Mishri has filed a complaint with the Birur Police Station. The police have taken two drivers, a cook and a bore driller in custody while rescuing the youths. The rescued youths are Rameshwara (23) of Maharashtra, Santhosh (30), Rajpal (22), Subhash (22), Lalazallar (18) of Madhya Pradesh. Speaking to DH, victim Subhash said: "We were harassed and made to work for the last four months. We were not given food properly and made to work 24 hours. We have not taken a bath nor changed our clothes. Our mobile phones were snatched. We did not have a hope of reaching our family." All the rescued victims were produced before Assistant Commissioner B B Saroja. The police have registered a case under IPC section 370, 374, Bonded Labour System Abolition Act Section 16, 7 and 8. Home Minister Ramalinga Reddy has said that crime rate in Karnataka is less when compared to other states in India. Speaking to reporters during his visit to Karnire near Mulki on Tuesday, he said that, according to National Crime Records Bureau, the crime rates in Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra are much higher than that of Karnataka. Karnataka is in the 10th position in the crime rate in the country. He said that Union ministers like Prakash Javadekar have been claiming that the crime rate in Karnataka has increased, without going through the statistics from the NCRB. When the BJP was in power in Karnataka, the crime rate was 6% which has come down to 5% now, Reddy stated. "The law and order situation in Karnataka is good. The police are functioning efficiently. It is the BJP that is instigating violence in Dakshina Kannada. If the organisations affiliated to the political parties keep silence, then there will be peace in the district," he said. 'Sponsored' bandhs On BJP's allegation of Congress-sponsored bandh in Karnataka on January 25, he said, "It is the farmers and Kannada organisations that called for a bandh. Do they ask us while calling for a bandh? The state government has no connection with the bandh. We will provide all security measures for the BJP's scheduled programme." To a query on transfer of Superintendent of Police Sudhir Kumar Reddy, he said, "Belagavi SP Ravikanthe Gowda has been serving in Belagavi for the last three years. The Election Commission of India (ECI) had directed the state government to strictly follow the rules pertaining to transfer and posting of its officials who are directly or indirectly connected with the process of conducting the upcoming elections to the State Assembly. As a result, Ravikanthe Gowda was transferred to Dakshina Kannada and Sudhir Kumar Reddy was transferred to Belagavi. As Reddy was an efficient officer, we have transferred him to a district where there are 18 Assembly constituencies." Discretion is the better part of valour seems to be the approach of theatre owners in Rajasthan and Bihar, who have decided against screening the controversial film Padmaavat despite a Supreme Court diktat and police promise of protection. The film is slated for release on January 25. The decision by the Rajasthan film distributors' association comes after various fringe groups threatened to burn down cinema halls that screen the movie. Earlier, a movie hall in Kota was vandalised just for showing the trailers of the movie. "Karni Sena has given us an ultimatum against releasing the film in cinema halls even if the government allows. We have decided not to screen because protestors will vandalise our cinema halls and security of people will be compromised," a film distributor told DH. Jaipur Police Commissioner Sanjay Agarwal said, "We are ready to give security cover to the cinema hall owners in case the film is screened in Rajasthan." Police on toes Hours after the Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed the state's plea against the film, Rajasthan Police geared up to deal with likely law and order issues. Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria said, "There is no way out but to ensure law and order. And this will remain our priority." Amid protests against the release, Additional Director General (Law and Order) N R K Reddy said, "We have directed all SPs in 33 districts to stay alert. The film is releasing on the eve of Republic Day and also coincides with the five-day Jaipur Literature Festival starting on January 25." In Bihar... Even though the Nitish Kumar regime in Bihar has not taken a stand whether it will allow release of Padmaavat or not, theatre owners have decided not to screen Sanjay Leela Bhansali's magnum opus. The decision comes in the wake of a threat issued by Karni Sena of "dire consequences" if the cinema hall owners "made even a feeble attempt to screen the movie." The first evidence of complete surrender before Karni Sena was when Cinepolis, on Tuesday cancelled all the advance bookings. The popular movie theatre in Prakash Jha's mall in Patna refunded the money to 50 movie buffs who had booked tickets for Friday. Similar reports poured in from Purnia, Gaya and Bhagalpur, where the Karni Sena activists have warned the cinema hall owners to face the music if they decided to abide by the apex court directive. "Keeping in mind the emotions of Rajputs, it will be better if the theatre owners in the State voluntarily opt for not screening the controversial movie," said Dhirendra Singh, state president of Karni Sena. Row in Gujarat The Rajput community in Gujarat continued to demand a ban on screening Padmaavat. "The chief ministers of more than eight states had expressed security concerns if the movie is released. The Supreme Court would have considered all the aspects but our opposition to the release continues," Lokendrasinh Kalvi, head of the Rajput Karni Sena, told mediapersons in Rajkot. "I request movie hall owners to announce a curfew and not screen the movie. I also appeal to people to cooperate. If you are so keen to watch the movie, it will be available on Internet," he said. Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel said the state government was bound by Supreme Court ruling to provide adequate security but urged the people to boycott the movie on their own and help maintain law and order in the state. United fight Earlier in the day, members of various communities from Rajkot, including Rajput, Patidaar and Bohara community, came together under the banner of Padmaavat Sangharsh Samiti, to oppose the release. Even Patel quota stir leader Hardik Patel has jumped into the fray and written to the chief minister against release of Padmaavat. Protest blockades were reported from North Gujarat, Saurashtra, Central Gujarat and Surat in South Gujarat. Several groups burnt tyres and caused traffic jams on the highways and it was only after intervention by local police could the vehicular traffic be resumed. The state transport department said that it had lost over Rs 2 crore due to stoppage of services as well as arson. The operations to several places in North Gujarat continued to be suspended for second day, causing inconvenience to travellers. Owners of nine multiplexes in Ahmedabad decided not to screen the movie. Rakesh Patel, an owner of cineplexes in Ahmedabad, Mehsana and Dehgam said that neither he nor nine other multiplexes would screen the movie due to "security concerns". The tussle in CPM top leadership after a contentious voting in Central Committee over political line aggravated on Tuesday with senior leader Prakash Karat saying General Secretary Sitaram Yechury did not offer to resign, only to be contradicted by the latter. Yechury's remarks came after Polit Bureau (PB) member Karat, also a former general secretary, told a web portal that there was no offer of resignation from the general secretary in the Central Committee (CC) after the rejection of his line on party's relationship with the Congress in the fight against the BJP. "I had offered to resign both in the Polit Bureau and Central Committee. Both the CC and PB unanimously said such a move will send a wrong signal that the party will be seen as divided on the eve of party congress and Tripura elections. I abided by the decision," Yechury told DH. Karat emphasised that the party runs under a collective leadership, and replied to a question whether Yechury offered to resign, "no, he did not offer to resign." Asked whether the defeat of the Yechury line in a voting undermines his position, Karat said, "We don't look at it that way. In our party, general secretary is not the supreme leader. We have a collective way of functioning..." Yechury, however, said in a press conference in Kolkata on Sunday, "I am here because the PB and CC asked him to continue as General Secretary. Factions fight The usually media-shy Karat contradicting Yechury and the latter's response within hours are seen as an intensification of the tussle with the Kerala unit-dominated Karat faction and supporters of Yechury. Sources said the Karat faction-dominated PB followed by the CC rejected Yechury's propositions like sending both the drafts - of Karat and Yechury - to the party congress. Yechury told both the PB and CC during the three-day Central Committee meeting in Kolkata that if his contentions are binned, it would be "untenable" for him to continue as general secretary. However, sensing trouble, Karat faction then argued against it as it would send out a signal of division in the party. Sources said the divide in the party is "much more vertical" compared to the previous instances when general secretaries P Sundarayya and Harkishen Singh Surjeet were on the side of minorities. Sundarayya was against joining hands with Jan Sangh during Emergency while Surjeet had argued for allowing Jyoti Basu to become prime minister in the United Front government. Union Minister Prakash Javadekar who is also BJP's election in-charge for Karnataka Assembly polls said that the BJP will win 150 seats in the upcoming Assembly elections. The minister was speaking at the BJP leaders' meeting in Mangaluru on Tuesday. "The election is a fight not between political parties, but between two cultures. It is a fight between the Congress that is engaged in caste, money power and communal polarisation and the BJP that believes in development. No room will be left for the formation of a coalition government in Karnataka," said Javadekar. "Only in the BJP a tea-seller could become prime minister and a person from a Dalit community could become President of India. The Congress is engaged in divide and rule policy and does not speak of development. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah is keen on an alliance with the SDPI. He has shown a soft corner towards terror organisations," he alleged. Javadekar further said, "A minister moves with rowdies in Mangaluru. The government has been recompensing the family of a man with criminal background who dies in an encounter. However, the government thinks twice to issue compensation when a Hindu is murdered. There is a need to oppose such vote bank politics." Using the subsidised rice given by the Centre, the state government has implemented "Anna bhagya" scheme. In reality, it should have been named "Modi Bhagya," he said. Javadekar alleged that although the Centre has released Rs 1,000 crore for the development of Mangaluru International Airport, the state government has failed to take up the work. Similarly, the land acquisition process has not been completed for the Kulshekar-Karkala-Shivamogga highway in spite of releasing grant. Later, he announced the "Karnataka Vikas Ka Jodi Yeddyurappa Modi." In Udupi Union Minister Prakash Javadekar said that the Congress will be wiped out totally from the country's political scenario. Speaking at the meeting held for the district BJP members on Tuesday, the Union minister said that the Congress would pay for its arrogant and adamant nature. Already 22 states are under the BJP rule; Karnataka would be the 23rd one, he said. "The Congress has a money culture. It is a hypocritical and corrupt party with leaders without brain. The state has become a hub for violence, with Sangh Parivar activists massacred here. People are now well aware that if they need to survive, it is only the BJP that offers a secure and stable government. Is Ahinda policy of Siddaramaiah making life better for the public?" said the minister. Coming down heavily on Siddaramaiah and Rahul Gandhi, the minister said that both drag Gods into their political brawl. Religious and spiritual issues are also political for Congressmen. Even Rahul's temple visits did not yield better results as God could easily differentiate between the real and fake devotee. Siddaramaiah calls himself a Hindu but is against visiting Sri Krishna temple. He also ridiculed the transfer of Dakshina Kannada Superintendent Sudhir Kumar Reddy calling it only for the sake of his stringent action against sand mafia. Sincere bureaucrats are transferred for reasons unknown. The Election Commission strictly prohibits the transfer of officers during elections. However the state government is into unethical deeds. He added that, in Karnataka, Tipu Jayanti is celebrated grandly but Vivekananda's birth anniversary is forgotten. The law and order mechanism is being totally spoiled. The police are puppets in the hands of the government and the ministers. The government failed to nab the killers of Kalburgi, Gauri Lankesh and Sangh Parivar activists. Mahadayee The Union minister said that he would try convincing the Goa chief minister over Mahadyee river row. The issue is unnecessarily being dragged by the Congress government. He challenged the Congress to convince the Opposition in the Goa Assembly. He also alleged that the impending statewide protest on January 25 is the conspiracy by the Congress-led state government. The issue had been taken to the court by the UPA government and at present Congress deserves no right to condemn the matter in favour of Karnataka. State bandh on January 25 MP Shobha Karandlaje accused the state government of calling for a state bandh on January 25, for fear of facing BJP leader Amit Shah, who is to visit Karnataka as party of his campaign rally. The citizens will recognise these as tricks by the government and give the Congress a fitting answer, she said. The Supreme Court on Tuesday said there can't be a criminal investigation into the marriage of an adult woman since it is a question of individual freedom and choice. A three-judge bench presided over by Chief Justice Dipak Misra orally told the NIA - probing instances of 'love jihad' and larger conspiracy into marriage of Kerala's Shafin Jahan with Akhila, a Hindu girl, who was renamed Hadiya - that it was her decision to get married to a particular person. The court once again questioned the Kerala High Court's order of May, 2017, to annul their marriage on a plea by girl's father Asokan K M while entertaining a habeas corpus petition. "She is 24 years. We can't go into her thinking process to decide if she has made an independent choice or not. We can't examine whether she was brainwashed. She has appeared before us and said it was her decision to marry the person," the bench, also comprising justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, said. The court allowed a plea made by senior advocate Kapil Sibal to implead Akhila alias Hadiya as a party in the matter. It put the matter for further consideration on February 22. Advocate Madhavi Divan, appearing for the girl's father, submitted that the marriage in her case was a device to legitimise her confinement with conversion institution. "We are concerned about her welfare. It is not a case where two people meet and agree to get married," she submitted. "Marriage has to be separated from any aspect of criminal activity, otherwise, we will set a bad precedent. There can't be any inquiry into her marital status," the bench said. The bench, however, said the NIA would continue its probe as directed on August 16. On November 27, after interacting with Akhila, the top court had set her free from parents' custody to pursue homoeopathy course in Salem. The protests against release of movie Padmaavat turned violent late on Tuesday in Ahmedabad, leading police to fire two rounds in the air. A group of about 1,500 people, claiming to be affiliated to Rajput Karni Sena, gathered outside Dev Arc Mall that houses a movie theatre, to hold a candle march. The crowd then moved across the upmarket S G Highway towards another mall - Acropolis Mall housing another upmarket cinema hall. They shouted slogans bringing traffic on this busy road to a grinding halt. The protestors moved on to two other malls and resorted to arson and burning more than two dozen vehicles parked outside the malls. The mob also resorted to stone-pelting. They looted shops in one of the malls. The police fired two rounds in the air to disperse the mob. The multiplexes located in these malls had announced that they would not screen the movie. As the news of violence spread, Gujarat Deputy Chief Minister, who had earlier appealed to the people to boycott the movie to ensure law and order, made a fresh appeal for "calm". The leaders of Karni Sena denied any role in the violence and urged the state administration to initiate action as they deem fit. Upset with the Supreme Court's refusal to ban movie Padmaavat, Rajput outfits on Tuesday urged the Central Government to issue an ordinance banning the film. The apex court dismissed review petitions of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh governments against its earlier decision staying a ban on screening of the film in four states. Giriraj Singh Lotwara, president of Shree Rajput Sabha said, "We are deeply hurt by the decision of Supreme Court. We request the BJP government to bring an ordinance within 24 hours. Otherwise the protests will take an ugly turn." Shri Rajput Karni Sena, that is spearheading the protests, said that the government must use its powers to cancel the Censor Board's certification for the film. The Narendra Modi government is upset with Union Minister of State for Human Resource Development (HRD) Satya Pal Singh's remarks that Charles Darwin's theory of evolution was "scientifically wrong." It has also rejected the Minister's suggestion to sponsor an international conference to deliberate on the issue and decide as to "what is true and factual" about Darwin's theory of evolution. Human Resource Development (HRD) Minister Prakash Javadekar advised Singh to refrain from making comments on issues "which do not come within his domain." A section of scientists had objected to the Minister's remarks and wanted him to retract. "Darwin's theory is scientifically wrong. It needs to be changed in school and college curriculum. Nobody, including our ancestors, in writing or orally, have said they saw an ape turning into a man. No books we have read or the tales told to us by our grandparents had such a mention; our ancestors have nowhere mentioned that they saw an ape turning into a man," Singh, who is in-charge of higher education department in the HRD Ministry, had recently said. He was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an event held in Aurangabad district of Maharashtra last Friday. "When a Minister of human resource development makes such claims, it harms the scientific community's efforts to propagate scientific thoughts and rationality through critical education and modern scientific research," a section of the scientist community said, demanding the Minister take back his words. The Centre has asked all public-funded universities and colleges to provide free-of-cost high-speed internet access and Wi-Fi facilities to students and faculties on campus by August 15. The Human Resource Development (HRD) Ministry in a communication to all higher educational institutions said that "some telecom and internet service providers" have evinced interest in providing universities and colleges with high-speed internet access and Wi-Fi facilities. "It is expected that the facility will be provided by the TSP/ISP (telecom service provider/internet service provider) at their own cost. There shall be no financial implications to the institutions on account of implementation of this project," a ministry official wrote to the heads of all higher educational institutions on January 15. The ministry suggested that the institutions approach any of the licensed telecom and internet service providers for installation of high-speed internet and Wi-Fi facility on their campus. The ministry, however, refrained from listing the names of service providers that have "evinced" interest. According to sources, Reliance Jio is one. "The TSP should offer free data, which shall not be less that 1 GB per month per user (students and faculties) in the university/institution/college for the entire period of agreement," read the terms and conditions specified by the ministry. The Wi-Fi services will be made available at the hotspots selected by the institutions concerned. "Each user shall be allowed a minimum of two devices (laptop/smart phone) concurrently," the ministry said. The makers of Padmaavat on Tuesday made a last-ditch effort to end the ongoing tussle with Karni Sena over the film's release on January 25. They held a special screening for a group they described as Shree Rajput Karni Sena "representatives", in Noida to arrive at an amicable solution. However, the filmmakers' efforts appeared to have gone in vain as outfit founder Lokendra Singh Kalvi reiterated objections to the movie and said there will be "a public curfew" in cinema halls in various parts of the country, including Rajasthan, on January 25. "We watched the film. And my first reaction is that the Rajputs won and Sanjay Leela Bhansali had to bend (before Karni Sena's demand). There is no dream sequence or intimate scene between Padmavati and Allauddin Khilji," Suresh Chavhanke, who played the role of a mediator between the filmmakers and Karni Sena supporters, told reporters after watching the film. Chavhanke, who is the editor-in-chief of Hindi news channel Sudarshan TV, said a total of 40 people representing Shree Rajput Karni Sena watched the movie along with him and left satisfied that there was no such content in the movie that would hurt the sentiments of Rajputs. Nonsense, says Kalvi "It's all nonsense. Nobody from Shree Rajput Karni Sena has gone to watch the movie. I am also in Porbandar at the moment," Kalvi told DH over phone. Karni Sena member Mahipal Singh Makrana said his outfit will continue with its protests against the release of the movie. Chief Secretary Ratna Prabha has directed officials to take up the fencing and desilting work of the Bellandur Lake in a week. To assess the lake's condition after the recent fire, she conducted a meeting of officials of Bangalore Development Authority, Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board and Karnataka State Pollution Control Board, on Tuesday. In the meeting, apart from finding the cause of the fire, she ordered the officials to fence the waterbody and desilt it. The chief secretary also directed the pollution control board to monitor the water quality daily. "We have sent the sample of the lake water to a lab and are expecting to get the report in two to three days," she said. It is learnt that industries and apartments situated near the lake are letting out sewage water into the lake. She also sought the help of the Indian Army to protect the lake. This will prevent people from dumping garbage or setting a fire in the lake. Cab aggregator Namma TYGR, backed by former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy, has run into a bumpy road with RTO officials seizing the cars attached to the company for operating without licence. The action has led to a political slugfest with JD(S) leaders alleging a conspiracy in the issue. RTO officials refused to comment on the matter, stating that they were just doing their job. Drivers' union leader Tanveer Pasha, a JD(S) functionary instrumental in the formation of Namma TYGR, said the RTO officials showed "high-handed" behaviour by seizing the vehicles without serving a notice. "The application for license demands that we comply with the Karnataka On Demand Transportation Technology Aggregator Rules, 2016. However, several provisions of the rule are being held by the high court. We will apply for a licence in a week," he said. Transport Commissioner B Dayananda initially refused to speak on the matter. When insisted for a clarity on the issue of the legality of licensing under the rules, he merely said: "The stay was on provisions in the rules and not the entire rules itself. Let them come under the legal ambit first." The BBMP on Tuesday asked a popular rooftop bar-cum-restaurant in Indiranagar to produce its trade licence and other important documents in a week's time. Following a high court order, BBMP Joint Commissioner (East) Ashok held a meeting on Tuesday with owners of the bar 'Tippler On the Roof' and representatives of eight residents' welfare associations in the area. The high court had asked the authorities to hear out the bar owners. Officials said the bar owners had been asked to produce the trade licence, building plan sanction, clearances from the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board and the fire force. The main charge against the restaurant is that it functioned on the rooftop without necessary permissions. Residents' welfare associations in the locality have also accused the restaurant of playing music beyond the prescribed decibel levels and failing to comply with fire safety norms. 'Act against violators' "We've also asked the authorities to act against several other rooftop restaurants that failed to comply with rules," said Raj Kumar Pillai, a local resident. The restaurant has been asked to submit the documents to the joint commissioner by January 30. Ashok was not available for comment. The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Centre to take a decision within three months on a 2016 missive sent by the Tamil Nadu government seeking an approval to release seven convicts in the 1991 Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. The letter sent on March 2, 2016, had said that while the state government has already decided to release the seven convicts, it is necessary to seek the Centre's concurrence as per an apex court order of 2015. On an application moved by the seven convicts, a bench of Justices Ranjan Gogoi, A M Sapre and Navin Sinha asked Additional Solicitor General Pinky Anand to take a call on the letter of the state government within three months. Senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi, appearing for Tamil Nadu government, supported the demands of the convicts and said the Centre should respond to the letter. Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated on the night of May 21, 1991, at Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu by a woman suicide bomber, identified as Dhanu, at an election rally. Fourteen others, including Dhanu herself, were also killed. Advocate Prabhu, who appeared for the seven convicts - V Sriharan alias Murugan, T Suthendraraja alias Santham, A G Perarivalan alias Arivu, Jayakumar, Robert Payas, P Ravichandaran and Nalini - said they have been in jail for 25 years now and have remained stuck between two governments. He said the convicts in their application were seeking a direction from the court to the Centre to take a call on the letter written by the state government either way. City's children are voicing out their opinions and proving that they are not a group that can be taken for a ride. They are raising their voice and making sure that their opinions are taken into consideration in the city building process. The Bangalore Children's Forum (Bangalore Makkala Vedike) has expressed dissatisfaction with the draft of the Revised Master Plan 2031 which has been taken up without taking children into consideration. Speaking at a press conference here on Tuesday, Lakshmi a 12-year-old from a city slum said, "The master plan has not made any effort to understand our needs," she said. From schools to playgrounds, the children stressed on their all-round development "Government is shutting down government schools. It is difficult for us to enrol in a private school. Therefore, improving the quality of education of government schools and opening more schools will benefit many poor children." Lakshmi added. Yangamma, a student of Laggare, said, "Cultural centres, stadiums and libraries must be built in every ward to identify the potential of children. Primary health centres should also be opened." Children from various parts of Bengaluru raised their voice to include certain aspects such as playgrounds for children in the master plan which the current one does not mention. After a trip to Washington D.C last week, San Diego County Supervisor Kristin Gaspar has formed a committee to run for Congress. Federal Election Commission records show Gaspar formed a committee to run for a seat held by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Vista. Issa announced earlier this month that he will not run for re-election, a decision that brought a wave of Republican hopefuls into the conservative-leaning district. Gaspar joined the Board of Supervisors last year after defeating Democrat Dave Roberts. She campaigned on her credentials running her family-owned physical therapy business, her work as mayor of Encinitas and work in the community, particularly with her childrens schools and cheerleading teams. She also campaigned against Roberts and a scandal involving his staff that dogged him during the second half of his term. Four members of Roberts staff abruptly resigned in spring 2015 and accused the supervisor of using his employees to assist with his campaign, hostility, and of having an improper, but non-sexual relationship with a member of his staff. Roberts denied all of the allegations. Three of the women filed legal claims that the county settled for $310,000. Jason Roe was Gaspars consultant in the 2016 race, and Federal Election Commission paperwork for her campaign includes his offices address. Roe has run other successful GOP campaigns, including for San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer. In her first meeting as a supervisor, Gaspar was the sole vote against a 12.5 percent pay raise for board members. She said that, as a businesswoman, she determines compensation for employees based on the job. Awkwardly, I sit here, having been sworn in just 24 hours ago, and I can be the first to admit that I dont know how to get past that first fundamental question, she said before the vote. When the pay hike took effect, Gaspar accepted the hike. Not accepting it would create a disparity among supervisors who all perform the same job serving the public, she said in a statement in March. Gaspar was a swing vote on a bill that banned new marijuana dispensaries and farms in the county, creating a moratorium weeks after Californians passed Proposition 64, a ballot measure that legalizes, regulates and taxes marijuana. In San Diego County, 57 percent of voters supported Prop 64 with its strongest support in Encinitas, where Gaspar served as mayor. More than 65 percent of Encinitas voters backed the proposition. Gaspar, 38, who recently became chairwoman of the Board of Supervisors, was on Capitol Hill last week, where she met for 10 minutes with House Speaker Paul Ryan. Issa, R-Vista, announced earlier this month that hes not running for re-election, a decision that prompted a series of Republicans to jump into the race for the GOP-leaning seat. Gaspar joins Assemblyman Rocky Chavez, R-Oceanside, Board of Equalization Member Diane Harkey, R-San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano Councilman Brian Maryott and patent lawyer Joshua Schoonover. Across the aisle, Issas opponent from 2016, Doug Applegate, is running again. Attorney Mike Levin, businessman Paul Kerr and Sara Jacobs, the former CEO of an international non-profit, are also running as Democrats. The seat has become one of the most-watched in this years midterms after Issa defeated Applegate by 1,621 votes in 2016, the closest margin of any federal race in the country. About 37 percent of voters are registered Republicans, while another 31 percent are Democrats and 26.5 percent do not belong to a party. The district runs from La Jolla and up the coast to Dana Point in Orange County. The San Diego portion of the district has about 75 percent of the voters. Gaspars supervisor seat includes Del Mar, Encinitas, and Solana Beach all of which overlap with the congressional district as well as Escondido. --Joshua Stewart is a reporter for the San Diego Union-Tribune. Save my User ID and Password Some subscribers prefer to save their log-in information so they do not have to enter their User ID and Password each time they visit the site. To activate this function, check the 'Save my User ID and Password' box in the log-in section. This will save the password on the computer you're using to access the site. Note: If you choose to use the log-out feature, you will lose your saved information. This means you will be required to log-in the next time you visit our site. Subscriber content preview Solar industry on edge as Trump weighs tariffs on panels President Trump has until Friday to act on a recommendation for tariffs of up to 35 percent. By DAVID KOENIG and SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press DALLAS Some in the U.S. solar-power industry are hoping a decision this week by President Donald Trump doesn't bring on an eclipse. Companies that install solar-power systems for homeowners and utilities are bracing for Trump's call on whether to slap tariffs on imported panels. . . . login or purchase a To read this story in fullor purchase a subscription. SC to decide on all cases related to death of Justice Loya The apex court fixed the first week of February for further hearing in the case related with the death of Justice Loya. The Supreme Court's decision comes after it heard pleas filed by three petitioners seeking SIT probe in Justice Loya death case. A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud also said an appropriate bench of the apex court would hear the petitions filed by Congress leader Tehseen Poonawalla and Maharashtra journalist B S Lone. "I'm hopeful the decision will be in our favour. I believe justice will be served to Justice Loya. We demand that the case be heard in an independent organisation," Lone was reported to have pleadede before the court. "List the matters on January 22, 2018, before the appropriate bench as per the roster," the CJI's bench said. A bench headed by Justice Arun Mishra had, on 16 January, ordered the matters to be listed before an appropriate bench and had not fixed any specific date for hearing. It had left it to the Maharashtra government to decide which documents, relating to Loya's death, could be handed over to the petitioners. The state government, which had filed documents in a sealed cover relating to special CBI judge B H Loya's death, had during the hearing opposed the petitioners' demand that the entire material should be handed over to them for perusal. "Let the documents be placed on record within seven days and if it is considered appropriate, copies be furnished to the petitioners. Put up before the appropriate bench," the apex court had said in its 16 January order. The assignment of the case to the bench hearing the PILs was one of the disputes raised by the four dissenting judges during a rare press conference on 12 January. Loya, who was hearing the sensitive Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case, had allegedly died of cardiac arrest in Nagpur on 1 December 2014, when he had gone to attend the wedding of a colleague's daughter. BJP President along with Rajasthan home minister Gulabchand Kataria, Rajasthan-based businessman Vimal Patni, former Gujarat police chief P C Pande, Additional Director General of Police Geeta Johri and Gujarat police officers Abhay Chudasama and N K Amin, have already been discharged in the case. Australias 620,000 migrant-owned businesses are, through their hard work and ambition, making a significant contribution to the national economy, according to CGU Insurance. More than 900 business owners were surveyed as part of the insurers Migrant Small Business Report, which it developed to shine a light on the role migrants play in Australias small business sector. The research revealed that four in five (83%) migrant business owners started their first business after moving to Australia, and a quarter started their business to try out an innovative or new idea (23% compared to 16% of non-migrants). Meanwhile, one in two are aiming to generate higher revenue in the next five years (47% compared to 38% of non-migrants), one quarter are training young locals (25% compared to 19% of non-migrants) and two in five are working more than 40 hours a week (42% compared to 35% on non-migrant business owners). According to the researchers, the finding that one in three migrant business owners are planning to engage new hires (33% compared to 25% of non-migrants) suggests when considered together with ABS and ASBFEO data they could potentially create up to 200,000 new jobs in the next five to 10 years. There are more than 620,000 migrant-owned businesses in Australia employing over 1.41 million Australians, yet the significant contribution migrant small business owners make to our country is largely an untold story, said Kate Wellard, Small Business Spokesperson for CGU Insurance. Our research helps challenge perceptions that our migrants are taking more than theyre giving, and were keen to share this story one of successful, hardworking and innovative migrants and the positive impact they have on our business community. This research shows migrant business owners are creating jobs, contributing to our economy, giving back to our communities and making our culture richer, despite the cultural barriers. This contribution deserves to be acknowledged and celebrated. The report also found more than a third (36%) of migrant business owners believe their cultural background has helped them succeed. In addition, one in seven (14%) said their business has benefitted from the unique skills and strong work ethic their cultural background has provided them. However, the research highlights that migrant business owners are more likely than others to feel they have difficulties attracting customers (46% vs 41%) and accessing skilled workers (20% vs 16%). I see a lot of the hurdles that migrants need to overcome to be successful, said Usman Iftikhar, co-founder and COO of migrant entrepreneurship program Catalysr. These include low self-confidence, a lack of networks and cultural barriers. But at the same time, migrants are very enterprising. They are quite resourceful, demonstrate grit, and build internal resilience to move to a new country and make a life, which makes them great candidates for entrepreneurship. Migrants contribute so much to Australia and I encourage those in business, or people looking at starting a business, to think of your experiences, cultural background and foreign language skills as a unique source of creativity. You can spot gaps where others might not, but first you need to try. INTERPOL Notices are international requests for cooperation or alerts allowing police in its 192 member countries to share critical crime-related information. Notices are published by INTERPOLs General Secretariat at the request of National Central Bureaus (NCBs) and authorized entities, and can be published in any of the Organizations official languages. Source: INTERPOL HQ 2019-08-13 This is my first time to try fencing. Ive always wanted to do it because of Richard Gomez, Zorro and the Three Musketeers! Haha! Anyway ,Fencing is known as a very elite sports in the Philippines because of the expensive equipment, but now you can try it out without havingContinue Reading Cyberbullying will be the focus for a new dedicated Youth Advisory Council and a State-wide survey of the views of Queenslanders children, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has announced.The Premiers announcement comes as more than 817,000 Queensland students returned to classrooms for the start of the school this morning.On Monday, Palaszczuk said the Queensland Families and Child Commission (QFCC) plans to undertake the bullying survey of students across the State between March and June.The issue of cyberbullying will be a focus as will other issues including youth empowerment, out of home care, mental health, youth suicide and disability issues, the Premier said.QFCC is at the forefront of this work and it is ensuring young Queenslanders have a voice that we understand their views and their experiences.Palaszczuk added that the QFCC work would be included in the preparation of an issues paper that she wanted to sponsor at the COAG meeting in Canberra on February 9.Queenslands Education Minister, Grace Grace, will soon bring together stakeholders for a meeting to discuss the issue after Cabinet next week. Meanwhile, Members for Townsville Scott Stewart and Mansfield Corrine McMillan both former school principals will assist with stakeholders.Scott and Corinne have recent experience as senior leaders in Queensland schools, and I want to ensure we have tapped into their experiences, Palaszczuk said.QFCC Commissioner, Cheryl Vardon, are meeting with the Federal Governments eSafety Commissioner in Sydney today. Yes. I will do my part to conserve household energy usage, even if I'm uncomfortable in my home. No. It is too hot to conserve household energy usage. I already conserve, even before ERCOT requested it. Maybe, depending on the reason ERCOT provides and whether or not I am home during that time. Vote View Results I have been home with my now elderly father for the past six weeks, and since he is 85 going on 86 years old, he watches television LOUDLY and literally all he watched is FOX NEWS. Since mom died last month and I live in China, basically I am around him all day. I wish he could be younger again and do his activities and not stuck at home watching this stupid shit (actually FOX Business isn't horrible if you are a financial person or just an investor on speed) all day, but that's another story. Since I have been inadvertently watching FOX, I know that the network hates Hillary Clinton. Just hates her. Every commentator just piles it on to her. Of course, Donald Trump didn't do anything wrong, and is being demonized by the Left and Democrats for doing such a great job. FOX sort of goes one ear and out the other with me, but they ramble on about something called "Uranium One" or some bullshit, and it is Hillary in bed with the Russians and she caused all this turmoil and mess. I mean, I don't like Hillary Clinton either. But FOX just uses her to deflect from Trump and his shortcomings. Hillary is out of the game now and she isn't coming back. Hill and Bill are not popular even in their own party, and really Obama is the spiritual head of their party now. Hillary is not relevant anymore yet FOX just rambles on like she's Hitler who eats babies and are traitors. I was a child of the 1970's but really miss the old school news people like Cronkite, Brinkley, Chancellor, Reasoner, Mike Wallace. Professional, nearly non biased, level journalism with integrity. These morons at FOX went to the Ted Baxter School of Broadcasting. PKK/PYDs black propaganda Terror organization PKK/PYD posts fake images on social media sites to libel Turkey's ongoing military operation in Syria's Afrin. PKK/PYD members and their supporters posted images throughout the weekend on social media against the Turkish military and Operation Olive Branch in Syria's Afrin. Article by Anadolu Agency showed the World how terror organization supporters twisted the facts. Seven photographs, which were claimed to be taken during the operation in Syrias northwestern Afrin region, have turned out to be old photos that were taken during different incidents in the past. Black propaganda against the Turkish military began soon after Turkey launched Operation Olive Branch in Afrin on Saturday to clear PYD/PKK and Daesh terrorists from the region. Two tank photos shared on Twitter claimed the "tanks belonging to the Turkish army have been burned"; however, the picture was from Yemen taken on Dec. 31, 2016 Tank picture with the same claim, dated Dec. 10, 2017, was used in a report titled "The U.S. could lose its power in a possible war with Russia and China". Image which shows a soldier on a stretcher was shared with the allegation that the "YPG hurt Turkish soldier" on Facebook; however, this image too is incorrect since it belongs to a soldier who suffered food poisoning in western Manisa province on Dec. 22, 2017. Picture shared on Twitter claims "Turkish soldiers taken prisoner in Afrin". But again this was untrue since the photo was originally taken from the news titled "Syrian opponents seized Hizbullah team" on Feb. 23, 2015. Picture shared on Twitter claimed "civilians are being targeted by Turkish army". It showed a child on a stretcher; however, it turned out the picture was taken on Aug. 29, 2017, in northern Syrian city of Mare during the U.S.-backed SDF/PKK attack. Picture shared on Twitter claimed it showed "destruction of five Turkish tanks"; however, the picture was from a PKK-backed website titled "YPG responds to Daesh with its improved anti-tank missiles" from July 13, 2014. Photo shared on social media allegedly shows the "taking down of a Turkish helicopter by PKK in Afrin". This picture is actually from Afghanistan, taken on March 16, 2012. UK supports Operation Olive Branch As the operation continues, another support message came from UK. Operation Olive Branch launched by Turkey to oust US-backed Kurdish terror organization from an inside Syria near the countries border is in its 4th day. A spokesman for Theresa May said UK would recognise Turkey has a legitimate interest in the security of its borders. "The UK is committed to working closely with Turkey and other allies to find solutions that provide stability, refrain from escalating the situation and protect Turkeys security interests." stated by spokesman. January is shaping up to be a good month for Julia Louis-Dreyfus. At the 2018 Screen Actors Guild Awards last Jan. 21, she won Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor for Veep while she saw her last day of chemotherapy on Jan. 12. The actress was not in attendance at the awards show, so presenters Mandy Moore and Connie Britton accepted her award for her. Louis-Dreyfus reacted to her win on Twitter. I wish I could have been @SAGawards tonight but have to admit it's pretty fun to watch in my pj's. So honored to win. So proud to be a union member. So happy for my @VeepHBO bozos for winning ensemble award. Miss being at the table with you all. How was the chicken? Julia Louis-Dreyfus (@OfficialJLD) January 22, 2018 According to GoldDerby, Louis-Dreyfus' recent wins put her SAG trophies at nine, making her the award show's most decorated performer. Previously, the record was held by Alec Baldwin and Julianna Margulies, with eight SAG wins. Veep also celebrated another win that night, with the cast receiving the award for Best Television Comedy, putting a halt to Orange is the New Black's three-year reign. Matt Walsh, who plays Mike McLintock on the show, accepted the award on behalf of the cast. "I'd like to thank Julia, our leader, who is so unfortunately not here," he said. Veep To Resume Filming On August Veep's final season is set to resume filming in August with Louis-Dreyfus's return. The actress has already been participating in table reads for Season 7, which is scheduled to air 2019. Four of the scripts for the final season has been written but HBO has not officially confirmed this plan. "They got a big [season] planned ... I'm not sure what date we settled on, but we're waiting for her to feel well enough to get back to it," said Casey Bloys, programming president for HBO. Julia Louis-Dreyfus Breast Cancer Diagnosis In September, Louis-Dreyfus took to Instagram to reveal she has been diagnosed with breast cancer. She wrote a special message updating her fans on her condition, adding there is a silver lining to the situation. She has "the most glorious group of supportive and caring family and friends, and fantastic insurance through [her] union". This also gave the actress the opportunity to shine a light on the plight of many other women fighting cancer, pushing for universal health care for all. Celebrities and politicians were quick to show their support for the actress, with the likes of Ellen DeGeneres, Wanda Sykes, Joe Biden, and Hillary Clinton posting words of encouragement on social media. Louis-Dreyfus was diagnosed with breast cancer a day after she won her sixth straight Emmy. To celebrate her last day of chemo, her sons made a video for her, lipsyncing and goofing off to Michael Jackson's "Beat It." The latest anti-harassment campaigns #MeToo and Time's Up have sparked a sense of hope among the women and men who have suffered at the hands of their attackers. The movements have more than hundreds of thousands of people attached to it, including well-known actresses in Hollywood. On Jan. 20, a global women's march took place, the first one for 2018, which was attended by celebrities such as Alicia Keys, Ashley Benson, Whoopi Goldberg, Alyssa Milano, Viola Davis, Halsey, and Natalie Portman. While these movements have a plethora of people giving their full support, there are others who have criticized the campaigns and called them "witch-hunts." One person who is not against these new advocacies is Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Ginsburg Says #MeToo During an interview with NPR's Nina Totenberg at the Sundance Film Festival, Ginsburg recalled an incident that occured while she was in college. The judge elaborated that a professor tried to put her in an uncomfortable position after giving her an advanced copy of an exam. Ginsburg stated that she knew "exactly" what he wanted in return and that was one of many situations she dealt with. Ginsburg continued that she grew at a time when sexual harassment was not dealt with and was simply brushed off as "boys being boys." Ginsberg was then asked what she thought about Hollywood's recent efforts to combat harassment in all work places. "I think it's about time. For so long women were silent, thinking there was nothing you could do about it. But now the law is on the side of women or men who encounter harassment, and that's a good thing," Ginsburg stated. Ginsburg also stated that she's confident in the progression that has been made and is not concerned by any potential backlash. "Let's see where it goes. So far, it's been great. When I see women appearing every place in numbers, I'm less worried about backlash than I might have been 20 years ago," she continued. Ginsburg's comments come after the Time's Up movement almost suffered a setback. Actor and comedian Aziz Ansari was accused of sexual misconduct by a woman on the website, Babe. The woman known as "Grace" stated that she felt "uncomfortable" after she and Ansari performed sexual acts together in his apartment. Ansari admitted to this and also stated that he privately contacted the woman when she reached out to him. The woman drew criticism from numerous public figures and media sites that felt the woman "damaged" everything Time's Up and #MeToo stand for because of her "reckless" claims that could also damage Ansari's career. Comedian Aziz Ansari became an important topic for members of the Time's Up movement to speak on. The accusation against Ansari has brought up the poignant question of when is something considered assault or a simple misunderstanding. Ansari's accuser, known as "Grace," claimed on the website Babe that she felt uncomfortable after the two engaged in sexual activity while on a date. Ansari did not deny this story and also stated that he spoke to the anonymous woman about the situation after she reached out to him. While the topic is still causing controversy, there have been a few that are coming to Ansari's defense. McHale Defends Ansari Television host and comedian Joel McHale is defending Ansari, stating that the situation sounded consensual to him. "The problem is that people will read just the name and then just the accusation and they don't find out anything more than that, So that's the problem, but it sounds like it was consensual," McHale stated. McHale does support the #MeToo movement and thinks it's important for women to speak on any misconduct they have endured. "The #MeToo movement is tremendous, and is awesome and needs to happen and continue forever, but if someone had a bad date, then it's a bad date," he continued. Ansari has not spoken since the accusation came out and was not present at the 2018 Screen Actors Guild Awards. Is #MeToo Becoming Too Much? Ansari's accuser has sparked a heated debate among many who felt that "Grace's" claims were "reckless" and "harmful" to the Time's Up movement. "You have chiseled away at a movement that I, along with all of my sisters in the workplace, have been dreaming of for decades, a movement that has finally changed an oversexed professional environment that I, too, have struggled through at times over the last 30 years in broadcasting," HLN host Ashleigh Banfiled stated. Others who don't support either movement have made very clear their feelings towards the current sexual harassment allegations. French actresses Catherine Deneuve and Brigitte Bardot publicly slammed the movement, calling it "hypocritical" and "ridiculous." Certain actors such as Matt Damon and Liam Nesson have stated that they felt a "witch-hunt" was taking place in Hollywood after the sexual assault allegations came out. The allegations began after disgraced movie mogul Harvey Weinsteinwas outed by over 80 women of sexual harassment, rape, and abuse. Following Weinstein, numerous powerful men in Hollywood were also accused by several entertainers of abusing their power to commit sexual crimes. Kylie Jenner and Travis Scott are reportedly on the rocks as they prepare to welcome their first child, a baby girl, together. According to a new report, Jenner and Scott haven't been seen together since last month when they attended Kris Jenner's annual Christmas party in Calabasas, California. And when it comes to their future, they may be facing an uphill battle when it comes to making things work with each another. Kylie and Travis got into a blowout fight after he showed up unexpectedly to her mother Kris house, where shes been staying lately, a source close to Jenner revealed to Radar Online on Jan. 22. As fans know, the 20-year-old Keeping Up With the Kardashians star has been hiding for the past several months and has only been seen in a few social media photos as of late. As for her boyfriend, he's been traveling the globe while on tour and rarely has any long periods of time when he is off. Understandably, the distance between Jenner and Scott seems to have led to some insecurities. She flipped out on him and accused him of cheating on her with several women during her pregnancy, including a girl that she is kinda friends with! the insider said. According to Radar Online, Scott has been living it up as his girlfriend remains in hiding and recently, he was spotted making his way into a strip club in Los Angeles. Kylie just wants Travis to leave her alone right now, and she doesnt want anyone around except for her mother, Kris Jenner, and her best friend, Jordyn Woods. As fans will recall, Woods was seen frequently on Jenner's recent spinoff series, Life of Kylie, which has yet to be renewed for a second season. Jenner and Scott struck up a romance in spring of last year only weeks after the reality star and her former boyfriend of several years, Tyga, called it quits. Then, just weeks into their relationship, Jenner conceived a child and is expected to give birth to her first child sometime in the coming weeks. To see more of Kylie Jenner and her growing family, including sisters Kendall Jenner and Khloe, Kourtney, and Kim Kardashian, don't miss new episodes of Keeping Up with the Kardashians season 14 on Sundays at 9 p.m. on the E! Network. Losing a loved one is never easy to deal with, no matter how many years have passed. It has been ten years since Australian actor and director Heath Ledger tragically died from an accidental overdose. Ledger was in the prime of his career at the time of his death, having just completed his role as the Joker for the film The Dark Knight. Though he was a highly talented entertainer, Ledger was also a son, a brother, a partner, and a father. The Four Feathers actor had one daughter, Matilda Rose, with his ex-girlfriend, Dawson's Creek actress Michelle Williams. Williams and Ledger met while filming the critically acclaimed film Brokeback Mountain. Williams did not give an immediate statement when Ledger died, and to this day, the actress has remained discreet about him and their relationship. On the tenth anniversary of his death, Williams received support from her best gal pal, actress Busy Phillips, who took a plane just to help Williams get through the tough day. Busy and Michelle Reunite The Cougar Town actress reunited with Williams on Jan. 22. The two shared the bittersweet reunion on their social media accounts. A post shared by Busy Philipps (@busyphilipps) on Jan 22, 2018 at 10:27pm PST Phillips, who is the godmother of Matilda, also shared a video with her in tears while listening to the song "Time to Pretend" by MGMT. The song, Phillips stated, debuted shortly after Ledger's passing. "It came out after he passed away and I remember when it came out, because [I thought] it made me think of him. I just thought he would have liked this song. And for some reason, every time I hear this song... it's weird," Phillips stated. Ledger's sister, Kate, also spoke on the death of her late brother during an interview with People Magazine. Kate shared a special bond with Ledger and considered him her "soul mate." Kate also stated that his family continue to talk about Heath every day and that he is still "very much alive in their home. King Kong actress Naomi Watts also posted a tribute to Ledger. Watts dated Ledger from 2002-2004. Diddy may already be a father to five kids, but he isn't done just yet! During an interview with the popular morning show The Breakfast Club, the entrepreneur revealed that he wouldn't mind having more kids with his longtime girlfriend Cassie. Diddy stated that he loves children and that he was trying to get 10, if possible. When he was really pressured about whether or not he would really have more kids, he told The Breakfast Club that he could go to eight with no problem. "Whatever is supposed to happen in the future is going to happen, but that's something that I want," Diddy said. Diddy is currently the father to Justin Dior Combs, Christian Casey Combs, Chance Combs, and twins Jessie James Combs and D'Lila Star Combs. The music mogul's reason for wanting to be a father again probably stem from how well all of his kids turned out. Diddy explained that when it comes to celebrity families, things can get a little weird, but he's so proud of them and said he has enjoyed watching them grow. The Power Couple Diddy has made it clear that he doesn't have eyes for anyone but recording artist Cassie, which is why some fans agree with him that the two should start having kids. In 2012, Diddy and Cassie made their relationship public, but sources claim that the two began dating way back in 2007 after Cassie released her self-titled debut album with Bad Boy Records. In September 2017, rumors surfaced that the two were engaged when Cassie took to Instagram to post a photo of herself rocking a huge diamond ring. "Did I make it obvious? Did it make it clear?" Cassie wrote. Although neither of the two has confirmed the engagement, if it is true, it should come as no surprise considering how long they have been together. Diddy Gives Back When Diddy isn't too busy being a father and making sure that his queen is well taken care of, he's busy taking care of the community. According to Rolling Stone, the rapper recently donated $200,000 to the Suubi Health "Hope" Health Care Center in Uganda. The donation will reportedly go toward improving women's healthcare. Sources say that rapper French Montana inspired him to join the movement after he started the initiative in partnership with nonprofit organizations. Montana as well as The Weeknd have made generous donations of $100,000 each to the cause. The $400,000 from all three parties will reportedly go toward maternity facilitates, including a prenatal care clinic, a birth house, ambulance, and more. When asked why he didn't hesistate to join the movement, The Four co-host stated that he feels it's important to give back and be an agent of change. Actor James Franco braved the crowds as he attended the 2018 Screen Actors Guild Awards. Although Franco did not win anything, the actor sat quietly and observed as presenters and the host spoke on the ongoing sexual harassment allegations plaguing Hollywood and the world. Franco is currently facing five accusations of sexual exploitative behavior. On Tuesday, the 2018 Oscar nominations were announced and Franco was noticeably snubbed for his performance in the film, The Disaster Artist. The snub follows an interview on Good Morning America that featured two of Franco's alleged victims, Sarah Tither-Kaplan and Violet Paley. Just Apologize Please Both woman publicly slammed the actor on Twitter after he won the award for Best Actor at the 2018 Golden Globes ceremony. Franco also sported a Time's Up pin on his all-black suit, signifying he supported the women and men who have spoken against their attackers. Paley and Kaplan were both students of Franco's at Studio 4 film school, where they claimed he "abused his power" towards his female students. Paley claims that Franco exposed his private area to her and Kaplan alleges that the actor made her do scenes in his films completely nude. During their interview with GMA's Amy Robach, Paley and Kaplan both spoke on their "impulsive" decisions to tweet about Franco's alleged misconduct and the remorse they felt working with him. "Yes, of course. I mean, I am regretful. I was young. He was a celebrity that I looked up to," Paley stated. Kalpan also stated that the classes had many sex and nudity scenes after the original script was already given to the students. Paley stated that she doesn't think Franco is as vicious as Harvey Weinstein but that doesn't make his behavior okay. "He is not an unfeeling monster who has no sense of reality. He created exploitative environments for non-celebrity women on his sets, but I also think James is a very talented and valuable person," Kaplan said. As for what Kaplan and Paley want from Franco? Paley stated she just wants an apology. Is Franco's Time Up? Paley and Kaplan's accusations follow The Breakfast Club actress Ally Sheedy's public outing of the actor. Sheedy alleged that Franco sexually harassed her numerous times. Another woman, who remains anonymous, claims Franco lured her into his hotel room when she was 17 years old. Franco lost his opportunity to appear on New York Times'TimeTalk when the allegations began to make headlines. Franco has denied all the allegations against him and insists that if he did anything wrong, he would "take responsibility" for his actions. Giacomo Ghiringhelli and Lucio Braicovich were awarded the 2018 Europhysics Prize of the Condensed Matter Division of the European Physical Society (EPS), for their groundbreaking work for the development and scientific exploration of high-resolution resonant inelastic X-ray scattering (RIXS) . Awarded once every 2 years, the EPS Condensed Matter Europhysics Prize is one of Europes most prestigious prizes in the field of condensed matter physics. The Prize will be presented on Tuesday March 13th, 2018, at the Awards Session of the 27th General Conference of the EPS Condensed Matter Division, to be held in Berlin. "All of us at the ESRF wish to express our most vivid congratulations to Lucio Braicovich and Giacomo Ghiringhelli from the Politecnico di Milano for being awarded this prestigious Prize. said Francesco Sette, ESRF Director General. "We are particularly pleased as Lucio and Giacomo invented RIXS at the ESRF, initially on ID12B/ID08 beamlines in the mid 90's, and then actively participated in the conception and construction of the new ID32 RIXS station that stands today as the world flagship in the RIXS field. We wish to congratulate Nick Brookes, ESRF scientist, and his team for the wonderful job that they have done in supporting the Milano team. Thanks to their seminal work at the ESRF, RIXS has indeed established itself as a prime spectroscopic technique to study highly correlated materials as high-temperature superconductors. Many RIXS stations, following the Milano design and their construction at the ESRF, have been developed around the world in today's most performing synchrotron laboratories. Plans are also being considered at present for RIXS stations using the new X-ray Free Electron Laser facilities. The RIXS spectrometer of the ESRF ID32 beamline (credit: ESRF/Stef Cande) Recently, Braicovich and Ghiringhelli, with Nick Brookes, have conducted the first experiments that take advantage of the unprecedented resolution of the ESRF ERIXS spectrometer (0.03 eV at the Cu L-absorption edge). These concern detailed, quantitative comparisons of magnon dispersions in different families of cuprates; the measurement of phonons and the electron-phonon interaction; and the discovery of collective modes of charge density waves. As explained by EPS, the advantages of the RIXS technique measurement of the entire Brillouin zone, unprecedented energy resolution, applicability to small sample volumes under extreme conditions have led to advances and discoveries inconceivable just a few years ago, that have transformed the landscape of solid-state spectroscopy, inspired a new generation of scientists now entering the field, and will continue to very significantly impact condensed matter research in the years to come. This revolutionary development is due to the vision, the commitment, and the determination of Lucio Braicovich and Giacomo Ghiringhelli, who conceived and worked on high resolution RIXS with great determination for well over a decade, have pioneered the development of both key hardware and scientific concepts, and performed crucial experiments. As explained by Giacomo Ghiringhelli : "I am honored and excited for this award, that recognizes Lucio's foresight in exploring the great opportunities offered by third generation synchrotron sources to X-ray spectroscopy, and our common endurance in finding some of them. It took several years of technical and scientific efforts before count rate and energy resolution became good enough for RIXS experiments to be really significant. And then we realized that high Tc superconductors were the ideal samples for RIXS, a technique capable of probing several facets of their complex and mysterious electronic and magnetic structure. The collaboration with eminent colleagues for the development of the instruments, of the theory and of the experiments on cuprates has been a key for the success of high resolution RIXS. On the personal side, working with Lucio for more than 20 years has been a daily pleasure. We have continuously renewed our fellowship thanks to shared curiosity and complementarity in our competences. And the belief that the quality of experimental data is the first prerequisite of all scientific enterprise." Lucio and Giacomo continue a tradition of Europhysics prizes of EPS Condensed Matter Division awarded to spectroscopy work carried out at the ESRF. In fact, the 2000 one was awarded to Paolo Carra - at the time Head of the ESRF Theory Group - and to his colleagues Gerrit van der Laan and Gisela Shultz-Gmeineder - for "their pioneering work in establishing the field of X-ray circular magnetic dichroism." 2018-01-22 Maeci The Arch of Titus and the Menorah, the seven-branched lamp, are the elements that make up the logo of the Anti-Semitism Conference, which Minister Alfano presented on Monday. The conference, which is to take place in Rome on 29 January, will be the first event organized by the Italian OSCE Chairmanship to testify to the importance given to the fight against racism, intolerance and discrimination. The conference aims to become a platform of dialogue, in line with the principles of the OSCE one the major environments for global multilateralism in which there is no room for discrimination and intolerance," the Minister underlined. In the afternoon, Minister Alfano addressed the Senate Defense and Foreign Affairs Committees, alongside Defense Minister Roberta Pinotti, to illustrate the reorganization of Italian missions abroad. Minister Alfano highlighted the importance of the future mission in Niger for Italys security and for the fight against illegal trafficking, including human trafficking. He then recalled his mission to Africa, which included Niger, Senegal and Guinea Conakry, and enhancing Italys diplomatic presence in the continent, in addition to the 40-million euro increase in the Africa Fund in 2017 compared to the previous year, which testifies to the strategic importance the African continent represents for Italy. On Tuesday, precisely to bring Italy's support to another African country, Minister Alfano flew to Tunis where he met with the top-ranking government officials of a country he defined an exemplary model for the Mediterranean area. The Minister reaffirmed that Italy will continue to support Tunisia also in European fora already at the European Foreign Affairs Ministers conference of 22 January, calling for more support to the Tunisian government in overcoming the current difficulties. Upon his return to Rome, Minister Alfano, in his capacity as Chairman-in-Office of OSCE, condemned the murder of the leader of Oliver Ivanovic, the leader of the Serbian minority in Kossovo, calling for a prompt investigation to identify the culprits. Mr Alfano, together with Secretary GeneralThomas Greminger, launched an appeal for calm among all the parties involved. Furthermore, the Minister reported on the Vancouver Foreign Ministers' Meeting on Security and Stability on the Korean Peninsula, where Italy presented the results obtained in 2017, both within the framework of the G7 Presidency and as designated head of the UN Sanctions Committee. The meeting brought a message of cohesion and solidarity, said the Minister. He added: The resumption of contacts between North and South Korea might open new opportunities. The Vancouver meeting confirmed that the common goal remains a full, verifiable and irreversible denuclearization of the peninsula. The last appointment of the day was his meeting with the Austrian Foreign Minister, Karin Kneissl. Among the topics of the bilateral relations, the Minister mentioned the Brenner Railway Tunnel which is due to become the longest railway tunnel in the world in 2026. The talks also focused on the issue of granting Austrian citizenship to the German and Ladino-speaking Alto Adige community that the new Austrian government included among its legislatures agreements. Minister Alfano reaffirmed that there will be no unilateral decisions and that Italys stance is based on the De Gasperi-Gruber Agreement, an example of a successful agreement. On Wednesday, the Minister visited another European country. In Bucharest, Romania, he held meetings with President Klaus Iohannis, his colleague Foreign Minister Teodor Malescanu and the Italian community living and working in the country a strategic hub for the Balkans, Eastern Europe and the Black Sea. Ever since Romania joined the European Union, we have been sharing a common roof under which we will continue to enhance our bilateral relations, said Minister Alfano, recalling the 12.95 billion euro trade volumes and the 23,000 Italian businesses operating in Romania. The minister also mentioned the commonalities between the two peoples, the similarities between the two languages and what he defined a historic friendship. On Thursday, many students and professors welcomed Minister Alfano in the Farnesinas Aldo Moro conference hall for the opening ceremony of the Diplomacy Education initiative a project which envisages the adoption of the students of high school classes by approximately sixty foreign embassies in Italy, with the aim offering Italian youth an opportunity to come in contact first-handedly with the cultures of foreign countries and, as the Minister said, to look upwards in order to enjoy a broader perspective. The event gave Minister Alfano the opportunity to recall the pillars supporting Italy's foreign policy over the last 70 years, despite the instability of governments and the many ministers who have been in office. Among these, the Minister underscored the construction of Europe, which he advised the youngsters to defend at a time when many are trying to destroy it. After meeting the students, Minister Alfano attended the third Coordinating Committee of Italian and Croatian Ministers and the signing of a joint declaration. The Croatian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Marija Pejcinovic Buric, thanked Minister Alfano for the substantial and concrete support to Croatias request to enter the Schengen Area, to which the Italian minister replied by saying that this is part of a joint Italian and Croatian mutual support strategy." He added: We are supporting each other in many battlefields. You can always rely on Italy. Minister Alfano defined this a fruitful meeting, as it was attended by the ministers of the environment, economic development, agricultural policies, infrastructures, the interior, education and cultural heritage. The topics discussed included migration, research and innovation and the growth of economic cooperation. Another issue on the agenda was devoted to the Croatian and Italian minority communities. Mr Alfano also highlighted the friendly relations which the two countries continue to enjoy. The Croatian Foreign Minister defined minorities as a bridge joining our two peoples who enjoy a good context and rights, both in Italy and in Croatia. Passing from Croatia to Liechtenstein, the Minister met with his colleague Aurelia Frick and highlighted the excellent bilateral relations, the sharing of fundamental values and the "great satisfaction" for the coming into effect of the bilateral agreement on the exchange of tax information, thus ensuring an adequate degree of transparency following the lifting of bank secrecy. The Ministers last appointment of the day was that with the leader of the Syrian opposition, Nasser Hariri. Minister Alfano appreciated his balanced and constructive approach. Both ministers identified the United Nations-led Geneva Process as the only way to achieve a credible political solution of the conflict. Friday morning began with a statement welcoming Indias admission in the Australia Group, acknowledging the country as a major producer and exporter of biological and chemical material and technology, which will foster the regimes non-proliferation mission and the global non-proliferation architecture. Minister Alfano added: The Italian Government joined all the other members of the Australia Group in acknowledging the efforts accomplished by the Government of India to fully align its legal system and administrative practices to the guidelines and common list of the Australia Group. Today we have approved documents that are key to providing Italian Cooperation with shared strategic orientations, in line with the major innovations on the international scenario, said Minister Alfano after the meeting of the Interministerial Committee for Development Cooperation, held at Palazzo Chigi and chaired by Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni. The three-year programme with the 2017-2019 guidelines is the major strategic policy reference for the entire Italian cooperation system, which is the main pillar of Italys government actions and of Italys outreach abroad. On the same day, Minister Alfano traveled to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), to attend the third session of the bilateral Strategic Dialogue. On Saturday, the Jumeirah at Etihad Towers Hotel hosted the Minister's first meeting with Italian enterprises, followed by talks with the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who also participated in the third session of the Strategic Dialogue. Economic diplomacy is a priority for us. We are supporting our enterprises so that they will better grasp all the opportunities the UAE may offer, said Minister Alfano. Another important moment of his visit was the signing of the contract for Italys participation in the EXPO Dubai 2020. Italy will work closely with the Emirati friends to assure the complete success of EXPO 2020, the Minister added. The ministers visit to Abu Dhabi also aimed to finalize an interpretative memorandum to clear any internal regulatory hurdle which might have hampered Italys ratification of the 2015 Extradition Treaty between our country and the United Arab Emirates up to now. That evening, Mr Alfano departed from Abu Dhabi heading to Algiers, where he met with his Algerian colleague Abdelkader Messahel. The Plenary Session of the 5+5 Dialogue, one of the major and most traditional for a for regional dialogue on cooperation and integration between the two shores of the Mediterranean Sea was held on Sunday. One of the panels was chaired by Italy and discussed themes such as local crises and security. In this historic moment, we have come at a crucial crossroads: either the Mediterranean resumes its role as a place of cultural aggregation, civilisation, trade and investment; or it can plunge into a miasm of clashes, terror, social distress and instability. The international community will have to do its best to promote the former scenario not the latter. Bringing peace, security, sustainable development in a region bridging Europe to Africa and Asia, would be extremely beneficial for all. For our generation and for the future ones. A British think tank is urging the government to reject the European Union's demand to automatically allow European to have the chance to gain permanent settlement in the UK during a transition period.According to think tank Migration Watch UK, the number of EU nationals arriving in the course of a two year post-Brexit transition period could total up to a million and 1.5 million, a pool of people over whom the UK would have no immigration control.Both the EU and British Government have indicated their support for a transition period following the UKs formal departure from the EU in March 2019. The Prime Minister Theresa May has previously said the implementation period should last for around two years, potentially taking it to spring 2021, while the EUs present draft negotiating directive states that the transition period after Brexit should not last beyond 31 December 2020.In a new research paper looking at the implications for immigration after Brexit, Migration Watch UK says that if the UK were to concede on this critical issue, EU nationals arriving before the end of the period would be able to remain in the UK for the five years necessary to become eligible for permanent settlement.Those with this status could then be joined by direct family members, including elderly dependent relatives, future children and partners who were not EU citizens.The paper bases its estimates on different methods of assessing past trends. The figure of half a million a year is based on the number of EU citizens who, in recent years, have applied at a Job Centre for a National Insurance Number. In the past some of these have been temporary migrants who have stayed for less than a year but a larger proportion of them might well stay on if the prize was a right to permanent settlement in the UK.Furthermore, it points out that, as the Home Affairs Committee noted in July 2016, experience has shown that an imminent tightening of immigration rules can prompt a surge of new applications. These estimates do not factor in those who might arrive should there be a last minute rush.The Government should stand firm on its position that the specified date in the provisional agreement on citizens rights should be the formal date of Brexit, the end of March 2019. If it agrees that those arriving from the EU up until the end of the transition period should be able to begin accruing time towards settled status then up to a million more EU nationals could gain the opportunity to do so provided that they register with authorities following arrival, the report says.The bulk of those arriving would likely be Eastern Europeans who, historically, have put a relatively greater burden on the UK Exchequer. During a three year transition period, the total number of arrivals could reach up to 1.5 million. They would also have and maintain rights to be joined by family members, such as elderly dependent relatives and children, including family members from outside the EU. All this despite the fact that they would have no treaty rights as the UK would have left the EU before their arrival, it adds.This EU demand is absolutely absurd. We will have left the EU. That must mean that EU citizens who arrive after our departure should no longer enjoy treaty rights that derive from our membership, said Lord Green of Deddington, chairman of Migration Watch UK. USAA employees will receive a 16.2 percent annual performance bonus for 2017, down from 16.8 percent in 2016, as the company paid out record member claims related to hurricanes, wildfires, severe thunderstorm and winter storms. That picture was brightened by another announcement Tuesday: Nonexecutive employees also will receive a separate $1,000 bonus. The bonus is unrelated to the new tax law that spurred a list of other companies to provide a one-time boost but rather is a recognition of employees service to members, company spokesman Matt Hartwig said. It is something that the board, our CEO and our executive leaders wanted to do to recognize just how hard employees worked to support the members, he said. The insurance, banking and financial services company said Tuesday that its 2017 financial performance one of the components used in calculating the bonus was impacted by several factors, including what it said was the costliest year for catastrophes in USAA history. The $2.4 billion in 2017 payouts was up by more than $200 million from 2016, which also broke company records. Due largely to hailstorm and tornado claims, 2016 insurance claims were 2 times higher than in 2015. USAA offers financial services to members of the military and their families. Its one of San Antonios largest employers with about 19,000 of its total workforce of 32,000 based here. Last year the company brought on about 2,400 more workers and announced plans for a significant expansion that will include locating or relocating up to 2,000 employees downtown and adding 1,500 net new jobs to the region over the next five years. Under USAAs compensation program, a staffer who earns a $50,000 base salary will receive an $8,100 bonus for 2017. That same employee would have received an $8,400 bonus in 2016. Eligible workers receive the extra pay as a percentage of their base salary. Our more than 32,000 employees are the core of USAA, always going above and beyond to take care of members, USAA CEO Stuart Parker said in a statement. That is especially true in times of need, as we saw last year when many members experienced devastating catastrophes. The companys 2017 financial results arent scheduled to be released until late March. However, it reported that its net worth the difference between its assets and liabilities rose by nearly $2 billion to almost $31 billion by the end of last year. The company has about 12.4 million members. Membership rose more than 4 percent last year, adding more than 500,000 customers. USAAs board also takes into account the companys market performance, employee productivity and mission accomplishment in setting the bonus. In the past, USAA has said that while the bonus is part of its payment structure, its not guaranteed. In the past decade, the bonus has ranged from as low as 13.5 percent in 2008 to as high as 18.8 percent, awarded in both 2009 and 2012. The Express-News previously has reported that the maximum performance bonus that nonexecutives and nonmanagers could earn in any given year was 20 percent under the scoring system USAA uses. Managers and executives have received higher awards, two people previously told the Express-News. Directors have received 1.5 time the bonus percentage, while bonuses for executive directors have been double the base award. Bonuses for those higher up the chain of command, including executive vice presidents and more senior executives, generally have been higher three or more times the standard bonus. Bonuses have become a favored way for employers to reward employees without committing to a set year-over-year pay increase, said Susan Heathfield, owner of a management consultancy company and contributor of human resources content for thebalance.com. As of 2016, around 80 percent of companies gave bonuses, Heathfield said, a percentage she suspects is now higher. They can reward their employees for the hard work or the effort profitability or whatever they base their bonus on, but they do it in a way that does not raise their bottom line cost, she said. Heathfield said bonuses and profit-sharing announcements are better than annual cost-of-living adjustments, which she called a creature of unions and unionized employees. Private sector employers those words are not even in our vocabulary, she said. But you will find bonuses. They allow you to give your employees more money, but again it doesnt become part of your permanent expenses. She said her own company, which is technology-based and competing for workers, tries to give annual raises based on the national average, as well as bonuses. Its kind of a like a win-win, she said of the bonuses. It encourages all the right kinds of behaviors that you want to see from employees, because it makes them feel more appreciated. It makes them feel like the employer is sharing the wealth. Heathfield said she was struck by the number of companies giving out bonuses because of the new tax laws lower corporate income tax rate. Some 2 million employees are getting at least $1,000 bonus from their employers just as a result of the tax law passing, and that number, I will predict, will be going up, she said. USAA isnt publicly traded, so it doesnt fully disclose what it pays its top executives. However, insurers that do business in Nebraska, including USAA companies, are required to publicly disclose executive compensation. Parkers compensation from the San Antonio companys insurance businesses jumped nearly 19 percent in 2016. His pay from four of USAAs insurance businesses totaled more than $2.7 million last year, up from about $2.3 million in 2015, according to figures reported to the Nebraska Department of Insurance. He receives additional money from the companys investment services and banking operations that isnt publicly disclosed. USAA routinely places in Fortune magazines annual Best Companies to Work For. Benefits offered by USAA include free fitness centers and on-site health clinics, an up-to-8 percent match on retirement contributions, and reduced medical insurance premiums for employees who exhibit healthy behavior. Last year, the company rolled out additional benefits, including an increase in its minimum wage to $16 per hour; an expansion of paid parental leave to 12 weeks for mothers and fathers of new children, including by adoption; and tuition assistance to all employees for all areas of study. Patrick Danner contributed to this report. lbrezosky@express-news.net Facebooks new approach to its News Feed is making plenty of news, mostly for how its making news less available. In case you missed it, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced overhauling the social network to ensure the news you see, while less overall, is high quality. This follows his previous announcement to emphasize more personal content from family and friends over public posts from businesses, brands and media. In other words, expect more snapshots and humble brags from the folks in your inner social circle, and fewer news articles and other content from outside organizations. The update to focus on more personal content has already rolled out and will continue over the coming few weeks, while the update for ensuring news trustworthiness starts rolling out this week. As for who will decide what news is fit to pop up in your feed, Zuckerberg said hes leaving that up to Facebook users, who will gauge the reliability of news sources via surveys. Its a move some San Antonio experts say puts more power in the hands of Facebooks users, but also more money in Facebooks coffers, especially at the expense of smaller businesses and nonprofits. Miguel Buleje, CEO of the Facebook advertising agency Nexo in San Antonio, said the News Feed update forces businesses and organizations of all levels to pay to play to get their Facebook content in front of people with sponsored posts and advertising, rather than relying on organic posts like everyday users make. Its a double-edged sword, said Luis Hestres, assistant professor of digital communication at the University of Texas at San Antonio. Hestres said theres plenty of questionable content out there Facebook users should report, and the recent updates should speak to most users since they tend to turn to Facebook more for social interaction over news consumption anyway. About two-thirds of U.S. adults (66 percent) use Facebook, and half of Facebook news users get news from Facebook alone, also according to Pew Research Center based on 2017 data. Those who do rely on Facebook for their news will notice a change, Hestres said, especially if they tend not to engage with that news source with likes and shares. Hestres also warned such vetting power to the people could get abused. For example, political campaigns may organize to label certain legitimate reports critical of their candidates or views as being fake news in an effort to bury them, he said. Or worse, theyll promote falsehoods as truth if it forwards their agenda. I guess its a good idea to have a mechanism for people to mark (something on Facebook) as fake news, Hestres said, but I can also see how it can be manipulated. As for impacting voter education, Rich Robinson of FairVote, a nonpartisan nonprofit that advocates for electoral reforms, said his colleagues in the group dont see the changes as a negative move on Facebooks part, though they are concerned about any bad actors using Facebook to influence political thought. It remains an excellent tool to reach our followers and reach people who believe in electoral reform across the United States, said Robinson, FairVotes media relations director. Facebook has faced its share of criticism over fake news, most notably over posts tied to Russian meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election. Even Facebooks own global politics and government outreach director Katie Harbath said in a recent post there was foreign interference that Facebook should have been quicker to identify to the rise of fake news and echo chambers. Hestres said Facebook certainly has the resources to police the veracity of any news that crosses its screens. But he noted the social media giants move to let users decide frees Facebook not only from that responsibility but also the risk of appearing partisan or censoring opinion. Major brands and media outlets that already have a strong following should be fine after the changes, Buleje said. But smaller companies, which he said make up about 90 percent of all businesses in the United States, should worry. Hestres expressed similar concern for smaller news organizations and nonprofits, which he said have relied increasingly on Facebook to distribute their content. Social media is the cheapest way to advertise, Buleje said. If you dont have funds for Facebook, its really hard for you to grow essentially. So what can personal and professional Facebookers alike do to keep their News Feeds the way they, uh, like? Basically, get more engaged in managing what they see. To keep the content you want, click the News Feed three-dot icon in Facebook on your computer and select Edit Preferences. For Facebooks Android app, select the three-bar icon and choose News Feed Preferences. For Facebooks app on Apple mobile devices, select the three-bar icon, go to Settings and then select News Feed Preferences. Once in those preferences, you can prioritize who to see first and discover more content to your liking. Hestres also stressed to like, share and comment on content you want to see as well. As for how media outlets and other commercial and nonprofit groups can keep their content in front of the most eyeballs, Buleje said they need to do their homework on how best to spend their hard-earned dollars on Facebook, as well as make their content more engaging. Hey, if it works for those cat videos your mom shares ... It comes down to attention, Buleje said. If you have somebodys attention on Facebook ... then you are going to be able to persuade them into whatever you want them to do or believe. NOTE: This story has been updated to reflect that the rollout of Facebooks focus on more personal content will continue over the next few weeks. rguzman@express-news.net | Twitter: @reneguz In the past, James Williams could spend up to an hour riding a bus to see his doctor at the Medical Center on the far Northwest Side. For many years, community leaders and East Side residents like Williams had called for a clinic to fill the lack of health care services in their area. On Saturday, the University Health System responded to their call, officially opening the Dr. Robert L.M. Hilliard Center. Williams physician now is just six minutes from his home. This will facilitate everything that I need, Williams, 57, said, before an appointment at the new center near Interstate 35 and Walters Street. Its a one-shop stop. Im ecstatic and proud of the people involved. Located at 919 Locke St., the 12,500-square-foot center sits on two-acres provided by the San Antonio Housing Authority. Primary care, womens and childrens services are offered at the center along with low cost child and adult immunizations. The clinic is open from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Mondays through Thursdays, and 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Fridays. Each of the exam rooms has a wall-mounted electronic interactive anatomy board that health care providers can use as a teaching tool and to help patients understand a diagnosis. Graciela Zapata, ambulatory clinical area manager, said patients will be able to use iPads and digital apps to review immunizations and medications and have a say in their own health. The president and CEO of University Health System, George B. Hernandez Jr., said the center was built as a prototype for future University health care centers. It became the first facility that the University Health System has named in honor of an individual since the Robert B. Green Memorial Hospital was named in 1917. A pioneering physician, Hilliard was the first African American physician to undergo specialty training at Robert B. Green. The obstetrician-gynecologist delivered more than 14,000 newborns during his career. A wall display greets visitors with photos and a biography of the clinics namesake when they step through the gleaming glass entrance, including a quote If I can help somebody then my living will not be in vain. Hilliard died in 2014. High above the help desk hangs a 9-by-15 foot mosaic mural entitled Healing Hands. Artist Reginald Adams used real hand prints of people in the community, cast in orange and red, to represent healing. The Bexar County Hospital District Board of Managers approved the new clinic in 2014, with its $8 million cost funded partly by the Delivery Reform Incentive Payment program, a portion of the Texas 1115 Medicaid waiver set up to improve availability of care across the state. University Health Center officials said the facility complements the aim of the Eastside Promise Zone, that everyone, no matter their ZIP code, has access to prosperity and opportunity. Dr. Suhaib W. Haq, the Hilliard Centers medical director, said the clinics goal is to open a gateway to health on the East Side. The only way the center will be successful, he said, is with the full participation and partnership of the areas residents. In a nearby waiting room, Williams was ready for a first visit with Haq, now his neighborhood doctor. Were going to go the extra mile we need to go to reach them, he said. We are looking forward to a very strong foundation based on the partnership with the community resources and leaders, because we want to have this area shine and become the best part of town. Years after heading a U.S.-led coalitions efforts to rebuild Iraqs shattered health care system, retired Army Col. Don Gagliano was interviewed for a job as the Pentagons deputy assistant secretary for health. One of two finalists, he wept during an interview, as he had when pursuing other job opportunities. I didnt get selected, Gagliano said. People knew my capabilities, knew what I had done, knew the kind of work Id done, but they also saw I had some uncontrollable emotions. Thats what drove me to try to seek help. An ophthalmologist, now 65 and living in San Antonio, Gagliano had been exposed to combat on a daily basis. For years, he didnt think he had post traumatic stress disorder but became part of a follow-on study to the largest clinical trial ever conducted in the Defense Department with active-duty troops. Its promising results were published Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association. More Information To get help For more information to get help or to learn more about STRONG STAR studies, visit www.strongstar.org/treatment or call (210) 562-6726 See More Collapse Gagliano had wrestled with PTSD symptoms long after leading 5,500 U.S. military medical personnel during the 2003 invasion of Iraq and long after his work in the resulting occupation. He underwent three weeks of a sped-up version of prolonged exposure therapy as part of a UT Health San Antonio-led study that included veterans as well as serving troops. Other groups involved in the study, dubbed Project Remission, were treated by psychologists at Brooke Army Medical Center, the South Texas VA, Wacos veterans center and the Carl R. Darnall Army Medical Center on Fort Hood. Prolonged exposure therapy for an eight-week period, called Spaced-PE had been deemed effective but the original Fort Hood study involving the University of Pennsylvania, the University of Texas Health Science Center now called UT Health San Antonio and other institutions found that the shorter treatment span, an intensive 10 sessions in two weeks dubbed Massed-PE, also worked. Researchers compared the results with that of present-centered therapy, an eight-week program that identifies stress in daily life, and with subjects in a minimal contact control group that simply received supportive phone calls from therapists once a week for a month. They found that Massed-PE was superior to minimal contract control and just as good as Spaced-PE. Prolonged-exposure therapy involves the repeated recounting of disturbing traumatic memories followed by asking the patient about his or her thoughts and feelings. Patients coming in for once-a-week counseling sessions listen to audio recordings of those meetings over two to three months. Theyre also encouraged to go on field trips that may include visits to places that have strong connections with PTSD-related anxieties. Massed-PE relied on a compressed schedule, with participants listening to daily audio recordings, field trips that allowed participants to deal with trauma-related situations, and education about PTSD and controlled breathing training. The actual treatment itself, the protocol and the details, was exactly the same, said Dr. Alan Peterson, a professor of psychiatry with UT Health San Antonio and director of the militarys STRONG STAR consortium, which stands for South Texas Research Organizational Network Guiding Studies on Trauma and Resilience. We were concerned maybe that it would be too difficult or too overwhelming to do that in a two-week period, but it turns out that that was not the case. In fact we had less dropout in the people coming in to be seen every single day, he said. Massed PE had a 14 percent dropout rate compared to one in every four participants leaving the longer prolonged exposure therapy program. The higher dropout rate has prompted some to suggest there are shortcomings in Spaced-PE treatments, but Peterson said the problem may be that the therapy just takes too long for some patients. In some cases,prolonged exposure therapy doesnt work at all. About half of those in the Fort Hood study left it without improving. More needs to be done because of challenges to successful recoveries from combat-related PTSD, but the study demonstrated that it can be effectively treated in active-duty personnel and it sets a high benchmark to which future studies will be compared, Peterson added. Our findings are good news about half of those treated can be treated into remission, he said. Gagliano oversaw three brigades during the invasion and occupation of Iraq. As chief surgeon for the 33-nation coalition, he spearheaded post-invasion efforts to rebuild the countrys broken medical system. He was among those who improved as a result of Massed-PE. But when first diagnosed with PTSD at BAMC last year, he still didnt believe he had a problem and initially balked at investing time in the treatment program. But a couple of weeks after being told he was a candidate for the study, he was questioning his own actions in a road rage incident he precipitated while driving his wife and daughter on Interstate 5 in San Diego, California. I thought somebody was driving just a little bit too crazy and following a little too close, he recalled. I stopped, got out of the car, confronted this guy who was driving a rental van, a rental truck, two Hispanic people were in the truck and I said, Either you drive correctly or Im going to drag your ass out of that truck and Im going to kick your ass. Back in the car, his wife, Rosalind, and daughter, Amanda, were in tears. You just put us at risk! Gagliano said his daughter told him. And I said, No, I was trying to help protect us from being at risk by correcting that idiot driver, and thats when I went back and said, I think I really need to do something about this erratic behavior. I couldnt even figure out what I did, why I did it. PTSD affects up to one in five veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, and can be chronic and debilitating. In the Fort Hood study, which ran from 2011-2016 and involved 370 active-duty military participants who suffered from combat-related PTSD, the remission rate was higher for civilians, many of whom suffer PTSD as a result of car accidents as well as physical and sexual assaults and natural disasters. Some things about PTSD may be unique to combat, including the duration of deployments and diversity of the trauma experience. Project Remission, the study Gagliano joined last summer, is taking a closer look at that. Retired Army Maj. Gen. Russell Czerw, 56, a former commander of the Army Medical Department Center and School and of Fort Sam Houston, who served under Gagliano during the invasion, recalled him as exacting and intense and said he was with the forward support team when we originally crossed the line. Gagliano lost seven soldiers under his command. He had warned his men to fly a single evacuation helicopter with a gunship for protection, but one day, two medevacs flew together, and one hit a wire near the Tigris River and crashed, leaving three dead. A second medevac hit by a surface-to-air missile was lost with two pilots, a crew chief, medic and five patients. Those deaths weighed on him and still do. But he no longer feels as if everything is a potential threat and everyone is a possible enemy. Rosalind, his wife of 40 years, stayed with him, hoping for a breakthrough. The people who know if you have a problem are those who are around you, who love you and stay with you even if they really feel that youre not acting normal. And if you hear somebody say something to you, Youre different, then you need to be thinking, I need to find out why, rather than, Theyre wrong. WASHINGTON - Federal agencies shuttered in a fight over immigration are set to reopen Tuesday after Senate Democrats bowed to pressure and agreed to a spending compromise in return for a promise to take up debate on the expiring Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program by early next month. The government will continue operating through Feb. 8, at which time the fractious Congress faces yet another round of decisions not just about immigration but also long-term military spending and disaster relief for Texas and other states and territories battered by disasters last year. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced Monday his intention to negotiate a DACA deal by Feb. 8 and put legislation on the floor by then to resolve the status of some 700,000 undocumented young immigrants, 124,000 of them in Texas, brought to the United States as children. Senate Democrats, despite blowback from liberal allies, accepted McConnells officer and agreed to keep the government running for three weeks rather than four, a proposal most in their party rejected on Friday night. The House later accepted the plan. The agreement paves the way for what is shaping up as an immigration debate that goes well beyond the initial goal of fixing DACA. President Donald Trump, relatively quiet during the brief spending lapse, declared in a statement that he was pleased Democrats have come to their senses to end the shutdown. Later Monday night, Trump signed the bill funding the government through Feb. 8. As I have always said, once the government is funded, my administration will work toward solving the problem of very unfair illegal immigration. We will make a long-term deal on immigration if, and only if, it is good for our country, Trump said in a statement. After March 5, DACA recipients would no longer be able to renew work permits, which has been interpreted as leaving them subject to deportation. The process became further muddied this month by a federal court ruling ordering the administration to resurrect part of the program, a ruling that the Trump administration has asked the Supreme Court to review. After negotiations over the weekend between Democrats and GOP moderates, McConnell, R-Ken., committed to a timetable that could put the Senate on the path to giving DACA recipients protections, and perhaps a pathway to citizenship. Let me be clear. This immigration debate will have a level playing field at the outset and an amendment process that is fair to all sides, McConnell said. The shutdown had limited impact given that it landed over a weekend. In San Antonio, Air Force Col. Sean McKenna started his morning on Monday by writing variations of a form letter to civil service staffers deemed non-essential personnel. He then called all 10 of the workers into his office, where they sat at a large conference table. This is a difficult day to conduct business not only because of folks not being here but a lot of people we deal with at other parts of the process arent at work either, so getting things done while the government is at a stop is difficult, said McKenna, who oversees personnel and logistics for the Air Force Recruiting Service. McKenna said he was relieved that the shutdown is ending because I value my team, and having 40 percent of my team not at work is no way to do business. Thousands of civilians throughout the San Antonio area were likely home Monday afternoon after getting furlough notices. Yet even with so many people idled, things were still getting done especially in the militarys training community, which has a huge footprint on San Antonios three bases and the Camp Bullis training range in Northwest Bexar County. The good-news story is that applicants are shipping to basic training tomorrow. Tuesday is our ship date, said Leslie Brown, the Air Force Recruiting Services chief of public affairs. Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff offered tepid applause for news of the shutdowns end. At least its a step forward, but not a very good one - three weeks, he said. It took months to resolve this. I dont know that its going to be any better in three weeks from now, but at least weve got a chance. After three days of blame, political theater and #SchumerShutdown versus #TrumpShutdown hashtag competition, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer declared Monday that he would accept McConnells offer. The legislation approved by the Senate 81-18 includes a six-year extension for the Childrens Health Insurance Program, which covers 9 million low-income children. Funding in Texas was scheduled to run out next month. Im confident that we can get the 60 votes in the Senate for a DACA bill. And now there is a real pathway to get a bill on the floor and through the Senate. said Schumer, D-N.Y. Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn of Texas was among six GOP senators, all of them immigration hawks, who visited the White House on Monday to meet with Trump about the coming negotiation. What do they have to show for that? Cornyn said, referring to Democrats. To my mind, they got nothing to show for that. Sure, they got a commitment from Mr. McConnell to take up immigration in February. He was going to do that anyway. Cornyn referred to a statement of principles spelled out at a bipartisan White House meeting two weeks ago before Trump made contradictory and crude statements about immigrants that, by most accounts, set back negotiations. As part of a DACA fix, Cornyn said, the White House will require new border security and interior enforcement provisions, as well changes in the family-based visa system and the Diversity Visa Lottery program, which yields about 50,000 visas to applicants from smaller countries. Cornyn raised the prospect of reallocating visas from both programs to applicants on the basis of merit, a system some in Congress have proposed for broader immigration overhaul. So back we go to the drawing boards. No one pretends that this solution is easy, but its one were committed to address, he said. Texas GOP Sen. Ted Cruz signaled that he'll be among those driving a hard bargain. I think theres a lot we should do on immigration. But I think it would be a serious mistake for us to pass an amnesty bill providing amnesty and a path to citizenship for millions of people here illegally, he said. Congress might do that. I hope it doesnt, and I think doing so would be inconsistent with the promises we made the American people in 2016. In the House, San Antonio Democrat Lloyd Doggett was among many in his party voting against the funding extension. After more than four months, theres still no certainty for our military, government contractors, community health centers, dreamers and their employers, Doggett said of the spending extensions. The Democrats decision to halt the shutdown split the party and angered some of its liberal backers. Senators voting against ending the shutdown included several mentioned as 2020 candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination: Kamala Harris of California; Cory Booker of New Jersey; Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts; and Bernie Sanders of Vermont. Bill Lambrecht reported from Washington and Sig Christenson reported from San Antonio The Uvalde County Underground Water Conservation District is suing the Edwards Aquifer Authority over water-rights rules that the district said would threaten the amount of groundwater available to property owners west of San Antonio. The lawsuit centers on a long-standing EAA conversion rule and recent amendments that stipulate when water rights historically used for agriculture can be transferred to other uses, such as development of businesses or residential subdivisions. A lawyer for the district said in a release that the rules are unsupported by state law and would make it easier for outside interests to pump 100 percent of a landowners water elsewhere. The lawsuit, also filed by a Uvalde County couple, raises a concern that Edwards water rights could be conveyed away from the land for use in other regions of the EAA, diminishing the water supply in Uvalde County. Celina Romero, attorney for the Uvalde district, said it is the entitys first lawsuit against the EAA. Both were created in 1993, through passage of Senate Bill 1477. The Uvalde district provides for the conservation, preservation, protection, recharge and prevention of waste of groundwater within its countywide jurisdiction. The EAA, overseen by an elected board with 15 voting members, regulates groundwater from the Edwards Aquifer in all or parts of Uvalde, Medina, Atascosa, Bexar, Comal, Guadalupe, Hays and Caldwell counties. The Edwards, the natural drinking water source for some 2 million people, is subject to limits on pumping during droughts to protect springflows and endangered species. Uvalde, which taps one pool of the Edwards, was significantly affected by one of the regions worst droughts, finally breaking in 2015. At one point, the EAA mandated cuts in pumping in Uvalde by 44 percent, during what is known as Stage 5, the most stringent level of drought restrictions. Rule amendments adopted by the EAA board on Dec. 12 regarding conversion of base irrigation groundwater rights expanded circumstances in which the agency would allow changes in water use. It added categories for land that can no longer be used for agriculture because of rezoning, or acquisition by an entity with power of condemnation or eminent domain. The lawsuit states that the amended rules will result in greater pumping from the Edwards, forcing Uvalde County property owners to rely on shallow non-Edwards aquifers. There will be an increase in the use and dependence of the remaining aquifers in the county, thus, creating a strain on the remaining aquifers to sustain existing uses and to provide for future municipal, agricultural, and other economic activities in the county, the lawsuit states. In a statement, EAA Chairwoman Luana Buckner said the agency was not surprised by the lawsuit and stands by our position that governmental entities are required to acknowledge the private property rights that exist in groundwater as the courts and lawmakers have determined. Our base irrigation groundwater conversion rules, which are the subject of this lawsuit, were developed 17 years ago and have evolved over time as an accommodation of those property rights so that owners of this type of groundwater could continue to exercise their rights if and when economic and market influences changed the nature of their property so that it could no longer be farmed, she said in the statement. We look forward to defending this position on behalf of holders of Edwards groundwater rights. The EAA board passed the rule amendments despite opposition from the Uvalde district after holding three public hearings in the region. Don Laffere, an EAA board member from Uvalde County, cast the only vote against the changes. The suit asks the court to permanently prevent the EAA from taking actions under the rules. It says the act that created the EAA ensures that 50 percent of water rights granted in an initial permit for irrigation must pass with the transfer of the irrigated land. The couple listed as plaintiffs, George and Carolyn Ligocky, have two Uvalde County farms where they have grown wheat, corn and cotton for decades. One uses strictly Edwards water. The other has wells in the Edwards and the Austin Chalk. Individual landowners, such as the Ligockys, will be adversely affected as increased reliance on the non-Edwards aquifers will reduce the overall supply in those aquifers for their use, the lawsuit states. shuddleston@express-news.net Twitter: @shuddlestonSA How does one begin to describe the colorful tenure of President Donald Trump? Metaphors help. Over the weekend, sounding distressingly resigned, a friend who works in politics called the president a living, breathing denial of service attack that seeks to overwhelm a system with data, causing it to crash. (That was apt, considering the government had literally shut down.) Describing Trumps deal-making, a recent Washington Post article compared him to an amateur jazz musician moody and improvisational, but without the technical chops to hold a piece together. Sen. Chuck Schumer, the Democratic leader tasked with improvising alongside Trump to resolve the government shutdown, quipped on Saturday that negotiating with the president is like negotiating with Jell-O. Thats a good one, actually. Like Trump, Jell-O is constantly changing shape. Theres another word for that: untrustworthy. No metaphor needed. Lying has always been in the job description for lawmakers. The difference these days is there seems to be no political consequences for lying and Americans are noticing. For 18 years, the communications marketing firm Edelman has polled people around the world about their trust in institutions. According to a new report, never before has the firm recorded such precipitous drops in trust in the United States. This year in particular, trust in government plummeted among the so-called informed public, defined as those aged 25 to 64 who have a college degree, regularly consume news, and are in the top 25 percent of household income for their age group. The root cause, according to Richard Edelman, president and CEO of Edelman, is the lack of objective facts and rational discourse. Schumers frustration was that of a lawmaker forced to negotiate in this void. Earlier this month, in a televised meeting with Democratic and Republican lawmakers, Trump declared that both parties should forge a bill of love to resolve a battle over the fate of young, undocumented immigrants known as Dreamers. Moments later, after the cameras had left the Cabinet Room, Trumps homeland security secretary passed out a document outlining the administrations must-haves for any bill, including $18 billion for a border wall and an end to the diversity visa lottery program. Trumps reaction, according to the Washington Post, perplexed many in the room: He said the document did not represent all of his positions. Trump has remained gelatinous ever since. Two days after the televised meeting, the president seemed ready to embrace ideas for a bipartisan compromise on immigration to avoid a shutdown. Hours later, he cursed immigrants from shithole countries, poisoning any chance for actual compromise. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., lamented this latest scramble, noting that Trump days earlier had seemed ready to resolve the debate with compassion. Now I dont know where that guy went, he said. I want him back. This criticism angered the president, who viewed it as disloyal. This was not surprising; the untrustworthy tend to react to criticism with indignation, further poisoning their relationships with those theyve betrayed. I wrote about trust last year, mostly about trust in the media another institution experiencing steep declines in public trust. Real trust, I noted then, is conditional. Its built over time. If someone is trustworthy, its because theyve proved they are reliable. Ronald Reagan once put it another way: Trust, but verify. That maxim came up again on Monday, when Democrats voted to end the government shutdown in exchange for a promise from Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, the Republican leader, to allow a vote on a measure to protect the Dreamers from deportation. I said before, trust, but verify, Sen. Angus King of Maine said of McConnell, according to the New York Times. He made this commitment publicly in the Senate floor. Unfortunately for the Dreamers, we live in a land of bad jazz and Jell-O a nation where objective facts and rational discourse, let alone lofty promises, have lost their meaning. bchasnoff@express-news.net Stuart Allen's career as an artist began early in his life. The kite maker drew a lot as a child and grew up in a home where his creations thrived and flourished. With a mother who was interested in photography and pottery, and a father who did wood working, Allen was able to develop his own creativity and style. "In high school my guidance counselor convinced me I'd be squandering my talents if I went to art school so I went to architecture school instead, only to transfer to art school about 3 years into the architecture studies," Allen said. Allen said he decided to make the switch after realizing he was spending all his time in the art department anyways, although he said architecture can sometimes play a part in his pieces. Raised in Kansas, Allen said his home state largely influenced his art the Midwestern state was windy, which was perfect for his favorite hobby of sailing. "I grew up as a sailor and we sailed on lakes in the Midwest and I sailed small sailboats throughout my teen years," Allen said. "It became incredibly influential in terms of how I think about sculpture and its interaction with the landscape and its interaction with weather, and the sky, and those kinds of things. Sailing and sail making has continued to be an influence on my work really to this day." By Lindsey Carnett/San Antonio Express-News Allen said he came to see the sail as a "sculptural interloper" between him and the weather something the wind, light and water played off of. It changed his idea of what could be considered a sculpture, and opened him up to experimentation with different fabrics and lights. Experimental is exactly how Allen describes his artistic process projects are typically concept driven, and he may use several materials or lights to answer the question of how he can illustrate his inspiration. Allen said he has many failed experiments, "And then eventually I'll land on some set of materials that seems to work for the project. And that's it." He said his decided materials go into a set of drawings which he then presents to the client or city entity funding the project. Once they agree on it, the object is then made to full scale. Allen's first commissioned piece came when he was only 26 and was living in California. "I was in the right place at right time," he said. He had made a tensioned-fabric kite, which had been placed in an exhibition in San Francisco. An art consultant passing through the exhibit saw the piece and told Allen to consider submitting for public commission for a secret client. Curious, Allen agreed and submitted a concept for a piece. He became a finalist, which was when he found out the "secret client" was actually the U.S. State Department, who wanted ideas for a new embassy in Ottawa, Canada. In securing the commission, Allen got his big breakthrough. Allen keeps coming back to kites, though, something he continues to experiment with to this day. "I keep thinking that I'm done with kites, but then they keep popping back into my work," Allen said. "I think it's just that they're so complicated and so simple at the same time." Allen said that kites can be as simple as a newspaper and sticks, or something someone spends a year making. "You end up with this precious object, then release it to the wind to possibly be destroyed. It could go south and often does," Allen said. "I think I just like that it's more complicated than putting work up in a gallery. You're putting it up in the sky, and consequently it's being tested against things that are a lot larger than the forces at play inside a gallery, obviously." Allen enjoys the research aspect of art. He likes experimenting, trying things out. It's a job and a lot of work. He runs a business, keeps books and has employees, but new ideas and projects, and new concepts are the best part. Allen is currently teaching a class at the Southwest School of Art about professionalism in a studio, which he said has been a good reflective process for how he conducts himself in his own studio. "We moved to San Antonio about 14 years ago from California by way of Mexico," Allen said. "My wife is a research scientist and she was looking for teaching jobs and she's from San Antonio originally. A job at Trinity came up, and she got that job, so it was a perfect match, we were able to come back to her hometown, where her father still lives, and raise kids around family and it's been great, I've loved it here." Allen said the art community is more open in San Antonio than it was in California, less secretive and covetous. "We're lucky in San Antonio to have a community that's that open and communal. It's a small-large town is the way it feels." For more about Allen and to see more of his work go to http://stuartallen.info/. WASHINGTON Connecticuts two Democratic senators voted no Monday on Senate legislation aimed at reopening the federal government after a three-day shutdown. But both branches of Congress ultimately approved the measure to jumpstart the government after a 60-hour-plus closing. The Senates version came with a Republican promise to hold a vote on continuing legal status for youthful immigrant Dreamers. Both senators Chris Murphy and Richard Blumenthal were careful to frame their votes as protests against piecemeal short-term continuing resolutions that fund the government for weeks (if not days) while the parties remain at loggerheads principally over immigration. The senators issued a joint press release in which they said another such resolution which funds the government through Feb. 8 shortchanges Connecticuts needs and priorities. Kicking the can down the road for the fourth time in as many months hurts Connecticut in unique ways. In interviews following the vote, both cited the array of Connecticut-based defense contractors uncertain over funding because of temporary spending bills. Among them: Sikorsky Aircraft, Pratt & Whitney and the engine they make for the F-35 fighter, and Electric Boat, a mainstay employer in the Groton and New London area building Virginia-class attack submarines for the Navy. In Connecticut, were hurting, said Murphy. But Republicans accused Democratic senators of being the ones to shortchange the military by voting Friday night against a House-passed resolution that would have kept the government open through Feb. 16. I am pleased that Democrats in Congress have come to their senses and are now willing to fund our great military, border patrol, first responders, and insurance for vulnerable children, President Donald Trump said in a statement. Later Monday, the House affirmed the Senate vote 266-150. Among the Democrats voting no were Reps. Rosa DeLauro, Elizabeth Esty and Jim Himes. Himes said he could not support the latest of a series of short-term, inadequate and dangerous funding bills. Congress has few more important jobs than funding the government in a long-term, stable way, he said in a statement. The Senate vote capped the third day of a shutdown that began Friday at the stroke of midnight. With most federal functions on hold as the workweek began, the majority of Senate Democrats led by Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., voted with all but one of their GOP counterparts on a procedural measure that set the stage for reopening. The agreement, worked out by a bipartisan group of senators, stipulates that a Senate vote on continuing legal status for youthful immigrant Dreamers would take place if no agreement on their future in the U.S. is reached before the Feb. 8 expiration date. That future was cast into doubt last September when Trump canceled the Obama-era Deferred Action on Childhood arrivals, which temporarily legalized more than 700,000 immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children. More than 8,000 of those live in Connecticut. Murphy and, in particular, Blumenthal have been champions of the DREAM Act, which would put Dreamers on a path to permanent legal residence. First introduced in 2001, it never won congressional approval prompting then President Barack Obama to issue his 2012 DACA order. Murphy and Blumenthal were among 17 Democrats voting no on Monday. There is no such thing as a good shutdown, Blumenthal said in an interview after the vote. We all want the government to function normally, but my (Democratic) colleagues are more optimistic about action on the DREAM Act, opioids and community health centers than I was. We shared the same goals but chose different paths. Last month, Blumenthal cited the plight of the Dreamers as his primary reason for voting no to extend government funding through Jan. 19. Republicans have seized on the optics of DACA and the shutdown to argue Democrats were prioritizing illegal immigrants over pay for U.S. troops or health insurance for needy children. On Monday, Blumenthal cited legal status for Dreamers as one item on a list of issues in contention, including hurricane disaster relief for Puerto Rico and elsewhere, more funding for opioid treatment and prevention, and defense needs. Im more interested in whos going to be hurt than whos going to be blamed, Blumenthal said. Absent congressional action, the legal status of all Dreamers is due to expire March 5. Dreamer advocates say that the legal status of up to 15,000 Dreamers has already expired. A federal judge has stayed all deportations against Dreamers while a lawsuit against the government proceeds. In the battle to lay the blame for the shutdown on the opponents doorstep, Republicans argued that Democrats were also turning their backs on the Childrens Health Insurance Program. CHIP Husky B in Connecticut covers children in families just above the poverty level who do not qualify for Medicaid. The GOP-controlled Congress let CHIP lapse last year. But House Republicans put a six-year CHIP reauthorization into the House bill as a sweetener for Democrats. It also was included in the Senate bill. For their part, Democrats countered that it was Trump and Republican leaders on Capitol Hill who kept moving the goal posts, with Schumer comparing his dealings with Trump to negotiating with Jell-O. dan@hearstdc.com Farmers cant apply dicamba between Apr. 16 and Oct. 31 By Diego Flammini News Reporter Farms.com Soybean producers in Arkansas will be without some popular herbicides for this growing season. The Arkansas Legislative Council voted on Friday to approve an Administrative Rules and Regulations Subcommittee report, which included a seasonal dicamba ban. As a result, soybean growers will be prohibited from applying dicamba between Apr. 16 and Oct. 31. The decision comes after state legislators received more than a thousand complaints related to dicamba drift damage last year. The state soybean association isnt leaning one way or the other when it comes to the decision. The Arkansas Soybean Association is not taking a stand on it because we have members on both sides of the issue, Dawn Howe, executive director of the organization, told Farms.com today. But some farmers who experienced soybean damage are happy with the decision. Until (dicamba manufacturers) can find a newer formulation, then Im completely tickled pink with the decision, Reed Storey, a producer from Marvell, Ark., told Reuters Friday. Manufacturers say the ban is unnecessary since their products are proven safe when farmers apply dicamba within label requirements. It is distressing that were in an environment in Arkansas where bringing the most modern tools to farmers is difficult, Scott Partridge, Monsantos vice president of global strategy, told Reuters. Arkansas farmers harvested 3.1 million acres of soybeans in 2016, valued at more than $1.4 billion, according to the National Agricultural Statistics Service. Lawmakers in Minnesota, the Dakotas, Tennessee and Missouri have also implemented state-specific dicamba application regulations since the fall. The Fauquier Times is honored to serve as your community companion. To say thank you, we are excited to offer 4 weeks FREE Digital & Print access to all subscribers new and returning alike. We are dedicated to continuing providing reliable, high quality journalism. This is possible with the trust and support of our subscribers in the community we are proud to serve. I started writing when I was ten. I fell head over heels in love with a bookTonke Dragts The Letter for the Kingand I knew right there and then I wanted to tell stories too. I started with what amounts to fan fiction and branched out from there, creating my own story worlds, my own characters, my own questions to which I wanted answers. Before I Let Go The first time I sent a book to a publisher, I was fourteen. It was dreadful. They were exceedingly kind in their rejection. I love stories. I guess that shouldnt come to anyones surprise. Legends, myths, fables, sagas, campfire stories, history at large. I love how we, as human species, make sense of each other and of the world around us by telling stories. Im a historian. Probably in part because of that. I studied philosophy and history, with a specialization in late medieval intellectual history. It pains me to see the middle ages dismissed as the dark ages, when in fact they were fascinating times of scientific advancement (especially outside of the conventional European middle ages) and cultural diversity. I love theatre. I am no actor myself, but I love to see plays and musicals. When I was at university, I would travel to London as often as I could, seeing as many shows as I could. More than almost anything else, except perhaps reading, theatre fills the creative well for me. Aside from being a theatre geek, Im a geek in many other ways too. Im a Whovian, a Trekkie, a roleplayer, a gamer, a comics fan. Ive gone to fantasy conventions in cosplay. I love how passionate creative communities can be. I suffer from wanderlust. These days, I mostly travel for book promotion, but I still love to go out, experience the world, meet people. Ive done everything from hitchhiking, couchsurfing, and backpacking, to organized tours. Ive slept in abandoned hospitals and in five-star hotels. I just love the adventure. I love setting. Perhaps its part of loving to travel, but in my writing, I love to approach setting as a character. I love to create towns and cities and occasionally entire worlds that have their own unique, striking personality. I keep moving the goal posts on myself. Im a perfectionist and I enjoy a challenge, though at times I push myself too hard, too far. I know where my boundaries lie, I just cannot seem to stick to them. I grew up an activist. I worked for gay rights organizations as a teen and have always been vocal about disability rights and representation. As a queer, disabled, nonbinary creator, Ive always felt strengthened by those who came before me. I am proud of who I am and I hope being vocal and loud about that will in turn empower others. Catfish and the Bottlemen and Blossoms are among the latest acts confirmed for All Points East Festival. Catfish and the Bottlemen The brand-new 10-day event held at east London's Victoria Park from May 25 to June 3 already has the likes of LCD Soundsystem, Beck, Lykke Li, Father John Misty and Warpaint on the bill. The 'Soundcheck' hitmakers will be joined by Amazons, Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes, The Neighbourhood and The Hunna at the music extravaganza on June 1. Van McCann of Catfish said: "This is gonna be a massive night! Doesn't get much better than 40,000 people outdoors screaming every word you've written back at you! That'll do us nicely!" Matt from Amazons said: "We're excited to join a great line-up of music across the festival at All Points East in May. We have a lot of memories of Victoria Park festivals in our formative years which were a massive inspiration for us. Can't beat a festival in London too, no muddy camping!" And Frank Carter of Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes added: "Every Summer, there are a few line ups and festivals that as a band you see and just have to be a part of. All Points East, in its first year is going to be incredible." LCD Soundsystem - who split in 2011 before getting back together in 2015 - will headline the first ever night of the music event on Friday May 25, supported by Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Phoenix, and Glass Animals. 'I Dare You' hitmakers The xx will take to the stage the following night to complete a day of music action, which will also feature Lorde and Rex Orange County. Bjork will close out the weekend's performers on the Sunday night after fans have listened to sets from Beck, Father John Misty, Flying Lotus 3D, and Alexis Taylor, among others. The music then returns to Victoria Park less than a week later as The National headline on Saturday June 2, with special guests The War on Drugs and Future Islands. The US rockers are planning something big to make the event a special one for their fans. They said: "After a thrilling four sold out shows at the Eventim Apollo in September, we are excited to take over Victoria Park next summer. "We are already thinking about ways to make this more than just a show." Gregory Porter says he owes his success to his hometown on Bakersfield. Gregory Porter The Jazz sensation returned to his hometown in California to live after residing in New York, and performed there over the weekend at the Dore Theatre, supporting Habitat for Humanity Golden Empire, which families facing poverty. Gregory - a two-time Grammy winner - said: "My family is here, I have three sisters here and most of the 8 of us are still here. "New York is great but Bakersfield is home. In my career the things I got from Bakersfield were what I learned from the little small country churches I grew up in, I put that sound and that feeling into my music and that really is what caused my success. " The 'Liquid Spirit' hitmaker recently released new album 'Nat King Cole & Me', his personal tribute to his idol, late jazz legend Nat King Cole, and he said it was the "emotion" of the songs that drew him to the project. He explained to BANG Showbiz: "Emotion influenced me, I listened to Nat King Cole from the age of 5 or 6, I knew that this was something beautiful or deeper, these songs are very important to me. "When it was time for me to step up to the professional microphone I would always consider, what would Nat King Cole do with this song, how would he find the depth and meaning into this song. "That is how I jumped into this music, I approached it with the beauty that Nat King Cole would approach this music and some of the messages are universal stories." Neil Diamond has retired from touring with immediate effect after he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Neil Diamond The 76-year-old music legend has axed the remaining dates of his '50th Anniversary Tour' in Australia and New Zealand on medical advice after the onset of the disease made it "difficult to travel and perform on a large scale basis". He said in a statement on his official website: "It is with great reluctance and disappointment that I announce my retirement from concert touring. I have been so honoured to bring my shows to the public for the past 50 years. "My sincerest apologies to everyone who purchased tickets and were planning to come to the upcoming shows." Despite hanging up his tour microphone, the 'Sweet Caroline' hitmaker has vowed to continue writing and recording music for a "long time to come". He added: "I plan to remain active in writing, recording and other projects for a long time to come. "My thanks goes out to my loyal and devoted audiences around the world. You will always have my appreciation for your support and encouragement. This ride has been 'so good, so good, so good' thanks to you." The upcoming dates were to be the third leg of Neil's tour after he sold out dates in the US and Europe in 2017. Australian promoter Paul Dainty, who has been working with Neil on his upcoming run of shows, admitted he is "devastated" about Neil's diagnosis. He said: "I am devastated and saddened to hear the news of Neil's illness and his retirement from touring. I have had the honour of promoting Neil's numerous tours in Australia and New Zealand, he is one of the world's greatest artists and we and his thousands and thousands of fans here will miss seeing him tour down under." Neil will turn 77 tomorrow (24.01.18) and will be honoured with a Lifetime Achievement Award by The Recording Academy on Sunday (28.01.18). Prince William asked Dermot O'Leary for a hug. Dermot O'Leary The British television presenter has revealed the 35-year-old royal requested one of the famous "Dermot hugs" he hands out to rejected 'X Factor' contestants when they met at the Pride of Britain Awards last year alongside the talent show's judges, Nicole Scherzinger and Louis Walsh. Speaking about meeting the prince at the award ceremony, he told The Sun newspaper: "Everyone who's getting an award meets the royals. When it was Prince Charles, there was more of a semi-circle with everyone waiting to shake his hand, but William was more chilled and was saying hello to everyone. Nicole told him her code name in the Pussycat Dolls was Prince William, which he loved. Then he came to me and said, 'You know what I need? I need a Dermot hug.' And I said, 'Right, bring it on.' So we had a hug and he went, 'Oh that's a good hug, and it's important to hug.' If he was briefed he was exceptionally well briefed. It was a touching moment, we brought it in together. He's a good hugger." It comes after Prince William revealed he had been inspired by a five-year-old girl - who he met at the Pride of Britain Awards - and was planning to teach Prince George to always call 999 in an emergency. Suzie McCash, five, saved her mother's life by calling the emergency phone number when she was taken ill. William - who also has two-year-old daughter Princess Charlotte and is expecting a third with wife Duchess Catherine - said: "I have a four-year-old called George and if I gave him a telephone I do not know what he would do. And do you know what I'm going to have a conversation with my George about what to do because of what you've done. It's really important." WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - Whirlpool Corp. (WHR) said it added 200 new full-time positions at its manufacturing plant in Clyde, Ohio, in anticipation of increased demand following a safeguard remedy decision. Whirlpool Chairman, Jeff Fettig praised the Trump Administration's decision to uphold long-standing trade rules by establishing a tariff of up to the legal maximum of 50 percent on imports of large residential washing machines. The administration announced this remedy to address Samsung and LG's decade-long efforts to unlawfully dump washers and circumvent U.S. law. 'This announcement caps nearly a decade of litigation and will result in new manufacturing jobs in Ohio, Kentucky, South Carolina and Tennessee. This is a victory for American workers and consumers alike. By enforcing our existing trade laws, President Trump has ensured American workers will compete on a level playing field with their foreign counterparts, enabled new manufacturing jobs here in America and will usher in a new era of innovation for consumers everywhere,' Fettig said. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. SUNNYVALE, CA--(Marketwired - January 23, 2018) - Insignary, the global leader in binary-level open source software security and compliance, announced today that it has secured $2 million in Series A funding from Mega Investment and Samho Green Investment, as well as additional funding from Innopolis Partners. The new funding builds on Insignary's initial seed round that occurred in 2016, making Insignary's accumulated venture funding $4 million. This advancement will enable Insignary to scale its business to meet the demand in the E.U., U.S. and Asia for businesses, managed service providers (MSP), resellers and auditors looking to capitalize on the growing security vulnerability detection market. Insignary's software-as-a-service (SaaS) and server-based security tool, Insignary Clarity', enables proactive scanning of software binaries for known, preventable security vulnerabilities, while also identifying potential license compliance issues. Insignary Clarity uses unique fingerprint-based technology, which works on the binary-level without the need for source code or reverse engineering. "We are very excited to welcome Mega Investment and Samho Green Investment as new investors. We also look forward to continuing our strategic relationship with Innopolis Partners," said Tae-Jin (TJ) Kang, CEO of Insignary, Inc. "Having the financial and strategic support of these sophisticated investors both validates the market opportunity and fuels our momentum as a company." "At Innopolis, we pride ourselves on being long-term partners for the companies that we invest in. We were attracted to Insignary because they meet our criteria of having a breakthrough and innovative approach to one of the largest problems in software development and management - identifying what known software vulnerabilities exist in software," said Sang-Jeen Lee, CEO of Innopolis Partners, LLC. "Tae-Jin and the team are building an excellent business platform and security solution. We look forward to continue working with Insignary's management team as they build the company into the next dominant code scanning provider." "The rapid adoption of open source in critical IoT, Web and Mobile Apps, Blockchain, Cloud and other fast-growth technologies makes it increasingly important to be able to identify and address known security vulnerabilities," said Dong-Hoon Kim, Executive Director at Mega Investment Corporation. "We look to invest in companies that have a unique capability to address a fast growing market. As the only fingerprint-based, binary code scanner, Insignary fits perfectly with our investment strategy." "At SGI, our investment portfolio is strategically targeted toward companies and technologies that look to have profoundly positive impacts for humanity. One of the most beneficial is open source," said Jiyoung Tim Kang, Executive Managing Director at Samho Green Investment, Inc. "Due to the socioeconomic impact of exploited security vulnerabilities, we view our investment in Insignary as a strategic means to disrupt negative behavior and foster innovation in open source software." Insignary Clarity' Insignary Clarity enables proactive scanning of software binaries for known, preventable security vulnerabilities, while also identifying potential license compliance issues. It uses unique fingerprint-based technology, which works on the binary-level without the need for source code or reverse engineering. This makes it easy for software developers, value added resellers (VAR), systems integrators and security MSPs overseeing software deployments to take proper, preventive action before software delivery. Insignary's Clarity is unique in that it scans for "fingerprints" from a binary to examine and then compare against the fingerprints collected from open source components hosted in numerous open source repositories. Unlike checksum or hash-based binary scanners, Clarity does not need to keep separate databases of checksum or hash values for different CPU architectures. This significantly increases Clarity's flexibility and accuracy in comparison to legacy binary code scanners. Once a component and its version are identified through Clarity's fingerprint-based matching, comparing them to more than 180,000 known security vulnerabilities catalogued in databases such as NVD and VulnDB, is straightforward. Clarity also adds enterprise support, "fuzzy matching" of binary code and support for automation servers like Jenkins. About Innopolis Partners, LLC. Established in 2006, Innopolis Partners is a leading venture capital firm in Korea. The company has a competitive edge in its focus for making strategic investments in technology-oriented startups. The firm's track record of investment successes, with more than $150 million under management, led to its garnering the award for Best Venture Capitalist, by the Small and Medium Business Administration of Korea, in 2015. For more information, please visit http://www.innollc.com. About Mega Investment Corporation Founded in 2012, Mega Investment is committed to making a better world through investing in the products or services that can make life better for everyone. With more than $70 million under management, Mega Investment seeks to foster close partnerships with its portfolio companies. The firm invests in corporate vision and entrepreneurs, and through its deep entrepreunrial expertise, continues to support its portfolio companies. For more information, please visit http://www.megainv.co.kr. About Samho Green Investment, Inc. Founded in 2007, Samho Green Investment (SGI) is the first and only venture capital firm in Korea focused on the clean growth sector, including renewable energy, green and agricultural technologies. We engage in venture capital and private equity investments for mergers, acquisitions and buyouts; and conduct business and engineering consulting for our portfolio and client companies. SGI is a wholly owned subsidiary of Samho Development Group, a Korean conglomerate in operation since 1976, comprised of Samho Development Co., Ltd. (KRX-listed), Samho Resources, Inc. For more information, please visit http://www.sgivc.com. About Insignary, Inc. Founded in 2016, venture-backed Insignary is the global leader in binary-level software composition analysis. Through its Insignary Clarity and TruthIsIntheBinary.com software and cloud-based solutions, the company enables unmatched open source software binary scanning to uncover and address security and license compliance issues. For more information please visit www.insignary.com. Insignary, Insignary Clarity and TruthIsIntheBinary are trademarks or servicemarks of Insignary, Inc. All other brands, trademarks or servicemarks are the property of their respective owners. Media & Influencer Only Contact: Ed Schauweker AVID PR for Insignary, Inc. ed@avidpr.com 703-963-5238 AMSTERDAM and DAVOS, Switzerland, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The first independent analysis of pharmaceutical industry efforts to tackle drug resistance, published today, finds that as well as developing new drugs companies are also dismantling the incentives that encourage sales staff to oversell antibiotics, setting limits on the concentration of antibiotics in factory wastewater released into the environment, and tracking the spread of superbugs. (Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/631860/Access_to_Medicine_Foundation_Logo.jpg ) (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/631861/Pharmaceutical_companies_are_active_in_ten_AMR_priority_areas.jpg ) (Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/631862/Antimicrobial_Resistance_Benchmark.jpg ) In the Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark, GSK and Johnson & Johnson lead among the large research-based pharmaceutical companies, while Mylan leads the generic medicine manufacturers and Entasis leads in the biotechnology group. The Benchmark finds room for all companies to improve, as well as evidence of good practice. "If we don't use antibiotics in the right doses or for the right bugs, we risk giving bacteria a chance to adapt and strengthen their defences, which will make it harder to kill them the next time. The threat that once-deadly infections could again become life-threatening is intensifying," said Jayasree K. Iyer, Executive Director of the Access to Medicine Foundation, which publishes the Benchmark. "Pharmaceutical companies have a critical contribution to make to the effort to tackle superbugs." Antibiotics are losing their effectiveness at an increasing rate, accelerated mostly by their misuse in humans, animals and crops. The drugs must be used sparingly, in order to minimise the chances for bacteria to outsmart them. There is now wide recognition at the highest political levels that more needs to be done urgently to slow the pace of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with AMR initiatives being launched by the United Nations, the G7 and G20. Bringing drug resistance under control requires coordinated action from governments, policy-makers and public health authorities, doctors, farmers and pharmaceutical companies, as well as patients. Most companies in the Benchmark have signed up to industry-wide commitments, as set out in the January 2016 Davos Declaration on Combating Antimicrobial Resistance. The Benchmark compares how a cross-section of the pharmaceutical industry is responding to the threat from drug-resistant infections. It measures the 30 most active players in antimicrobial development and production and includes multinational pharmaceutical companies, biotechnology firms and manufacturers of generic medicines. The main areas tracked are: R&D for new antimicrobials, policies for ensuring antibiotics are manufactured responsibly, and approaches to ensure antimicrobials are accessible and used wisely. Information was gathered and cross-checked from multiple sources. "While pharmaceutical companies are addressing AMR, for most of them, this is only the start. Yes, there are important new medicines in the pipeline - but it is widely accepted that there are not enough to replace the ones that no longer work. The Benchmark uncovered a few very good examples of companies addressing access and stewardship for individual products," Iyer said. The leaders GSK and Johnson & Johnson lead the eight large research-based pharmaceutical companies included in the Benchmark. GSK has the most antimicrobial medicines in its R&D pipeline, including for pathogens experts view as the highest priority targets for AMR. GSK is one of only two companies to fully separate bonuses from the volume of antibiotic sales, removing the incentive for sales staff to oversell antibiotics. Johnson & Johnson focuses its attention on tuberculosis (TB): access to its breakthrough medicine for multidrug-resistant TB is being tightly controlled through national TB programmes. These leaders are followed by Novartis, Pfizer and Sanofi together. Pfizer performs particularly well in stewardship measures, while Sanofi is stronger in R&D. Novartis' delivers a consistently solid performance in most areas. Biotechnology firms have a critical role to play in developing new antimicrobials. Among the 12 the Benchmark covers, Entasis leads, particularly when it comes to planning ahead to help ensure successful candidates will be made accessible but also used wisely. It is followed by Polyphor, Summit and Tetraphase in joint second place. Generics manufacturers account for the majority of antibiotics sold today, giving them significant power to slow the growth of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). In comparison with the other companies analysed, the level of transparency in this group is low. The leaders in this group show a more defined response than that of their peers, addressing either affordability or the rational use of their products. Of the 10 evaluated, Mylan leads, with the strongest performance in several areas, including an equitable pricing approach and environmental risk-management strategy. Mylan is followed by Cipla then Fresenius Kabi. "One of the strongest messages to come out of the Benchmark is the huge power of generics companies to stop the superbugs. These companies produce the largest volumes of antibiotics, and have been doing this for decades. Some have only recently started tackling AMR. If they can be encouraged to really step up, we will see a big impact." The Benchmark's key findings include: There are 28 antibiotics in later stages of development that target the pathogens deemed critical AMR priorities by the WHO and/or US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, only two of these 28 candidates are supported by plans to ensure they can be both made accessible and used wisely if they reach the market. Nearly half of companies evaluated are involved in efforts to track patterns in drug resistance, with AMR surveillance programmes of different scales running in 147 countries. Pneumonia is the most widely tracked infection. Pfizer is running the most programmes. Eight companies are setting limits on the concentration of antibiotics that manufacturing wastewaters can contain before they can be released into the environment. Four companies require suppliers to also meet these standards: GSK, Johnson & Johnson, Pfizer and Roche. More information is needed on what these limits are and no company reveals what is released in practice. Four companies are taking steps to separate sales agent's bonuses from the volume of antibiotics they sell. GSK and Shionogi have fully separated the two globally, Pfizer is piloting that approach in certain locations, and Novartis is in the process of adjusting the incentives for its sales teams. How the Benchmark compares The Benchmark measures companies against the consensus view on areas where they can and should be contributing to efforts to limit AMR. The Access to Medicine Foundation defined these areas by engaging top experts and a broad range of stakeholders in antimicrobial resistance and global health in a rigorous process to develop the methodology for the Benchmark. The Benchmark was designed to have the flexibility to be sensitive to differences between the companies when it comes to the focus of their business, their portfolios and strategies. The Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark is made possible with financial support from UK Department for International Development and the Dutch Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sports. Note to editors: Media materials: The graphs & figures from the Key Findings and other figures in the report are available upon request. About the Access to Medicine Foundation: The Access to Medicine Foundation, which publishes the Benchmark, is an independent non-profit organisation based in the Netherlands. It aims to advance access to medicine in low- and middle-income countries by stimulating and guiding the pharmaceutical industry to play a greater role in improving access to medicine. For 10 years, the Foundation has been building consensus on the role of the pharmaceutical industry in improving access to medicine and vaccines. It publishes the Access to Medicine Index every two years, with the next Index due in late 2018. In 2017, the Foundation published the first Access to Vaccines Index. This is the first Antimicrobial Resistance Benchmark. Regulatory News: One year after the launch of the first remote operation center in France, Air Liquide (Paris:AI) inaugurated today its Smart Innovative Operations (SIO) Center for the Southeast Asia Pacific region, located in Malaysia. The SIO Center enables the remote management of production for 18 Air Liquide Large Industries production units spanning eight countries across the region, as well as optimizing energy consumption and improving reliability at these sites. Air Liquide invested 20 million1 in this project. The SIO Center, located in Kuala Lumpur, integrates, optimizes and remotely controls the operations of Air Liquide's production units, leveraging predictive analytics and digital technologies. These capabilities allow Air Liquide to better predict and accommodate changing customer needs across the region, especially regarding the supply of oxygen, nitrogen, argon and hydrogen. This new SIO Center complements the one the Group opened in Shanghai in September 2017, dedicated to production units in China. Through big data combined with human intelligence, the workflow of each Air Liquide production unit linked to the SIO Center is adapted in real time to the needs of each customer. The SIO Center enables 24/7 responsiveness to customer demand, improves production-unit energy efficiency, and leverages predictive maintenance to ensure continuous facility run-time. In the connected plants, new digital technologies are being deployed to simplify maintenance and inspection management operations. For instance, connected glasses allow operators to interface with experts located elsewhere while virtual reality-based training assist them in their daily tasks. In 2017, Air Liquide also set up shared business services in Malaysia: the Financial Shared Services Center manages financial transactions for Air Liquide entities in the Southeast Asia Pacific region, while the new Smart Innovative Operations Center enables remote management of production in this region. Francois Abrial, member of the Air Liquide Group's Executive Committee supervising Asia Pacific said: "With this new center, the Group is continuing its digital transformation, enabling Air Liquide to better anticipate industrial customers' needs while strengthening the reliability of its production units. We are glad to implement the new Smart Innovative Operations (SIO) Center in Malaysia, a highly promising market with both a solid IT infrastructure and high-skilled professionals in big data analysis." Air Liquide in Malaysia Air Liquide began operations in 1927 and is one of the pioneers of the gas industry in Malaysia. Operating in 11 locations across Malaysia, comprising of both sales offices and production facilities, Air Liquide supports customers by providing innovative solutions at every step of their production, including industrial and specialty gases, energy solutions, application technologies and services. Air Liquide Digital transformation strategy Digital transformation at Air Liquide is about leveraging the power of digital to deliver a world-class customer experience. It involves harnessing data and creating digital solutions to better manage its Assets, interact with its Customers and patients, and leverage its Ecosystems (ACE strategy). The value created offers greater efficiencies and increased new growth opportunities notably. __________________________________________________________________________________________ The world leader in gases, technologies and services for Industry and Health, Air Liquide is present in 80 countries with approximately 65,000 employees and serves more than 3 million customers and patients. Oxygen, nitrogen and hydrogen are essential small molecules for life, matter and energy. They embody Air Liquide's scientific territory and have been at the core of the company's activities since its creation in 1902. Air Liquide's ambition is to lead its industry, deliver long term performance and contribute to sustainability. The company's customer-centric transformation strategy aims at profitable growth over the long term. It relies on operational excellence, selective investments, open innovation and a network organization implemented by the Group worldwide. Through the commitment and inventiveness of its people, Air Liquide leverages energy and environment transition, changes in healthcare and digitization, and delivers greater value to all its stakeholders. Air Liquide's revenues amounted to 18.1 billion in 2016, and its solutions that protect life and the environment represented more than 40% of sales. Air Liquide is listed on the Euronext Paris stock exchange (compartment A) and belongs to the CAC 40, EURO STOXX 50 and FTSE4Good indexes. 1 Air Liquide 2016 investment decision www.airliquide.com Follow us on Twitter @airliquidegroup View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180122006148/en/ Contacts: Air Liquide Corporate Communications Caroline Philips, +33 (0)1 40 62 50 84 Caroline Brugier, +33 (0)1 40 62 50 59 or Investor Relations Paris +33 (0)1 40 62 50 87 Radnor +1 610 263 8277 or Corporate Communications, Asia-Pacific Laurie Underwood, +86 21 6091 5883 Potential investment by Tencent and Yonghui in Carrefour China, alongside a strategic cooperation agreement with Tencent Regulatory News: Carrefour (Paris:CA) announces a potential investment by Tencent and Yonghui in Carrefour China as well as a strategic cooperation agreement with Tencent in China. Potential Investment by Tencent and Yonghui in Carrefour China Carrefour has signed a term sheet with Tencent and Yonghui regarding a potential investment in Carrefour China. The potential investment will leverage Carrefour's global retail knowledge with Tencent's technological excellence and Yonghui's operational knowhow and in particular its deep knowledge of fresh products. Upon completion of this investment, Carrefour will remain the largest shareholder of Carrefour China. Strategic Cooperation Agreement with Tencent Moreover, Carrefour and Tencent are pleased to announce they have signed a preliminary agreement regarding a strategic business cooperation in China, in order to bring together Carrefour's longstanding retail knowledge and Tencent's digital expertise and innovation capabilities. Thanks to this partnership, Carrefour will improve its online visibility, increase the traffic of its offline and online retail activities and benefit from Tencent's advanced digital and technological expertise to develop new smart retail initiatives. Tencent will further develop the retail services offered on its social platforms and promote the use of Weixin as well as Weixin Pay, cloud computing and other services within the Carrefour ecosystem. The contemplated scope of cooperation includes key partnership areas such as cooperation on data, smart retail, mobile payment, in-store experience and data analysis to boost Carrefour China's customer traffic. The strategic cooperation and investment are subject to further diligence and agreement of the parties on the terms of a definitive documentation. Carrefour will keep the market informed of further progress as appropriate. About Carrefour A global leader and the reference in food retail, Carrefour operates more than 12,000 stores and e-commerce sites in more than 30 countries. Carrefour is a multi-local, multi-format and omni-channel retail Group that employs more than 384,000 people worldwide and generated total sales of 103.7 billion euros under its banners in 2016. Every day, Carrefour welcomes 13 million customers around the world and is actively committed to quality and to more sustainable trade. The Group's Corporate Social Responsibility worldwide approach is built on three pillars: fighting against waste in all its forms, protecting biodiversity and working alongside the company's partners. For more information: www.carrefour.com,@GroupeCarrefour on Twitter About Tencent Tencent uses technology to enrich the lives of Internet users. Our social products Weixin and QQ link our users to a rich digital content catalogue including games, video, music and books. Our proprietary targeting technology helps advertisers reach out to hundreds of millions of consumers in China. Our infrastructure services including payment, security, cloud and artificial intelligence create differentiated offerings and support our partners' business growth. Tencent invests heavily in people and innovation, enabling us to evolve with the Internet. Tencent was founded in Shenzhen, China, in 1998. Shares of Tencent (00700.HK) are traded on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong. About Yonghui Yonghui has been among the first companies in China to introduce fresh products into modern supermarkets. Yonghui has developed into a large retail business conglomerate, supported by modern logistics, sustained by modern agriculture and food industry and based on industrial development. Yonghui operates over 590 stores in 23 provinces and municipalities with a total operating area exceeding 5 million square meters. Yonghui was founded in Fuzhou, China, in 1995. Shares of Yonghui (601933.SH) are traded on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180122006751/en/ Contacts: Carrefour Group Communications Tel: +33 (0) 1 41 04 26 17 or Investor Relations Tel: +33 (0) 1 41 04 28 83 Vilnius, Lithuania, 2018-01-23 08:49 CET (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- INVL Asset Management, one of Lithuania's leading asset management companies, has launched a new mutual fund - the INVL Absolute Return Subfund - which is able to invest in diverse asset classes without restrictions on the proportions of the fund's assets that may be allocated, at times thus even reaching 100% equity or 100% bonds. The fund's main principal for choosing investments will be expert assessment in terms of regions, countries, asset classes or specific investment ideas. The new fund intended for retail investors began operations on 22 January this year after the Bank of Lithuania approved the founding documents of the INVL Specialized Umbrella Fund as a new specialized in investing to transferable securities umbrella investment fund, and of the INVL Absolute Return Subfund as its first subfund. "Until now we've managed products focused on Central and Eastern European stocks and bonds and emerging market bonds, which, even when the market's direction changed, had to stick to a set investment strategy. The new fund won't be tied to any specific asset class or region and will invest wherever the team of investment managers sees the biggest return potential," said Vaidotas Rukas, Chief Investment Officer at INVL Asset Management. He said that due to its relatively small size, the fund will able to invest more than is usual in small- and mid-cap companies that are characterized by lower valuations and so have bigger growth potential or higher dividend yields. Also noteworthy about the fund is its ability to pay dividend to its participants. If the fund's assets under management at the start of a year exceed EUR 10.5 million and the fund meets other established criteria, then, the management company can adopt a decision to pay dividends, and when it does so, the dividends will be no less than 5% of the fund's unit value. The new fund is intended for investors who are able to assume high risk over the long term. The recommended holding period is more than 5 years. The minimum investment amount is EUR 10 000. As the fund doesn't have restrictions, Rukas noted, it will be flexible and able to invest in what its managers consider the best ideas or, in times of risk and uncertainty, reduce investment risk to a minimum. "This is a chance to entrust investments to a team of professionals that will choose, on behalf of the investor, when and what to invest in or sell. Funds of this type are common in the world, though in Lithuania until now there have been few," he said. A management fee of 1.5% will apply for investors in the fund, along with a 15% success fee calculated on a high-water mark basis and with a 5% hurdle rate. A distribution fee will also apply, ranging from 0 to 2% depending on the amount invested. The target size of the fund is EUR 10 million; its distribution may be halted when the level of EUR 9.5 million is reached. The fund will be distributed by INVL Asset Management and the financial brokerage firm INVL Finasta. Until now, INVL Asset Management has operated five mutual funds intended for retail investors and focused on specific asset classes or regions, and nine 2nd and 3rd pillar pension funds. The funds managed by the company have performed well in recent years. According to the Bank of Lithuania's information as of the end of 2017, INVL Asset Management's pension funds were ranked first - ahead of the country's other pension funds - in all categories in terms of their returns for 2017 and for the past five years. The company's mutual funds, meanwhile, have earned top or high-level ratings from international rating agencies for specific periods and based on varied criteria. INVL Asset Management is part of the Invalda INVL group, whose companies manage pension and mutual funds, alternative investments, private equity assets, individual portfolios and other financial instruments. More than 185 000 clients in Lithuania and Latvia as well as international investors have entrusted them with managing over EUR 575 million of assets. The person authorised to provide additional information: Vaidotas Rukas Chief Investment Officer at INVL Asset Management E-mail vaidotas.rukas@invl.com LONDON (dpa-AFX) - Paragon Banking Group PLC (PAG.L) reported that its first-quarter new lending was up 65% year-over-year at 469.8 million pounds. Total new lending and investment was 469.8 million pounds compared to 379.7 million pounds, prior year. Paragon said deposit raising maintained its progress during the quarter, with balances of 4.03 billion pounds at the quarter end, up 98% from 2.03 billion pounds at 31 December 2016. The Group said the credit performance of its portfolios remains strong, with continued low arrears on the buy-to-let portfolio and behavioural scores on the wider portfolio continuing the favourable themes seen in recent years. Nigel Terrington, Chief Executive said: 'We have made excellent progress during the first quarter. The lending growth achieved across the Group has been outstanding and reflects the increasing strength of the franchise. Our retail deposit base continues to deepen, providing us with a stable platform for growth and the ability to optimise further the Group's funding structure.' Looking forward, the Group said it continues to see good progress in each of the business lines and continues to trade in line with expectations. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. BOC Group is happy to present the next release of ADOIT. Powerful workflow capabilities to manage ever-changing Enterprise Architectures are one, yet not the only, highlight of ADOIT 8.3. BOC Group, an internationally leading vendor and manufacturer of software tools for globally recognized management approaches introduces the next evolution of its powerful 100% web-based EA suite. ADOIT steps out of the box and delivers valuable insights that are easily digested by decision makers through its powerful aggregated views. The EA suite enables to quickly launch Enterprise Architecture and IT Management initiatives and start turning buried or hidden information into business value with easy analysis, just a few clicks away. In the course of delivering more than 1,000 implementation projects worldwide, BOC Group has acquired extensive experience that has benefited ADOIT's development significantly. With the new workflow capabilities and release state filter options in ADOIT 8.3, on top of other exciting enhancements, it has never been easier to actively control the lifecycles of an EA documentation. "Of course, design elements of an organization are not set in stone, rather they are subject to constant change. Just as any other asset in an organization, the architecture documentation must also be kept up to date to ensure well-educated decisions. With the new EA release workflow, changes to the architecture are reviewed and approved to ensure traceability and transparency. This collaborative creation of documentation is supported by the control and release mechanisms.", Christoph Moser, ADOIT Product Manager, outlines the huge advantage for organizations. Details on the feature highlights of ADOIT are available on the BOC Group website. BOC consultants are at the disposal of interested parties and offer free demonstrations of ADOIT 8.3. About the BOC Group BOC Group develops software products and services for effective and extensive Business Management in an era of digital transformation. The main strengths lie in improving Enterprise Architecture and Business Process Management capabilities as well as facilitating better Governance, Risk and Compliance to assure audit-readiness. We deliver our products and services with over 200 employees spread across Athens, Berlin, Dublin, Madrid, Paris, Vienna, Warsaw and Winterthur and with more than 90 partners around the globe. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005630/en/ Contacts: BOC Information Technologies Consulting GmbH Ing. Enrique Lobo Cruz Market Development Manager +43 1 905 10 81 2250 enrique.lobo-cruz@boc-group.com Big bookmakers are weighing up the possibility of legal action against the government after suggestions that ministers have decided to cut the maximum stakes on betting machines from 100 to 2. The reports spooked investors, who had been forecasting a cut in the maximum stake to 20. - The Times The head of the UK's National Cyber Security Centre has warned that a major cyber-attack on the UK is a matter of "when, not if", raising the prospect of devastating disruption to British elections ... Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. BEIJING (dpa-AFX) - French grocery retailer Carrefour Group (CRERF, CRRFY, 0NPH.L) said that it will invest 2.8 billion euros over five years, or six times more than current investments, to gain a new dimension in digital and omnichannel. It also launched efficiency plan aimed at generating 2 billion euros in full-year cost savings by 2020. It will offer a voluntary redundancy plan to 2,400 employees at head office in France. It targets 5 billion euros in sales in food e-commerce by 2022. Separately, Carrefour announced a potential investment by Tencent and Yonghui in Carrefour China as well as a strategic cooperation agreement with Tencent in China. Carrefour Group presented its transformation plan, 'Carrefour 2022', and is adapting its model and organization. Carrefour said itis rationalizing its headquarters in all of its countries. In the Ile-de-France region, headquarters will be regrouped, which involves the closure of the corporate headquarters in Boulogne and the abandonment of the project to build a new 30,000 m headquarter in the Essonne department. A strictly voluntary redundancy plan will be offered to 2,400 employees at head office in France, out of a total workforce of 10,500. The company announced a cost reduction plan of 2 billion euros on a full-year basis by 2020. The cost reduction plan will focus on four main areas. They are The optimization of direct purchasing, The rationalization of indirect purchasing, The reduction of logistics costs, The reduction of structural costs. The Group plans to divest 273 ex-DIA stores. A search for buyers will be launched store by store; In the absence of buyers, these stores will be closed. The company will systematically give preference to alternative job offers within the Group. The 'Carrefour 2022' plan provides for annual investments of 2 billion euros as of 2018. These investments are rightsized to maintain the Group's assets; implement its transformation ambitions. In terms of real estate strategy, Carrefour will dispose of 500 million euros of non-strategic assets over the next three years. Meanwhile, the company noted that Supermarkets and convenience stores are growth formats for the Group. Carrefour will be on the offensive in this segment and will open at least 2,000 convenience stores in the next five years, with a growing presence in major European cities. Carrefour will open 20 Atacadao stores per year in Brazil as of 2018, including 5 hypermarket conversions this year. In Argentina, Carrefour announces it is investing in the Maxi banner, launching the conversion of 16 hypermarkets in 2018. The adaptation of these formats in Europe will be continued, with an acceleration of the roll-out of Promocash in France and continued experimentation in other countries. Carrefour stated that it will invest 2.8 billion euros over five years, or six times more than current investments, to gain a new dimension in digital and omnichannel. Carrefour said its ambition is to become a key player in food e-commerce, with 5 billion euros in sales for the Group and market share of at least 20% in food e-commerce market in France by 2022. Carrefour noted that it will rely on its physical network to offer to its customers a reliable and extensive omnichannel service: All the delivery solutions offered by Carrefour will see their reliability enhanced and be generalized. In France, home delivery will be extended to 26 cities by 2018, and 1-hour express delivery will be deployed in 15 cities in 2018. Carrefour noted that it must improve the quality of service and extend its Drive offer. As of 2018, 170 new Drive will be opened in France and the overall quality of service will be improved, notably thanks to the deployment of automated logistics means (partly-automated warehouse). Click & Collect will be expanded to more than half of the stores by 2019. To successfully implement the transformation of its e-commerce offer, Carrefour announces it has entered into a partnership with Sapient, a leading technology player of the Publicis Group. Carrefour noted that it is positioning itself as the leader in the democratization of organic products and aims to increase its sales in this segment to 5 billion euros in 2022 from 1.3 billion euros currently. Carrefour noted that it is making a profound change by launching a new quality policy that notably involves the massification of controls and the rapid elimination of controversial substances. The Group will also reduce private label packaging by 5% by 2020. Co-construction with customers is a strong development pillar of the company's private labels, as is strengthened traceability of the products that compose them. As of 2018, the Group is launching a powerful efficiency plan aimed at generating 2 billion euros in full-year cost savings by 2020. In addition, in order to improve its free cash flow generation, Carrefour will actively manage its working capital requirements, notably through an optimisation of inventory levels, as well as more efficient investments. Investments will be reinforced on the Group's strategic priorities and should represent 2 billion euros per year as of 2018. In a separate press release, Carrefour said it has signed a term sheet with Tencent and Yonghui regarding a potential investment in Carrefour China. Upon completion of this investment, Carrefour will remain the largest shareholder of Carrefour China. Carrefour said it will improve its online visibility, increase the traffic of its offline and online retail activities and benefit from Tencent's advanced digital and technological expertise to develop new smart retail initiatives. Tencent will further develop the retail services offered on its social platforms and promote the use of Weixin as well as Weixin Pay, cloud computing and other services within the Carrefour ecosystem. The contemplated scope of cooperation includes key partnership areas such as cooperation on data, smart retail, mobile payment, in-store experience and data analysis to boost Carrefour China's customer traffic. Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Kostenloser Wertpapierhandel auf Smartbroker.de The broker has announced the addition of two new crypto-pairs amid increasing appetite for cryptocurrency trading. HYCM, a multi-regulated global leader in online capital markets trading, has launched trading on two additional cryptocurrencies, Ripple and Bitcoin Cash, adding XRP/USD and BCH/USD to its range of cryptocurrency offerings. The decision to add Ripple and Bitcoin Cash to its existing crypto offerings, Bitcoin, Litecoin and Ethereum, follows the continued increase in demand from investors in the wake of the recent cryptocurrency boom. HYCM thus now offers 24/5 leveraged trading on the most volatile virtual currencies coupled with low spreads and competitive margins. Ripple (XRP) is both a transaction network and crypto token which was created in 2012 as the go-to cryptocurrency for banks and global money transfers, and has recently experienced a period of growth. Bitcoin Cash (BCH) meanwhile, is a blockchain derived from the Bitcoin blockchain which followed the split of Bitcoin (hard fork) in August 2017. Bitcoin Cash has also recently experienced gains as investors seek to diversify their portfolios through altcoins. At today's date, Ripple currently has the third largest market capitalisation of all cryptocurrencies at over $48 billion, while Bitcoin Cash ranks fourth with a market cap of over $26 billion as compared with $176 billion for Bitcoin and $93 billion for Ethereum.* Cryptocurrencies have taken the financial world by storm at a faster pace than anyone anticipated. Bitcoin, the world's largest crypto by market capitalisation continues its meteoric rise, having spearheaded the cryptocurrency trend after its launch in 2009. As Bitcoin and its other crypto-counterparts continue to exhibit the potential to deliver substantial opportunities, more and more investors have been attracted by them as a means to earning potential financial rewards. HYCM was one of the first brokers to launch cryptocurrency CFD trading. The latest additions to its offerings reinforces the company's position as one of the industry's leading brokers. Stavros Lambouris, HYCM CEO commented, "There is no doubt that cryptocurrencies play a key role in forex trading as well as in the industry as a whole. We are expanding our offerings to help our clients diversify in cryptocurrencies in the same way as they do in traditional instruments. By adding Ripple and Bitcoin Cash to our platform, HYCM is making it easier and more accessible for investors seeking opportunities to capitalise on the performance of even more of the most in-demand cryptocurrencies". *HYCM data HYCM: Notes to editors HYCM is a leading provider of online FX and CFD trading services to retail and institutional investors. With a 40 year operational history and a strong focus on client satisfaction and technological advancement, HYCM has become the online broker of choice for investors across the globe, providing access to a range of asset classes including currencies, commodities, metals, shares, indices and cryptocurrencies. HYCM offers clients a complete trading solution together with all the trading tools and analysis needed to make informed trading decisions. Backed by its state-of-the-art trading platforms, including mobile app enabling clients to trade while on the go, HYCM has secured a strong industry reputation for delivering a trading experience that is second to none. HYCM is part of the Henyep Capital Markets Group, an international conglomerate with businesses in financial services, property, education and charity and is multi-regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority of the UK (FCA), the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) and the Dubai Financial Service Authority (DFSA). The company is represented globally with offices in United Kingdom, Hong Kong, Cyprus and Dubai. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005649/en/ Contacts: HYCM Rosemary Barnes Email: rosemary.barnes@hycm.com Telephone: +357 25 24 5750 www.hycm.com Regulatory News: After the recent successes in Ajaccio, Le Mans, Romans, Lisieux, Cur Cote Fleurie, Carcan-Maubuisson, Beaune and Troyes, Veolia's (Paris:VIE) Water business in France has just been awarded new contracts by the city of Saint-Pierre in Reunion Island, Frontignan and the La Barche inter-municipal wastewater service. These new contracts represent cumulative sales of 170 million. Effective from January 1, 2018, Veolia, through its Reunion Island subsidiary Runeo, is again in charge of the drinking water and wastewater public service management contracts for the city of Saint-Pierre (pop.: 82,000) for 11 years. The aim is to provide the municipality's consumers with increasingly efficient services that are available to all and environmentally friendly. Particular attention will be paid to customer relations and consumer support. As a consequence, the new drinking water public service contract places significant emphasis on working closely with customers by providing a fully refurbished customer service center based around a consulting area. It will also see the introduction of Hypervision 360, putting digital technology to work to assist elected representatives, field operatives and users. This innovative supervision and management service delivers predictive operational management by combining all water service data and information sensor data, warning systems and repair and work order sheets in real time. The new wastewater public service contract for the municipality of Saint-Pierre will include additional resources for wastewater collection network maintenance, and innovative technology to treat bad odors. Greater focus will be placed on material recovery, as almost 100% of the treatment sludge will now be converted into compost as part of a circular economy approach. To ensure the sustainable management of the facilities, Runeo will step up measures to reduce energy and reagent consumption, and the emission of greenhouse gases. It also plans to improve supervision of the 17,000 individual wastewater systems to ensure they are operating correctly. Finally, educational talks will be given in schools, and site visits and open days will provide an opportunity for the general public and industrial concerns to find out more about the facilities and the issues around wastewater treatment. The inter-municipal drinking water service, covering the municipalities of Frontignan, Balaruc-les-Bains and Balaruc-le-Vieux, has also renewed its trust in Veolia to manage its drinking water service supplying water to 31,775 people. Here again, the elected representatives were particularly responsive to the Hypervision 360 innovation, which, together with the rollout of smart water meters, will provide them with an overview of the service in real time. This will lead to improved performance through the better use of data. Under this new 10-year contract, Veolia commits to achieving a yield of 85% by the end of the contractual period. Finally, Veolia has been awarded a 12-year wastewater management concession contract from the La Barche inter-municipal wastewater service, which covers the municipalities of Hagondange, Talange, Bronvaux, Pierrevillers and Marange-Silvange (9,340 subscribers). The operation of a unit to inject biomethane into the public gas network as soon as it has been commissioned is one of the outstanding aspects of this contract. All the effluent collected will be treated at the Hagondange wastewater treatment plant. "These new contracts reflect our clients' trust in our teams. They were also an opportunity to present new innovations and a level of service to match their expectations for performance, responsiveness, governance and digitalization. These successes are also indicative of the drive behind our new corporate project, Osons 20/20, with its aim of making us the leader and THE reference for drinking water and wastewater services in the future in France. It is for this reason that Veolia Water France is making local engagement its number one priority in 2018 in order to improve our understanding of clients' needs and to respond even more quickly to their expectations," explains Frederic Van Heems, CEO of Veolia Water France. Veolia group is the global leader in optimised resource management. With over 163,000 employees worldwide, the Group designs and provides water, waste and energy management solutions that contribute to the sustainable development of communities and industries. Through its three complementary business activities, Veolia helps to develop access to resources, preserve available resources, and to replenish them. In 2016, the Veolia group supplied 100 million people with drinking water and 61 million people with wastewater service, produced 54 million megawatt hours of energy and converted 30 million metric tonnes of waste into new materials and energy. Veolia Environnement (listed on Paris Euronext: VIE) recorded consolidated revenue of 24.39 billion in 2016. www.veolia.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005655/en/ Contacts: Veolia Environnement Group Media Relations Laurent Obadia Sandrine Guendoul Stephane Galfre Tel.: 33 (0)6 09 78 22 63 stephane.galfre@veolia.com Regulatory News: This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005303/en/ The Carrefour (Paris:CA) and La Poste groups announce today the signing of a partnership to accelerate the development, on a national scale, of home delivery services for food and non-food shopping, for the benefit of consumers. This partnership is part of the priorities of the "Carrefour 2022" plan, presented today by Alexandre Bompard, Chairman and CEO of the Carrefour Group, whose aim is to accelerate the group's digital transformation by developing an omni-channel system of reference. Carrefour Livraison Express to reach 15 cities at end 2018 After successful roll-out in Paris and its immediate surroundings, followed by Lyon, Bordeaux, Toulouse and Montpellier, the Carrefour and La Poste groups will deploy the Carrefour Livraison Express service in 10 new cities in 2018: Clermont-Ferrand, Dijon, Grenoble, Lille, Nancy, Nantes, Nice, Reims, Rennes and Strasbourg. This one-hour delivery service has been operated, since its creation in 2016, by Stuart, a subsidiary of the La Poste group specialized in urgent urban deliveries. A new delivery service from Carrefour Drive On the back of their successful cooperation for Carrefour Livraison Express, the two groups have decided to launch this year a new delivery service from Drive Carrefour (hypermarkets and supermarkets). This service will be tested in 2018 in two pilot cities. Delivery will also be operated by Stuart. The density of the La Poste network and of Carrefour stores is an opportunity to deploy home delivery services nationwide, with La Poste providing Carrefour with expertise in last-mile management to simplify the lives of customers of the food retail group and offer them a broader range of services. Carrefour Livraison Express at a glance Launched in 2016 in Paris and its immediate surroundings (Neuilly, Levallois, Malakoff, Vanves and Bagnolet), Carrefour Express Delivery was extended in 2017 to Lyon, Bordeaux, Toulouse and Montpellier. It is an ultra-fast delivery service, which allows home delivery of online purchases within one hour. Thanks to Carrefour's "Livraison express" app, the customer draws up his shopping list from a wide range of food SKUs (fresh food, groceries ...) and some everyday non-food SKUs (hygiene, beauty, hardware products...). Customers choose their delivery window (30 minutes) and the delivery is invoiced at a fixed price of 4.90, with no minimum purchase amount The delivery is operated by Stuart, a subsidiary of the La Poste group specializing in urgent urban deliveries by bicycle or cargo bikes from Carrefour Market and Carrefour City stores. About Carrefour A global leader and the reference in food retail, Carrefour operates more than 12,000 stores and e-commerce sites in more than 30 countries. Carrefour is a multi-local, multi-format and omni-channel retail Group that employs more than 384,000 people worldwide and generated total sales of 103.7 billion euros under its banners in 2016. Every day, Carrefour welcomes 13 million customers around the world and is actively committed to quality and to more sustainable trade. The Group's Corporate Social Responsibility worldwide approach is built on three pillars: fighting against waste in all its forms, protecting biodiversity and working alongside the company's partners. For more information: www.carrefour.com,@CarrefourGroup About Le Groupe La Poste A wholly state-owned public limited company, Le Groupe La Poste is structured around five core business units: Services-Mail-Parcels, La Banque Postale, Network La Poste, GeoPost, and Digital Services. The Group operates out of 40 countries in four continents. La Poste's 17,000 postal retail outlets make it France's leading local business network, serving 1.6 million customers every day. Every year, La Poste delivers 23.265 billion items worldwide (letters, printed advertising media and parcels), 6 days a week. In 2016, the Group generated 23.294 billion in revenues (22.4% from outside France) and had a headcount of more than 250,000. In its strategic plan "La Poste 2020: conquering the future" strategic plan, La Poste has set itself the objective of stepping up its transformation with the active expansion into new regions. With its goal of becoming the leading company in local personal services, for everyone, everywhere, every day, La Poste is committed to making life simpler for all. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005303/en/ Contacts: Carrefour Group Group Communication +33 (0) 1 41 04 26 17 or Investor Relations +33 (0) 1 41 04 28 83 or La Poste Group Media Relations +33 (0)1 55 44 22 37 service.presse@laposte.fr Inaugural European office will be an artificial intelligence laboratory that fosters AI for Good and a hub for organizations to work with Element AI's talent Element AI, an artificial intelligence company that delivers groundbreaking AI solutions, is expanding to Europe with an AI lab in London, UK. Dr. Julien Cornebise, a former DeepMind scientist, will be leading the London office. The initial focus will be on 'AI for Good' whilst expanding Element AI's unique collaborative network with industry, university researchers, and both governmental and non-governmental organizations; an approach engineered to promote knowledge sharing that benefits all. This office will also serve as Element AI's European head office with growth plans to include over 20 full-time researchers and employees. Headquartered in Montreal, Canada, Element AI solves the world's most difficult problems for organizations worldwide; delivering AI applications that give companies a competitive edge to outperform their competition. Serial entrepreneurs Jean-Francois Gagne, Nicolas Chapados, and Yoshua Bengio, a pioneer of deep learning, founded Element AI in October 2016 with the goal of empowering industry by leveraging the talent of elite AI academics. Drawing on their extensive backgrounds and success in research and industry deployment, Element AI is uniquely poised to deliver innovative AI products, solutions, and contribute to applied AI research. Element AI's lab in London will start by focusing on three core initiatives: Leveraging AI to help solve global issues by empowering NGOs, intergovernmental entities, and local actors; Advancing methodological research as needed by these applications; Promoting and connecting talented AI scientists and engineers in developing nations through fellowships and visiting scholar programs. The London office will eventually grow into a full stack office. "Element AI's expansion into Europe with a London office is our first step in collaborating with Europe's top AI talent and connecting them with our extensive AI teams in Canada; all while working with several of the most prestigious organizations to leverage AI for Good," said Element AI CEO Jean-Francois Gagne. "Element AI is committed to enabling AI for Good in our society; we believe this technology can help tackle some of the world's most pressing issues and London will help make that a reality. We've handpicked Dr. Julien Cornebise to lead our efforts in London because his values and experience aligns with Element AI's goal to balance advances in industry while leading the charge for positive social change. Julien's unique experience includes applying AI to humanitarian issues in collaboration with Amnesty International and co-founding the Health Research team during his time at DeepMind. We are confident that Julien is the right leader to kick start our European operations and are thrilled to have him on board." Dr. Julien Cornebise will lead the London Office as Director of Research. Julien joined DeepMind Technologies Limited (later acquired by Google) in 2012 as an early employee. In his four years at DeepMind, he led several fundamental research directions used in early demos and fundraising, and helped create and lead its Health Applied Research Team. Since leaving DeepMind in 2016, he has been working with Amnesty International. Julien holds an MSc in Computer Engineering, an MSc in Mathematical Statistics, and earned his PhD in Mathematics, specialised in Computational Statistics, from University Paris VI Pierre and Marie Curie, for which he received the 2010 Savage Award from the International Society for Bayesian Analysis. "AI for Good can mean many things at Element AI, I see it as using AI and ML to empower those who are already fighting the good fights," said Julien Cornebise, Director of Research and Head of London Office. "Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning are powerful tools that deserve deployment beyond industrial, market-driven applications. Amazing people in NGOs, international organizations, and local initiatives alike, have dedicated their lives to solving the most important problems, such as fighting for human rights, more equitable access to resources, and education. At Element AI, we want to give these amazing organizations access to the type of AI talent that is out of reach for so many, working hand-in-hand on their world-changing programs and initiatives, driven by their domain knowledge." Matt Sansam, Innovation Lead for Digital at Innovate UK said, "Element AI's establishment of a London office is testament to the strengths of the UK research and innovation ecosystem in AI, and the potential for industrial collaborations with our businesses. When we met with the company during a recent Expert Mission to Canada, it was clear there were many opportunities for these partnerships to thrive in the future, and their new UK base is a very positive step forward. We look forward to facilitating further partnerships under the remit of the UK-Canada Memorandum-of-Understanding (MoU) on Science, Technology and Innovation." About Element AI Element AI delivers groundbreaking artificial intelligence solutions to enterprise companies, bringing together the best AI experts and top entrepreneurs to produce next generation AI capabilities for any organization. Element AI is headquartered in Montreal, Canada and is funded by leading investors including BDC Capital, Data Collective, Fidelity Investments Canada, Hanwha Investment, Intel Capital, Microsoft Ventures, National Bank, NVIDIA GPU Ventures, Real Ventures, and Tencent. http://www.elementai.com View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005637/en/ Contacts: Media Contact for Element AI in Canada, Europe, and APAC: Caroline Bourbonniere, 514-261-4740 media@elementai.com or Media Contact for Element AI in the United States: Gregg Delman, 415-935-1804 Gregg@gthreemedia.com Black Dragon Gold Corp. (TSX-V:BDG) ("Black Dragon" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has commenced a 6 hole 2,200m exploration drilling programme on the Salave gold deposit in Asturias, Spain, following the receipt of approval from the Asturias Ministry of Employment, Industry Tourism, as well as the Municipality of Tapia de Casariego. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005723/en/ The previous NI 43-101 Mineral Resource Estimate for the Salave Project (Amended Technical Report with effective date of October 7, 2016) defined measured and indicated resources totalling 6.52 million Tonnes grading 4.51 g/t Au containing 944,000 ounces of gold using a 2.0 g/t cutoff grade. This mineral resource estimate identified sub-vertical structures which require further understanding and definition. The current drilling programme therefore has been designed to accomplish the following: confirm the orientation of higher grade gold mineralization intersected in numerous drill holes during previous diamond drilling programmes provide information on the orientation of structures that potentially control the orientation of gold mineralization at Salave; confirm the gold tenor and intersection lengths of previous diamond drill holes; provide additional samples for metallurgical test work optimisation studies; and provide additional structural and geotechnical data for ongoing project development studies. The programme will push deeper into the Salave Lower Zone with expected depths reaching 350m from surface (vertical), but with holes angled between 65 and 75. Two drill rigs have been mobilized and all holes will be drilled from two locations, minimising surface disturbance, and reducing the time required to complete the programme. It is expected that the programme will be completed before the end of February 2018, with assay results expected to be received a few weeks following completion. Figure 1 below details the plan map of proposed drill hole locations over a plan view of the current block model showing 5m blocks where grade exceeds 10g/t Au., and Figure 2 below provides a cross section for hole BD_1. Paul Cronin, Managing Director and CEO of Black Dragon Gold commented: "The receipt of the confirmation of approval to commence drilling is an extremely positive development for Black Dragon and indicative of the success of the Company's strategy to positively develop strong working relationships with government, both at the provincial and community level. I would like to congratulate our new General Manager, Jose Manuel Dominguez, whose efforts since his appointment in October have led to this milestone being achieved. As discussions with our regulators continue, and the results of this drilling programme are evaluated, we plan to complete a new Mineral Resource Estimate and Preliminary Economic Analysis on the Salave deposit, paving the way for a revised Development Application and Environmental and Social Impact Assessment. Additionally, the company is in the process of defining an extensive exploration programme across our concessions in Asturias with the aim to identify other high priority drill targets along the granodiorite alteration zones to the east, west and south of the current Salave deposit where historical soil and rock chips samples identified anomalous high grade gold mineralisation." Signed "Paul Cronin" Chief Executive Officer Managing Director on behalf of the Board of Directors BLACK DRAGON GOLD CORP. 1000 Cathedral Place 925 West Georgia Street Vancouver, BC, V6C 3L2 Canada T- +44 20 79934077 info@blackdragongold.com www.blackdragongold.com About Black Dragon Gold Black Dragon Gold "BDG" is the 100% owner of the largest undeveloped gold project in Europe, the Salave project. Salave is situated in the North of Spain in the province of Asturias. The Salave project has measured and indicated resources totalling 6.52 million Tonnes grading 4.51 g/t Au containing 944,000 ounces of gold at a 2.0 g/t cutoff grade and gold price of USD$1,100/ounce. For more information on the Salave project, please refer to the technical report, "Amended Technical Report on the Salave Gold Project, Asturias Region, Spain" dated October 7, 2016, as amended January 31, 2017, filed on SEDAR. In addition to the current mineral resource, historical exploration work suggests there is the potential for additional mineralisation within Black Dragon's landholdings. Douglas Turnbull, P.Geo., a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information disclosed herein. Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Information This document contains certain forward-looking information, including statements regarding future work programs, proposed resource estimates and other studies, which are based on the then-current expectations, beliefs, assumptions, estimates and forecasts about the business and the markets in which the Company operates. Investors are cautioned that all forward-looking information involves risks and uncertainties, including: the inherent risks and uncertainties involved in resource estimation, the interpretation of exploration results and the general exploration and development of mineral properties, the potential for delays in exploration or development activities, the geology, grade and continuity of mineral deposits, the possibility that future exploration or other results will not be consistent with expectations, accidents, equipment breakdowns, title and permitting matters, labour disputes or other unanticipated difficulties with or interruptions in operations, fluctuating metal prices, unanticipated costs and expenses, unanticipated delays in the completion of work or studies and uncertainties relating to the availability and costs of financing needed in the future. These risks, as well as others, including those set forth in the Company's filings with Canadian securities regulators, could cause actual results and events to vary significantly. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. There can be no assurance that forward-looking information, or the material factors or assumptions used to develop such forward looking information, will prove to be accurate. The Company does not undertake any obligations to release publicly any revisions for updating any voluntary forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable securities law. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005723/en/ Contacts: Black Dragon Gold Corp. Paul Cronin, +44 20 79934077 Chief Executive Officer Managing Director info@blackdragongold.com Group photo of Oceanwide Financial Management, Guests of Honour and Sponsors. HONG KONG, Jan 23, 2018 - (ACN Newswire) - The award presentation ceremony of Quamnet Outstanding Enterprise Awards 2017 (QOEA), organized by Quamnet, successfully held on 18 January 2018 at The American Club Hong Kong. Representatives of awarded companies, distinguished guests, business elites gathered to honor the remarkable achievements of outstanding enterprises.Stepping towards its 9th year; Excellent companies flourishes in QOEASince 2009, Quamnet has been organizing Quamnet Outstanding Enterprise Awards (QOEA), which has committed to appraise outstanding enterprises for their success with rigorous assessment. Remarking its ninth year, with the theme of "Dedication to Achievement", QOEA aims to acknowledge and recognize all winning companies for their devotion in making remarkable achievements and thus creating values for Hong Kong economy.A total of 23 awards were presented in recognition of the achievements of enterprises covering different sectors and industries.Among the winners, 14 enterprises awarded in the previous years, won the awards again, including Agile Group Holdings Limited, The Bank of East Asia, Limited, Censere Group, China CITIC Bank International Limited, China Construction Bank (Asia), China Life Trustees Limited, Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Limited, CITIC Telecom International CPC Limited, K. Wah International Holdings Limited, Kerry Logistics, Macquarie Capital Limited, New World Development Company Limited, Transamerica Life (Bermuda) Ltd, Yuexiu Transport Infrastructure Limited. Meanwhile, 9 enterprises were awarded for the first time, including China CITIC Bank International Private Banking, China LotSynergy Holdings Limited, China Unicom Global Limited, Dah Chong Hong Holdings Limited, Dah Sing Bank, Limited, E Fund Management (HK) Co., Ltd, HNA Group (International) Company Limited, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co. Ltd. Hong Kong Branch and Union Medical Healthcare Limited.Grand occasion celebrated and embraced by business communityAt the ceremony, Mr. Stacey Wong, Chief Operating and Risk Officer of Oceanwide Financial Group, said, "With this year's theme of "Dedication to Achievement", we strongly believe that enterprises have shown their determination to achieve success and creating values for business community and society as a whole with their capability and commitments in sustainable development." Meanwhile, Mr. Chris Wu, Chief Financial Officer of Oceanwide Financial Group, appreciated the support from award presenters, added, "The Awards have set a benchmark for both the industry and the business community to become aware of the efforts of the awarded companies, in turn, it enhances Hong Kong's long-established image of business and financial center in the world."Quamnet was honored to invite Ms. Lee Sai Yin Jeanne, JP, Chairman of The Hong Kong Securities Professionals Association, Dr. Victor S K Lee, Executive Director of The Hong Kong Management Association, Mr. Li Chan Wing, Professional Corporate Trainer, Mr. Benny Mau, Permanent Honorary President of Hong Kong Securities Association, Hon Charles Mok, JP, Legislative Councillor (IT) of HKSAR, Mr. Vincent Tang, Associate Director-General of Investment of InvestHK, Dr. Gordon Tsui, Vice Chairman of Hong Kong Securities Association, Mr. Mike Wong, Chief Executive Officer of The Chamber of Hong Kong Listed Companies, as our guests of honor to witness the glorification of the outstanding enterprises.Ms. Lee Sai Yin Jeanne, JP said she was pleased to attend the award presentation ceremony. She added, "To accomplish great things amid the competitive environment, winning companies did not only act, but also dreamed for a better scope of opportunities." Dr. Victor S K Lee was pleased to witness the growing number of enterprises being acknowledged by this Awards, which definitely enhances the reputation of the business community in Hong Kong. Mr. Li Chan Wing noted that the award recipients, showcase the diversity of Hong Kong's economy and ample opportunities.Mr Benny Mau, stated "I am glad to witness the awarded companies this year have demonstrated their strong competitiveness and determination to success among the industry peers." Hon Charles Mok, JP , said "Not only does Quamnet Outstanding Enterprise Awards offer a grand occasion to celebrate the remarkable moments of these awarded companies, it also provides a valuable opportunity for the industry peers to learn and to strive for a better future together." Mr. Vincent Tang, Associate Director-General of Investment of InvestHK said he is excited to find that some winners have long been established in Hong Kong, that have been leading the business community and the society to hold on together to a brighter future.Dr. Gordon Tsui, added "Awardees this year has shown their determination and dedication in business innovation, market intelligence, capital expansion, corporate governance and sustainability, that they have motivated the society to move forward on a path toward greater developments." Mr. Mike Wong, said enterprises in Hong Kong are reputed for their swiftness in adapting to the fast-changing business environment, reflecting their flexibility and ability in identifying new business opportunities.Keys to success of outstanding enterprisesAgile Enhances Brand with Balances in Green LivingWith flexibility and promotion on upgraded brand promotion, Agile have significant performance in providing comprehensive living services in line with real estate policies in China. Agile celebrated 25th Anniversary in 2017 and it marked the extensive presence in the diversified business development of multi-dimensional services. The results have been extraordinary and it sets a new benchmark for the China real estate market.Mr. Samson Chan, Senior Manager of Investor Relations and Corporate Affairs of Agile Group Holdings Limited, was pleased to tell that the company has been awarded Outstanding China Real Estate Enterprise again, he stated that the Company will adhere to focus on property development supported by a diversified range of businesses, and dedicate to offer comprehensive lifestyle solutions for the society.China CITIC Bank International's Multi-Dimensional Development Aspiring to be the "China Bank of Choice"China CITIC Bank International has long been providing professional integrated banking and wealth management services and is committed to delivering comprehensive wealth management and succession solutions. With their excellent services, China CITIC Bank International is awarded two awards by Quamnet Outstanding Enterprise Awards, namely Outstanding Private Banking Service 2017 and Outstanding Wealth Management Bank 2017.Mr. Alfred Lau, Deputy General Manager & Head of Investment Advisory, Private Banking Management, said "it is our pleasure to be honoured. Both Private Banking and Wealth Management are the main focuses of our business. The awards definitely was a recognition of the company's contribution in the past year, further motivated us to reach higher in the future. We will continue its progress and pursue to be the 'China Bank of Choice'".With Integrated Distribution and Trading, Dah Chong Hong Creates Intrinsic Value for SocietyAs a long-established trading and distribution company in Greater China and Southeast Asia, Dah Chong Hong has successfully provided quality products and strategic distribution solutions for nearly 70 years, creating extraordinary value for the community. Ms Kitty Fung, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer of Dah Chong Hong Holdings Limited thanked Quamnet for recognizing the company as an Outstanding Integrated Distribution and Trading Enterprise in 2017, noting that the award was a great encouragement to the company for its contribution and progress.Ms Kitty Fung, added that Dah Chong Hong will continue to strive for a better future and pursue sustainable growth on behalf of all its stakeholders. With the generous support of CITIC Pacific, she strongly believes that Dah Chong Hong will have a prosperous future in cooperation and partnership with the community of Hong Kong.KWIH committed to the highest standard of corporate governance and transparent communicationK. Wah International Holdings Limited ("KWIH"), listed in Hong Kong, is an integrated property developer and investor with a foothold in Hong Kong, the Yangtze River Delta and Pearl River Delta regions. Its property projects are built with an uncompromising standard to excellence and quality.This year, KWIH garnered the Outstanding Corporate Governance Award for the 2nd consecutive year in recognition of its outstanding achievements in maintaining a high standard of corporate governance and reinforcing proactive and regular stakeholder communication.The Group called off its 2017 interim results announcement press conference and investor presentation as a typhoon signal No. 10 happened to batter the city right on the day. Nevertheless, thanks to a team of experienced staff members who reacted timely enough to formulate a contingency plan beforehand - and that enabled a smooth board meeting via teleconferencing and the Directors had no physical or geographically constraints to obtain an agreement on the interim results. In the meantime, the Group also maintained close communication with the investor and media sectors so as to disseminate the key messages in a timely manner.KWIH is committed to upholding the highest standard of integrity and accountability as well as to maintaining the best corporate governance practices in order to deliver long-term shareholder value.Macquarie Adapts to Market Changes, Further Explores Asian BusinessesMacquarie has a long history of participation and presence in the warrant markets in Hong Kong. Embracing its 20th year of issuing warrants in Hong Kong with a solid foundation locally, Macquarie's businesses of warrants and CBBCs have been widely present in many Asian markets such as Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Taiwan, enhancing its leading position in Asia markets.Cater to investors seeking for convenient and efficient information, Macquarie keeps abreast of the time and actively explores e-business services by electronizing investing information. Macquarie aims to provide more instant market trends and allows investors to obtain the most up-to-date information. Meanwhile, Macquarie offers various e-platforms for warrants and CBBCs, including websites, apps and social media. This makes it a warrant issuer which offers the most-diversified investing information among its peers.SPD Bank Hong Kong Branch Focuses on International Strategy with Liaison between Shanghai and Hong KongNowadays, banks in China are actively looking international development to enhance its competitiveness and global image. The Hong Kong Branch is Shanghai Pudong Development Bank's (SPD Bank) first overseas branch, which is a milestone of the cooperation between Shanghai and Hong Kong. It also demonstrates SPD Bank's resolution of going global. Ms Zhang Li, CEO of SPD Bank Hong Kong Branch, feels honored that the branch has been awarded the Outstanding International Banking Services 2017 by Quamnet. She sees the award as a recognition of SPD Bank's global development and sincere services to customers. Zhang Li said, "2018 is the 25th Anniversary for SPD Bank and with the opening of overseas branches in Singapore etc., SPD Bank will accelerate its pace in international development. In the future, SPD Bank will operate with innovative ideas in financial business, making good use of the opportunities between Shanghai and Hong Kong, fulfilling the financial demand of overseas clients and supporting them to explore more business opportunities.Grand ceremony well supported by sponsors and mediaIn addition to a strong lineup of guests, the award presentation ceremony attracted numerous media and sponsors both in Hong Kong and China. Our supporting media partners include our supporting media partners include Metro Daily, Economic Digest, The Standard, JRZJ.com, p5w, Caiguu, CNFOL, CEOFX, StockStar, EastMoney, FXGold, and TOP NEWS. The prizes and product sponsors include Adrien Gagnon, Canon, EyeCare HK, FX Creations, Impact Mints, Numismed, OneHealth and Wing On Travel.Quamnet Outstanding Enterprise Awards 2017 (Alphabetical Listing by Company Name)Categories / Award Recipients1. Outstanding China Real Estate Enterprise 2017 / Agile Group Holdings Limited2. Outstanding SME Service Provider (Bank) 2017 / The Bank of East Asia, Limited3. Outstanding Business Appraisal and Valuation Services 2017 / Censere Group4. Outstanding Private Banking Service 2017 / China CITIC Bank International Private Banking5. Outstanding Wealth Management Bank 2017 / China CITIC Bank International Limited6. Outstanding Cross-Border Financial Services 2017 / China Construction Bank (Asia)7. Outstanding MPF Scheme 2017 / China Life Trustees Limited8. Outstanding Public Welfare Lottery Company 2017 / China LotSynergy Holdings Limited9. Outstanding Global Information Service Provider 2017 / China Unicom Global Limited10. Outstanding Premium Jewelry Brand 2017 / Chow Tai Fook Jewellery Group Limited11. Outstanding ICT Solution Provider 2017 / CITIC Telecom International CPC Limited12. Outstanding Integrated Distribution and Trading Enterprise 2017 / Dah Chong Hong Holdings Limited13. Outstanding Enterprise Transaction Banking Services 2017 / Dah Sing Bank, Limited14. Outstanding Asset Management Company 2017 / E Fund Management (HK) Co., Ltd15. Outstanding Valuable Enterprise 2017 / HNA Group (International) Company Limited16. Outstanding Corporate Governance 2017 / K. Wah International Holdings Limited17. Outstanding Global 3PL 2017 / Kerry Logistics18. Outstanding Warrant Issuer 2017 / Macquarie Capital Limited19. Outstanding Investor Relations 2017 / New World Development Company Limited20. Outstanding International Banking Services 2017 / Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co. Ltd. Hong Kong Branch21. Outstanding Life Insurance Company 2017 / Transamerica Life (Bermuda) Ltd.22. Outstanding Leader in Medical Service Provider 2017 / Union Medical Healthcare Limited23. Outstanding Investment and Development of Infrastructure 2017 / Yuexiu Transport Infrastructure Limited"Quamnet Outstanding Enterprise Awards 2017" PhotosFor more photos, please visit Quamnet Outstanding Enterprise Awards website: http://quamedm.quamnet.com/landing/QOEA2017For enquiry, please contact:Oceanwide Financial Media LimitedEvent & MediaMs. Jane Chan T: 2217-2906, Email: jane.chan@oceanwidefinancial.comMs. Stella Yuen T: 2217-2908, Email: stella.yuen@oceanwidefinancial.comMr. Dexter Chan T: 2217-2679, Email: dexter.chan@oceanwidefinancial.comMs. Nicola Lung T: 2217-2909, Email: nicola.lung@oceanwidefinancial.comSource: QuamnetCopyright 2018 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved. Reno, Nevada--(Newsfile Corp. - January 23, 2018) - Scandium International Mining Corp. (TSX: SCY) ("Scandium International" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has signed a Letter of Intent ("LOI") with Ohm & Haner Metallwerk GmbH & Co. GK ("O&H"), based in Olpe, Germany. O&H is a privately held manufacturer of sand cast and gravity die cast parts, using metal alloys, servicing a significant, global customer base. The LOI calls for the Company to contribute aluminium-scandium master alloy 2% ("MA"), for mixing and trial-testing of proprietary alloys based on aluminium-copper by O&H. The test work will be undertaken at O&M's production facility in Olpe, and at production scale. O&H intends to report the results of the testing program utilizing their scandium-containing alloys, as does SCY, upon completion of the testing period, which extends a minimum of 6 months. LOI AGREEMENT HIGHLIGHTS: LOI defines MA contributions and sourcing support to O&H programs, O&H commits to mix scandium-containing alloys and cast parts, Casting results are to be shared and understood, possibly publicly disclosed, depending on intellectual property discovery, O&H is a recognized leader in casting technology, servicing a range of customers in industrial, mechanical, and transport industries, and Successful test work program forms basis for future use of scandium alloy by O&H. DISCUSSION: Ohm & Haner Metallwerk GmbH & Co. GK is a significant metal parts sand cast and die cast manufacturer in Europe, catering to customers requiring specialized and demanding metal cast parts. The company is privately owned, with over 650 employees, currently serving more than 400 customers. O&H produces over 3,000 individual cast parts, and currently works with over 40 different alloys, primarily aluminum and copper-based alloys, customized to individual process, unique pieces and heavy castings for special applications. The company can offer various finished product upgrade services to meet customer needs, from technical design consultation, to casting simulation, final machining and mechanical processing, to assembly, finish coating services and intermediate stocking and parts warehousing. The cast aluminium alloys segment represents roughly 30% of the global aluminium alloy market today. Casting processes present different manufacturing challenges from the wrought/extrusion segment, and they typically rely on more customized alloy recipes and highly engineered shapes for performance. They are fundamentally parts businesses, rather than strictly sheet and shapes businesses, making them more closely tied to specific customers and specific performance requirements. Scandium brings benefits to the casting process for some alloys, but the benefits obtained are then unique to the rigors of the specific manufacturing process employed. Ohm & Haner is uniquely qualified to test the effects of scandium in its existing casting processes, and has already been investing in research regarding scandium impacts in cast systems, through University collaborations. This test work program is intended to demonstrate the effects of scandium additions on mechanical properties, processing efficiencies, process repeatability, and defect rates in part manufacture especially for aluminum-copper-based alloys. As an additional value, this test work will be conducted in a full production environment on real large-scale components. We believe this test work holds the potential to be an important step forward for scandium additions in the aluminum cast parts business, globally. As SCY reported in our December 14, 2017 News Release, SCANDIUM INTERNATIONAL - SALES AND MARKETING UPDATE, we believe the detailed alloy test work initiated in 2017 to specifically understand scandium's effects on aluminium alloys and to be able to offer both alloy samples, and identify scandium advantages, to key potential customers is a key step in promoting customer interest in our scandium feedstock products from the Nyngan Scandium Project in Australia. George Putnam, CEO of Scandium International Mining Corp. commented: "We are pleased to enlist the help and talent we found in the Ohm & Haner team, and their significant prior knowledge of scandium's potential, in generating data and support for scandium additions in cast alloys. This group has a history of seeking out and successfully delivering cast-manufactured parts to the most demanding specifications, so their orientation is perfect for a collaboration with SCY on scandium." Georg Dieckhues, PhD, Plant Director of Ohm & Haner commented: "We look forward to the collaboration with SCY. We are confident that this group is a reliable and reasonable resource for master alloys containing scandium to refine aluminium-copper-based casting materials in order to improve both on castability and technical properties of the final castings." QUALIFIED PERSONS AND NI 43-101 TECHNICAL REPORT Nigel J. Ricketts, BAppSc (Metallurgy), PhD (Chemical Engineering), MAusIMM CP (Metallurgy), holds the position of VP Projects and Market Development, Australia in the Company, is a qualified person for the purposes of NI 43-101, and has reviewed and approved the technical content of this press release on behalf of the Company. ABOUT SCANDIUM INTERNATIONAL MINING CORP. The Company is focused on developing its Nyngan Scandium Project, located in NSW, Australia, into the world's first scandium-only producing mine. The project has received all key approvals, including a mining lease, necessary to proceed with project construction. The Company filed a NI 43-101 technical report in May 2016, titled "Feasibility Study - Nyngan Scandium Project". That feasibility study delivered an expanded scandium resource, a first reserve figure, and an estimated 33.1% IRR on the project, supported by extensive metallurgical test work and an independent, 10-year global marketing outlook for scandium demand. For inquiries to Scandium International Mining Corp, please contact: Edward Dickinson (CFO) Tel: (775) 233-7328 George Putnam (CEO) Tel: (925) 208-1775 Email: info@scandiummining.com This press release contains forward-looking statements about the Company and its business. Forward looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and include, but are not limited to statements regarding any future development of the project. The forward-looking statements in this press release are subject to various risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company's actual results or achievements to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by forward looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and other factors include, without limitation risks related to uncertainty in the demand for Scandium in 3D printing applications; the possibility that results of test work by AML will not fulfill expectations and realize the perceived market utilization and potential of scandium alloys that may be developed for sale by the Company. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, opinions and expectations of the Company's management at the time they are made, and other than as required by applicable securities laws, the Company does not assume any obligation to update its forward-looking statements if those beliefs, opinions or expectations, or other circumstances, should change. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - January 23, 2018) - ParcelPal Technology Inc. (CSE: PKG) (FSE: PT0) (OTC Pink: PTNYF) ("ParcelPal" or the "Company"), is pleased to provide an update to shareholders for the current work order contract with online retail outlet Amazon.com, Inc. ParcelPal has engaged in a work order contract with Amazon.com Inc. to fulfill package delivery on behalf of Amazon to residents in Metro Vancouver British Columbia, Canada. ParcelPal has seen exceptional growth in this division of the company since launch, growing over 115% week over week delivering approximately 150,000 packages since mid-November. Kelly Abbott, CEO of ParcelPal commented, "We are extremely excited to be working with such an amazing and innovative organization. Our work order contract with Amazon represents a key milestone in becoming a leader in the logistics space and Uberizing the movement of things. We look forward to further developing our relationship with Amazon and expanding our organization into other territories in the near future and will continue to ramp up operations immediately to meet demand." About ParcelPal Technology Inc. ParcelPal is a technology driven logistics company that connects consumers to the goods they love. Customers can shop at partner businesses and through the ParcelPal technology receive their purchased goods within an hour. The Company offers on-demand delivery of merchandise from leading retailers, restaurants and liquor stores in Vancouver and soon in major cities Canada-wide. ParcelPal Website: www.parcelpal.com CSE - Symbol: PKG FSE - Symbol: PT0 OTC - Symbol: PTNYF Contact: Peter Hinam, Director of ParcelPal Technology, Inc. - peter@parcelpal.com Forward Looking Information This news release contains forward looking statements relating to the Proposed Transaction, and the future potential of ParcelPal. Forward looking statements are often identified by terms such as "will", "may", "should", "intends", "anticipates", "expects", "plans" and similar expressions. All statements other than statements of historical fact, included in this release are forward looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties include, without limitation, risk that ParcelPal will not be successful due to, among other things, general risks relating to the mobile application industry, failure of ParcelPal to gain market acceptance and potential challenges to the intellectual property utilized in ParcelPal. There can be no assurance that any forward looking statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. The Company cannot guarantee that any forward looking statement will materialize and the reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward looking information. Such information, although considered reasonable by management at the time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company will only update or revise publicly any of the included forward looking statements as expressly required by Canadian securities laws. THE CSE HAS NEITHER APPROVED NOR DISAPPROVED THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN AND DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE Groupe PSA North America's headquarters will be operational by February The latest step of its 10-year plan for a progressive entry of Groupe PSA into North American market Highly skilled people will join the team as Groupe PSA North America grows into broader fields of the business Regulatory News: Groupe PSA (Paris:UG) has chosen to establish its new North American headquarters in Atlanta, Fulton County. The headquarters will be operational by February 2018. A core team has already been set up to build the strategy and steer its execution. The decision to locate in Atlanta came after a yearlong, nationwide search to find the optimal balance of business environment, standard of living and workforce. "We're thrilled that Groupe PSA the second largest carmaker in Europe and one of the top mobility providers in the world has picked Atlanta as its new North American home" said Governor Deal after his visit in France end 2017. "Groupe PSA joins a growing family of automotive manufacturers and suppliers operating here in Georgia. This announcement is a great win for our state and yet another testament to the strength of our business environment and infrastructure." "We looked at every aspect of the Atlanta community and found it to be the most suitable location for us," said Larry Dominique, President of PSA North America. "While the overall business environment, standard of living and university system played an important part in our decision, our unique needs in terms of technology, mobility innovation and car culture ultimately identified Atlanta as our perfect choice." In April 2016, Groupe PSA announced the return to the U.S. market in three phases plan as outlined in the Push to Pass strategic plan: mobility services at first, mobility services with Groupe PSA's vehicles then and finally retail sales. The first step has been already initiated with Free2Move aggregation platform launched in October 2017 in Seattle before rolling into other cities in the coming months. This application allows users to choose between a wide range of car, scooter and bike sharing transportation services. "We are at the epicenter of North America's auto industry and we are excited to welcome Groupe PSA to Georgia", said GDEcD Commissioner Pat Wilson. "When we visited PSA in Paris with Governor Deal a few weeks ago, we quickly learned that Groupe PSA would be a fantastic addition to our automotive community." About Groupe PSA The Groupe PSA designs unique automotive experiences and delivers mobility solutions to meet all client expectations. The Group has five car brands, PeugeotCitroenDSOpel and Vauxhall, as well as a wide array of mobility and smart services under its Free2Move brand, aiming to become a great car maker and the preferred mobility provider. It is an early innovator in the field of autonomous and connected cars. It is also involved in financing activities through Banque PSA Finance and in automotive equipment via Faurecia. Find out more at groupe-psa.com/en. Media library: medialibrary.groupe-psa.com / @GroupePSA Communications Department www.groupe-psa.com/en - +33 6 61 93 29 36 @GroupePSA View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180123005896/en/ Contacts: Groupe PSA Media: U.S: Shane Smith, 424-903-3665 (o) ssmith@pacificcommunicationsgroup.com or Corporate: Marguerite Hubsch, +33 6 78 80 09 53 marguerite.hubsch@mpsa.com NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - January 23, 2018) - On the front lines of luxury, sales professionals stand as brand ambassadors for firms from dozens of industries, including automobiles, travel, fashion, jewelry, watches, financial services, and many more. Because of the high visibility of these workers and their central role in generating revenue, companies across the luxury spectrum are redoubling their efforts to acquire, train, develop, and retain the right kind of talent. For the perspective of the luxury consumer on what constitutes an ideal salesperson and the factors that matter most, the New York-based Luxury Institute surveyed affluent consumers from the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, China, and Mexico for its 2018 State of the Luxury Industry annual report. Based on the opinions of the people who do business with luxury firms, it's impossible to understate the importance of customer interaction. Half of affluent consumers agree that luxury brand sales professionals deliver a personalized and relationship-oriented experience. A majority (53%) of affluent consumers say that superior customer service is an essential characteristic of a luxury brand, second in popularity only to superior quality (67%) as a core element of luxury. What's more, superior customer service and lifetime product guarantees are the most important influences on luxury purchase decisions, both cited by 44% of respondents worldwide. Regarding the required attributes of luxury sales professionals, behaving in a polite and courteous manner (57%) is the most widely cited among affluent consumers, followed closely by product expertise (55%) and trustworthiness (49%). Unfortunately for high-end firms, consumers worldwide say that recent trends are for the worse on these three fronts. Additional essential characteristics of luxury sales professionals are experience (46%), a professional demeanor (45%), and reliability (43%). Many respondents indicated that they want in-store representatives to be welcoming (44%) and approachable (38%). Jewelry and watches (42%), and leisure travel and hospitality (37%) are most frequently cited as industries in which the best luxury sales professionals can be found. Automotive (28%) and fashion apparel (27%) are also widely viewed as having high concentrations of superior sales professionals. Categories with the lowest percentages of consumers citing sales professionals as exemplary: real estate (14%), personal finance (18%), and designer shoes (18%). "Luxury firms today are trying all they can to drive top-line growth, including adapting elements of artificial intelligence into their sales process, but ironically it's the application of new technology that makes the front-line human element even more critical," says Luxury Institute CEO Milton Pedraza. "The replacement of robotic work underscores a rapidly emerging need for a humanistic, enlightened, high-performance worker who transcends gender, organizational type, or corporate hierarchy, one that I call the 'platinum collar worker,' because like the precious metal, platinum collar workers are catalytic, and help to create conditions for humanistic high performance within their companies, while remaining pure in ethics, and purpose." Affluent survey respondents also provided detailed answers to questions about their relationships with luxury brands and 2018 spending plans for dozens of luxury categories. Respondents in the United States came from households with minimum gross annual income of $150,000 per year, which represents the top 11% of households ranked by income, according to the 2013 Federal Reserve Board Survey of Consumer Finances. Worldwide, respondents met or exceeded the following income levels in local currency, approximating the top 10% of earners in their respective countries: United Kingdom (60,000); France, Germany, Italy (EUR50,000); China (1 million CNY); and Japan (150 million). The complete 2018 State of the Luxury Industry is available for purchase. For complete rankings and ratings with additional insights from this and other WealthSurvey reports, visit www.LuxuryInstitute.com, or contact Luxury Institute CEO Milton Pedraza (mpedraza@luxuryinstitute.com). Katherine Sousa ksousa@luxuryinstitute.com ALBANY, New York, January 23, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Global Airway/Lung Stent Market: Growing Acceptance of Minimally Invasive Procedures, Incidences of Lung Cancer Elevate Demand The global airway/lung stent market, as prognosticated by TMR, could grow at a 5.7% CAGR between 2017 and 2026 to be worth a US$0.1 bn approximately by the completion of the forecast tenure. In terms of product, the market could be divided into different segments, out of which self-expandable has been predicted to rank higher as it reaches a valuation of US$0.1 bn by the end of 2026. Geographically, North America could take a commanding position in the market on the basis of revenue. View Report Preview athttps://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/airway-lung-stent-market.html Lifesaving Functionality Helps Airway/Lung Stent to Develop its Prominence The world airway/lung stent market has been foreseen to attain growth on the back of a growing preference for minimally invasive procedures, escalating number of lung cancer cases around the globe, and the aggressive increase in the size of geriatric population. Airway/lung stent has been gaining a whole lot of significance due to its lifesaving functionality as it lowers the risk of heart attack. While this could lead to a strong growth in the market, the advent of new products as a result of the advancement in technology has been projected to help vendors to extend their reach in the industry. Today, device manufacturing involves the usage of 3D printing which has experienced a swift development in the recent time. Consequently, 3D printing has been extensively used by clinicians and researchers. This could be evident with the organized development of 3D printed drug-coated and patient-specific stents executed by researchers at ETH Zurich, the University of Hospital Zurich, and the University of Zurich. Request to View Sample of Report -https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=S&rep_id=36587 Alternative Treatments Bench Airway/Lung Stent while Weakening Adoption On the negative side of growth, the international airway/lung stent market has been envisaged to be vulnerable as the adoption of stents suffers a decline due to the presence of substitute treatments. For instance, end-to-end anastomosis, tracheostomy cannula, laryngofissure creation, anterior cricotracheal resection, and steroid regimen could be used as substitute treatments for tracheal stenosis. Nevertheless, players could expect lucrative business prospects to come through with university partnerships for economical methods and product innovation. Changes in stent size and type to avoid complications such as airway perforation, migration, and granulation tissue formation have been expected to draw more business in the market. North America bearing an expansive presence of stents manufacturers could also create ample of opportunities in the market. Download PDF Brochure of Report:https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/sample/sample.php?flag=B&rep_id=36587 The global airway/lung stent market has been foreseen to witness the growing prominence of established players such as Boston Scientific Corporation which had demonstrated a substantial growth in 2016. However, according to Transparency Market Research (TMR), other companies such as Cook Medical Inc., Teleflex Inc., and C. R. Bard, Inc. could also be in the hunt of securing a major share of the market. In the recent years, Boston Scientific has been involved in the acquisition of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to stretch its product portfolio in intervention pulmonology. This had been evident when it acquired intervention pulmonology and gastroenterology products manufacturer, EndoChoice Holdings. The company has been anticipated to sustain its stronghold in the global airway/lung stent market with the help of its brand value and innovations. Buy Airway/Lung Stent Market Research Report:https://www.transparencymarketresearch.com/checkout.php?rep_id=36587